Chapter 20
TWENTY
WREN
Ifollowed Mom into the law office, a small brick building close to her real estate building with white pillars on either side of the portico. How fitting.
Mom met with a woman behind a desk, who directed us to sit in the lobby chairs. Where the hell was Eli? I wanted him here for this.
As if on cue, Eli entered the lobby through the glass door. He scanned the room and settled on me. “Wren.”
“Come here. We’re waiting to see the lawyer.” I patted the chair next to mine.
“Hello, Eli. I’m glad you could make it.” Mom rose and gave Eli a swift hug.
Before taking the chair beside me, Eli kissed my cheek. “How are you doing?” His gaze combed over me, and then he grasped my hand.
“I’m okay. I have a feeling we’ll only hear what we already know.” I breathed through the gnawing feeling in my gut. The question was, could I do anything about it and, if so, should I?
A man with thinning grey hair, in a blue sweater vest and slacks, strolled into the room. “Vicky, come on back.” He glanced at me and then Eli.
“Come on, boys.” Mom stood and followed the man, tucking her purse under her arm.
After walking through a short hallway, we ducked into a conference room with long windows along one wall.
The man stood at the table’s end, papers stacked, the trust before him.
“Jack, I’d like you to meet my son, Wren, and his boyfriend, Eli.” Mom held her hand out to us.
We greeted the lawyer with handshakes and dropped into chairs around the table, with me sitting next to Eli and across from Mom.
With my leg bouncing, I bit my thumbnail. I’d let Mom handle this since she knew the lawyer.
“So, Jack, I think what we’re waiting to hear is for you to summarize what’s in the trust document in layperson’s terms and then your recommendation of whether my son should sign it.” Mom planted her purse on the table and rested her hands in her lap.
After clearing his throat, Jack said, “You were correct, Vicky. The revision to the trust adds Karen Lewis as the sole beneficiary of the trust assets if she survives your ex-husband, Darren. After her, your son and Stuart Lewis would share the assets. Nadine Thorsen would continue to be the executor of the trust until she passes.” He glanced at each of us, shifting in his seat.
“If Nadine passes first, then Darren becomes executor, and if he passes before Karen, then it reverts to Karen.” He folded his hands on the trust papers. “What questions do you have?”
As my heart dropped, I stared at the table. So that meant I would depend on fucking Karen for getting my half of the trust? “Um…how long would Karen be executor when…when it comes to her?” Because she was twenty fucking years younger than Dad or Nadine.
“She would be the executor until she passes.” Jack pursed his lips.
“Wren, your mother has explained the situation to me. I understand this is hard to hear.” He peeked at Mom and focused on me.
“You may contest this and not sign it. If I were you, I would negotiate the right to split the trust assets equally with Karen upon your father’s death and remove Nadine as the executor of your half. ”
I squeezed Eli’s hand. “H-how, um, how might I manage that?” Fuck, I knew nothing about this shit.
“Well, I could draft an amendment to this reinstatement, and we’d start there.
” Jack creased his brows. “Vicky, it would be helpful if you could talk to Nadine first and get her take on my proposal, since she’s the current executor.
” He drew a quick breath. “You’d need all current parties—Nadine, Darren and Wren—to agree to any new terms.”
“Not Karen?” I flicked my gaze to Jack. Was there any hope?
“No, she’s not listed in the current trust.” Jack arched a brow. “Your best shot at this is gaining a consensus before drawing any legal documents up. My proposal guarantees Karen and Stuart receive their due under this reinstatement.”
What was due? Karen was a bloodsucker. I was sure of it.
She’d never bothered to get to know me. Could barely speak to us at the dinner she orchestrated for us in her new, fancy home Dad bought her.
I could only imagine what she’d told Dad behind closed doors.
“I’ll consider this and get back to you.
” My attention drew to Mom, her forehead wrinkling and lips tensing.
“Wren, I can call Nadine. I would normally call to wish her a merry Christmas, anyway.” Mom set her hands on the table. “Let’s start there, okay?”
What if communicating with Nadine complicated matters? What if Dad and Karen had said something terrible about us to her? “Mom, let’s leave it for now. I need time to consider this.” I focused on Jack. “What’s the time limit on this thing?”
“Well, in many states, there’s a time limit of ninety days to challenge a trust, so I wouldn’t wait longer than, say, six weeks to make your decision.” Jack pushed the stack of papers toward Mom.
“Okay, following the holidays, we can begin the inquiries.” Maybe with Eli by my side, I’d have the strength to confront my father and Karen in person once we were home. My gaze swung to Eli. “Babe, I might need your help on this one.”
