Darren had never been so nervous before in his life. Although it felt like he was saying that a lot lately, so perhaps he needed to get some new parameters for what real fear felt like. For example, listening to a doctor talk about x-ray results that might seem bad, but were actually a mixed blessing, was not fear. Real fear was when you weren’t sure a judge was going to tell you that your son could live with you permanently. Real fear was the possibility that the judge might want Carly Valdez to have partial custody of Jaeger.

Jaeger had only lived with Darren for two weeks now. Darren and Maggie had been extra careful to keep things loving and playful in front of Jaeger, and to keep their insatiable desire for each other in the privacy of the bedroom. But Jaeger’s obvious love for being around Maggie was plain as the nose on his face, and Darren could not be happier to have Maggie around almost every second of the day and night.

Now, as Darren sat with his lawyer—Allison Thomas—he tried not to smile too big as he remembered what it was like to wake up with Maggie’s naked body pressed against his. He loved to kiss her shoulder and her neck until she stirred just enough for him to make slow, sleepy love to her before the sun came up. Then the two of them would go back to sleep and wait for Jaeger to wake up.

The courtroom wasn’t a very friendly place. It was smaller than these things looked on television. The gallery area was cramped, and it was very empty. Darren felt this acutely. Maggie was supposed to meet him here, but she hadn’t made it just yet, and he was getting worried. Jaeger was sitting outside with Maggie’s friend from family services, Cara. He would not be present for these proceedings, thank goodness. No kid needed to be exposed to this sort of thing.

“Ah, there she is,” Allison Thomas murmured. “I was beginning to think she wouldn’t show.”

The “she” was Carly Valdez, of course. Carly stumbled into the courtroom and fumbled her way through the barrier separating the gallery from the participant area. Collapsing into a chair, Carly did not bother to take off her sunglasses. At some point, she noticed Darren staring in her direction.

“What?” she demanded rudely. “My mom died last night. I’m tired!”

Darren pressed his lips together. That was bad news, and the worst part was that Carly was too emotionally bankrupt and selfish to truly appreciate the woman who had sacrificed so much for her and her son. Poor Nancy Valdez had finally given up and gone to heaven. Now Darren felt even more strongly that it was important Jaeger stay with him. Carly was in no shape to handle caring for a child on her own. She’d never done it on her own before. In fact, the more Darren was around a woman like Maggie, the more he realized that Carly was still a teenager inside. In fact, just about every woman in Darren’s past had been immature.

Apparently, I took a long time to grow up.

Suddenly there was a big noise behind Darren. His mouth popped open in surprise as the entire Hernandez clan came tromping into the courtroom. Their boots scuffed across the tile floor and in some cases left either polish or dirt prints behind. It was safe to say that there were both ends of the spectrum present in the courtroom, but they were all there to support Darren, and he could not have been more grateful. Darren spun in his seat and saw Maggie waving at him. He returned her wave but could only do about that much as he gawked at the sight before him.

Darren stood up and reached out a hand to Laredo. Things had been pretty damn prickly between the two of them lately, but Laredo was still Darren’s closest brother in more ways than one. “Thanks for coming,” Darren murmured. “I—I don’t think I expected that.”

“We’re all part of the Hernandez family,” Laredo said with a chuckle. “Just ask your girlfriend.”

“Fiancée,” Darren corrected automatically.

“I was just going to ask you about the wedding! Have you decided on anything yet? Do you have a date? It’s really important that we start thinking about this right away, you know. It will be the social event of the season!” His mother shoved her sons aside and grabbed Darren’s hands. “Oh, sweetie, I’m just so excited!” Then Avery Hernandez turned to Maggie. “Welcome to the family, honey! I couldn’t say anything the other night, you know, but I was hoping that this ham-fisted football jock would hurry up and propose!”

“Mom,” Darren groaned. “Ham-fisted? Really? That is not helpful right now.”

But the women were hugging and had no time or energy to worry about Darren’s protests. It was probably just as well. Carly was now fully engaged in an ugly staring match with—well, nobody, because nobody was paying attention, but it was obvious that she’d heard the marriage comment.

