Chapter 21 Kamryn
Kamryn
“Miss Kam?”
Kamryn spun around at the sound of Crystal’s voice. “Hey, Crystal. What do you need?” The petite young woman fidgeted with
the small gift bag in her hands and stared down at her shoes. “Is everything okay?” Crystal was one of the newest additions
to the center and tended to keep to herself mostly.
“Are you really going to come back after you have your baby?”
A soft smile curved Kamryn’s lips. She came from around the desk and hugged the teen. “You’d better believe it. And even though
I’ll be off, I still plan to visit.” With the baby being due in two weeks, she’d officially stopped working yesterday, but
she had popped in to pick up a few things that she’d forgotten before heading to the baby shower.
“Thank you,” Crystal whispered.
With Crystal being bounced around in the foster care system for so many years, Kamryn completely understood her need for some level of stability and to have someone who genuinely cared.
“You know I can’t just leave you. I’m looking forward to all the great things you’re going to do when you graduate from college.
” Summer break had started last week, which gave the young woman a couple of months to get acclimated before the fall semester started.
“What if I don’t make it?”
“You will. Your grades are really good, you’re a smart and intelligent young woman, and you have us to support and cheer you
on. It’s the perfect recipe for success.”
She hugged Kamryn. “Thank you, Miss Kam. I don’t know what I would’ve done without you and Miss Theresa.”
“I’m just glad you’re here.” When they’d decided to open the transitional facility for teens aging out of foster care, she
and Theresa had known it wouldn’t always be easy, and they’d already lost two to substance abuse and a refusal to abide by
the rules. Some of the children had hurts so deep, the two women weren’t sure they’d ever be able to reach them. But the joy
in seeing some of the teens grow into accomplished adults outweighed every moment of struggle.
“This is for you. I got it when Miss Theresa said you were coming in today.” Crystal handed her the bag.
“Wow. Thank you, Crystal.” Kamryn dug inside the bag and pulled out two children’s books and a blanket. “This is so pretty.
I love it, and I know the baby will too.”
Crystal shrugged and gave Kamryn a shy smile. “Since you don’t know if you’re having a boy or girl, I didn’t want to get anything
that wouldn’t fit.”
Laughing, Kamryn said, “Well, this will fit perfectly. I’ll have to wrap the baby in this blanket when we come to visit, then
he or she can take a picture with you.”
Her eyes lit up. “You’re gonna let me take a picture with your baby?”
“Yep.” Seeing Crystal’s bright smile always made Kamryn’s day.
“You about ready, babe?”
Kamryn and Crystal both turned at the sound of Tariq’s voice. Kamryn nodded. “Look what Crystal bought for the baby.” She showed him the gifts.
“Thanks, Crystal. That was really nice of you.”
“You’re welcome. Miss Kam is always nice to me, so I wanted to do something nice for her.”
“Just keep making me proud. That’s all I want. Give me one more hug, then I’m out of here.” Kamryn embraced the young woman
once more, then waved as she and Tariq left. It took longer than planned because all the kids offered congratulations and
wanted hugs. By the time they made it to the car, they had only ten minutes to get to his parents’ house.
“I told you we should’ve come half an hour earlier,” Tariq said as he pulled off. “You know how you get with the kids.”
She could only laugh because he was telling the truth. She’d gotten caught up with them more often than not, resulting in
her leaving late. “Hey, I wasn’t the only one. How did it go with the guys?” Theresa had asked if he would talk to three of
the young men who were struggling with the transition to adulthood. She believed having a man talk with them about expectations
and goals would go a long way in building their confidence.
“It started off a little rocky because they weren’t sure about me. After a while, they warmed up, and the conversation went
well. Lots of questions about how I got to where I am, what mistakes I made, and what skills they need to get a job right
now. They asked me to come back, and I promised to check in with them periodically. They’re a good group and just need a little
direction.”
Kamryn placed a hand on his arm. “I agree, and you’re the perfect person to help them. Hmm, I wonder if your brothers would
be willing to stop in as well.”
He laughed softly. “I should’ve known that would be your next thought.”
“What? You all are intelligent and educated Black men. They need to see that. I wonder if Austin could drop by the next time
he comes home, or I could have him do it by videoconference,” she said more to herself. While they had people come in to do
talks, she knew her brothers-in-law would be fabulous. “I’m going to send him a text.” She pulled out her phone. “Then we
can coordinate to see when would be a good time.”
