Ficawesome Gift Exchange- 3some

Lost Highway

Written for: prassacut
Written by: Layne Faire
Rating: M
Prompt used: have to go to a funeral, they get lost on the way. Has to be humor (romance, too, if the author wants to)

Banner by: hobee1971

Summary: Ex-lovers share a cross-country road trip. Through unexpected encounters, missed turns, and a funeral, they come to some realizations about themselves and their relationship. Rated M for Slash

If you would like to see all the stories that are a part of this exchange visit the facebook group: Fanficaholics Anon: Where Obsession Never Sleeps or add the C2 to get all the stories direct to your inbox.

www(DOT)fanfiction(DOT)net/community/FAGE_3some/93625/

Much love and thanks to nails233, butterflybetty, SlashKittenMina, and MaverickWrit for your love, support, and hand-holding! I couldn't have done it without you all.

Chapter One

EPOV

"Edward, its Carlisle." The brokenness in his voice alarmed me. In the three years we'd been together, I'd never seen any signs of weakness in Carlisle Cullen. A successful commodities broker for one of the largest firms in San Francisco, his entire life revolved around taking calculated risks. Receiving a distraught phone call from him, especially six months after we'd ended our relationship, caught me by surprise.

"What's wrong? Have you been in an accident? Are you okay?" I peppered him with questions, only hearing an escalation in grief through the receiver. I could think of only one thing that would bring him to this level of grief. "Is it Makenna?" His answering sob confirmed it. "I'll be right there."

I'd rushed over to my former lover's condo, all the while musing over the first time I'd met Makenna Charles. She'd been a spry woman, despite her seventy some odd years on the planet. She'd welcomed me with open arms and open heart, willingly accepting her grandson's partner, despite our unconventional relationship. She'd become a confidante, and had stayed in touch with me, even after Carlisle and I parted ways. She, of all people, understood how difficult her grandson could be to live with.

Carlisle's parents had passed away when he was eleven, leaving Makenna the listed choice for a guardian. She'd willingly taken in her only grandson, determined to do her best by the orphaned boy. Carlisle's grandfather had passed away shortly after he'd been born, though, and Makenna's second husband hadn't relished the idea of taking on a pre-teen boy when he'd finally reached retirement age. He'd given her an ultimatum: send Carlisle to live with an aunt he barely knew, or he was leaving. Makenna's reply had been to dump all of his personal belongings out the bedroom window. From my understanding, she'd never regretted her decision, not even when Carlisle had reluctantly come out to her his senior year of high school. She'd hugged him, assured him his parents would have loved him no matter what, and promptly joined PFLAG.

Makenna lived her life with such enthusiasm; I don't think anyone wanted to accept the possibility that her flame could ever be extinguished. She'd mentioned a cold the last time I'd talked to her, discounting my suggestion she see a doctor. A few days later, it hadn't mattered. It had been more than a cold, she had pneumonia. The resultant fluid that settled in her lungs put too much pressure on her heart, and under the added strain, the heart we all considered unbreakable, had given up.

She'd collapsed while grocery shopping. The paramedics managed to revive her on the scene, only to have her slip back into unconsciousness on the trip to the hospital. By the time they located a number to reach Carlisle, she was gone.

I mourned with Carlisle, sitting with him while he made the arrangements for her interment, holding his hand when he remembered the many happy years he'd shared with her. Without a moment's hesitation, I agreed to accompany him to Arizona. Despite the situation between the two of us, I wanted to pay my respects to the memory of a woman I'd grown to love and cherish in the few years I'd known her.

Prassacut, I hope you like this. There aren't too many people I'd step out of my comfort zone for.