Dawn and Autumn: Finding Him (The Greatest Love Series Book 3) Read online

  Copyright © 2016 by Genevieve D. Woods

  All Rights Reserved.

  This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the author is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do

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  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously. Some places are real but they are not actual event unless cited. Otherwise, any resemblance to persons,

  living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  A Little Bit About Genevieve

  First Things First, I am a believer in Jesus Christ.

  Fictional love and life resembles reality. It is imperative for me to show how the Lord meets individuals where they are and restores them through His Word for them to become the individuals he predestined them to be.

  I am happily married to a wonderful and handsome man who supports me in all things. He encourages me to stand on the promise that I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me. He is a solid rock, my muse, the second lover of my soul, and the only lover of my body. I adore him. Song of Solomon 3:4, explains how I adore him, by stating “but I found him whom my soul loveth: I held him, and would not let him go.” That is Biblical Romance read it for yourself.

  Our union has been blessed with two handsome sons, one beautiful daughter, and a Shi-Tzu (dog) we all love and think he is more human than Shi-Tzu.

  I have been called to narrate Christian love stories that reflect the greatest love of all time. That love is Christ’s love for his bride, the church. The characters that live these stories do not always start on the right path. Sometimes they fall down, but through the long-suffering of the Heavenly Father and their earthly lovers, they find redemption and happiness (in most cases).

  May the words that I write, be entertaining, pleasing, and thought provoking upon sight.

  I dedicate this book to all those who live with the disease of Lupus and to those who have left this life too soon because of it.

  Rose Marie Maxwell

  Camisha Jackson

  Christalon Thornton (departed)

  Becky Gilford Smith

  For I will restore health unto thee, and I will heal thee of thy wounds, saith the LORD…. Jeremiah 30:17

  Karen and Frankie’s Wedding

  The photographer was loving the pictures he was getting of the beautiful family. He was puzzled, as he thought the father looked rather young to have a set of grown daughters, the bride did not look much older than her new step-daughters. But what beauties the twins were! Standing side by side they were identical with a lean and curvy physique, long, silky black hair, and beautiful chocolate eyes. They were mesmerizing, and the camera loved them. There was only one slight physical attribute that was unique, one of them, Autumn, had a cute dimple in her chin; Dawn did not, her light caramel skin was completely smooth. Other than that there was nothing to distinguish them, even their smiles and smirks were matching.

  “Last one and this is a wrap.” He snapped the final picture and cleared up the balance with the groom. As he walked away from the picturesque ballroom. He prayed that their blended family would last.

  Dawn and Autumn were sitting at the bridal party’s table when Benjamin Adams stepped up to the podium in his all black tuxedo.

  Autumn leaned over to her sister. “That is one fine older man I could totally crush over.”

  Dawn, rolling her eyes at her sister, said, “Have you no shame? You have a man, and Camille is not letting him go.”

  “Geez, Dawn, I’m just saying, he looks good to be forty.”

  “I don’t think he is forty.” Dawn frowned and squinted her eyes at her sister. Before she could speak again, their attention was drawn to the stage area where Benjamin was now singing a song titled, “A Good Good, Father” by Chris Tomlin. While he held the audience captive with his soul stirring voice, Autumn felt a tap on her shoulder. When she turned it was her dad, Frankie, asking her to dance.

  Frankie had asked Benjamin to sing this song, so he could dance with his daughters. He thought it was appropriate because the Lord had been good to his family by allowing him a second chance. He had made many mistakes in his lifetime, some at the expense of his girls, he hoped they felt he was a good father to them.

  Autumn held her dad’s hand tightly as they waltzed on the dance floor, it was so like him to make sure they felt a part of his special day. Even though he did not say a word she could see the love in his eyes and felt his protection as he glided with her hand in his, and Benjamin sang, “You are perfect in all of your ways, you know just what we need.” Autumn stopped the dance and hugged her father. As tears streamed down her eyes, she noticed her dad had his own set of tears. Autumn stood on her tiptoes and whispered to him, “You are a good father, Daddy, I love you.” Frankie could do nothing but kiss her forehead and hug her. He then walked Autumn back to her seat and offered his hand to Dawn, it was her time to dance with her father.

  The audience watched in awe as Dawn and her father moved in perfect sync with the music; it was as if the two of them had a special rhythm made just for them. The love Frankie shared with his girls was real and could be seen by all. Frankie twirled Dawn around just like he did when she was a little girl, and she giggled out loud while smiling through her tears. Her dad was proof that one should never give up on the people they love. She allowed her father to walk her back to her seat where he bowed to both of them.

  Frankie went and got his baby girl, Nikki: the one who would get the matured father, the father that had tried and failed, but was now standing again. He placed her little feet on top of his and held her hand as he swayed with her. Nikki was elated to have her turn, and she being just three-years-old already knew that the Good Father answered prayers. By the end of the song, Frankie’s daughters knew that he was pledging to remain a faithful and good father, and Karen was the anchor to be there to help him. When the song ended, the room erupted in teary cheers and applause for the good father.

