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mischiefandi · 4 years

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My Home - Drake Walker

A/N: hi everyone! This is the fic I wrote for @riseandshinelittleblossom ‘s Quote Me On This writing challenge! Thank you Steph for organizing this and for letting me participate on such short notice <33 I hope you guys enjoy it. (the quote I had to use is in bold). I always wished MC got a backstory in TRR, so here is a potential one

Warnings: mentions of gun violence, theft, crime, alcoholism, foster care, jail, etc. I would like to disclaim that I know these themes are very difficult for a lot of people so I want to make it clear that I mean absolutely no disrespect to anyone who can somehow relate to this story. This is a dark and angsty fic and I don’t mean to offend or hurt anyone who reads this. Reader discretion is advised.

Word Count: 3.1K

Pairing: Drake Walker & Iris Jones (MC TRR)

Ringing. Dozens of cellphones buzzing in luxurious purses and warm pockets, an array of ring tones echoing throughout the ballroom, and shocked gasps and quiet curses followed suit, a great number of nobles turning their heads to gawk at Iris. Her face was pale with worry as she nudged Maxwell in the ribs, her eyes darting from duke to duchess.

“What’s going on?” she asked in a hushed tone and her question was answered with a big gulp, a cell phone being pushed in her direction.

Time stopped when she laid her eyes on the article on the screen, the earth shattering words hitting her in the face like a pack of bricks.

NY Thief Turned Duchess of Valtoria, the shocking details of Duchess Iris Jones’ past:

The ballroom started to spin, the faces surrounding her all blending into one big cloud of color and the whispers tripled in volume. Iris couldn’t believe what she had just read, the memories flooding back to her. Somehow, her past had caught up with her, just like she had always known it would.

Her eyes desperately searched the crowd for her friends, the ones she had hoped would never find out about her deepest and darkest secret. Hana’s brow was furrowed in confusion and Maxwell’s face turned paler than the Lythikos snow. Iris’ eyes met Liam’s hurt and bewildered stare and her heart shattered, the darkness of the situation settling in. She had broken his trust, as well the others’. Now, they all knew who she really was. And what an unfortunate reality it was.

Her initial shock slowly turned to anger as she bit back her tears, her blood boiling. Someone had uncovered her past life and had tried to use it against her, sabotaging her reputation once again, publicly humiliating her in front of the court. Someone was still out to get her, after all of this time and all of her hard work. And this time, maybe that someone had finally won.

“Iris,” a voice called out, and her head snapped in its direction, lips parted in anticipation as she finally met Drake’s gaze. He stood a few feet away from her, eyes completely focused on hers. His arms rested along his sides, fists clenched but his expression utterly unreadable. She kept looking at him, tears finally spilling over her lids, unable to control her anguish as she faced her lover. She didn’t care about the court, not really. All she cared about was him, and she had lied to him about it all. The man she loved more than anything in the world, her everything.

The moment was abruptly interrupted when a pair of gruff hands wrapped themselves around her upper arms, gripping tightly at her gentle skin as she was dragged off by members of the Royal Guard, and her first instinct was to fight them off, trying to push them away but in vain.

“Stop. I can explain, let me go!” she grunted, emotion tainting her words as she tried to get out of the guards’ custody.

The crowd gasped as they dragged her away from where she had been standing, walking over to the grand ornate doors of the ballroom.

Iris’ eyes met Liam’s again and she mouthed the words: “I’m sorry” before looking back at Drake. He was pushing people out of the way, cursing and shouting at the other guards trying to keep him away from his fiancée.

“Let me through. Goddamnit, let me pass!” he exclaimed gruffly, almost shoving a guard to the ground.

A series of shouts and voices calling out Iris’ name were swallowed by darkness as the doors closed in front of her. She let out a strangled sob, unable to contain the panic building up inside of her. She couldn’t believe what had just occurred. It had all happened so fast. The moment had been over in a flash, but she kept reliving it, over and over again as the guards dragged her to her palace bedroom.

“What am I going to do?” she thought to herself.

Iris had spent hours in her room, the guards standing behind the door. She had paced up and down the room for what now seemed like an eternity, time ticking by so slowly she could’ve sworn it was the next day if it weren’t for the pitch black sky behind the tall glass windows of the bedroom. She had also curled up into a ball on her bed and sobbed, face hidden away in the palm of her hands, unable to control the waves of distraught that had washed over her at the ball. Now, she sat on her bed, bloodshot eyes fixated on the floor as she bit through four of her fingernails, foot anxiously tapping against the floor while her anxiety levels rose higher.

No one had come to talk to her yet, and she couldn’t even tell if that was a good thing. Maybe she was staying at court, maybe she’d be stripped from her newly given title, maybe she’d be shipped back to New York where she belonged. Maybe.

She was terrified.

What scared her most wasn’t losing Cordonia. It was losing Drake. She had never imagined she would ever find someone like him to protect her and love her the way he did. She had always just thought she’d end up unloved and alone, but he had seen something in her no one else had ever even noticed, something even she couldn’t see, and she thanked the universe every day for it. She had found a home in him, but now, maybe she was going to lose that too. And it was all her fault.

Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by an angry voice and the sounds of footsteps tapping against the marble floor of the palace, volume increasing as it got closer and closer to the bedroom door.

“Move aside and let me in. Now.” Iris heard and her heart throbbed as she recognized Drake.

A polite “no” could be heard, followed by a quiet but stern voice speaking.

“You will let him pass. This man should be granted the opportunity to speak to his fiancée.”

Liam.

Finally, the door opened and Iris shot up in a flash, hands curled up into fists, furious but anguished, ready to defend herself if need be.

Her heart swelled at the sight of her fiancé standing in the doorway. He seemed to be shaking in his wrinkled suit, either from anger or fear, and the look on his face turned the blood in her veins to ice, her lungs clenching as she tried to speak.

“Drake, I-“ she tried to say when he bolted towards her, closing the distance between them and throwing his arms around her, pulling her into a warm and desperate embrace.

“-I don’t care. Whatever it is, it doesn’t matter,” he declared intensely as he tightened his hold on her, heart beating uncontrollably and she broke down in sobs.

“It does matter. I have to tell you-“

“-No, you don’t,” he insisted as he looked at her. His heart broke a little at the sight of the fat tears rolling down her cheeks and he placed a comforting kiss on her forehead. Iris let out a shaky breath before finally breaking the embrace. She took a step back and avoided his gaze, instead staring at the floor in embarrassment. She did have to explain, if only to make sure he knew the whole truth and not just the story the tabloids were trying to sell.

“You might wanna sit down for this,” she said, gesturing to the bed. Drake followed her hand and frowned as he placed himself on the edge of the mattress.

“Jones, I don’t need to hear this.”

“Maybe, but I need to know I told you everything.”

She sat next to him, still avoiding his stare and fidgeted with her dress, her long trembling fingers twisting the silk fabric into a small ball just above her knees. This was it. After all this time, she was finally going to open up about her past. This disturbing reality shook her to her core.

“What is it?” Drake asked, watching her fingers shake.

“I’m afraid that when I tell you, you won’t see me the same way anymore.”

Drake reached out to hold her hands in his, tentatively caressing them with his thumb in soothing circles.

“Don’t say that,” he whispered and she squeezed her eyes shut, a single tear rolling down her cheek and landing on her burgundy-colored dress.

“Okay,” she simply said before turning to him.

“My mom got pregnant with me when she was really young, around 19 years old. I didn’t grow up with a dad because he left her when he found out. It was just the two of us in a crappy apartment in the Bronx. My mom was really depressed and she started drinking a lot. She barely even seemed to notice that I was around,” Iris said before sucking in a breath, pausing for a few seconds before resuming her story.

“She left when I was 14. I got home from school one day and she wasn’t home. I waited but she never came back. I tried to hide it but it didn’t take long before I was put in the system and I became a foster kid. I kept running away from my foster homes ‘cus they all sucked. Half of my foster families couldn’t remember my name and they were all assholes anyway.”

“I’m sorry,” Drake muttered, the frown on his face intensifying. No one should have to endure those things, least of all her.

“I-,” she started, before inhaling slowly. “It is what it is. But growing up alone and afraid all the time, I just had a lot of unresolved issues. I ended up meeting a boy. He was good to me at first, made me feel like I was special, like I was the most important thing in his life. I thought I loved him, because I had never known anything else. He was a drinker, just like my mom, and he knew all sorts of people, all involved in shady business. He never really gave me any details about what his friends did, but I knew that something wasn’t right.”

“What was his name?” Drake croaked, heart pumping steadily like the calm before a storm.

“His name was Ty. One day, we were talking and he told me he wanted us to get married. We were gonna run away together and start a life somewhere new, far away from New York. We just needed to some money to get started. I trusted him, so when he told me his plan, I was naïve enough to believe him. I never should’ve.

“The plan was simple enough. We were gonna steal liquor from the bar he and his friends used to go to. The bottles were pretty expensive so we were gonna sell them and use the money to leave before we could even get caught. But something went wrong,” Iris said, her voice wobbling slightly.

Her pulse was quickening by the minute as she remembered the scene, memories flooding back in her mind. She was sweating and trembling, voice completely clouded by a veil of emotion. It was getting harder and harder to keep her cool. This was the part that was going to change everything, the part that would destroy all the things she had worked so hard to get.

“The bar was closed. He used a crowbar to smash the window of the back door and opened the lock from the inside. It was just me and him. We grabbed the most expensive bottles and put them in big duffel bags. But then he told me he was gonna empty the register. I told him it wasn’t a good idea but he didn’t listen, and he started to shout at me, telling me to wait in the storage room with all of the bar supplies. I was terrified, so I did what he told me and I stayed in the back room with the bags full of the stuff we had stolen when I heard a shout and the sound of something smashing.”

Iris’ breathing became erratic and she almost wheezed as she tried to continue telling her story.

“I dropped the bags and ran inside of the barroom, and he was there, holding a gun to the owner’s head. I don’t know when the owner got there or what happened before I came in the room but he was screaming, pleading for his life. I couldn’t believe what was going on, I didn��t even know Ty owned a gun. The owner’s face was bloody, like he had just been beaten up. I couldn’t recognize the look on Ty’s face. Like he was proud of what he had done. It scared me to my core.

“Then I heard sirens coming from a distance and I knew that if we didn’t leave straight away, the police would catch us and we’d never be able to leave and do what he had promised me we would do together. He looked at me and smiled, and suddenly I felt like maybe It was going to be okay.

