He spanks me lightly on the butt. “Just don’t think yourself into a corner, ‘kay?”
I smile, realizing that he knows me way better than probably anyone at this point. “Okay. G’night.”
“Night.”
He’s snoring softly less than a minute later. It’s the last thing I remember hearing before I’m asleep too.
CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
I WAKE UP BRIGHT AND early and join my roommates downstairs. Colin beat me to the shower and is sitting next to Rebel at the kitchen table, his hair still wet and slicked back. I grin at him shyly as Teagan walks up and hands me a mug of hot tea and a post-it note. “Made you an appointment at the lawyer’s office.” She pats my shoulder and takes the nearest seat.
I take a sip of the herbal tea and then smile at my friend. “Thank you for doing that for me, Tea-Tea.” Easing my belly behind the table, I pick up a doughnut from out of the box in the center of the table.
I’m putting it up to my mouth and taking a bite before I realize the room is totally silent and everyone is staring at me.
I look around at their confused expressions. “Wha …?” I say, directly into the sweet, sweet goodness that is my breakfast. It comes out really muffled, so I laugh a little, causing a big poof of powdered sugar to fly out over the table. I lower the doughnut from my mouth and smile again. “Oopsy.”
Teagan looks at Colin. “Did you drug her last night or what?”
He looks down at the newspaper and a hint of a smile appears on his face. “Nope. Not drugs.”
My face is instantly on fire. Memories of his fingers sliding up my back and then down again, his hand grabbing my butt and squeezing … God, I’m going to need a cold shower now. I try not to look at him, but it’s impossible. When he winks at me, I nearly have a heart attack.
“Oh my effing G, you did not …” Teagan looks at me and then him and then at me again. She points at my face, her own lighting up with happiness. “Ha! You totally did it! Pregnant lady sex! I thought I heard some shouting last night.”
I slap at her finger. “Stop pointing. That’s rude.”
Rebel looks up over his paper first at me and then at Colin. It’s possible he rolls his eyes before going back to his reading.
Teagan’s chuckling as she picks up her doughnut. “Holy shit. You guys are nuts.”
I kick her under the table. “Hey. Be nice.”
She drops her breakfast on the plate and holds up her hands in surrender. “Hey, I’m good with it. No judgment here, no judgment.” She pauses, cocks her head to the side and then goes serious, looking at me. “Is it hard to do it with your belly that big?”
“Teagan, come on,” Rebel says, standing up, his chair making a loud dragging sound on the floor. “Time to go to work.”
She pouts and stands with him. “Slave driver.”
He comes around the table and grabs her, slamming her body into his and gripping her buttcheek with one hand. “Don’t sass me,” he says, before giving her the hottest kiss I’ve seen outside a rated-R movie. I have to turn away to ease my embarrassment.
Out of the corner of my eye I see her pushing herself away. “Holy alpha male alert. Save it for the bedroom, babe. I have filing to do.” She leaves the kitchen after grabbing her purse off the counter. “Go to that appointment!” she yells from the foyer. “I’m not playing!”
“I’m going!” I yell back, staring at the note. I look up at Colin. “Can I get a ride from you? It’s in a half hour.”
“You bet. Just let me grab my wallet.”
He leaves the kitchen but not before kissing the top of my head and rubbing my belly. I think he’s gone but then he’s there again, leaning down to kiss my stomach.
“What’s that for?” I ask, my face warming.
“Gotta kiss the baby too.”
I sit there at the table crying happy tears for a change, waiting for my boyfriend to take me to my appointment. I don’t know how long it’s going to last, but the ghosts that Charlie conjured have officially been removed from my brain. All I can think about now is how bright my future is.
CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
WELL, THAT EUPHORIA DIDN’T LAST very long. Thanks, Natalie.
“I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but it is what it is. You need me and you need my colleague William or someone like him. He’s the civil torts guy. You need to file one suit for the child support issues and then a separate one for the assault and battery and whatever else he can come up with out of the statutes.”
“But why can’t you handle it all?” I ask, sick over the idea of this many lawyers in my life. One is more than enough, thank you very much.
“Because, I don’t know that area of the law. You want an expert. That’s not me. I can do the serious tango over child support, custody, and so on. But I’d lose and lose badly in a civil assault case. I’d be in over my head.”
“I can’t believe you’re saying that.” I just stare at her like she has two heads.
“Why?”
“Because you seem so … capable.” My whole vision of her as a superhero is fizzling out.
“And I am. In family law.” She comes around her desk and sits down next to me. Her penetrating stare is almost too much. “I’m good because I focus on what I know and what I like. Bringing justice to girls like you is my calling.” She clasps her hands together and then points at me with her two first fingers pressed together. “You are running out of time. Now that you’ve exchanged heated words with your attacker and the father of your child, things are going to roll out fairly quickly. People like him do rash and stupid things without thinking. I want you to have all your ducks in a row before he gets his feet under him.”
“What does that mean exactly? I mean, what will I have to do?”
