*Thank-you for the reviews on the last chapter. They were greatly appreciated. Thank-you all so much*

"So you really invited Jordyn to the party?" asked Isabelle as she helped Tayla put up a Happy Birthday banner in the dining room.

"Yeah, what was I going to do? Jonah is her son and she has a right to be here plus her sister is coming with her kids as well as her brother and his son. I couldn't not invite her especially if her family is going to be here," said Tayla as she taped the banner on the wall. "I don't like her at all but she is still Jonah's mother and she should be here with him to celebrate but I did tell her if she cut up one time she was out. I think she will be on her best behavior."

"I hope so," said Isabelle. "You're such a saint. I mean if anyone kissed my husband and tried to sleep with them they would be done. There would be no coming around for me."

"Yeah but I have to think about Jonah," said Tayla as she got off the step ladder. "As much as I don't like it Jordyn is his mother, she's trying to get herself together, she was nice enough to let Jonah stay here with us so I really can't exclude her from his first birthday celebration."

"I guess," said Isabelle as Roman and Joanne came in with Jonah's cake and some helium filled balloons.

"I got the cakes," said Roman with a smile as he walked to Tayla and greeted her with a kiss. "They did an amazing job with his Elmo cake."

"It is pretty awesome," said Tayla as she looked at it with a smile. "Put it in the kitchen on the oven. My mom is in there making food for the party. She will show you what to do with it."

"Okay," said Roman as he walked to the kitchen while Tayla greeted his mom with a hug.

"You know, Tayla," she said, "you're doing a really wonderful job with Jonah. I can tell that you love him like he was your own son. I know that you and Roman are trying so hard to make a baby of your own but maybe it is possible that you're not meant to have a baby together. I'm not saying that you won't but sometimes there are other plans for us than what we want. Maybe this is a test to see how well you take care of someone else's child in case you have to go the route of adoption or maybe you're just being prepared for your own child or a child you adopt. You never know what the future holds and you never know what plans are in store for your life. You may plan one thing but God may plan another. Just remember that, Tayla. You have so much love in your heart that when the time comes no matter how it comes you're going to be a great mother and your kids are going to be very lucky. Roman is very lucky to have you. You may not understand it now but as a mother when you're holding your son or your daughter you think about what you want in their lives. You always want them to marry that one special person that is going to love them no matter what, love them through the pain and love them through the joys. You want someone that isn't going to love them because they're perfect but love them because they're imperfect. I couldn't have picked a better wife for my son and right now you have no idea what is in store for your lives or how much everything is going to change when Roman gets to WWE but know that your love is strong enough to make it through anything. I love you, Tayla."

Tayla smiled at Joanne, gave her a hug and said, "Thanks, mom. I love you too."

Tayla had gone over the top for Jonah's party. It was a big deal for her because she loved Jonah so much. She had hired a clown to work at his party, hired a magician, there were pony rides for the kids and she had a piñata for the kids to get lots of candy. Their backyard had a moon bounce and the guests could swim in the pool if they wanted to. There were blue, red and yellow balloons on their deck complete with a lot of food that Tayla, Joanne and Tianna worked together to make for the party. The backyard was full of guests like Roman's sister Sam, his nieces Alana and Nani, Isabelle and her boyfriend along with Rain and Joshua, Chelsea was there with Langston and Liberty, Jordyn's brother Ben was there with his wife and their son Michael. Tayla's parents were there and there were kids from Jonah's playgroup as well as his Gymboree class Tayla took him to one day a week. Even his great grandma and her girlfriend were there the one person that wasn't there that should have been was his mother Jordyn. Tayla tried calling her cell phone numerous times but could not get in touch with her. They were waiting for Jordyn to show up before they did the presents and the cake. Tayla left her numerous voicemails and texted her numerous times but she got no response. "Tay," said Roman, "I think it's time to open the presents and do the cake. People are ready to start leaving."

"I know but I don't want to do it without Jordyn," she said as she held Jonah on the pony as he was getting his pony ride. He was laughing as they walked. "I mean don't you think she should see him open his gifts and smash his first cake?"

"Yeah but you've given her almost 2 ½ hours. People are ready for the gifts and the cake. Forget about Jordyn. If she wanted to be here she would have been here."

"All right," said Tayla, "as soon as he is done with his pony ride we'll open the presents."