“He raised his arm towards the ceiling and shot at it. The sound of the gunshot completely blindsided me and I covered my head with my arms. Bits of the ceiling started to come down on us. I thought Ty had done it to distract the owner or something so we could get away. But when I opened my eyes, he was gone and the gun was at my feet.”

Iris exhaled a shaky breath before looking back down at her feet, tears cascading down her flushed cheeks as she cried out.

“The police came in and arrested me on the spot for armed robbery. I quickly realized Ty had used me. He didn’t care about the liquor bottles, all he wanted was the cash from the register. He took all of it. And he left me there to take the fall so he could get out. He didn’t care about me. I was just a stupid teenage girl who’d been naïve enough to trust him.”

Drake’s eyes were wide with shock and he let go of Iris’ hands, passing his fingers through his hair as he tried to process what he had just heard. This made her heart break.

“What happened next,” he inquired, voice steady but quiet.

“I don’t know why but the owner didn’t press charges against me. I still had a court date but apparently there wasn’t enough evidence to suggest that I had had a big enough part in the burglary to go to an actual juvenile detention center. Instead they sent me to some sort of group home for young delinquents which was basically juvie but I didn’t have a record at least. It was hell.

“I did my best to fly under the radar and eventually when I turned 18, I had another court date. They decided I wouldn’t have to go to jail and I was free to go. I left the group home and tried to look for a job. I just wanted to get as far away from that part of my life as possible. I worked as a waitress in a tiny bar and I eventually made enough money to move to Queens in a small apartment just for me. I changed my name and got a new job at another bar, made a few friends, moved on. I became tough, but at least I had gotten out of that place. Ended up working at this new bar for 6 years, until you came in, and my entire world was turned upside down.”

Drake grunted approvingly, eyes locked on the floor beneath his feet. Everything he had just learned was unbelievable. Iris had never told him about her past, only small details, things that seemed normal without the context he had just been granted.

He knew she loved her mom’s mac & cheese as a kid, but he hadn’t known it was because her mom never made anything else. He knew Iris was an avid fan of Queens, but he had never realized it was because it had been her first real home. He knew she was tough as nails, but he had never understood where her immense strength came from.

A sudden urge to hold her washed over him and he instantly pulled her into a warm and protective embrace, the act taking Iris by surprise. Her eyes were wide with shock and she gasped, her heart rapidly beating against her ribs.

“You don’t hate me?” she cried, unable to contain the emotions bubbling beneath the surface.

“Hate you?” Drake asked. He pulled away just enough to look her deep in the eyes, sending her a warm look as he smiled softly.

“I saw that you were perfect and so I loved you. Then I saw that you were not perfect and I loved you even more,” he said softly.

Iris’ heart throbbed and she cried in her lover’s arms, relief spreading over her in an overwhelming wave.

Never in a million years had she thought she would find someone who could love her unconditionally the way he did. She had just told him about her entire past, every sordid little thing about the person she had once been, the person she had despised for so long. But if he could find a way to forgive her, maybe she could learn to forgive herself too. Iris held him tightly, thanking her lucky stars for giving her a home like this one.

After a few minutes of peace and quiet in each other’s arms, Iris looked up at Drake, a frown spreading on her beautiful face.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do. How do I fix this?” she asked.

Her lover look down at her and smiled.

“I don’t know, but we’ll find a way…together.”

And eventually, they did.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed my fic! ty for reading :) feedback is always appreciated!!

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causinginvisibledamage · 6 years

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Maxwell looking away from you to compose his thoughts before he says something important is really sweet.

#maxwell beaumont #the royal romance #trr maxwell #trr #v plays choices

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victoriafontaines · 6 years

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i agree fully esp when it comes to choices books

#liam v drake #sean v jake #just my opinion #don't attack me #choices #choices stories you play #playchoices #the royal romance #trr #endless summer #es

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sillydg · 3 years

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Wide awake

Book: The Royal Romance somewhere mid Book 1

Pairing: Drake Walker x F!MC (Riley Herreld)

Title: Wide awake

Rating: 18+

Words: Around 5.000

Summary: Drake gets visited in the middle of the night by a very drunk Riley during her hunt for food.

Category: Fluff Fluff Fluff

Warnings: Language (swearing, dirty talk), Implied Sexual situations

A/N: Participating in CFWC Flufftober: Day 6 Late Night Craving A/N: So this takes place outside of the What if universe. Just the regular, Maxwell invited to come to cordonia to join the social season. First time ever fluff! Let me know what you guys think. A/N:Taglist at the bottom of the page, please let me know if you want to be tagged for future TRR FF. A/N: @kachrisberry Thank you for prereading and editing!

Wide awake

Drake sits contently on a camping chair with a glass of his favorite whiskey in hand and he stares into the fire. He smiles as he hears some ruffling coming from behind, and he peaks over his shoulder to see Riley crawling out of a small tent. She stands up and stretches, “Oh God, how long have I been out?”

He grins and looks down at his watch, “you just took a ten-hour nap, Herreld.” She smiles and walks over to him, “well, that’s your own fault mister Walker,” and she sits down on his lap.

“Ohh, really? How’s that?”

She bites her lip and takes his cheeks into her hands, “Well It might have something to do with being extremely satisfied and worn out after four rounds of sweaty activities in and around our tent?”

“Our tent,” and he smiles broadly as she slowly places kisses on his neck, “I love the sound of that.”

“Mmmh, me too,” she murmurs and snuggles into him.

He rubs her back gently, “I’m really, really glad that you said yes to join me on this camping trip, Herreld.”

She looks up and meets his eye with a bit of mischief in her own, as she lets her finger drift along his stubbled jaw, “me too. Besides, we do have a lot to celebrate, don’t we now?” And with a smile, she holds up her hand into the air. A beautiful antique ring decorates her ring finger.

He smiles softly as he whispers, “I still can’t believe you turned down Liam’s proposal, princess.”

She moves her gaze from her hand back to him, “And I still can’t believe that you proposed right after, handsome.”

And with a sigh he takes her hand in his, playing with the ring, “and I still can’t believe that you said yes.”

“Well, I did,” and she sets a finger under his chin to meet her eye again, “and let me show you how happy it makes me.” She leans in to kiss him and he closes his eyes, but her soft lips never find his.

-----------------------------------------

Tap, tap, tap.

“Drake, wake up.”

Tap, tap tap.

“Drake.”

Drake finds himself lying in bed, groaning at the realization that it was just a dream. Still sleep drunk he throws the covers from himself, and murmurs under his breath as he puts on his sweatpants, “who the fuck dares to wake me up.”

Tap tap tap.

“Yeah, coming, fucking hell, easy,” and within two angry strides, he stands in front of the bedroom door, opening it to find… nobody. “What the?” And he glances into the hallway to see if it was a sick joke.

Tap tap tap.

“Drake, over here.”

And suddenly he recognizes the voice, "What the? Herreld? Is that you?” His feet carry him towards his balcony door, and his eyes fall onto a broad smiling Riley as he pulls the curtain aside. She waves happily at him. Am I still dreaming?

He opens the door, eying her from top to bottom. She’s clearly dressed for bed, with a just too-small tank top, revealing her belly button and bright colored pajama pants. Her hair is tight up into a messy bun, and even without makeup, she is the most beautiful woman he has ever seen. God, adorable. But... wait it's the middle of the night... it's must be freezing. What the hell, why is she dressed so lightly? For fuck sake.

He groans, "for the love of God, what the hell are you doing here? And dressed like this? It's freezing! Just wait a second" and he disappears into his room to grab one of his vests. He keeps murmuring, "what the hell are you thinking, you can get sick" and he walks back to her.

She smiles sheepishly, "hey grumpy, I'm happy to see you....," and she moves to casually lean against the doorpost but awfully misses, causing her to tumble towards the floor, "toooooooo."

Drake drops his vest, lunges forward onto the balcony, and catches her at the hips without hesitation, "wow there Herreld, what the hell are you doing?" and he sets her back on her own feet, "are you alright?"

Riley stares with wide eyes at her hands on his bare chest, not sure how they got there but sure that she didn’t mind. A sensation runs through her body at him standing so close, the warmth radiating from his body, and as a cherry on top, his muscular scent filling her nose. She draws in a sharp breath and fights the drunken urge to let her fingers drift over his hard muscles, and she manages to whisper, "Drake, are you aware of the fact that you are not wearing a shirt? Because I am very aware that you are not wearing a shirt."

He leans back and starts grinning, "Herreld, are you drunk?"

And she breaks away her gaze from his chest to meet his eyes with fiery red cheeks, and she smiles, "well I'm glad you asked..."

Drake groans as he recognizes it as her standard opening line for a story of at least fifteen minutes long. "No, no, no, not this time Herreld," and he carefully lets go of her, walks inside grabs his vest from the ground, and walks back again. "For God's sake, it was a simple yes or no question, not an invite for a complete monologue. And I know, I know it's not so bad as the, 'well, let me tell you a story,' opening which is followed by a thirty-minute to an hour of talking, so I know I shouldn't complain. But hell, it's the middle of the night, Herreld. Please have mercy and put this on," and he lays the vest gently over her shoulders, "seriously before you get sick and I have to explain why you are walking with a cute red nose because of the sniffles you will have tomorrow."

A big smile appears on her face and she meets his eye as he starts rubbing her arms. He growls, "what?"

"Drake, do you hear yourself? You're rambling. And hell, that's quite impressively accurate, I do use those opening sentences, don't I?"

Drake frowns as he indeed realizes that he's rambling, "well apparently you are rubbing off on me and not in a good way. Now, first. Are you warm?"

"Well, I was never freezing in the first place, but I am comfier now," and she pokes him in the chest with her finger, "so thank you mister 'I pretend to be rough around the edges, grumpy and distant but secretly I am a fluffy marshmallow at heart." Her eyes grow wide, "OMG Drake... that's it. You're a grumpy marshmallow!"

"Oh for the love of God, First, I'm going to ignore that nickname because my heart is made of what my heart is made of, thank you very much. If it was a fluffy Marshmallow, something would be very wrong. And second, you are not feeling cold because you're drunk Herreld.”

"First, too bad, sticking with it! And second, me, drunk? NAAAAH," as she over-exaggeratedly rolls her eyes with a big smile, making herself almost lose balance again.

