“Yes, but she told me last week it’s probably best if I don’t come around more often than once a month or so.”
“Too bad for you, bro.” Mariah flashed an evil-villain smile. “She told me I could come see the baby as often as I like.”
How is that fair?
Mariah flounced off, most likely to reorganize the serving table until it suited her. No… knowing Mariah, she’d probably rearrange the entire house.
Meanwhile, Cole stayed in the utility closet, fuming. How had everything gotten so twisted? Why should he do all the work and let his family reap all the benefits? He knew Brooke wanted him to file soon so that the sixty-day waiting period would be over and the divorce finalized before the baby came. The closer the time came, the less he was inclined to cooperate. Too bad his attorney had written such an iron-clad document.
“Cole?” Mariah stuck her head back in the utility room. “I’m moving your family room furniture around. Hope you don’t mind.”
She walked away without waiting for an answer.
“What if I mind?” he called after her.
She flipped her hand in the air. “I’m moving it anyway.”
His cell phone rang. He was tempted to ignore the call until he saw who it was from. Dread fell to the pit of his stomach. His attorney never bothered him unless there was bad news.
“Garner. What’s up?”
“Word has it Nathan Riggs has lawyered up.”
“You mean he’s filing assault charges? After all this time?”
“No. That would be easy to handle. We’ve got video that proves he took a swing at you before you took him to the ground. I’m afraid this is a little trickier. He’s making noise about the possibility that Brooke’s baby might be his.”
“We haven’t even announced that she’s pregnant.”
“People know. The press has pictures. And she’s too pregnant to claim it’s a honeymoon baby.”
“But he can’t prove it, right? You told us he didn’t have the right to demand a DNA test.”
“That’s true, but only if you and Brooke are married when the baby’s born. That’s when the state of Texas presumes you are the father. If you’re divorced… I can’t say for sure what would happen. It’s also possible the courts won’t grant your divorce until the baby is born, especially if Nathan’s trying to assert paternity.”
“So now you’re saying we should wait until after the baby comes before we divorce?”
“My advice, which you ignored, was not to get married in the first place. What you have here is a mess I can’t fix.”
“Then why did you bother to call me?” An edge of irritation crept into his voice.
“Because you don’t seem to care about my advice anyway. Your only concern seems to be what’s in Brooke’s best interest.”
“Which is what?”
“If you’d prefer to protect Brooke’s reputation at the expense of your own and risk being saddled with millions in child support to make sure her ex doesn’t claim parental rights…” Garner’s tone left no doubt that he didn’t approve of this line of thought. “If that’s the case, you shouldn’t file for divorce until after the baby comes. Alternatively, you might be able to buy Nathan off.”
“I’m not giving him a dime,” Cole growled.
“Okay, that’s all, then,” Garner said, cheerily. “Let me know what you decide.”
The phone clicked, and he was gone.
“Dang it!”
Cole kicked the wall, with his boot, fully intending to dent the sheetrock. Unfortunately, he also rattled a shelf holding a precariously-balanced jar of screws, which tumbled to the tile floor and shattered, spreading a mixture of screws and glass shards over the utility-room floor.
Not my best day.
Brooke was glad she hadn’t worn any makeup. At least she wouldn’t have runny-mascara, raccoon eyes from all her crying. The baby shower was a sweet surprise, and she’d gotten way more stuff than any tiny baby could possibly need. But mostly, she was overwhelmed with the love and generosity Cole’s friends and family poured out on her, especially the ones who knew the marriage was temporary.
“You guys shouldn’t have done so much,” she told Laurie when they were alone in the kitchen. She lowered her voice. “After the divorce, we may never see each other again.”
“I don’t see why we can’t be friends after the divorce. If there is one,” Laurie said, “which, in case you’ve forgotten, I’m rooting against.”
“It’s going to happen. It has to.”
“Oh?” Laurie rinsed off a plate and loaded it into the dishwasher. “Remind me why that is, because it seems like the two of you are getting along just fine.”
“Well, for one thing, I can’t risk losing control of my daughter.”
“You’re afraid Cole would divorce you and take the baby?” Laurie asked, as she rinsed another plate.
Brooke studied her feet to avoid looking Laurie in the eye. “I don’t really think he would, but I’m not a great judge of character. I was married to Nathan for five years before I realized how awful he was.”
Laurie dried her hands on a dish towel and turned around to face Brooke. “Honey, when I met Finn, I didn’t trust him as far as I could throw him. I almost lost him before I let myself believe the truth.”