“Give me the right to act as your lawyer. I’ll get the ball rolling by filing papers in family court. When you give birth, you put Charlie’s name on the birth certificate, not ‘unknown’. If he wants to fight that, we’ll do a paternity test. You will win your case. I don’t know if he’ll go to jail for what he did, but over my dead body will he get anything more than part custody.”
“Part custody!” I yell. “Are you kidding me?!” I lean as far away from her as I can. The idea is positively abhorrent to me.
“Fact is, he’s the father.” She holds up a finger to keep me from exploding my anger all over her. “But, he’s also a criminal. I’m going to leverage that as best I can to show that it’s in the best interests of the child to be one hundred percent with you. If he wants visitation, I’m going to argue it needs to be supervised by an outside party.” She puts her hand on my arm. “Hey … he might not want anything at all. My guess is he won’t. But his parents … they might have other ideas.”
“His parents?”
“They have no rights as grandparents, so don’t get worried about that. But they have considerable influence over their child, so what he wants might not matter. We’ll deal with that as it comes.”
I shake my head, everything feeling like it’s hopeless again. “I wish I’d never come.”
“Why? So you can live with your head in the sand? Don’t go there. He wins with that attitude.”
“I don’t want him to win, but this … this is … it’s a nightmare.”
“Yes. It’s a nightmare. I’m not going to blow smoke up your dress and tell you differently. But we can control the outcome to some degree if we’re smart, if we do everything right. That’s where my team and I come in.”
“Your team?”
“Yes. I have three paralegals and one associate who work with me. I call them the gators.”
“Gators?”
“Yes. They lie in the water waiting, looking like harmless logs, but then when their prey least expects it, they leap out, grab ‘em in their jaws and give ‘em the old death roll. It’s not pretty.”
“Wow.”
“They’re very effective.” She stands, holding out her hand to help me up.
&
nbsp; “So what’s next?” I ask.
“Sign my contract and I’ll call Charlie today. I’m going to introduce myself and get the name and number of his lawyer so we can start a dialogue. I’ll have papers ready to file in court in three days. Maybe even today if we’re lucky.”
“Three days is … Monday.”
“Yep. We work weekends when it’s necessary.”
I’m in a mild state of shock. All this information. All the threats Charlie laid out, and my legal status as Natalie has explained it to me. It’s too much to digest in one meeting. “Thank you. I mean. I guess. Yes. No. I do mean thank you. I appreciate your help.”
“Get some rest. Relax. I’ll contact you Monday and keep you posted as I learn anything new.”
“Okay.” I turn to leave and then stop. “About the money …”
“It’s already taken care of. Talk to Colin.”
I nod as I leave her office. Colin is waiting out in the lobby and the sense of relief that fills me as I see him stand to join me is palpable.
“All good?” he asks as we go outside.
“As good as it can be, I guess.”
He holds my hand as he drives. “We’re here for ya. You’re not alone.”
“I know that,” I say, staring out the windshield. “I really do. Thanks.”
My phone rings and startles me out of my mood. At first I’m terrified, thinking Charlie somehow knows what I just did, what I just started. But then I see it’s Charity calling and relax.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Alissa! How are you, girl?”
I can’t help but smile at her cheery tone. “Good. You sound happy.”
“That’s because I just signed all the papers with Barbara and Michael. It’s done! It’s a done deal! It all has to be finalized and stuff after the baby is born, but we have everything in writing now.”
“Awww, congratulations! That’s so cool! Wow, that was fast, too.” My heart feels like it’s floating it’s so light. This totally beats hanging out in Natalie’s office of doom and gloom.
“Yes, they just fast tracked everything as soon as the doofus officially agreed to sign off on his rights. And it’s all because of you! I probably shouldn’t tell you this, but I can’t keep it to myself anymore … Barbara and Michael want us both to be the godparents. Squee!”
I almost can’t swallow. “Really?” My voice is strained.
Colin reaches over and takes my hand. I smile at him so he knows I’m okay.
“Yes, really! Isn’t that so cool? I have to google that godparent thing. I don’t know exactly what it is I’m supposed to do. But I can learn!” She giggles. “Anywho, I’m about to go into class, so I just thought I’d let you know.”
“Class? Isn’t it too early for class?”
She snorts. “It’s Lamaze class.”
“Oh. You’re doing that?”
“Yeah. You should do it too. They teach you breathing stuff. It’s all kind of funny. My poor grandpa is in there doing it with me. Poor guy can’t keep a counting rhythm to save his soul. But I appreciate the support so mum’s the word.”
“Maybe I’ll sign up too.”
“They have a new class starting next week. Better hurry! They fill up fast. Oh, crap. I gotta go. Hugs!”
“Hugs!” I say as the phone disconnects.
“What’s up?” Colin asks.
“Charity did the adoption papers. Now all she needs to do is have the baby and her life is all good.” I’m so jealous. I try not to feel that way, but it’s impossible.
“Just like your life. All good,” he says, glancing over.
“Yeah, right.” I stare out the window, wondering what other surprises God has in store for me.
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
I SPEND ALL DAY SATURDAY staring at my phone. My dresser has been emptied, cleaned, filled, and emptied again while I moved it, all in an effort to keep my mind off my troubles. Sometimes free time feels like punishment of the worst sort.
