Chapter 18
eighteen
AVA
“Your Honor, based on the evidence we’ve provided, we feel it’s only right Max’s custody arrangements remain the same. Mr. Marks has done nothing to warrant the removal of Max from his home?—”
“He’s dying! How can that be good for Max?!” Nicole shouts from her side of the courtroom.
I shouldn’t be surprised, based on everything I’ve been told about Nicole, but I am. I assumed her lawyer would have given her the same speech I gave Scott and everyone else. You don’t speak in a courtroom unless the judge asks you a question directly. You always let your lawyer do the talking.
Honestly, things had probably been going too smoothly. I should have known an outburst was around the corner, but to say what she just did is uncalled for.
“Your Honor!” I call.
“Order! Counselor, get a hold of your client,” the judge warns.
Joseph Henry, Nicole’s lawyer, leans toward her, whispering something in her ear before turning back to the judge. “Sorry, Your Honor. It won’t happen again.”
“Ms. Day, you may proceed.”
“Mr. Marks has always been present in Max’s life. There’s no evidence to show Mr. Marks as an unfit parent. What kind of precedent will it set to remove Max from his custody simply because his biological mother, who abandoned him when he was two, wants to be back in his life?” I pause, taking a breath.
I know I should be a little more impartial to this, but I can’t. Scott Marks is the kind of father every man should strive to be. The way he loves those he cares for is something to be witnessed.
“That’s all, Your Honor,” I finish, retaking my seat next to Scott.
“All right. I’ve heard from both sides?—”
“Your Honor—” Mr. Henry tries to interrupt.
“Mr. Henry, you had your chance,” the judge stops him, speaking sternly. “This isn’t a trial where you need to defend your client. This is a preliminary hearing to determine next steps. Which is what I’m about to go over with you.” He pauses as if to ensure he won’t be interrupted again.
The judge looks to me and back to Mr. Henry before he states, “I will be ordering the two of you to mediation. If an agreement has not been reached after two months, we’ll schedule a hearing where I will make a decision.”
He turns to Scott. “Mr. Marks, I do not envy your position, and while I’m sure you have prepared as much as possible for the future, I ask you to seriously consider what is in your son's best interest.” Now he turns to Nicole. “Mrs. Williams, I know people change, and I hope you have. But I urge you to think about how the courts will view your absence from your son’s life for the past ten years. Think hard about what you are asking of this court, and more importantly, your son. Know that all of this will influence any decision made.” The judge looks down and shuffles some papers around in front of him before looking back up at Mr. Henry and me. “Thank you for your time today. Court is adjourned.”
“All rise,” the bailiff calls.
As soon as the judge has closed the door behind him, I turn to speak to everyone in the first row behind Scott and me.
“That’s exactly what we expected and hoped for,” I say, a comforting smile forming on my lips. “I’ll?—”
“Where is he? Why didn’t you bring him today?” Nicole storms over, interrupting me.
Scott slowly turns, studying her. I don’t know what he’s thinking, but a flash of pain crosses his face. I can’t imagine what this feels like. I don’t know the full story, but I know he was madly in love with her. It would be so easy to assume, after everything she did, that one could simply forget those feelings and move on, but that crease in his brow and those shadows in his eyes prove that’s not the case.
“We left the decision up to him. He chose to remain at school, rather than be here today,” Scott says, his voice void of all emotion.
“What lies have you been telling him about me?”
“Mom, come on,” Caleb interjects. “No one has told him any lies. What lies would we even have to say? You left him when he was two, and we haven’t heard from you since.” Caleb’s hands clench at his sides, and Emily reaches for him.
“I think it would be best to wait to discuss this in mediation.” I step forward. “Mr. Henry, you have my contact information. Let’s schedule a time to discuss the mediation as soon as possible.” I don’t wait for a response before taking Scott’s arm and ushering him from the courtroom.
It’s not until I’m outside with him that I realize we’re missing Declan and Quinn. We all look to the courthouse doors, expecting them to walk out momentarily. When they don’t, I turn to the Scott, Caleb, and Emily.
