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“Ah, okay.” He nodded. “Vance called me. I’ve heard some local attorneys have an affiliation with the club, but that’s hearsay. The details of any such relationship, if it even existed, would be attorney-client privilege so let’s leave that alone and move on.”
I waited for some sort of derision or perhaps even an outright rejection or refusal to take my case, but it never came. He just sat there, waiting for me to proceed.
“Waverly and I moved into a house owned by the wife of the club president. I pay rent, utilities, everything. I work part-time at Leather and Ink, a retail boutique, but I’ve recently started my own web design business. I’m in the middle of one project, but I have another lined up. The fact is, I’ve been financially responsible for my sister for years. Now I’d like to make it legal.”
“I see.”
“Her school has no idea,” I said. “It’s nearing the end of the school year and I was hoping to make it to summer break without them knowing. I don’t want CPS called. Waverly and I can’t be separated. She can’t be moved to another home. I can take care of her. Ihavetaken care of her. And she wants this.”
“You’ve spoken to her about the situation?”
I nodded. “She’s on board. Eager, even.”
“The courts don’t usually take the feelings of a minor into account,” Ansel said. “Despite the fact that Waverly wants you to become her legal guardian, there’s going to be more to it than that. We have to prove to the court that you’re financially stable enough to support your sister, and that your mother has abandoned any and all parental responsibility.”
“How do we do that?” I asked.
“A letter from your boss at the boutique, bank statements, financial records. However, because you haven’t been in business long, being a small business owner will not be counted favorably.”
I frowned. “What does that mean?”
“It means because you’re self-employed, the courts will scrutinize your finances in a way that wouldn’t happen if you had a full-time job with benefits and retirement plan, for example. The courts see known career paths as stable, but business owners as a liability. For example, if you worked for a Fortune 500 company as a graphic designer, you’d be good…but own your own business? That’s a different story.”
“Well, what can I do?” I demanded. “I can’t all of a sudden muster loads of clients or change time and say I’ve been successful for years.”
“Stability is the key,” Ansel said. “The courts will want to see that you’ll be able to provide stability for your sister until she’s of legal age. Part of it is financial, but there is another aspect to it you may not have considered. The courts also want to see that Waverly will have a stable home life.”
“I’m missing something here, aren’t I?” I asked.
“Are you married, Willa?”
I shoved the key into the lock and twisted. I pushed open the door and let out a yelp.
Savage was lying on the couch, his head on the armrest, facing the door.
A scowl bloomed across his face.
“Oh, sorry,” I sassed. “Did I wake you from a nap? A nap onmycouch inmyhouse? A courtesy text that you were coming over would’ve been nice, by the way.”
He swiveled his body so he was sitting upright and his feet hit the floor.
“Close the door, Willa,” he said, his tone ominous.
I stared at him. “What’s going on?”
“Close. The. Door.”
There were times I could tease Savage about beingSavage.
This wasn’t one of them.
He was pissed about something.
I had to tread carefully.
He wouldn’t hurt me, ever, but when he was mad there was usually a good reason and I wanted to figure out what was going on. So, I closed the door and set my purse down.
“Come here.”