  As Dawn and Autumn stood clapping, they both noticed their mobile phones buzz on the table. With a deep sigh, they looked at each other, they knew it was their mother texting them—again.

  Dawn and Autumn went to the ladies’ lounge to call their mother who had texted each of them several times throughout the day. They both knew this day was going to be hard for her, but never would they have imagined that she would have tried to ruin it for them. Autumn put her phone on speaker and spoke into the receiver. “Call Mom.” She put the phone on the counter and waited for their mom to pick up. Shayla answered on the second ring sounding out of breath.

  “So, you finally decide to check on me, where is your sister?”

  “Mom, we have you on speaker, why are you sounding out of breath?” Dawn piped in.

  “Hi Mother, you do sound out of breath, is everything okay?”

  “Sure everything is fine why wouldn’t it be? I mean it is not every day the love of your life marries some young tramp, and the children you carried for eighth months at the same time betray you by supporting it.” Shayla responded in a sarcastic tone. Autumn simply shook her head at the phone, her mother was surely losing grip on reality. She was not about to give in to this guilt trip for the hundredth time. She w
ent to disconnect the call, but Dawn grabbed her arm stopping her.

  “Mother, we are not trying to betray you, we love you and Dad equally. When you find that special someone we will support you the same. Please don’t make this harder on yourself. Your health is at jeopardy with this stress you are putting on your body and mind by not letting go.” Dawn braced herself, while silently praying that she was getting through to her mother.

  “Dawn, I have you know this is not stress I’ve caused, this is your father’s doing. He is the one who discarded us and for what, a one-night stand and illegitimate child? I mean clearly she is out for his money. Why else did she book that elaborate place?”

  “Mom, what do you know about where this wedding is taking place? What are you up to? And again, why are you out of breath?” Autumn screamed into the phone, startling two ladies that were entering the lounge. Dawn mouthed “Sorry” to them.

  “Oh please, they posted the wedding event all over social media, and I saw that little girl’s wedding website—that one he’s marrying. I saw everything from the ugly dresses to the gaudy cake, just tacky. But to answer your disrespectful question and tone, I did some retail therapy for my Twinkies.” Both girls knew their mom was desperate when she called them by their childhood nicknames based off of the Hostess pastry snacks that came in a twin pack. “So why don’t you girls come over and see the new purses and shoes I bought for you.”

  “Mom.” Autumn spoke now out of patience. “You know we aren’t leaving this reception, so stop playing these games. You are hurting and trying to hurt dad by causing confusion, now I am about to hang up. We love you and will call you in the morning. Goodbye, Mom.” Autumn disconnected the call and ran her hand down her face.

  Dawn had taken a seat on a chaise with her face in her hands, this was all becoming too much for her to handle. She was already in a stressful relationship with Wilson, a college basketball star, who was polled to be the number one draft pick this year. Wilson was a wonderful man whom she loved, but the pressure he was under filtered into their relationship. His emotional episodes left Dawn frightened for him and her safety at times. Her sister was reading more into and thought she was being physically abused, which was not the case. Deep down though, she wondered if it were only a matter of time. Add on top of that the stress of being a junior in college, and now a mother who could not deal with the reality that their father had moved on; she did not know what to do. Autumn came and put her arms around her sister for comfort.

  “Sis, we are not going to let mom get to us, she has got to get a grip on her life. We can’t do it for her.”

  “I know you are right, at least we know she has been shopping. When I saw the wedding cake had fallen, I wondered if mom had snuck in.”

  “I did too, but come on let’s shake mom’s drama off, and enjoy tonight.”

  As they were exiting the ladies room, they both stopped, startled that their phones were buzzing simultaneously. They each slowly looked at their phones and back at each other again. It was not their mom as they feared, but instead both Brock and Wilson were alerting their girlfriends of having made it to the venue. Autumn spoke first.

  “Come on, it’s time to let our guys meet Daddy. Let’s hope he will still look at us the same after finding out our secrets.”

  Chapter 1:

  “Wilson, I don’t know what your problem is, but you really need to change your attitude. Every time you lose a game we can’t do anything that normal college students do. I don’t want to stay in this apartment, while you are sulking and watching the game you just played over and over. I mean that’s what you and the team will be doing tomorrow. Right?” Wilson was annoyed that Dawn could not give him the peace he needed to concentrate on his game film. He looked up at his fuming girlfriend of two years.

  “Babe, can we not go through this? I missed a lot of open passes for easy assists, now I have to study my film so I can do better in finding the open man. I am the team’s leader, and I played like a benchwarmer tonight. I need peace to do this, so sit down and read a book or something!” Dawn rolled her eyes toward the ceiling and stumped off.

