Chapter Eighteen
“They will be here any minute. I’m still trying to come up with the right words.” Yvette was going to find her courage at the bottom of her glass, but it was only orange juice.
“I’m afraid liquor is off-limits to you for the next nine months. You’re just going to have to do this without being pickled. I know it’s a sober thought, but I know you can get through this. Don’t you think they will be happy with this news?” Tanya was worried about the possibility of tempers flaring.
“I do believe we are about to find out.” Yvette was feeling parched with this nervous energy surrounding her like her own personal halo of indecision.
The fresh snow was melting due to an unseasonable December 23rd.
“There’s no changing the facts. They deserve to know of their impending fatherhood. I know this is hard, but you are stronger than you give yourself credit for. There’s no point in putting it off until tomorrow when you can do it today. There’s no room to procrastinate over something this important.” Tanya got up and greeted the two young men standing with big smiles on their faces.
She could only hope there wasn’t going to be a reason for them to turn those smiles upside down.
“I met Adam at the airport and we came right over from there. He knows there’s something going on. We are ready for you to hit us with your best shot.” Blake had no idea what he was asking but was about to find out.
“I don’t know how to say this. I’ve been trying to come up with the right words all day. I thought that I could drink my problems away, but that’s not an option anymore. I’m pregnant.” The bombshell was enough to stun them into silence.
The silence was broken by an argument between the two brothers about the identity of the father to-be. They got into a shoving match trying to claim the child for their own.
Yvette was an emotional basket case and didn’t have the strength to say what was in her heart. Her hands were over her face in shame. She never wanted to bring this kind of drama to their doorstep.
“Stop…right now. Don’t you see how much this is hurting her to see you fight like this?” Tanya stepped between the two immovable forces and held them back with her hand on each of their chests.
“I’m going to be the voice of reason. We can always get a paternity test, but the results are going to be difficult to determine which one of us is the father. We both come from the same family with the same DNA in our genetic makeup.” Adam was trying to find a graceful way to keep things civil.
“I won’t rest until we get to the bottom of this.” Blake felt it was necessary to fight for what he believed was his.
“I can’t take you both arguing. I know this is shocking news, but I don’t care who the father is. As far as I’m concerned, both of you are the father and I don’t want to hear anything more about it. This kid will be lucky to have the both of you to show him the kind of love you have shown me. Can’t you just be happy that we’re having a child together?” Her nerves were frazzled, her hands shaking with the desperate need to be heard over the roar of the lions trying to find out who was the king of the jungle.
“I can’t speak for Blake, but I have no problem sharing the parentage. We are lucky to have one another and be damned anybody who says otherwise.” Adam had to shake some sense into Blake, but finally, he came around to their way of thinking.
“Why do I get this feeling that’s not the end of the bombshells for the day?” Blake thought there would be a sense of relief on her face, but there was still something left unsaid.
“My ex-husband is threatening me to get his hands on the penthouse. He’s going to reveal to my mother explicit photographs of us together. I might be able to live with her condemnation, but he is also threatening your livelihood. The Slim fortune revolves around a certain public image. You think it can survive me being in your lives with a child?” She found them understandably upset but also heard their declaration of love in every word they were saying to her.
“I’m going to consult with our lawyers.” Adam phoned the firm they had on retainer for emergency litigation.
He turned his back and had a private conversation with Roger Jenkins. Roger told him everything and Adam found his wise counsel to alleviate some of his fears and misgivings.
“Don’t leave us in suspense. I know Roger personally and he knows the law like the back of his hand. If he doesn’t know something then he can find somebody in his firm who does.” Blake was holding her hand, trying his best to reassure her that things were going to work out exactly as they were meant to.
“Don’t ask me how he did it, but he was able to get his hands on the prenuptial agreement you’d signed. There was an infidelity clause and Tony broke that by sleeping with another woman. As far as he can tell, there’s nothing he can do legally, but blackmail is another matter altogether. Without concrete proof, you’re going to be left with very little recourse and will have to sign over the penthouse.” Adam was only repeating what he had already heard.
“I guess I have no choice. I will give him a call and grudgingly give him what he wants.” She felt like her husband was going to get the last word in their marriage.
“If proof is what they need of his blackmail scheme then the proof is exactly what they will get. This man sounds full of himself. He will have no problem bragging about having you over a barrel. We just need to get his confession on tape.” Blake felt it was time for him and his brother to have a face to face confrontation with her ex-husband.
