Page 48 of As It Was (Strawberry Springs #1)

MOLLIE

Strawberry Springs Neighborhood Watch

Kerry Winsor

Since when do deer hang out on porches? Damn thing scared the bejeezus out of me and made me spill my coffee! I think my neighbor a mile away heard me yell at it!

Comments:

Jade Clark : Channel your inner Disney princess, Kerry. You don’t have to go to war with them.

Kerry Winsor : THEY’RE INVADING MY LAND, JADE! THEY TOOK MY brUSSELS SPROUTS AND NOW MY MORNING PEACE? WHEN WILL IT END?

Henry Connor : Kerry, just checking in. How are you feeling emotionally these days?

Hu Gh : I know you’re young, Henry, so you might not know, but when women hit a certain age, they start to lose it like this.

Jade Clark : WHOA.

Kerry Winsor : I can fight you @Hu Gh AND I WILL WIN.

SherriffMike Finch : Please keep this off Facebook and away from me ... I don’t wanna have to fill out an incident report ...

I’d chewed through all my nails by the day of the decision date.

Every single time we drove to Nashville to see the judge, my nerves only grew.

Cain’s lawyer hadn’t been kidding when he’d said Cain would need all the evidence he could get, because the judge seemed hell-bent on moving Eric in with his biological father.

Eric had been questioned. Cain had been questioned. And so had I, since I was the owner of the house.

But neither of us knew if it would be enough.

Judge Marlon walked out and sat at his desk, his gaze on some papers. He was an older man with a balding spot. I could feel Cain holding his breath from where I sat in the back. I didn’t blame him. I was doing the same.

I couldn’t tell when I’d gotten so invested in Cain and Eric. It might have been the first day I saw them, when I’d watched the rock-hard heart of the man melt for a kid he’d taken in years ago.

Either way, I felt every single ounce of stress Cain did.

“Thank you all for being here,” Judge Marlon said. “I won’t make you wait. We’re discussing the custody case of Eric Smith.”

“His last name should be Pines,” Waldren said. “Considering he’s my kid and all.”

Judge Marlon’s lips thinned. “I’m going off the name on the birth certificate, sir, as I’ve said each time we’ve met.”

Waldren scoffed.

“I’ve reviewed all the files. It’s my goal to always reunite biological parents, especially when they were not aware of the child.”

Fuck. That didn’t bode well.

“But considering the ... extensive evidence of Mr. Smith’s involvement with Eric, and all of the character references I’ve received, I believe I’ve made the decision that will benefit both parties. I assign joint custody, with Eric spending his weeks with Mr. Smith and weekends with Mr. Pines.”

“What?” Waldren asked. “But I’m his father .”

Judge Marlon held up a hand. “You are, but Eric is settled in his current home. And I believe it’s not beneficial to him to have him move schools at this point in time. And speaking of your fatherhood, I’m also going to be opening a case involving child support for you, Mr. Pines.”

“Are you serious ?” Waldren complained.

“I-I don’t need child support,” Cain said.

“It’s not about needing it. Waldren has a responsibility to you. We’ll also be considering back child support, considering you’ve funded Eric’s needs for most of his life.”

“Absolutely not!” Waldren snapped.

“You’re the one who established paternity and wanted contact with your child. If you refuse to follow the court orders, then I’m sure Mr. Smith would be happy to continue providing all of Eric’s care.”

Waldren glared. Cain kept his gaze on Judge Marlon, but the tension in his shoulders was obvious. This wasn’t the worst-case scenario, but neither of us trusted Eric’s biological father. I knew it was going to be next to impossible for Cain to let Eric go with Waldren.

“The first weekend with Waldren will be in two weeks,” Judge Marlon said. “I’ll be watching closely to ensure this does not negatively affect the child in any way, and if it does, we will further review.”

As the session was called to a close, I opened my phone to message Jackie, who was anxiously waiting for an update.

Cain kept primary custody. But he does have to let Eric go with Waldren for the weekends.

Jackie

Oh no.

