Page 96 of Burden to Bear

“We wouldn’t have missed this for anything,” Mom replied.

“You would have done okay, though,” Dad interjected.

I was grateful for his faith in me. “I appreciate that. I’m going to need that boost of confidence as I head into these next few weeks.”

Brock wrapped an arm around my back, his hand settling on my opposite shoulder. “You’ll be okay, Mia. I’m going to be here for the next two weeks with you.”

Confused, I glanced up at him with a curious expression. “What?”

He smiled at me. “I would have done it for right after he was born, but since your parents were here, I thought it would be better for me to take off so I could help you after they left.”

I blinked my eyes rapidly, attempting to digest the information Brock had just shared. “Are you telling me you took two weeks off from work to be here with Milo and me?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, boy. She’s going to cry,” my dad declared.

That was all it took.

Brock’s confirmation I hadn’t misheard him, and my dad’s announcement that I was about to get emotional. I broke down into tears, wondering what I’d done to deserve a man like Brock, a man who’d take two weeks off from work to help care for his postpartum girlfriend and her baby. A baby that wasn’t even his.

I didn’t care that he’d just gotten home from work. I buried my face in his chest and cried my eyes out.

And as I did, no less than a half dozen thoughts ran through my mind.

My baby’s father had only seen him once. Susie had shown up at the hospital the day I delivered Milo, and she’d stayed with me for quite a while that day after the delivery. She remained there when her parents arrived to meet their grandson, a meeting that had gone far better than I’d anticipated.

Susie returned the next day to visit her new nephew. Her parents had shown up again as well. And later in the day, just before dinnertime, Todd made his appearance. He held Milo for no more than fifteen or twenty minutes, and it was clear he wasn’t comfortable. I had a feeling he was there mostly out of obligation, not because he truly cared about his child. Witnessing that interaction he had with Milo, I was glad I hadn’t accepted his proposal two months earlier—there was obviously nothing genuine behind it. If he had truly cared, Todd would have made the effort over the remaining two months of my pregnancy to prove his child was important.

Even if he hadn’t done it then, he could have shown up at any point in time since I’d left the hospital. His family had visited several times. They were just as smitten with this little boy as I was, as my family was.

And now, beyond a shadow of a doubt, I knew that it wasn’t just my family, Susie, or her parents that cared about Milo. It was Brock, too. He adored him. He’d even gotten up in the middle of the night with me and the baby several times. And apparently, he intended to be here with the two of us for the next two weeks, because he knew my parents were leaving.

Milo and I were never his burden to bear, but he took us on without batting an eyelash. The best part about it was knowing that he didn’t see us as an obligation, as something he had to do. He did what he did because he loved us. I didn’t have to question it. I knew Brock loved my son as if he were his own.

Pulling my face back from his chest, I tipped my chin up and said, “We don’t deserve you.”

“You both deserve the world, Mia.”

I heard a small cry, but it didn’t come from Milo. It was my mom. She had her hand covering her mouth, tears spilling down her cheeks. Evidently, Brock’s news had caught her off guard, too. When my eyes slid to the side, and I took in the look on my father’s face, I nearly lost it.

He was just barely hanging on to his emotions. Despite them, he stepped forward, clapped a hand on Brock’s opposite shoulder, and said, “It takes a real man to step up and care for a woman and a baby, especially one that’s not his. I’m honored to have met you, Brock.”

Brock dipped his chin. “Thank you, sir. I don’t know what else to say except for that and that I love both your daughter and your grandson, and it’s my honor to be able to look after them.”

With that, and regardless of the high emotions in the room, my parents felt confident enough to be able to leave to head home. They knew I was in good hands.

We exchanged tearful goodbyes, and my parents promised it wouldn’t be long before they were back for another visit.

And once they left, Brock did more of what he always did. He took care of me by urging me to look after Milo while he grabbed a shower before making us dinner.

Motherhood was messy.

It was just as my parents had said when they left two weeks ago to head home. I had questioned every decision I made. I wondered if I was doing the right things. I was constantly worried about my baby, wanting to make sure I didn’t screw this up.

But despite the worry and chaos and messy diapers and sleepless nights, motherhood was beautiful.

It was the most fulfilling and rewarding thing I’d ever done in my life. I couldn’t imagine not having experienced this, of doing what my beautiful son’s father had asked me to do when he learned I was pregnant. I was sick at the thought of not having Milo.

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