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It was my lawyer, Thom, and I waited until I was back in my room to speak, keeping my voice low until I shut the door. “Hey, Thom. What has you calling me at the ass crack of dawn? Someone better be dead because my girls are still asleep, which means I should still be asleep.”
“Sorry, but I didn’t think this was news that could wait until a better time to call.”
My heart skipped a beat as fear flitted through me. I’d filed a petition to adopt Cassidy and Daisy shortly after they arrived. “Is there a problem with the adoption?”
“I don’t think so,” he hurried to assure me. “This will just be a small bump in the road since you are clearly their best option. ”
I gritted my teeth, annoyed that he, like most other people, seemed to think the only reason my girls should be with me was because of my wealth. “So what’s the problem?”
“Someone wants to file for custody of Cassidy and Daisy.” His voice was hesitant as if he was bracing himself for an explosion, which would have happened if my daughters’ rooms hadn’t been just down the hall.
“What the fuck, Thom?” I snarled.
“It turns out, Carrie’s sister-in-law…let me see…oh, right, Ava Cromwell, remained close with your cousin.”
“Sister-in-law? Cromwell?” My temper flared. “Are you telling me that Carrie’s deadbeat ex-husband has a sister who wants to try to get custody of my daughters?”
“Um, yes. But the good news is that according to her attorney—that’s who I just got off the phone with—she was originally planning to ask for full custody, but once she found out you had them, she decided to go for joint instead.”
“The judge won’t seriously consider it, will he? Everyone in town knows the Cromwell reputation.”
“I’m not sure what the circumstances are,” Thom said, clearing his throat. “But I can’t guarantee the judge won’t at least consider a petition if she files one since she’s their aunt. Obviously, you have the means to fight this, but custody battles can get messy., What I recommend for now is that you consider letting her visit the girls. It will show the judge that you’re acting in their best interest and give us time to figure out how to handle the situation.”
“Visitation?” I supposed that wasn’t too bad. At least I’d be able to supervise the whole time. And depending on how it went, I might be open to more visits. Considering this chick was a Cromwell, though, I didn’t think that scenario was very likely. “Fine. Set it up.”
“Alright. Um…I should warn you. Just to be prepared, of course. It’s highly likely that this is a scheme to get money from you. She’s probably just looking to score. Especially considering how easily she decided to go for joint custody instead. It would be a better opportunity to get money from you if you’re both responsible for the girls’ well-being.”
The thought had already crossed my mind. But I had another question. “Why now? Why didn’t she try three months ago?”
“I asked her lawyer the same thing. He was cagey about it, but I had the impression that she couldn’t afford him until now. Just keep your eyes and ears open while she’s around the girls. Custody won’t be an issue if you can show that she is unfit to be around them. If you can prove that she’s only there to try to extort money from you…”
I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose, frustrated as fuck with the whole situation. Then the monitor squealed, letting me know that Daisy was awake and ready for a bottle.
“I don’t have time for this bullshit,” I grunted. “Just set it up for next week, and we’ll go from there.” I hung up and spun around as I shoved my phone into the pocket of my pajama pants.
My girls needed me.
2
Ava
As I was refilling coffee for one of my regular customers, my cell vibrated in my apron. Scanning the restaurant for my boss, I slumped my shoulders in relief when I looked at the food pass-through window and saw him working at the grill. We weren’t allowed to use our phones at work unless we were on a break, but I needed to keep mine with me this morning because I was expecting the most important call of my life.
I hurried over to the coffee machine and put the pot on the burner before heading toward the bathroom. I yanked my cell from my apron pocket, a knot forming in my stomach when I saw my lawyer’s number on the screen. Ducking into a stall, I accepted the call. “Hello?”
“Good morning, Miss Cromwell.”
My fingers trembled as I locked the door behind me. “Do you have news?”
“Mr. Ellis is willing to let you see Cassidy and Daisy.”
Tears filled my eyes as I whispered, “He really said I could come see the girls?”
It had been two long months since I’d seen my nieces. The only thing I’d been able to find out back then was that the girls had gone to someone in Carrie’s family. I had wanted to go after them the minute I heard about her death—which thanks to my jerk of a brother wasn’t until an entire week later—but one of my coworkers had convinced me it was better to wait until I had all of my ducks in a row. She’d warned me about how ugly custody battles could get and that hiring a great lawyer was the only way to win if things got bad. Since she was newly divorced and had managed to get full custody of her kids, I figured she knew best.
“Yes, and with less resistance than I expected.” There was a rustling of paper in the background. “I’m hopeful that his quick acquiescence is an indication that he will be amenable to sharing custody with you.”
The tears spilled down my cheeks. “How soon can I see them?”