Well, I had a celebratory cake and an I’m sorry cake. I suppose we’ll eat both. I’ll let him break it to Eric, even though he’s asked me a hundred times.

As people filtered out, I caught up with Cain.

“Are you okay?”

He only let out a long breath in response. I winced and rubbed his back. We passed by Waldren, who was loudly complaining about the outcome, and got in the truck to go home.

“I don’t like this,” he said as we drove. “Olivia had to have a reason she didn’t want him in Eric’s life.”

“I agree. We can hope he’s more than he seems, but on the bright side, the letters worked. You keep primary custody.”

“I owe the town a thank you ... or something . Once I get through letting him go with that fucking idiot.”

“Jackie said we’ll have both cakes tonight after you explain everything to Eric.”

“After I explain it to Eric,” he repeated in a wilted murmur. “ Fuck. ”

“Need help figuring out what to say?”

“Please.”

He looked at me with the same awed expression he always had when I jumped in to help. I only hoped that one day this wouldn’t be so hard for him, and that everything would turn out okay .

But I had a terrible feeling about all of this.

“After everything he’s done, now this ?” Jackie shook her head.

I looked up the stairs. Cain had come home and gone right to Eric to explain what had happened. I was giving them space when Jackie found me. She seemed as torn up as Cain was, and I didn’t blame her.

“I’m glad it wasn’t the worst it could be,” I said. “Still. He’s been the only caregiver for Eric for years.”

“He barely let me watch him before you came around,” she said. “He’s such a good kid. He doesn’t deserve this.”

“He’s not alone,” I said. “He has us.”

“You’re definitely good for him. Me? I don’t know.”

“What do you mean? You were the only one on his side for years.”

She shook her head again. “After I asked him to keep a secret that alienated him. All of it because of a man who didn’t treat me like I was worth anything. God, I should have listened to Mirabelle when she told me who he was. Maybe then I could have ...” She trailed off, eyes back on the ground.

“Could have what?”

“Given Cain the family he needed.”

“But you’re family to him.”

“Not the kind he deserves. I hurt him in the end.”

“You made a choice that hurt him, yes. But you’ve also done good things. Like standing up for him in front of Kerry. Watching Eric when he asked you to. Being here for him when he needed it.”

“But—”

“No, Jackie.” I turned to her and grabbed her hands. “ Family isn’t being perfect all the time. Family is messy. We hurt each other. We make stupid choices, but in the end, we’re here for one another. And that’s what you do.”

“I ... You’re right. Mirabelle must have taught you that.”

“Not in words. She’s a good mom, but ... she’s not perfect. None of us are. But if you’re here and supporting Cain and Eric when they come down those stairs, you’re doing exactly what you should be.”

She smiled at me, her eyes watery. “You are one smart girl, you know that?”

“You should have seen me when climbing on the roof to get Hennifer. I was not smart then.”

“Still.” She pulled me into a tight hug. “I’m happy Cain has you.”

“He always will,” I said, and I meant it. More than he could ever know.

“Have you talked to her? Your mom?”

My stomach fell. “Not really. She said she didn’t wanna watch me make a choice she couldn’t support. And I’m obviously still making that choice.”

“A choice she couldn’t support? It’s not like you’re staying with your abusive ex.”

“I think Strawberry Springs feels similar to an abusive ex to her. She doesn’t see it like I do.”

Jackie’s shoulders drooped. “I suppose I’m a bit at fault for that.”

“She’ll come around.” I tried to smile, but it didn’t reach my eyes. “Hopefully.”

“You have me if she doesn’t.” Jackie’s hand landed on my shoulder. “She might be stubborn, but you’re her daughter. She has to still care.”

I opened my mouth to say I hoped she did, but Cain came down the stairs carrying Eric, who had tear-stained cheeks. Both Jackie and I jumped into action, trying to offer support.

Eric was a resilient kid, and by the end of the night, he was smiling again. He said he didn’t want to go, but he would if he had to.

Cain, on the other hand? He was miserable, and I hated to see it.

Hated it more than anything.