Laws of Love

1

A iva sat at her desk, reviewing the proposed visitation that the opposing council had just sent over. It was a good arrangement. They would each rotate weeks and holidays with the children. If one parent’s week was during two back-to-back holidays, he proposed that parent concede the upcoming holiday to the next parent.

She knew her client wouldn’t see a problem with this, knowing that the two had only gotten lawyers involved to have the terms of their separation, alimony, and custody agreement on paper without taking it to court. As easy as the two of them were to deal with and as cordial as they were, they could have simply gone to a mediator. However, Aiva would never turn down money in her pocket.

Picking up the phone, Aiva called her client and left a message once she got her voicemail. In it she informed her she would email over the proposed agreement and to let Aiva know if it was acceptable to her once she read it.

Placing her phone back into the cradle, Aiva brought up her email and attached the information. She also made out a rough schedule of who would have the children and when, if the agreement took effect at the beginning of the following month.

Once she finished with the schedule and sent the email, Aiva brought up her calendar. She had an appointment in twenty minutes and decided to review the notes that Finx, their office assistant, had taken.

Aiva shared an office building with her sister. While they both were family practice lawyers, Aiva focused more on cases with children and custody, while her older sister, Meila, focused on divorces with no children and annulments. Her sister couldn’t deal with someone using their child as a bargaining chip. Aiva didn’t have a problem calling someone on their shit when they did and dropping them as a client.

They had an intake questionnaire for Finx to fill out regarding any new potential clients if they were not in the office or unavailable to speak to them when they called or came in.

Looking over the information, she found that the couple had been married for almost eleven years, and they had a son. Knowing the timeframe in which someone had been married was important to Aiva. It helped her choose the approach to take.

The questionnaire was intentionally vague so that clients didn’t think they were being probed from the start, it always gave Aiva enough to get an idea of the type of person her potential client was. This one, she assumed, had tired of trying to make something work on her own.

“Aiva, Mrs. Monroe is here to see you.”

“Thank you, Finx. You can bring her in.”

While Aiva found herself at the office every other Saturday, she rarely saw any clients. She normally used that time to catch up on any emails she missed if she’d been in court the Friday before. However, she made an exception for this appointment because Finx had stated that he felt as if Mrs. Monroe was far past ready to be out of her marriage.

The door opened, and Aiva stood, smiling at the other woman who entered. Finx closed the door behind him, and Aiva held her hand out.

“Mrs. Monroe, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Aiva Neel.”

“Please, Kyan is fine,” she responded, taking Aiva’s hand. “Thank you for seeing me today.”

“It’s no problem.” Aiva replied, gesturing for Kyan to sit. “So, tell me a little about your marriage.”

Aiva wasn’t sure if Kyan realized the time that passed. Still, for the next forty-five minutes she told Aiva of how her marriage started, how the honeymoon was soon over, and her husband was no longer attentive to her. How he preferred to be out of the house doing anything but being a husband. Kyan told Aiva that she felt rundown and emotionally exhausted from trying to connect with him.

“I don’t love him anymore,” Kyan said after a pause in what she’d been saying. “I’ve tried over the last several years to make excuses as to why I’m less disappointed when he forgets my birthday, an anniversary, a date night. But it all just boils down to the fact that I’m no longer in love with him, and I don’t even know when that stopped being the case.” Kyan sighed. “And I guess I would feel guilty if it wasn’t for the fact that I don’t think he’s in love with me, either. I don’t know that he ever was.”

Aiva let everything Kyan said sink in. She wasn’t the first client Aiva had that had fallen out of love with their spouse, who was tired of trying to put on a brave face or keep it going and work it out because that was what society expected. However, Kyan was the first that Aiva could tell felt lighter from speaking the words. Not guilty and burdened like most of her others were.

“What are you hoping to get out of your divorce?” Aiva questioned.

Kyan shook her head. “Nothing. I want nothing from him. The only thing we have together is our home, and if he’ll buy me out of it, he can have it.”

