Creating Perfection (Sizzling Miami Book 10) Read online

  CREATING PERFECTION

  Sequel to Safety in Numbers & Deciding on Forever

  By Jessie G

  CREATING PERFECTION

  By Jessie G

  Billy and Liam are ready to put the past behind them so they can start enjoying their future. They had a solid plan too. Work through Liam’s fears with a recommended therapist, get married, and then find a surrogate to have their baby. When their new friend Micah offers an alternative—one that’s almost too good to be true—it’s hard to wait, but they know how important it is to do the steps in order. Especially that first one.

  Cam and Corey had a plan too. While they were in college, a medical scare convinced them to freeze their eggs for the future and in the years since, they built a solid foundation for the family they wished to have. Now they need someone to help them complete the picture, but they want more than just a sperm donor—they want their children to have a father. Or two.

  Down the road, these eager parents-to-be would be perfect for one another. But plans change. For Cam and Corey, waiting is no longer an option and while they’re willing to move forward with a donor if they have too, they still have one last chance to get what they want. For Billy and Liam, saying yes is a huge risk, but after hearing the women’s story, no just isn’t an option.

  Suddenly, the future is now, and with their dreams growing into reality, this chosen family will become one worth being born into.

  Books by Jessie G

  http://www.jessiegbooks.com

  Sizzling Miami Series

  Past Hurts

  For A Reason

  The Protector

  Their Reason

  Safety in Numbers

  His Premier

  Deciding on Forever

  Our Reason

  A Home for the Holidays

  Creating Perfection

  Devils Pride MC Series

  Tricking Chase

  Talk Dirty to Me

  Ty’s That Bind

  Taking the Top

  Forgotten Soldier Series

  Micah’s Soldier

  Treading Water

  Continuing Their Education

  (Free short)

  Kindred Stories

  Rebuilding Hope

  Single Titles

  Brewing Up Trouble

  (2015 DRitC Goodreads Event)

  Julian’s Redemption ft. SoL17

  Not So Predictable

  (2019 Hot Summer Nights Anthology)

  Creating Perfection

  Copyright © 2019 Jessie G.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  Published by Jessie G Books Inc: All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher, Jessie G Books Inc, [email protected]. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any other means, electronic or print, without permission from Jessie G Books Inc.

  Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. (http://www.fbi.gov/ipr/). Please purchase on authorized electronic editions and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted material.

  Creating Perfection is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental. Licensed material is being used for illustrative purposes only, and any person depicted in the licensed material is a model.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Thank you

  Chapter One

  February 5, 2019 - Liam

  “Why is it so quiet?”

  After the mad dash across town, bursting through the doors of Jackson Memorial Hospital had been crushingly anticlimactic. Heart racing, head pounding, the frenetic urgency inside him was completely at odds with the absolute silence that greeted them in the lobby. The first time they visited, the whole building had been bustling with activity and without it, Liam felt even more uncertain than he had when Billy called to say it was time.

  “It’s two in the morning.” Though Chris didn’t laugh out loud, it was painfully obvious that his brother was amused.

  “I didn’t realize illness was restricted to business hours.”

  Chris did laugh then and gave him a hearty shove toward the elevators. “Let’s go find your husband before you lose your sense of humor completely.”

  Liam huffed but remained quiet as they entered the empty elevator. The ride up to their floor was more of the same and he was disgustingly relieved when the doors opened to a pair of familiar arms. Billy stood ready to catch him when he came flying out, a dozen questions stuck behind the realization that everything they’d been working toward was about to become a reality.

  “We didn’t miss it, did we?” Clutching at Billy’s t-shirt, Liam begged, “Please tell me we didn’t miss it.”

  “We only got here twenty minutes ago. All you missed was a lot of glaring from Cam when they didn’t get Corey settled into the suite fast enough.”

  “So, they should have been fluffing her pillows when you walked in the door?” Lord knew, if Cameron wasn’t happy with how the hospital treated her wife, hell wouldn’t be safe for those involved. That protective streak reminded him of Billy and was just one the many reasons why he adored her.

  “Basically.” Billy tucked him under one big arm and together they turned to face Chris. “Thanks for getting him here so fast.”

  “Fast?” Liam sputtered. “We shouldn’t have gone out in the first place. I told you that! I said it was too close to the due date, but…”

  “But you were going stir crazy and taking us all with you.” The small smile Billy gave him didn’t soften the truth. “Like it or not, you needed a break from baby-watch.”

  Normally, he was the calm one and Billy the more high-strung. Somehow, in the last year, their roles had reversed and where he was a nervous wreck, Billy was the stillest of waters. Liam knew he was making them all nuts and wouldn’t deny that going out with Chris had helped. He also couldn’t agree because he wasn’t there when Corey finally went into labor.