Drake tries to hide a smile but fails miserably. He sets a step forward and steadies her with his hands on her shoulders, "Okay, easy there with the eye-rolling."

She blinks, “soooo, you might be right, maybe a teeeeeeeensy drunk.”

“Okay, seriously Herreld, how the hell did you get up here in this state? We are on the fucking third floor.”

She shrugs, “how does one end up on a balcony drunk in the middle of the night? Climbing, of course. I have snuck out so much in my teenage years! I was quite the rascal if I say so myself. And since my bedroom was located on the fourth floor, I can probably climb up here with my eyes closed." And an excited twinkle appears in her eyes, "Ooh, let's try that!"

But before she can move, Drake tightens his grip on her shoulders, "okay, let's not do that. Jeez, how are you still alive? So, for your safety and to prevent you from giving me a heart attack, let's move forward to why you decided to climb onto my balcony?”

“Oh that is because I tried to throw some little rocks against your window to wake you up, but I kept missing."

He glances over his shoulder to the window behind him, which is the size of the whole wall. That’s actually impressive to miss.

And Drake takes a deep breath moving his attention back to Riley with a sigh, "Okay Herreld, you are pushing the limits here and there is going to be a certain point that the fact of you being annoyingly cute, adorable, and gifted with the most freaking beautiful smile and eyes in the world, is not going to be enough to save your fine ass. SO, let's get to the point. What the hell are you doing here?"

And a broad smile appears on her face, "Drake, you totally just called me..."

He groans, "This is what you decide to point out now? Are you sure that you want to finish that sentence?

"OKAY, jeez. I just woke you because I wanted to know where the kitchen is."

He slowly repeats her words, "you woke me because you wanted to ask where the kitchen is? What? We pass the big kitchen every day, why would you..." and he falls silent, "ooohhh, you're not talking about the big kitchen, are you? We are talking about the one which Leo's mom had built to feel a little bit more at home here."

She nods, "Liam told me about it and well, sometimes a lady just needs to get drunk and roll into her kitchen to make a mean plate of pasta for herself. I've been searching for twenty minutes and I thought, you know what... Drake loves food, he knows where that kitchen is.”

He smiles, “well can't fault that logic, now can I?” And he instinctively pulls her towards his chest, "you want to talk about something, Herreld?"

She slings her hands around his waist and lays her head happily on his bare chest, "nope, you know what. Forget about the food. Let’s just stand here like this."

He shakes his head and with a smile, he looks down at Riley contently enjoying his bare chest.

So cute!

And with a sigh, he snaps out of it, “okay, I think it’s time to get some food into you, but we are walking out of my bedroom door for safety.” He leads her inside, and walks towards his closet to grab a shirt, "So what about, you know, the person you were drinking with? Because I take that you weren’t drinking alone.”

Riley glances around the room, “true, I conquered half a bottle of whiskey with Max.”

Drake grins over his shoulder, “meaning, he drunk one glass while you drunk the rest and he fell asleep?”

“Yup, and I didn’t want to wake him.”

He laughs as he turns around with a fresh shirt in his hands, “but you didn't mind waking me?”

Her eyes drifting along his chest again, “I'm sorry, can’t say that I do. If I knew that you look this good without a shirt I would've knocked on your door every night of the week. That being said, you sure you want to put that on...”

Drake grins, “I’m not going to stand behind the stove bare-chested.”

“You’re damn right because I’m going to stand behind the stove bare-chested, ooh AND with my eyes closed.”

Drake’s mouth drops and he stares at her, not moving and barely breathing.

She grins, “Drake? You okay over there?”

And he shakes his head to snap out of it, but the image of her without her shirt is not going anywhere. God, imagine her behind the stove with only an apron on...

“Riley for grumpy Marshmallow.”

He groans at the nickname. That will do it.

“Ahh, welcome back. So, are you tempted?”

He grins, “naaaaah, of course not. Me? Tempted?” and he over-exaggeratedly rolls his eyes with a big smile, before pretending to lose balance. “Nice try though!” She sticks out her tongue and he pulls his shirt over his head, “not going to happen. Now we need to make a stop at the big pantry first. The small kitchen is not that well stocked.”

He checks if the hallway is clear, knowing very well that it would be weird if people run into him and a drunk courtly lady. And as the coast is clear, they move towards the big pantry. And as they walk through the halls, it becomes clear that Riley wasn't ready to give up the who is handling the stove discussion.

“I will be able to cook perfectly, Drake! Do you know how many drunken nights I’ve made food for my drunken roomies?”

“That might be so princess, but I’m calling the shots here since I’m sober. So I’m not letting you near any heat source in this state. I don’t want to have to explain tomorrow how you burnt your eyebrows and burned down half of the castle in the process.”

She giggles and grabs his arm, leaning against him to make sure that she doesn’t fall over. He meets her eye, “what’s so funny about that?”

“Nothing. But you just called me princess, I like that.” She lets her hand drift along his arm and entwines her fingers with his. She shyly averts her eyes, “Is this okay?”

He smiles and whispers, “absolutely, wouldn’t want you to tumble over, right princess?”

A big smile appears on her face and a few minutes later they arrive at the big pantry.

Drake stands in front of the shelves, arms on his sides, “okay, what are we going to eat?” And as he looks at Riley he sees how her eyes grow big at all the possibilities.

“Oh I know, hold out your arms, Drake,” and she shoves a dozen eggs into his arms, with flour and a whole bunch of other ingredients.

Drake just stares at her and holds out his arms, as she runs around the pantry like crazy, adding some ingredients, putting some back.

She looks so damn cute in my vest… Hell, the crazy sparky spirit in this one is divine, and it's so going to be the death of me... as well as her own if she doesn't stop doing drunken things with her eyes closed. He sighs. God Liam is one lucky guy.

“Oh my God, this is the best parmesan cheese there is,” she murmurs standing in front of the fridge, “ohh and this bacon, look at it. Ohh this is going to be so good.” Eventually, she ends up with more ingredients in her arms than Drake. She grabs another bottle of whiskey off the rack and grins over her stuffed arms with an excited twinkle in her eyes. “Okay let’s go,” and she turns to leave, but stops as she notices how Drake stares at her with a sheepish grin on his face.

"You coming, my delicious grumpy marshmallow? You can do all the staring you want as soon as I find myself behind that stove."

He grins, "Yeah nice try, Herreld, let’s go!"

And five minutes later they walk into a cozy small country kitchen. Riley sighs in relief as she looks around, finally feeling a bit more homey. They place all the ingredients onto the counter and he is relieved when she hands him two onions and some garlic, happy that he doesn’t need to discuss the fact that she’s not able to handle knives right now, or maybe ever for that matter.

He starts chopping and she searches the cabinets and grabbing two glasses and fills them with whiskey. She walks towards Drake, and he moves his gaze away from the onions and looks at the two glasses in her hand. And with a sigh, he lays down the knife, takes his glass, but also takes her glass. “Right, I don’t think so Herreld.” He sets his own glass down onto the counter and downs her glass of whiskey, before filling it with water and handing it back to her. “You are a sneaky one, letting me chop without question, trying to sneak this whiskey in. First three glasses of water.”

She rolls her eyes, “fine!” and she downs her glass to fill it up with water again, only to repeat the process. She now fills up another glass and moves over towards the counter to work on the pasta dough.

“Good girl,” he grins and continues chopping, as Riley starts mixing some flour with the eggs.

"Yeah, yeah," she smiles, "save that kind of language for the moment we end up in the sack together, Walker." And she playfully pushes him, leaving a handprint of flour on his shirt.

He grins and brushes it off, "right, well if you are going to push me with a knife in my hand, we might never end up in that position." She holds up her hands, "okay, I get, I will keep them to myself. For now..."

He looks down as she expertly starts kneading the dough, “you know, there was perfectly fine pre-made pasta in the pantry.”

She smiles, “I’m going to withhold from a reaction until you taste it, Walker.”

He keeps looking at her hands and finds it to be weirdly sexy how she uses them like that. She grins, “want to take it over? It feels as good as it looks.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that, you seem to do it perfectly fine over there.”

“Ohh, come on,” and she grabs his hand to pull him towards her, “stand behind me and come here with those big, strong hands of yours.”

She spreads some extra flour onto the counter as he carefully takes a step forward, moving his arms at both sides of her body until he stands with his chest against her back and she moves her hands over his, moving them towards the dough.

“Feel it, it’s still a little bit too wet.”

He snorts, “isn't that a good thing, though?” And he gently starts kneading. She grins and shakes her head, "again, save that kind of language for the moment we end up in the sack together. And if you use your hands on me like that I certainly will be a little bit..."

Drake murmers in her ear, "Oh For Gods sake, do you want me to focus on this dough or not." She grins and a silence falls.

After a minute of carefully kneading, Riley whispers, “don’t be scared, be a little more firm.” Drake tries to find a way to keep his focus on the dough in his hands, but it’s hard to do when she smells so god damn good. He moves his head a little bit more forward, brushing her ear with his nose. She feels her heart pound and her breathing becomes unsteady as his hands start to move slower and slower under hers, goosebumps forming on her arms as his brush against hers. She swallows, “I… I think it’s done now, it needs to rest.”

He stops kneading but she lets her hands rest on his as he moves them up, their fingers intertwining. He pulls her even closer to his chest, hugging her from behind. And for a minute they stand their perfectly content in their own little world, with his arms engulfing her and her hands resting on his arms.

She takes a deep breath and whispers, “so since sweatpants aren't really covering anything, I can feel that you're definitely waaaaaaaay more than a handful, but does it also comes with a vibrate function?" He snorts and playfully tickles her sides, "get your head out of the gutter, you wish."

She shrugs, "a girl can dream."

Drake shakes his head and grabs his phone out of his pocket, and he frowns as he sees that Liam sent him a text.

Drake frowns and his heart sinks, this whole evening had been a lot of fun, but he must not forget why and more important for who she was here. Riley lays the pasta dough to rest as she notices the sadness in his eyes, "what is it?"

"Herreld, how did Liam know that you were with me? And why was he having an emergency meeting? It just doesn't make any sense."

Her eyes grow wide in anticipation, "Ohh did he say anything else?"

"Yes, he is wrapping up and expects to be here in thirty minutes." Riley smiles excitedly, making Drake rub the back of his neck with his hand, finding it hard to see Riley so happy about Liam joining them.

"You know, I don't have to tell him where we are."