"Okay," said Roman with a smile before he went off to talk to Chelsea's husband Cody.

"Tay, did you get in touch with Jordyn yet?" asked Chelsea as Tayla carried Jonah over to the presents on the table.

"No did you?" asked Tayla.

"Nope and neither did my nana. My nana said she was coming. She said she was going to pick up his present and then come here. None of us can get in touch with her. I thought maybe she talked to you. How is she doing? Does she seem to be okay?"

"Chels, let's not have this discussion now. It's about Jonah today and what he wants or what he likes to do. We'll discuss Jordyn after the party."

"Okay," she said as the guests started to gather around Tayla, Roman and Jonah to watch Jonah open his presents. Jonah wasn't very interested in his presents and had no interest in opening them. He liked the wrapping paper a lot more than the presents themselves. Tayla would read the card as Roman opened the presents while Jonah sat and played with the wrapping paper and tried to eat it. Jonah was a lucky boy. He got endless gifts of clothes, toys such as; cars, trucks, airplanes and many other toys. He got his first beach set of toys so that Roman and Tayla could take him on numerous trips to Pensacola beach during the summer. He was blessed to have so many people love and care about him. Tayla thanked everyone for his presents as she organized them neatly onto the table while Roman organized the cards before picking up the wrapping paper and Jonah. No one could deny how wonderful of "parents" Tayla and Roman were to Jonah. They gave him everything he needed and more. They made sure most of their time was spent with him and making him happy. Their lives revolved around Jonah all the time. It was never about what Roman and Tayla wanted in life but what Jonah wanted. He was their entire world. Their entire house showed just how much reign Jonah had in it. His toys were scattered in the living room, their TV was locked on children's channels, his pictures were placed on their living room walls and his nursery was every little kid's dream. There was nothing that he could want that he didn't already have but to Roman and Tayla it wasn't about giving him the materialistic things in his life but giving him their love and attention; playing with him whenever he wanted and reading him stories. Jonah was happy and he was healthy. That was all that mattered to them. They were made to be parents but they just didn't know when they were going to be blessed to parent a child of their own. Maybe Joanne was right maybe it wasn't in God's plan to give them a child biologically but to give them a child from a mother that could not provide for their child or could not care for them and wanted them to have the best life possible. Either way Roman and Tayla were going to be great parents one day.

After they finished the presents they went on to have the cake and ice-cream but still no Jordyn. Tayla shook her head as the guests sang happy birthday to Jonah before he tore into his smash cake making a mess everywhere in his high chair. He smiled as people clapped at him and snapped pictures of him. He was having a blast. Tayla enjoyed seeing him so happy. She bent over to kiss his cheek but instead Jonah decided to share some of his cake with her. "Thank-you, Buddy," she said with a smile as he smiled back at her. She wiped the blue and white icing off her mouth before she and Roman gave the guests their cake and then cleaned Jonah up from is smash cake mess. It turned out to be a great party but the only thing that bothered Tayla about it was that Jordyn never showed up.

"You know what," said Tayla as she was cleaning up with Chelsea and Isabelle from the party.

"What?" asked Chelsea.

"I can't believe Jordyn never showed up. She told me she was coming but she never did. What is going on with her?"

"I don't know," said Chelsea, "she hasn't talked to me for months. Since she came here she doesn't talk to me. My nana says she's doing fine but is having a really hard time with everything. My nana says that Jordyn gets constant cravings for heroin and crack but she fights the urges all the time. She said that there are times Jordyn is physically sick and mentally sick from her need to get a fix. I'm proud that she isn't lapsing but the fact the cravings are there scare me. What if she does relapse into drugs again? I don't want to see her live the life she lived before. My nana says she cries from the pain of not having the drugs. It's really bad from what I hear but she's doing great with school and she studies a lot. She's working hard to get Jonah back."

"I'm glad she's doing well with school," said Tayla but the fakeness in her tone made Chelsea wonder.

"What's going on, Tayla?"

"Nothing Jordyn and I had a disagreement about some things. She threatens to take Jonah back all the time and I hate it. I try, Chelsea. I really try but I can't keep being threatened."