“What about your child? How are you hoping visitation goes?”

“Child?” Kyan questioned, with a confused look, that made Aiva glance at the information she still had up.

“A son, from what I’m seeing.”

“Oh, Callum. No, there’s no custody issue. Callum’s twenty-eight. He’s my stepson,” Kyan informed her.

Aiva didn’t normally handle divorces that didn’t involve children, or some sort of alimony to establish. This would be new for her, but it shouldn’t be too hard. She didn’t want to pass it off to her sister, so she kept it instead. If she needed Meila to consult, then she’d just give her part of her fee.

For the next hour, they went over what Kyan could expect and how the process would go. If he signed the papers and didn’t want to take it to court to get alimony from her then it would be easy sailing. However, there was always that chance that it was not.

Aiva told Kyan how long it would take to file the paperwork with the court and that when she had it, she would send someone to serve her husband, Andrew.

“Can I serve him myself?”

“We aren’t a self-serving state, so no.” Aiva could imagine after the things Kyan had told her how the other woman would feel vindicated serving him. “However, anyone aside from you, one of your family members or his, can serve him. As long as they hand him the documentation and tell him that he’s been served, I don’t see why you couldn’t be nearby.”

Aiva probably should not have told her that, but it wasn’t illegal for her to be there. She just wasn’t sure the reaction Kyan’s husband would have. However, if there were others around, Aiva didn’t foresee there being a problem.

When the two women finished, Aiva told Kyan she would send over the drafted paperwork to make sure it was suitable before filing it with the courts. They shook hands once again and said their goodbyes.

Aiva leaned back in her seat, deciding to prepare the documents. It was about five minutes later when Finx walked in and sat across from her.

“How long do you plan on staying today?” he questioned.

“I’m going to prepare some of this documentation, and then I’m going to head out. What’s up?”

“I was going to see if you wanted to take me to dinner tonight for coming in and working with you today,” he responded with a smirk.

Aiva chuckled. “I guess I can do that, and you can tell me how your classes are going.”

“They’re trying to kick my ass, but I’m not going to let them. Especially, when I have you and Meila at my disposal. I’ll be taking clients right along with the two of you soon.”

“I know you will.” She turned her attention back to her computer screen. “I’ll pick you up at seven-thirty. You can pick the spot.”

“You are the best boss,” Finx told her as he stood from his chair.

“Be sure to tell Meila that I am as well!” she called after his retreating form. His laugh in response filtered out the further he got down the hall.

If she left in the next hour that would give her time to do some laundry and clean around the house before she had to pick Finx up for dinner. Aiva knew herself well. So, she set an alarm to alert her when that hour was up.

K nox tuned Mia out as she bitched about whatever unspoken thing he had not done that she had expected him to do. He’d gotten so used to her wanting to argue with him, of her accusing him of something that he knew exactly when to tune back in. Her self-arguments had taken on a repetitive theme, and she didn’t even seem to know it.

For someone who’d claimed she was tired of being around him, wanted to separate, to kick him out of the house he paid for, she still found a reason to come to his condo about something she imagined he’d done wrong. She still found time to call him several times a day and text him even more, with trivial things that she swore were life and death if he didn’t do them right then, or he’d told her to wait until the weekend.

Knox knew well that part of her attitude, her demeanor, was his fault. Mia was spoiled. She had been when they started dating. He knew that when he’d married her and contributed to it because he enjoyed spoiling her at the time. Enjoyed giving her the things that she wanted. The downside of that was the fact that his estranged wife was spoiled and ungrateful. Those things did not go well together.

However, she hid the ungrateful aspect until she had his last name. He could buy her exactly what she asked for, but if it wasn’t from where she saw it, it wasn’t the same to her. It had gotten to where he’d just give her the money for it to pacify her.

Things only got worse when their daughter was born. Knox had never loved a human being more than he loved that little girl, and that had not set well with Mia. Because now Knox was giving Yasmine all his attention.

