by Becky McGraw
She sighed. “Yes, I talked to her earlier when she called for you.”
“What did she want?”
“She was pretty upset. Her company has canceled the men’s line.”
Wasn’t that just wonderful. Could it get any worse for him? His mind darted off toward how that was going to affect his situation, but he jerked it back when a thought hit him. “That means she doesn’t get her promotion, right?”
“Um, right,” Hope said.
No wonder she was upset. The tension in his shoulders eased a little, knowing she wasn’t hurt. But he felt damned bad for her. That little girl depended on her, and she wanted to buy a house. That wasn’t something Dean could waste what few brain cells he had left on trying to solve though. He had bigger fish to fry right now. And his own problems to deal with.
She still hadn’t relaxed beside him. There had to be more. “What else did she say?”
There was another long pause, then breath she’d evidently been holding escaped. “It’s a big mess. You need to worry about you and Jeremy right now. I’m going to try to help her.”
Hope was always trying to help. Always in the middle of situations that didn’t concern her. His situation and Tina Montgomery’s situation were prime examples. But then if she wasn’t that way, she probably wouldn’t be married to his brother.
“I think you need to take your own advice and deal with your problems first.”
Sometimes he wondered if she forgot about the Weston lawsuit she needed to take care of. Dean hadn’t forgotten. He also hadn’t forgotten about owing her money. If it took him until he was ninety, he would pay her back for helping them take care of his father when he was sick.
“I’m handling that too. My father had some advice, and I’m thinking about it.”
“You’re talking to your dad again?” After the fiasco at Brittany Weston’s wedding, because of her camera malfunction, her family had basically disowned her. She had embarrassed them. Those snobs needed embarrassment. If that was the worst of their problems, then they were doing good. But everyone needed family. At least hers was talking to her again. He knew it had to be a relief.
“Um yeah, a little.” That was another thing about Hope. She kept everything entirely too close to her chest. If she’d let people in on her problems, maybe they could help her too.
That thought sent off bells inside of him. “What the fuck happened to Tina?”
“She quit her job.”
Shock rocked Dean, and he sat back. Cord walked into the kitchen. “Dean, go talk to Jeremy, he’s in his room.”
He looked up at his brother for a second without even seeing him. Dean was that stunned from the news that Tina hadn’t lost her job, she quit. “Did she say why?”
“They wanted her to travel to Europe, and she couldn’t do that.” Hope said.
“Dean, you really need to go talk to your son,” Cord said shortly.
Yes, he needed to go talk to his son. Explain why he said what he’d said. He would think about Tina Montgomery later. When he could actually think again. Right now he had to deal with explaining to Jeremy that his mother was a faithless whore without saying that. A six-year-old was not going to understand that. And he was afraid Jeremy wasn’t ever going to forgive him for saying what he had. Jeremy would become just one more member of his family that hated him.
Because of Cindy.
No, he wasn’t letting that happen. “What did you say to him?” Dean asked trying to figure out what he was going to say.
“I told him that you loved him, and that you didn’t mean what you said. If I were you, I’d start there,” Cord recommended.
Dean nodded and got up then walked on leaden feet toward his son’s room. He knocked on the door, but there was no answer so he just opened the door. Jeremy was laying on his bed facing the wall. Dean walked over to sit on the side of the bed and put his hand on Jeremy’s hip.
Emotion choked, but Dean swallowed it down. Words are cheap. He gathered his courage and forced the words past the lump in his throat, “I love you, son.” Jeremy’s shoulders tensed, but he didn’t roll over, so Dean continued, “I’m sorry I said what I did. It’s not true. You are my son, and I love you very much.”
“I’m not your son,” Jeremy said sadly.
Dean’s eyes burned, he rolled them and sucked in a deep breath. “Jeremy, do you remember when your Mama left?”
“Not really,” Jeremy replied in an even sadder voice.
His shoulders shook and Dean leaned over the bed and slid his arms under him to pick him up. He pulled him onto his lap and hugged him tight to his chest.
