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“I don’t deserve you.”
“Sure, you do. And you can pay me back when I’m drooling and in diapers a few short years from now.”
“Haha, it’s going to be more than a few years, and you know I’ll always take good care of you, the way you’ve taken care of me.”
“Love you, honey. Call if you need anything.”
“I will. And I’ll call to say good night to the kids. I’ll be back on duty tomorrow.”
“Will you tell them?”
“Not now. Maybe later when they’re older and more able to handle the implications.”
“I agree. They’re too young to understand. We’ll talk to you later.”
I end the call more thankful for my amazing mother than usual, and that’s saying something. “Thank goodness for awesome mothers,” I say to Gage.
“She’s great, and I love how close you two are.”
“We’ve been an unstoppable pair since I was very little, when she took off with me in the middle of the night to escape a violent marriage to my biological father. Her mother never forgave her for marrying Darryl, who’s white. My mom says the only thing good that came from him is my gorgeous skin color that’s a perfect combination of them both.”
“I agree your skin is gorgeous, and I never would’ve guessed that Jimmy is your stepfather.”
“He’s wonderful. She met him when I was five, and he’s been so good to both of us.”
“Do you see Darryl?”
“Sporadically. My mom sued for full custody and won. She allowed only supervised visitation with him, which he rarely requested. The most I’ve ever heard from him was after Mike died. He said he wanted to be there for me and the kids, and he has been, as much as he’s capable of being. But Jimmy is my dad, and he’s my kids’ grandpa.”
“They had more kids together?”
“Three. I call them my first babies. I adore them all. And my mom… She’s turned lemons into lemonade. All my life, even to this day, she takes in women who were in domestic violence situations and makes them part of our family. There’s probably been a hundred of them over the years.”
“Wow, that’s incredible.”
“She’s never forgotten how difficult it was to escape that situation, or how much the kindness of strangers made a difference.”
“Is it safe for her to take them in?”
“We’ve had a few situations over the years, but for the most part, it’s fine.”
“It’s an incredible thing she’s doing.”
“She’d tell you that after raising her four kids, it’s her life’s work. She got a master’s in social work while we were all still at home and works for two different agencies that serve the DV community—and helps me with the kids any time I need it. She’s a wonder woman.”
“Like her daughter.”
“Oh, please. I aspire to be a fraction of what she is. I’ve always felt like a slacker next to her.”
“What was your career before you had kids?”
“I worked in online marketing for years. I still do some freelance projects in that space, but I’ve been working on something else recently that I’m excited about.”
“What’s that?”
“I haven’t told anyone.”
“Okay, now you have to tell me, or I’ll die of curiosity.”
