He purses his lips. “Siena says it isn’t a given. The judge still needs to ensure I’m a fit father. And this judge leans heavily toward mothers keeping their children.”
“What a bunch of malarky! Daisy abandoned Adele and didn’t even show up to the custody hearing. She shouldn’t get visitation rights. Let alone custody!”
“I’m trying to comfort myself with those thoughts, but Siena said I shouldn’t get my hopes up.” He threads his hands through his hair and pulls.
I’m a horrible partner. Here, Zane is worried he’s going to lose his child, and I’m getting all riled up about what a bitch Daisy is. I should be supporting him. Not adding to his problems.
I grasp his hand and squeeze. “Did Siena indicate when you’ll hear from the judge?”
“It could be a few days or a few weeks.”
“I’m certain the judge will side with you. Were you able to give evidence about how you’ve been caring for Adele for the past two months?”
He nods. “Even though Daisy didn’t show, the judge asked us to present our case.”
He tears away from me to pace the office. Harper isn’t behind her desk. She must have slipped out and I didn’t realize.
“I don’t know what I’ll do if they take my baby girl from me.”
Distraction. He needs a distraction. Otherwise, he’ll spend the entire day worrying about the custody hearing. There’s nothing he can do about it now anyway.
“Why don’t we go on an outing with Adele?”
“An outing?”
“We can visitMermaid Mystical Gardens.I bet she’d love it. We’ll invite the whole family.”
The theme park has plenty of rides for young children. If Adele is anything like her dad, she’ll love it.
Harper peeks inside the office. “I’ll contact everyone. We’ll meet you there.”
I grin at Zane. “I guess we’re going.”
We drive to the theme park with Zane’s mom and stepdad. When we park and step out of the car, the Raider brothers are already arriving. This family can assemble quickly whenever fun is involved. His brothers and their partners join us at the entrance.
“What do you think of Zane’s dad-mobile?” Miles asks.
My brow wrinkles. “What dad-mobile?”
He points to the car we arrived in.
“I thought it was your mom’s car.”
“Nope. It’s Zane’s dad-mobile.”
“Did you sell your bike?” I ask Zane.
I hope he didn’t sell his bike. I haven’t gotten to ride on it yet. Mom had plenty of boyfriends who had bikes but I wasn’t ever allowed on the back of them. Mom didn’t care about my safety. She was worried about how much younger than her I was. In other words, she was jealous. Of her own daughter.
“No, but I needed a car for Adele,” Zane explains. “I couldn’t keep borrowing yours.”
“Why not?”
“Because it’s not big enough for more kids.”
I gasp. “More kids?”
He chuckles. “When I plant my babies in you.”
