“You’re silly, Daddy. Charlie made it, but I poured in the chocolate chips.” She seems so proud of herself.
We eat breakfast, while Emma gets to know her Aunt Quinn. She tells her that she loves the ranch, and she’s hoping that I will get her a pony, so she can learn to ride. She wants to go on a trail ride with Charlie and me. Everything is centering around Charlie. Quinn gives me that knowing look, which makes me stick out my tongue. Quinn’s loud, boisterous laughter fills the kitchen, which has everyone laughing.
“Okay, Emma. I need to tell you something. Mommy wants to take you to Paris with her, but I want you stay here with us this summer. Aunt Quinn and her friend are going to help keep you here with me, but we need to go talk to a judge first, which we’re doing today. You need to get dressed because we need to go soon.” Emma stands up and hugs me tighter. “It will be okay. If you have to go to Paris, we’ll still talk every night and try to make sure we eat lunch together through video chat. I love you, and you’re my daughter now and forever. Nothing will change that, so you remember that.” She runs to her room crying.
“I’ll go.” Charlie gets up from the table, and she squeezes my shoulder, as she goes by.
“What do you need to from us?” Wes asks, and Quinn tells them what we need, and then mentions that we need dress pants on. We head upstairs to get dressed for court, and I knock on Emma’s door to see if she’s ready. I open it to see Emma and Charlie holding up paint samples to pick out what color she wants, and I smile. “Hi, Daddy.”
“You ready?” She walks over to me.
“Charlie, are you coming?” I ask her. “I need you.” I hold out my hand out to her, and she takes it with a smirk on her face. “Shut up.”
“I didn’t say anything. Are there any clothes in your closet that are mine?”
“I think there are some dresses.” She goes into my room to change. In about ten minutes, she comes down in a black and white suit dress. It’s the best that I can describe it with her hair in a ponytail and black heels.
“Ready to go?” I nod.
“Quinn went to meet Tara first. I have all of the paperwork that she told me that I needed. Tucker and Wes are in the truck waiting for us.” We head out and drive to the courthouse. Charlie, Emma, and I are in the backseat, and my nerves are starting to get the better of me. We pull into the courthouse parking garage, and I feel sick.
“Daddy, what if I don’t want to live with Mommy anymore?” Emma asks me, as she holds my hand. “I don’t like Grandpa. He’s mean to me. He doesn’t like you or me.”
“Honey, I don’t know what’s going to happen in there. I know Mommy and Grandpa are going to be really mad at Daddy for doing this, so you’re going to hear a lot of bad stuff today.”
“I know not to listen to it. Charlie and Aunt Quinn told me that already,” she tells me.
“You’re too smart for your own good.” I laugh, tapping her nose. We ride the elevator to the floor that we need, and I see Quinn, standing there talking to a slightly older woman. They look very serious.
“It’s okay,” Charlie reassures me.
“You know, Charlie, since we’re at the courthouse…” Tucker puts his arm around her, and Emma giggles.
“Why Tucker, are you asking me to marry you? I wouldn’t want to deprive the women of the United States of you. They would go into mourning.”
“Uncle Tucker, Charlie is going to marry my dad. Duh!” Emma puts her hands on her hips.
“Oh, I didn’t know. I’m terribly sorry.” He acts so sarcastic with her. They have a fun relationship.
“Rhett, Tucker, Wes, Charlie, and Emma this is my friend, Tara,” Quinn introduces us, and we all say hello.
“Oh, I remember you graduating from middle school. You were such a hell raiser.” She looks at Wes, and I can’t help but laugh, because if anything, he’s the shyest one of all of us. “Now, Rhett. This isn’t going to be easy, especially with your past with The Stillmans. It seems like you have a lot of support here.” She states, as we walk into a conference room. Charlie sits out of the room with Emma, so she doesn’t hear us badmouthing her mom and grandparents.
“What are we looking at strategy wise?” I ask, as soon we sit down.
“We need to talk about how you didn’t know about Emma, until you accidentally stopped at the flower shop, the supervised one-hour lunches, calls where she or her father had to be listening, and then the fight that lead to them living with you.” I sigh, thinking about how I fucked Katy, and it spiraled all of this.
