Chapter 21 Tess
Tess
The courtroom smelled like wood polish and nerves. With everything that happened two days ago, Luke’s custody hearing got moved up, and I was a nervous wreck. I couldn’t stop fidgeting while we waited for Judge Blackburn, ready to get this over with and behind us so we could heal.
Levi looked horrible when I peered up at him beside me.
His eyes were ringed with deep purple bruises, and a healing scab covered the bridge of his nose, held together by butterfly bandages.
Guilt gnawed at me, and I had to force the urge to cry away.
I’d cried enough, and I refused to spill one more tear over Jeremy Watson and the things he’d done to us.
I peeked over my shoulder, finding my siblings and the McLeods behind us. My smile was shaky as I looked at them. “It’s gonna be okay,” Claire whispered, giving my hand a squeeze across the bannister that divided us. I swallowed hard, glancing at Savannah and Emmett, and nodded.
I wish I felt her same certainty, but I wasn’t confident in anything anymore. Just Levi. But even then, Jeremy could throw a curveball and ruin everything more than he already had.
A door across the room opened, and Jeremy walked through with a cop holding the crook of his elbow.
I couldn’t tear my eyes off him, and I wondered if that made me a masochist or not.
The only thing that stopped me from being afraid was the fact that he was handcuffed and likely wasn’t stupid enough to do anything reckless in a courtroom.
Luke’s hand slid into mine, wedging his body between Levi and me. Levi bent down. “It’s okay,” he whispered. “Nothing bad is going to happen.”
He nodded, clutching his stuffed dinosaur to his chest. “I know.”
Jeremy didn’t even glance in our direction, but he looked nearly as bad as Levi, with the left side of his face covered in bruises.
My gaze fell to where Levi was sorting through papers, his knuckles still bruised and swollen.
A wave of gratitude washed over me the longer I stared at them.
I never thought I’d have someone willing to put themselves in the line of fire for Luke and me, and I couldn’t believe that I did.
Judge Blackburn entered next, taking a seat at the bench. “Good morning,” she said. She organized some papers. “We’re here today regarding the custody of a Lucas Watson.” She glanced at Jeremy’s lawyer, then at Levi, her head rearing back.
“Mr. Hollis, are you well enough to proceed today?”
“Yes, Your Honor,” he replied easily. “Quite well.”
Her mouth thinned. “Great. Let’s begin. Miss—oh, Mrs. Hollis.” My heart skipped a beat; that was the first time I’d ever heard myself referred to as that. I loved it, loved being Levi’s. But I had a feeling Judge Blackburn didn’t share the same sentiments.
Her brows pulled together. She started flipping through her paperwork, the furrow deepening with each sheet she scanned.
My chest tightened watching her, wondering what she’d say.
She peered at Levi and me over her glasses.
“Am I correct to believe that you married your client, Mr. Hollis? Do you think it’s appropriate to be representing your wife? ”
“Yes, Your Honor.” There wasn’t a trace of the anxiety I felt in his voice. He grabbed a paper and walked it up to her. “Mrs. Hollis has signed an informed consent waiver, confirming she understands the potential conflicts and agrees to my continued representation.”
She pursed her lips, looking over the document. “And you’re truthfully okay with this, Mrs. Hollis?” she asked.
I stood slowly, my heart pounding in my ears. “Yes. I know Levi has mine, and more importantly, Luke’s best interests in mind. I couldn’t trust anyone else with this more,” I said, picking at my nails.
“Rude,” someone from my family murmured behind me, just loud enough for me to hear. Levi let out a tiny huff of a laugh. My mouth twitched, fighting a smile.
The judge’s eyes flicked between us briefly, and it felt like time paused while she considered her decision.
“Very well.” I nearly collapsed back into my seat with relief.
“Let’s get to the real reason we’re here then.
” She reviewed my suit against Jeremy and his counter-suit, using words I didn’t understand and didn’t care to.
I just wanted this to end and for Jeremy to be as far away from us as possible.
Levi threw around words like “child endangerment” and “psychological trauma.” He told her about our nightmares, Luke’s bedwetting, and Jeremy’s harassment.
Jeremy finally looked my way, his gaze locking on me like a wolf spotting prey.
My breath caught, my muscles tensing. The only thing that kept me upright was not wanting to cause a scene and scare Luke.
Jeremy’s lawyer accused me of being unfit, unstable, and unreliable.
He brought up the fact that I’d been on antidepressants briefly after my father died.
