by Ali Vali
Only one thing clarified in her mind, and it made her want to sit and cry until she couldn’t shed another tear. It’s what Monique had put in her letter. Not the one Willow hadn’t seen yet, but the one Jefferson had read to her and Tucker. Her sister had said she couldn’t read the other letter until she became Grady’s mother and not just his aunt.
She didn’t have any experience, but she did know one important thing. A mother was someone who’d do whatever she could for her child and wasn’t afraid to say her child was the most important thing in her life.
“All I want is our son.” She knew, without question, that Tucker would be the one to make everything okay. And that beside Tucker, life would be something special. That was something she’d fight for, no matter the opponent.
Chapter Eighteen
The helicopter landed, the pilot cut the engine, and they took off for the terminal next to the Superdome. They arrived early enough for them to meet with their attorney and try to strategize, and Tucker had been on the phone most of the day putting her plan in motion. Once the attorney was finished with them, she’d asked to speak to Ivy, Bubba, and Tara, as well as their attorney, before the proceedings.
Their identical smug smiles made Tucker want to cut deep enough that it would take all three of them a long time to stop bleeding. They cared about nothing but the money, and she didn’t want to waste another minute of her life on these people, blood relationships or not.
“Are you prepared to be reasonable?” Ivy sounded semi-sober.
“Define reasonable.” The door opened and she didn’t have to look to see it was Willow with Jefferson. She smiled when Willow sat and took her hand.
“Give me complete ownership of the company and my home back. If you play fair and give me that, you get Jim Bob’s little bastard.”
Willow growled at how Ivy referred to Grady and leaned forward, but Jefferson placed his hand on her arm.
“Were you the piece of ass he had on the side?” Bubba asked Willow and laughed at Willow’s expression of outrage. “I can see why he fell for you.”
“Bubba, the smart play here is to stop talking before you have a need to swallow your teeth.” Tucker stared at Willow while she spoke and ignored Bubba’s laugh. “And, Ivy, this is your last chance to change your mind before you lose more than you’re willing to voluntarily part with.”
“You’ve always thought, like your brother, that I’m some drunk idiot, but you can’t win this time, Tucker, so stop with the dramatics. And don’t tell me the kid doesn’t mean anything to you. I’m not falling for it.”
“I’m rarely if ever dramatic—you know that.” She maintained eye contact with Willow and she finally smiled.
Tara slammed her hand down as if everyone was wasting her time. “Don’t act like all this is a joke and you’ve got nothing to lose. Mom’s not kidding, and she’s not an idiot you don’t have to take seriously.”
Jefferson glanced at his phone and raised his thumb.
Tucker nodded. “There’s going to be no court hearing today. Isn’t that right, Jefferson?”
“You’re full of shit,” Ivy said, but her attorney was reading a text he’d just gotten and he shrugged as though he didn’t know what was going on.
“We were granted a continuance for the court to investigate exactly who Grady would be better off with.” Jefferson held up his phone and Ivy appeared ready to beat him to death with it.
“I’m going to stretch this out as long as I can, so we can bring up all those treatment visits you’ve had, Ivy. I’ll be doing that while I break up those three trusts to finance the rigs I’m thinking of adding to my fleet.” She shrugged when all three of them stared at her as if not knowing exactly what to say. “The house you’re living in now? I’m thinking of turning it over to the church, or whoever else wants it, so start looking for a place to live. You have five minutes to decide.”
“You’re bluffing,” Ivy said. “You’d rather set yourself on fire than give anything to the church.”
She laughed since that was technically true. “I’m bluffing as much as you are, Ivy, and Tara just said you’re no joke.”
“You’re nothing but a bitch,” Tara said.