  Dawn was at her wits end with Wilson and his pity parties. She understood as the point guard he had a responsibility to the team. But dang could he not take one night off? It wouldn’t be a night off because he just played a game where he only sat down about five total minutes. Well, if he wanted peace and quiet he could have it. Autumn had told her that she and Savannah were going to a party on campus, and now she planned on attending it with them. She sent her twin a text informing her she would be meeting them, while she headed toward Wilson’s bedroom in the massive condominium. Only a college senior with a former NBA superstar as a father could have such living accommodations. The condo was beautifully decorated by Wilson’s former supermodel-mother, Rachel, who now was the CEO of Rachel’s Interior Designs. Rachel’s employees decorated the four-thousand-square-foot apartment to resemble the two things the Buford’s were known for, class and superiority. Anyone who entered the home rarely believed its occupant was a twenty-one-year-old college senior. But then again, this college student was slotted to be the number one NBA draft pick on every sport’s forecast from ESPN to Fox Sports.

  Wilson had set records at Atlanta College as the all-time leading scorer, leader in three-point field goals made, single season college points, and in tonight’s game he had earned the title for most points in a season for a senior and the most points scored in a college career. None of that mattered because the opposing team had more points, and that meant Wilson could have done more. Dawn knew most of his self-torture was from him being the prodigy of the legendary, Solomon Wade Buford. His father was a five time MVP who played center for the Atlanta Warriors for fifteen years. He had raised Wilson with an iron fist in one hand, and a basketball in the other.

  Mr. Buford rode his son like a jockey on horseback despite his son’s accomplishments on the court or off. He was relentless. Wilson was graduating cum-laude with a Bachelors in Marketing and was going first-round in the NBA draft, but his father continued to push him like he was trying out for the Olympics.

  The loss tonight would be followed by an early morning visit from “King Solomon,” the name his All-Star career bestowed upon him, to discuss strategy with her guy before he had to go back to practice and face his mates and coaches. Dawn was sick of it all. She was making her way to his master suite and the opulent bathroom. She was looking forward to her luxurious shower with his high tech gadgets, it was a vast improvement from the community shower at her dorm. As she adjusted the jets to full force and used her milk and honey body wash that Wilson always stocked for her, she pondered the state of their relationship. She loved him with all her heart, but she was not about to sit in this apartment and watch that basketball game over and over. Wilson was a great guy, but he was under so much pressure trying to live up to his father’s legacy. She decided he and his brooding were on their own tonight.

  Dawn came out in a black Levi jean outfit, a white tee accented with crystals, and black ankle booties. She had put on light make-up and had her hair in a bouncy ponytail. She made her way into the game room where Wilson was watching the film of the game. She stood at the entrance and watched him as he vigorously took notes and screamed at the on screen version of himself on the eighty-inch television that was mounted to a glass entertainment center. There were dozens of athletic awards precisely positioned on the shelves, displaying what an eminent athlete she was dating. But no one would have known that as he sat on the floor scribbling on his notepad, which was on a beautiful glass top table with a black onyx stand. The entire game room was furnished with black leather sofas and chairs, and crystal figurines. She was always taken in by the ambiance of his condo and his parent’s home, and it took a while for her to become adjusted to his lifestyle. Nonetheless, Wilson made her feel like she belonged in his world and always affirmed his love and need of her. She needed him as well, but she also needed to feel she was living her li
fe for herself not just him. It was starting to feel like he was controlling her, she couldn’t let that happen. She had to have her own independence, therefore after a long moment, Dawn called out to him.

  “Wilson, I’m headed out to meet Autumn and Savannah on campus to hang out. I’ll stay on campus tonight, and talk to you tomorrow.” It took a moment before her words registered in his mind, but when they did he grabbed the remote and paused the game giving her a look of incredulity.

  “Wait a minute, I thought you were going to read a book or study?” Wilson rose off the couch to his six foot and three-inch height and stumped over to her. Dawn braced herself for his intimidation antics and tried to cut off his temper before it reared up.

  “Wil.” Dawn started, using a term of endearment she used to temper him. “Wil, I am only going to hang out with my sister and our best friend. You can stay here and study your film, but I want to have fun, so I am going to meet Autumn and Savannah.” She picked up her purse, which was a Prada he had gifted her and its matching back-pack, and gave him a that’s final look, then she tried to make a quick exit.

  Wilson noticed her forceful look, but it didn’t have her desired effect. He’d asked her to stay and that should have been enough for her to do so. The thought of her trying to leave after his loss made his blood boil. He was trying to hold on to his control, he took a deep breath in and exhaled. “You said you were going to study. You need to study.”

  “Wilson, before you get all worked up just know you are not Frankie Jones, so you can’t make me stay in and study. I’m not your child.” She continued making her way to the exit.

  “DAWN!” He screamed her name loud enough to stop Dawn in her tracks. She turned around and sauntered back toward him.