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She nodded. “Yes, Your Honor.” Her heart was beating like crazy against her chest, which was stupid because her lawyer had talked her through every step. Maybe it was the pressure of being in a real live courtroom – she’d never even seen inside one before today. Combined with the adrenaline from this morning’s surgery, she was surprised she was still able to breathe, let alone speak.
“And I see Mr. Black won’t be attending?” This was addressed to the attorney at the other table.
“That’s correct, Your Honor.”
“Okay, well let’s begin. In the matter of Newton versus Black, request to terminate parental rights, how does your client wish to plead?”
“No contest, Your Honor. My client confirms he wishes to rescind his rights.”
* * *
It was over in less than twenty minutes. The judge had reviewed their statements, asked a few questions, and granted Brooke’s petition. The fact Jamie was in complete agreement with it hadn’t hurt their case. As far as the law was concerned, he was no longer Nicholas’s father.
As far as Brooke was concerned, he never had been.
“I’ll have the paperwork finished and over to you by the end of the week,” her attorney said as they stood and waited for the court to empty. “Good luck, Miss Newton, not that you need it.”
“Thank you for all you’ve done.” She shook his proferred hand and grabbed her purse, slinging it over her shoulder. The attorney gave her a nod, and headed over to talk with Jamie’s attorney, leaving Brooke alone in the courtroom.
Another deep breath. What a day it had been. She’d saved a dog and protected her son all in the matter of a few hours. Biting down a smile, she headed toward the door to the lobby, pushing it open to see everybody waiting there for her.
Her parents were the first to congratulate her. Though things hadn’t returned to the way they had used to be between them, they were civil enough. Her mom gave her a quick hug, and her father patted her back. She’d had to turn down his offer to fund this lawsuit three times – thank God he didn’t offer again.
“I’m so happy for you both.” Ember was the next to hug her, quickly followed by Ally who was almost jumping up and down with happiness. And as they parted, she saw Aiden waiting for her, wearing a dark blue suit that took her breath away.
“Hey.” He took a step forward, reaching out to cup her cheek. From the corner of her eye she saw her parents leave the lobby. There was still no love lost between them and Aiden, but she couldn’t bring herself to care. They were polite to each other, and that’s all she asked for.
“Hey.” She felt breathless, the way she always did when he touched her. He took another step closer until his body was only inches away from hers. With his stature and build, he dwarfed her, and yet he never made her feel anything less than his equal.
Usually, he made her feel so much more.
“Congratulations,” he whispered, brushing his lips against hers. “How do you feel?”
She closed her eyes for a moment, breathing him in. Her heart skipped like an excited puppy to have him so near. “I feel…” She frowned, trying to think. “The same. Nothing’s changed, really, has it?”
He laughed. “No, it hasn’t.”
“Jamie was never Nick’s father, not really.” She opened her eyes, inclining her head until her gaze met his. “As far as he’s concerned, you’re his father.”
He’d been calling Aiden ‘Dad’ for the past couple of months. Last week, he’d made him a Father’s Day card and given it to Aiden with a beaming smile on his face. Aiden had turned his face away so Nick hadn’t seen the tears forming in them, but Brooke had seen them.
And they’d made her want to cry too.
“Like I said at therapy last week, as far as I’m concerned he is my son.” He ran the pad of his finger across the sharp plane of her cheekbone.
She smiled at the memory. She and Nick had been seeing a family therapist ever since she’d told him the truth about his father, and in the past couple of months Aiden had joined them. They were becoming a family in almost every sense of the word.
“I’d like to make it official, if you’ll both have me,” Aiden murmured, as though he could read her mind.
“Official?”
“Yeah.” For the first time he looked uncertain, and it made her love him even more. She was used to his raw confidence, his strength, but it was his vulnerability which made him complete. “I was going to save this for another time. When we were alone.” He glanced behind her, presumably at her friends. “But I’m not sure I can wait any longer.” He pushed a hand into his pocket and pulled out a small blue velvet box. “I’ve been carrying this around for weeks.”
“What is it?” She was grinning because she already knew. And his smile told her he knew she knew.
He opened the lid, and she stared down at the contents with wide eyes, blinking with recognition. A simple oval emerald set in an elegant yellow gold setting. “This was your Mom’s,” she said, looking up at him. “It’s beautiful.”
“I had it reset,” he told her. “But with the same design. Her fingers were much bigger than yours.”
