by Eden Rose
“Ignoring something isn’t going to make it go away,” Olivia says.
“Why did I pick two lawyers to be my best friends?” I ask and roll my head to lay on Olivia’s shoulder.
“Just lucky, I guess!” Shana says next to me and bumps my shoulder.
Chapter 15
Wyatt
Ruth still isn’t home. When I got home two nights ago from my date/ meeting with Keeley, she called out to me that I’m watching Luke. That was two days ago and I haven’t heard from her at all. I have taken Luke with me to practice and he plays with the other kids of the players. I can tell he likes playing with kids his own age, but that doesn’t mean I’m a nanny.
I should have known that Ruth would be back to her own tricks and it was only a matter of time before she fell in with the bad crowd all over again. I’m a fucking loser for thinking that if I dragged her out of her old friends that she wouldn’t do this again.
“Yo, Thorne! Quit daydreaming and get to running!” Coach Anderson says to me.
I didn’t even realize that I was zoning out until he called out to me. I run up and down the court to do the suicide runs that he is making us do because I had to bring Luke and showed up late. This is what kind of shit he makes us do.
By the time I have thrown up in the garbage from running too hard, I feel a little hand tap on my shoulder. The tap is so dainty and faint, but it jump starts my heart even more. I spin on my feet and am face to face with Keeley.
“Cupcake,” I murmur and she shivers and blushes. “What brings you over here?” My fingers fight the urge to touch her face… To feel her skin to make sure she’s really here. There is just something about her that makes me feel like she’s a dream.
“Your agent said you have a contract for me to review and then fax over to the owners. Is that true?”
I look her up and down and see that she’s wearing a beautiful pant suit that is black. Her hair is down and it flows over her shoulders. Those pouty lips that I have been dying to kiss are pursed and her chest rises and falls.
“Sure. Let me take a shower and grab Luke. I will meet you out here in ten.”
I don’t give her much time to shut down my orders or to not follow them. Quickly, I walk into the locker room and strip out of my sweat lined clothes and throw them in the basket. All of our work out clothes are assigned and specially washed for us. It’s a nice perk to have.
Within five minutes, I have showered and I have Luke picked up. I’m wearing my jersey and pants out. To up the anty, I have sprayed some cologne on. There is something about women and smelling a man. I will never understand, but I know I’m smelling really good.
Keeley is sitting on the bleachers with her phone out and she looks mad about something. Her lips are in a tight line and her breathing is erratic. “What’s wrong, cupcake?” I ask her as Luke hits on my back.
My nephew is a flirt and I know as soon as he sees Keeley, he’s going to completely ignore me. I set Luke down and he immediately runs up to Keeley. “Cupcakes!”
She giggles and looks at him and then at me. Shit. I bet she thinks that he is my son. Which is not the case. “Luke, this is my friend, Keeley. Keeley, this is Luke, my nephew.”
Also one of the reasons why I had my record expunged.
“Nice to meet you,” she whispers and holds out her hand.
In true Luke fashion, he has placed his little hand in hers and brought his lips to her hand. “It’s nice to meet such a pwetty lady.”
She giggles and throws her head back. “I can definitely see the relation between you two. He’s like a mini- you!”
“Yeah, yeah. He’s got some game. I thought him how to flirt with the cheerleaders. You should see him. He’s a riot.”
“Are you ready to go over the contract?”
I nod my head and bend at the waist to pick up Luke from trying to climb in Keeley’s lap. “Yeah, we are bringing the little man with us. Hope that’s okay.”
She nods excitedly and stands up from her seat. “Sure. He’s fun.”
I walk her over to the team’s dining room and show her to the table that I usually sit at. “Want anything to drink or eat?” I ask her.
Keeley looks around the room nervously and then shakes her head. “No. I’m all right.”
“Get whatever is in your head out. You are truly beautiful and your husband is a fucking dumbass for making you believe that you aren’t,” I say to her and rub my fingers down her arm. I don’t miss the goosebumps there and I revel in it. I love having her here so I can touch her as much as I want. She’s like a mirage.
She shakes her head and then smiles at me. The smile doesn’t reach her eyes and then she looks at Luke. “You should get this little flirt an ice cream.”
“Cold!” He yells and then pumps his hand in the air like he’s in a riot.
I leave them and then walk over to the dining area to get my after practice food. Once my tray is filled to the brim with everything known to man on it, I walk over to the ice cream section and get Luke’s ice cream. I scoop a chocolate lump of ice cream in a bowl and then put sprinkles on top like he likes. When I’m walking away, I see a vanilla covered chocolate cupcake sitting alone. I have to get it.
By the time I have walked back to the table, I have been stopped by half of my teammates asking who Keeley is. Of course I tell them to mind their own business and then get back to my girl.
My girl.
Luke is animatedly telling Keeley a tale and I can see his little hands moving around as he does so. He looks so innocent sitting on her lap and she looks as if she’s eating it up.
By the time I sit down with them and hand her the cupcake and Luke his ice cream, I notice a look of sadness on her face. “What’s wrong?”
“I really shouldn’t be eating this…” She slides the cupcake towards me and it makes my heart heavy while watching her look so distraught.
