Gail was awoken by a quiet knock on the bedroom door and rolled over onto her back, trying to remove Lucas' arm from around her stomach and ignoring the twinge of pain from between her legs due to the previous nights activities. She rubbed her tired eyes in an attempt to make her vision clear and tried to get out of the bed discreetly, to establish what the interruption was for; however, it was proving difficult to get free of her lovers grasp.
Lucas tightened his grip on her and pulled her back into him, not allowing her to sneak away from him. He had agreed to call it quits late last night when Luke had interrupted their fun; however, he was now ready for round two and would not let her escape that easily.
'Gail?' Caleb called quietly and knocked on the door a little harder.
Gail turned and glanced at Lucas, who just placed his finger on her lips to silence her, then she quickly reached for Luke's stuffed elephant and threw it at the door to alert Caleb that they were awake.
Lucas heard the dull thud and shook his head disapprovingly at the realisation of her spoiling his fun. 'You will pay for that later Mrs Buck' he warned, as he pulled the quilt over his naked body.
'I wouldn't have it any other way, Master Buck' she teased, then sat up and pulled her nightdress down when Caleb sneaked into the room quietly and placed himself down on her side of the bed.
'It's the school' he whispered, not wanting to wake Luke and handed over her mobile telephone. 'They wanna to talk to you'
Gail glanced at him confused for a moment and when he just shrugged back at her, she took the telephone off of him and leaned back on the headboard casually.
Lucas winked playfully at Caleb while Gail was on the telephone, knowing exactly what was going on. He smiled when Caleb cottoned on and they both waited patiently for her to finish.
'Selena's been in another accident' Gail said in disbelief, then stared at Lucas suspiciously.
'So no school?' Caleb asked excitedly.
'You can't go to school without a Teacher son' Lucas advised, amused at Caleb's lack of immediate concern for Selena.
Gail watched them both carefully before attempting to get out of bed, then was dragged back down by Lucas. She was still not fully awake and she did not have the strength to fight him off at this moment in time.
Lucas did not care that Caleb was present, he forced his love down on the bed and kissed her passionately. 'Looks like we've got a family day ahead of us, who'd of thought it?' he smiled mischievously.
Gail let out a long exasperated sigh, then pushed Lucas off of her so she could go and check on Luke.
Caleb jumped up excitedly and then ran out of the bedroom to start getting ready, closing the door as he left.
'And who do you think will have to cover the story of yet another accident to our favourite Teacher?' she asked sarcastically, as she leaned over Luke's crib and was surprised to see him still asleep.
'Well it ain't gonna be my wife, as she's otherwise disposed' Lucas smiled, as he came up behind her then pulled her back down onto the bed and brought his lips to hers.
Billy stood staring out of the hospital window, while Selena lay asleep. She had been in tremendous pain last night and he had convinced the Nurse to allow him to authorise her pain killers. Matt Crower would not approve of the dose he had allowed her of morphine, to enable her to sleep; however, right now he really did not care.
He had witnessed the look in Selena's eyes when she ran out in front of his truck, she had been terrified. Selena was not usually clumsy and she was one of the strongest women he knew, she had been running and whatever she believed was chasing her had disappeared by the time he had been able to check the house. It was hard enough trying to be there for her after the news that she could not have children, this incident would only bring further obstacles to there relationship and Billy did not know what to do.
Billy had managed to have a good run in Trinity, which was surprising considering how everything had started when he first arrived here. He had been dead against Lucas Buck, had believed the man to be no more than a well groomed hick and had been convinced he wanted Selena all to himself. Now he was close friends with the man and he had landed him a cushy job as Head Doctor of Juniper house, it may not be how he had seen his future going; however, it was the cards he had been dealt and he did not understand why bad things appeared to be happening now.
First Christie left, who he had been more than fond of and now these incidents with Selena. It appeared his good luck had run out and now he was stuck with a broken shell of a girlfriend.
The sound of his mobile telephone ringing caught his attention and he stared suspiciously at the caller ID for a moment, before finally picking up. 'Gail?' he asked curiously, surprised that her name had flashed up on his phone.
'3rd turn after Johnson's Bridge, bring your rod' Lucas ordered, then hung up the telephone.
Billy stared at the telephone for a moment, then turned towards Selena who was still out cold from the amount of drugs he had given her. He could not leave her all alone, she was all he had. As he went to her beside and started to sit down, his mobile telephone rang again and he answered it abruptly. 'I can't just...' he started.
'Grab a bottle of Prosecco and some Beers on your way down, my treat' Gail said warmly, then hung up the telephone.