A gift from Colin was delivered from Amazon this morning that included sheets and a quilt for the baby’s crib, stuffed toys and a thing-a-ma-jig to attach to the side of it that has animals hanging down and music that plays. That only took me two hours to put up. I’m grateful not only for the gifts but for the distraction. I only wish Colin could be with me, but he has to work this weekend. Bringing me all over the place the past couple weeks has cut into his work schedule; it’s just another thing for me to feel guilty about.
Are the lawyers working on my case? Did they call Charlie yet? Does he know? I peek out from behind the curtains for the hundredth time, almost expecting to see his car pulling up to the front and him striding across the front lawn. Will he have a gun? A baseball bat? An apology? Doubtful. He’ll probably come armed with insults and hateful comments about my personality and morals.
I smile a little thinking about how the idea of that doesn’t send me into quite as much of as panic as it used to. I have Colin now. I have friends who stick with me through thick and thin. Actually, I only know so far that they’ll stick with me through thin times, but I have to assume they’ll be there when my life is turned around too. It already feels like it’s headed in that direction.
Leaning my forehead against the glass, I let my mind wander back to last night. Colin is the gentlest of men. He might beat the pulp out of people who make him angry, but those same hands that are sometimes fists touch me with a feather-lightness. They make me shiver and groan. They warm me and then still themselves to cool me down.
I don’t know if this thing I have for him is bad, but if it is, I guess I’m just going to be a bad person. My parents would be shocked, but why should I care what they think? They abandoned me when I needed them most. Trying to please them is no longer one of my life goals.
I push thoughts of them out of my head. Rubbing my belly, I focus on happier thoughts. A bright new crib, an interview for a job in a few days, a court case that will settle my life once and for all. I made some hard decisions and I’m proud of myself. After almost nine months of hating myself and berating myself for being stupid, naive, worthless, and any number of other terrible things, I can finally look in the mirror and see someone beautiful there. Someone smart. And it’s not a man who did that for me; it was me who did it.
I have Colin’s support, but I know now that I can do this life thing. I can handle whatever it brings me. The time for pity-parties is over for good and it feels amazing to know that, to make that decision for myself.
I’m about to move away from the window when a car pulls into view. Colin! I’m about to take off running, but my eye goes back to the window. “Holy crud. What’s wrong with his car?” I whisper out loud into the room. Maybe I’m talking to the crib, I don’t know.
I don’t wait to try an analyze his car problem from far away. Instead, I waddle as fast as my penguin legs will take me down the stairs and outside. He’s getting out of the car as I walk up.
“Hey,” he says. He’s not happy.
“Hey.” I look at the dents in his hood and the scratched paint. “What happened? It looks like you drove under a construction site and a ton of bricks dropped on you.”
He doesn’t answer me at first.
I walk up closer to him, cautious because I can see he’s really mad. “Are you okay? Were you hurt?”
He jumps a little when I touch his arm, and he moves away. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
“Colin, talk to me. What happened?”
He runs his fingers through his hair, frustrated. “I think your ex-boyfriend happened to me.” He gestures to the hood. “Or I should say he happened to my car.”
My heart sinks as I take in the damage along with this new information about its origins. “Oh, my god. I’m so sorry, Colin.”
He lets out a long breath and tries to perk himself up. “Don’t worry about it. It’s not your fault.”
“It feels like it is.” I look at him, searching for signs that he no longer wants to be with me.
&nb
sp; “Well, it’s not.” He walks closer, puts his arm around me, and guides me towards the house.
“What are we doing now?”
“Thought we’d give that lawyer of yours a call and see if she’s talked to him.”
I hold out my phone. “I’ve been waiting for her to call all day, but I figured she wouldn’t contact me until Monday at the earliest.”
He pauses on the front porch. “If you want to wait, you can wait.”
I shake my head and press the contact for the lawyer, waiting as my phone automatically connects. “I’ll just leave her a message.” I’m standing in the foyer as the ringing starts.
But the message system doesn’t come on. She does.
“Natalie Brustovski.”
“Hi, Natalie. This is Alissa.”
“Alissa, hello. What can I do for you?”
“Sorry to bother you on a Saturday. I thought I was going to leave a message on your voicemail.” I cringe at the idea of having interrupted her weekend.
“I’m working all weekend. What’s up?”
“Well,” I sigh, trying to figure out how to word it, “I think Charlie vandalized my boyfriend’s car.”
“Tell me what happened.”
“I’m going to hand the phone over to Colin. He can tell you more than I can.” I give him the phone and listen in as best I can as we walk into the house.
“Hey, yeah, thanks … Okay … well, last night apparently while I was asleep someone decided to take out my windshield and back window, and left a few righteous dents in the hood. Slashed the tires, too.”
He listens for a few seconds as I look over my shoulder. The glass looks fine to me, as do the tires.
“Nah, I had the car towed this morning and already replaced most of it. I just don’t have time to do the bodywork right away. I’m slammed at work.”
I can’t believe I slept through all of that. I feel terrible that nobody woke me up and asked me to help. I don’t know what I could have done, but I would have tried to do something.