“Why not?” I demand with more force than intended. I will be mad as hell if she turned down the cupcake because of something that asshole had said to her. That is complete and utter bull shit if she believes anything he says.
She looks around and then at Luke. I notice that her eyes soften and I wonder if she has kids. For some reason, I feel as if it is a sensitive subject so I don’t ask. There is this look in her eyes that makes me want to take all of the pain away and hold on to her. I’m not sure what it is about her that triggers my protective instincts.
“Look, this is all fun, but can we get back to work? I need to get back to the office.”
I place my hand on top of hers so she doesn’t get off the stool. “We can get to work but first, eat the cupcake, baby.”
“Uncle Wywy, I eat cupcakes!”
Leave it to the little man to break the ice.
Chapter 16
Keeley
Sitting here with Wyatt and Luke is dangerous for me. I’m beginning to want things that I have no business wanting.
Unlike Jerry, I know that Wyatt would be an attentive father and pay attention to our kids. And the part that is dangerous for me, is that I’m picturing them being our kids.
I need to get out of here fast.
Just like his uncle, Luke has wormed his way into my heart and I feel a strange connection with him. It’s almost as if I know him for somewhere and I can’t place it. His eyes are rounded with thick eye lashes that make a woman jealous and his flirtiness is all his uncle. But there is something else… Where the hell do I know him from?
“What are you thinking about?” Wyatt asks me and unwraps the cupcake for me.
That’s another thing! Doesn’t he know how cruel it is to dangle something as delicious as a cupcake in front of a dieting woman? That’s like waving a red flag in front of a bull. Does he not see how I’m packing on a little too much weight?
The problem with my Bipolar medicine is that I pack on the weight but have a hard time taking it off. One month, I went off the meds and lost twenty pounds. While Jerry was happy, everyone was worried. A Bipolar person
shouldn’t go off of her meds like that.
It’s dangerous for everyone.
“Is this some type of game?” I blurt out before I can stop it.
“Game?” Wyatt has the nerve to look confused and it is just a tiny bit cute. His lip is a little out there and that adorable look is on his face. Those dark brown eyes of his are shining from the light reflecting in them. From here, I can see his perfectly straight and white teeth as they gleam at me. There’s more hair than usual on his face, but he does look very hot.
I nod my head and pick up the damn cupcake. Luke is in my lap eating his ice cream and not caring about the world around him. “Yes. This game that you are playing with me. I don’t like it.”
He shakes his head and then reaches over to get Luke’s attention. “Hey, buddy, how about you eat that over at the kid’s table? I will be over there in a minute. Okay?”
Luke shakes his head and then shakes his butt in my lap. “I stay with Cupcakes!”
We both start laughing at how cute he is and how he’s such an ice breaker. “Yeah, little buddy. I want to stay with Cupcake, too.”
I blush all the way through my whole body and I know I’m in danger of falling too fast and far for this man that is not my husband.
“Wyatt Thorne?”
A gruff voice behind me says and holds out his wallet. The man is wearing the police uniform for Auburn Hills Police Department and his badge looks real.
Wyatt stands up and addresses the officer with respect. He looks almost nervous as he holds his hand out. “What can I help you with?”
“You are under arrest for kidnapping.”
I stand up and hold Luke to me out of instinct. “What the hell are you talking about?” I ask and guard the toddler from the officer’s stare. “Who is he accused of kidnapping?”
The officer looks at the baby and then at a photo in his hand. “This boy has been reported as stolen and there has been an Amber Alert published for him.”
Wyatt shakes his head and tries to take Luke from me. The officer realizes that he’s trying to take the toddler and eases him from me. My body instantly misses the heat of him. “This is my nephew. His mother, my sister, has been gone and unreachable for two days.”
“According to the police report and Amber Alert, Ruth Thorne has been looking for her son this whole time and you have kept him from her. You are under arrest for kidnapping. I will need you to come with me.”
I speak up at this time. “I’m his lawyer, Keeley Johnson. You do not have permission to speak to him privately or on the record unless I am present.”
I reach into my purse and slide out a business card of mine. “Don’t worry, Wyatt. We will get this mess taken care of.”
Even though I knew I was a good lawyer, this is not part of my expertise. I know sports law not family law. The person who would know a little bit about this is Olivia.
Chapter 17
Wyatt
Since my one phone call would have been Keeley but she already knows that I’m in here, I decided to call Rick instead. There is something not adding up about everything. While I was in the car for the twenty-minute car ride, I had a lot of time to think about this kind of stuff.
One: Where the fuck is Ruth? She seriously just disappeared and is expecting me to watch her kid and then calls the cops on me? Are you fucking kidding me? I can’t believe that she would stoop so low and do that to me. Her own brother. After everything that I have helped her with and this is what she does to me. Not only is this probably going to be blown up all over the internet and media, but I could lose my place in the NBA.
Two: It’s pretty fucking convenient that I get arrested only days after Jerry’s remark about gang wars and all of that. I am not naive in the sense that there has to be something about that related to this. I could just imagine him poisoning Keeley right now about how I’m garbage.
