Chapter 20

Another blissful weekof marriage had passed us by. Jacob and I had settled back into our normal routine of work with the added chore of packing up both our places. I went to the office during the day while he worked on his books. On days where we were at his place, he'd read me what he'd been working on.

Whether it was a book or an illustration, I took a genuine interest in it. Though his books were on the shelves in my waiting room, I also made sure to add a few to my treasure chest from time to time. The kids were always excited to find one that they could take home.

Today was Saturday.

Jacob had woken me up bright and early with instructions to shower and get dressed. I wasn't sure what the hell he had planned, but I drug myself out of bed and did as he requested.

Once dressed, he took me out for breakfast before we made our way to the downtown area. A look of confusion formed on my face when we pulled up to the library.

"What are we doing here?" I asked.

"I'm reading to a group of children today," he answered. "It's sort of like a book club. I usually do this two weekends out of the month. I thought maybe you'd like to join me."

I smiled. "I'd love to actually see you in action with children."

"Then let's not keep them waiting. They can be quite impatient."

"I bet."

We piled out of the truck and headed into the library hand in hand. When we got to the huge round rug where story time was being held, there was already a group of children waiting with their parents. One little girl turned to see us walking toward them. When her eyes landed on Jacob, she gasped.

She ran over, and he immediately scooped her up.

"Mr. Mitchell!"

"Sakina. How are you doing, beautiful?"

"I'm good! We missed you. Where have you been?"

"Well, you see this beautiful woman right here? We got married. I took some time to spend with her."

She looked at me and smiled. "She's so pretty," Sakina whispered.

"I know," he whispered back.

I blushed. "Thank you, Sakina. It's very nice to meet you."

She rested her head against Jacob's in the cutest manner.

"Sakina here is one of my favorite book club members. She's been to every reading since I started a year ago. She always picks the best books for me to read."

She blushed, and I could tell she had the biggest crush on my husband.

"What do you have for us today?" I asked, pinching her cheek.

"Are you reading too?"

"If it's okay with you."

She nodded. "You can do the girl voices. Mr. Mitchell sounds funny as a girl."

I giggled. "I bet he does."

"Alright now," Jacob said, placing her on her feet. "Go grab your book so we can get started."

"Okay!"

He led me over to the big rug. Children began crowding around to greet him. Most of them shoved their selected books into his hands in hopes that he'd read theirs first. When they started getting loud, he did a simple hand gesture to calm them down.

"Alright, kids. Take a seat."

They eagerly found a spot on the floor and patiently waited.

"I know I haven't been here in a few weeks, and I've really missed you guys. I want to introduce you all to someone very special to me." He grabbed my hand and kissed it. "The reason I haven't been here is because I got married, and I wanted to spend time with my new wife."

The kids gasped.

One of them yelled, "You got married!"

They started clapping, and it warmed my heart. I could tell they loved him and were genuinely excited for him.

"Thank you, thank you," Jacob said, calling for them to settle down again. "Allow me to introduce her. This is Kachelle Mitchell, formally Lewis. Can you all give her a warm welcome?"

"Hi, Mrs. Mitchell!"

I smiled and waved. "Hello. Thank you for letting me join your book club today. I look forward to seeing what you all have for us to read."

"Who wants to go first?"

Several tiny hands went up.

"Would you do the honors?" he asked me.

"Sure." I surveyed the rug. "You with the pink Hello Kitty shirt."

"That's Shia," he said as she climbed to her feet and brought him her book.

"Do you remember all of their names?"

"Every single one. Thank you, Shia."

She slapped him a high five, then reclaimed her seat. The book she chose was Beauty and the Beast. Jacob opened the book, and we began reading, make that acting, the book out.

The kids were having the time of their lives watching us. At one point, I thought the librarian was going to put us out, but she simply looked on with a smile. We ended up reading at least six books, and the kids enjoyed each one.

We pulled a few of them in with us to act the stories out. The whole experience made me fall deeper in love with my husband. If this was a preview of him with our babies, I just knew he would be a great daddy.