“No, what I am is fed up, and what you all can’t accept is I’m not the one who wrote the will. Jim Bob did that all on his own, and he made sure what he wanted was what happened.” She was damn tired of all these games. Jim Bob made so many mistakes in how he handled this shit with his family, but she totally understood his reasoning. “Because you’re pissed, you want to punish me, Willow, and an innocent baby for your mistakes. But I’m not going to let you do that, and Jim Bob warned you what would happen if you took me to court. I take away the trusts and the house, and you can go get jobs working in retail. And Bubba can pay for the lawyer he’ll need, to deal with the shit on that rig he supposedly signed off on.”
“It’s not fair. Can’t you see that?” Ivy yelled.
“Ivy, he left each of you millions of dollars in cash. What exactly is your definition of unfair?” She laughed when Willow whistled softly. “None of you cared about the actual business of the company. You only ever cared about the money, and that’s what he left you. I’m not sure why you can’t see that’s a win-win situation. You’ve got your money. Just go away.”
“The choice should’ve been left to Tara and Bubba.”
“The choice started way before now, and it was always the money. Keep it and leave my family alone, or I will make you sorry.”
Willow squeezed her fingers and nodded.
“You’re willing to whore yourself to be with the Delacroix on the throne to make sure your bastard gets it all?” Ivy asked Willow. “Believe me, run now while you still have a chance at a life.”
Willow’s chin lifted and she stared Ivy down. “I’ve heard plenty about how you got your Delacroix, honey, but mine won’t require any kind of tricks. She knows about the baby up-front, and she’ll come willingly when the time comes.”
If Ivy had any alcohol left in her system, her obvious rage burned it away. Tucker laughed out loud, and even Jefferson tried to hide a smile.
“What’s it going to be?” Tucker asked, wanting to get out of there.
“The trusts,” Tara said through gritted teeth and no one disagreed with her.
“Smart play, which makes me believe you really are in Mensa.” Tucker couldn’t help one last dig.
Willow pinched the top of her hand to make her stop talking.
“You deserve every bit of misery you have coming to you,” Ivy said as she stood and grabbed her purse. “Your father might not be so easily persuaded,” she said to Willow.
“My father abandoned me and my sister when my mother died.”
“Maybe, but you’ve gone and laid the golden egg now, sweetheart, and that does things to a man. Everyone wants their fair share—it’s human nature.”
“Ivy, leave now and know this is the last time we’re doing this. Today was me being merciful.”
“Believe me, we’re done, and make sure Mann knows that Bubba is off limits.”
“On that, you have my word.”
“For once I believe you,” Ivy said, and the kids followed her out. Jefferson and the other attorney took the hint and left as well.
“What a difference a meeting can make,” Willow said, not letting go of her hand.
“How so?”
“After meeting them, I actually feel sorry for Jim Bob. That woman is just awful.”
“She’s not our problem any longer, and we’ll do research in case your father is.”
Willow shook her head. “Knowing him, his new family probably has no idea about Monique and me. He’s not exactly follow-through material, and I’ll be happy to tell him that. To me he was nothing more than a sperm donor.”
“Then the rest of this shouldn’t be that hard.” The knot in her stomach finally loosened, and she exhaled to let the residual tension go. “Want to go home?”
“I’m sorry I
doubted you, Tucker, and I’m really sorry I ever misjudged you. My sister was right about you and Jim Bob.”
“This is a minor miracle,” she teased, and Willow predictably slapped her arm. “Jimbo can rest easy now that you aren’t cursing him to hell.”
“About all that stuff I said about my own Delacroix—”
“Don’t worry, I won’t hold you to it, but I did enjoy Ivy’s reaction. Nothing has changed between us, so don’t get nervous.” The words came out, but she had to admit, she liked the way Willow had put some kind of future in front of them, whether she’d meant it or not.
Her parents were waiting downstairs with Grady, Jefferson, and their family attorney to hear what had happened. Grady was in a new outfit, which meant her mother had gone shopping again, and that made her chuckle. The only legal business they had left was to do with something Willow had said. She’d referred to him as their son, and that’s what needed to happen to prevent this from reoccurring. That, though, would tie her to Willow for the rest of their lives, since adoption wasn’t like giving back a pair of socks you didn’t want.