“I had sex with her in my office, and when I wouldn’t try to have a relationship with her, that’s when she sprung Paris up. We had it worked out that she would stay with me for the summer, and all of a sudden, Daddy changed her mind.” I pull out my cell phone of the video that Charlie recorded of Katy grabbing Emma’s arm, agreeing to everything, and thanking both Charlie and I for letting her pursue this dream without worrying about Emma.
“This is good, but did she know that she was being recorded?” Quinn asks.
“Yes, because we have everyone sign a waiver to be at the house, even if you’re not going to be around the kids, because it’s a liability issue for us. We need to protect them. Everyone knows that, because we work with kids and have kids on the property, and there are cameras everywhere to prevent a he said/she said, when it comes to protecting everyone involved,” Tucker speaks up almost defensively. “We need to stop letting The Stillmans tell The Livingstons what to do.”
“Calm down,” Quinn says. “We’re do in court soon. I need to talk to the court reporter to find out about Emma. Please behave yourselves out there. There needs to be no fighting, arguing or any problems in the hallway in front of Emma, The Stillmans, or the bailiffs. We need to let cooler heads prevail on this one.” We nod in agreement, as Tara and Quinn leave the room, so it’s just Tucker, Wes, and me.
“Guys, we need to be on our best behavior on this one, okay? I’m begging you. Emma needs us,” I tell them, as we stand and head out into the hallway. Emma and Charlie are coloring together, so I snap a couple of pictures of them.
Charlie
I’m sitting outside of the room with Emma because she doesn’t need to hear her parents and grandparents tear each other down.
“Charlie.” I look down at Emma. “I love you.”
“Well, I love you, too.” I hug her from the side, and we continue to color. Quinn and Tara come out first to let me know they’re going to find out where we’re going to be at, so we can get Emma situated. The guys come out about twenty minutes later, looking a little flustered, but I look at them, and they smile.
There’s a door slam to the left of us that captures our attention, and we see Katy and her parents. I’ve only met her dad, so I’m assuming that is her mom. Katy looks pissed off that Rhett is standing next to me. When I look up to him, I notice that he has a void in his eyes with no emotion whatsoever. This breaks my heart because I never wanted him to get to this point with the mother of his child. The week that I was in Dallas I would go to sleep, thinking about my fears pushing him to cheat. Did I make it so unbearable that he had to get it out of his system? I know they often say that women or men who are cheated on or abused blame themselves, or was Katy that vindictive?
I nudge Emma a little. “Look who is here?” She looks up to see her mom, and she waves, before going back to coloring. Katy looks pissed. “Aren’t you going to go say hi to her?”
“I will, when I’m done coloring her this picture. I want it to be really pretty for her.” She smiles, and I return the same smile. The three guys start talking about the repairs on the ranch and ignoring the looks from The Stillmans.
Tara and Quinn come back out to see us and let us know that Emma will be sitting in a room off the judge’s chamber, and that we’re next up on the document.
“Tara Smythe, how is your dad?” Mr. Stillman stands in between his family and us.
“He’s doing well. He’s actually coming today.” Mr. Stillman looks
confused. “He’s my partner in my law practice. He tends to come to all of my court cases and vice versa, but when an old friend of his is going against his daughter, he tends to want to be there.” Tara doesn’t seem rattled at all.
“I’m all done. Charlie, will you help me?” Emma breaks the tension, as I help rip the page out of the book. “Mommy, look what I colored for you!”
“Is that why you didn’t come over here right away?” Katy smiles.
“Yeah. Charlie and I were sitting there, and I told her that I wanted to color you a picture, so you don’t miss me, when you go to Paris.” She smiles at her mom.
“You’re coming to Paris with me,” Katy tells her, as we all watch the scene. Rhett sits down next to me, putting his arm around me.
“I don’t want to go. I want to stay with Daddy.”
“You’re going to Paris with us, and that’s final.” Mr. Stillman’s booming, baritone voice echoes in the hallway. Rhett tenses up, when Emma looks terrified.
