by J. P. Comeau
“Well, really, do you think Heather would hire the firm Brown and Brown if that were the case?”
Danielle looked away, then back at me, “No, Richard, I don’t. That’s why we need to file for the testing… to make sure.”
“Well, just so you know, if this scenario is true, then Heather was right. If I had known she was pregnant with my child, I would have made damn sure she never left River Valley!”
“Yes, Richard. I’m aware of your honorable reputation in business and family matters. Otherwise, I would not agree to represent you in this case.”
“So, you will take the case?” I tried to smile.
“Of course. “Look Richard, I know this is a tricky situation. We have a very long road ahead of us. This case could take months.”
I took in a deep breath and did what I do best. I calmed myself, cleared my head, and forced the rational side of me to take over for at least long enough to take in her explanation. “What do we do now, Danielle?”
“Well, let me go over the ins and outs with her attorney. See what she really wants. And in the meantime, set up a hearing to get the DNA testing rolling. Everything revolves around the result.”
“The hell with what she wants! How do I get in contact with her?”
Danielle held her hands up and shook her head. “No, Richard. Let me handle this. The worst thing you could do right now is call her. If she wanted to talk to you, she would have called you directly. She knows where you work, and everyone in town knows your family.”
“Exactly,” I said. “This will ruin my reputation if it gets out. Even though I’m kind of known as, shall we say, being with a lot of women, this could ruin my public image. Make me look like an absentee father, just like Caley’s dad, Cam. I don’t want to be that guy!”
Danielle reached across her desk and put her hand on top of mine.
“Richard, you’re not Cam. Everyone in town knows that. You have done absolutely nothing wrong. You were in a long-term, committed relationship that didn’t work out. Heather finds out she’s pregnant after you break-up but doesn’t tell you and is now coming after you for child support. Your family can always go to the media with this story. Use your family’s public relations agency to get out in front of this… if you have too.”
I nodded as she spoke, realizing that she was right. Once word got out about it, and I knew that it would, I’d have to do a lot of damage control. I was also worried about how my father would react, but something told me that he’d be on my side.
“So, is it a boy or a girl?”
“I thought you would never ask. Allegedly, you have a daughter, Richard.” My heart started beating again. If there was one good thing to come out of the whole thing, it was that I had a daughter.
“I want to see her,” I said matter-of-factly.
“Unfortunately, Heather doesn’t have to let you see her. Not until the test results prove you are the father. Then the laws in California provide you with certain rights.”
“Excuse me? She dares to ask for child support and for me to sign over custody for our daughter, but I don’t have the right to see her? Does she know how powerful my family is? You bet your ass I’m going to see my daughter, Danielle!”
Once again, she held up her hands.
“Settle down. It’s not just back child support that she wants, Richard. She wants an additional lump sum payment, you know.”
By that point, my face was turning every shade of red.
“Of course, she wants a lump sum payment. It’s hush money,” I said. “Heather knows damn well this will ruin our family’s business. That’s why she’s doing it, Danielle. It’s hush money that I refuse to pay!”
Danielle let out another sigh. “Well, we already discussed the idea of extortion and blackmail. And yes, you will have to pay if the child is indeed yours. The court will decide, usually, based on your income. Unless you two can agree on a figure during arbitration.”
I knew Danielle was right.
“Forget the money, Danielle. Doesn’t a father have the right to see his daughter? I have done absolutely nothing wrong here!”
“I’m not saying that you’ll never be able to see your daughter,” she said. “But I’m giving you a heads up that you’ll probably end up paying a large amount of back child support and a reasonable chunk of change monthly until the child is grown.”
“Fine,” I said. “But only if I can see my daughter. If I can’t see my daughter, then she’s not getting a penny.”
“Look, you have every reason to be upset right now. But please calm down. There’s no point in getting upset over something that you can’t control, especially since that won’t fix anything. Can you give me the afternoon to see what I can do? Let me go over some paperwork, make a few phone calls, and try to find out as much as I can.”
I nodded, once again realizing that she was right. I was just wasting energy by being so angry at Heather. Danielle was an exceptional attorney, and if there were a way to see my daughter and not bend to Danielle’s wishes, then she’d find it.
“Of course, I’m sorry, Danielle. And thank you for letting me just barge in here. And I’m sorry I kept repeating myself.”
“No need to apologize. I deal with this stuff all the time. I do have a suggestion, though, Richard.”
“What’s that?”
“We need to get the hearing set to order the DNA test before spending too much time trying to schedule visitation. I’ve seen far too many men get roped into paying child support for children that weren’t their own, and I’d hate to see that happen to you.”
I shrugged. That was the least of my worries, though. “Yeah, I guess. Given the timeline of events, honestly, I really have little doubt that I have a daughter. Although Heather was pretty desperate to get out of River Valley, she may have hooked up with someone she thought could help.”
“You never know. I’ve had over a dozen child support cases this year alone, and most of them believed they were the father, but I convinced them to take a DNA test. Nearly all of them turned out to be false.”
I thought about what she was saying, but deep down, I knew that I was the father. Heather just wasn’t that stupid. She had to know I would demand proof.
