Genesis House Inspirational Romance and Family Drama Boxed Set: 3-in-1
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She started the car, thinking about how Marvin was going to respond when she told him. He'd be concerned, of course, but his happiness at the news would surely overcome that concern.
After stopping by the Wal-Mart and getting the prenatal vitamins Dr. Holmes had prescribed, Shay thought about driving down to the church office they were temporarily using so she could tell Marvin the news immediately. Deciding against that course of action, she planned instead to tell him over a special dinner. They'd have a private "We're pregnant" party for the two of them. For today, at least, it would be their secret, and Dr. Holmes's, of course. Tomorrow they'd start telling people—her parents, their friends in Atlanta, Vickie and Daniel, Bo, everybody.
She turned onto her street with ideas of the dinner she'd prepare germinating in her mind. She was surprised but pleased when she arrived home to find Bo sitting on the top porch step, his head reclined back against one banister, his long legs stretched out toward the other one. Seeing him here made her want to share the news with him, but she reminded herself that Marvin had to be the next to know. "Hello, Bo," she called when she stepped out of the car. "What brings you by this afternoon?"
Bo stood to his full height and on lanky legs came to meet her at the car. She noticed he had a thick, legal-sized yellow envelope with him. "I wanted to talk to you about something," he said.
Not sure how to read Bo's expression, Shay invited him into the house. Lord, please let everything be all right, she prayed silently. Once they were seated on the couch in the sitting room, she asked, "Is everything all right?"
Bo moved the envelope from one of his large hands to the other in a nervous motion. "I've been thinking about something you said the other day."
Shay had said so much in her conversations with Bo that she had no idea which something he was talking about. At first, she'd had to do most of the talking because he didn't say much, but gradually he'd begun to carry his side of their conversations. "You're going to have to help me out, Bo. What something have you been thinking about?"
"Going back to school," he said. "I've been thinking about going back to school."
Thank you, Lord. Shay had spoken to Bo about his plans for the future and encouraged him to try school again if that was what he wanted. "Well, I'm happy to hear it."
Bo dropped his eyes so they wouldn't meet hers. "I won't be getting an athletic scholarship this time," he explained. "And I may not even get in."
Shay placed a hand on his knee and squeezed lightly. "Hey, don't try to talk yourself out of this. All you have to do is find the right school for you. That's the key."
Bo handed her the stuffed yellow envelope. "I've found a few schools."
As she pulled open the envelope and took out the college applications inside, Shay realized Bo had been contemplating school long before she'd mentioned it to him. She glanced at him, about to make that very comment, but a small voice warned that her words would only serve to embarrass him. She turned her attention back to the applications instead. "So you want to apply to all five of these schools?"
Bo nodded. "I probably won't get in all of them."
"Have you taken the appropriate entrance exams?" she asked.
Bo shook his head. "I haven't done very well on standardized tests in the past." He lowered his eyes again. "That was something I thought you might be able to help me out with."
Shay smiled at him, touching his arm as she did so. "I think I can help. We'll have to go over to the library and get the study books. Then we'll make out a study schedule." She squeezed his arm. "I'm so proud of you, Bo."
The young man gave her a shy smile that almost made her cry. "Don't be too proud," he warned. "I haven't gotten in yet."
"We'll just have to study hard so those schools will have to let you in. Right?"
"If you say so."
"Well, I do say so." Shay looked down at the applications on her lap. "Now these applications. We can get started filling them out this afternoon. You're going to have to request your high school transcript and your transcript from Auburn," she told him.
He looked away from her and focused his attention out the open window facing the backyard. "Do I have to send them the transcript from Auburn? Can't I just not even mention that I went there? It's not like I was there for a long time anyway."
Shay's heart went out to the boy, but instead of indulging his bout of self-pity, she played to his self-worth. "It's up to you," she told him, "but I think honesty is the best route."
Bo's gaze flitted to Shay before going back to the window. "But once these new schools find out I was kicked out of Auburn, they're definitely not going to let me in."
Shay started shaking her head. "That's not necessarily true. You have to write a personal statement with each one of these applications. If you can show the admissions officers what you learned from your time at Auburn and the mistakes you made there, I think they'll understand that they're dealing with a more mature young man, someone who wants to make something of his life."
Bo gave her what could best be termed a look of cautious skepticism before he spoke. "If you say so, but I don't want The Aunts to know yet. I'll tell them if I get in somewhere. I don't want them to be disappointed."
Shay's heart tightened at the love and concern in Bo's voice whenever he mentioned his great-aunts, Misses Annie and Edie. That, coupled with his refusal to show any enthusiasm for the process they were about to undertake, made her want to hug him to her bosom. Of course, she couldn't because doing so would embarrass him. Maybe one day...
"Okay," she said with what she hoped was contagious enthusiasm, "let's get started on these applications."
* * *
Shay went back and forth between looking out the window for Marvin and checking the place settings on the dining room table she'd set for the two of them. She pulled back the curtains again, hardly able to wait for her husband to get home. If he didn't arrive soon, she'd be forced to drive down to the office so she could tell him all of the day's good news. She knew she'd burst if she didn't tell somebody soon. And she wanted that somebody to be Marvin. Then together they could call and share the good news with everybody else.
