“Yes.”
“Why?”
Kevin thought for a moment. “I like Uncle Blake’s truck, and I like my bed and my new coat. It’s really warm. Mara doesn’t cry much here. Uncle Blake cooks good food, and he bought two jars of peanut butter. One has nuts in it.”
Erika smiled. “Is that all? What else do you like?”
“He sings me songs.” Kevin clapped his hand over his mouth so his next words were garbled. “Oops. I wasn’t supposed to tell.”
Erika glanced at Blake, whose face had turned crimson. “What weren’t you supposed to tell?” she asked.
Kevin looked at Blake, who nodded. “You can tell her. It’s okay.”
“He sings ‘Isty Spider’ and the popcorn song at night when we go to bed. He does the best actions. He’s so silly.” Kevin grinned, eyes shining.
Amanda met Blake’s gaze. “You sing?” she asked, a smile tugging at her lips.
“Only for Kevin.” The color was fading from his face, but his jaw was clenched, his discomfort plain to everyone in the room except Kevin and Mara.
Amanda tried to stop smiling but failed miserably. To cover up, she tickled Kevin until he giggled. “Stop!” he shouted. “Stop! I need to go potty.”
“You’re just trying to escape,” Amanda accused. She let him wriggle from her grasp.
Still giggling, he fled the room. Seconds later they heard the bathroom door slam shut.
Then Mara’s diaper exploded.
Amanda laughed helplessly at the expression on Blake’s face. “Oh, no,” she said. “Looks like you’ll need another diaper.”
“I left the diaper bag in the truck,” he said, holding Mara up so the leak spreading up her undershirt wouldn’t get on the carpet if she decided to roll over. He glanced at the closet with a look of despair.
“She has diarrhea,” Amanda explained to Erika. When Blake scowled at her, she quickly added, “She had it before she came, and he’s taking her to the doctor on Monday just to make sure it’s nothing serious.”
Erika shook her head and leaned back on the love seat, her smile wide and friendly. “Relax. Children get diarrhea. Mara here certainly doesn’t look like she’s a neglected child—at least not here. She’s happy, well dressed—both children are—and they obviously love their uncle. Mara’s a little on the thin side, but I’m sure she’ll fatten up. From what I’ve seen so far, there’s nothing to preclude Blake from being their foster parent.”
Blake’s expression lightened, and Amanda could see that he was fighting tears. A lump developed in her own throat.
“But I do need to see their room and bathroom, and I’d also like to know a little background.”
“Background?”
“When you started to take care of Kevin and so forth. I talked quite some time to your aunt, but I’d like to hear your version.”
So would Amanda. She glanced at Blake, who still held Mara aloft.
Blake nodded. “Okay. Let me change her first, if you don’t mind.”
“I’ll do it,” Amanda volunteered. “And when Kevin’s done, I can keep him in the other room.”
“It probably won’t be necessary.” Blake handed Mara to her. “He seems to have the opposite problem from Mara. He spends an eternity in the bathroom. I’ll go check on him in a minute.”
Amanda opened the closet and a half dozen diapers rained down on her. Mara giggled, and Amanda shot Blake a smile. She decided to leave them on the floor. “Easier to use this way,” she mumbled. Carefully, she pulled off Mara’s clothes and cleaned her back before laying her on the carpet next to the tub of wipes.
“So how often have you had the children?” Erika asked Blake, hiding her own smile behind a carefully French-manicured hand.
Blake took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “Well, the first time Kevin came to stay with me he was about six months old, just a little younger than Mara is now. At first Paula would leave him for an evening, and then it was a day or two. By the time he was a year old, he’d be staying at least a week at a time. The longest she ever left him during that time was about three weeks. She’d start missing him terribly and come to see him.” He paused for a moment and then rushed on. “Whatever else Paula’s doing, she loves Kevin and Mara very deeply.”
Erika nodded. “Her love for her children is not in question. I know she cares for them. So what happened after he was a year old?”
