Maggie stood at the same time as him, and they headed for his car. Michael squared his shoulders and resolved that by tonight, he’d have Maggie’s divorce signed so he could have it filed first thing in the morning.
MICHAEL
Kevin's office sat on the second floor of a glass-fronted building on the main commercial road in Sanibel, three doors down from a coffee shop and across the street from a small accountancy firm. Michael held the door for Maggie, and she calmly breezed through it with a newfound confidence.
The receptionist looked up.
"Mrs. Sullivan," the receptionist greeted her with a familiar smile. "Are you here to see Mr. Sullivan?”
"Hello, Nancy," Maggie said. "Yes, we are here to see him, and please, from today it’s Ms. Samuel, as I’m going back to my family name ."
“I’m glad,” Nancy told her with a bright smile. “It’s about time. Go up, I’ll unlock the elevator for you.”
They climbed in and were whisked to Kevin’s floor. The door to the elevator dinged open, and they stepped out. It was not a bad space, Michael noted as Maggie led them through to Kevin's office. His assistant greeted Maggie with warmth, as Michael noted.They all liked her here.
“Hello,” Maggie greeted the man. “Is he in?”
“Yes, you can go in. He’s not with anyone at the moment,” the assistant told her.
Maggie gave a few sharp raps on the door before they heard a voice inside.
“Come in,” Kevin called.
Maggie pushed the doors open and stepped inside. Kevin looked startled at first, then his face turned into a smile that looked more like he was gloating as he assumed they were there to give him what he’d demanded.
"Maggie," Kevin said. "Michael. Please come take a seat." He gestured to the chairs in front of his desk. “I take it you’re here to sign me off on my demands?”
Maggie pulled out a small recording device and plopped it onto the table, pressing record.
"We are here to address your demands, Kevin," Maggie told him, and they saw the light of greed spark in Kevin's eyes. “But first, I need to formally introduce Michael to you as my new attorney for the record.”
As she read the date and time, Michael had to hide a smile as Kevin's smile faltered.
"Your new attorney?" Kevin repeated, then glanced at Maggie. “What was wrong with your last one? He was helping you.”
"Well, he’s been let go," Michael confirmed. "Now let’s get straight down to the business of your divorce, shall we?”
“I thought we were just going to talk about my demand,” Kevin said, going a little pale.
Michael ignored his comments and continued. “The settlement proposal you delivered to Maggie Sullivan, soon to be Samuels again, this morning has been reviewed.” He tilted his head slightly and held Kevin’s eyes that were slowly filling with panic. “It will not be accepted. I have prepared a counter-proposal that I would like to walk you through and strongly recommend you sign it."
Michael opened the slim leather folder he’d carried in from the car, removed a clean printed document, and slid it across Kevin's desk.
Kevin didn’t pick it up.
"Michael," Kevin said. "Maggie and I agreed this morning to keep attorneys out of it until we come to an agreement on how much of her boutique and inheritance I will receive."
"No. Maggie agreed to read your terms," Michael corrected. "She made no commitment to negotiate without representation. My proposal was already in place before that meeting. Please read the document, Kevin."
Kevin glanced at Maggie. Maggie held his gaze calmly.
Kevin pulled the document toward him, and his eyes scanned the page. His face reddened with anger before he pushed the document back toward Michael. "This is unacceptable," Kevin stated.
"Which part?" Michael asked.
"All of it," Kevin answered. "Where is my share in the building or the boutique? The spousal support I’m entitled to because she earns a lot more than I do, and she initiated the divorce.” He hit the document with the top of his hand in annoyance. “Instead,you want me to sign a full waiver of any future claim on Maggie's business, brand, or estate.” His eyes bulged in fury. “And the clause on Toby is, frankly, insulting."
"The clause on Toby reflects the guardianship agreement you signed eighteen months ago, Kevin," Michael reminded him. "You signed away any guardianship rights at that time, in writing, in exchange for the lump sum of money that Maggie paid you. That document is on file. The clause in this contract simply codifies what is already legally true. You have no claim on access to your grandson. Toby will decide for himself when he is old enough to choose."
