“The township cleared the road. Back to normal,” I told her, tossing a reassuring smile her way.
Emily nodded and gave me a small smile, and I could see the worry in her eyes.
“But trees in the road isn’t what you're worried about,” I noted. “This will work, Em.”
Emily nodded again, silent, and I focused on driving.
At the restaurant, we ordered dinner and a couple beers. When the food came, I realized I was famished, and Emily ate with relish as well. I was worried she was too upset to eat.
“So, what do you want to talk to me about?” she asked.
I gazed at the non-existent fire in the fireplace that was the focal point of the room. Emily stared at the candle on the table, sensing my hesitation.
“Just tell me, Harley,” she said. “Is it bad news?”
“No, not necessarily bad news,” I hedged.
“Alright, then what kind of news?”
I sucked in a deep breath and exhaled. “Cooper had a suggestion that would make your full custody case stronger. It would also give you a legal reason to relocate Chloe.”
“What suggestion?” she asked, her brows drawing together.
“That we get married,” I blurted.
“Married?” Emily yelped, then glanced around to make sure we weren’t being watched. More quietly, she hissed, “Married?”
“Yeah, married.”
“We’ve only known each other for like three months,” Emily reminded me.
“I know.”
“Well?” She rolled her hand at the wrist in a finish your story gesture.
“Well, Cooper said that if you were married and starting a business with your husband who lives out of state, it would give you a convincing reason to relocate Chloe.” I put up my finger when Emily opened her mouth to protest, telling her to let me finish. “Because I already own a successful family business in Colorado, it makes sense in this situation for the new business to be here. That could convince the judge to modify the custody agreement in your favor, especially with the character witnesses against Shawn exposing him for the asshole he is.”
Emily silently stared at me for several seconds before speaking. “And, how do you feel about getting married?”
I thought for a moment before I answered. “Honestly? It feels right. As crazy as this sounds, it felt right when we did it in Vegas. The next day before I realized it wasn’t legal, I was actually excited about being married to you, and that was only after knowing you for like thirty-six hours.” I paused to take her hand. “I know it’s only been three months, but Em, I’m in love with you. You’re amazing, and Chloe is amazing, and I want you both here with me forever.”
Once the words were out of my mouth, I felt in my gut how true they were.
Emily sipped her beer and thought about my statement for a long time. Finally, she looked at me and said, “Yes, let’s get married.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
I smiled hugely, and her bright smile was my reward.
“And Harley? I love you too.”
Emily
When we returned to the resort, I had to break the news to Kellan. I really wasn’t really sure how he would take the news. And I was nervous as hell about telling him I was planning on marrying Harley.
I knew what he would say. I’d rushed into marriage before, the biggest mistake of my life except I had Chloe because of it. But it was different this time. Not only a different situation but a different man. Harley was a good man, and though I’d only known him a short time, I did love him.
“Do you want me to come inside with you to break the awesome news?” Harley offered, punching his fist in a joking manner.
“No,” I chuckled. “Thanks, but I better talk to him alone. Kellan will need time to let this sink in. Like I did.”
“Makes sense,” he said with a nod, his eyes on mine. “What do you think he’ll say?”
I don’t know,” I answered, concerned. “I really don’t know.”
After a moment of silence, he asked, “Em, do you trust me?”
I looked him in the eyes. I trusted him more than anyone, besides Kellan. He’d done so much for me. “Yes,” I told him sincerely.
“Good. I won’t let anything bad happen to you or Chloe. I promise,” Harley swore, taking my hands. “Call me as soon as you’re done talking to him, okay?”
“Alright,” I agreed.
Harley helped me out of the truck, and before I could turn away, he pulled me in for a kiss. He kissed me deeply, passionately. It was just what I needed to keep going, to know that this insane plot could work.
I smiled at him. “Talk to you in a little bit.”
“I’ll be waiting,” he grinned.
* * *
“Married! What do you mean you and Harley are getting married?” Kellan burst into a rant after I told him. “Don’t you remember the last time you got married on a whim?”
I took a deep breath. Kellan must have seen that the conversation wasn’t easy for me, so he waved his hand, telling me to explain it to him.
“It’s not on a whim. Cooper suggested it,” I explained, planning to give him all the details. When I finished my story, Kellan was silent for a long time, and I knew exactly what he was thinking, but I gave him his moment.
Finally, he looked over at me and asked, “How do you feel about this?”
“Honestly Kellan, I’m happy for the first time in a long time.”
“Do you love him?”
“I do,” I admitted to my brother.
Kellan nodded. “I want to talk to him before you two leave for Olympia. Call him and see if he can talk now. I’ll go up to his place.”
I looked at Kellan in shock for a moment. Recovering, I realized he meant it. He was my protective big brother.
I dialed Harley’s number, and he agreed to speak with Kellan, almost as if he had expected my call.
Harley
I watched out the front door for Kellan’s car to pull up. I had a feeling he was about to go all ‘if you hurt her, I’ll kick your ass’ on me, which was fair. I knew how protective Kellan was of Emily, and I wouldn’t have expected anything less from him.