“She’s not your daughter. You don’t tell her what to do.” Rhett stands up, as I try to stop him from doing anything stupid. I whisper his name, as I stand up next to him.
“Think about Emma,” I whisper, as the bailiff watches us. He backs down from a defensive stance, so he doesn’t scare Emma. “We got this okay?” I bring him back to sit down with me.
“Okay.” Rhett and I sit down, holding hands. “He pisses me off, Charlie.”
“I know, but you can’t fall for his cheap shots and mind games. You’re better than that.” I try to tell him. Tucker and Wes are standing over by the room that they came out of earlier.
“Livingston versus Stillman.” A bailiff comes out and yells, and everyone stands. “I need lawyers, the mom, and the dad first.”
“Remember, keep your temper in check, and think of Emma. I love you.” I kiss him, and he hugs me. They walk in, as Emma comes back over to me, which makes Mr. Stillman mad, and he walks away. Mrs. Stillman surprises me by sitting down with Emma and me.
“I’m this little one’s grandma. You must be the famous Charlie.” She holds out her hand to me.
“Famous? I don’t know about that, but yes, I’m Charlie. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. Emma and the Livingston boys have nothing but wonderful things to say about you.”
“Their dad and my brother were best friends growing up. In fact, that house that you’re living in used to be mine. Karen is my niece and has done a lot work to that house.”
“Oh, I love that house. The porch is my favorite. I spend hours there, drinking lemonade and working on recipes.”
“Speaking of recipes, there’s a pancake one that I need from you for this little one.” Mrs. Stillman tickles Emma, and I can see the bond they have.
“I can give it to you on one condition. You teach me the proper way to can fruit and also make jam. Rhett raves about your jam. I never learned how to do that.” I smile.
“It’s a date.” She shakes my hand, and then we exchange numbers. “I’m sorry for all of this, but my husband has to control every aspect of Katy’s life. I’ve always had a soft spot for Rhett. I really thought he knew.” She wipes away a tear. “I told them this is ridiculous about Paris. Katy has a chance to go away to another country off without the responsibility of being a mother for three months. She deserves that, and Rhett deserves to be able to spend time with Emma and get to know her.”
“I agree with you. I know when I went to Paris to study it changed my life forever. It was an experience of a lifetime. It ignited my passion for cooking,” I tell her. Mrs. Stillman and I sit and talk about food for about a half hour, until Mr. Stillman comes in. She ignores his huffing, as the door opens, and a bailiff steps out. “Emma Stillman.”
“You need to go with this man into the room with your mom and dad,” I tell her.
“What if I say something that will make them mad at me?” Emma sniffles.
“You listen.” Mrs. Stillman looks at her. “What have I told you? Always tell the truth. If someone gets hurt by it, you can always fix it later on. Tell the judge, the lawyers, Mommy, and Daddy the truth.” She nods, as she takes the bailiffs hand.
We sit there in silence. I think everyone is afraid to say anything. Every sound of any door opening or closing, heels on the floor, or someone coughing is echoed.
“Nervous?” Tucker asks, after Mrs. Stillman goes to check on her husband.
“Yeah. I hate not knowing. I’m scared for Emma. She wants to please everyone, and I think she might say what others might want her to say.” I look over to Mr. Stillman. It’s been almost an hour, since Emma went in, and I’m pacing the floor. I need to keep busy. This is driving me crazy. I need to be in there with Rhett, and I need him to know that he’s not alone. I’m actually worried about all of the parties involved.
“Need some coffee? Water?” Wes asks.
“Water, please.” He even asks The Stillmans’ but is met with a grunt and a no thank you sweetheart.
“I’m sure this isn’t the place to bring this up, but have you been through the past BBQs to see how we’ve done them?” Tucker asks me. I think he’s trying to keep me distracted.
“Yeah, I have, and I need to discuss with everyone their ideas as well. I can’t wait for you to try my homemade sauce. Do you have a smoker?”
“No, we don’t.”