“Same thing. One week, two weeks away, then a week here, maybe three. When he was with her, I’d call and check up on him or go see him. Even bought her a phone line.” He snorted and shook his head. “Learned the hard way that I had to block the long distance.”
“What was the longest time Kevin ever stayed with you?”
Blake rubbed his jaw in thought. “Six months—might have been seven. It was when she was pregnant with Mara.”
“And after Mara was born she came and got him?”
“Yeah, when Mara was a few months old. But she was on something, or maybe drunk, so I didn’t let her take him. I threatened to report her. I was serious. The next day she came back sober and took him to her mother’s, where she’d been keeping Mara. She accused me of trying to take her son away and basically forbade me to see him again.”
Amanda could see how much his cousin’s actions had hurt Blake. She wanted to go over and hug him, but how could she? It wasn’t like they had a real relationship. She finished changing Mara’s diaper and scooted closer to the chair where he sat. Mara needed another outfit, but she didn’t want to miss this.
“They were at your aunt’s how long?”
“Five months. And I’m sure you already know that I did go down to see Kevin despite what Paula said. She was never there, though I know her mother told her about my visits. Then last month Paula disappeared with the children. My aunt and I have been very concerned.”
“With good reason.” Erika folded her hands atop the closed briefcase in her lap. “From what I’ve been told by the police, Paula and the children have mostly been staying in a rundown house on the outskirts of Salt Lake City, with no heat and nothing edible in the refrigerator. There were no bathing facilities. Drugs and alcohol were found in the house. Paula resisted arrest and became quite vicious with the police officer. The resisting arrest charges have been dropped, and she hasn’t been charged with possession because there were others in the house, including the owner, who is being charged, but the police believe she was definitely a part of it. Unfortunately, they don’t have proof.”
Blake shook his head, looking sorrowful. “I don’t know how she got this way. Sometimes I can’t even believe it’s happening at all. This isn’t the girl I grew up with. I promise you, she would be horrified at herself now. I just wish she’d change her life. If not for herself, then at least for the kids.”
“Unfortunately, she doesn’t see that she’s doing anything wrong,” Erika said. “I spent over an hour this morning explaining it to her, but she really doesn’t get it. Our goal is to help her—eventually—but right now we need to focus on what’s best for the children.”
Blake twirled Amanda’s pen between his fingers. “She’ll want them back.”
“Yes,” Erika agreed. “She thinks that everyone—you included—are trying to take her children from her. Of course, I told her that wasn’t the case.”
“I’ll bet she wouldn’t listen.” Blake cast Amanda a despairing look. “It’s always the same thing. That’s why she’s managed to alienate every single member of her family . . . and mine.”
“Except you,” Amanda felt compelled to say. Loyal, she thought. She could add loyal to his list of good qualities.
“Her intentions are good,” Blake continued with a grateful look in Amanda’s direction, “but she’s . . .” He took another deep breath before plunging on. “Whether they’ve charged her or not, she’s using drugs.”
“We know that.” Erika leaned forward, her almond-shaped eyes grave. “I’ve seen it time and time again. Before she can get Kevin and
Mara back, she’ll have to take drug tests and also arrange a suitable place for them to live. Meanwhile, because she took them from her mother’s and didn’t leave any information on their whereabouts, and because she has no job or property, we feel she may be a flight risk. What that means is that she is not allowed to see the children without supervision. Either you must be with the children when she’s with them or we’ll assign a mediator to have supervised visits.”
Blake stood and began pacing. Amanda had known him long enough to see that he was battling with himself over something he wanted to say. After thirty seconds of silence, he spoke. “That might not turn out to be as easy as it sounds. Sometimes Paula’s rather . . . well, it could get ugly.”
Erika wasn’t surprised. “Believe me, I know.”
“It’s the drugs.” Blake’s voice was pained.