Then Darren saw his dad snort and jostle his way forward. “You may be no good at the business, but if you’re going to stand up and fight for your son, then I’m going to stand here with you.”

Darren put an arm around his father and accepted the very masculine one-armed hug. “Thanks, Dad.”

There were handshakes all around, and then everyone found a place to sit. Darren finally realized that Carly was still staring at them all. She had raised her sunglasses and was literally staring hungrily at his younger brothers.

It was Joe Hernandez who decided to mention Carly’s obvious interest in his sons. “Hey,” Joe said to Carly. “You’ve already gotten as much out of us as you’re going to. So, you’d better just put those eyes of yours back in their sockets and turn them in another direction.”

There was some laughter, and some good-natured jeering, while his mother and Maggie twittered behind their hands. Of course, Judge Cox chose that moment to enter the courtroom. The man did a double take at the number of people in the room.

“I see the entire family has come to support you, Mr. Hernandez.” Judge Cox slapped the gavel on the desk. “As long as they observe proper decorum, they can stay.” Then the judge realized that Carly was practically passed out on the table. “Ms. Valdez, sit up and take off your sunglasses.”

“My mother died last night,” Carly mumbled. But her bloodshot eyes did not suggest sleep deprivation as much as they did an alcoholic binge.

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Judge Cox actually made a note on the file in front of him. Darren could not help but note that it was a very thick file. He hated to imagine what was in that thing after all this time. The judge looked back up and pegged Carly with a hard stare. “Especially as that has a great bearing on this case.”

Darren felt his heart lift with hope. He reached behind him and felt Maggie’s fingers twine with his. They gave a little squeeze and then he let go. He didn’t want to break any rules, but he needed to know that she was there.

“Mr. Hernandez,” Judge Cox began. “I have been going over the records for this case extensively, and I have to say that you were grossly misrepresented. You seem to have made great strides in attempting to create a stable environment for your son. Is that true?”

Darren’s attorney, Ms. Thomas, started to speak. “Your Honor, my client has done an incredible job of creating a loving and safe environment for his son.”

“Ms. Thomas, I realize that Mr. Hernandez is your client,” Judge Cox said patiently. “But we’re going to deviate from the usual, and I’m going to talk directly to Darren. Do you catch my drift?”

Ms. Thomas paused for a moment. She was quick-minded and very smart. Darren liked her. So, when she gave a nod, Darren decided that he wasn’t going to screw things up by just being truthful. Truth. That was what they needed more than anything else.

Darren took a deep breath and tried to find the words he needed to say. “Yes, sir. I have found a house and made a good home for my son. In the past, I was not successful at doing that kind of thing. My job was certainly not consistent or conducive to a settled lifestyle.” Darren felt no small amount of shame as he thought of his son living with Carly while Darren chased football dreams that went no farther than a twisted knee that would never let him play sports again. “Things have changed a lot for me over the last several years. And as of now, I am firmly fixed here in the Denver area.”

“I can see that you have the support of your family,” Judge Cox observed drily. “And I also have here documents and letters from your new employer as well as your landlord. As a Hernandez, the money thing has never been an issue. Rather, Ms. Valdez made it her issue by demanding more child support than I have ever seen awarded in any other case when there was no marriage or even a long-term relationship involved.”

“I don’t begrudge her that,” Darren said quickly. “The money was—as I understand it—managed a great deal by Nancy Valdez, who was the primary caregiver of our son and who did a fantastic job raising him to this point.”

Judge Cox gave a nod. “That is very decent of you, Mr. Hernandez.”

Darren felt like it was only fair but didn’t say anything else. He was having difficulty breathing. His palms were sweating, and he felt as though there was more adrenaline than blood in his veins. When was the guy going to tell them what he’d decided?

“Ms. Valdez,” Judge Cox said sharply.

“Huh?” Carly’s head shot up like a jack in the box. “Did you ask me something? I’m the kid’s mother. Babies always need their mothers. It’s that simple.”