She tilted her head and the attorney followed her into an empty office. “Thanks again for your help,” she said and she shook his hand. “There’s just one more thing.” Her explanation was brief and he took some notes as she spoke. “Is it doable before anything like Ivy comes along again?”
“Are you sure?”
“I am, but you should be the one to explain it to Ms. Vernon.”
He smiled and shook his finger at her. “The legal part is my responsibility, but the telling her part is yours.”
“Chicken.”
“Call me Colonel Sanders, and I’ll lay an egg for you, but I’m not volunteering for that.”
* * *
Their weekend was quiet, and Willow was glad they’d weathered the crisis with little to no bruising, but being back in her too small house for the last couple of days had also brought them back to their regular routine. That meant Tucker was back on the sofa where she belonged, and all was right in their world. The problem was, it wasn’t quite right, and she had to find a fast solution as to how to rearrange it to her liking.
She stepped into the kitchen on Sunday, and Tucker was standing at the window, scratching her butt and yawning. How was anyone supposed to deal with that sight first thing in the morning? It was too much for the average person. Hell, an average person would’ve folded by now and would be lying on the ground naked, begging to be taken.
“Hey, good morning,” Tucker said when she turned around, appearing bashful.
Yes, I caught you scratching your ass and you should be ashamed. Ashamed of reminding me how fabulous your ass is. But you’re not, are you?
“You okay?”
“Fine, why do you ask?” She moved to get coffee cups since the coffee had started to brew. So the lesbian wet dream made coffee too, and didn’t just stand around showing off her perfect ass.
“You looked like you were in pain.”
Tucker leaned against the counter and Willow half expected a photographer and his crew to saunter out and start an underwear photo shoot. The boxers with palm trees and hula girls were cute, but…seriously. Who wore that, and where did they shop? And how did Tucker make that look so hot?
“Sort of like now.” Tucker’s voice was way closer now, and she was prying a mug out of her hand.
“Sorry, I seem to be lost in thought this morning.”
“How about coffee first, then we take Grady out for breakfast?” Tucker poured coffee and fixed it exactly how she liked it before prying the other cup loose to pour one for herself.
Sweet baby goats, she had to get out of here before she embarrassed herself. “You don’t have to worry about me, Tucker. We might be stuck together, but you don’t have to be obligated to spend all your time with me.”
It was fascinating to watch the change in Tucker’s whole demeanor. She couldn’t blame anything but her own stupidity, but it was like a summer storm rolling in without warning. The kind that turned a sunny day into a torrential downpour with streaks of lightning. Tucker had shut down and lost her smile, and she’d done that, but it was the right thing. She had to offer Tucker an out if that was what she really wanted.
“Sure, no problem. Do you mind if I take Grady? The coming week is going to be a bear, and I might miss him some nights.”
“Hot dates?”
“It’s all work. I’m trying to play catch-up, and I can’t let it go any longer. So is it okay if I take Grady?”
“Sure, no problem.” She repeated the words, but hers had so much more emotion than Tucker’s flat response.
Saying them was like uttering abracadabra because Tucker effectively disappeared into the bathroom. She was about to check on the baby when the door opened again and Tucker stepped out in jeans and the shirt she’d slept in. Tucker didn’t glance her way and she got Grady up and dressed him as well. She sat with him to give him his bottle, and then they were gone.
“What the hell is wrong with me?” Willow grabbed the sides of her head and groaned. She’d never groaned in her life. The closing door was the only noise before the quiet and the emptiness it brought with it returned. “You’re a fucking idiot—I hope you know that.”
She’d also never in her life talked to herself, but it seemed like the perfect time to start. Why the hell not? “Let’s run down the problem, shall we?” She dumped her coffee down the drain since her stomach was now a vat of acid, and she stripped her nightgown off.
