Tia dealt with background and credit checks and also checked the police database for my murky past. I held my breath with that one, but praise God, everything came up clean as a whistle.
Kennedy dealt with the references, and she did it in abundance.
Every business owner in Hambleton stepped up for me, including John and Cash Stone, Giovanni, who owned the Italian restaurant, and Abe Decker, the town mayor. Even Sophie Woods, Atlas’s wife, who was head of General Surgery at the local hospital, gave me a glowing personal reference.
As grateful as I was, it made me slightly uncomfortable.
The idea of people bending the truth to make me seem like this stand-up guy was an eye-opener. Even Rosie saying what a good dad I’d be set my teeth on edge because if I wasn’t sure how I’d cope, how could she be so certain? God knew I’d fucked around for a good portion of my life. I was hardly good father material. Hell, I wasn’t even decent guy material.
However, as far as the hearing went, I couldn’t have been more set.
The rest I’d have to wing.
Callum and Maeve rearranged their flights. Luckily, Scottsbluff had a small airport that flew into La Guardia, where Liam would pick them up and drive them over to JFK, and from there they’d catch a flight to Ireland. I was thankful they’d be in the courtroom along with Mam and Kennedy ‘cause let’s face it, I needed all the moral support I could get.
We were ushered in just before the judge was due. I sat down with Kennedy beside me and my family on a row of seats behind us. Tia, who was accompanied by the same woman who’d been playing with Imogen on that first day I saw her, was already seated.
Tia glanced at me, her gaze fixating on my knee bounce. “It’s going to be okay, Donovan,” she assured me.
I shot her a nervous smile that I knew didn’t reach my eyes. It didn’t matter what she said, until the judge announced Imogen was mine, I didn’t dare get my hopes up. My heart felt as if it would beat right out of my chest, and my fingers tremored so violently that I had to keep my hands clasped together.
I took a couple of deep breaths and tried to center my emotions just to stop myself from losing my shit. My gut was jerking so violently that I panicked, worried I was about to puke.
That was when the doors opened and I heard hushed voices.
I craned my neck to see what the hell was going down, and my jaw dropped at the sight of John Stone, Abe, Aislynn, and Rosie walking inside the courtroom.
Kennedy gave me a soft nudge. “The cheer team is here. It’s about time. I thought they were going to miss it.”
With my mouth agape, I watched Mam jerk her head in Rosie and Ash’s direction and pat the seat beside her. Rosie obeyed Ma’s silent request with a bright smile and parked her sexy ass. Then she turned that same dazzling, red-lipped smile on me.
My eyes slid down her body before returning to her pretty face. She was a vision of cool, calm, and classy, wearing hersmart black pants, black silk button-down shirt, and signature sexy black-rimmed glasses.
Seeing her there looking so confident and serene did something to my insides, and just like magic, my nerves began to settle.
My eyes fixed on hers, and I shook my head, grinning at her, and mouthed,Thank you.
Good luck, she mouthed back, her grin still in place.
Another door opened, and my head whipped back around to see a woman dressed in judge’s robes stride purposefully into the courtroom. She looked to be in her fifties with sharp blue eyes and a severe bun pinned back so tightly that it gave her an instant facelift.
The room fell into a reverent hush, and the clerk began the roll call. After everybody had been introduced and the case details announced, the judge peered over the top of her glasses and ordered, “Let’s proceed.”
Tia immediately stood and greeted the judge before explaining the circumstances behind Charlene’s passing. While Tia spoke, the judge studied the official police report and death certificate before asking about Charlie’s immediate family. When it was established that Charlene had no next of kin that they could trace, they moved on to discuss Imogen and everything that had happened to my girl since her mother’s passing.
My jaw clenched to granite when I heard that Charlie’s fucknut of a boyfriend had waited to call the paramedics, believing that he could deal with her overdose. Because of that, she’d been dead too long for them to be able to revive her. As much as they tried, it was too late.
He was also high as the fucking Space Station. I had to close my eyes and count to fucking fifty to refrain from losing my shit. At the same time, Tia spoke about how the cops had todrag Imogen out of his arms because he kept stumbling while he carried her.
Then they got on the story about Callum and the initial mix-up.
As embarrassed as I felt, I kept my chin up and looked the judge straight in the eye whenever her stare veered to me. To give Tia her due, she played the confusion down as much as she could and quickly moved on.
“From the minute Mr. O’Shea discovered Imogen’s existence, he’s taken on responsibility,” Tia explained. “Not just parental, but financial too. He’s already signed forms committing to repay the funds the state has spent securing Imogen’s safety. Furthermore, he’s taken out medical insurance for her and has signed a declaration that he’ll continue to pay in perpetuity if he isn’t awarded custody today.”
The judge stared at me over the top of her glasses.
“The state is more than happy to grant custody of Imogen to her father today,” Tia continued. “I appreciate it seems rushed, but we’ve been thorough. His home set-up has been checked by a health visitor from the Sweetwater County office, who visited Mrs. O’Shea’s home on Wednesday and confirmed its suitability. We understand Mr. O’Shea has no experience with small children, but he’s already demonstrated all the attributes needed to provide Imogen with a happy, secure home and family life. He’s solvent and well thought of in his community. He and his family are established business owners with no criminal records. In fact, Donovan is an Army veteran with a decorated record who left the military with an honorable discharge just over a year ago.”