Riley puts on a very, very serious face. "Drake, Grumpy Marshmallow, Walker, you are texting Liam our current location right this instant."

"Well, maybe you should've brought your own phone for once instead of commanding other people around."

"Where was I going to put it, Drake? Look at me, no pockets to be seen until you were so sweet to lend me your vest. Besides, why would I need a phone when... when..." and she falls silent. When Maxwell drunken hid it because I became crazy about waiting for the biggest news of my life… But most importantly. Why would I need a phone when the most important person in my life is standing with me in this room.

"When?"

"You know what," and she lunges forward, "I'm going to do it myself."

"Really, good luck trying," and he holds up his phone high above his head. But to his surprise, without a doubt she jumps on him, locking herself with her legs around his waist, and starts to climb up. He murmurs as her belly is now in his face, "Holy hell, you were not kidding," and he feels how his mobile phone is grabbed out of his hand. He steadies her as she slowly moves back down, with her legs still wrapped around his waist he sets her onto one of the counters. And she hands him the phone, "I'm not letting you run free until you texted him."

"You know what, maybe I don't mind being captured like this."

And she can't help but smile, as her hands find his neck and she pulls him closer. And she meets his eye, "If you really mean that, please, text him."

He frowns at the sincerity in her voice, but texts Liam back and she releases him.

"Now, let's heat things up in here," and she walks towards the stove as Drake comes right after her. "Nice try," he lifts her up and sets her back onto the counter. "Okay, Herreld, boss me around."

“Such a fucking turn-on.”

“You are aware that you said that out loud?”

She grins, “a hundred thousand percent. Now focus your eyes on the stove before I can build you into a delicious smore.”

And in the next fifteen minutes, Drake finds himself behind the stove, following instructions, as they eventually end up with a fresh cooked steaming plate of pasta carbonara.

He scoops up the food on a smaller plate, and she grins, “God a man who can cook and listen to instructions. Forget the food Drake, take me here and now.”

He smiles at her, “get your head out of the gutter, Herreld, and certainly don’t get used to this. I’m merely taking care of a drunk lady in the stress. Making sure that she doesn’t hurt herself or burn the place down in the process.”

“And I’m perfectly fine with that,” and she sits down on the ground. He follows her and he sets the plate in the middle. She hands him a fork and waits in expectation for him to take the first bite.

He wraps some pasta onto his fork and takes a big bite, and starts to moan, “O God, do I have permission to withdraw my earlier comment about the pasta?”

She grins in satisfaction, “good, and absolutely granted!” She takes a bite, “Mmmh. The best I ever had. I think it’s that little extra from our sexual tension that we put in the dough.”

Drake almost chokes in a bite of pasta, “Hell, Herreld. Did anyone tell you that you’re quite forward when you’re drunk?” And especially since you've just been so excited that my best friend is going to join us.

“Nope, only when I see something I really, really want and that has happened only one time in my life, so no. But, to be honest, I think I’m pretty sobered up from the alcohol. I had a lot of water and the food helps. So it’s mainly you who still gets me light-headed.”

Drake snaps his head towards her in surprise, to find her as light and relaxed as earlier in his dream, “Herreld, you shouldn’t say those things. You're Liam's suitor.”

She opens her mouth but quickly takes another big bite from the pasta, signaling that she can't speak with pasta in her mouth. "Wuy nyu,anImoru." Oh God, Liam, where the hell are you.

"Something smells delicious in here!"

Their heads snap up as Liam presents himselff in the kitch, and Drake jumps up. "We have some left bud, do you want some?"

Riley gets up too and holds her breath as she meets Liam's eye. He smiles comfortingly at her, "yes, please. I will take it to my room because it's been a long night."

Drake shoves the rest of the pasta onto a smaller plate and wraps it up, "you sure? I was kind of expecting you to stay. Or I can go? If you want to spend some time alone with Riley."

"That won't be necessary. Riley and I will have all the time we need to catch up later."

Drake's face falls at Liam's words, and he hands him the plate of pasta, "I see," and he whispers just soft enough so that Riley cannot hear him, "Well, all I can say is that you're a lucky man, Liam, you're a lucky man."

iam takes a deep breath, and takes the plate from him. "Thank you, Drake. But unfortunately for me, you're wrong."

"I'm wrong?"

Liam clasps Drake onto his shoulder, "Well it appears that you are the lucky man in this story. And I'm happy for you. For the both of you."

"What... What is going on?" and Drake turns in confusion towards Riley who excitedly gasps. She represses a squeak out of respect towards Liam, and clears her throat diplomatically, "are you saying what I think you are saying?"

Liam smiles, but the sadness in his eyes says it all, "yes Riley, your request has been approved. Just try to be... discreet for the time being. And seeing the look on Drake's face, you respected my wishes to keep it silent. Thank you for that."

He takes another deep breath and nods, "Now, I believe the two of you have a lot to talk about, so I'm going to enjoy this in my room." And with that disappears through the door and silence falls in the kitchen.

Riley smiles broadly as she feels all the guilt slide of her shoulders. From day one she has been attracted to Drake, but during the season they grew close. So, so close. And even though their lips never had touched, she felt a connection she wanted to explore. At all costs, not knowing what he felt. But she wanted to do it the right way, so this evening she made the decision to ask Liam to leave the social season. An emergency meeting was called. And now...

Drake still stares frozen at Riley, and she slowly moves towards him with a huge grin on her face, "so what spoon do you think that Bertrand is going to use to kill me with as he hears that I'm dropping out? The grapefruit one? The caviar one? Oh God, Imagine a slow death by dessertspoon."

She stops right in front of him, and he looks down at her, still remaining quiet. A smile appears on his face, "I... you... So I heard it right? But… what? I mean… what do we do now?”

“Well, we still have a plate of pasta to eat. But I don’t think you are talking about that are you?”

“Forget the fucking food,” and Drake pulls her close at her hips, before wrapping her tightly in his arms. She starts laughing as she subtly lets her hands slide over his chest before encircling his waist, “wow, you must be really excited if the great Walker says to forget the food.”

“Herreld, come on.” He looks down into her eyes, “are you serious? Or is this just a brutal joke? The two of you are not messing with me are you?”

“I love to mess with you Drake, but this is not something to mess with.”

“And you’re sure you’ve sobered up?”

“Apart from the fog in my head because hell, you shirtless is still burned in my mind, combined with how amazing you smell right now… I certainly can't think straight right now.”

“Herreld…”

“Just… okay. I’m not good with feelings Walker, and certainly not with expressing them. So don’t look at me and let’s hear how you do in this department.”

“I can't believe it, Princess,” he whispers as he carefully leans forward and closes the distance between them. He starts to kiss her very slowly and carefully, scared to be roughly woken up again, not sure if he would survive that.

She smiles under his kiss, “don’t be scared, be a little more firm.” He returns her smile and he moves his hands up towards her neck, pulling her closer and deepens the kiss. She invites him in and as their tongues meet for the first time ever, she softly moans, encouraging him to pick her up and he presses her against the counter.

He moves his kisses down to her neck. “Oh God, you really need to lose the shirt again, Drake.” He grins against her neck, why don’t we take that plate of pasta to my room and finish it after I make you moan more than that pasta just did.”

She smiles, “so this is how you express your feelings, ha?”

“Actions speak louder than words, got a problem with that?”

“Not at all, my sweet, sweet Marshmallow, not at all,” and she crashes her lips against his, as he gets through his knees and grabs the plate pasta, carrying both of them out of the kitchen, straight to his room.

Two years later

“I’m really, really glad that you said yes to join me on this camping trip, Herreld.”

She laughs, “I was wondering when you were going to say that since you keep saying that every time we go camping, and we go camping all the time!”

He smiles broadly at the beautiful woman on his lap, warmed by a small campfire, sitting in front of a small tent in the middle of nowhere. “And I will keep saying it, until the end of time. Besides, we have a lot to celebrate, don’t we?”

She holds up her hand, as a beautiful antique ring glisters in the moonlight, before moving her hand down onto her swollen belly, rubbing it with all the love in the world. “We sure do, Walker, we sure do.”

He lays his hand over hers, softly playing with the ring as his other hand lovingly rubs her belly. He sighs contently, "I Love you, soon to be Walker and mini-walker."

Riley giggles, "God, that never gets old. I love you too, grumpy marshmallow of mine, and our little jellybean of course."

He stares at Riley and wonders how he managed to survive over two years with his heart constantly being on the brink of exploding from happiness and love. Because when he finally dared to let it in, it became the scariest and most beautiful feeling he had ever experienced.

Riley touches his cheek, bringing him back, "what is it, Walker? Tell me!"

He sighs as his eyes start to water, "I'm so happy, It feels like I can wake up at any god forgiven moment, realizing that it all was a dream."

Riley smiles softly and kisses his cheek. "This is certainly not a dream, soon to be daddy Walker! But since a very wise, and extremely smoking hot man once said, 'actions speak louder than words, let me show you how real I am...,"

He closes his eyes as she leans in to kiss him, but her lips never come. Oh nooo.

And suddenly he feels how his hand gently moves over her belly and a tear escapes his eyes at the small kicks he feels right under his hand. A relieved sigh leaves his mouth as he finally dares to open his eyes. She leans in to kiss him, her soft lips finally reach his and he is happy to find himself still…

Wide awake.

@karahalloway @angelasscribbles @lovingchoices14 @kingliam2019

@walkerdrakewalker @queen-arabella-of-cordonia

@tinkie1973 @tessa-liam

@ladyangel70 @princessleac1

@kachrisberry @Jerzwriter @gkittylove99 @pixelberrygirl

@ruy-oh @choicesficwriterscreations

#cfwc flufftober #drake x mc #drake walker #fanfic #choices royal romance #the royal romance #trr fanfic #choices trr #trr fandom

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bbrandy2002 · 3 years

Text

Happy Birthday Burnsy!

The Country AU -- I'm Gonna Live Where The Green Grass Grows

Pairing: Drake x Alyssa, Liam x Riley, and a whole host of other TRR characters.

A/N: This was a silly little idea I had months ago for an AU built around the places and people where I grew up. I never had plans to actually write it, but I mentioned it to Burns, and well ... she wanted it lol so here we are. And she’s already read half of this and is the one who made the mood board for it and the song inspo hahaha. Thank you to @mskaneko for the edits of our OTP’s, and @charlotteg234 for pre-reading the first half of this.