“Look. I know it’s not what we wanted, but it’s what we expected.” I grab Scott’s forearm, waiting for him to look at me. “I won’t stop until you can rest easy knowing Max will never go anywhere. I’m going to do everything I can to make sure of that.”
He takes my hand in his, squeezing and offering a small lift of his lips. “I know that.”
“We should do something tonight,” Emily says in the silence that takes over.
“What?” Caleb looks down at her, confused.
“Yeah, like, go out or something. Just forget about all of this for a night and have fun.” She nods her head like she’s really enjoying this idea the more she thinks about it.
“I don’t—” Caleb starts.
“I think that’s a great idea. You all should go out,” Scott interrupts. “But I’m going to stay in, spend some time with Max. I know he’s been nervous about everything. I think it’ll be good for him.”
“I’d like to join you, if that’s all right?” Caleb asks, shifting his balance from foot to foot.
“Of course.”
“Okay, then a ladies’ night,” I say.
“Yes!” Emily shouts.
It’s then we hear the courthouse doors open, Declan and Quinn stepping out.
“Everything okay?” Caleb asks when they get closer to us.
“Not really,” Declan offers after glancing at Quinn.
“What did she say?” Emily asks.
Quinn shakes her head, unable to form words.
Declan seems to catch on and answers, “Nothing meaningful.”
“Emily and I were thinking we should have ladies’ night out tonight. To…I don’t know, decompress from this day?” I reach for Quinn’s hand, trying to offer her comfort.
“I appreciate the offer, but I don’t think I’m up for that tonight.” She squeezes my hand before releasing it.
“Then breakfast tomorrow morning. I won’t take no for an answer. I fly back to Boston on Sunday,” I say definitively. I can see the tension in her body. It seems she needs a distraction more than anyone else.
“It’s only for a week.” Declan chuckles.
“I know, but you’re leaving me to deal with Mom and Dad alone for Christmas this year. It’s only fair I get to steal your girlfriend for a bit.”
I know he doesn’t agree with my decision to go see Mom and Dad, even not knowing everything that happened, but he begrudgingly agreed to support my decision. Besides, like I told Gage, I have to pack my things at some point. The sooner I do it, the better.
Declan chuckles softly before responding. “Hey, if Quinn wants to go to breakfast with you, I have no complaints. I’m just saying you’ll only be gone for a week. It’s not like you’re leaving forever.”
Quinn leans into Declan’s side, looking at me. “Breakfast tomorrow sounds good.”
“Great! Nine o’clock at The Diner?” At her nod, I turn to Emily. “Can you do breakfast?”
“Unfortunately, I can’t. I’ve got a shift tomorrow. But both of you have fun. I’ll see you at Sunday breakfast before your flight home.”
“All right.” Scott steps forward. “Let’s get out of here. Who’s riding with who?”
“Did you drive?” Quinn asks.
“I did. Picked up Ava on my way here,” he confirms.
“Emily and I came together, but we can give anyone who needs one a ride,” Caleb offers.
“I’ll ride with you, Dad. I need to grab my stuff from Declan’s truck.”
“You sure? You and Dec don’t have plans?” Scott asks, concern flashing over his face when he glances at Declan.
“Nope. I just want to go home, change into comfy clothes and loaf in front of the TV.” She doesn’t look at Declan even though he tries to catch her eye. “Besides, as Ava mentioned, she’s going back to Boston. You should have some time together, just the two of you.” She glances at Declan briefly before looking at me, an almost pleading look in her eye.
I hesitate, not wanting to get in the middle of whatever is happening here, but quickly decide to give her what she wants. “Yeah. She’s right. We haven’t had a night for just us since I got to town.”
“Of course.” Declan’s voice is a little strained when he responds.
“Okay. Are we all parked in the lot at the side of the courthouse?” Scott asks, reading the situation and trying to move it along.
“Yeah,” Declan confirms.
We all begin moving toward the parking lot. Caleb and Emily leading us, with Scott and me behind them. Declan and Quinn bring up the rear, falling a little further behind while they talk in hushed voices.