“Then, I need to look into getting one for the ranch. Are you sure that you are real cowboys living in Texas?” I laugh.
The door opens and out comes Emma, Rhett, Quinn, and Tara, and they come over to us. “I have full physical custody of Emma. Katy lost it in there, and the fact that she lied. Mr. Stillman didn’t work in her favor. The judge knew him and his tactics. Katy and I will work out a custody agreement, which a mediator will approve, but Katy’s going to Paris with Emma’s approval.”
“Are you okay?” I ask him, touching his cheek.
“I’m scared and worried about all of this. What if I fuck it up or hurt Katy by this?” Rhett whispers. Emma’s over with Katy and her grandmother.
“Baby, you and Katy are going to work this out on your own terms, which will be good for all of you. I love you.”
“I love you, too.” I kiss him. “Ready to go home?” he asks.
“Yeah. Apparently, you don’t have a smoker. I need to go online and order one for the BBQ.”
I notice that Katy’s glaring at us, and I’m feeling bad about this situation. We stop next to them. “Katy, you can bring her stuff out to us, like I told you in there. One of the parents’ cabins will be yours for good. I’ll build you a new one, so you can have your own place at the ranch. Give me the specs that you want, and I’ll have my architect draw up the plans.”
“Thank you,” Mrs. Stillman says. “Can I come by to see her?” She sniffles.
“I’m not keeping her from anyone. All I wanted was to be in her life,” Rhett tells Katy and Mrs. Stillman. “Call me whenever you want to come out. The house is always open for visitors.”
“Besides, we need to teach you how to make the pancakes,” Emma tells her grandma, who tells her, yes, we do.
We head out to the parking garage, and Emma’s excited that she gets to live on the ranch. We decide to go out to lunch as a family, and Katy’s going to join us, I extended the invitation. Quinn and Tara head back to the office, since Quinn decided to join Tara’s law firm, seeing she’s here once a month. We arrive at a Texas Steakhouse because Emma loves it. She likes walking across the peanut shells that the customers can throw on the floor.
We sit down at the table and order drinks, while we wait on Katy. Emma seems a little distant, so Tucker starts to pick on her. “Emma, I think I should order a strawberry milk. Do pink cows give you strawberry milk?” Emma tips her head to the side.
“You’re weird, Uncle Tucker. There’s no such thing as a pink cow.”
“Oh, I didn’t know that. What about unicorns?” He smiles.
“I love unicorns. I want a unicorn birthday party.”
“Sorry I’m late. Daddy’s quite upset about the ruling, and I needed to calm him down. We have to go over some paperwork for school and adding her to your insurance now, too.” Katy is telling Rhett, who looks like a deer in headlights.
“Are you going to be up for this?” Katy snaps.
“Yes.” Rhett gets defensive. “It’s a lot to take in all at once.” Katy scoffs. She’s doing this on purpose to overwhelm him, so he gives up. But I’m never going to let him.
Rhett
I can’t believe my luck. The judge was getting mad at everything that Katy was talking about with all the proof I had. When he saw the video of Katy, grabbing Emma, that was the final straw. Katy didn’t even cry. I cried, even Quinn did. Now, Katy’s rattling off a bunch of information fast that I need to do, but Tara and Quinn are already working on everything that I need to do, as they’re calling schools, doctors, and anywhere else they think I need the information. I’m lucky to have the sharks that I did.
“Katy, let’s just enjoy dinner okay?” I say to her.
“Mommy, when do you go to Paris?”
“I leave in two days. I wish you were coming with me.” Emma goes back to coloring.
“I’m glad I’m staying with Daddy. I get to play in the garden, and Grandma is coming over to help make jam!”
“Oh?” Katy’s confused and stares right at Charlie.
“Your mom wants my pancake recipe for when Emma stays there, and she is going to help me with making jam and canning. I could never get those right. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong.”
“I’ve lost my appetite. I’m going to go and gather up all of that paperwork that you need for Emma. I’ll also have some clothes, too. Since you have a bedroom set up already, I’ll just get rid of this one. She has a computer that is strictly for Skype.”
Cross My Heart Page 15