Chapter Thirty-Four

Jake

I had never been so nervous in my life. I stood outside the courthouse, pacing back and forth. Avery was on a bench, staring off into space. We had shown up thirty minutes early, wanting to make damn sure we weren’t late. Now we had to wait. Waiting sucked. I hated it.

“Why don’t you sit down?” she said.

“I can’t.”

“You’re the one who told me not to be worried. You said your lawyer was confident we would win even if we get denied today. Right?”

I nodded my head. “Yes.”

“Then even if today doesn’t turn out like we want, it’ll be okay. We’re still going to get Iris. It just might take longer.”

I shook my head, surprised at the switch in our roles. She was the one trying to calm me down. It wasn’t only the custody hearing that had me stressed out. I wasn’t sure how to tell Avery I wanted her to be my wife—my real wife and not my fake wife. That wasn’t an easy conversation.

I’d had the perfect opportunity to tell her on Wednesday after we had made love. It hadn’t been just sex. We had given each other pleasure of a different nature than the pure passion that normally fueled our sexual encounters. I had lain there holding her, trying to find the words. I never had. I was afraid to let down my guard. I didn’t like rejection. If she laughed at me and told me I was crazy, I wasn’t sure how I would handle it. I had never had my heart broken. I knew it built character and all that crap, but I didn’t want to experience it. I had enough grief in my life. I didn’t need to know what it was like to be rejected by the woman you loved.

I walked to the bench and sat beside her. I took her hand in mine and squeezed.

“What is it?” she asked. “I can see you have something on your mind.”

I stared at her. I wanted so badly to say the words, but they were lodged in my throat.

“I’m glad we’re in this together,” I heard myself say. “You’ve made me a better man, a stronger person in general.”

She smiled. “I’m glad you’re my partner in this crime as well. I think it is you who has made me stronger. I was a complete wreck before you thought of this master plan. I would have rolled over and taken the hit. Not you. You’re ready to fight.”

I chuckled. “I’m always up for a good fight.”

I checked my watch and realized we only had about ten minutes before our scheduled hearing.

“We should go in,” I said, keeping her hand in mine.

“All right. Well, here goes nothing,” she said, standing and using her free hand to smooth down her skirt.

We walked inside, both of us stiff with the stress of learning our fate. When our turn came up, we took our seat behind the table and waited. Janice shot us a glare before opening the file in front of her.

“Is the home study complete?” the judge asked.

“Yes, it is, sir.”

The judge nodded. “That has to be a new record for your office, Ms. Grimes.”

Janice smiled. “We do try to be efficient, especially when a young child is involved. We want to get her settled as quickly as possible.”

“What are your findings?” he asked.

Avery squeezed my hand. I could tell she was holding her breath.

“Breathe,” I whispered.

She visibly relaxed and exhaled.

Janice stood up, and I knew it was going to be bad. The look of satisfaction on her face told me all I needed to know. My lawyer was about to work for his money.

“Your honor, after a thorough investigation into the backgrounds of Miss Hampstead and Mr. Colter and conducting interviews, it is my belief the marriage is a sham. It is a marriage of convenience in order to defraud my agency and your court.”

I opened my mouth to defend our actions, but it was Avery who squeezed my hand and gently shook her head no. She was right. I couldn’t make a scene. It would hurt the appeal that was going to be coming.

“What gives you that impression?” the judge asked, looking at us with contempt. “Are you saying they aren’t married?”

“No, sir. They are in fact legally married. However, the marriage was born out of a desire to get custody of the child. They aren’t a true couple. They are gaming the system, and I cannot give my approval for them to have custody. I can’t trust they will take care of her and give her the love and care she deserves. Until a month ago, these two people seemed to be struggling to take care of themselves. They are using his money to set themselves up as this happily married couple, and it isn’t right,” Janice stated with the familiar malicious look on her face.

I looked behind me and was surprised to see the foster parents holding a sleeping Iris. Don smiled at me. I could see he didn’t believe a word Janice said. I prayed the judge would see through her ridiculous hatred for us as well.

The judge was quiet for a moment. “Do you have documentation to back up your claims?”

Janice smiled. “I do.”

She picked up another file, thick with papers, and handed it to the bailiff, who presented it to the judge. Avery and I sat stone still as the judge opened the file and began to review the papers.

“Those are newspaper clippings that outline Mr. Colter’s very active nightlife. You’ll notice one of those photos is from only a few weeks ago.”

The judge looked at the paper and then turned it to me. “Is that you?”

I couldn’t see the image well enough but assumed it was a rhetorical question. “Your honor, my life before I came to Phoenix was very different from what it is today. I was a single man with no children. I want out to clubs on the weekends, but it isn’t quite as salacious as she wants you to believe. Many of the photos and tabloid articles she is using as evidence are actually from various charity events. I’ll admit, the crowd I spent my time with in California was primarily made up of wealthy socialites. I would ask you take the things you read in the tabloids with a grain of salt.”

