Chapter 24
Melody
“How much do we know about Jada Allen?” My uncle Spencer’s brow is lowered, and his square jaw flexes. “Have you done a background check on her?”
“It’s the first thing I did.” I pull up the document and email it to him.
The minute the door closed, we sprung into action. Or Edward and I sprung into action. Knox collapsed into a chair with his head in his hands. Seeing him cry nearly broke me. I fell to my knees in front of him and wrapped my arms around his shoulders, stroking his hair.
“I let them take her.” He sounded so weak and ragged. “How could I do that?”
Sitting back on my heels, I held his hands, meeting his watery eyes. “Edward was right. If we had fought the cops or tried to run away, we’d never get her back. We’ve got to convince the powers that be that Cricket belongs with you.”
“They’re not going to do it.” He shook his head, plunging his hands into his hair and staring at the wood floors. “I’m not her biological father. Hell, I’m not even married. I’m just a football player.”
“Look at me.” I reached up and put my palm against his cheek. “You’re so much more than that.”
Our eyes met, and my chest squeezed painfully. I realized in that moment I loved him more than I knew, and I was going to do everything in my power to fix this. My mistake.
“We need to get to Newhope now.” Edward appeared in the hall, carrying two large duffel bags. “You can call Aunt Liv from the car. I’m driving.”
Knox didn’t move. “I should’ve fought them. I should’ve taken Cricket to Newhope. Dad wouldn’t let them take her away. Uncle Garrett is the sheriff. He’d have stopped those fucking cops.”
“They were actually nice guys.” I tilted my head to the side. “I’m sure they’re being sweet to her.”
“We’re wasting time.” Edward nudged his shoulder. “Let’s go.”
“Fuck off, Edward,” he practically shouted.
His cousin stopped in the entryway, shoulders dropping. “I know you’re hurt and angry.”
“No shit, Sherlock.” Knox shoved the heels of his hands across his damp cheeks. “She was crying for me, and I just let that bitch take her.”
“It was the right thing.” Edward was so controlled, but I could see from the tightness in his eyes this was hard for him.
“The two biggest factors in custody cases are what the child wants and the behavior of the adults in question. Cricket clearly loves and wants to be with you. You have to be calm, responsible, law-abiding. Fighting with the police would be a serious mark against your character.”
Knox’s shoulders collapsed. “She doesn’t understand. I never let her cry like that.”
“Listen.” I stroked his cheek again, hurting with him. “I’m going to do everything I can from here. Go to Newhope and get your aunt involved. Call me, and we’ll do whatever it takes. We’ll get married if we have to. Just don’t give up.”
Tearful blue eyes met mine, and my stomach twisted. “You’d marry me?”
I smiled, blinking my own tears away. “Are you proposing?”
“I don’t think that will be necessary.” Edward nudged his cousin’s arm. “I’ve got your bags. Let’s go.”
He looked up at Edward, and he waited. Knox’s jaw clenched, and Edward exhaled heavily, looking away. I don’t know them well, but I got the impression they don’t disagree often.
When he looked at me again, his brow furrowed. “You’re calling your uncle?”
“Yes… Spencer,” I answered quickly, rising to my feet. “He’s ridiculously wealthy, and he has contacts all over the place. He’ll fix this. He fixes everything.”
Knox stood slowly, lifting his hand and using his thumb to slide the tear off my cheek. “You love me?”
My lips parted and I exhaled a laugh, suddenly self-conscious. I blinked a few times before looking up at him again. “You have to ask?”
His fingers slid behind my neck, and he leaned down to kiss me. My stomach dipped as our mouths slid together, and I reached up to hold his wrist with my hand to keep from melting. With my other hand, I held the back of his neck, and our lips parted for a brief, panty-melting tongue swipe. A taste.
Our foreheads pressed together, eyes closed. We didn’t speak, but I knew we were thinking the same thing. Family. We weren’t letting it go.
Which brings us to now, Spencer on FaceTime and Knox texting me from the road.
K-Brad
Aunt Liv has already filed a motion to stop the court order.
Melody
I’m talking to Spencer rn. We’ll see what we can find out about Jada and decide the best way forward.
“I’d like to go straight to her hotel and talk to her.” I’d like to think, since we were both blindsided by Chet and Susan, she might see me as a friend.
It’s a big risk, since she was angry enough to file a court order, and I’m clearly on Knox’s side. My hope is she’ll remember how angry I was as well.
“I think you should wait on that.” Spencer’s eyes are on his computer, and I hear the soft sounds of him typing on his keyboard. “Tell me everything you know about Jada Allen.”