“Well I remember. She did both of us wrong when she left. But you know what, Jeremy?”
“What?” Jeremy said with a sniffle.
“She did me the biggest favor she could have too.”
“By leaving?” he asked with confusion.
“No by leaving you here with me,” he said brushing the hair off of his forehead. “I didn’t mind that she left so much, but if she had taken you with her, I would have been crushed. I was there when you were born, and I was the first person to hold you. To love you. You are my son, and I’m glad you are.” Dean hugged him so hard, his muscles quaked.
“But you said Bobby Jones was my daddy,” Jeremy mumbled against his chest.
“Bobby Jones is not your daddy,” Dean said gruffly. “Daddies are the men that take care of their kids. They make sure they are fed, clothed…and loved.” Dean hugged him tighter. “I love you, Jeremy and I will fight for you. That’s what daddies do.”
“Maw Maw says you’re not posed to fight,” he said and Dean laughed.
“Maw Maw is right,” he said and ruffled his hair. “I just mean I will never let anyone hurt you or take you away from me,” Dean said then determination hit him in the gut. “You’re mine, and I would fight for you with my last breath.”
“Can I have a brownie?” Jeremy asked hesitantly.
“You can have the whole pan. Except for one, I want at least one,” Dean said as relief flooded him that evidently he’d said something right. Something that made Jeremy feel better.
“Deal…and Daddy?” Jeremy said looking up at him.
“Yeah?” Dean replied meeting his green eyes.
“I’m glad you’re my Daddy too.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Dean tugged at the collar of the dress shirt, which felt a size too small. Smaller even with the tie his mother tied for him before he left the ranch that morning. Making matters worse was the huge knot of fear in his throat that felt like he’d swallowed a brick. That feeling had been with him since he got those papers from Cindy’s attorney on Friday.
Jeremy was counting on him to work this out.
His family was counting on him. He was counting on himself. And he was putting his eggs all in the same basket. The attorney that Hope’s estranged father had recommended. The man was a socialite. His daughter had been too before she married his brother. They knew people, he reminded himself. To get a recommendation from someone like Liam Carlisle meant you had clients in that circle. Those people didn’t mess around. They only hired the best attorneys, because they had the money to do so.
Dean needed the best, but he couldn’t afford that kind of attorney. He was only here for a consultation, he reminded himself, as he forced himself to push the button on the wall to call the elevator. According to Hope, the man would give him advice on what he needed to do to stop Cindy. To keep his son. The door swooshed open, and Dean stepped aside for two fancy looking women to exit. They were talking, but one woman glanced at him, did a double-take then smiled widely and stopped. The other kept walking. “Cord Dixon?”
Dean pushed his hat back on his head, so she could see his face. He knew that would answer her question whether he was his brother or not. He waited. She smiled and waited. He huffed out a breath. “No, I’m Dean Dixon, Cord’s brother.”
“Twin brother?” she asked with a laugh then shook her head. “Damn,
two of you?”
“Older brother.” Ancient brother. From the looks of it at least five years older than this woman who obviously knew his brother. Dean gave her a tight smile and tried to step around her to get into the elevator. He had things to do other than flirting with his brother’s old girlfriends.
But she put a hand on his arm. “Wait. I heard what happened to your brother at Laramie Jeans. That Tonya Laramie is a piece of work.”
Dean stopped because he was too damned curious not to. His brother had never told him the whole story about what happened to end his reign as Mr. Laramie Jeans. Dean stepped back out of the elevator. He had a few minutes. “What happened?”
Her face flushed, but she smiled again. “Well, Tonya Laramie propositioned your brother, then when he turned her down she fired him and had him blackballed in the Dallas modeling world. She did that to a couple of other guys there too. The man she replaced him with even. I’d like to talk to Cord, but didn’t know where to find him.”
“Why do you need to talk to him?”