As he said goodbye to each of them, I watched him with pride.

"You're a lucky woman," one of the mothers told me. "These kids live for these Saturdays. He's always so loving and patient with them. And he always treats them to lunch afterward. Most people do pizza, but he always does the local food trucks."

I smiled. "He really loves what he does."

She nodded. "I don't know you, but you're a good fit for him. I can tell he enjoyed having you hear today. I hope you come back next time."

"I will. And if your kid ever needs a dentist, come over to Superhero Smiles. I'm the owner."

"Really? I was just looking for a new office for my daughter, too. I'll definitely be making an appointment. If you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go plug you in with the other parents. We love to support our own."

She winked at me and walked away. After a few more minutes, Jacob came over to me.

"You good?"

"I'm wonderful. I really enjoyed this. Thank you for sharing your babies with me."

"If you keep coming with me, they'll be your babies too. You know how many of the boys told me how pretty you were just now?"

I giggled. "That's cute."

"You hungry? I have food trucks outside for the kids."

"I know. I was talking to one of the parents and she told me you always feed them afterward. That's so sweet of you. I'm definitely getting something, though. I don't know what's out there, but I will be big-backed today."

He chuckled as he grabbed my hand. "Come on."

We headed outside to where five food trucks were parked in front of the building. They served a variety of food ranging from burgers, hotdogs, and fries to fish sandwiches, subs, and nachos. I decided on a hotdog with all the trimmings and loaded fries while Jacob got a fish sandwich basket.

He put the bed of his truck down, and we sat there eating and watching the kids play. The sun was out, the wind was blowing, and the temperature was perfect. Everything was going seemingly well until my phone rang, and I saw it was my mother.

I frowned. I hadn't spoken to her or my father since we got back from our honeymoon. That was over a month ago. Even though my sister and I had patched things up, things were still rocky with my parents.

"Are you gonna answer?" Jacob asked, noting my hesitancy.

"I guess." I took a deep breath before accepting the call. "Hello."

"Kay…"

The sound of my mother crying caused me to sit straight up.

"Mom? What's wrong?"

"Your father… he had a heart attack!"

"What! When! Where are you!"

"We're at Baptist. He went to check the mail and he was gone a little too long. I found him on the ground! He hit his head when he fell… they don't… they don't know…"

She was crying profusely at this point. Jacob was already gathering our trash to throw it out. I sat frozen, listening to my mother cry. I knew she was trying to say they didn't know if he would make it, but I couldn't hear those words.

"Baby, let me get you in the car."

I still didn't move. Jacob picked me up and closed the truck gate. He then carried me around and put me in the driver's seat before strapping me in.

"Kay… Kay baby, look at me. I need you to tell me where to go."

My eyes finally found his. "Baptist…" I whispered.

He kissed my forehead. "Everything's gonna be okay."

He closed my door and ran around to get in the driver's seat.

"I can't lose him, Kachelle!" my mother wailed. "I just can't!"

It was as though my voice was frozen in my throat. My mind was racing with thoughts of mine and my father's last conversation. I couldn't take it if he left the world and there was anger between us.

Please, God. Let him be okay.

I'd been pacingthe waiting room for an hour now. We'd been here for two, and my nerves were on ten. When we got to Baptist and found my mother, Ebony, and her husband, they all looked distraught. I was almost sure they were going to tell me that my father was gone. The doctor came to explain what was going on.

My father was suffering from a blocked artery and a brain bleed from how hard he hit his head when he fell. He was in surgery and had been since we got to the hospital.

"Baby," Jacob said, gently taking my arm. "Come sit down for a second."

Reluctantly, I allowed him to lead me over to a chair. He took a seat beside me and wrapped his arms around me. I felt his lips at my temple as he gently rubbed my arms.

"Everything's gonna be okay," he whispered.

"What if it's not? What if he doesn't make it out of surgery? What if… oh God, what if he dies, Jacob?"

I burst into tears all over again. Things couldn't end like this. They just couldn't.

The doors of the waiting room opened and in walked Jacob's parents with Jessa and Myra in tow.

