Love Knows No Color Pt. 08

"Give me a second, babygirl. Go see Ms. Von, I'll be out in a second." As Brittany ran off to the living room, I searched for and found a pair of pants to put on. I wandered out to the living room. "What the..." I started. The number of presents under the tree had multiplied. I didn't know presents were like rabbits, that they could reproduce overnight.

"Morning, sleepyhead," Shavonda teased. "I got the kids a few things. I hope you don't mind. This is the first Christmas I've ever bought for my own kids." Brittany and Ethan excitedly stared at the pile. Shavonda started handing out presents to the kids. Soon the living room was strewn with toys and wrapping paper.

The phone rang. It was Barbara. I put my cellphone on speaker, "I know I am spending Christmas at your house, but Rose would like to see the kids for Christmas. Can I bring her along?"

Shavonda looked at me questioningly. "No," I replied. "Rose doesn't know where Shavonda lives. In light of all that happened I'd like to keep it that way."

Shavonda whispered, "Jason it's Christmas, let her see the kids."

"Here's what I can do," I said into the phone. "Have Rose drop you off at my house. I will be there with the kids. She can visit them for about an hour." Shavonda nodded her head in approval. Good thinking, she mouthed at me.

"Kids, wanna go see Mommy," I asked."



"Yay," Brittany jumped up and down excitedly, beads clacking in her hair. Ethan looked fearful.

We got them dressed and ready, and I took off in the Jeep with them in their carseats. Shavonda stayed behind. The relatives would be over soon. Somebody needed to stay at the house to let them in. Besides, there was no point in antagonizing everybody by having those two face off Christmas morning.

Arriving at my house, we opened up and the kids ran around the house. Soon there was a knock on the door. I opened it to find Barbara and Rose on my porch. "Come inside," I said. "Kids, Mommy's here!"

Rose entered and sat on the couch. "Mommy," Brittany hollered as she ran to Rose. The expression on Rose's face when she saw the beads was priceless. She looked absolutely horrified. Ethan ran to me and clung to my leg, eyeing Rose warily. Barbara stood by the TV, taking note of the kids' reactions.

"Ethan," I said. "Go say hi to your Mommy."

"I'm scared," he replied, clinging harder to my leg. This was the first time he'd seen his mother since the hospital. His reaction told me all I needed to know. Barbara shook her head sadly. She knew too.

"Rose," I said coldly, "Why is Ethan afraid of you?"

"How the hell should I know?" she snapped. "Maybe you poisoned his mind." Really? I poisoned his mind? I'm the one trying to find the truth here.

"Rose," I said, more insistently this time, "What did you do to my son? He's afraid of you. He never used to be this way. Now he is. What the hell did you do to my son?"

"Ethan, you come here and see your Mommy," Rose yelled at him. Ethan clung tighter to my leg. He started crying.

"Rose," I said in a chilling voice. "You're scaring him. I think you should go now. You are NOT going to ruin Ethan's Christmas. Against my better judgement, I agreed to let you see them. He's deathly afraid of you. You did something to him. You'd better leave. Now! Before I call the cops." Barbara grabbed Rose's arm and pulled her toward the door. "Oh, and everything here better be in the same condition when I get back home. If it isn't, the police will be knocking on your door. Again. Stop digging yourself deeper. You're already in enough trouble. Stop making it worse."

Barbara escorted Rose to her car. She said something I couldn't hear to Rose, who drove off in a huff. We waited a few minutes to see of Rose would return. When she didn't, Barbara helped me strap the kids in their carseats, and we locked the house up. I drove them back to Shavonda's house.

The guests had already arrived. The house was packed with people. Luckily, Shavonda had gone to Family Dollar a few days earlier and bought a bunch of cheap stackable plastic chairs. At least everybody would have a place to sit. Velma and Tamika were there. Tamika had brought Brian, evidently, they were developing into a serious relationship. I was happy for her. Brian was a good dude, from what I could see.

Everybody hugged Barbara and me. They seemed genuinely glad to see her. I was glad. Althea and Shavonda pulled me to the side. We went into the bedroom to talk. "Jason, why didn't you let the kids' mother come over?" scolded Althea. "It's Christmas."