“It’s the drugs,” Erika repeated. “Wherever drugs are concerned, things can quickly get out of hand. If necessary, we can issue a restraining order so she can’t come around here at all. I made it very clear to her this morning when I talked to her that if she made this difficult for you we’d be forced to put them in a foster home somewhere she doesn’t know about.”
“What do you mean by difficult?” Amanda asked.
Erika sighed. “Oh, I’ve seen it all. They’ll show up at odd hours—often drunk or on something—beg to take the children by themselves, call all the time to try to make secret meetings with the children or just to hang up. Basically, they make any normal life for the foster parents impossible. That’s why we sometimes have to issue restraining orders.”
Blake shook his head. “I don’t think that’ll be necessary—at least not yet. I’d like to try to work it out with her.” His voice didn’t hold much hope, and again Amanda felt the urge to comfort him. What a messy situation! Quite different from the scenario she had envisioned when she’d discovered Mara screaming in the overheated truck.
The sound of a toilet flushing made them all look toward the hallway. “I’d better make sure he washes his hands.” Blake went down the hall and into the bathroom.
Erika looked at Amanda. “So, have you known Blake long?”
“Not really. But from what I’ve seen, he’s really good with the children, if that’s what you were asking.”
“Actually, I was wondering if maybe you two were romantically involved.”
“Us?” Amanda felt her heart skipping a beat, as her mind raced through possible reasons for the question. “Are you worried about us being . . . improper in front of the children?” Amanda wasn’t satisfied with the word improper, but she wasn’t willing to be more specific.
“Oh, not at all,” Erika said. “You look like two responsible people. But since having a bachelor be a foster parent isn’t very usual, I just thought if there was a chance of you two becoming engaged or getting married, that it might make his position stronger in case there was a competing family request for custody. That may even be reason enough for a judge to continue to award Mr. Simmons custody if his cousin goes to court before she’s really ready to get the children back.”
“She could do that? Before she’s ready, I mean.”
“Well, we’re going to do everything we can to see that she is completely fit before awarding her custody, but it might not be enough. She could clean up just long enough to convince a judge that they would be better off with her than with a single man.”
“So she’d get them back and nothing would have changed?”
“A judge might believe she deserves another chance. Especially here in Utah. They are very reluctant to take children from a mother. Children really do need a mother figure, you know.”
Amanda made a rapid decision. “I am very interested in Blake. I . . . if things work out . . .” She trailed off, shrugging and blushing miserably.
Erika laughed. “I thought I felt the chemistry between you two. I knew I was right.”
She most certainly wasn’t right, but Amanda couldn’t let her know that. What was she talking about? Chemistry? Bah!
Blake returned then with a new outfit for Mara, saving Amanda from further embarrassment. While he took Erika on a tour of the apartment, Amanda sat on the couch and read the insect sticker book to Kevin and Mara.
“Did you have another nightmare last night?” she asked after the second page.
“I guess.”
“You did?” She gave him a sympathetic grin. “Hmm. Oh, wait a minute.” She leaned over and grabbed her purse. “I just remembered. At school today we made these really cool bug bracelets from bug-shaped beads, and I have one for you.” Actually, she had two that she’d made for Kerrianne’s children, but this was more important. She found the bracelets in the zipper pouch and pulled one out.
“Cool!” Kevin fingered the odd-shaped beads that had been painted to resemble tiny ants, beetles, grasshoppers, and ladybugs. “It’s mine? Really?”
Amanda nodded but didn’t let him take it from her hands. “There is one thing, though,” she said in a mysterious voice.
“What?” Kevin’s eyes were huge.
“It’s magic.”
“Magic?” There was no skepticism in his eyes as there would have been in an older child’s.
“Yep, it’s a magic bug bracelet. If you wear it, no bugs can come anywhere near you. If you get near them, they’ll run away as fast as they can.” She was pretty proud of this last addition. If he were to try it out on any hapless bugs, he’d find it very true.
“What if you want to hold a bug?” he asked.
“Well, you’ll have to take it off first because they can’t stand it. They’ll run away. They can’t even come in your dreams, I’m pretty sure.”