Nerves burned in my head, almost as if I was asking permission for Emily’s hand. In a way, that was exactly what I was doing. I would never ask Emily’s father for her hand in marriage, from what I’d heard about him. So, it was up to Kellan to give Em away.
Just be honest, I told myself as Kellan pulled up. And don’t say anything stupid. I let him inside and handed him a beer. I sipped mine and waited for him to dig into me.
“You know I have to ask you some important questions, right?” he asked me.
“Yes, I understand,” I acknowledged.
“What are you expecting to come out of this situation? Are you just marrying Emily to help her with this custody thing? Or as a way to get what you want for your business?” Kellan asked.
“No, neither of those.” I shook my head vigorously. “I love her, Kellan. When I realized it, I was shocked as hell.” I chuckled. “And I love Chloe. I want to give them both the best life possible, and I truly believe that life is here with me.”
Kellan watched my face closely, probably trying to judge if I was telling the truth or not. Doubt was clear in his voice when he spoke. “I’m not sure she’s ready to get married again.”
“I know. It’s a last-minute decision. But I told her I wouldn’t pressure her. She and Chloe can stay in the rental as long as she wants. Forever if she wants. Don’t get me wrong, I hope she wants to move forward with our relationship, but I’m not going to force her. Emily can decide how she wants this to go,” I told him earnestly.
“That’s what I needed to hear,” Kellan said, reaching out to shake my hand. “Thank you for looking out for them. They’re lucky to have you.”
That coming from Kellan was a true compliment. I was relieved and ecstatic to have his confidence and approval.
Kel
lan said his goodbyes, and I called Emily as promised. I told her the conversation went well and to get some much-needed rest. I’d be by first thing in the morning to leave for the airport.
Emily
We decided we would get married the following Saturday before Kellan and I took Chloe back to Olympia. Probably just at the Justice of Peace. We could always have a real wedding in the future if we wanted to.
For the next couple of days, our goal was to get the witness statements and for both Mike and Penny to agree to testify in court against Shawn. Harley and I landed in Olympia by one in the afternoon. We decided to stay in a bed and breakfast near Black Lake that was far away enough from the city to not be detected but still close enough to go on a hunt for Penny when the time came.
Kellan had made it easy by contacting Mike while we were on the way to Olympia. Mike had instantly agreed to both the notarized statement and to testify on the day of the hearing. He met us at a notary near where we were staying so we didn’t have to come into the city.
“Thank you so much,” I told him, hugging his neck.
“Thank you, Mike.” Harley shook his hand when we stepped out of the notary.
“I’ve been waiting for a long time for something like this to happen. Shawn has another think coming if he thinks for one minute he’s getting full custody of that beautiful little girl. Just wait until the judge sees the pictures of my injuries. Gory as hell,” Mike said angrily.
“I can’t believe that any respectful judge would let Shawn get away with what he did to you in the first place,” I agreed. “Really, the entire incident should be revisited. He should have been charged with assault.”
“Maybe even attempted murder, considering the severity of the injuries,” Harley added.
“Do you think your attorney could file charges against Shawn for me? I’m not sure if we can re-open a closed criminal case, but I can sue him civilly for my medical bills, at least,” Mike wondered.
“I don’t see why not. Here’s Cooper’s card,” I said, fishing it out of my wallet and handing it to him.
“He’ll want to talk to you anyway. I’ll ask him about it next time we talk and tell him to expect your call,” Harley told Mike.
“Thank you both. I’ve been waiting a long time for my day in court against that asshole.”
“Of course. Talk to you soon, Mike.” Harley said goodbye, shaking his hand again.
“Bye, Mike. Thank you so much.” I hugged him again.
“Absolutely.”
The easy part was over. After we parted ways with Mike, Harley and I went back to the bed and breakfast to check Harley’s email. With no word from the PI, Harley decided to email him to ask for any progress. We only wanted to stay one more day in Olympia at the most so we could be back at the resort by Saturday morning.
Jackson didn’t get back to Harley until seven in the evening. He’d come up with an address for Penny’s mother. He also said she was enrolled in classes at Saint Martin's University. On her weeks off, she studied at the library on campus Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays; otherwise, her classes were online. We had to decide what to do.
“What do you think?” Harley asked me.
“I say we take a trip to her mother’s and see if we can find her there. If not, we go to the university tomorrow morning to try and intercept her,” I proposed.
I hated stalking the poor girl, but I didn’t know how else to reach her. Jackson didn’t find a number for her, either, only her mother’s. I didn’t want to call and set off any alarms in case she didn’t live there. Maybe I was being paranoid, but this was really important, and we only had two chances to track Penny down.
“Let’s go,” Harley said.
We navigated to the address Jackson gave us in a small residential area called Sequoia Park. We drove around the housing development to 4856 Center Avenue and looked for Penny’s car.
“There it is!” I exclaimed, pointing at Penny’s red Toyota Camry. “She’s here.”
“Now what?” Harley asked.
I didn’t know. Now what? I hadn’t thought it out too well. Did we just go up to the front door and ask for her? Penny did know who I was, so it wasn’t so farfetched that I would be at her house. Or did we call first and ask if she would speak with us?