Trigger warning: Gun usage, hunting, mild language ... I think that’s it

@burnsoslow

My dearest friend, when I think back at where we were one year ago, I can’t help but be reminded of the vastly different world we live in now. On February 5, 2020, there was no covid keeping us sheltered and fearful, families were complete, jobs were stable, and so many of the things we worried about then simply pale in comparison to now, Life wasn’t so bad. But here we are with all these new changes and mindsets. Through it all, one thing remained consistent: YOU. You have been my strength, my rock, the anchor that grounded me. We have cried together, laughed a lot together, worried for each other, and celebrated those small victories that were important to each other. And I get so happy when someone comments about how much they love the friendship between Riley and Alyssa because it's the most real part of Fearless. If anyone ever wanted to know what we’re like, it's all written out in that story. I’ve got your back, and you have mine. You’re my best friend and I just love the hell out of ya! I hope your birthday is amazing and that this fic is everything you wanted for this AU.

------------------------------------

On Sunday mornings in southern Georgia, you did one of two things: You woke up early for church services or woke up late to watch NFL football.

Some people figured out a long time ago how to do both.

Sitting in the back pew of the First Cordonian Church of Everlasting Peace, Alyssa Walker sat quietly with the sweetest southern belle smile, nodding her head along to the beautiful words spoken during Pastor Hakim’s sermon and hiding a pair of earbuds lodged in each ear.

She and her husband, Drake, had laid claim to the pew when they were teens trying to sneak a kiss or two during prayers. After ten years of marriage, they no longer needed to sneak kisses but stayed in that same seat, believing the biggest sinners should stay as far away from the minister as possible. Why be the barrier that may prevent the spirit from reaching the rest of the congregation? The couple felt it was the least they could do.

They were actually pretty good folks and well respected in their community. Alyssa had taught first grade for eight years at the local elementary school, where her two children, nine-year-old Audrey and six-year-old Patrick, also attended. Her best friend since third grade, Riley, was the art teacher there.

Drake worked nearby as the lead mechanic at Rys and Sons Chevrolet out on North Ramsford Avenue. Constantine had owned the auto dealership for 35 years before passing it down to his sons, Leo and Liam, when he ran for and became the town's mayor. Leo peaced out, heading to South Florida, while Liam took on the sole responsibility of ownership himself.

And while most people in this sleepy little town of Cordonia were Falcons fanatics, Alyssa grew up rooting for the team where her parents were born and raised before settling in Georgia as newlywed lawyers: The Chicago Bears.

With the game against the Packers blaring into her ear, she kept a keen eye on the rest of her fellow parishioners. When they clapped, she clapped. When they sang, she sang. She raised her hands in hallelujahs when they did. She had learned to read lips and could “Amen” and “Praise God” right on cue with the rest of them. All the while, she sat in contentment, listening to her weekly football games.

“The score with 14 seconds left in the second quarter is Chicago -- 14, Green Bay -- 17. The Bears have the ball on the 5-yard line. It’s third and goal. If Trubisky can score here, they’ll go into the locker room at halftime with a lead for the first time in this game, or possibly tie it all up with a field goal after this down. This is a huge, HUGE play, Jim ...”

Alyssa twined her fingers together and lowered her forehead onto them as she waited with bated breath for the announcer to call the play-by-play. As far as anyone else knew, she was praying fervently for the Hebrews crossing the parted Red Sea away from Pharoah's army that the pastor was chronicling.

“And here comes the snap. Trubisky backs up. He tosses to Robinson in the end zone. OHHH! So close… batted away by Alexender …”

“JESUS!” Alyssa yelled out in anger. With earbuds in, she didn’t realize how loudly that just came out of her mouth. Drake nudged her in the thigh. She glanced over at him for a second before he nodded to the 123 pairs of eyes that had all turned at once in her direction. It instantly dawned on her that everyone in the congregation heard the outburst.

Feeling the color drain from her face, Alyssa placed a hand over her chest and addressed, “I am soooo into this sermon, Hakim. Woohoo! Go, Jesus, go!” She pumped her fist in the air like she was rooting him on.

Drake dropped his face onto Patrick’s shoulder, who was sitting on his lap, to cover the incessant laughter that threatened to spill out of him. He was doing a terrible job of it, as a momentary burst of muffled snickers could be heard through the sound of the game playing in Alyssa’s ear. Her husband was nothing but a big kid himself -- she wouldn’t change that for anything.

“Mommy,” Audrey whispered next to her. “It’s about Moses. Not Jesus.”

Alyssa smiled, patting her daughter’s knee. “Same thing, baby. They both performed miracles.” She cut her eyes to the phone hidden under the cardigan draped across her thighs. “And the Bears need a miracle right now, guys,” she muttered, “Part those shithead Packer’s defensive line, Lord. It’s time to help my Bears get to the promised land.”

“Going for it on fourth down, Trubisky drops back. The Packer defense is putting a lot of pressure on the Bear’s offensive line. Every man is covered in the end zone. He has no one to throw to, Jim. They’re running out of time. Four seconds left. And, NOOO, they sack Trubisky on the 10-yard line … WAIT THE BALL IS LOOSE … THE BALL IS LOOSE ... he fumbled the ball. The Packers are scrambling to get it. There are green and white jerseys all over that ball. BUT LOOK … Green Bay’s Klark picks it up. He’s running the other way … and he just slipped … he just slipped, and the football fell right into the hands of Chicago’s Robinson --”

Alyssa grabbed Drake’s thigh, her fingers digging deeply with hope and panic. “Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck,” her stressed words weren’t audible to the crowd, but they were speaking volumes in her heart.

“--Robinson’s on the 20, now 15, he’s sweeping past the defense to the 10 -- 5 -- TOUCHDOWN, CHICAGO!!!”

"FUCK YES!" Alyssa jumped up, her arms outstretched in a V shape. “Hallelujah. Holy shit. Thank ya, Jesus.” She let out a huge sigh of relief, feeling nothing short of elated, not concerned in the slightest by the heads that twisted around again.

Hakim stood slack-jawed from the raised platform for a moment, his tallish physique slouching on the pulpit, before adjusting the microphone and clearing his throat deeply. "I'm certainly glad, Sister Alyssa is ... feeling the spirit this morning."

"I am feeling it, Brother Hakim," She shook her head profusely. "I. Am. Feeling it." She shot him a dimpled grin.

Drake snorted loudly, covering his face with one hand and grabbing the side of her dress to pull her back down with the other.

They turned to each other, neither one able to control the snickering and shaking of their bodies. Drake lifted a sleeping Patrick over his shoulder while Alyssa grabbed Audrey's hand; the Walker couple decided they were too immature for church this morning.

They laughed all the way to the parking lot.

"It's never a dull moment with you, baby girl," Drake chuckled, turning over the ignition.

"You know me …” She blew on her nails before rubbing them against her chest. “... just doing the Lord's work."

--------------

It was customary in Cordonia for families to gather together each week for a big supper after church.

The Walkers traditionally took turns hosting with Liam and Riley, and Constantine and Regina. This week's meal was at the elder Ryses.

Sitting down at the dining room table, everyone licked their chops, hungry and ready to dig into all the made-from-scratch southern goodness Mrs. Regina had prepared: Fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, coleslaw, macaroni and cheese, green beans with hamhock, corn-on-the-cob, deviled eggs, biscuits, sweet tea, and coffee. It was all accompanied by two containers of broccoli salad, Alyssa picked up from the Piggly Wiggly deli after church, and Riley's lopsided carrot cake.

There was always a lot of food, a lot of love, and what would it be in a small town without a little gossip here and there.

"Regina, you've outdone yourself on this meal," Liam raved while placing his five-month-old son in a high chair and fastening the clasps. "If it tastes as good as it smells, we're all in for a big treat."

Everyone agreed as she sat down, Constantine pushing her chair in with a peck to the top of her head. "Thank you, Liam." She looked up at her husband with a sincere smile, rubbing his arm. "Only the best for our family."

She meant every word of that as she and Constantine glanced around the table at all the cheerful faces of the people they loved most — that included Drake and his family.

Drake's father had been the sheriff for many years before his untimely death, while the younger Walker was a teen. Connie had never met a braver, more hard-working man than Jackson; the now mayor stepped in after that death to be the father figure in Drake's life. Drake was already best friends with Liam, and over time, the family just considered him one of their own. Drake and Alyssa's children referred to them as Mamaw and Papaw Rys.

As everyone settled in and passed the food around the table, the doorbell rang; 7-year-old Ellie -- Liam and Riley's oldest -- jumped up to answer it. With everyone focused on getting their helpings, Riley leaned over and whispered to Alyssa, "Any more scoop on Savannah?"

Alyssa passed the potatoes to her and answered in a hushed tone, "I drove past her house yesterday ... Chuck was there. His big rig was backed right up into the driveway. They're not even trying to hide it anymore."

"I knew it." Riley slapped a scoop of potatoes onto her plate, passing them across to Liam. "When does Bertrand get back from that Bankers Convention in Atlanta?"

"I think Max said on Tuesday. And I guarn-damn-tee, Chuck will be there until then."

"Of course he will. Have you told Drake yet?"

Alyssa shook her head, peeking over at her husband, who was in hog heaven, dousing everything on his plate with white gravy, blissfully unaware of their idle chitchat. She turned back to Riley. "Not yet. You know how protective he is. I'll need to hide the gun cabinet keys when he finds out ... if he finds out. You remember how upset he got when Bianca got caught at the Love's Truck Stop with Landon Ebrim over the summer. His mama can do what she wants, but not with a married man."

Riley agreed with a nod before taking a sip and swallowing her sweet tea. "Ya know, I've never seen sweet Emmaline that angry."

"Yeah, me neither. She sure whopped ass that day." They both giggled lightly. "Landon's dentures flew clean across that truck lot."

"I saw her the other day at the Food Lion, grinnin' like a baked possum. Got that ol' dog for everything he had."

Alyssa huffed, "Cept' his nuts."

Ellie ran back in and hopped in her chair. "Miss Olivia is here!"

Alyssa stiffened, clutching her fork a little tighter before letting out a faint groan. Not that she didn't like the Assistant Principal of Cordonia Elementary -- she was her boss, after all, and they grew up together -- she could just be a little off-putting, sometimes with her treatment of Drake. In light of Olivia's recent divorce, she had, however, started directing most of her scorn on her ex-husband, Anton.