He pulled at it again, and she let him have it. “Do you want me to put it on?” she asked. He nodded.
When she was finished, he showed it to Mara. “Look, it’s my magic bug bracelet.” Mara grinned and tried to pull it into her mouth.
“Stop that!” Kevin said. His voice was firm, but Amanda noticed he pulled his arm gently away so as not to startle her.
“Well, that looks good,” Erika was saying as they came from one of the bedrooms. “I’ll just take those papers with me and get them processed. Meanwhile, if you do take the children to the doctor, the dentist, or something like that, it’ll all be covered by the state since we’re responsible for them now.”
“Thank you,” Blake said.
Amanda stood and walked to the door with them. “Nice to meet you.”
Erika smiled. “You too. Good luck with your future.” She winked.
Amanda could feel Blake’s eyes on her and knew he was wondering what they had talked about when he was in the bathroom with Kevin. Her face burned. Why did she have to be so transparent?
“I’ll stay in touch.” With that, Erika Solos was gone, and Amanda was left alone with Blake and the children.
“That went well,” she ventured.
“What was she talking about at the end there?”
“Oh nothing really.” Amanda sat down at the kitchen table and folded her hands together. “I’ve been thinking, though, about Mara’s diarrhea. My sister always gives her kids some clear liquid she buys in big bottles at the store. I think you should get some.”
Blake wasn’t buying any of her evasion. He sat down next to her. “What did she mean by good luck with your future?”
“Of course, you probably already have some,” Amanda continued.
“No, but I’ll go get some just as soon as you tell me what she meant.”
Stubbornness, Amanda thought. There’s one for the list against him. Right after his profession. When she got home, she was going to write up the list of his good and bad qualities to prove to herself that any relationship with him was not only a bad idea but entirely out of the question. Never mind that she had noticed all the interesting books on the shelves of his entertainment system. Books that proved he wasn’t as intellectually deprived as she had first suspected or as she felt his job indicated.<
br />
Then again, what did it really matter, anyway, what job he had? If he was happy at it and could make a living, the more power to him. Her grandfather had been a farmer. A simple man, to be sure, but she had never known a wiser one. Or one who was more content with his life. Besides, Blake’s smile was incredible, and his eyes were like pools of . . . No, forget any mention of chocolate.
“Well?” he prompted, holding her with his stare.
She sighed. “Okay. She said that if there were to be a problem, like one of your relatives trying to get custody from you—”
“That won’t happen. Everyone’s happy to let me do the work.”
“Well, then. It doesn’t matter. Let’s go look at Kevin’s new magic bug bracelet.”
“What else did she say?”
Amanda darted a glance at Kevin, but he was on the floor by the kitchen door with Mara, searching for an ant to serve as an experiment for his bracelet. “She said it was possible your cousin might be able to get custody back before she was ready if she could convince a judge that a bachelor couldn’t care for the children as well as she could.”
“And?”
“Well, she also said that if you were to, you know, have intentions of getting . . . uh, involved . . . married even, that might help your case. I was a little concerned so I guess I sort of let Erika think that we were, um, well, interested in perhaps becoming involved.” Too late Amanda realized he could actually be dating someone else and that she could have greatly complicated matters. She wished she could sink into the ground and disappear.
A smile spread over his face. “I see. I see. Well, you did the right thing. Thank you.”
She looked at him suspiciously. His words definitely did not match the gleam in his eyes. “Uh, you’re welcome.”
“I really do appreciate it,” he went on. “I’m glad you care so much about what happens to Kevin and Mara. Of course, this brings up an entirely different dilemma.”
Here it comes, she thought. “Oh?”
“You see, I’m not used to lying, and letting someone believe something that’s not true is lying.”
“Oh, I see. So letting a person think a couple of children are yours when they’re really not would be a lie.” Ha, two could play at this game. Amanda was suddenly enjoying herself.
Huntington Family Series Page 10