Chapter 20
The words blurredon the computer. Bella couldn’t focus on the report she was supposed to have turned in. Legally, there was nothing she could do. The damaged property belonged to Grant and he wanted nothing to do with it.
She found herself wishing that there was another case of arson she could connect it to. Technically, she could try to connect it to the bigger case, but there was no guarantee it was related. The lines might have been just a little bit blurred.
Who was she kidding? The lines had definitely become blurred. Bella should never have gotten involved with Grant. She’d known better. What had she been thinking?
With a muttered groan, she pushed away from her desk and headed for the water cooler. She couldn’t think straight. Grant’s face continued to block her ability to stay focused. And if it wasn’t Grant, she found herself looking out the window or around the office—anything to avoid the work she knew she needed to complete.
It wasn’t that she was upset about Grant. She refused to believe a person could have that kind of effect on her. He was arrogant. He was reckless. And she couldn’t forget that he continued to keep secrets from her. Red flags abounded when she thought about him.
She leaned down and grabbed a paper cone from the water cooler, filling it with the cold liquid. But not even the refreshing water could soothe her. She had to admit that as much as she was relieved to be free of Grant, she also desperately missed him.
Her heart reacted to that thought. It tightened, clenched, knotted around itself as she considered all the reasons she’d fallen so easily for him. Grant was a good father, despite everything that was happening. He was passionate about his son and about being in Nick’s life. She’d never met anyone so willing to own up to his past mistakes and do better. That alone should be enough to look past the little things she disliked.
Then there was the way he made her feel.
Grant made her feel alive.
Bella shook her head, crushing the paper cone in her fist. Grant also reminded her too much of her own past and the problems she’d had with her own missing father. Watching him with Nick made her wish she’d been lucky enough to have a father who cared about her. And her broken past wouldn’t let her forget it.
Whatever, it didn’t matter. Grant had said he was going to leave. She didn’t know when or how far, but he’d made it clear they weren’t an item. He wasn’t interested in her anymore. She’d pushed him too far.
She leaned against the wall and stared off at her computer. A small logo for the department bounced around the screen, indicating she’d been gone too long from her desk. She needed to get back to work before she got fired and had to explain herself to her old boss in the city.
As she headed for her desk, feet shuffling against the tile, one of the other deputies rushed at her. “The sheriff needs you to hurry over to Sagebrush Ranch.”
“I was there a few days ago…” She frowned, hating how her whole body reacted to thinking about seeing Grant again. “Did Mr. Shaw want to change his mind about the fire?”
“All I know is that they have requested that someone go with a member of Child Protective Services.”
There was only one child that Bella had met on that ranch, and she prayed this wasn’t related to him.
She couldn’t move. It was as if she’d been glued to her spot with just the thought of Nick being in trouble. Her worried heart couldn’t take it, the bad feeling wouldn’t go away.
“And you’re sure they didn’t say anything else?”
“Just that they’re doing an emergency custody evaluation, and they anticipate that the father isn’t going to make it easy.”
Bella’s heart jumped into her throat. She shouldn’t be going. Her logical brain screamed that she needed to request someone go in her stead—she was too close to Grant. She cared too much about Nick. Whatever was happening, she wouldn’t be impartial, and she didn’t know what she would do if it didn’t turn out in Grant’s favor.
But she didn’t make that request.
Instead, she nodded to the deputy and hurried toward her desk. As soon as she had her full uniform put together, she grabbed her radio and her keys and headed for the door. There was a chance it wasn’t Nick. Grant had said he wanted to leave. Bella couldn’t exactly pray that another child was in danger, and yet she feared Nick was at the center of it all.
Bella arrived right behind a small black sedan that had driven up to the house moments before she had. A petite woman with a clipboard approached before Bella could climb out of her squad car. She smiled, looking a great deal less intimidating than she probably was.
“Thanks for coming, Officer…”
“Whitfield,” Bella offered.
This had to be the CPS worker. Based on her slacks, the way her hair was pinned back at the nape of her neck, and the lines around her eyes, Bella could surmise that this woman had seen enough to make her job far less enjoyable than she’d likely thought it would be. She extended her hand. “I’m Tish. I hope you’re ready for this one. When they called, they told me there was a belligerent man who wasn’t abiding by the legal custody agreement.”
That didn’t sound like Grant at all. And he was Nick’s father. He had the legal right to raise Nick the way he wanted to. None of this made sense.
Bella followed Tish, her mind in a fog. When they arrived at the group, it looked more like a Western standoff than anything. Charlotte was on one side, holding Nick against her with her hands on his shoulders. The poor kid looked distraught as he stared across a small distance to where his father stood with a handful of other employees who worked for Eli.
Everyone was on edge. It was almost like there was an electrical, sour taste in the air.
Charlotte’s expression was one of mild triumph, smugness, and irritation, while Grant could have morphed into the Incredible Hulk at any moment in order to save his son from her clutches. If this scene didn’t involve people Bella cared about, she would have found a small degree of humor in it. On the one side was the broken woman she’d had to give the terrible news to. On the other was the man she’d developed strong feelings for. And the poor kid in the middle who had been used as a pawn in this war.