9
_____
ANNIE
I sat back in my office at the yoga studio with articles about intuitive eating littering my desk. Tightening my ponytail, I tried again to concentrate on developing my brand of holistic health food but still found it hard to focus on anything other than Richard.
Suddenly, I had an idea. To ease my mind, I should do a handstand with my legs pressed up against the wall. This particular pose was supposed to help center my thoughts. That day, however, all it did was make me feel lightheaded.
“Centering yourself again, I see.” Crystal gracefully slipped around the corner, into our office and sat down at her desk, placing a brown paper bag on top.
“I’m trying to,” I said, letting myself down. “What’s in the bag?”
She reached inside and handed me a granola bar. The label said that it was organic and made from quinoa, steel-cut oats, and raw honey.
“There’s a new health food store down the street, and these looked good. Maybe they’ll carry your holistic line of food and supplements one day.” I gave her a half-smile while biting into the granola bar. “What’s wrong?”
I shrugged. “Richard. I don’t know what to do, Crystal. He came down here to ask me out to lunch.”
“That’s wonderful,” she said with a giggle that quickly morphed into a frown. “But wait, I didn’t see you leave. You didn’t go?”
I could hear the disappointment in her voice and see her confused expression, and a part of me immediately regretted not going. “It’s not like I didn’t want to. I was just… and by the way, this granola bar is delicious. It doesn’t taste healthy at all.”
“What are you afraid of, Annie? The guy seems like the whole package.”
“That’s the pro
blem, Crystal. You know guys like him. You have to wonder why a guy his age never settled down, which only confirms my fear of being treated like all the other women he’s been with.”
She let out a sigh and put her feet up on the desk. Crystal had a good head on her shoulders, especially when it came to relationships. She knew all of the characteristics of a womanizer.
“Look, no woman who’s had her heart broken wants to go through that again. But you should give it a shot. Just remember what you learned from your ex-boyfriend, keep an eye out for those warning signs, and have a good time.” Crystal bit into her granola bar and nodded, “Not to change the subject. But this is really yummy.”
“Yeah, these are amazing,” I agreed, taking another bite. “Back to the subject. You know, Julianna has been bugging me to date him for a while now,” I said. “At first, it was his age. I mean, he is significantly older than me.”
“He has sugar daddy written all over him, which is fine by me. Actually, I wouldn’t mind a sugar daddy.”
I laughed and threw my granola bar wrapper at her. “Well, I, for one, am not looking for a sugar daddy. But now that we’ve been together, his age isn’t an issue at all. I wouldn’t say that it’s a turn on, but good God, Crystal. That night we spent together in bed was some of the hottest sex I’ve ever had!”
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that some of the students suddenly stopped moving and were snickering. Crystal slid her chair over and quietly shut the door the rest of the way.
“Oops, sorry about that.”
I giggled at Crystal. “Thank God, it’s a young crowd out there right now. I’m afraid the morning crew may have been appalled.”
“Well, you never know,” Crystal gave me a sideways smile. “You might be surprised.” Then she leaned forward. “Now, give me some more of the juicy details.”
“Crystal… you’re so naughty,” I giggled.
“Whatever… So, you’re saying the sexual chemistry isn’t an issue at all? That’s a good thing. Look, even if you just have a fling with this guy, what’s the worst that could happen? Both of you are single, right? You’ve already had mind-blowing sex. Stop putting up so many walls and just go for it already. I don’t see the problem here.”
I laughed a little bit and thought about what she was saying. Except I knew that I wasn’t a ‘fling’ kind of person. I wanted a relationship, a long-term commitment with someone that I could see getting married to one day. Even if Richard hadn’t come into my life, finding a fling wouldn’t be that hard to do. Not with the type of men I’d seen on the dating apps, at least, or at the local bars.
“I’m not looking for a fling, though, Crystal.” Both of us chuckled. “Richard just reminds me of some of the guys I’ve dated before.”
“Remember, Tom, that guy you met online?”
I rolled my eyes, remembering how much of a jerk he was. Just like Richard, he seemed like a great guy at first. He started and helped run an organic coffee business, loved to travel overseas, and was highly intelligent. He was also sleeping with about a dozen other women when we were dating.
“How could I forget. I caught Tom making out with another woman at the local bookstore. He dared to say she was just a coworker as if it was okay to be kissing someone while on the clock.”
Crystal wrinkled her nose and put her feet up on the desk, pointing at me. “Tom wasn’t as bad as Martin, though.”
Martin was on the creepier side. After getting out of prison and turning his life around, he worked alongside his father running a national chain of restaurants. He had spent time in jail for tax evasion, and I believed him when he said that he was a changed man.
“I’ll never forget the day I woke up, found that he wasn’t in bed next to me, and I was also missing my wallet.”
Crystal laughed loudly. “At least you got all of those charges dropped from your credit cards, though. What an asshole.”
I let out a sigh and nodded. “Karma will catch up to those men. But see, that’s what I’m talking about Crystal. These guys, like Richard, they’re all the same. They’re never satisfied with what they have. Take a look at Martin. Why would he risk going back to prison after being given a second chance? They live on adrenaline. It’s only a matter of time before Richard stops getting that rush with me.”