“Because I’m representing those other men in a harassment suit against Laramie, and I think he needs to include himself. It’s public knowledge now, in all the papers. We’re getting ready to go to court, and I’m going for broke,” she said with a cocky smile. “I believe we have a damned good shot at winning the case. His testimony would be the icing.”
Dean knew about broke. And right now his brother did too. He wondered what that term meant in this woman’s world. “Broke?”
“Ten million. If Cord includes himself, I’ll up that another five.”
Dean’s breath caught in his chest and he whistled it out. “Damn.”
The woman reached into the pocket of her skirt and pulled out a card. She handed it to Dean and smiled. “Tell your brother to call me.”
With a saucy wink she left, and he watched her walk across the rotunda toward the door.
Dean was sure his brother would be glad to call her. Five million dollars? Damn, Dean would like to have even a tenth of that. He wouldn’t take Hope’s money, but he damn sure wouldn’t hesitate to take it from his brother. Maybe things would work out after all. He felt better about getting into the elevator and pushing the button for the eleventh floor.
An hour later, he finished the story about his and Cindy’s situation then took a deep breath. He felt like he had purged himself of it. Having it out in the open now felt damn good. Dean had never talked to anyone about it. He would have paid this man the two-hundred-fifty dollars an hour he charged, just to be able to do that again.
“Now, she’s married to the man she left me for, the man she claims is Jeremy’s Fa—“ He just couldn’t push the word out of his throat. The word tasted like bitter acid on his tongue when he finally heaved a breath to finish, “Father.”
The man who had thus far just sat there either staring at him, or scribbling notes on the pad in front of him, sighed too. He sat back in his chair and put his hands behind his head. “Have you had a DNA test done?” he asked bluntly.
“No…I thought it was better for my son if I didn’t know.” Dean dragged his eyes away. “Still think it’s better. He’s my son. That’s all that matters.”
“Not now. You need to have it done. If he’s your biological son that will make things a lot clearer in the judge’s eyes.”
“Okay.” He didn’t want to know, but if this man said he needed to do it, he would.
“You said you’re single on the information form. Are you dating anyone?” the attorney asked easing back to lay his elbows on his desk.
“What the hell does that have to do with anything?” Dean asked gruffly.
“If you’re married, that will also look better to the court. She’s married, and could provide a stable home for him.”
“Single isn’t stable? He has a home, a roof over his head, food on his plate.” Even Dean heard the defensiveness in his tone and flinched.
“If he’s not your son biologically, and his mother is married to his biological father now that could look a lot more stable to the court than a single father who might have raised him for the last six years, but isn’t his real father.”
“I’m about as fucking real as you can get. I’m the one who stayed up with him when he had a bug and threw up all night. I’m the one who busted his ass to make sure he had clothes on his back, and food on his plate. I’d say that’s pretty damned real.”
“Yes, that’s true, but the court is going to look at the big picture. The whole picture. They will think about the future, and what’s best for Jeremy. If your ex-wife can prove she can give him a stable home with both of his biological parents, it may not go well for you despite all that.”
“Fuck,” Dean said as he shot to his feet. “Thank you for your time.”
“I want to work with you, Dean, and I don’t take on cases I can’t win.” The man held up his hand, and Dean eased back down into the chair, but sat on the edge. “But I’m not going to candy coat anything for you. I’m going to tell you what I think. You may not like it, but that’s what is best for you to hear. Have the DNA test done, and have the lab send me the results. Here’s a lab that’s nearby.” The man scribbled something on a notepad then tore off the sheet and handed it to him. “I’ll call you when I get the results. In the meantime, I’m going to file a request for a stay on that Emergency Custody Order and file one of my own. I think the court will allow him to stay with you at least until the test results come back.”
Let him stay with him. That sounded so strange to Dean. For years now, since Cindy left him, Dean had blamed her for strapping him with a kid who wasn’t his. Now, all he could think about was fighting her to keep his son. He was so damned scared of losing him, he felt like he would lose himself if Jeremy wasn’t with him anymore.