  Cam was there. Maybe rubbing her sore back or her swollen feet, catering to every twinge and craving. Billy was there, just down the hall, channel surfing in bed and pretending not to wait up for him. Owen was there too, down another hall, either hunched over his drafting table or hitting the bag and doing nothing to hide the fact that he wouldn’t sleep until Chris got home.

  Cam would have known first, and her bellow would have spurned them all into action. Everyone had a role. Billy would get the van out while Cam helped Corey outside. His job was to grab the hospital bags that had been packed and repacked so many times, he knew the contents by heart. Chris and Owen would start the phone chain, contacting their family and friends as they followed them to the hospital.

  Except he wasn’t there, so someone else got to carry the bags.

  “Stop. Whatever you’re thinking, stop it right now.” Billy’s arm tightened around him. “You’ve
been Corey’s shadow for the last six months and have done everything possible to be part of the process. Our children are so lucky to have you, baby, but they have four parents, not one. I promise when you can’t be there, we will be. That’s the beauty of doing this together, remember?”

  “I do, honestly, I do.” From the beginning, they were on the same page about co-parenting. He knew he wasn’t doing this alone and, deep down, he had no desire to. He wanted to share it with Billy, with Cam and Corey, and their big extended family. He just didn’t want to miss anything and yes, he knew that was unrealistic. There was no way he could be there every second of every day.

  “How do we get on that list?” Chris asked. “Owen and I will need some quality baby time. Saul and his boys are gonna want some too, and… Do you need me to go on?”

  “No, I know, and I swear you’re all on the list, I just…”

  “Just nothing.” As was his way, Chris had been quietly supportive from the moment Cam and Corey entered their lives. Unwavering, agreeable, and bend-over-backward helpful, but he hadn’t expressed an opinion until now. “Liam, this very modern family of yours will not fit into any molds from the past and it doesn’t need to correct someone else’s mistake.”

  “I’m not trying to correct them.” Even he, in all his pre-baby craziness, knew that wasn’t logical. All the babies in the world wouldn’t change what his father did to Chris. Nor would they erase the guilt and fear, no matter how often his brother begged him to let it go. “I just don’t want to repeat them.”

  “In what world is that possible?” When Liam ducked his head, Chris reached out and gripped his chin, forcing it up. Face fierce, he whispered, “You will never be your father.”

  For a long time, that had been his biggest concern. Up until the night David almost killed Chris, Liam hadn’t known there was a monster inside his father. He hadn’t seen the bruises and despite promising to be there if Chris needed him; he hadn’t been available. Even that night, he was only home because the pressure to succeed and do his father proud was crushing him.

  Looking back, he had the whole world in his hand and couldn’t handle it. All the while, Chris was suffering daily and still saved them both. That guilt would never go away, and neither would the fear that he wouldn’t recognize the monster until it was too late.

  “You also don’t have to sacrifice yourself to be the total opposite,” Chris warned when he remained silent.

  As much as he wanted to, Liam couldn’t deny that in his attempt to figure out the type of parent he wanted to be, he looked to the only other role model he had. His mother. Stay at home. Totally hands-on. Always there, always present, always ready to be whatever he needed until the day she died.

  Chris just looked at him and Liam didn’t have to see Billy’s face to know they shared the same expression. The babies weren’t even born yet, and he had already begun doing exactly that. As the pregnancy progressed, his world narrowed. He and Billy hadn’t been out alone in months, and he didn’t accept invitations that didn’t include Cam and Corey.

  Except any exclusion was only happening in his head. Everyone who loved them had welcomed the women with open arms. If anyone was off-putting, it was him, not the other way around. Tonight was the perfect example. Chris has been asking to get together for weeks, but he only agreed after Corey begged for a break from him.

  Liam knew she wasn’t trying to be mean, but he also couldn’t deny that his extremes were endangering both the happy family he had and the one they were trying to build.

  “There you are!” Cam came skidding around the corner, her usually mussed pageboy pulled into sharp spikes, and glared at them. “Come on, Corey needs us.”

  She was racing back the way she came before they could respond, Vans squeaking on the tile, a tall slender blur moving at the speed of an expectant mother.

  They say it takes a village to raise a child. Well, it had taken four of them to make two. Months of planning, meetings with lawyers and counselors, and more doctors’ appointments than he cared to remember. Along the way, the two women who shared their vision had become more than just a legal agreement.

  “Did you hear that?” Chris asked when he stood staring down the empty corridor. “Your future is waiting, and they need you present, not lost in the past.”

  “Chris.” Liam hated to ask, but there was really only one person he trusted to do it. “If you’re wrong. If that monster is...”

  “It’s not,” Billy swore, and Liam loved him for it, but like his husband, he needed the reassurance whether it was necessary or not.

