He leans forward, lowering his voice. “It doesn’t have to get messy, Claudia. Court is… a lot of noise. I was hoping we could handle this privately.”
I tilt my head. “Privately? Shouldn’t this be done in court? Isn’t that why you had me served?”
The edge in my voice is quiet but unmistakable — not cruel, just sharp enough to cut.
He sighs, dragging a hand through his hair. “You know how the system works. Lawyers, hearings, months of back and forth. It’s a circus. I just want what’s fair.”
I glance down at Savannah, then back up at him. “Fair for who?”
“For her,” he says smoothly, too quickly. “I think she deserves both of us.”
“Funny,” I say softly, “because she’s had one of us every single day since the moment she was born.”
Kyle’s mouth tightens, the charm faltering. “You said you didn’t want anything from me. I respected that.”
“And now where’s the respect?” I ask evenly.
He sits back, silent for a long moment, eyes on Savannah.
“She’s beautiful,” he says finally, his voice quieter.
I meet his gaze without flinching. “She’s mine.”
He gives a small, humorless laugh, pushes his chair back, and stands. “Let’s not make this ugly, Claudia. I’m trying to do the right thing here.”
“Then maybe you should start with honesty,” I say.
He hesitates — for half a second, it looks like he might say something tangible — but then his mask slips back into place.
“I’ll be in touch.” He stands and walks the hell away.
I watch him disappear through the door, the bell chiming behind him, and only when he’s gone do I see the white envelope sitting there
For a moment, all I can do is stare at it. The words printed neatly across the front—Amended Custody Petition—blur slightly before I blink them clear.
Savannah lets out a small sigh, and I lean down, touching her cheek gently.
“It’s okay, sweet little one,” I whisper. “We’ll handle it.”
I slip the envelope into my bag, drop a few bills on the table, because he didn’t, and walk out into the cold.
I wakefrom a nap to Nalani and Sofie.
“No,” Nalani whispers.
“Bzzz,” Sofie actually makes the sound, which makes me smile. “Wrong answer. A sister needs us.”
“She’s your big, not mine. She needs you,” Nalani whines.
“Three things. One, my big is sad and depressed because your big is a giant twatwaffle. Two, I’d like to think I’m the reason you came back, but I’m not—it’s KOK. Three, my father wants me to cover the Bears’ home games, bought a box, and I’m too busy to make new friends to fill it, so you’re it. Four?—”
“You said three.”
“I’m using four because you haven’t caved for twat big, KOK, or box seats.”
Nalani sighs. “When did you get to be such a bully?”
“When my father realized he didn’t have a son, and my ovaries don’t make me incapable, and he’s handing over responsibilities left and right. Back to four, we need to get Claudia a job and settle her. I like her. Bonus, I can steal herbaby when I need a fix, so I don’t get any silly notions about having my own.”