“I say we go up to the door and surprise her. Don’t give her an opportunity to back out. We drove all this way to talk to her. I’d hate to go back without doing so,” I said, glancing at him.
“I agree. Let’s go.”
On the front porch, I nervously creaked open the screen door and knocked on the wooden front door. I let the screen door close softly. There was a glass window in the wooden door with a light green curtain hanging over it. Through the curtain, I saw a light come on. A moment later, an elderly woman opened the door.
“Hello. Can I help you?” the woman asked through the screen door, giving us a suspicious look, looking first at me then at Harley standing behind me.
I didn’t want to startle her, so I decided to tell her who I was. “Hi, my name is Emily Mayberry. I’m looking for Penny. She’s my daughter Chloe’s nanny.” She narrowed her eyes. “I just wanted to ask her a couple of questions. It’s important. Can we speak with her for a few moments, please?”
“Hold on, let me see,” the lady said. She raised her voice, a brittle sound, as she called for her. “Penny!”
“What is it, Mom?” Penny called faintly, as if she was upstairs.
“There’s some people here to speak with you. At the door.”
“Who is it?” Her voice was a little louder now.
“Emily Mayberry. Chloe’s mom, she said,” the woman said softer now.
Penny didn’t respond, and for a moment, I thought she was going to refuse to come to the door. I held my breath and looked at Harley, who shrugged.
“Tell her I’ll be right there,” Penny finally answered. Her voice sounded wary. I’m sure she was wondering what the heck I was doing at her front door unannounced.
Penny’s elderly mother came back into view of the screen door. “Hold on a minute. She’ll be right down,” she said in her creaky voice.
“Thank you.” I nodded to her, exhaling with relief at the same time.
We waited for a couple of minutes before Penny showed up in the hallway behind the screen wearing a pink bathrobe. “Hey, Emily. What are you doing here?” she asked. She looked worried. “Is Chloe okay?”
“Chloe’s fine. I’m sorry to just show up like this, but I didn’t have your number,” I explained.
Confusion replaced the look of worry on Penny’s face. “How did you know where I lived?” she asked, her suspicion matching her mother’s.
“We apologize. We had to track you down. It’s really important that we speak to you about Chloe,” Harley explained.
“And who are you?” Penny asked Harley, her eyes narrowing.
“This is my fiancé, Harley Hunter,” I introduced them to each other quickly. “He helped me find you,” I added as if that explained it.
Penny just nodded, to my relief. “What can I do for you?” she asked, still talking through the screen door.
“There’s no easy way to put this, so I’ll just say it,” I began, rolling my shoulders to ease the tension. “We need your help. Shawn’s seeking full custody of Chloe on some bogus charges that I tried to relocate her without his permission, breaking the custody agreement. Which I did not do.”
Penny nodded, and then her eyes widened. “Full custody? That would mean he’d want me to move in full time.” She shook her head as if that wouldn’t work for her.
“Yes,” I nodded. “He would ask you to move in full time. I know he has you take care of Chloe all day. She’s told me you get her up in the morning, take her to preschool, pick her up, get her dinner, play with her, and read her favorite bedtime stories to her. Chloe thinks you’re the greatest, and I want to thank you for that.”
I paused, trying to put my thoughts together. “But Chloe has also told
me that Shawn spends very little time with her. He’s never home, and it hurts her feelings. I think it’s wrong of him not to spend more time with his daughter and have his nanny take care of her.”
“I always wondered what his problem was. He goes out with several different women on a weekly basis. Sometimes we don’t see him for days!” Penny exclaimed.
I nodded, elated to hear she didn’t think so highly of her boss. “I’m here because Shawn has petitioned the courts for full custody. Out of spite because I’m getting remarried.”
Penny looked shocked. “If he wins, I would basically be Chloe’s mother. That’s not right.” She shook her head. “Why don’t you come in? I’m sorry I didn’t invite you in sooner, but I was concerned about why you were here. Shawn always tells me not to talk to you about his business, but I think the circumstances warrant a discussion,” Penny said as she held open the screen door for us.
“Thank you, Penny. I really appreciate you speaking to us,” I told her as she led us to the living room and invited us to sit down.
“Everything alright?” her mother asked from the kitchen.
“Yes, Mom,” Penny answered. “It’s okay. We’re going to talk in the living room.”
“Anyone want any coffee? Or iced tea?” the woman asked.
Penny raised an eyebrow at us. “No, thank you.” Harley shook his head, smiling at her.
We all had a seat around a long coffee table.
“How can I help?” Penny asked.
“We need a notarized statement from you telling the truth. How you’re the live-in nanny and take care of Chloe the entire time she’s with her father.” I smiled at her when she nodded. “You would just explain what you do for her and how Shawn is never around, how you don’t see him for days sometimes. Our attorney will use your statement in court.”
“That’s all?” Penny asked, her voice happy. “I can do that. I don’t think Shawn should ever get full custody. Honestly, I don’t think he should have any sort of custody, if you ask me. He’s a horrible father. I often wondered why he even has her the time that he does.”
Take a Mountain Man Home for Christmas: A Mountain Man Romance Christmas Collection Page 76