Everyone greeted Olivia as she strolled in behind the youngster, shrugging her jacket off and tossing it on a counter with her purse. "I smelled your chicken and taters all the way from Lythikos Drive, Regina. You know how I love a good rib stickin' meal."

"Is Travis and Waylon here?" Patrick piped up eagerly from the children's table, hoping to have some boys to play with rather than the three little girls who kept ganging up on him.

Olivia pulled out a chair and started loading her plate down. "They're with their daddy this weekend, sugar. I'll tell them you asked about them."

Drake lifted his coffee mug, not making eye contact with anyone. "Speaking of ... I saw Anton yesterday at the Dollar Tree ... with someone." He smirked into his drink. While everyone else knew who and was trying to avoid the elephant in the room, he owed her for years of squabble.

"Who? Madeleine?" Olivia spat, adding heaping spoonfuls of sugar to her already overly sweetened tea. "Bless her rotten heart, he was seeing her before our break up. Moved in with her right after the divorce was final, so I hope she's enjoyed cookin' and cleanin' after my youngins' all weekend, cause she's gonna be doin it a hell of a lot more now that she got herself fired."

Madeleine was a bank teller in the drive-thru at First Cordonia and also Leo's ex-fiancee.

"Madeleine got fired?" Alyssa asked in surprise. "She's been there for years."

The redhead swirled the sugar around in her tea with a spoon before licking it off and continuing, "Mmm-hmm. Bertrand caught her on video, stuffing her gaudy drawers into the vacuum tubes at the bank and sending them to that bastard when he drove through to make a deposit. He was making deposits alright. Right between her scrawny, cankled ass --"

"Olivia!" Liam quickly interjected, knowing once she got going, it would likely turn R-rated with several little ears listening. "I'm dying to hear how the Christmas Festival for next Saturday is coming along." He shot a look across the table at Drake for getting her worked up. Drake simply grinned.

By late afternoon, supper had been eaten, dishes cleaned, and pants unbuttoned. After a couple of hours of chatting on the back porch and watching the kids play, the two younger couples packed up leftovers Regina insisted they take home and were ready to hit the road.

Liam and Riley lived next door and walked out with the Walkers who were making their way to the Tahoe parked on the street.

Alyssa bounced and cooed over baby Jacob before handing him back to Riley and getting into the vehicle's passenger seat.

Liam was leaning into the driver's side window, having a casual discussion with Drake about the opening day of deer season next Saturday and asking what time he wanted to head out.

Alyssa was half-listening and half-working the stereo when an idea popped into her head. "You know what would be fun?” Both men stopped talking and glanced over at her. “We should all go?”

Drake knit his brows. “Go where?

“Hunting. We can make it a double date. You and me, Riley and Liam. The great outdoors. Some quality time together. I’ll even make snacks for everyone. It’ll be fun,” her voice was chipper. She was excited about it.

She was also deadly serious.

So were the dubious looks Drake and Liam gave each other over the thought of taking their wives on the most important hunting event of their year. Not that either didn't enjoy spending time with their significant others, but hunting was a whole different world. It was a one-person sport where you spent the day away from reality and responsibilities and just enjoying the great outdoors —a place to be alone and experience the thrill of a good hunt.

“Guys, I’m serious. We go fishing together, and I’ve shot targets plenty of times. I really wanna go hunting with you. Riley wants to go too, don't you?” She cast an inquisitive glance out her window at Riley, who glared back with the biggest what-the-fuck look she'd ever made. “See, she wants to go too.”

“Baby,” Drake began softly, giving her knee light squeezes. “I don’t mind taking you, but this is opening day. We’ll be in the woods for hours, in the cold. It’s not really what someone would consider a ‘date.’ And we’re going to the Festival that night … we’ll get a chance to spend time together there.”

She held his gaze as her lips began to quiver. “I understand. You .. you need time to be away from me, and it was a dumb idea anyway --”

“No,” Drake cut in. His heart plummeted from the sadness in her voice and eyes. “That’s not it at all. I love spending time with you. And if you really want to do this, then … let’s do this.”

“Really? We can go together?” Drake nodded with a smile before she squealed in his ear and pulled him into a tight hug. “I can’t wait! Thank you!”

Stuffing his hands in his pockets, Liam let out a heavy breath as he looked over at Riley -- The woman he knew would not be a fun hunting partner next week -- still standing on the sidewalk, appearing like she might faint. “Yeah ... I can’t wait either.”

---------------------

Saturday. 5:15 a.m. The cellphone alarm on Drake’s bedside table let off a series of rhythmic beeping sounds and vibrations.

The alarm wasn’t needed. The man had been awake for hours, listening to his wife's gentle snores; the anticipation of bringing home at least a 12-pointer keeping him from falling back asleep.

Letting out a ferocious yawn and a hearty stretch, he picked up his phone to dismiss the alarm and rolled over to wake Alyssa.

With her ass perfectly curled into the space between his stomach and thighs, his hands settled on her curvy hip, jostling her slightly. “Time to get up, my little peach. We gotta get crackin’ before all the good deer are gone.”

“I just need one more hour, okay? Thanks,” she protested with a drowsy murmur, pulling the pillow over her head.

Drake chuckled, rubbing soothing circles over her back. “No. We have to get up now. We’re wasting time, sleepyhead. Unless … you don’t want to go.”

Alyssa’s heavy eyes stung as she tried to peel them open one at a time. “No, I wanna … go ...” she trailed. Her eyes slowly shut again, and she was out.

On a day like today, Drake was usually up and ready in ten minutes. Once he could finally get his wife out of bed, dressed, and back awake again from where she fell asleep on the toilet, it was close to 45 minutes.

Maxwell, who was also a childhood friend and the music teacher where Alyssa taught, rented the room over their garage. He agreed to come down that morning and watch the kids while the pair spent their morning in the woods. Bianca used to help out in that regard, but the kids complained she slept the whole time, and Alyssa was pretty sure her mother-in-law smoked pot around them.

Drake loaded up the truck, placing his rifle and a smaller .22 caliber for Alyssa behind the seat. Dragging herself slowly to the vehicle, the night sky still pitch black and her breath turning to thick vapors in the frigid air, she listlessly tossed a Taylor Swift tote bag on the floorboard and climbed in.

Drake looked at his phone after everything was packed up to see if Liam had sent a message about being late. It was unusual for him not to be there already. Typically, his best friend was up and at his house before Drake was even ready. He sent off a quick text to check.

Drake: Where you at, man?

Liam: Running late. Riley had to put makeup on and do her hair.

Liam: I’m having so much fun already 😑

Liam: snark

Drake: Lyss couldn’t decide which gloves looked the best with her orange vest. I guess she wants to impress the deer before she kills them.

Liam: We’re not catching deer today. We’ll be lucky if we catch a cold. Be there in 10.

Twenty minutes later, Liam’s gray Silverado pulled onto the Walker’s gravel drive. Riley had wanted biscuits and gravy from McDonald's, and she had to run back inside to pee, so that set them back. But, with everyone now there, they were finally ready to head out.

Just down the rural road from where Drake and Alyssa lived, the current sheriff of Cordonia, Bastien, owned several acres of unoccupied land that he used for recreation. He had been a close friend of Drake’s dad and agreed to let Drake and Liam hunt and fish on his property whenever they wanted.

Turning onto the dirt road and opening the gate, the four friends arrived at their spot just as dawn was breaking.

No one spoke much as they trekked through the mud, sticks, and brittle fall leaves that littered the path to the deer stands. Riley and Alyssa were too exhausted to say anything. Drake and Liam just weren’t used to talking at all.

"Riley, love,” Liam whispered softly. “Can you watch how you’re walking? The noise is going to scare the deer away.”

“I can’t help it if … " She reacted loudly in frustration before Liam placed a finger over his lips, and she resumed speaking more quietly. “I can’t help it if there're leaves everywhere. I’m walking on them as delicately as possible.”

“How much further? I think my toes are frozen and I need coffee.” Alyssa bemoaned while walking on the balls of her heels. Drake was basically dragging her sluggish body by the hand. Her eyes were still drooping from exhaustion with every careful step.

“Just over yonder of that fence row is our stand.” He pointed out.

Alyssa aimed her flashlight around the woods in several spots. "And where do we pee at?"

Liam lightly snorted as Drake answered matter-of-factly. "Just over yonder of that fence row below our stand."

"Oh ... " her tone was small and apprehensive, "... I guess that's ... okay." She glanced back timidly at Liam, who was following close behind.

He shielded his eyes from the beam of her flashlight in his face and frowned. "I'm not going to watch you pee, Alyssa."

Riley gasped, "Eww! I don't want Drake watching me pee either."

"Shhhhh." Liam was quick to remind her again of the volume of her voice.

"Stop, shushing me, Liam! Those deer don't know I'm out here."

Drake grunted, then whipped around to face the three of them. "Would you keep your voices down? No one's watching anybody take a piss," he whisper-yelled. "Lyssa and I will be at least a hundred yards away from ya'll. Riley, I promise you can piss your little heart out, and I won't see it."

"We're separating?" Alyssa asked wistfully. "What if I need to ask Riley something, and she can't hear me yelling across to her?"

"You'll just have to ask her when we're done, baby girl. And ... please don't yell questions to her while we're out here. Low voices."

They continued on with their noisy hike.

"Having so much fun," Liam grumbled to himself.

-------------------

Liam and Riley headed to their tree stand as Drake helped Alyssa climb up the ladder to theirs.

The stand and ladder were made of plywood -- chipped and faded from years of exposure to the elements -- and were attached at the apex to an oak tree about twenty feet off the ground. At the top it had enough room to take a step onto, with a wooden seat just wide enough to accommodate them. One plank rail came out on both sides.

Alyssa plopped down onto the seat, clutching her tote bag of goodies on her lap. She lifted the brim of the orange beanie she borrowed from Drake -- that smelled of animal carcass and gun powder -- above her eyes and peered out to the wilderness spread monumentally below. She closed her eyes and slowly inhaled the fresh, dewy air, taking in the sounds of twittering birds, branches clashing from the nearby squirrel frolicking on them, and the rippling of a bubbling brook streaming down the hill.

A pleasant warmth overcame her as Drake's much larger body sat down next to her and protected her from the frosty wind blowing in from his side.

Alyssa wrapped her arms around his waist, snuggling into him. "I can see why you like this so much. It's so quiet and peaceful ... look how purty it is out here, Drake. It's just real purty, isn't it?"