"Trust me," I said coldly, "You wouldn't want World War Three. Let me tell you about our visit. Ethan was afraid of her. He clung to my leg the whole time. Wouldn't go over to see her. Cried when she yelled at him to come see her. I kicked her out of my house. She did something to that boy. He was terrified. Why would I let a child abuser come over and have free access to my queen's house?" They looked at each other and smiled when I said the word queen.

"You got yourself a good one," Althea told her daughter. "He's protective of you."

The rest of the day was fun. I'd wondered why Shavonda hadn't been up cooking the night before. Now I knew. The family had brought all the food over. Everybody brought a covered dish. There was a feast laid out on the kitchen table and counter. There was ham and turkey, mashed potatoes, an assortment of greens. It was almost the same spread as Thanksgiving at Althea's, except that Christmas cookies and brownies had replaced the pumpkin and sweet potato pies.

Shavonda had earlier explained the reasoning behind having the get together here, and I agreed wholeheartedly with her. The kids shouldn't be dragged away from their new toys to go visit relatives. Let the relatives come visit us instead. Everybody had brought presents for the kids.

James handed me a heavy box, gift wrapped. He said, "Shavonda told me you were studying to be an engineer. I thought you might find these interesting. Seeing how you're into railroads and all." I opened the box. Inside were a variety of documents relating to the railroad and its signal system. There were track charts, which showed the locations of curves, gradients, signals, culverts, overpasses, and track configurations. This was a civil engineer's dream. Also included were sheets explain the meaning of various signal indications, a Pittsburgh Division timetable, and various wiring diagrams for signal circuits. I was going to be busy for months soaking up all the information in this box.

"Thank you," I said. "I don't know that I'll be able to understand the electrical stuff right away, but the track charts alone are pure gold," I said gratefully. James noticed the pendant around my neck. S heart J.

"Did Von make that for you?" he asked. "She really loves you, you know that? We haven't seen her this happy in a long time. Thank you for giving us our old, bubbly daughter back. Keep treating her the way you are, son, and everybody in the family will love you back."

All too soon, the day was over. We saw the guests out one by one. The kids were curled up asleep on the couch. I carried them to bed and tucked them in. Together, Shavonda and I attacked the mess in the kitchen, putting leftover food in the refrigerator. Doing the mountain of dishes, bagging up the garbage and setting it outside. That done, we wearily headed for the bedroom. Though we kissed and our hands roamed, we were too tired to make love. "Thank you for making this Christmas special," Shavonda said. "The house seemed so alive with the kids running around all day. Their laughter brings joy here. It reminds me of when I was a little girl, and we'd visit Grandma and Grandpa in this very house for Christmas."

After the holidays, our life settled in a new routine. Our lives had changed so much since Rose's arrest. We were now custodial parents. Nights out were few and far between. We had to take the kids everywhere we went. Not that Shavonda minded. She happily adjusted to motherhood as if she'd done it all her life. She was kind, yet firm with the kids, reeling them in gently when they got out of hand.

We went shopping the week after Christmas. We bought a new bed and furniture for the kids' room, and a tall chest of drawers for the bedroom. My clothing now had a permanent place to stay. We spent less and less time at my house, I had effectively moved in with Shavonda. The only consistent time we spent at my house was train night on Wednesdays, and then only because there was no train layout at Shavonda's. I'd have to find a way to rectify that.

Shavonda's friends took to the kids as well. The card games were somewhat toned down with the kids running around. They weren't as boisterous, but there was more laughter.

All in all, we were coming together as a family rather nicely.

Even Rose seemed to be leaving us alone, or so we thought. We had no idea of the sneaky plot she'd put into play.

While we were at the mall shopping, I left Shavonda with the kids while I snuck off to put the $1000 on the ring. Only$800 more to go. At this rate, I'd have it paid off by the end of January.

One thing that did set in after the holidays was seasonal depression. I'd always had it, always hated the long dark dreary days of winter. Hated the cold, the lack of sunlight. It turns out Shavonda suffered from it as well. One of the things I'd done at my house to help cope was to use daylight spectrum light bulbs in the house, as bright as I could find. The train layout was especially brightly lit. The bulbs helped counteract the lack of natural light. I invested in more of these light bulbs, and slowly replaced all the bulbs in Shavonda's house. This seemed to help us a little.