“I’ll get the test done right away,” Dean said as he stood. He extended his arm over the desk, and the attorney shook his hand.
“Try not to worry. We’re going to give Cindy and that jackleg attorney of hers a run for their money. If we can drag it out long enough, maybe your son will be old enough for the court to let him decide himself who he wants to live with.” A smug smile eased up the corner of the man’s mouth and he winked at Dean.
The confidence this man had was contagious. Dean needed that confidence in his court for this fight. “Thank you so much. Let me know if there’s anything else you need.”
Dean left the man’s office and didn’t know how he felt. He didn’t really give Dean good news about the situation, but he didn’t think it was a hopeless situation either. That in itself was good news to Dean, because before he talked to him that’s exactly how he’d felt.
According to the paperwork Dean had finally made himself read last night, he was supposed to turn Jeremy over to Cindy tonight. Now he didn’t have to do that. If nothing else, meeting with the attorney had bought him more time with his son. Maybe years, if the man was right. Dragging things on for years though, playing legal football with Cindy, would cost him a lot of money. His son was worth every penny. He would sell his soul if that’s what it took to keep his son. His sanity was worth more though.
If he lost his son, Dean would lose his mind.
He was sure Tina Montgomery was losing hers too at the moment. She had lost her job. Or quit it. Hope still hadn’t told him the entire story. But she did ask him to stop by Tina’s apartment to check on her on his way back home, which worked out perfectly. That gave him a good excuse to go by there without having to answer a million questions from Hope. Seeing her was the last thing Dean wanted to do, but he was worried about her. Damned worried. Like his son was to him, Dean knew that job meant everything to her.
When he was having a breakdown out by that lake that night she had been there for him. He owed it to her to be there for her, drag her back from the edge, or just listen.
Right now though, he was going to have that test done then pray like hell while he waited for the results to come back.
***
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Tina paused the movie for a moment so she could shuffle to the bathroom to get another box of Kleenex from the cabinet. When she walked back to the sofa, she picked up the wastebasket, shoved the empty Oreo bag inside, then gathered up the full trash bag and tied it off. She didn’t take it to the kitchen, she just didn’t have the energy. Instead, she set it beside the other full wastepaper bag she’d changed out last night, before she plopped back on the sofa.
She had to finish the movie and her newest crying jag before Laney got home from school in two hours. Her pity party was only allowed when her niece was sleeping, crying herself, or at school. Tina jerked up the remote and pressed the button, then threw it down beside her to pick up the bag of nacho chips she still had to finish. Between the Oreos, chips and flat soda she had in her stomach, Tina felt sick, but she couldn’t seem to stop herself. Last night, she’d eaten an entire box of chocolate covered cherries she’d gotten as a Secret Santa gift from someone at her office for Christmas. Yeah, she’d thrown them up, but they had been good going down.
The same would probably happen when she finished the chips.
Since Friday when she’d quit her job before they could fire her, Tina had done nothing but cry or throw up. When Laney wasn’t watching that is. Her niece did enough crying of her own from missing her mother, and Tina could at least justify her tears to the kid then as sympathetic tears. Otherwise, she held her own in until she could wallow in her misery alone.
Like now, she thought as her eyes welled up again. She jerked a tissue from the box to blow her nose. The scene in the sappy movie she was watching caught her attention. The guy had just told the woman he was dying. Fixated on the scene, Tina bit her lower lip, then sucked in a sob when the woman started crying. She jerked the blanket beside her up to her chin, and the chip bag fell, scattering chips all over the floor. Tina didn’t care. She eased down on the couch, pulled the cover over her head and just cried.
A heavy knock at the front door woke her up. Tina’s eyes popped open like rusty shutters, and she was scared for a minute, because it was pitch dark, then realized the blanket was over face. She shoved it off and looked toward the door when another round of knocking started. It wasn’t Laney coming home, knocking because she’d forgotten her key. The knock was too heavy.