Billy stood with his mobile telephone in one hand and the other hand on the chair next to Selena's bed. He was about to sit down when he thought of Gail's sweet voice, they had not been friends in a long time and she sounded as though she expected him to meet up just like old times.
He thought about his options for a moment, then his telephone beeped and he opened the media message to see Gail holding a large meatball sub and pulling her tongue out playfully at the camera. The caption below it read: This sandwich wont remain untouched for long!
Billy let out a long sigh, then checked his mobile telephone when it beeped again. This time Gail was hunched down with Rocky, holding the sandwich just inches from the dogs drooling mouth and he felt a small smile come over his lips. He allowed Selena one last concerned glance, before he headed out of the room and down the corridor towards his truck.
Lucas was laying on his car bonnet with his back against the windscreen and his arms wrapped around Gail, as she leaned back into his chest. They both watched as Caleb and Ben Jr played in the river, while Luke and Izzy sat peacefully in their buggys under the shade of a large tree with Abe on a lounger beside them.
They had picked up Izzy after Lucas had given Ben the day off, to provide Ben with some alone time with Rita. They had convinced him to allow them to take Ben Jr out of school, so Caleb had some company and brought the dogs along for the ride. Gideon lay in front of the babies, ensuring they were well guarded from any stray resident that happened to wander close to this secluded spot and Rocky played in the water with the older boys.
Gail watched as the children played happily, then inhaled deeply and allowed herself to relax further into Lucas. She had not expected to enjoy this time together and had been waiting for some ulterior motive for being dragged out here; however, she had been pleasantly surprised and Lucas appeared content just being with his family.
'Have I ever given you any reason to suspect that I wouldn't be?' Lucas asked calmly, reading her mind.
Gail cursed herself for leaving her thoughts unguarded and exhaled deeply. The one constant with Lucas Buck was his obsession with his family and she could never deny his commitment to his children. 'Goading me into convincing Billy to leave Selena was very cold, you know that right?' she asked, changing the subject.
'Goading me into allowing Izzy and Ben Jr to intrude on our quality family time wasn't a great move either Darlin', but you don't see me complainin'' he said, as he wrapped his arms around her tighter and nuzzled his nose into her neck.
Gail let out a small laugh and allowed him access to her, she knew he was up to something and her old self be bothered about being goaded into helping him impose some misery onto some poor soul; however, the new her could not give a damn about what he had planned when Billy got here, or what happened to Selena as long as it did not impact her family.
Suddenly she heard her Fathers laughter from all around her and her body tensed, she glanced around the area expecting to see Peter Emory leaning against some tree close by; however, he was nowhere to be found. She closed her eyes and concentrated hard in an attempt to block out the laughter, when she felt Lucas' hand stroking her head the laughter stopped and she let out a sigh of relief.
'Care to fill me in on your demons love?' He asked curiously, unsure of what had spooked her but sensing it was to do with her recent change.
Gail shook her head and slid off the car, free of his grasp. 'I'd love to sweetheart, but your friend has arrived' she advised sarcastically and strolled towards Abe when Billy's truck pulled up.
Selena awoke in the cold hospital room all alone, wondering what was going on. She remembered Billy bringing her here and being examined, then feeling faint and passing out; however, she had no concept of how long she had been here or why there was no one here with her.
A Nurse walked past the door and Selena called out to get her attention. When the pretty young blonde Nurse smiled falsely at her, she stared back unimpressed and pulled herself up to a seating position painfully. 'Where's my Doctor? or Billy Peele?' she snapped.
The Nurse moved to the bottom of the bed and picked up her chart. 'Well you're assigned Doctor Cunningham and she's been called out of the office for a few hours' the Nurse said sweetly.
'And Billy Peele?' Selena asked irritated.
'That handsome man was here for a little while, then he just left without sayin' a word...Why don't you just lie back and get some rest, I'm sure your people will return soon' the Nurse advised, then left her alone in the room and closed the door behind her.
Selena stared around the room quickly to ensure that she was definitely alone, then lay back down in the bed and tried to convince herself that she had not been abandoned here to rot on her own.
Lucas stood on the riverbank with Billy and opened another Beer, he had sensed as soon as Selena had woken up and wanted her to stew there on her own. Trying to get Billy here was only a spare of the moment decision and he had not believed the man would actually leave his beloved, then he remembered how smitten he previously was with Gail and a new plan began to form.
Gail had stripped down to a thin vest and her panties, to enable her more freedom when she decided to take Luke into the water with her. She was being very careful to keep his boy safe and was just giving him enough room to dangle his toes into the river, to experience the sensation of the river. She truly looked at ease with their son and her natural nurturing nature was a sight to behold.
