I wondered if they were meeting their birth mother already. Were they conflicted? Did they feel betrayed by me? So many other questions ran through my head the rest of the day.

Before I knew it, nightfall came around, and there was still no sign of my kids, although I tried calling. It didn’t make sense. Yes, I kept some critical information from them, but this reaction seemed over-the-top.

I decided to go to bed, although I was not tired. I hope to fall asleep to the sounds of mindless television shows. However, as I stepped into my bedroom, the doorbell rang. I frowned in confusion. No one had called me about coming over.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!”

I almost had a heart attack after opening the door. My beautiful family was outside, and Emily and Ethan were holding a cake with the birthday candles lit up and ready. Suddenly, they started to sing, and I placed a hand on my chest as emotion took over.

My eyes watered through the song and a few tears fell by the time I had to blow out the candles. Everyone clapped after that, and they slowly started kissing me, wishing me a happy birthday again. I couldn’t have been happier as they all entered the house.

They also brought food and presents, and all my grandkids started running around being loud. I didn’t even mind that I was not dressed for the occasion. All that mattered was that my children and their families were here.

Then Emily pulled me aside and asked for a word away from the others, and Ethan followed along.

Before they could say anything, I looked into their eyes and apologized. “I can’t tell you how much I regret not telling you the truth. I thought you weren’t coming to see me today. Thank you, babies!” And I hugged them as tightly as I could.

They also returned the hug, and I saw the tears in both their eyes. “I’m sorry about that phone call last night, Mom. You shouldn’t regret anything. You did the best for us,” Emily stated, and Ethan nodded.

“Yeah. I should’ve answered your calls, Mom. But I felt conflicted. There’s no other way to put it, but I needed time,” he added.

I was glad for their words, but I was still curious. “I thought you guys needed more time, and that you were meeting your birth mother today. Can you tell me what happened?”

Emily sighed, and Ethan ran a hand through his hair. “It was a disaster, Mom. We don’t trust her,” he revealed, shocking me.

“Why?”

“At first, it was fine. Her name is Amanda Collins. She was nice enough. She told us she had been looking for us for many years, but now that I think about it, I don’t think that’s true. We stayed in the same town for years, except during college and a few years after that for Ethan, but still. You guys were here. She could’ve reached out to you,” my daughter began, shaking her head in disbelief.

“Maybe, she didn’t want to deal with us,” I countered, giving the woman the benefit of the doubt.

“No, I get a sense that’s not it,” Emily continued. “After asking about our lives for a few minutes. She started talking about herself. Everything she did. All her accomplishments. Going to college. Places she’s visited. And that’s fine, but I thought she wanted to get to know us.”

“Maybe, she wanted you to know her,” I said, still not seeing why they didn’t trust her.

“Her stories went on for two hours, Mom. After only asking a few things about us. She didn’t want to know us. At least, that’s what I felt,” Ethan chimed in. “And then she said something that just sealed it for me.”

“Sealed what?”

“My distrust.”

“I don’t understand.”

“She’s sick, Mom. She has a bad liver, although I suspect it’s failing for other reasons… if you catch my drift,” Emily explained. “And she started asking about our health. That’s when I knew for sure that she hadn’t been looking for us for years at all. She wants something from us, and I mean, she could’ve pretended for a little longer, right?”

I didn’t know what to tell them. I felt horrible for them. “Sweeties, did she ask you directly for something?”

“We excused ourselves quickly, and she was taken aback. She insisted on giving us her phone number, and told us almost desperately to call her,” Ethan explained, shrugging. “It was all a ploy, Mom. She’s not interested in us, but what we can give her.”

“What are you going to do?” I asked, looking between them. It didn’t seem like they were heartbroken about it but disappointed.

“I don’t think I want to talk to her again,” my son said immediately.

But Emily was conflicted. She looked down at the ground, crossed her arms, and shuffled her feet. “I don’t know what to do about her,” she finally said, looking at me. “But I realized something today. We haven’t had much time to think about being adopted. It’s still new. However, I know something for sure. You’re my mom. You’re my only mom.”

Tears filled my eyes again, and I couldn’t stop the sobs that racked my chest. Emily cried as she wrapped her arms around me. And even Ethan, who was pure logic and stern most of the time, got misty-eyed.

“It’s true. A mother is the one who raises you, not the one who gives birth to you,” he assured me, joining our huddle.

I knew right then that we would be alright. Even if Amanda tried to stay in their lives, their love for me would not waver, especially because they knew my love for them was rock solid.