CHAPTER FOUR - HUNTER
My leg shook so bad that my lawyer reached over and put his hand on my knee to make me stop. Anyone else and I’d have punched them, but I regained my composure and waited for the judge to give me my verdict.
“Mr. Miller, I’m aware that you’ve provided a nice home for your daughter and it’s reassuring that your mother is so willing to help out with things, but I can’t stress to you enough how concerned I am about your lifestyle and its influence on your daughter as a soon-to- be developing young lady. The accusations from your ex about your promiscuity worry me and I can’t help but think that your daughter would benefit from having her mother in her life, especially for the next several years to come. I’d like you to consider the next month a transition period for your daughter to adjust to the idea that she’ll be living with her mother full time thereafter.”
Bile rose to my throat as I balled my fist. She was actually going to win?
The judge cleared her throat and continued. “I am prepared to reconsider this verdict at a later time if and when you marry. I feel that your daughter is in need of stability most of all, and it seems that since her mother has shown great strides in her sobriety, and with keeping a job and being able to provide a suitable home, there is no reason the child shouldn’t be placed with her at this time. I’m granting her full custody with the option to revisit.”
And that was it. It was done. I had no chance of getting my sweet Tani back as long as I was a single dad. Single mothers were always going to be more acceptable, especially to female judges, and though my lawyer had warned me of that, I had hoped the judge would see that Tani was better off with me. It was clear she didn’t see Nancy’s bullshit.
I stormed out of the courtroom with my lawyer and stopped in the hallway while he explained our next steps. “I’ll see what I can do, but your best bet is to play along and do this joint custody thing for the month to buy me some time. We’ll try to dig up what we can.”
Nancy strolled around the corner with a smile on her face, and it reminded me of the times when we were together and she’d done something with the sole intent of pissing me off. She hadn’t cared about Tani ever before and, had consistently chosen her addictions over her own daughter and me. In the end she’d been bitter because I’d left her. This was the payback and I knew that’s all it was. My lawyer placed his hand on my shoulder as if to remind me that choking her in front of everyone wouldn’t help anything as she stopped in front of me. “I’ll be by Friday at four. Have my daughter ready on time.”
I gritted my teeth and nodded knowing that if I opened my mouth she’d get an earful along with the rest of the courthouse. She laughed and walked away, but my lawyer kept me busy giving her plenty of time to be clear of the parking lot before turning me loose.
He walked me to my car talking about my options, all of which seemed hopeless. I’d have to settle for every other weekend which wasn’t enough. I hadn’t missed a day with my daughter since she was born, unlike Nancy, and now I was being punished for it.
“If all else fails you could always get married. Maybe having a woman around will soften up the judge. Are you dating anyone?”
“No. And meeting someone in this town I could fall in love with enough to marry is about as likely as finding a snowflake in hell, but thanks for the suggestion.” He wished me luck and told me he’d be in touch. I slid into my truck wishing I could have driven my bike. It was not only a passion, but a therapy of sorts. Being on my bike made me feel in control, and the vibration of the motor made my stress melt away better than a back massage. I needed its comfort now more than ever, but I cranked the old truck and headed for the shop.
My mother had taken Tani for the night and though I wanted nothing more than to hold my baby girl, I didn’t want her to see me this stressed out. She knew there was something going on, but I hadn’t explained it. She barely knew her mother and the idea that she’d have to move in with her made me sick.
It broke me to think of telling her the news – and letting her know that I’d let her down.
I pulled into the parking lot, noticing that Sarah was out front of her bakery with the hood up on her car. She looked frazzled.
I parked and walked over to see if she needed any help. She was bent over the car showing me her pretty round ass when I approached. Normally my cock would wave back, but today I had too much on my mind.
“Need some help?”
She startled, her hand moving up to lay across her perky breasts covering most of my view. “Oh, I don’t know what’s wrong. It was fine this morning and now it won’t start.”
“What’s it doing?” I wondered how old her battery was and wiped off some grit that had collected on it to see the date as she explained.
“It’s making a clicking noise when I go to start it.” She let out a long breath and I wished a car starting was my only problem.
“Do you have any power; lights or radio?” I met her eyes which seemed tired.
She gave me a shrug and handed me her keys as if she surrendered. “You try, maybe it will start for you.”
I got in and tried to start it, hearing the click, but seeing that the lights were all working. “I think you’re going to need a new starter.”
“Dammit.” She leaned against the car as if all the life had been drained out of her. “When it rains it pours.”
“I know what you mean, but hey, let’s go over to my shop. I’ll try see if I can find you the part.”
“You work on cars too?” She gave me a sideways glance.
“Not usually, but I know my way around one. I’ve also got a few connections so maybe I can find you the part you need. Let’s go on over and see.” I turned to lead her to the shop and she grabbed her bag out of her car and then locked her doors. I chuckled. “It’s not going anywhere.”
She pulled her lips in tight as if she were trying hard not to laugh. “Guess not.” She let out another long breath and followed me across the lot to my shop. “I don’t think I’ll ever get ahead. At least business was good. Maybe I made enough to buy this starter thingy.”
We went inside to see that Monk had not only finished my client’s work, but it looked like he’d gotten his done as well. Good man. She followed me to the office, stopping to admire the bikes with a slack-jawed expression. “You build bikes from scratch?”
I waved her in and went to my desk. “Sometimes I do. Have a seat.” I grabbed my phone book and called up a friend of mine. He answered and put me on hold.
“How much is a part like that anyway?” She had that worried look on her face again and I knew how she felt. I’d had rough times with money myself. I worked my ass off to build a reputation for my repair shop and now it was referred to as the best bike shop in town.
My inspiration was always Tani. I never wanted to worry about providing for her. My dream was to build a home, in a peaceful neighborhood for us to make beautiful memories in - and that was exactly what I did.
Money was now the least of my worries. Yet in this moment, I’d trade yesterday’s financial troubles for the dread of losing my baby girl, in a heartbeat.
“I’m going to try and pull some strings for you.” I said to Sarah. Her eyes widened. “I’m good friends with this guy and he owes me a favor.”
She shook her head. “I appreciate it, really, but you don’t have to do that.” I held up my hand as my buddy got back on the phone and we had the deal done for a new starter before she could mouth another word of protest.
I hung up the phone. “You’re all set. The part will be here tomorrow, though, so looks like you’re at my mercy. How about a drink and then I’ll take you home?” She gave me a suspicious glance that told me she wasn’t sure. “Come on, Sarah, it’s been a rough day for me too and I don’t know about you, but I could use a drink right now.”
She seemed surprised by my admission, her eyes widened and her faxed relaxed into a more sympathetic expression. “I’d like that, and thanks again. Maybe someday I could return the favor.”
“No problem. I’m glad to help.” As we left the shop to head out to my truck I thought of a million ways I’d like her to help me, and wondered if she’d go for any one of them.