Page 58 of Can’t Let You Go (Ivy Ridge #3)

FALLON

“ C an I ask you something?” I ask Jason, my fingers smoothing over the hair on his naked chest.

“You can ask me anything, sunshine,” he responds, twirling a piece of my strewn hair around his finger. We’ve just laid down after putting the girls to bed, and I’m doing everything in my power to stay calm as I think about tomorrow.

“Tomorrow,” I start, taking a deep breath. “I know you said you’d be by my side, but I think I changed my mind.” Before he can panic like I did last week, I rush to fill him in on my thoughts. “I think I want you to be by Presley’s side.”

“What do you mean?” Jason tilts his head back to look me in the eyes.

“The plan was for you to come with and wait outside the courtroom. The girls were going to be with your mom, and my mom would be with me, right?” I ask, though I know the answer, since we’ve gone over it countless times.

He nods, waiting for me to continue.

“I think I need to do it alone, but… I think I need you to take Presley. It’s not that I don’t trust your mom, I do.

It’s re ally that I need to know she is totally safe while I’m in there debating her future.

And you’re the only person I can trust with that.

She is my entire life, and I trust you more than anyone else that you will keep her happy and safe while I am fighting for her. ”

Jason swallows thickly, and I can see the emotion rising in his face. “You do?”

I nod, a tear leaking from my eye. “I do. Maybe you could take her out for breakfast or something, the two of you, and then someday I can have some one-on-one time with Lennie.”

“If that’s where you need me to be tomorrow, then that is where I will be, sunshine.”

Weight lifts off my body with his answer, and I can breathe, knowing he will have my girl during that time. If he can’t hold me during my time of need, then at least he can hold her.

“Thank you,” I breathe, tears freely streaming down my cheeks now.

“Hey now,” Jason coaxes. “No more tears. We’ve got this, remember? Haley is confident it won’t be easy for him to get any form of custody right away. If he really wants to see her, he will have to fight hard and prove himself.”

Words aren’t my strong suit anymore, so I simply nod into his body.

“Come on, you need some rest, sunshine.” Jason holds me, caressing my hair until I drift into a fitful sleep of nightmares where Brad takes my daughter from me.

This entire thing seems like something from a movie, not my actual life. Haley leads me and my mom into the courtroom. My mom holds my hand as we stride down the aisle, and she squeezes it one last time before sitting on the bench closest to the table Haley and I will be sitting at.

I take a deep breath and smooth out my black pencil skirt, cursing myself when I see a piece of lint on the hem. Haley gestures for me to sit beside her, and we wait for Brad and his lawyer to arrive.

Not a minute later, Brad and his lawyer stride in.

They’re both dressed in neatly pressed black suits, with Trixie following behind in a black fitted dress.

I can barely see the swell of her stomach as she cradles it.

She’s pale, her hair in a tight ponytail, but strands are falling loose, and not in a stylish, cute way.

She looks frazzled and stressed beyond belief.

For a moment, my heart aches for her. I’ve been in her position, and if he treats her the way he did me, she may not even realize how wrong it is. She may not know how much better she could be being treated by someone who really cares.

Brad takes his seat next to his lawyer, and the bailiff calls to the courtroom, “All rise.”

We all stand as the judge enters wearing her black judicial robes. She takes her seat at the head of the courtroom.

She motions for us to sit and rifles through the paperwork on her desk. My belly swoops with nerves, but I try to stay calm. I wipe my clammy hands down the front of my skirt and pick at the polish on my nails.

“Alright,” she says. “My name is Judge Harris, and I’ll be presiding over this case. We are here on a petition to revise the initial custody agreement between Fallon Douglas and Brad Douglas, who is petitioning for joint custody of Presley Douglas. Is that correct?”

Haley waits a moment for Brad’s lawyer to answer, but when he doesn’t, she stands to answer the judge. “Yes, Your Honor.”

Sweat beads on my brow as I try to remain focused and not let my mind wander to the worst case scenario.

“Thank you, Ms. Wilkins,” Judge Harris says to Haley.

“Mr. Douglas, it appears you waived your custodial rights when you filed for divorce against Mrs. Douglas, is that correct?” She turns her attention to Brad.

He stands and clears his throat, tugging at the tie around his neck. “Yes, Your Honor.”

“And that was three years ago?”

Brad nods.

“Hmm.” Judge Harris clucks her tongue, flipping through the papers she’s holding. “And you haven’t paid any child support in those three years?”

It’s like I can see the defeat in his posture as she speaks the words. “No, Your Honor,” Brad states, gritting his teeth.

“Well, I think that in itself is pretty telling.”

“Your Honor,” Brad’s lawyer rises from his chair, attempting to speak.

“Ms. Douglas.” Judge Harris turns her attention to me. I rise, and the chair squeaks loudly as I stand. My face heats. “You have been the sole caretaker of Presley for three years now. Is that correct?”

“Yes, ma’am—Your Honor,” I correct, my cheeks heating even more.

“In that time, was any child support paid to you, any visits, or any indication that Mr. Douglas was interested in being a parent to his child?” she asks, her eyes holding mine.

“No, Your Honor. ”

Judge Harris offers me a soft nod, and I take my seat again, wiping my sweating hands down my thighs yet again.

“I think I have everything I need,” Judge Harris announces.

“Mr. Douglas, I am denying your petition for joint custody. You can re-petition in two years when you have paid the back child support you owe and can show you continued to make an effort that supports your statements that you wish to be in the child’s life. Until then, court is adjourned.”

My mouth is dry, my mind whirling as I try to process what happened. Is it normally that quick? I know Haley said it would be about a half an hour, but that was all of ten minutes. Is that all Judge Harris needed to decide he wasn’t fit?

I sit in the chair, my mouth dropped open in shock as I take in the last few minutes. Oh my god, does this mean it’s done? He’s not getting custody of her?

When Judge Harris stands to exit the courtroom into her chambers, Haley pulls me to my feet, releasing me once she’s out of the room so I can sink back into my chair. Brad and his lawyer immediately leave the room; Brad practically running in what is surely anger. He has always been a sore loser.

From the corner of my eye, I notice Trixie rise to her feet and follow in the direction they went in. Her eyes are downcast, but she looks up in my direction at the last second and offers me a sad smile.

When the room is empty, I stand, and Haley offers me a kind hug, and a quick congratulations. My mom hugs me tightly, whispering words of love and excitement into my ear that this battle is over, for now at least.

He can always try again in two years. And to be honest, if he does what the judge asks, and tries to show some interest in being a father, maybe next time will be different. But we will cross that bridge when we come to it.

I can’t stop the whirring of emotions flitting through my body. Excitement, anxiety, happiness that it’s over, and fear for the future of having to go through it again.

Now though, I can’t wait to get my arms around my baby girl, and show her how loved she is by me, by all of the family we’ve created here in Ivy Ridge.