“You are currently out on bail after being arrested for negligence toward a child. Do you honestly believe that Jaeger Hernandez is better off in your care? I can hardly believe that you would be so naive as to believe the court would grant you custody.” Judge Cox was actually looking a bit flabbergasted. Darren figured this did not bode well for Carly. “I’ll admit that traditionally it is the court’s preference to have both parents involved in the child’s life.”

“Your Honor, this woman is not a fit parent,” Allison Thomas said quickly. “We have a long list of complaints to family services about her parenting both in private and public situations.”

“Agreed, Ms. Thomas.” Judge Cox scratched his head. The middle-aged man looked tired. Darren wondered how many Carly Valdez types drifted in and out of his courtroom every single day. “Ms. Valdez, without the support and help of your mother, this court does not believe that you are capable of providing a safe environment for your son. We are recommending you undergo treatment for alcoholism, at which point we will recommend you have supervised visitation with your son to be handled by Cara Johnson of family services. After a period of six months, we will reevaluate your situation and decide whether or not your visitation periods could be extended to an overnight stay.”

“This is bullshit!” Carly actually shot to her feet. She weaved back and forth a bit as she tried to get her bearings, but she was mad as hell and that helped her straighten up to her full height. “What am I supposed to do without my ma’s check and the child support? I can’t pay my bills!”

“Since the child support was for the child you no longer have a responsibility to take care of, I’m not sure why that’s relevant,” Judge Cox said carefully. There was a gleam of warning in the man’s dark gaze. “And since your mother’s social security checks were for her care, I might suggest trimming back your lifestyle to fit within your own disability income.”

“You bastard! I can’t do that!” Carly turned and pointed at Darren. “You owe me! I bore your child! You think that bitch is going to have your babies? You better think again! I’m the one who had your kid. You owe me for that!”

“Bailiff, remove Ms. Valdez and put her in a holding cell until she can calm down.” Judge Cox sounded tired.

The entire Hernandez family, Darren’s attorney, and the judge watched in awe as the bailiff called in a female officer and the two of them wrestled Carly out of the room. She fought like a hellcat. The table went over as she grabbed a leg and tried to hang on. She was like an animal. She scratched and bit and kicked and screamed as she was pulled out of the room and into the hallway where she continued to throw her tantrum.

Judge Cox heaved a gigantic sigh. “Nancy Valdez was a saint. I swear.”

“Yes, Your Honor, she was.” Darren could certainly concur.

Judge Cox pursed his lips thoughtfully. “The hospital told me that you brought Jaeger to visit his grandmother while she was still alive. That was very decent of you. Most men would not have even thought of that.”

“She raised him,” Darren said simply. “It was as good for him as it was for her. I felt bad for her. Carly was not a great person, but I don’t think what happened between the two of us did her personality any good.”

“Ah, ah, ah,” Judge Cox said, wagging his index finger in front of his face. “We are all responsible for our own behavior. We cannot blame this on other people. It is our own fault. So, don’t take Carly’s behavior upon yourself. You have plenty to answer for on your own.”

Darren certainly couldn’t argue with that. But as the judge’s gavel smacked the desk and everyone stood up, Darren knew he had been handed a decisive victory. He jumped out of his chair and turned around to sweep Maggie off her feet. Pulling her over the barrier, Darren kissed her deeply and did not care who saw him do it. Right now, he was just so thrilled to be right here with his family and this woman, finding out that he was going to be a part of his son’s life.

“I never thought this could happen,” Darren whispered to Maggie. “I never thought that I would find the girl of my dreams and have my family coming together all at the same time.”

“Darren!”

He turned to see that Cara had entered the courtroom with Jaeger by her side. The little boy was lit up like Christmas. Darren smiled at the social worker. He appreciated her waiting until Carly had been removed before bringing Jaeger inside. There was no need for the little boy to witness his mother acting like that.

“I get to stay with you!” Jaeger said excitedly. He flung himself at Darren and reached out to grab Maggie’s leg too. “I get to stay with both of you!”

“And we get to stay with you,” Darren told his son.

Darren swept the kid up in his arms and accepted a family-sized hug that could only come from a family like the Hernandez bunch who knew how to play hard and love harder. Wrapping his arms around Maggie and Jaeger, Darren hoped this was exactly the way he would remain for the rest of his life.