“Of course. Anything you need.” He squeezed my hand and kissed my cheek.
“Thank you, Jack. I’ll contact you when we need you to draft an amendment.” Mom stood.
“It’s my pleasure, Vicky. I’m always here to help.” He gave Mom a warm grin as he rose. “And, Merry Christmas.”
After giving our thanks and saying goodbye to Jack, we left the law office.
At the bottom of the portico steps, Mom stopped. “Wren, am I taking you home or—”
“Nope, I’d like to confiscate him if you don’t mind.” Eli wrapped an arm around my shoulders. “I’ve got my dad’s truck over here. Would you like to grab a beer? I saw a cute Irish pub down the street.”
“Would I.” With a glance at Mom, I waved. “See you later and don’t wait up for me.” Talking it through with the man I loved was just what I needed.
“Guess I’ll go out for dinner then.” Scoffing a laugh, Mom strolled toward her car.
Eli drove to the quaint Irish pub, and we parked on the street and then ambled inside. Rich woods covered the walls of the place, and comfy booths lined one side with green leather seats.
Guiding me to a booth, Eli slid in beside me, and we ordered pints of Guinness, because why wouldn’t we in a place like this?
“So, tell me what you really think?” Eli twisted his pint on the wooden table.
I sipped my beer, the cool, nutty and creamy flavor gliding across my tongue.
“This will be a total shitshow. Judging from the fact that my father already thinks I’m after his money, any contesting of the new trust will only prove to him he’s right.
” My insides twisted. I was between a rock and a hard place.
“But you can’t let Karen dictate when and how you spend your inheritance.” Eli wrinkled his brows. “You barely know her.”
“Yeah, right.” I slowly nodded, watching the creamy head at the top of my beer. “Listen, Karen always stays in the background, like she did at our dinner party. I think it’s so no one suspects her of anything. I’ll bet she’s done with same with my Aunt Nadine.”
“Wren, you’re sounding a little paranoid.” He slipped an arm across my shoulders and leaned in close. “What if she’s just trying to protect her newborn?”
“Protect him? From what? Me?” With a scoff, I shook my head. “I’m telling you, something’s not right. I can feel it.” I sipped my beer. Eli had to believe me.
“Okay, yeah. I think we’ll know more after you and your mom talk to your aunt and your dad.” He drank a gulp of beer. “Everyone needs to communicate. Has your therapist suggested having your dad come to one of your sessions?”
I balked. “Yes, but I’m not currently on speaking terms with my dad.
” I sighed and angled toward him. “Eli, it’s not like I want to keep all the damn money.
I understand Dad had another son, and Stuart deserves his share.
Hell, even his mother deserves to be taken care of if something happens to Dad.
But the thought of her having all the control… fuck, it pisses me off.”
“I hear you, and you have every right to be angry.” He pulled me closer to him.
“I suggest you take time to think about your response. This situation is delicate and could affect your relationship with your father for the rest of your life.” He furrowed his brows.
“Please talk through your feelings with your therapist when we get home.”
As my chest relaxed, I said, “Yes, I will.” Eli was right, as usual. “Let’s enjoy a nice dinner and forget about it for now.” It seemed I was doing a lot of this lately, but it was the damn holidays.
On Christmas Eve we had a wonderful time with both our families, reliving traditions, eating mounds of delicious food and enjoying ourselves. There’d been no talk of trusts, only happy memories, even when Mom called Aunt Nadine.
On Christmas Day, Mom had made a ham with mashed potatoes, and she’d invited a few of her single friends to join us. We ate with them, opened presents and then left for Eli’s house in his father’s truck.
As we approached his family home, a modest two stories with the bedrooms all upstairs, he said, “Wren, before we go in there, I want to give you my present.” He stopped the truck in the driveway, cut the engine and turned to me. “It’s private.”
“Okay…” What the hell had he gotten me into? Would my present of a spa day look stupid compared to his? I held my breath for a moment. Wait a minute… “It’s not something sexy, is it?” I snorted.
“No, it’s not.” Chuckling, he gave my arm a soft backhand. “It’s…here.” Reaching into the back seat, he pulled a box from a bag, wrapped in green foil paper with a red ribbon on top, and then he handed it to me. “It’s sort of for both of us.”
“Yeah? Good. My present is for both of us too.” And thank God for web purchases. I rotated the container, attempting to shake it near my ear.
“Stop it.” He snatched my hand. “Just open it.” He scoffed a laugh.