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Zoey shoves him hard in the chest, and he doesn’t fight her as she starts pacing the foyer. “Do you do drugs while she’s at your place?”
Kyle shakes his head. “No, never! Only at these parties.”
“And you have thegallto come at me for being a bad parent when all I do is love and support Hailee the best way I can.Fuck you, Kyle.I’m not the bad parent in this dynamic.You are!You said you were filing for a custody agreement. Well, you can prepare yourself for a damn fight because I’m not letting Hailee anywherenearthat fucking house of yours!”
Kyle sinks into himself, glaring at me like he wants to kick my ass. “Zo, c’mon—”
I move in beside Zoey, wrapping an arm around her waist, giving her support. As much as I want to fight this for her, I know I have to let her handle it.
“No. You have been a shithead of a father all her life. If you want a fight, you’ve damn well got one. Or you can walk away now and have visitation with her once a month while Blake and I are present. We can work on it the more I begin to trust you again, but right now, Kyle…” she shakes her head, “… I can’t trustyou.”
“Kyle, listen to the woman. This is my place of business. Zoey is one of my top employees and Blake is my business partner. You won’t only have her to deal with, but you will have all of us and the best damn defense team. What she’s offering you is generous, and you know it,” Nash warns, and I can honestly say, I never thought Nash would go to bat like this for me.
Kyle raises his hands. “Okay, once a month, got it. But don’t tell Tamara about my parties while she is away… deal?”
I curl up my lip at the audacity of this douche, but Zoey huffs and then nods. “Stop calling Blake Brad, and we have a deal.”
“Don’t forget the apology, asshole,” Lucas singsongs and Kyle looks at him in confusion.
“What are you talking about?”
Lucas simply raises an eyebrow expectantly.
Kyle’s eyes shift to me, and he nods, placing out his hand for me to shake. “I’m sorry,Blake.Please take care of my daughter. She deserves someone more responsible than I can ever be.”
I take his hand and shake it. “I will. She’s a good kid. Thebestkid. You get your shit together for her sake.”
Kyle sighs, a look of regret forming in his eyes. “I know… and for what it’s worth, Zo, I’m sorry it came to this.”
“We could have done this so amicably, Kyle, if you’d only given it a chance.”
He glances at me, then back to Zoey, dipping his chin. “I’ll see you next month, but I will keep in touch, see how Hailee is doing.”
“Get out,” Zoey states as Kyle walks toward the elevator.
My heart races at the thought that we might have just won this war.
As soon as he is inside and the elevator doors close, Zoey grabs me, pulling me to her. Her hands rush into my hair, pulling my lips to hers hard. I smirk against her lips while kissing her, not giving a shit that Nash and Lucas are probably watching from inside Nash’s office. My hands slide around her waist, and I kiss her back to show her exactly what she means to me.
Eventually pulling back, I rest my forehead against hers, looking into her bright blue eyes. She lets out a small exhale, sniffling her emotion back. “How, Blake?”
“I got Cleo to do some digging, or at least to find someone whocoulddo some digging.”
She laughs. “It’s over? It’s really over?”
I smile, leaning in, pressing my lips to hers again in a quick kiss. “Yeah, Cupcake. It’s really over. But us… we’re just beginning.”
She smiles so wide that her eyes light up the office like the heavens have just opened. “I like the sound of that.”
EPILOGUE
Blake
Five Months Later
December
Hailee is the happiest I’ve ever seen. She’s running around the exhibits, telling us everything about the different constellations. It’s so nice seeing her in her element. She also seems more settled by not having to see her father as much. I think his and Tamara’s lifestyle is totally unsuitable for a young child. Hailee needs stability, and Kyle is too much of a playboy to take in what a seven-year-old needs.