"You told them?" I asked, sniffling.

"I figured y'all could use all the support you could get. We're family."

"Is everything okay?" Mrs. Mitchell asked.

"He's in surgery," Jacob answered.

She nodded as she turned to my mother and stooped to hug her. They went down the line hugging us and offering words of encouragement. His parents hugged me a little longer, both of them kissing my temples. When they released me, Myra and Jessa embraced me tightly.

"We got you, boo," Myra said. "He's gonna be just fine."

"How about a prayer?" Jacob offered.

No one was opposed to that. I went to my mother and helped her to stand. She'd just been sitting there looking distraught. She had been with my father for so long, I wasn't sure how she would handle it if his eyes closed before hers.

We formed a circle and joined hands. As tears streamed down my face, I gripped Jacob's hand. It fell quiet as he began to speak.

"Father God, we come to You in the midst of our sorrows asking that You keep Your hands on Mr. Lewis and Your arms around this family. We ask You to guide the skillful hands of those who work diligently to ensure his care and survival. As we pray for Mr. Lewis, we also pray for his wife and children. may their faith in you never waver during this trying time. God, we know that You alone have the final say and that You make no mistakes. We humbly ask for a miracle, and if a miracle isn't possible, we ask for comfort. In the name of Jesus, Amen."

"Amen."

Beside me, my mother lifted her head. She went to Jacob and hugged him tightly.

"Thank you," she whispered. "Thank you."

He didn't say anything; he simply embraced her.

"Family of Maury Lewis?"

We looked up to see the doctor standing in the waiting room, looking around. My mother waved her over.

"How is he?" she asked.

"He's stable. We were able to restore the blood flow to his heart and stop the bleeding in his brain. He has a long road ahead of him, but we expect him to make a full recovery."

"Oh, thank God! Can we see him?"

"Give us a little bit to get him into recovery. I must warn you, we decided to sedate him for a few days to give him time to heal. We'll slowly bring him out of it."

My mother nodded.

"I'll send a nurse to get you when he's settled. You can go back two at a time. He needs his rest, so no more than ten minutes right now."

"Thank you."

He gave her a comforting smile, then walked away. She heaved a sigh of relief. I turned to my husband and buried my face in his chest. He held me tightly, stroking my back in a soothing manner. I was so grateful to have him here in this moment. If I'd gotten the call while I was alone, I wasn't sure I would have been able to hold it together to drive.

After what seemed like forever, a nurse came to fetch us. Ebony and my mother went back first. For what seemed like forever, I waited for my turn. I sat with sweaty palms and that annoying leg shake I got whenever I was nervous. Jacob's hand wrapped gently around my thigh.

"Relax, love. You can't go back there in distress. He's your father. He can feel that on you."

"I just need him to live, Jacob. If things take a turn, I can't let him leave this world with anger between us. I need him to know I love him."

"He knows. No matter what happens between you two, he'll always know you love him."

"He's right, boo," Myra said, grabbing my hand. "Love between a parent and child knows no end."

I sighed and nodded. After a few more minutes, my mother and sister came back around the corner sniffling. Jacob stood and pulled me to my feet. We followed the nurse down the hall to the elevators and took it up to the second floor. My hand tightened around his as we passed several doors before coming to a stop in front of number two thirty-four.

She opened the door, and I took a deep breath before stepping inside. My father looked peaceful like he was simply sleeping. One would never guess the trauma his body had just experienced if it weren't for the head wrap.

I walked over to him with trembling lips.

"Daddy?" I whispered.

Gently, I cupped his face and kissed his cheek.

"Daddy, you have to come home. I love you, and I need you."

I eased into bed beside him and curled up next to him the same way I used to do when I was a little girl. Closing my eyes, I said a prayer of my own. I prayed that if God would spare him, I'd never go so long without speaking to him or my mother again. It didn't matter if he was wrong. The fact that he could be snatched away from me without a moment's notice made me forgive him.

Maybe… just maybe, when he woke up, he'd see things in a different light, too.