TEARS IN HEAVEN
Chapter Nineteen
April 1, 2020
Rose burst through the front door, a mixture
of shock, awe, happiness, and a hint of sadness on her lovely face.
Fourteen-year-old Kayla looked up from her spot on the living room floor.
"Hey, Mom. Dad called. He's stuck at his office, so he won't be home for
dinner."
Rose stared at her daughter in confusion for
a minute, the world around her seemingly surreal at the moment, but then
frowned. "Well, that's not going to work."
"What's not going to work?" Kayla
asked.
Rose shook her head. "Never mind.
Where's everyone?"
"Janelle's out with Andrew, ew.
Um...Colin's in his room, I think, Alicia's next door, and Jay's at the park
with Joey."
Rose nodded and then broke into a big smile.
"Okay, good. What are you working on?"
Kayla gave her a weird look, as Rose didn't
have such strange mood swings often. "My report for History. I'm doing
mine on the Titanic."
"The Titanic? Your father had an
obsession with that ship when we were kids. You should talk to him
tomorrow."
Kayla's eyes lit up. "Dad liked it
too?"
Rose ruffled her hair affectionately.
"Yep. I'm sure he's still got some of the stuff he collected around here
somewhere. How does pizza sound for dinner?"
"Fine. Do you think he'd let me use some
of it for my presentation?"
Rose headed towards the kitchen. "I'm
sure he would. Did he say which office he'd be at?"
"The one in LA."
Rose nodded and disappeared into the other
room to call for a pizza. After that was done she went upstairs to change and
check on Colin. Poking her head into his room, she wasn't surprised to see him
in his usual spot--in front of the computer. "Hey, I called for a pizza.
I'm gonna head into LA to see your dad. Will you make sure that everyone's home
by eight?"
Colin glanced up and nodded. "Sure. Can
I take the truck?"
Rose couldn't help but smile. "All
right. Thanks sweetie," she said, kissing his head as if he were a small
child.
"Are you okay, Mom?"
Rose nodded and turned to leave. "Oh,
and make sure Andrew's out of the house by nine. He and Janelle are not to be
left alone."
*****
Twenty minutes later, Rose was on her way
into the city, her stomach full of butterflies. She wasn't sure how Jack was
going to react to what she was going to tell him. She just hoped he would
respond with his usual exuberance. After what seemed to be an eternity, she
pulled into the parking lot, relieved to see Jack's car was there. Slowly, she
got out of her car and went into the building. When she reached the floor his
office was on, Rose was greeted by Emily, the secretary. "Hello, Mrs.
Dawson. Here for Jack?"
Rose smiled and nodded. "Is he in his
office?"
"Yes. Would you like me to inform him
you're here?"
"No, that won't be necessary.
Thanks."
Emily smiled and turned back to her work.
Rose took a deep breath and opened the door to her husband's office. He was
there, on the phone standing near the window, his back to her. Smiling
devilishly, Rose slid into the room silently and sneaked up behind him,
pinching his bottom.
Jack jumped and whirled around to see Rose
doubled over with laughter. "Listen, Tom, I'm going to have to call you
back," Jack said to the person on the phone, while grabbing Rose's wrist
when she attempted to repeat her attack. "All right. I'll talk to you
later. Bye."
Once he hung up, he turned to Rose, who still
hadn't shaken her fit of laughter. "The look...on your...face," she
gasped, tears running down her cheeks.
Jack crossed his arms and raised his eyebrow
in amusement. "So you thought that was funny, hmm?"
Rose swallowed her giggles. "I
did."
Jack broke into a smile and pulled her to
him, brushing her lips with his. "What are you doing here?"
Rose took his hand and sat down on the small
couch in the office. "We need to talk."
"Is everything okay? The kids are all
right, aren't they?" Jack demanded, panic rising in his voice.
Rose held up her hand. "Calm down.
Everything's fine. There's just...ah...a situation I need to talk to you
about."
Relief washed across Jack's face. "Whew.
What's going on?"
"I found something out today...quite
surprising, but something good."
"Well, what is it?"
Rose met Jack's inquiring eyes and smiled.
"How would you feel about being a father again?"
Jack's face twisted in confusion. "What?
I thought we agreed that...wait, are you--?"
Rose's smile grew larger and she nodded.
"Yes."
Jack's eyes became as big as saucers and he
broke into an enormous grin. "Oh, my God! Rose, this is fabulous!" he
exclaimed, pulling her into his arms.
Rose touched his face lovingly after their
kiss had ended. "I know. Nobody will ever take Josh's place or take away
the pain of losing him, but we're being given another chance. Another
baby."
*****
Taylor Nicole Dawson was born on October 5,
2020, and brought home to a house full of eager siblings.