The judge nodded, seeming to be satisfied with my explanation before thumbing through more paperwork.

“Miss Hampstead, is it true you only recently started a job and have never had your own apartment or home?”

Avery cleared her throat. “That’s not entirely accurate, your honor. I was in a dorm at school before I ran out of money. I worked part-time throughout the entire time I was in college. Because I worked, it took me longer to complete my degree. I rented a room in order to save on expenses.”

“She has no student loans,” I said, offering up a good reason.

The judge nodded. “Impressive. Few people can say they paid their way through school. I find that admirable.”

I felt Avery relax. It was admirable. She had done it on her own with the help of a few scholarships, which hadn’t been easy to get. I was proud of her.

Janice pursed her lips, clearly not pleased to hear the judge compliment Avery. It made me happy. I smirked at the nasty woman, daring her to keep trying to insult our characters.

“I think it is also important to point out the home they are renting is on a month-to-month basis.”

“We’re looking for a home to buy, which is exactly what I told you during one of our meetings,” I said, doing my best to keep my anger in check.

“It is my opinion they plan to gain custody of the child and then go their separate ways. That is not the kind of environment this little girl needs. She has already lost the only parent she’s ever known,” Janice said with fake concern.

The judge looked up at us, then Janice before shuffling through the papers. “What about the biological father? Why hasn’t he stepped forward?”

“The mother didn’t know who the father was,” Janice said with a sneer.

I nearly jumped out of my seat and across the aisle. I would not allow her to insinuate my sister was a slut who slept with so many men, she couldn’t keep them all straight.

Avery put a hand on my arm. “Your honor?”

“Yes, Miss Hampstead?”

“Janice is wrong. Tracy knew who the father was.”

“Why isn’t he listed on the birth certificate?” Janice shot back.

Avery looked at her with the best resting bitch face I had ever seen. It was impressive. I looked at Janice and smiled as she withered under Avery’s stare.

“He’s dead.”

My head jerked around. “What?”

Avery nodded her head. “Tracy had fallen in love with a marine. He knew about the baby. He was deployed to Afghanistan when she was about five months along. He was killed not long after he got over there. Tracy chose to leave his name off the birth certificate. She planned on telling Iris about her father when she was old enough.”

The judge nodded his head in understanding. My heart had plummeted to my feet. Tracy had never told me who the father was. It was why we had gotten into that fight that kept us apart. She hadn’t told me because it was too painful for her. I felt like a jackass. I should have been more supportive. I had said some pretty nasty things to her.

Avery leaned close. “It’s okay. I told her she should have told you.”

I nodded. It wasn’t okay, but I would deal with all that later.

The judge closed the folder and looked at us, then Janice. I held my breath. My entire world hinged on what would come out of the man’s mouth in the next few seconds.

“I need more time,” he said.

I exhaled and felt my shoulders slump forward.

“Excuse me, your honor?” Janice said in a high-pitched voice.

The man looked directly at Janice like she had slapped him. “I’m not ready to make a decision. I need time to review the notes on the case.”

“Sir, I have given you plenty of evidence to support my recommendation,” Janice said, clearly pissed she wasn’t getting her way.

“I appreciate your due diligence. Now allow me to do mine. I would like to take some time to review everything. I’m not going to take anything at face value. Let’s set a time for Monday,” he said, looking at the court clerk.

I watched them chat before they handed us a new time on Monday. Avery was sitting beside me, not moving.

“Let’s go,” I said in a soft voice.

I could see tears shining in her eyes. “I can’t leave,” she choked out. “I can’t leave without her.”

“Shh. Let’s go home. I’ll call George on the way.”

She nodded, and I helped her stand. She was shaken to her very core. I put my hand on the small of her back and gently nudged her into the aisle.

Janice stood there, staring at us both with a look of disgust and satisfaction. “I guess I’ll see you Monday.”

I looked at the woman and felt so much hate for her, it surprised me. I wanted to do her bodily harm. I wasn’t a violent person, never had been, but that woman had messed with my family. I wanted to make her pay.

“Let’s go,” Avery whispered, stepping into the aisle and walking toward the back of the courtroom.

I followed her, looking back at Janice, who was staring at us as we walked away.

“I bet she boils bunnies for breakfast,” I hissed. “That woman has got some serious problems.”

Avery nodded but kept walking. She was walking fast. I understood the need to put as much distance as possible between that vile woman and us and hurried along beside her. The second we walked outside, I grabbed my phone out of my pocket, speed-dialing George.

I turned to look at Avery, and my heart nearly broke in two. Tears were streaming down her face. The woman looked absolutely miserable.

“Come on, let’s get out of here.”

She nodded and let me drag her across the parking lot. I helped her into the SUV and quickly shut the door. I was on hold with the lawyer’s office. If the man didn’t pick up soon, I was going to drive straight to his office.

“Jake!” His booming voice came through the phone.

I unloaded on the man, telling him everything that had transpired. He quickly soothed my temper, promising he would take care of everything.

He had better, or I wasn’t quite sure what I would do.