In mid-January, my truck broke down, leaving me stranded on the highway for hours. I ended up running out of hours of service in Bellefonte, Pa. The company put me up in a hotel to get my rest, and sent somebody to get me in a rental truck. We hooked the new tractor to my trailer where I'd dropped it the night before in the parking lot. It was nice to have company on the 4-hour drive back to the warehouse. We stopped for lunch at a truck stop diner when we stopped for fuel.

One thing about rental trucks. They don't have drive cams. They didn't film the actions of the driver in the cab, and therefore the company didn't know whether or not I had a passenger. When my truck still wasn't back from the repair shop by the next Thursday, I asked Von if she wanted to ride along for the day. It was my State College-Bellefonte day, and I figured she'd enjoy the mountain scenery.

The truck cab had two seats, one on each side of the cab, with floor space and a gear shift between them. When we stopped for our lunch break at a rest area off 80, we discovered that we sat high enough nobody could see into the cab from the ground or other trucks. We had each other for lunch. First, I knelt in the area between the seats while Shavonda, who'd worn a skirt and no panties, threw her legs over my shoulders. I licked her sopping pussy, taking her through a couple of orgasms until she begged me to stop. Kissing me she said, "My turn now." She proceeded to give me one of her deep throated blow jobs. I leaned back against the side window and let her work her magic with her tongue until she teased a mouthful of creamy white cum out of my rock-hard dick. Putting him back and zipping up my pants, she licked her lips, gathering up the little bit that had seeped out of the corner of her mouth. She looked so damned sexy. "You know, this is just foreplay for later when we get home." She purred sexily.

That night, after we put the kids to bed, we made mad, passionate love. It was a perfect day.

As I had guessed, I was able to get the ring out of layaway by the end of January. It was a nice gold and diamond set, with separate engagement and wedding rings, that locked together but could be worn separately. It set me back almost $4000. Ring in hand, in early February, I secretly paid James and Althea a visit early one morning while Shavonda was still asleep. James took me into a room for a private conversation. I didn't want Althea knowing just yet.

"James," I said. "Your daughter means the world to me. She is the air I breathe, the water I drink. She is the mother to my children. I am here to ask your permission. I'd like to marry your daughter." I showed him the ring set. "I've been paying on these for months now, and the only reason it took me this long to ask you is that it took that long to pay for the ring."

He looked at me long and hard. Finally, he spoke. "Son," he said. "We've been waiting a long time for the right person to come along for Shavonda. She means a lot to us. In spite of all the trouble that has come your way, your devotion to her has never wavered. She is happy now. That's what we wanted for her, somebody who would respect her and make her happy. You are that man. You have my blessing. Take good care of my baby girl. When do you plan on popping the question?"

"I was thinking of taking her out to a nice dinner on Valentine's Day," I replied. "It seems appropriate."

"How about we do this: I know a nice restaurant that has a banquet room. I will rent the room and you act like you are taking her to dinner. We will hold a surprise engagement party in the hall. I will be happy to pay for it."

This was going far better than I had hoped.

"Althea! Come here! Jason has something to show you!" James yelled as he opened the door to the room. She came rushing in. I handed her the box containing the rings. Opening it, she looked at the rings, then at me with tears in her eyes.

"Does this mean.....?" she asked. I nodded my head, smiling at her. "My baby's getting married!" she screamed joyfully, pulling me into a tight hug. "I knew you'd do right by her."

The first week in February, we had the hearing in Small Claims Court about the damage to my vehicle. When Rose claimed she didn't do it, I presented the photos Mrs. Zucchero had taken of Rose in the act of spray painting my car. She turned white as a ghost. She knew she'd been beat. I also showed the police report from the break-in at the Carson Street store. Even though we hadn't requested it, the court ordered Rose to pay me the full $5000 allowed by law. "If I had my way, I'd award more. It's obvious you intended to intimidate Mr. Waite and his lady friend. But the law limits me to $5000. In addition, I order you, Rose Waite, to provide the court with a list of all assets you have, including those sold or traded within the last six months. You will make your first payment of $1000 by the end of the month, or your assets will be frozen. We will also take steps to recover any assets you have transferred to another entity since the file date of this case." The judge ordered. "If I may give some advice, Mrs. Waite, you need to let this go. I cannot throw you in jail, but I would if I could."