"She's not going to take him back. She loves him too much. Jordyn may be a lot of things and may do a lot of stupid stuff but she loves Jonah and she wants the best for him. If she knows she's not ready for the responsibility yet to give him the life he deserves she's not going to do it. Jordyn is a complicated child she always has been but she does know how to love someone. Deep down she is a wonderful person it just takes a lot to get there. That's what my mama always said. She said Jordyn knows how to empathize and she knows how to love and she knows how to care but getting that out of her takes a lot of work. She does a lot of stuff without thinking about it first but half the stuff we've been through and seen in our lives I don't blame her. She's afraid to let herself love or let anyone love her. She knows that we love her and she knows that we care about her she just doesn't like it. It's hard to explain but Jordyn is who she is. If anyone can make her the best person she can be it's Jonah."

"Oh," said Tayla. She was starting to feel bad for calling Jordyn trash and started to feel bad for being so rude to her after everything that happened with Roman but at the same time Roman is Tayla's husband and Jordyn needs to learn boundaries but she was feeling guilty for the way she had treated her even if Jordyn did the wrong things. Jordyn seemed to be trying to get her life right but she was having trouble doing it. She needs more love and support from those around her and not to be torn down. "Although she did kiss Roman and tried to sleep with him."

"What?" asked Chelsea. "Are you kidding me?" she asked as Cody brought Langston into the kitchen for Chelsea. "I'm cleaning."

"He wants his mom," said Cody as he handed Langston to Chelsea before leaving the kitchen.

"No I'm not kidding you," said Tayla with a smile as she watched Chelsea rock Langston. He was absolutely beautiful. "I guess she kissed him and then tried to sleep with him. She said she wasn't in the right mindset."

"That's no excuse after everything you're doing for her," said Chelsea as Langston fussed in her arms.

"It's fine," said Tayla with a smile as she watched Langston fuss. "Can I hold him?"

"Sure," said Chelsea with a smile, "but he's fussy."

Chelsea handed Langston to Tayla. Tayla smiled down at the tiny baby in her arms. "What's the matter? What's with all the fussing?" she asked as she rocked him. Langston seemed to settle down in her arms. He looked up at her peacefully as Tayla rocked him in her arms. Chelsea smiled.

"You're a natural," she said.

"Thanks," said Tayla, "I'm so ready to have a baby. I've been ready it's just not happening for us. I don't think it's ever going to happen. I don't know how much more trying we have to do before we get a baby. It's killing me. I want to be pregnant and I want to give birth. I want a baby of my own," she said looking down at Langston. "You two don't know how lucky you are to have children. Jonah calls me Mama but I'm not his mama and yet I love hearing that word so much. I know the time is going to come when Jonah leaves and it is going to tear me apart but I love that little boy."

"We know," said Chelsea, "you know everything works in God's time. Not when you want it to happen but when he's ready for it to happen. The time may not be right now but the time will come. Look at Sarah in the Bible. Her and Abraham tried for years to have a baby. They thought they never would have a baby and then when Sarah was really old and had given their maid to Abraham to have a baby with they were blessed with a child of their own. It all works out when God wants it to not when we want it to."

"People keep telling me that yet I don't understand it. I don't understand why God chose to hurt us so much by taking our babies away before they even got to begin their life. I thought he never hurt us."

"And he doesn't," said Chelsea, "he tests us and puts us through trials to learn how to trust him. If you can't trust him you're never going to pass the test. I know you hate this speech but listen to me everything happens when it's supposed to happen not when we want it to happen. Just be strong," she said as the doorbell rang.

Tayla walked to the front door to answer it while holding Langston. She was followed by Chelsea and Isabelle. Tayla opened the door to see Jordyn standing there. "I'm sorry, Tay," she said, "I tried to come. I really did try to come to the party but I couldn't come. I couldn't do it."

"It's okay," said Tayla as she let Jordyn into the house. "He's in the living room playing."

Jordyn followed Tayla into the living room where Jonah was playing with Rain on the floor with one of his new cars. "Jonah," said Jordyn with a smile as she picked him up. "Happy Birthday, Jonah!" she said before she gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I didn't get his present yet. I ordered it though. It will be here in a few days. I was going to get him a truck or something but I figured he had a lot of those. I wanted to get him something special."

"Okay," said Tayla.

"Jordyn," said Chelsea, "why didn't you come to his party?"

"Because I couldn't, Chelsea. I couldn't bring myself to come. I tried but I couldn't do it. I saw all the people here and I couldn't come to the party."