Between the person who was targeting Grant and this new development with Charlotte, she could only imagine what this family was dealing with.
Charlotte’s eyes cut in their direction. “Good. You’re here. Will you please tell Mr. Shaw that he has no legal claim to Nick?”
Bella’s head spun. “What?”
Charlotte flung a gesture toward Eli. “He’s got the legal documents. Dee never officially named Grant as Nick’s guardian. She gave that honor to me. All she wanted was for Grant to get some letters. He got them.”
“And they said she wanted me to know our son!” Grant shot back. The pain in his eyes ripped a hole right through Bella. He glanced at her. “The letters say she wanted me to raise him but that she wasn’t going to upend my life. The document Eli has is vague at best. I have every right to raise my son.”
Charlotte snorted. “How are you going to do that? You have no job, no home. As far as I can tell, you can’t take care of him the way she would want.”
Grant took a step toward her, and her eyes widened with fear before she composed herself. His hands were balled into fists. “Technically, no, I don’t have a job right now. But there is one waiting for me in Nashville, so that shouldn’t matter. As for a home?—”
Charlotte sliced a hand through the air. “I’m not going to argue with you. Eli was right. This needs to be settled in court. I was nice for as long as I could be, letting you play house with Nick, and…” Her demure gaze drifted to Bella, indicating she didn’t need to finish her statement. “I never got any appreciation for what I’ve done for your family. Not from Dee, and not from you.”
“It sounds like there’s a lot to unpack here.” Tish stepped forward. “First, we’re going to have to figure out what to do with Nick.”
Charlotte held onto him tighter. “What is there to figure out? Eli has the paperwork. I get to keep him.”
Grant strode forward another couple of steps. “Over my dead body.”
Tish and Bella both hurried forward.
Bella stepped in front of Grant, her voice low. “This isn’t the way to do this. If that document is what Charlotte says it is, you can’t just take him. We have to sort this out.”
Betrayal burned in his gaze. “You would take my son from me? That’s what this has been about all along, hasn’t it? You were there when Charlotte was told about her daughter, and now you’re on her side.”
His words cut deep. “I’m not on anyone’s side.”
“Well, you should have been on my side. On Nick’s side. He needs his father.” Grant’s voice broke. “He needs me, Bella.”
“I know,” she said. “Tish isn’t going to let Nick be influenced by either party. That would be detrimental to everyone. We’ll take him, keep him safe, and assess how he’s feeling.”
“She’s already turning him against me,” he said bitterly. “I can feel it.”
All Bella wanted to do was pull him in for a hug, to tell him that this would be sorted out as soon as possible and Nick would be in his care once more. But she couldn’t give him that. She couldn’t even touch him to offer comfort.
“Why didn’t you tell me that the custody wasn’t in place?”
His glare sharpened. “If you’d known that first day, do you think you would have let me leave with him? He was in my care. You thought he was in danger. You can’t tell me you wouldn’t have called Charlotte to confirm that Nick was allowed to be with me.”
She looked away.
“You’re no better than she is. No one here has cared one lick about me since I arrived. Not Eli, not the guys—” He cut himself off, but she knew where he was going. He was going to say she hadn’t cared, either. And maybe he was right. She would have put the law before him.
“Deputy Whitfield? Are you ready?”
Bella glanced over to Tish, who had removed Nick from Charlotte’s clutches. This all felt wrong. She’d joined the force to protect people, not to harm them. She should be standing next to Grant, bolstering him and providing proof that he was a good father. But instead, she’d had to side with a piece of paper.
She felt sick to her stomach. This wasn’t what she’d thought her life would be.
Bella gave Grant one more fleeting look, but he refused to meet her eyes. His focus remained on the ground as the muscles in his neck continued to bulge with fury. His hands hadn’t relaxed from the fists he’d put them in. What could she say that she hadn’t already? She couldn’t tell him that she cared about him and that she’d be there for him. She was literally taking his son from his care.
But she was also taking Nick from the manipulative woman who wanted to break up his family. Maybe she knew to a small degree what Nick felt like in this moment, being torn in two directions by warring ideals. Only Nick had to choose one family over another.
Bella placed a hand on Nick’s shoulder. “You ready to go?” she asked.
Nick glanced at his father over his shoulder. “Can I give my dad a hug?”
Bella and Tish exchanged looks. Tish shook her head just enough for Bella to notice, but she didn’t care. Grant wouldn’t do anything with everyone watching.
“Sure, kiddo. Make it quick.”
Nick darted away from them and flung himself into his father’s arms. Bella fought tears, watching the two of them cling to each other long enough for Charlotte to start complaining. Then Grant pulled away and said something to Nick before urging him to return to Bella’s side.
Her eyes locked with Grant’s one more time. Then he spun around and charged away toward his truck.
Nick took Bella’s hand, bringing her back to the present. She offered him a sad smile as the three of them headed back to Tish’s car.