"Mommy, you don't have to go to work today. Stay home with Me?" he begged.

He was a bit whiny, and his voice was a little hoarse. But there was something underneath the surface of vulnerability, too.

Mason never asked for anything, much less complained like this. And on top of that, he was still sick, and My heart melted on the spot.

"Okay, I'll take the day off and stay with you," I promised.

When I requested that Pauline watch Mason for one minute, I proceeded into the stairwell and called Edgar to request time off.

As I had not requested time off previously, Edgar readily complied, even telling...