Free What Matters Most by Reana Malori Page A

told him about her pregnancy. Sierra did her best, but raising a boy and helping him become a young man was not easy for a single mother. There were things only a father, or father figure, could teach him. While she had no intentions of rushing into a relationship or finding a man to be her baby’s daddy, she recognized the reality of the world and Dusty needed balance.
    Sighing deeply, she clenched her hands briefly into tight fists as she recalled the numerous hoops she’d had to jump through in order to force Joe’s hand on the amount of child support she wanted for her son. His parents were willing to accept both of them as a part of their family, and for that she had been grateful, but after Joe’s parents had both passed away some years ago, that connection had become almost non-existent. Exhaling as she willed her emotions under control, she knew life was good for her and Dusty at this moment and nothing would change that.
    Peering down at her son’s face as he smiled wide, she ruffled his hair. “Yes, honey. I think that’s great. Now, if he can’t make it, don’t be too upset. Okay? You know he’s a very busy man, and he may have other things he has to take care of when he comes home. When we have your final schedule, we’ll send it to him and make sure to send a special invitation for him to attend. Okay?”
    “Okay, Mom. I understand, but I still think he’ll be there. He’s my friend. And he’s a Marine, and Marines always keep their promises.” Dusty pulled out the plates from the cabinet, opened the cabinet drawer, and pulled out two sets of silverware for dinner. “Having breakfast for dinner is so cool. None of my friends believe me when I tell them we have pancakes every Friday night.”
    “Well, that’s because they don’t realize how awesome we are.” Looking around the kitchen counter, she realized the spatula needed to flip the pancakes was across the room and out of reach. “Hey, honey, grab me that spatula. I need to flip this soon.”
    *****
    Falling into bed later that evening, Sierra took a few deep breaths and tried to calm her nerves. The internal question of whether or not she should write Major Knight for advice continued to plague her mind, and the thoughts continued to churn as she settled in deeper under the covers. Sierra hesitated to share personal concerns with an almost-stranger, but she was at her wit’s end. Dusty had become extremely attached to him during these past three months, and his little heart would be broken if Major Knight did not show up to his baseball games.
    During the past three months of the pen pal project, she had learned about him through his emails to Dusty. Never married, no kids, and the last twenty years of his life had been spent in the Marines. Starting his career in the Infantry, he went to school at night, earned his degree in business management, and had ultimately become an officer leading troops. The thing she appreciated so much about him was that he encouraged Dusty to read more books and not just play video games all the time. She knew some of Dusty’s friends had begun to make jokes about his love of reading, so when she saw the notes from Major Knight telling him how much he also loved reading books when he had free time, she breathed a sigh of relief. Showing Dusty a man could be tough, but educated at the same time, was something she was glad Major Knight was sharing with him.
    If she were honest, the conversations between her and Major Knight had gone beyond the standard pen pal courtesies. There were several times when the late nights had gotten the best of them both and they had tentatively reached out to each other for a shoulder to lean on, a caring companion on the other side of the world who looked forward to hearing their voice, receiving that late-night email, or simply an ear to bend. After a while, it became the norm for her to anticipate messages that were earmarked for her eyes only--emails that talked about the