Knox had put up with Mia, and everything that entailed for four years, until the last time she’d screamed at him to get out of her face and not come back. She’d said it a dozen times before. There was something about her saying it at that time that had been Knox’s final straw. That had been almost a year ago.

“Are you listening to me?!”

Knox sighed. “It’s hard not to when you’re screaming in my ear.”

“I wouldn’t have to if you’d just do shit right!”

“When left up to you being the judge, nothing I do is right,” he responded.

“I told you the other day that I needed money for Yasmine’s field trip to the aquarium, and for her gymnastics class.”

“I know. I got all fourteen messages,” Knox responded, going into his kitchen. He needed a drink.

“If you know, then why am I not seeing it?” Mia questioned, in that voice she liked to put on when she felt as if she was superior in the situation, which was most of the time.

Knox popped the cap on the beer bottle. “Because I took the money for the field trip to the school, and I went by to pay the gymnastics teacher only for her to tell me she isn’t taking any students for the next several months because she’s going on maternity leave.”

He was more than aware of the fact that Mia was going to use the money on who knew what. She started doing it after he’d moved out of the house. So, he started paying directly for whatever she claimed their daughter needed the money for.

It wasn’t as if he stopped paying all the bills in the house and giving her money to make sure Yasmine was taken care of. However, she always asked for more. Knox knew it was so she could buy things she wanted but didn’t need, since he was no longer doing so.

“No one told you to do that. You should have just sent it to me.”

Knox took a long drink of his beer. “I’ll be by tomorrow to pick up Yas for the weekend.” With that, he hung up the phone.

He knew she would call several more times and send him text messages, but he wasn’t in the mood to deal with her anymore that day. So, he placed his phone on silent. He would be sure to check it now and then in case Yasmine or someone else called him.

Knox flipped through the channels on the television before settling on a documentary about the guillotine. He watched it for the next hour, grabbing a second beer when his first one was gone. He was picking up the remote to change the channel when he noticed the notification light on his phone was blinking.

He was positive that all of them were from Mia. Knox checked them anyway. Most of them were from Mia, but there was one from his father asking if they were still on for Saturday. Knox texted him back, telling him they were before setting his phone back down.

His parents, himself, and Yasmine were going to watch the puppet shows in the park. It was one of his daughter’s favorite things to do, and his parents always enjoyed coming along with them. Neither of them were the biggest fans of Mia, and they hated having to deal with her in order to see Yasmine. So, whenever Knox had her, they would all spend time together since his parents didn’t like shorting Knox’s time with his daughter.

He flipped through the channels for several minutes but couldn’t find anything else to watch. So, instead, he went over to the keyboard that sat in the corner and fiddled with the keys. It wasn’t the same as the piano he’d left at the house, but he hadn’t wanted to deal with Mia in trying to get it.

Knox enjoyed playing. Had loved doing it as a child, and after two ACL injuries that caused him to end his professional football career early, it had been a sort of therapy for him. A way of helping him deal with it. So much so that he started experimenting with composing his own songs.

He played around for a bit, but honestly, he was restless. He’d been in the house for the past few days, and he knew he needed to get out. He could check on one of his investments, but he ended up working when he did that. Which simply was because he’d find something he wanted to do.

Everyone he employed was more than competent, and he had a general manager who ran each venture, so he could simply sit back and collect a paycheck. Instead, he decided he would go for a jog on the nearby trail. It would get him out of the house but also help him relieve some of the tension he was holding in from his conversation with Mia.

He was tired of the back and forth that the two of them had. Knox knew that, for him, at least, the only reason they were still married was for Yasmine, but that honestly wasn’t doing much good with the two of them living apart.

Knox had told himself that if their separation lasted for a year and they hadn't worked it out and still could not make life together work, it would be over for them. They needed to go their separate ways and find other people. Though he wouldn’t wish the version of Mia, he received now on his worst enemy.

As Knox changed into a pair of basketball shorts, running shoes, and a t-shirt, he realized the year was approaching in a matter of days.