Now that she didn’t have Monique, showers had become her new best friend. “You fell for that cute ass,” she said, adjusting the shower dials. “But is cute a fair assessment?”
Cold would’ve worked better, but she was an idiot, not necessarily a masochist. Though, this morning was self-inflicted pain. “Then a couple of hours after the ass incident, you slept with her, but instead of overthinking it, you slept with her again.” She washed her hair and took her time working herself into a true funk by the time she was done and figured there was only one real solution. Monique was gone, but there was still someone in her life who wouldn’t hold back the brutal truth, even if it hurt. “Is Tucker there?” she called Stella and asked.
“No, but the iced tea is ready, so come on by.”
She followed the GPS and ended up in a smaller version of Sans Souci with a larger yard. The gardens reminded her of those books dedicated to spectacular landscaping, and they instantly lifted a weight off her. If the front was nice, the back was mind-blowing, and that was where Bart led her when she asked for Stella.
“Can we move in here, and you could have your house back?”
Stella put ice into tall slim glasses with flamingos on them, then poured equal parts tea and lemonade. It was like something out of one of those reality shows about rich people and how fabulous their lives were because they sat around drinking Arnold Palmers out of crystal flamingo glasses. This was probably an average day in Delacroix land.
“You know, sweetheart, if you’re going to stand there blatantly judging me, it might behoove you to develop a poker face.” Stella’s tone was teasing as she placed the glasses on a marble table between two large comfortable looking chairs. No matter what, she loved Stella and her sarcasm. “If you don’t, it might become awkward at holidays when you’ll be forced to spend time with me and the boys.”
“Doesn’t Tucker spend holidays with you?” She sat and closed her eyes momentarily as she sank into the chair. “Grady will be disappointed if she doesn’t.”
“I was talking about Tucker as well. That kid was born with everything except the extra bit, but I’m sure she might have one or two of those lying around the house. Her brain, though, is wired differently than yours and mine. I think of her as one of my boys, like Bart and Jimbo, and that’s how it is.” Stella dropped her sandals and placed her feet on the large ottoman that served both chairs. “You should keep that in mind when it comes to things like voluntarily expressing her feelings and choosin
g paint colors.”
“Or looking at pretty girls in ridiculous shorts.” The softly mumbled comment didn’t escape Stella’s bat ears, and Willow was relieved when she laughed.
“Syd strikes again, does she?” Stella winked and pointed to her glass. “It’s always been my theory that our dear Syd is playing the long game, and Tucker is too oblivious to see it. Both of us could learn a little something from Syd.”
“Is there vodka in this lemonade?”
“I call it my drunk Arnold Palmer, and it’s nice on warm days.” They tapped their drinks together and it hit Willow that this was like winning the family lottery.
“What’s her long game?”
“I figure she’s slowly winding Tucker up, and one of these days she’s going to snap and Tucker’ll wake up with a wedding band on and no idea how it got there.” Stella smiled but it appeared more wicked than amused. “Hell, she’s so beautiful, I’ve considered sleeping with her, and I’m not gay and I’m totally crazy about my husband.”
That made her laugh and it was like a dam that gave way to the pressure building behind it. Her laugh went quickly to sobs. It was embarrassing that she’d become this emotional, weepy mess. The one thing she had to hang on to was Stella, and she did until the tears burned themselves out to a small stream.
“I’m sorry.” She wiped her face but it refused to stay dry. “Lately I’m such a basket case.”
“Face it, pretty girl. You’re not only human, but you’re normal. I cry every day in the shower, and it keeps me from throwing myself in the pool with the car tied around my ankles.” Stella wiped her tears and kissed both her cheeks. “What you need to do…That is, if you want my advice?”
“That’s why I’m here.” It should’ve been obvious, but there was nothing wrong with putting it out there if Stella was reluctant.
“You need to concentrate on the same thing I do to find happiness, even when the pain of loss threatens to choke the shit out of you.”