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“That’s not it. I trust you. But that’s the thing. I’ve never had someone that I trusted like you. No one has ever been there for me whenever I needed them. We haven’t known each other that long, but you’ve been a rock for me since we met.”
I lift my head, tears still swimming in my eyes. “I just want you to know that I love you, Richard. I don’t want one more second to go by without me telling you that.”
He smiles and leans down, his lips gently touching mine and it feels like the earth slows to a crawl when I’m in his arms. Like time and space mean nothing in the grand scheme of things. As long as I have Richard and my babies.
He lifts his head and I’m so breathless that I have to steady myself holding onto him. “Now. Let’s go take care of this little problem and then we’re gonna see about a wedding. I’m not letting you back out at this point.”
I laugh as he drags me out the door, a sly grin on his lips and a sparkle in his deep brown eyes that makes my heart sing with joy.
It feels like it only takes seconds and we’re standing in the principal’s office and Janice is smiling at me. “There you are, Jess. This has been a really eventful day. How are you?”
I smile and hold out my hand to Richard. “I am good. But I want to get this taken care of as soon as possible considering the fire today and everything.”
“Yes. You must be exhausted. I’m so sorry to bug you today of all days. Do you have the papers that Leslie mentioned?”
I pull them out of the file and hand them to the principal who hands them to her brother, an attorney. He reads through them carefully once. Then even slower a second time while it feels like my heart stops. The other woman is sitting over on a chair being watched by a deputy who is with the Sheriff. Her eyes are cold and dead and her mouth is a thin line of anger.
After the second read, he hands them back to me. “It all looks perfectly in order. Gavin is her child. She’s adopting him legally but she’s also already been awarded custody seeing as she’s her sister’s only living relative. Therefore the children are hers.”
Miriam bounces up and her cold grey eyes flash with fire. “No way! That boy is mine.”
“You gave up all rights to him at birth. And you were paid a fee by the private adoption agency that handled the arrangements. You have no legal rights anymore.”
“But, but,” she sputters. “I gave him up to a couple. She can’t take care of two kids. I won’t allow it. I want the best for my boy.”
“Suffice it to say that it doesn’t matter what you think anymore. This is a moot point. She has legal rights to her sister’s children. One of whom was given to her legally through adoption and one of whom was hers. You have no legal leg to stand on.”
“I’ll take it to an attorney,” she huffs.
“You can try. But in the meantime, Gavin stays with Jessica. And I don’t know how she wants to handle this but I’m advising her to make sure that she gets a protective order against you.” The man’s eyes slip up and down her bristling figure coldly. “I don’t trust you and I think any judge worth his salt would agree.”
The Sheriff and deputy start to lead her out of the room, wincing when she starts shrieking louder than a fire truck. “I’m not letting this go! I am going to get my boy back!”
“Not today you’re not. And most likely not ever, ma’am.”
And with those parting words, she’s pushed out of the room and hopefully out of our lives.
Janice eyes me happily. “Except for the fire and custody problems and Miracle’s attack, I’ve never seen you look happier.”
Richard laughs. “We’ll send you an invite to the wedding. Is it alright if we take Gavin and head to the hospital to check on Miracle.”
Nodding her dark head, she smirks. “I hope that y’all have an amazing night. Enjoy your first day as a family.”
We walk out together and stand, stunned, on the front steps. “We’re going to be a family,” I whisper, smiling like an idiot.
“We are a family,” Richard insists, picking up Gavin in his arms and carrying the exhausted, emotional boy to the car.
He doesn’t say anything until we get to the car. “What happened to the old car?” he asks.
“We needed something safer for you guys. Because we don’t want anything to happen to you.”
He curls up in the back seat and I smile at the car seat, leaning over to kiss his cheek. His whiskers tickle my face and I giggle. “You really do think of everything, don’t you?”
“I do.” His heated gaze locks on me. “Trust me. I will take care of everything for the rest of our lives. You’ll never want for anything.”
“As long as I have you…that’s all I want. You and our family.”
“That goes double for me, baby.”