He tried to make it sound like I’d kidnapped Luke, that I refused to work for the last six years, that I was sleeping around behind Jeremy’s back.
That one made me gasp out loud, looking in Jeremy’s direction. “That’s a lie and you know it,” I snapped at him, only to get reprimanded by the judge.
With every accusation that came, Levi’s calm restraint whittled away a little more. His voice cut through the air like a blade as he disproved all of them with evidence, thanks to the fact that I had never deleted a single text, call, or voicemail I’d ever gotten in my life.
“Since the last hearing five weeks ago, Mrs. Hollis has completed a bookkeeping course and, as of two weeks ago, secured a position at Golden Circle Ranch. We own a home together, and she has acquired her own vehicle and is in therapy. I don’t know if there’s a more stable parent out there.”
Jeremy’s lawyer scoffed. “Yeah, because you’re married to her,” he murmured. Jeremy snickered along with him. They thought they had this in the bag, but they were dead wrong.
“Order,” Judge Blackburn said, glaring at them.
They dove back into more lawyer-talk, mentioning what happened Monday night.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jeremy’s mouth twitch into a smirk, as if he were proud of what he’d done, as if he still thought he had control.
My stomach twisted, but I didn’t look away.
I almost wanted him to look at me and realize that he wasn’t getting out of this so easily.
Jeremy wanted visitation, and Levi laughed before fighting it.
He fought against everything relentlessly, offering up arguments and evidence against it at every turn.
I didn’t understand it, but I didn’t have to.
He was incredible. In his natural element.
I glanced over my shoulder again, and Savannah gave me a subtle nod that reassured me.
It felt like days had dragged by once it was time for the judge to give her ruling.
We all stood, and I could hardly breathe.
“Jeremy Watson, you are sentenced to five years in state prison for assault, domestic battery, child endangerment, and the violation of a domestic violence restraining order. Regarding custody of Lucas Watson, you will have no visitation rights at this time. Because of her dedication to creating a stable environment for Lucas, primary custody has been awarded to Tess Hollis.” She slammed her gavel down, and I crumbled into Levi’s side, sobbing.
Jeremy looked devastated across the courtroom, his head hung low, throat bobbing.
I almost felt sorry for him, but after everything he’d done to us, I hoped he got what he deserved in prison.
My hatred only solidified when he looked at me, his gaze one of rage and fury.
I clung to Levi harder, knowing I had what he never would—a family.
Levi kissed the top of my head, running his hand along my back. “We got our boy, sweetheart,” he whispered hoarsely. I nodded against his chest.
“Daddy, did you win?” Luke asked, holding on to his stuffed dinosaur.
Levi’s dimples popped with his smile. “Yeah, buddy, we won.”
“Thank you.” Sniffling, I looked up at him, hoping he could see how much I meant it. “None of this would’ve been possible without you.”
His expression softened. “You did the hard part, Tess, not me.”
I shook my head. “No. You’ve changed my life. Mine and Luke’s. You made me feel safe when I never thought I would again. You made me feel loved and cherished for the first time in my life. You fixed what he broke when you didn’t have to.”
I clutched his hand in mine. “And you’ve given our son a true male role model to look up to.” Levi took a deep, shuddering breath. “Someone who doesn’t give up, who fights for what’s right and the people he loves. It’s all I could ever ask for.”
He swallowed roughly, blinking quickly. I brought my hand to his face, brushing his hair back. “You mean everything to me, Levi, and I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
His grip on my back tightened. “I love it when you ramble,” he rasped, his voice thick with emotion.
I smiled, holding him close. “And I love you.”
Levi’s lips were soft against mine, his love for me potent in his kiss. “Don’t think you’re supposed to make out in court, but you two kinda have a thing for that it seems,” Colt said, smirking when we broke apart.
“Probably not,” Levi chuckled.
“Let’s go home,” Emmett said, putting Luke on his shoulders.
I savored this moment for what it was: freedom. For the first time in years, I could see a future that I actually wanted. Calm, stable, and full of the kind of safety and love I had always dreamt of.
“Yeah, let’s go,” I replied, taking Levi’s hand and mirroring his smile.
Walking out of that courthouse felt bittersweet.
I was proud that I wasn’t the same woman who had walked into Levi’s office trembling two months ago—the woman Jeremy had broken, who was afraid of her own shadow.
But I’d always be thankful for that version of me, because without her, I wouldn’t have been who I was now.
Stronger. Loved. Enough.
And no one could take that from me again.