Working diligently on getting their gear together, he stopped briefly to look out; affection glowed in his eyes. “It sure is, darlin’. Almost as purty as you ... and notice I said 'almost.'” He winked, and Alyssa blushed, feeling that same love trickling up inside her she'd had since they were teenagers. Drake could charm the pants off a chipmunk, but she was thankful he only used that gift on her.

"Sooo ... " She drawled in her thick Southern accent. "How long will it be before the deer start coming out?"

Drake drew the barrel of her gun back after loading it with shells and explained, "Don't know. It could be minutes. It could be a few hours. Just whenever they head this way, I reckon."

Perplexed, Alyssa nodded slowly. "A few hours? I s'pose that's okay. What do you do while you're waiting?"

He shrugged, passing a gun to her. "You just ... sit here."

"You just sit here and do what?"

Drake leaned over to kiss into her orange cap and replied, "Wait."

"Wait." She acknowledged. "I can do that. I'll just sit here ... and wait."

Several minutes had passed, and Alyssa was already bored with listening to nature, Drake's gurgling stomach, and sitting quietly with nothing to do. Every so often, a shotgun blast was heard in the distance, signifying either someone out there had gotten their prize or Riley had driven Liam insane. It was the only break from the monotony that came with the boredom of sitting in a tree for who knew how many hours.

Letting out a giant exhale that caught Drake's attention, she propped her rifle against the railing and pulled the cloth tote that was sitting between her boots into her lap. Rummaging through the bag, she pulled out her phone and began thumbing out a message.

Drake furrowed his brows and asked, "What're you doin'?"

"Just texting Riley,' she answered dismissively. He shook his head and leaned it back against the tree while she formulated her message.

Alyssa: You still alive over there? How's it going?

Riley: This is boring as shit.

Riley: And now my texting is apparently scaring away the deer. F the deer Liam. F all the damn deer!!!! What were you thinking, Lyss?

Alyssa: I was thinking we could spend quality time with our husbands. The men we love and cherish with all of our hearts. I’m having a great time with Drake so far 😍😘

Alyssa: And no one twisted your arm to come bitch.

Riley: Liam's just staring through binoculars. He hasn’t spoken in 20 minutes except to tell me to point the gun away from him or to quit moving. Let’s go get our hair did at Adelaide's.”

Alyssa: OHHH Yes! And get Chinese food ... CRAB RANGOONS!! I'll have Drake drive us back. Girls Day Out. Love you!

Drake let out a belch and blew it away when Alyssa turned to him with a dazzling smile and a sparkle in her blues. "Can you drive Riley and me back to the house?"

"What? Right now?" he shrieked. She answered him with a cheerful nod. "What happened to all that talk about wanting to spend quality time with me?"

"I still do. But ... we're just sitting here, not really doing anything. I could be getting my hair done for tonight's festival. I also have a ton of laundry to do, some papers to grade, and I’m supposed to be making the Devereaux’s famous peach cobbler for the raffle. If I leave now, I’ll have time to do all of it.” Alyssa knew she probably wouldn’t do half of that, and Audrey would likely make the cobbler, but it made the situation sound more urgent.

"It's opening day, baby. I'm not leaving this spot." He reached into the pocket of his overalls and pulled out his keys. "If you and Riley wanna take my truck, I'll ride back with Liam."

She gave him an exasperated look. "I don't know my way back to the truck. And I sure as hell know Riley doesn't."

He smirked, stuffing his keys back. "Then you're stuck."

The next hour was brutal. Alyssa texted Riley to alleviate the boredom for several minutes, but there had been no responses in a long while. She wasn't aware that Liam tossed her friend's phone over the hill when she started making TikTok videos of her plight -- Liam took his deer hunting seriously: No noise meant no noise.

Drake wasn't much better; he was quieter than his usual self. It wouldn't have been so bad if she could at least talk. An occasional whispered word was not going to cut it.

Alyssa sighed heavily. She wiggled around for comfort. She unwrapped a Nutty Bar. She crunched. She opened a can of pop. She tapped her fingers. She flipped the pages of a magazine. Each one got that look from Drake that let her know it was too loud. If she ever made it out of there, she planned to jabber and stir until she couldn't do it anymore.

After another half-hour of stewing quietly in her thoughts without a sign of a deer anywhere, Alyssa decided now was the time to finally just talk.

"Do you ever think about having another baby?" It was a topic that had been on her mind for a while. To her surprise, Drake didn't give her a look or even freak out the way she anticipated. Despite his own rule of silence, he even responded in kind.

"Yeah. Kind of a lot."

Her right brow darted up. "Really?"

Drake took a breath and shifted the gun across his lap. "I mean, of course. It's always been my dream to settle down and have a bunch of youngin's with the woman I love." He studied her lit-up face; he'd swore she'd gotten more beautiful with age. That's why he hesitated when he added, "But ... "

Her shoulders slumped at his words, and a deflated look impressed upon her face. "But ... " The word barely made it past her lips.

Drake reached for her hand and gripped it tightly. "Lyssa, we have so much going on right now. You're working on National Boards, Audrey has piano recitals and basketball, Patrick has peewee football and Boy Scouts. We barely have time -- except for right now -- for just ... us. I'm not saying,"never"... just that right now ... isn't a good time."

"I understand that, but ... we've always made it work. And don't you miss those tiny little fingers wrapped around yours? And the way they smell fresh out of the bath? And those chubby little cheeks pressed up against yours?" she goaded.

“Of course I do. I remember the first time I held Audrey and PJ in my arms -- there’s just no better feeling in the world than ...to look down ... " Drake paused as his voice cracked, and his brown eyes glistened like glass. " ... and to see someone so small ..." When she sniffled, it made it that much harder for him to speak. "... that you created with the woman you've loved since you were 16 years old. But I like who they are now, and watching them grow, and doing things with them ... And, well ... there’s no shit clean up.”

“You obviously haven’t washed Patrick's clothes in a while,” Alyssa retorted with a chuckle that brought out one in her husband.

"I’ll have to talk to him about that." He gazed deeper into her eyes. "But I do love you ... more than all the peaches in Georgia, Lyssa Claire.”

Alyssa smiled.“That’s what you said to me when you promised to marry me when we were teens.”

Drake returned his own smile. “I did. I remember like it was yesterday too. Sitting in your parent’s basement, watching Friends reruns, eating pizza, making out. And hell, it’s still as true today as it was then. Somehow, even more."

Their cold lips parted and joined halfway for a fervent kiss, with Drake's hand meandering around the subtle groove at the junction of her waist. Just as it became more intense and desirous, a rustling of twigs off in a nearby thicket caught Drake's ear, and he broke away, his eyes scoping the perimeter. Alyssa wasn't offended, she heard it too, and her heart raced with excitement.

Lifting the binoculars hanging from his neck, he spotted two deer eating from a blackberry patch some thirty yards away. He pointed in their direction; Alyssa gave a quick thumbs up, letting him know she saw them too.

Drake carefully lifted the rifle resting in his lap as Alyssa leaned forward and squinted to get a better visual. "Is that a buck and a doe?" she whispered, not moving an inch.

"Sure as fuck is." He mounted the stock of his .30 caliber, Winchester, just beneath his collarbone; the rush of this moment coursed ravenously through his body. He lined up the scope and placed a steady finger on the trigger -- his thumb pulling the hammer back.

“Wait.” Alyssa loudly whispered. “You can’t shoot him.”

"I'm gonna. Better cover your ears."

"No, Drake. There's a doe with him. What if that's his wife? You can't just leave her all alone without him."

"Lyss, this is the whole reason we're out here."

"So you can make a widow out of her?"

"No ... so I can make deer chili out of him."

Alyssa's mouth flew open. "No. No. RUUUUUUUUN! RUUUUUUN!"

Drake pulled his face away from the scope and fired her a look. "What the hell are you doing? They're getting away!"

She tilted her chin boldly. "I don't care. That was her husband, and they're in love, and you can't take that away from them. I would be so sad if we were just out eating berries and someone came up and shot you, ALL SO THEY COULD EAT DRAKE CHILI!".

Drake dropped his head. He knew there was no point in arguing with her. As long as he’d known her, she was stubborn, and at that moment, she was dead set in believing those two deer were living out the greatest romance of all time. Nothing he said or did would change her mind on that.

A thought emerged while he attempted to comprehend the logic of the situation. Those deer ran off in the direction where Liam was set up. Maybe if he could give his friend a heads up, it was still possible at least someone would leave those woods with the prized buck.

Turning his back from Alyssa so that she couldn't stop him, he pulled a small walkie-talkie from his pocket and radioed Liam. Alyssa knew what was up and jumped to her feet, thrusting her arms around him in an attempt to stop the travesty.

"You can't do this, Drake," she hollered, "That’s her soulmate. And why don't I have a walkie-talkie? I want a walkie-talkie!"

While seated next to Liam, Riley was swinging her legs, purposefully making the soles of her boots scrape against the platform. Liam tried to ignore her; maybe he had been a little too uptight about every little noise and utterance she made. But this was playing a whole different ballgame now: she was now making it her mission to piss him off.

Prepared to pound his head against the tree, Liam gritted his teeth, skimming his eyes in her direction. "Love, do you have to do that?"

"Did you have to throw my phone in the woods?" She spat back.

Liam rubbed his hand over his face. "No, and I am sorry that. I apologize for all of eternity. I promise I will get you another one as soon as we get back, okay?”

Riley huffed. "Fine, but that phone had all of my contacts on it. It had our babies' pictures and videos on it ... our vacation photos. I can't get those memories back ever, and I have to find it, and God only knows where it landed. It could be ..." She stopped rattling on when she caught sight of the distressed look Liam was giving her. Knitting her brows, Riley asked, "What?"

"Nothing ... just ... can you lower your voice a little? You're gonna scare the deer away,"

He regretted it as soon as it came out.

“LIAAAAM!”

He saw the steam gushing out of her ears. There was no time to answer the incoming call on his walkie-talkie from Drake.

Belting out a furious screech, Riley jumped up and tried to jerk the gun from his hands. There was no question she wouldn't shoot him, but she'd sure as hell shred his favorite gun apart piece-by-piece and toss them all the way to Portavira Lake on the other side of town.

Riley tugged with all of her might. "I have HAD IT with being quiet for those damn deer, Liam. HAD IT!"