“Don’t stress about anything,” Scott says, pulling me back to the moment. “Like you said, everything went exactly like we thought it would.”
I breathe a sigh of relief. I don’t know why I was holding such a weight on my shoulders, but hearing him say those words helps me release all of it.
“Thank you.”
Scott throws his arm over my shoulder, pulling me into his side as we continue walking. “I’m sorry we’ll miss you for Christmas this year, but I’m quite happy you’ll be around indefinitely when you get back, so I’ll accept the loss for now.” He smiles at me, giving me a quick squeeze.
“I’m sad I’m missing Christmas with you all, too, but I’m excited for what the future has in store for me.”
And I realize I really mean that. It’s been a while since I’ve been excited, but even with all the uncertainty of my future, I can’t wait to see where it takes me. And I won’t lie; there’s something even more exciting about this secret I’m sharing with Gage.
I’m already looking forward to seeing him again.
The ride back to Declan’s is tense. I can feel the energy pouring off of him from the driver's seat. And while I want to say something to make the situation better, I don’t know what to say.
“Do you want to talk about it?” I finally ask as we walk through the front door.
He shrugs, opening the fridge and pulling a beer out. “There’s nothing to talk about.” He twists the cap off, tossing it to the island counter before taking a large gulp.
“Did she say anything before they left?” I follow his lead, grabbing a beer from the fridge and taking a seat at the kitchen island when he takes a position leaning against the counter.
“Not really. Just that she needed time to herself.”
“Do you have any reason not to believe her?” I ask gently.
Declan and I haven’t talked much about what’s going on between him and Quinn. Heck, we haven’t talked much, period. Part of that is my fault for avoiding talking about Brian and my parents, but part of it is on him, too. He hasn’t been home much since he started seeing Quinn.
Declan sighs, setting his beer on the counter and shoving his hands into his pockets. “Quinn doesn’t know what she’ll do after Scott is gone.” His eyes fall to the floor. “Living in Ashford Falls was never part of her plan, and without Scott holding her here, she doesn’t know if she wants to stay.”
“It would probably be hard living here, seeing Scott around every corner. But he isn’t the only one keeping her here. She’s got her brothers. And you.”
He nods his head almost absentmindedly. “That may be true, but I don’t know if that’s enough.”
I don’t know what else to say, so I don’t say anything.
Declan visibly shakes himself from his thoughts before continuing. “I understand it. Her mom showing up stirred up a lot of emotion, and she was already in a weird place with everything going on with her dad. I don’t blame her for needing a minute to figure out what all of it means for her.”
“I know you don’t,” I tell him when he doesn’t continue.
“I just want to support her—however I can.”
“You’re doing it.” I lift my shoulders, letting them fall after a second. “You listen to her and trust that she’ll tell you what she needs.” I stand from my seat, moving around the counter and pulling him into a hug. “I’ve seen the way she looks at you. You’re not alone in your feelings.” I pull back, looking up at him. “You mean more to her than you give yourself credit for. You’ll work it all out tomorrow. I have no doubt.”
Declan leans down, pressing a kiss to my forehead. “Thanks, squirt.” He pulls away from me, offering me a tight smile. “I’m going to shower and then probably veg on the couch. You’re welcome to join me if you want.”
“Yeah.” I give him a closed-lip smile. “I’ll change into comfy clothes and meet you back here. How do you feel about ordering some pizza for dinner?”
“Sounds perfect.”
I watch him make his way up the stairs, wishing I could make all of this better for him. I didn’t lie to him, though. I really do believe that everything will be sorted by the end of the day tomorrow. As it stands, Quinn and I are meeting for breakfast, and I don’t see her agreeing to that if she plans to end things with my brother. That’s just not who Quinn is.
Before following Declan upstairs, I grab my phone to text Gage.
I’m not going to make it tonight. Declan’s staying in.
Gage
All good. I’ll see you when you get home.
This is the first text exchange I’ve had with Gage, having only gotten his phone number this morning, but something about the message has me worrying. I just can’t pinpoint why.