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“I wasn’t super happy when I came here either,” Misha confessed. “But I’m thankful that God led me, my mom, and Ciara here.”
“You’re not Ciara’s dad?” Blake asked Jay.
“Nope. He’s not,” Misha said. “In fact, I’m not her biological mom.”
“Oh, wow. I didn’t realize that.”
“It’s not something we talk about a lot because Ciara and Peyton are both our kids now. However, Ciara is my late brother’s daughter. After he passed away, his pregnant girlfriend was going to abort their baby, but I told her I’d adopt the baby if she carried it to term. Thankfully, she agreed.”
Charli had had some intense feelings when she’d heard Ciara’s story for the first time. It was a blessing that Misha and her mom had been there to take over the little girl’s care.
When Charli had realized she was pregnant and then abandoned by Blake, abortion could have been an option for some, but it wasn’t for her. It might have made her life less complicated if she’d had that option, but Charli was glad that she hadn’t. And because she believed a baby’s life was to be valued from conception, she’d been blessed with Layla.
She knew Misha felt the same way about Ciara.
“I didn’t know about Peyton until a couple of years ago,” Jay said. “But I’m grateful that even though his mother didn’t tell me she was pregnant, she didn’t abort him. Learning about him was a shock, but having him in my life has been amazing.”
When Jay had returned with Peyton, Charli had had feelings about that situation, too. That had a lot to do with not understanding the decision Peyton’s mom had made to give him away.
But regardless of how people ended up as part of their family, Charli was glad to have each of them there.
As Jay shared more about his and Peyton’s journey, Charli came to the stark realization that, in her situation, Blake filled the same role that Jay had as the unknowing father. She didn’t like the comparison, because she didn’t want to be cast in the role of Peyton’s mom.
However, unlike her, Charli had tried to tell Blake about Layla. Perhaps she could have tried harder. However, when he’d abruptly ended things and then ignored her requests for a conversation, she’d decided if he didn’t want Charli in his life, she didn’t want him in her child’s.
“I wasn’t in Amelia’s life as much as I should have been.” Blake used his spoon to dig into his ice cream but didn’t lift any out. “Her mom got primary custody because I was deployed a lot.”
“How did you end up with her now?” Jay asked. “If you don’t mind sharing.”
Blake’s shoulders slumped. “Lauren—Amelia’s mom—had trouble with addiction. She was clean when we met and throughout her pregnancy. We broke up when Amelia was about a year old, and a couple of years later, for whatever reason, she started to struggle with her addiction again. Since we weren’t together then, and I was deployed for a good chunk of that time, I wasn’t aware of what was going on until recently.”
Charli felt a pang of sorrow for Amelia. She’d had students who came from homes where addiction was an issue. An environment like that was confusing for children so young, and ofttimes, hurtful.
However, she also felt bad for Blake, which surprised her.
“So you were able to get custody?” Misha asked.
Charli’s gaze followed Blake’s as he glanced over to where Amelia sat with the other kids, her feet swinging as she ate her ice cream. “I got custody because Lauren was killed in a car accident, resulting from driving under the influence. After that happened, I knew that I needed to leave the army in order to take care of Amelia.”
Charli stared at Blake for a moment, then focused on her ice cream as she let what he’d said sink it. Blake’s revelations explained so much about Amelia’s sadness. And even Blake’s.
They might not have still been in a relationship, but Charli was sure that Blake would never have wished something bad like that to happen to the mother of his child.
“I’m sorry to hear what you’ve been through,” Jay said. “What brought you back to Serenity? Your family doesn’t live around here, do they?”
Blake shook his head. “They’re all in California, but I’ve been estranged from them since just before I joined the army. I decided to come back because I knew I’d need support, and Jackson’s family had always been so good to me. Plus, from what I’d remembered of Serenity, it seemed like it might be a great place to raise a child.”
“It definitely is that,” Jay agreed. “And Jackson’s parents are amazing. Jackson, however…” He seesawed his hand back and forth.
A smile flitted across Blake’s face as Jackson sputtered in protest.
Jackson scowled. “Not cool, man.”
Jay grinned at him, and the mood lightened a bit.
Charli, however, had a lot of thoughts and feelings about Blake and what had happened to him and Amelia over the past few years. She looked over at the counter where the kids were sitting, Amelia between the two older ones.
While she was glad for the understanding she’d gained about a student’s past, Charli wasn’t sure that she wanted to feel sympathy for Blake. He’d hurt her so much that she just wanted to feel nothing where he was concerned. Not hate. Not love. Not sympathy. Nothing.