Three: I’m eager to find out what Rick has on Jerry. It’s a good possibility that he got sloppy on something and now Jerry knows that I’m looking into him. If that is the case, then I’m fucked.
Four: I need to find Ruth and slap the shit out of her for putting me through this.
There’s a knock on the door of the holding tank that I am in and I look up to see an officer. “You ready for the phone call?”
The officer is a heavy set woman with crazy looking hair. I doubt that she has ever looked in a mirror. That is how crazy she looks. A mustache is growing across her upper lip and her hair is salt and pepper colored.
“Yeah.”
I climb out of my holding tank and then walk to the door to be let out. Once I’m out, I’m able to stand up all the way. I’m at my full height and walking behind the officer that barely hits my chest. We reach the phone and I dial Rick’s number.
“You got Rick.”
I look up at the fluorescent ceiling and thank whomever is up there. “It’s Wyatt. You got that info I asked for?”
He shuffles some stuff around and then says: “This guy is crooked. You will never believe the amount of shit that I have found.”
“Like what?” I’m hoping that it is incriminating enough to get Keeley to leave him. He doesn’t deserve her at all and it’s pissing me off. How he freaked out on me, I could only imagine how he freaks out on her.
“Let’s just say you wouldn’t believe it even if I told you.”
“I want you to deliver that information to my lawyer’s office. Keeley Johnson in Orchard Park. Can you do that?”
He chuckles and then I hear: “For a fee.”
“Five hundred for you to drive five minutes to drop this off to my lawyer.”
He hangs up on me which I’m hoping means he’s going to be doing what I asked him to do.
The walk back to my holding tank definitely feels symbolic. I’m being contained and I hate it. I feel as if everything is happening all at once and I want to know where my nephew is. Poor Luke is probably scared out of his mind right now.
Another thing, I’m tired of this song and dance with Keeley. We are done playing cat and mouse. I’m ready to settle down and I see myself settling down with her.
Chapter 18
Keeley
I’m about to leave my office to go and see Wyatt at the jail when I hear someone knocking on it. “Come in,” I call and wait for the door to open. I’m half expecting it to be Jerry but then again, he has ignored me for the past three days. I have not seen or heard from him.
I’m not too worried about what he is doing though, I’m guessing he’s embarrassed about the way he acted at dinner the other night. Hell, I am for him. The things he said were ridiculous and totally uncalled for. I don’t know why he thought he could say something like that and not piss people off.
“Are you Keeley Johnson?” A man asked wearing a currier outfit. He looks young, maybe eighteen or so.
I stand up at my full height and reach my hand out. “Yes. Who are you?”
He holds the file out and I take it from him. “I was hired by a private company to deliver this to you. Have a good day.”
Before I could question him anymore, he had left. I take the packet of information and walk over to my desk to take a better look at it. Once I’m sat in my chair, I untie the string that is holding the packet together and then shimmy the papers out of it.
Instantly I see tax documents, birth certificates, phone logs, bank statements and business contracts. What the hell is all of this? Why would someone send this to me?
The lawyer in me knows that this was given to me for a purpose. What that purpose is? I have absolutely no idea.
Even though I feel as if I’m breaking the law in some way, I take the birth certificate out of the pile. The name on it is Lucas Thorne and then I look at the mother’s name. It’s Ruth Thorne. I scroll down more with my eyes and then see Jerry Johnson’s name as the father with his social security number on it.
My husband’s name is listed as the father on another woman’s child’s birth certificate.
&nbs
p; Are you fucking kidding me?
I feel the urge to rip up the paperwork and shred it while pretending that I have never seen it. However, this is going to be something that I need to speak to my husband about. Or should I say, estranged husband.
After further looking in the paperwork, I discovered a disc that says: “Confidential Pictures.” I’m almost not wanting to look at it. I’m not sure how much more I can take. With a deep breath, I slip the disc into my DVD rom tray in my computer and wait for it to load.
While I’m waiting for it to load, I look through the remaining paperwork and feel sick to my stomach. He’s been stealing from me for years. Not just a little bit of money, a lot.
When we started this practice, I had my name on my half. Call it the lawyer in me, but I’m going to protect my own ass. Somehow down the way, he started to push me out and the banks are only talking to him. He took out a second mortgage on the building and on our house. Not only that, but he has been taking out loans from the bank.
Tens of thousands of dollars loans.
I can feel the bile rising in my stomach as I begin to think this through.
Let’s recap, shall we? My husband Jerry is listed as the father on the birth certificate of my client’s sister’s baby. And now I find out that he has been stealing from me and signing my names to documents.
There are several applications that were provided that have my name signed to them. Like I said before, I’m a lawyer. I read things before I sign them to make sure I’m signing what I’m meaning to. Never would I sign onto another loan or another business.
My computer dings at me to tell me the pictures have loaded and I open up Picture Picaso. A series of about one hundred images begins to load and I hold my breath during them.
This first picture is of that hostess that worked at the restaurant that we were at to discuss Wyatt’s contract. The second is of Jerry and the hostess leaving the establishment together. The third is of them taking each other’s clothes off in the car. The fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth, are of them getting a hotel room outside of Rochester Hills.