“I don’t know if it’s going to be that easy. He is a lawyer and he knows better than to incriminate himself.” Yvette had seen him talk circles around his opponent in court.
She’d only seen it once, but it was more than enough to make her realize what a narcissistic bastard he was. It was on that day, she came to the painful conclusion he was never going to be the man she wanted. He was a consummate liar and could do it without showing any outward signs. It was the reason why it had taken her so long to figure out he was fucking around behind her back.
“He loves getting the best of you. I can’t see why we can’t use his narcissism against him.” Blake saw a glimpse of something in the sunlight in his peripheral vision. He nudged Adam and whispered into his ear to repeat after him loud enough to be heard.
“Blake, I think this is the perfect time for you to go and get the gift we brought with us to brunch.” Adam was going to dangle himself as bait to give Blake the chance to catch whomever was in the bushes.
“I don’t think it was necessary to get me anything. I have screwed everything up.” She was getting down on herself, but Adam was there to massage her shoulders.
It wasn’t long before she was kissing him, and he was palming the evidence of her arousal through the thin layer of her yellow summer dress.
Blake had walked down the path toward the car and suddenly veered off to circle around to the next property. He saw the man in the bushes with a video camera trained on his brother showing some affection to Yvette.
Jeffrey was doing his best to find more dirt to collect his bounty. The video of them both doing the girl was bad enough, but the only thing he could see were dollar signs. He was bored the first night at the four-star resort.
Blake tackled him to the ground without uttering one single word in warning. He had him face down in the dirt and whistled for Adam to join him. It wasn’t long before they had him struggling to his feet and dragging him in front of Yvette.
“Watch the jacket! There’s no reason to be so rough.” They searched his person and found several pairs of flex cuffs. They weren’t much to look at, but they made it impossible for him to move or put up any kind of defense.
“You’re the reason why I can’t seem to get away from my ex-husband. I know you’re only doing your job, but have you ever once thought about what you were doing to the lives you were ruining? The answer is undoubtedly no and maybe it’s a good thing you see up close and personal the pain you cause.” Yvette pushed him down on a chair and had his undivided attention.
“I don’t get paid enough to think about what I’m doing. I would love to apologize, but I don’t feel I have anything to apologize for. You do know this is considered kidnapping with unlawful restraint. I could easily have you all charged, but it would mean sitting in court and listening to lawyers. It’s the last thing I want to do.” Jeffrey could see he was not going to get away without doing something to fix the problem.
“I want to know what you haven’t given him. Don’t look at me like that. I’ve been around my fair share of private investigators to know how their minds work. They will string a client along for as long as they can. I have no doubt you’ve been keeping something to get more money out of him.” Adam was known to employ private investigators with a lack of morality.
“I don’t have to tell you anything.” He could play this game for however long they were willing to keep up this charade.
“I’m through playing nice. You have brought this on yourself.” Blake punched him and found that his resolve was tougher than he imagined. Jeffrey’s smile enraged another part of Blake which had been waiting for a chance to come out. The expression on Jeffrey’s face had him thinking about ways to make him talk.
“I believe that discretion is the better part of valor when it comes to what I do in the dark. My clients get what they pay for.” Jeffrey was concerned by how Blake’s facial expression had changed from malevolence to an almost calm exterior.
“I think I understand your motivations. Perhaps, I can make you an offer you can’t refuse. I believe one-million dollars would help to curb you of any guilt for talking out of turn. Give me an account and I’ll have it wired into it before you can count to a hundred.” He was dead serious about bribing him to work for them against his client.
“You’re speaking my language.” It was an awkward couple of minutes before the verification of the money in his account made him stand up and take notice.
“It’s time for you to make good on your part of this arrangement.” Blake was never comfortable with money, but there were times where dollar signs were the answer.
“My truck is a mile down the road on the left side. In the glove compartment, you will find video evidence. I’m always up to hear a better offer. It has never happened, but there’s always a first time for everything. I might be able to help you with your current dilemma.” Jeffrey informed them of an illegal listening device he had planted in Tony’s office.
“It’s going to be a good idea to keep you on a sizable retainer. I can use somebody with your unique skill sets. My family pays a whole lot better than any other client you might find yourself working for.” The agreement was made under the shadow of money being the root of all evil.