Tariq gently pried the phone out of her hand. “Kam, relax. You are off for the next three to four months, sweetheart. Remember?
No. More. Working.”
She sighed. “I know, I know.” He had wanted her to stop working a month ago, but they had been able to compromise, with her
agreeing to cut her time to six hours per day, four days a week. With her being so far along in her pregnancy, it turned out
to be sound wisdom. Kamryn had also been thinking about returning to school but had chosen to put it on the back burner for
now. School would always be there when or if she decided to go back. For now, she only wanted to concentrate on being the
best wife, mother, and social worker she could be. That was enough.
Changing the subject, he said, “I wonder what’s on the menu.”
“I wouldn’t know, since Mama Yvonne banned me from cooking anything. She wouldn’t even let me do a little side dish,” she
fussed. It would be the first time since being introduced to the family that Kamryn wouldn’t be contributing anything to the
meal, and she was having a hard time because she was used to helping in some way.
“The party is for you. It’s okay if you sit back and be a queen for the day. Although you’re my queen every day.” He brought
her hand to his lips and placed a kiss on her knuckles.
She giggled. “Quit trying to distract me with all this sweet talk.”
Tariq slanted her an amused look. “Is it working?”
Biting back a smile, she said, “No comment.”
“You ain’t gotta answer. You know you can’t resist me.”
Kamryn whipped her head in his direction.
He let out a short bark of laughter. “What? You know you can’t. No use in lying.”
She shook her head. “Just drive.” When they arrived several minutes later, she saw all the family’s cars as well as Theresa’s.
The door opened before Tariq stuck his key in the lock. “Oh, good. I thought you two got lost or something.” Mama Yvonne hugged
them both as they entered. “Let me guess: Kamryn, you got caught up with the kids.”
“Bingo,” Tariq said and sidestepped when Kamryn swatted at him.
“That’s all right,” Mama Yvonne said as they walked farther into the house. “What you and Theresa are doing is wonderful.
I can see how easy it would be to stay longer than you’d planned, especially if they’re opening up to you.”
“Exactly, Mama Yvonne.” Kamryn turned to Tariq and playfully stuck her tongue out.
He lifted a brow and leaned close to her ear. “You do remember what happened the last time you did that.”
Heat tinted her cheeks. She recalled with vivid clarity every moment of what happened and was more than tempted to do it again.
Tariq must have read her expression because he said, “Behave, and come on. We won’t be doing any of that for the next couple
of months.”
“Yeah, yeah. Don’t remind me.” She loved being intimate with her husband and missed the connection they shared.
A loud roar went up when they entered the family room, and she heard, “About time y’all got here,” and “How are you going to be late to your own party?”
Kamryn brought her hands to her chest. “Sorry, everybody. I made a little stop at my office to pick up a few things.”
“More like you ended up hanging out with the kids,” Taylor called out.
“I plead the fifth.” She waved a hand. “I’m so happy you all could come.” Along with family and their close friends, a few
of her coworkers from her previous job, as well as some from Tariq’s, had also come. They had decided on a family-style shower
instead of one for just the women.
Mama Yvonne was the consummate hostess and had all kinds of games, from mommy versus daddy trivia and baby bottle bowling
to onesie decorating using fabric markers and a baby stroller obstacle course set up in the backyard. The late June temperatures
had reached the low eighties—warm but not unbearable for the short time spent outdoors. The guys more than enjoyed seeing
who could go through the course the fastest, and Kamryn had an opportunity to see a competitive side of her husband she hadn’t
known was there.
Tariq blazed through the course, topping Vincent’s time by a good four seconds, and couldn’t stop bragging and flexing his
muscles. “Who’s the daddy?”
Good-natured teasing continued as everyone went back inside.
Taylor waved everyone over to the kitchen bar. “Since you’re all talking about being the daddy, come on over here. You can
be the first to taste these baby foods and see how many you can recognize. Kam, you too, since you two will be feeding your
baby this stuff soon.” She handed them sheets of paper with ten foods. “You need to match the flavor with the number on the
jar.”
He rubbed his hands together. “Bring it on. Let’s do this, baby.”
Kamryn laughed. “Are we doing it together? I’m trying to increase the odds that we win.”
“Absolutely not,” Theresa said. “If we have to do it alone, so do you.”
“Whatever. Some sister-friend you are. You’re supposed to have my back.”
“I do—unless it means I don’t win the prize. Mama Yvonne is giving out all the good stuff.”