I laid my head on my desk, not wanting her to see the tears forming in my eyes. Crystal’s chair scooted against the floor when she got up and walked behind me, placing her hands on my shoulders. “Believe it or not, there are good men in the world. Some men don’t want to sleep with a dozen women at a time or evade paying taxes and commit credit card fraud. You just have to look for them, and there’s a chance that Richard is one of those men.”
I looked up at her and smiled. “That was cheesy. Inspirational, but cheesy.”
I rested my head on her shoulder.
“That’s what I’m here for,” she said. “From everything you’ve told me about him, he seems pretty normal. I don’t think you have anything to worry about with Richard. Well, unless he has some weird fetish, like watching a woman juggle Jell-O in her toes or something.”
I pulled my head away and looked up at her, my mouth wide open. “Gross! Why would you put that image in my mind, Crystal?”
I couldn’t help but picture women’s feet, juggling green Jell-O while Richard watched. I hoped he wasn’t into anything weird like that.
“I’m just saying Annie,” she said. “There are some weird-ass people in the world. You know how guys can be. But I don’t think you should worry. If he’s into anything remotely weird, it’s probably something like BDSM.”
I held up my hands and shook my head.
“Oh hell no, Crystal. I just want a normal guy. Why is that so hard to find? You’re probably right, too!”
She burst out laughing and sat back down in her chair. “Relax, Annie. I’m sure he’s not into that stuff. Anyway, you owe it to yourself to at least go out on one date. You’ve already slept with the guy. What could go wrong?”
I leaned back in my chair and looked at her, processing what she had said. She made a valid point. One date wouldn’t be so bad. We could meet for coffee or get a light dinner, nothing too serious that would cause us to end up in bed together again. I wanted to take things slow, also.
“He’s been a lifelong bachelor, too. If he doesn’t try to sleep with me on the first date, that’d be a good sign, right?”
Crystal nodded with a big smile on her face. “That would be an excellent sign.”
“Alright, I’ll do it. I’ll go out with Richard, but just for you.”
Crystal stood up and left our office, giving me some privacy to call him.
I felt butterflies forming in my stomach as I pulled out my phone and dialed his number. But I suddenly worried that it was too late. Perhaps my declination earlier had turned him off.
Whatever.
If that’s the case, then it’ll be his loss.
“Annie, hi.” Richard sounded a bit off when he answered the phone, but I told myself not to read too much into it. He was probably just busy working.
“Hey, I hope you’re not too busy. Anyway, um, I was wondering if you’d like to get something to eat or drink tonight?” I started to feel insecure by the pause on his end.
“I’d love to,” he finally replied. “How about eight o’clock? I’ll pick you up.”
“That sounds great!” We hung up, and I felt like a teenage girl again, getting excited about a date with my crush.
Crystal walked by the office window, and I gave her a thumbs-up. She pumped her fist, making me laugh, but it still didn’t take away my nerves.
RICHARD
I was on the phone with my attorney, Danielle, again. She called me as soon as she had received more information about the whole Heather saga. I found out Heather was definitely back in town and wanted everything settled right away, which only irritated me more.
“Let me get this straight,” I said. “Heather waits all of thi
s time to tell me that we have a daughter, and now I have to rush things along? Why is she suddenly in need of all of this money?”
“Heather is getting married, Richard.”
“Of course she is. And now she wants me to foot the bill. Let me guess. Heather is marrying some epic jerk-off with no way to pay for it, so now it’s up to me! To top it off, I can’t even see my daughter. What nightmare am I in right now, Danielle? How is any of this legal?” I could feel my face turning deeper shades of red.
“Please try to calm down, Richard. I set up an emergency hearing for Monday. There’s a chance this will at least give you a few moments to meet the child. I’m told she resembles you. The attorney didn’t admit to this, but I’m sure Heather is hoping that will be enough for you to write the check. How do you feel about this?”
“Confused. But I want to meet my daughter. That, I can tell you.”
“It is at least something until the final hearing regarding the DNA test, and you find out for sure. But of course, there will be no check writing no matter how hard Heather my try to play you after you meet your daughter. Understood?”
“Yes, I get it. No check writing. I guess that’s something. I want to see what she looks like, Danielle.”
My heart softened a bit. Even if I could meet with our daughter just once, that might be enough to get Heather to open up. Maybe our daughter will beg to see Daddy more, and Heather will eventually cave in.
“I’m going to be sending you some pictures of her. So that won’t be an issue much longer. As far as being around your daughter right now, please listen when I tell you that Heather is adamantly against it. She’s not giving us any reasons, either. She just doesn’t want you to see her and, she is going to fight this until… It all goes back to the test. If you’re the child’s father, Heather doesn’t have a leg to stand on.”
I gripped the phone harder in my hand so much that I thought it would break. None of it made any sense. Even though I’d been somewhat of a playboy over the years, a serial bachelor, I was still a good man. My daughter deserved to know where she came from, too.