He watched as Billy could not take his eyes off of her and smiled. 'She really is beautiful isn't she?' Lucas asked, while he continued to watch his love spin around in the water playfully laughing with his youngest.
Billy caught himself staring and looked down at the ground, he knew how possessive Lucas was of what he deemed to be his property and had been warned many a time by Ben to not get involved in anything.
Lucas sensed his thoughts and laughed. 'I'm takin' your lack of response to mean that you don't find her and my son beautiful, which I think could be more offensive'
Billy shifted on the spot uncomfortably, then turned towards Lucas and caught the amusement on his face. 'Ah come on man, my girl is in the hospital and you wanna bust my balls like this?' he asked in disbelief and took a long sip of his Beer.
'I ain't bustin' anythin' friend, it was just a question' Lucas shrugged, then reached into the cooler for another Beer for them both.
Billy watched Gail again, as the sun glistened off the drops of water on her skin and remembered how it felt to taste her lips on his. 'She is stunning, even more so in this setting' he stated honestly and nodded his thanks when Lucas handed him the Beer.
'Yeah, children really are a gift and she's amazing with ours...How's Selena doin' with her tragic news?' he asked, feigning concern.
Billy inhaled deeply and shook his head. 'She's a mess, she's pretending nothing's bothering her then she races out in front of my truck and ends up in the hospital again...I don't know what to do' he shrugged and started to down his Beer.
'You just let go' Gail advised, as she exited the water and reached for her glass of Prosecco that Lucas had placed near.
'Let go of what?' Billy asked confused, trying not to stare at her soaking barely clothed body.
'Life' she said with a smile after handing Luke to Lucas and downing her drink, then took Billy's hand and led him into the river.
Lucas held Luke close and stared possessively at Gail, his rage suddenly surged through him and he was about to release his twin, when Gail turned around and shot him a playful wink.
Abe came up behind Lucas and placed a stern hand on his shoulder. 'Stand down Soldier, you can't bring a wildflower out here and expect her to remain tied down' he advised, then took Luke from Lucas carefully and went back towards the other children who had settled a bit further down the riverbank.
Without a second thought, Lucas took off his shirt and pants then waded into the water. It did not take him long to reach the pair, who had stopped where the water started to get deep and appeared deep in conversation. When he came close, Gail grabbed his shoulders and pushed him hard under the water. As he bounced back up and shook out his soaked hair, both Billy and Gail were laughing hysterically.
'Looks like I win' she smiled at Billy and Lucas looked at them both confused.
'She bet me that you'd follow us, thinking we were having an intimate moment in the river' Billy laughed.
'Is there any other kind?' Lucas asked Gail seductively, as he picked her up in his arms and she wrapped her legs around his waist.
Gail allowed Lucas to kiss her passionately for a moment, then turned back towards Billy who remained uncomfortably silent a small distance from them. She had sensed what Lucas was attempting to do to Selena and her new self had decided to get involved in the fun. 'Don't mind this reprobate, he has no manners when it comes to me' she laughed playfully.
Lucas nipped at her bottom lip teasingly and started to carry her away from Billy. He liked her this way, it made him feel at ease and enabled him to relax fully. 'Reprobate? I doubt a girl of your calibre would be seen dead with someone like that' he smiled and gazed at her affectionately.
Gail sensed his guard lower as his whole body relaxed and smiled sweetly to hide her cunning. 'Well you know what they say about good girl's and bad boys' she teased, then clawed her nails down his back playfully.
Lucas let out a quiet moan and felt his manhood harden, this was not the time or place for this kind of behaviour; however, he could never control his urges when it came to her. Before he had a chance to answer her comment and act on his urges, a flood of water came over his head and he turned around towards the disturbance.
Caleb had witnessed the adults wade into the water and was not happy he was being kept out of the fun; therefore, he had left Abe with the babies and convinced Ben Jr to follow him back into the river. The boys had paired up together and managed to splash the water hard so it went all over Lucas.
Gail pushed free of Lucas when the kids teamed up against him to have a water fight. She swam over to Billy when she saw him looking dejected and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, then brought her lips to his ears. 'Let it all go...' she whispered soothingly, '...the Billy I used to know wouldn't have allowed himself to get this damn serious'
Billy inhaled her scent and felt a warmness flow through him at her touch, before he had a chance to reply to her comment she pushed him away from her playfully and he was dove upon by Caleb and Ben Jr.
-To be continued-