"That's no excuse. That's your son," said Chelsea, "you should have been here to see him celebrate. When he sees his first birthday pictures when he's older and doesn't see you he's going to ask where you were. That's not fair to him, Jordyn. You know after everything we went through with dad and mama they were ALWAYS there for us. You weren't raised like this. None of us were. Family always comes first no matter what."

"I know, Chels," she said putting Jonah down on his feet as he stood beside her. "It's hard for me to face a group of people like you and Ben and anyone else. I'm not dumb I know people have the internet and read things about us. I know everyone at this party today probably knows about my past and everything I've done. It's hard to face people after you hurt them. I have hurt a lot of people, Chelsea. I am not perfect like you. I will never be perfect. I will always be the drug addict that sold her child even if I didn't sell my son and he was taken from me and sold people are always going to think what they want about me. I'm never going to be just Jordyn or Jonah's mother. I'm always going to be the drug addict. NO one is ever going to look at all the good I do in life because they are going to be too focused on the bad things I did in my past. You don't know what it's like Chelsea to walk into a room where people look at you and talk about you through their whispers. You don't know what it's like to be judged by their eyes. It hurts a lot. I screwed up my life and I may never live beyond my past but I'm trying hard. I don't like to be in a group of people because I know they are talking about me. I can't have that type of pressure or I am going to fall back into drugs. I am trying real hard. I love Jonah. I love him a lot and I'm grateful for everything Roman and Tayla are doing for him but I can't be in a group of people like there was today. I still showed up to be with him on his birthday. I am there for him. I will ALWAYS be there for him it's just hard bringing myself in front of a group of people."

"You were using again weren't you?" asked Chelsea as Tayla elbowed her. Tayla felt even worse after hearing Jordyn's speech.

"What?" she asked. "Of course I'm not using again. I will never use again. Why don't you trust me, Chelsea? Is that you or is that dad talking? You're so much like dad it makes me sick."

"I'm just asking because if you loved Jonah as much as you say you do you would have been here," said Chelsea. "And no I'm not just like dad."

"You are and you don't even realize it. I can't believe you don't trust me. I have never given you a reason NOT to trust me in the last few months. I'm working hard to get my life together and working hard to do the right thing. I can't believe my own sister wouldn't trust me. I've been talking to Kaylee and you know what? She supports me and encourages me to do better but here you are judging me and not trusting me. That's why I ALWAYS liked her better than you."

"I'm sorry," said Chelsea, "it's just."

"No," said Jordyn, "it's just you don't believe that I can live beyond my past."

Tayla looked down to where Jonah once stood but he wasn't there. She was feeling uncomfortable during the fight between Jordyn and Chelsea. She was going to take Jonah away from the situation but he wasn't there anymore. She looked for him and her eyes lit up when she spotted him. "Oh my gosh! Jonah is walking! ROMAN! JORDYN! Look he's walking; Jonah is walking!"

"That's my boy," said Roman with a smile as he got up from the couch to stop Jonah from knocking over the DVD rack. "Good job, Buddy," he said giving him a high five as Tayla made her way over to Jonah followed by Jordyn.

"Good job, Buddy," she said with a smile as she hugged him. "I'm so proud of you!"

"Mama," he said reaching for Tayla.

Tayla smiled at him and said, "I'm not Mama. I'm Aunt Tay. This is your mama," she said handing him to Jordyn with a smile. "That's Mama."

"Thank-you," said Jordyn with a smile and tears in her eyes. She hugged Jonah and kissed his cheek before sitting down to play with him.

Roman and Tayla watched her interact with him. Roman wrapped his arm around Tayla and kissed the top of her head; "You're amazing. I love you, Tay. I know that was hard for you to do but you did it."

*A/N: How did you feel about Jordyn not showing up for Jonah's party? Were you upset about it? Do Tayla and Roman really go out of their way to give Jonah all the love an happiness they can? CAn you tell he is their world? And in the end it's going to make it all so much harder to give him back when the time comes. Did you get a better understanding of Jordyn from this chapter? Also after you heard why she didn't show up to the party did you lose the negative feelings you felt if you had? Did Tayla seem to be a bit jealous of Chelsea and Isabelle for having kids or is she just hurting because she can't get pregnant right now? And how did you feel about Tayla's transformation at the end of the chapter? Please review and thank-you for reading.