She didn't know which made her happier: the latest development with Bo or the baby now growing inside her. She decided there was no need to measure and compare the joy the two events brought her. Both were wonderful. She folded her hands around her chest and turned around on her toes. "Thank you, Lord," she shouted to and beyond the walls of the house.
At the sound of a car, she rushed to the window and saw her husband drive up. She ran to the door and had to force herself not to fling it open and throw herself into his arms, blurting out all the good news before he even set foot in the house. She forced herself to wait.
* * *
When Marvin opened the door, Shay stood there to greet him.
"What did I do to deserve this?" Marvin asked when he lifted his head from her kiss. "Tell me so I can keep doing it."
"That's for being the best husband in the whole world," Shay said, taking his briefcase in one hand and his hand in the other. "Come on. I've already run a bath for you."
Marvin willingly followed her. "I know it's not our anniversary," he said, "and it's not my birthday, not your birthday, but I have the feeling this is a special occasion, and I'm going to be in a lot of trouble because I've forgotten it."
Shay shook her head. "Shame on you, Marvin. You make me feel like a bad wife. Surely, it doesn't take a special occasion for me to treat you well." She pushed him down on the bed and removed his socks and shoes. Then she stood. "Take your bath and get dressed." She pointed to the charcoal gray suit laid out on the bed. "Tonight is formal."
"What—," Marvin began, pulling off his tie.
She pressed a kiss to his jaw. "Don't try to figure it out, honey. Just go with the flow. I'll be expecting you for dinner in thirty minutes so you'd better get a move on."
Thirty minutes later Marvin made his scheduled appearance at the dinner ta
ble. Seeing the impressively set table—white tablecloth, red cloth napkins, and a centerpiece of red roses anchored on each side by white candles—and his incredibly gorgeous wife, he whistled. Dressed in a red sequined sheath, her presence breathed life into the room.
Shay lifted her beautiful brow. "I'm not sure who, or what, that whistle was for."
Marvin grinned. He couldn't help himself. "Sorry, ma'am," he said. "A poor country boy like me isn't used to such formality, or such beauty. Red is definitely your color."
"Not bad," she said, and he knew she was fighting back a grin.
"What do I do now?" he asked, wanting to follow her lead for the evening.
"We eat."
Marvin pulled out a chair and seated her, pressing a soft kiss along her neck as he did so. "I couldn't help myself," he said. "I find my wife irresistible." Then he took a seat himself.
Though the table was set formally and they were dressed in their after-five wear, the dinner conversation was standard. She asked about his day, and he told her.
"Things are moving slowly, as we expected, but we're still on schedule. I got the grant application in the mail today, thanks to you." Vickie had alerted them to a community grant that would establish computer centers across the county, and they had submitted a proposal to locate one of those centers at Genesis House.
They talked a little more about Genesis House, and then he asked about her day. "I had a very good day," she said, "a very, very good day. I'll tell you more about it over dessert."
Marvin quickly got out of his chair and pulled Shay's back for her. When she moved to clear the table, he stopped her and completed the task himself. "After you," he said, following her into the kitchen. Though dressed in formal attire, he rinsed the dishes and stacked them in the dishwasher. By the time he was finished, she was ready with the dessert. He raised a brow at the covered tray, wondering what she'd prepared, but he knew better than to ask. "After you," he said again, this time taking the tray and carrying it back to the dining room table for her.
After they were seated, she said, "Two wonderful things happened today." Then she lifted the cover off the tray. There was a cake—coconut, Marvin's favorite—and two candles on the tray next to it. "And there's a candle to put on this cake for each." She picked up the first candle, took a match from the tray, and lit it. "Bo brought over some college applications today and told me that he wanted to try to get back in school. This candle is for him. Will you place it on the cake?"
Marvin took the candle from her, his heart full at the work the Lord had done. He encouraged Shay to tell him the details, and she did. "It was amazing, Marvin. You should have seen him. When he left here today, he stood taller. Something's happening in Bo's heart, and I know God's doing it. It's not so much that he wants to go back to college; it's that he wants to start living again. He's coming out of the shell of shame that he's been hiding in."
Marvin lifted Shay's hand and pressed it against his lips. "That's wonderful," he said. "I thank God for Bo, and for the way he used you in Bo's life. I love you, Sharonetta Taylor."
He watched as her eyes filled with tears. This was the woman he'd married. She allowed the love of God to shine through her and, as a result, she was able to make a difference in people's lives. Again, he felt humbled that she was his wife.
"There's one more thing," she said through her tears. When she picked up the candle this time, he noticed that her hands trembled. They shook so badly that she was unable to light the second candle. He took the match and lit it for her. Once it was lit, but before he placed it on the cake, he asked, "And what's this one for?"
Her tears seemed to flow heavier, or so it seemed to him.
"What is it, sweetheart?" he asked, knowing it had to be more good news.
"We're pregnant," she said.
We're pregnant. The words rolled around in Marvin's mind. Something deep inside told him this was good news, very good news, but before that thought could connect with his vocal cords, a second thought came. You can't handle another child, Marvin. It was that thought he knew Shay read on his face.