Rose looked crushed. She stormed out of the courtroom. Shavonda hugged me. "We won another round," she said, eyes aglow. I wondered if we'd ever see any money. In Pennsylvania, wages can't be attached for a civil court judgement. If she decided to violate the court order, we'd be forced to take further action, including a lien on her car or possible sheriff's sale.

On Valentine's Day, I worked my usual run, getting back to the house by 7pm. Shavonda was already getting ready for our special dinner date. I quickly jumped in the shower, and changed into the outfit she's picked for me. She wore the gold dress and heels I'd bought her for Christmas, along with the hoop earrings. She'd painted her nails and toes red, and wore red lipstick as well. God, she looked good. I wore a button down white shirt with black dress pants and belt. A red tie and black dress shoes completed my outfit. She knew our first Valentine's Day together would be special, and picked the outfit accordingly. She had no idea how special our dinner was to become.

The weather was unseasonably warm for a Pittsburgh winter. Since the temperature was, even after dark, in the upper 60s, neither of us wore a jacket. We arrived at the restaurant just in time for our 9pm reservation. I'd put in for a vacation day for the following day, a Friday, so we could stay out late. "Waite, party of two for 9pm," I told the headwaitress.

"Right this way," she said, leading us down a hallway away from the dining room. Shavonda looked at me as I followed her, eyes questioning. She knew something was up. The waitress opened to door to the banquet room. Shavonda stepped inside, noticing all of our friends and family gathered at the tables. There was a vacant table, set for two, at the head of the room. A cake was on one of the tables, red hearts on white icing. It was inscribed, 'Will you marry me?'

Shavonda turned to me, bewildered. I was down on one knee with the ring box in hand. "Shavonda Jenkins," I said as I took the engagement ring out. "In the short time I've known you, you have come to mean everything to me. You are the air I breathe, the water I drink. You are the best thing in my life. Will you marry me?"

"Yes!" she sobbed as tears ran down her cheeks. She was smiling. Her eyes were pure love. "Oh God, yes! Yes, I will be your wife. You make me so happy. You are my joy. Of course I'll marry you." I slipped the ring on her finger, and rose to hug her. Our lips found each other. Everybody applauded, the sound of their clapping echoing in our ears.

"Slip her some tongue!" I heard Danny yelled out. I would have to kick his ass later.

"How long have you been planning this?" she asked.

"I've been paying on the rings since August," I replied. "See, they are a set. One is an engagement ring, the other a wedding ring. They lock together as one combined ring." I showed her, just as I'd showed James a couple of weeks before.

"August?" she asked. "You've known all that time. Why so long a wait?"

"Those rings cost a fortune," I told her candidly. "We've been snowed under with unexpected expenses, and I couldn't pay them off until now."

We dined on prime rib. Shavonda also ordered her favorite crab legs as well. We sat at our table for two, while everybody crowded around us and congratulated us. Shavonda sipped a flute of champagne. "So I'll let you pick the date. When would you like your wedding day?" I asked.

"May 18th. Our first anniversary. It should be a Saturday," she whispered. "I can't believe you did this. I love you so much."

After everybody had eaten, we cut the cake. It was marble. James said, "I thought you two would enjoy the mixture of flavors. I chose it in honor of you two, and your undying love for each other." Yes, the cake looked just like us.

The party broke up a little after 11pm. We loaded what was left of the cake into the rear seat of the Jeep. It would be such a shame to waste good cake.

On the way home, at Shavonda's insistence, we stopped at the convenience store/ gas station on Brownsville Road near the end of my street. We were going to spend the night at my house, because the kids and babysitter were at Shavonda's. She went to the cooler in the back of the store, and grabbed a can of whipped cream. In one of the aisles, she found a bottle of Hershey's syrup. "I feel like a sundae tonight," she cooed.

We put the items on the counter and were about to pay the clerk, when the door to the store opened. In walked Rose. She stopped dead when she saw us. She looked at us, then at the whipped cream and chocolate syrup on the counter. "Awww HELL no!" she screamed, and stalked out of the store. We paid for them, and left the store before she could start any trouble. I looked around for Rose, and found her talking on a pay phone by the street. Good. We wouldn't have to come anywhere close to her.