I went back to my daily routine. Luckily, the second stage of Vin’s construction had started and I had enough work to keep me occupied.
I had asked a social worker who was a close friend of mine to help me look for a good family for Junior since I wasn’t sure I could take care of him as he deserved.
On the other hand, Vin was pure, unfiltered temptation. I had forgiven Mark but things didn’t get back to how they used to be.
Junior always insisted that I was the one to tuck him in and I would hold him till he fell asleep. That may have helped him adjust faster since soon after he went back to school and even played with his siblings like before.
Having him around brought back the pain of Mark’s betrayal and that’s where Vin came in. He would do things for me to get my mind off what was going on at home.
Some times after the deliveries were done, we would go for a drive and he’d let me sit with my thoughts for a while before the fun began.
We were forty something year olds doing stuff like twenty year olds. I used my passport more often than I used my ID so he surprised me one morning when he took me to the airstrip.
“What are we doing here Vin?”
“There’s a place I want you to see. I always said I’d take you but I never got the chance,”
“As long as I’ll be at home before dinner,” We flew to Addis Ababa and he just took me through their culture and I had their famous coffee.
“As a coffee addict, I thought you should taste that at least once in your life,”
“This is heaven in my mouth. I don’t think I’ve tasted coffee this good in my life,”
“I’m glad you enjoyed it,” We had lunch before we flew back to the country.
A few days later we flew to Zanzibar. I'd always wanted to go but something always came up and the man made it possible. I had so much fun being there for the few hours that I was sure I was going to go back with the kids or alone. That evening when we flew back I got a call from the social worker that she had found a family for Junior.
“Junior, before your mom went to heaven she asked me to look for a family that will take good care of you and I think I found one,”
“I have to move?”
“Well, if you like them and they like you then you’ll have to go live with them,”
“I don’t like them,”
“How would you know that if you haven’t met them?”
“Because they aren’t you or Uncle Mark,” We hadn’t told him that Mark was his dad.
“But the thing is, you can’t live with us,”
“Why? Am I bad? Did I do something wrong? I told you I was sorry for pouring the milk, it was an accident,” I hugged him.
“It’s not about the milk at dinner and you are the best son a mother could ask for but you see, I’m just fulfilling your mom’s last wish,” he just got into the bed and didn’t want me to hold him.
“How did he take the news?” Mark asked.
“He’s mad at me,”
“I mean do we have to send him away?”
“I thought we talked about this? If you feel like you can take better care of him, you can move out with him. I’m more than capable of taking care of my babies,” He didn’t say anything he just got in the covers. I couldn’t sleep that night.
Was I doing the wrong thing? Was I parting a son from his father out of my own selfish desires? What if it was my baby in the same position? There was nothing preventing me from taking care of the boy. We had been blessed with more than we ever thought and the kids got along perfectly.
Junior was a very well behaved boy. His mom, I think had the same ideas I had when it came to discipline. The only reason I couldn’t take care of him was because he was my husband’s love child.
“Lord, if I am to take care of this boy give me the strength and the wisdom to bring him up into a man that will be after your own heart and approval. Let me not mess this up by things I will say or do. If I will ruin his life in any way then let him go to the other family.” I prayed and I dozed off.
My phone vibrating from a far was what woke me up. The sun was already out. I quickly got ready for work then went to the living room and found the help tidying up.
“Where are the kids?”
“Baba Matt took them to school,”
“Why didn’t you wake me up?”
“He asked me not to wake you up that is why I haven’t done the vacuuming yet,”
“I’m sorry about that you are free to do your work,”
“Should I get you a cup of coffee?”
“No, I’ll grab one on my way to work,” I called Vin.
“Hey Mel, glad you are feeling better,”
“What are you talking about?”
“I came to get you today but Mark told me that you were not feeling well so you weren’t reporting today,”
“I’m better now. I’ll be there by ten. Let me get something from the office first.”
“Fine with me,”
“Who gave you the right to switch off my alarm and let me oversleep?” I asked Mark when I got to the office.
“First of all, good morning to you too my love and secondly, I’m your husband and you are the mother of my kids. You didn’t sleep till around four. I felt you tossing and turning the whole night so I thought you’d need the sleep if you’re going to be the woman you always are,” How was I going to react to that so I just went to my office phone.
“Carol, please get me a cup of coffee,”
“Yes madam,” She came in with a cup almost immediately.
“That was fast,”
“Mr. Mwaura said we should keep some ready in case you came by. That is coffee sponge cake if you need an accompaniment.”
“Thank you Carol,”
“Let me know if you need anything else,” She said and left the office, I just looked at Mark. He was busy on his computer but I felt something stir in me, he looked up and found me staring.
“I wanted to say thank you,”
“That’s why I’m here,” He gave me a smile and I smiled back but he didn’t look away.
“What? Is something wrong?”
“It’s been a while since you smiled back at me, it feels good to see it again,” The moment was interrupted by my phone ringing. It was the Social Worker.
“Melissa, the guys I told you about want to know when they can come talk to Junior,”
“Tomorrow afternoon will be okay,”
“Will four in the evening be okay with you?”
“Okay, I’ll get Junior ready,” I said and hang up. “That was Betty,”
“Is she the Social Worker?”
“Yes, the guys who want to adopt Junior are coming tomorrow at four,” His mood just changed and he just left the office. I finished my breakfast and left.