He watched the joy drain out of her face as tears streamed more heavily down her cheeks. Except now they weren't tears of joy. No, they were tears of pain and disappointment. Disappointment in him.
"Shay," he began, and then he realized he still held the candle in his hand. He looked at the cake, and then at the candle, but he couldn't remember what he was supposed to do with the candle.
Seeing his disorientation and obviously disgusted by it, Shay pushed her chair back from the table and ran from the room.
Marvin blew out the candle and placed it on the tray with the cake. "You've blown it, Taylor," he said aloud to himself. "This time you've really blown it."
* * *
Shay knew she had to stop crying, but she didn't seem able to. Every time she thought she'd cried all her tears, another torrential shower of them seemed to come.
"Shay," Marvin whispered. He'd been at her side for the last half hour trying to comfort her, but he couldn't comfort her. How could he when he'd broken her heart?
She'd never forget as long as she lived the look that had crossed his face when she told him about their baby. His and hers. A life she carried because of her love for him. And Marvin really didn't want it. His look had told her as much.
She thought she understood him. She knew he was afraid and had guessed that the pain of losing Marvin Jr. was coloring his emotions, but she'd always counted on his love for her and for their unborn child to overcome his fear. It hadn't.
"Shay," she heard him say, but she couldn't answer him. She couldn't listen to his logical explanation for his response to her news. Why should she? Marvin was still living in the past, and she wanted a present and a future. She'd thought he did, too. Had she been that wrong?
"You're going to make yourself sick if you don't stop crying," he was saying.
Like he cares how I feel. He has no feelings, she thought. He has stone where his heart should be. How could he not want his child? How could he not marvel at the miracle that had happened for them? How could he turn his back on a gift from God?
"You caught me by surprise," he said. "I need some time to get used to the idea."
Get used to the idea. Get used to the idea. She turned over and looked at him, really looked at this man she'd loved since the first day she'd met him. "What do you mean, you have to get used to the idea?" Her words were calm, crisp, in direct contrast to the tears that still streamed down her face. "How can you say that to me, Marvin? This is a baby. A person. A part of us. What do you mean, you have to get used to the idea?"
"You're misunderstanding me," he said.
She shook her head back and forth rapidly. "I misunderstood you before. I misunderstood you when you said you didn't want more children, that you were content with just the two of us. I thought that was fear talking. I believed your love for me and our child could overcome that fear, but it seems I was wrong. So very wrong."
"You're not wrong," he began. "You know I love you and you know I love this baby. I just need some time to come to grips with everything."
Shay laughed, an empty, hollow sound that was foreign even to her own ears. "You have to come to grips with your own child. Spare me, Marvin." Shay was finding it difficult to keep her temper in check. She'd never been this angry with her husband before, not even when he'd walked out on her.
"What about your health?" he asked. "What about your health?"
"I'm fine, Marvin," she said through lips pursed tightly. She wasn't going to allow him to justify his response. No, he wasn't going to use some trumped-up concern for her health as the reason for his lack of joy at the news of her pregnancy. Yes, that's how she'd think of it now: her pregnancy.
"Did you tell the doctor about the problems you had with Marvin Jr.?"
Shay turned away from him, buried her face in her pillow, and gave in to the new wave of tears that had built up inside her.
* * *
He closed his eyes and replayed the evening's events in his mind. If he could take back that one moment... if only he'd acted on the joy he'd initially felt at her revelation that they were going to have a child... if only he hadn't thought about what it all meant. His mentor, Judge Green. Marvin Jr. Shay. The three people he loved most, and he'd lost two of them much sooner than he'd been ready to let them go.
Now, Shay expected him to be happy about risking her life, about his possibly losing her too. She expected too much. Didn't she know how much she meant to him?
And the baby. Oh, God, the baby. Marvin's heart filled as he remembered his first son. He could still remember the day Marvin Jr. had been born. The joy that had filled his heart that day had been unlike anything he'd ever experienced. He, Marvin Taylor, a throwaway kid from the streets, who'd been lucky enough to land in Lawrence Green's juvenile court, and blessed enough to find a Savior, now had a wife and a son. A family. It was more than he'd ever imagined, ever hoped. He'd known a happiness he hadn't ever suspected was possible. Not for him. Never for him.
Then Marvin Jr. had been killed. Such a senseless accident. A high-speed chase by city police after a teenager who'd hot-wired a car. Police foolish enough to conduct such a chase on a residential street. Marvin Jr. had been with his baby-sitter in her car. They'd been sitting at the intersection. The irony was that the police car had hit them. The police car. Both of them had been killed instantly. Somehow people thought the "killed instantly" part was a comfort to him. It wasn't. Nothing could comfort him. Not then.
But over time... yes, over time, he'd come to a place where he could see God again. He still didn't understand his son's death, and he didn't think he ever would. He'd decided to exchange a need to understand for a need to live, to forgive, and to move on. And he had moved on, but not without strings. Actually, just one string. He would never again ask for more. He'd be content with what he had. And he'd been content with the family he and Shay were together. He'd been ready to move on. He'd been moving on.