"Sweetheart, you need to calm down ..." He stood up in front of her, pulling back on the rifle even harder, surprised -- and not pleasantly so -- his considerably smaller wife had this much struggle in her.

"Don't you sweetheart me. You have shushed me for the last time, Liam Preston Rys!"

“Okay, I’m sorry! But can you at least admit us fighting over a gun is dangerous? Somebody is going to get seriously hurt, and I don’t want it to be you, Riley. Please. I won’t shush you anymore, I promise.” His face softened, eventually adorning a loving smile at his wife, who, with a sigh, was unable to resist that handsome face and relaxed her grip.

Riley gave him a half-smile in return. “I’m sorry, too. I’ve ruined your hunting trip.”

“Yes ... you did.” Liam agreed, dodging the playful slap she nearly made to his upper arm. “But I don’t want to fight anymore.”

With the War of the Ryses finally over, they went in for a makeup kiss until Drake’s voice called out to Liam again through his walkie talkie. Liam set the gun down on the bench and leaned it against the tree before he started digging into his pocket to answer the device. Riley dropped down onto the seat, her elbow brushed against the rifle and caused it to slide away until the barrel end hit the railing and set off a powerful blast.

When the ringing in both of their ears subsided, and the smoke had cleared, Liam and Riley collected themselves from the sudden spine-gripping explosion that shook them both. While Riley explained to Liam what happened, a hysterical sounding Drake came back over the walkie-talkie, wailing, “Alyssa’s been shot! Alyssa’s been shot! Help me!”

__________________

Later that evening, in the courthouse square, the street was lit up with zig-zagged rows of red, green, and white lights. Strands of garland were wound around every lamppost in perfect spiraled loops, and red bows hung and waved with the wintry breeze.

With traffic rerouted away from the area, vendors lined sidewalks selling local goods to put the town's citizens in the festive spirit. What would this small town in Georgia have been without boiled peanuts, low country boil, fried green tomatoes, barbecue, and peach everything?

Once Constantine had lit the 30-foot spruce, surrounded by hundreds of merry people from all walks of life that made up this small community, the festival was officially kicked-off.

In a large tent set up on the square, Liam and Riley laid out styrofoam containers and drinks they’d purchased from a barbeque vendor on one of several picnic tables inside. With their two young daughters munching away on their meal, and the stroller with their sleeping son beside them, they both sat down with heavy hearts and restless minds.

Liam bit into his barbecue sandwich, noticing Riley only prodding at her mac-and-cheese while staring off into the distance. He didn’t have to ask what was wrong; he knew what happened that morning was bothering her with guilt and worry. It wasn’t every day she accidentally shot someone.

“Are you going to be okay?”

Riley shook her head slightly with a sad look. “No. It’s just not the same without Alyssa here. You know how much she loves Christmas and the festival. She was so looking forward to it too, until --”

“You shot her.”

“Yeeeeeesssss,” she cried out. Liam reached across the table and gave her hand a comforting squeeze, his thumb caressing her smooth skin. Riley continued to sniffle as she grabbed a handful of napkins and wiped the barbecue sauce off Liam’s sticky fingers that were now smeared all over hers. “I didn’t mean to, I swear it. And the way … and the way Drake cried. It broke my heart. Now he has her on bed rest AND house arrest. He won’t let her take calls. I’ll never see or hear from my bestie agaaaain.” The tears continued to flow in steady streams.

Liam stiffened, feeling the eyes of everyone in that tent, gawking at his overly-dramatic wife breaking down. He started to tell her to lower her voice, but after the gun battle in the woods, he thought better of it. “Riley, darlin’, you know Drake is really overprotective of Alyssa. And as scary as what happened was, she only needed the one stitch and band-aid for her graze wound. Something tells me Drake won’t be able to keep her down long.”

---------------------------

Liam was right. As much as Drake tried to keep her in bed so he could wait on her hand and foot, protect her from the careless friends of the world who could inadvertently do his baby girl harm, and check to see if she needed a new band-aid every few minutes, he could not keep her down. She had been far too excited to hang out with the people she loved so much and celebrate at one of her favorite festivals.

Maxwell had left for the events with Audrey and Patrick an hour ago; they were part of the children’s caroling group and needed to be there early. Against Drake’s wishes, Alyssa showered, got dressed, and made sure he knew in no uncertain terms would he be able to prevent her from going. The only thing he knew to do was to go, follow her around the entire night, and make sure she wouldn’t get shot again.

They circled the block where everything was held several times, but spaces to park were impossible to find. Three blocks away was the church where they attended, and the parking lot was completely empty. Drake didn’t like the fact that Alyssa would have to walk so far in her debilitated condition and was prepared to haul her piggyback style if he had to, but this was the best spot he could find.

Drake moved the gearshift into park and reached over to grab Alyssa’s arm, who was already bounding out the door. He pulled Alyssa back inside, the chilly air blowing through her open door swept her straighten hair this way and that way.

She cocked her head to the side and exhaled, “Drake, I can open my own door. I’m not broken. It’s just a scratch. I’m fine.”

“I know.” He smiled that tenderhearted smile only Alyssa had ever seen. The same one sending a shudder through her already chilled body. “I changed my mind,” he replied simply

Alyssa slammed her eyes shut and groaned. “I just told you I was fine --”

“No, no,” He shook his head. “About having another baby. I want to start trying.”

Saddled with curiosity, she slid back into the truck and shut the door. “But, I thought you said we didn’t have time for that --”

“Yeah, I did say that. I still believe it. But … today made me realize that yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today …”

Alyssa’s hand flew to her mouth as she laughed out loud. Drake gave her a confused look before chuckling awkwardly to himself, “What’s so funny?”

She lowered her hand, still laughing. “You got that saying from a quote on a poster in my classroom. You’re the one who hung it up for me.”

The memory dawned on him, and he lowered his head, attempting to cover the guilty grin that spread over it. “Well, hell. Here I was trying to make you think I was all insightful and smart and stuff.”

Alyssa’s hand splayed across his rugged chest as she leaned over to kiss him.“You are very insightful and smart. You know I never settle for anything less than the best.”

“I s’pose.” he said, forking his fingers through his hair. “But … I guess what I wanted to say was … I know that bullet missed you, barely … but what if it hadn’t? What if I’d left those woods without you today? Just like you were afraid that doe might. Time wouldn’t matter anymore. There will NEVER be enough time with you. You’re my life, Alyssa Claire. You’re my lover, my friend, my heart, my confidante, my soul, my everything … my little peach. I want to experience all that life has given me with you as my wife … and forever make time with you.”

“DRAAAKEY!” she bawled, spreading her tiny arms wide around his bulky body. Alyssa drew him into her so hard it nearly crushed the wind right out of his lungs. “I -- love -- you -- so muuuch!” Drake patted her back and kissed into her hair as she sniveled into his shirt. He hated when she cried, but damn if this didn’t feel good to him. Anytime she was happy made him that way too.

They took a moment to kiss and pet each other a little before Alyssa sat up and asked, “So … when do you want to start trying for a new baby Walker?”

He shrugged. “Whenever you want, baby.”

Alyssa looked through the back window of the truck and scanned the parking lot. She bit her lip and looked back at him impishly. “What about … now?”

Drake’s eyes flew open wide. “In the church parking lot?”

Pursing her lips, she affirmed, “Yes. We’ve done it behind the Piggly Wiggly plenty of times. And let's not forget the ‘Great Ass Blow-out of 2019’ in the Atlanta Convention Center parking garage.”

“I will never forget that.” Drake shook his head as that momentous sexual experience replayed in his mind. “Mmmm, you performed magic that day, woman.”

She raised a brow and coaxed him on, “So? What’dya say?”

Drake took a tentative look around at the dark, empty lot, then back at her. “We’re so going to hell, but I’m in.”

“Eeeeeee,” she squealed, jerking his arm around in excitement. “Try to keep your ass out of the window this time, okay?”

Thirty minutes later, Pastor Hakim pulled into the church parking lot with Mara, the game warden, following behind in her truck. There had been several reports from passerby’s of loud animals howling and screeching behind the church. The stray cat population was out of control in that area, and several cats had burrowed their way inside the church on occasion.

Hakim parked his car, with Mara pulling in beside him. They both got out simultaneously and listened quietly to see if they could decipher where the commotion was coming from.

Within seconds, a load moan roared out, followed by several consecutive whimpers that were hard to make out by the duo.

Mara listened intently, then gestured with her flashlight to an area near the back of the lot where clusters of shrubs and dry brush bordered. Hakim ambled behind her, the noise getting closer and closer until the pastor's brow furrowed at the shaking of a nearby truck.

“Damn, teenagers,” he grumbled as they tipped toed discreetly.

Mara crouched down by the truck's tailgate, Hakim bending over while she duck-walked toward the driver's side door.

The game warden turned to the pastor and instructed, “On my three. 1 -- 2 -- 3.” They both jumped up at the same time, flashing the light inside the cab. “HAHA Caught ya! OH MY GOD!”

Alyssa, who was on top of Drake, completely naked except for the band-aid on her left arm, looked up in utter humiliation and shock. She crossed her arms over her chest to cover her breast, feeling like she might faint. Not knowing what to say at that moment to rectify their actions or why those two were still staring inside the truck, Alyssa smiled sheepishly. “I’m still feeling the spirit, Hakim.”

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@burnsoslow @ao719 @dcbbw @hopefulmoonobject @jessiembruno @texaskitten30 @janezillow @merridithsmiscellany-blog @mskaneko @callmeellabella @queenjilian @sirbeepsalot @drakexwillow @caroldxnvxrs @jovialyouthmusic @forthebrokenheartedthings @bebepac @kingliam2019 @lovablegranny @ofpixelsandscribbles @amandablink @cordoniaqueensworld @liamxs-world @choiceskatie @iaminlovewithtrr @hopelessromanticmonie @charlotteg234 @annekebbphotography @txemrn @alyssalauren @monsoonblooms12 @mom2000aggie @theroyalheirshadowhunter @princessleac1 @kimmiedoo5 @graceful-leah @iam-the-kind-and-thoughtful @thegreentwin @gkittylove99 @neotericthemis @pink-diamond13 @walker7519 @yourmajesty09 @gabesmommie1130 @sweatyrysconnoisseur @kat-tia801 @debramcg1106 @choicesstan650 @emkay512 @royalromancer @cordonia-gothqueen @tinkie1973

#drake x alyssa #Liam x Riley #gun usage #hunting

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