Page 29 of Falling for You (Balsam Cliffs #2)

“You just had a burger from Clark last night,” I point out, smiling at her excitement.

“You can never get tired of burgers. It’s impossible. Burgers are hands down the best food.”

“As long as you feel the same way about me.” I wink at her over the table as the waitress comes over to take our orders.

“I certainly do.” She winks back. “So how are you feeling about the meeting with the lawyer?”

“I don’t know. I read some of the reviews and they say that he is gruff, but gets the job done. I don’t know if we’re ready for gruff. But maybe it’s best to have someone without emotions in the situation. We need someone to give us facts, not emotions.”

“I agree. You told me last night that I don’t give up without a fight, and if this guy can get our girl back, I don’t care one bit about his personality. I care if he can get Livvy Girl back.” Damn, she’s already throwing my words back in my face.

“You’re right. I need to let my emotions go when we meet with him. Anything he says is going to be helpful even if it’s something I don’t want to hear.”

We eat our burgers talking about the facts of the case, making sure that I have the emails and texts from the Ryans giving me details about her care, details about the paternity test, and agreeing to simply keep her for an overnight.

Before I know it, it’s time to pay our bill and head to the lawyer’s office.

We step out into the sunshine, and Emma holds her hand out for me to place mine in hers so we can walk hand in hand to the lawyer’s office.

I take a deep breath outside the entrance to the office. Emma tugs me inside.

“Hi, welcome to Bardeau and Associates. How can I help you?” A chipper blonde answers as we step through the door. This must be the woman that Wyatt knows. She looks just like his type.

“I’m Roman Thomas, we have a two o’clock appointment with Mr. Bardeau.”

“Oh! Wyatt’s friend.” Despite Emma being next to me the blonde’s eyes roam around my body.

“Hi! I’m Emma Keaton, Wyatt’s sister, and Roman’s girlfriend .” Emma expertly works in who she is to me.

“Oh! How… cute.” The blonde is not nearly as chipper with Emma as she was with me. “I will let Mr. Bardeau know you’re here.” She gestures to the chairs over in the waiting area.

We take our seats, and wait to be called back to Mr. Bardeau’s office.

“Thomas?” A deep voice calls out for me.

I stand and reach for Emma’s hand.

He leads us down a hallway filled with generic stock art prints while he makes small talk about nothing.

He steps to the side and opens a large wooden door. The building looks as if it were built hundreds of years ago, and updated along the way. The large ornate wooden doors that we’ve passed look like they’re from the Victorian era.

We each take a seat in the chairs across from his desk.

“So tell me what brings you here.” He folds his hands on top of his desk.

“Well, a few weeks ago, I was approached at my brewery by Diane and Wayne Ryan. They had a baby girl with them and told me that I was the father and that their daughter, Olivia’s mother, passed away recently.

Asking them to find me after she passed so that I could care for her.

” I pause, waiting for a reaction from the man who I would never play poker with.

When he doesn’t give me a reaction, I continue.

“They set up a test with Dr. Shivart at Portland Family and Genetics. I got the results a day or so later saying that I am her father. Since then I have had custody, until Saturday night when we needed a babysitter and asked the Ryans if they would like to have an overnight with Olivia. They agreed, so we met them halfway. Yesterday when we went to go meet them, they did not show up and weren’t responding to us.

I drove to their house and they wouldn’t open the door.

Finally, Wayne came out and told us that they weren’t giving her back.

Since I never got official custody, the cop that came said there was nothing they could do, and now we’re here. ”

He nods, “Unfortunately, the cops are right. But you do have two things on your side, if the mother put her wishes into a will. If she didn’t, you have one thing.”

“I’m not sure if there was a will, but I have these letters.” I hand over the letter from Blair.

He takes a minute reading it over. “This is good. It shows the mother’s intentions. And the paternity test will help you too. Courts like to have children with their biological parents.”

We go over a few more items, and talk through the next steps with Mr. Bardeau for a long time.

He stands, extending his hand for me to shake. “It was nice to meet you Mr. Thomas. And keep doing what you’re doing. We’re going to get your daughter back home with you. I’ll be in touch when the Ryans have been served with the custody filing.”

I shake his hand and lead Emma down the hallway with my hand on the small of her back.

“Fuck, I can’t believe how long this is going to take. I want our girl back now.” I whisper into her ear when we’re out of the lobby.

“I know. But we can do it. Together.”

About six months. Fuck, that’s a long fucking time without Olivia. Emma is so positive though, it’s contagious.

I can do anything with her by my side.

We drive back to Balsam Cliffs with the windows down, and the music blaring. I hate to admit that Emma’s music isn’t so bad anymore. All my life I was a diehard metal fan, but this sad cowboy country she has me listening to, is growing on me and I actually sing along with her now.

“How do you feel about getting ice-cream and eating it on the beach?”

“Oh! By the big rock where we can see the sunset?” That is her favorite spot.

“Sure, Sunshine. By the big rock. Wherever you want.” I smile over at her.

She smiles out the window, excited for such a simple pleasure in an otherwise hard day.

Once we’re seated with our ice-creams, a mocha milkshake for me and a Milky Way on a sugar cone for Ems, the sun is starting to lower over the cliffs.

“Am I overstepping?” she asks suddenly.

“With what?”

“Olivia. I mean she isn’t my daughter, and here I am helping you fight this battle, being more emotional about it. I don’t… I mean… I don’t know. She isn’t mine.” That last part is said on a whisper.

“She is yours, Sunshine, as much as she is mine. She loves you. You love her. You have every right to feel and do whatever you want.”

“I don’t know. What would Blair think that I’m acting like she is my daughter?” She leans her head on my shoulder.

“I think Blair would be happy you’re treating her as your own.”

Olivia is hers. And if she wants it to be official, fuck, I’ll make it official, because that would make her mine.

“Marry me, Sunshine. Today, tomorrow, next month, next year, I mean preferably not the last one, but marry me. You’re mine. I’m yours. And Olivia is ours. Let’s make it official. Let’s start our family together. Officially.”