Chapter 14

“Jon, shouldn’t I be anywhere but here when your kids show up?” Mika asked him not thinking he’d want to tell the kids anything about them yet.

“Actually you are reading my mind. I am very happy you are in my life Mika, but my kids will know nothing about us until I decide I’m in love with you. I’m willing to risk my own heart but not theirs.”

“How perceptive are they? Are you going to introduce us at all?”

”I don’t think so unless they pull it out of me. I may introduce you to Steph because she will know long before I’m ready to tell her. She can read me like a book.”

“So tell me about your kids?” Mika would ask cuddled up in his arms. Wanting nothing more than to ignore the world and kiss him again but she knows that isn’t about to happen.

“Well Stephanie is my girl. She’s a daddy’s girl if I’ve ever seen one. She also knows that I’m wrapped around her little finger. She’s beautiful and so smart. She’s confident and stubborn and amazingly unaffected by life. She just does her own thing. She’s my sunshine and whenever I’m the least big down she’ll give me a hug and tell me she loves me to the moon and back and I just melt.”

”You do realize you have a smile in your eyes?”

”Yes I love my baby girl. I love all of my kids but Steph holds a special place because she’s my baby girl.”

”Tell me about Jesse?”

”He’s stubborn and Dot’s boy. He’s 12 yrs old hates the world and hates me for leaving. However, about once a month he realizes I’m not the devil incarnate and wants to see me to talk ‘man things’. His man things are basically –dad what do I do my voice is cracking, my dreams aren’t like they used to be. So thankfully he may dislike me at times but he knows I’m dad and I’m always going to be there for him so he still talks to me.”

“Jake?”

”Jakey – he’s my little buddy. He’s special to me because he was the only one I was ever home to see really start to develop. I was away so much of the time with the other kids but Jakey I was home when he started giggling and when he figured out who everyone was – his first word was Dada. He rolled over for me first, crawled for the first time when I was in the room so I’m really attached to Jakey. He’s also the only kid into football as much as me so we go to lots of Soul practices and games
together.”

”And Romeo?”

”He’s also daddy’s boy. He’s so young though all we do is play trucks together.”

“Can I ask you an odd question?”

”Sure but remember I have every right not to answer.”

”You sound like you loved being married and actually valued your relationship with Dorthea.”

”I did.”

”Then why didn’t you wear your wedding ring often?”