Chapter 20 #2
“This is a good segue into the contract since she next brought it up in defense of her presence. Since you’re her son and getting married, she has a lot to do and will need to be in constant contact with you.”
“I believe her words were, ‘You need to tell him to turn his phone back on—we have wedding details to discuss,’” Avory supplies.
“Oh no,” Xavi says, though he doesn’t manage to keep a grin from his face.
“We didn’t get into details, but since she brought up the contract, I made some highlights concerning the wedding itself, in which it spells out, point blank, that unless explicitly asked to handle something, she was to stay out of all wedding details.
Of course, she tried to say that you wanted her to handle the wedding, to which her attorney asked if you’d agree with that statement,” Nash says.
“She was silent,” Avory supplies.
“I’m sorry. I’m truly not trying to be giddy here, but I finally feel like I’m getting my fucking point across,” I say. Then I remember that I don’t know Avory at all, so I meet his eyes. “I apologize for my language.”
He waves me off. “No worries, Mr. Undergrove.”
“Your mother hasn’t brought up the contract since,” Nash continues.
“Nor the wedding. I think either she’s realized or her attorney has pointed out that she’s in breach of the contract.
I have taken the liberty of calling the church that’s indicated in your contract to ask for details.
I issued a subpoena and now have all the information they do regarding this wedding.
Unsurprisingly, your mother has it all set up—all vendors and whatever.
You’ll also be interested to know that she’s pulled draws from your trust to pay for it—another breach of contract to which you’ll be fully reimbursed. ”
“Can we sue her for damages?” Xavi asks. “Both of Enfield’s parents—can we sue them?”
“Yes,” Avory says. “You specifically and separately. I’ve worked up details we can discuss, in private if you prefer.”
“You’re also suing your parents above and beyond the breach of contract,” Nash tells me. “I’ve found some interesting information concerning lineage and offspring in the Undergrove Trust bylaws that your mother is wildly in breach of concerning your children.”
“I don’t want them involved, Nash,” I say, shaking my head.
He holds up his hand. “They won’t be. Neither will their mothers. We have all we need to confirm that your parents are incredibly out of line denouncing them as your heirs and their entitlement to your family legacy.”
“Nash—”
He reaches across the table and grips my hand. “I know you don’t want your kids involved in this contract mess, Enfield. You’ll be interested to know—and pissed to know—that the contracts are voluntary. Meaning it’s up to your parents whether they enforce the necessity of them on their children.”
My jaw clenches.
“So no matter what the outcome of this is, your kids are not required to have a marriage contract to be named your heirs, Enfield. They are fully entitled to everything outlined in these contracts simply by existing, and your multitude of paternity tests prove that all three children are your blood.”
“Multitude?” Xavi asks.
I grin. “My parents were insistent that the mothers were just looking for a piece of the family fortune. I had every single paternity test under the fucking sun performed to prove that they’re actually mine.”
“Irrefutable evidence,” Nash says.
“Redundant evidence,” Avory agrees, nodding. “So absolute that the results can’t be argued. The best kind of evidence to have.”
“So now what?” Xavi asks. “Where do we go from here?”
Both Van Dorens set tablets on the table. “From here, we do boring paperwork. We’ll go through it together since a lot of this is a group effort. When we get to individual cases, we can break apart if you feel more comfortable,” Avory says.
Xavi looks at me.
“You don’t owe me anything,” I assure him. “Especially not with how I handled this to begin with.”
He chews the inside of his lip for a minute as he stares at me. “Actually, I’d like it if we’re all on the same page for everything. I don’t want to cause Enfield harm at all.”
“Sounds to me like he had initially been treating you poorly,” Avory says. He doesn’t look at me; his attention is entirely on Xavi.
Xavi’s eyebrows knit together. “How do you know that?”
“I told him,” Nash says, and Xavi stares at him in surprise. “With Enfield’s permission, of course. So you know, it was never his intention to hurt you or be an asshole to you. He was completely caught off guard when you turned out to be a male, and it was difficult for him to calm his anger.”
“That’s not an excuse for his behavior,” Avory assures Xavi.
I shake my head in agreement.
“When he called and told me he couldn’t remain as cold and distant toward you because making you…
upset was killing him, we adjusted our plan.
When I insisted that you have your own lawyer, Enfield instructed me to tell them everything because you are the client and your best interest was the only thing your new lawyer needed to have in mind.
So yes, I told him how Enfield treated you. ”
Xavi looks at the table. He blinks rapidly several times, lips pressed together. His breathing is a bit heavier, and he sniffles. After a minute, he meets my eyes. “Thank you.”
I give him half a smile and nod a little. He needs to know that this was never about him. I never wanted to hurt him. But as usual, I often hurt those in my path in my attempt to get what I want. Xavi was just one more casualty who didn’t deserve it. This time, I intend to make it right.