  Chris looked at him for a long moment. It was unfair of him to put this on those big shoulders, but they had never failed him before and Liam knew, without finishing the question, that they wouldn’t now. “I will protect your children with my life. Even from you.”

  It was the answer he already knew to the question he should have never asked, and Liam didn’t know whether to beg for forgiveness—get down on his knees and grovel until the shadows cleared from Chris’s eyes—or weep with gratitude. Or both.

  “Is everything okay?” Owen asked, jerking him around.

  Beanie in place, green eyes narrowed, Owen was every bit the protective husband they knew he could be. He was still fearful and uncertain, still awkward and abrasive, and yet he had done what they couldn’t. He helped Chris heal, held his heart safe, and made their warrior stronger than ever.

  Liam didn’t know how long Owen had been standing there, but from the darkening frown, he guessed it was long enough to hear Chris’s promise. And he wasn’t happy.

  “It’s fine,” Chris assured, reaching toward his husband.

  Only it wasn’t. Not really. He screwed up royally. “Brother…”

  “Go.” Chris was already turning away, pulling Owen into his chest and curling around the smaller man. Owen went willingly, arms holding on tight and hands grappling to secure them together. Protective. They were protecting each other from him.

  Torn and terrified, Liam stood frozen. If he walked away without fixing this, would Chris forgive him? Would Owen? They were his brothers. His family. The man who risked everything to save him and the one who bent over backward to make sure they didn’t lose their bond.

  But if he didn’t walk away, he would miss the birth of their children. Worse, Billy wasn’t going to leave his side, so he would be forcing his husband to miss it too.

  Billy wouldn’t forgive him.

  Cam and Corey wouldn’t forgive him.

  He wouldn’t forgive himself.

  Cheek resting on Owen’s head, Chris turned to look at him. Gaze determined, he urged, “Why are you still standing there? Those babies aren’t going to wait for us to get our shit together.”

  He hadn’t apologized, hadn’t made amends, and his brother offered him peace anyway. A year of therapy later, that need was still there, and he was coming to realize it always would be. “You’re coming too, right?”

  “We’ll be right behind you,” Chris promised, because bros stick together no matter what.

  It was just as true today as it was a dozen years ago.

  Even when one of them was being a total dick.

  Chapter Two

  December 31, 2017 - Billy

  “Aren’t you going to answer that?” Liam was standing naked in their closet, rifling through his extensive wardrobe for a suitable outfit to wear to the Bennett House New Year’s Eve party.

  Having already ripped the tags off his newest black t-shirt and paired them with his favorite well-worn jeans, Billy had nothing to do except sit in the recliner and enjoy the show. With a couple of hours to kill, he knew Liam would model several outfits. Each would be appraised and rejected, then stripped away to reveal all that soft, peachy skin that always made his mouth water. Then the cycle would begin again. Liam dressed. Liam naked. Liam prancing, bending, and teasing until Billy went into full bear mode.

  Knowing how it would go did nothing to diminish the thrill one tiny bit. He loved playfu
l, teasing Liam as much as Liam loved him growly and aggressive.

  “You’re naked in the closet.” Billy glanced at the unknown number and swiped to end the call. “There’s no one I want to talk to that’s more important than seeing you bend over right now.”

  “Oh, dear.” Eyes sparkling, Liam looked at the dress shirt he purposely let flutter to the floor and asked, “Did I drop that?”

  Billy shifted a little when Liam gave him his back, spread his legs, and bent at the waist, putting everything on display. Long muscles flexing, he was a vision and Billy wanted to jump out of the chair, grab hold with both hands, and dive in tongue first. But they were just getting started and the anticipation would only make the finale sweeter.

  Hips swaying enticingly, Liam was reaching for the shirt with one hand and between his legs with the other when the damn phone rang again. Seeing those fingers hesitate just shy of where he needed them to be made Billy want to kill whoever was calling, and he viciously swiped to end the call again.

  “Don’t you dare stop.” Even from across the room, he saw the little shiver of anticipation just before Liam cupped his balls, giving them a gentle tug and squeeze that Billy felt in his bones. “You teasing me or yourself, baby? Tug harder.”

  “It never feels as good as when you do it.” Whining softly, Liam’s hand tightened, and Billy strained to hold his seat.

  “Soon.” When they were both so crazy for it that he would barely get his zipper down before he was buried balls deep. The rough denim of his jeans against Liam’s bare skin would send his lover into orbit if Billy didn’t hold him down. Fingers digging into soft flesh, fist clenched around the long rope of blonde hair, and that willing body taking everything he had to give.

  He could see it, smell it, taste it, and he needed it to play out.

  Until the phone rang again.

  Groaning in disappointment, Liam stood up straight, turned in all his glory, slammed his hands on his hips, and demanded, “Answer it and tell them to fuck off.”