“She’s single, twenty-six, lives in Lake Conway, Arkansas…” I scroll through the information I was able to pull through my journalism resources.
Susan Jackson likes to brag she’s one of the best investigative reporters working in sports, but the truth is, we all have access to the same databases. I know how to do research, too.
“She’s a musician and a hair stylist, and it looks like she might be the last of the Allens. I wasn’t able to get any information on siblings or parents…”
Spencer exhales a hum. “Doesn’t read like someone who either wants or can afford to be a single mother.”
“You think she’d make a deal?” I know it’s an awfully cynical thing to say, but I’ve learned money makes things happen, and Spencer has so much money.
He also has a soft spot for keeping happy families together. It has a lot to do with his own background. I don’t know his whole story, but I remember being a little girl and eavesdropping on my mom and Aunt Sly, Spencer’s wife, talking.
Mom said he was raised by a dragon, and my eyes nearly popped out of my head. I imagined him breathing fire and living in a castle. I wasn’t too far off base, but obviously, he wasn’t raised by an actual dragon.
“I’ve yet to meet a person who wouldn’t,” he says flatly.
“Although… maybe she wants to have family.” My voice is quiet, and fear wrenches my insides. “If she’s all alone in the world, I mean.”
“You are so much like your mother.” Spencer’s tone is resigned.
He glances at me through the screen, and he reminds me a lot of Edward when that woman took Cricket away. All business, no time for sentimentality. Here’s the problem. Let’s solve it.
“I’m just saying, nobody likes to be alone.” Chewing my lip, I study the picture of the three of us still in my text feed with Knox.
My mind filters through everything that’s happened since I opened the door to find him holding a baby girl… covered in poop.
My lips press into a smile. I remember him saying it didn’t matter if she was his biological daughter or not. It didn’t even matter if her mother was trying to trap him.
“Oh, wait,” I gasp. “Would it matter if Cricket’s mother specifically said she wanted Knox to raise her child?”
“I didn’t think you knew the baby’s mother.” Curiosity arches Spencer’s brow. “You said she was given to him after the mother died.”
“That’s right, but Knox went searching for her anyway. He didn’t remember anyone named Jules Allen, but he found a friend of hers. She said Jules went by the name Bonnie, and she wanted Knox to be the dad. She thought he would be a good father.”
“She didn’t know who the father was?”
My tone is sheepish as I answer him. “She was having sort of a… Mamma Mia summer.”
“Am I supposed to know what that means?” He’s not impressed, but I power through.
“She was sleeping with a lot of men. She knew it was her last summer, and she was sort-of… you know… going for it.”
“Women get such strange notions in their heads.”
I don’t bother pointing out how men have been known to do similar, “strange” things. Aunt Sly knows best how to handle his arrogant butt.
“What do you think?” I return to my original question. “Would that sort of information matter?”
“It would definitely add strength to our case, provided Jada cares what her cousin wanted. I’m not sure how much legal weight it would carry if it’s simply hearsay.”
“I’ll try to find her friend and call you back.”
We disconnect, and I grab my purse, running down the stairs. I tap on my phone for a rideshare, and I decide to go straight to the Dome. It’s a desperate move. I have no idea where Stacia might be right now.
Most everyone associated with the team takes off during bye week. It’s the one break in the six-month season where they don’t have a game. The teams even play on Thanksgiving and Christmas.
What feels like forever later, I hop out at the massive stadium, dashing inside to see what I might find. As expected, the place is entirely dead. I go into the office, and a woman is there, digging in a drawer behind the reception desk.
“Excuse me.” I do my absolute best to project calm, friendly vibes. “I’m looking for my friend Stacia Smith. Well… she’s not really my friend. She’s more a friend of a friend, but she knows who I am.”
The woman sits up from behind the desk and frowns, running her eyes up and down my body. “Does Stacia work in the building?” She leans forward as if she’ll page her.
“She’s on the Cheer Krewe?” My brows rise.
The woman shakes her head. “Sorry, babe. Everyone is gone for the break. Last I heard the Cheer Krewe were all headed to the port to catch the next Carnival Cruise to the Caribbean.”
“NO!” The word shrieks from my lips faster than I can stop it.
The lady falls back, holding up her hands. “Sorry! They’ve been planning it since March.”
“How long will they be gone?” I look up at the clock, seeing it’s after five.
That ship has totally sailed away by now.
“I think it was just a three-night cruise.” The woman shakes her head. “I hardly see the point...”
“Thank you so much. If she checks in at all, would you please tell her Melody Dunne is searching for her desperately.” I flip a notepad around. “Here’s my number.”