When his gaze fell on her again, she felt it like a physical touch and nearly lost the meager amount of food that she'd managed to get down that morning.
Calleigh covered her hand and gave it a squeeze. "Focus on the goal of today, Seaton. This is your next step toward moving on in your life. You've already come so far. This is one more thing to check off on the list."
Seaton nodded and focused on the judge's desk at the front of the room.
When the bailiff stepped forward from the wall, Seaton got up from her seat in anticipation.
"All rise!"
She drew in a breath through her nose and watched a man in a long black robe walk into the room.
"The Honorable Joseph Landon presiding."
Seaton was focused on the judge as he sat down. She wondered how many hearings he was going to have to rule over today. The one thing she knew for certain about appearing in court was to listen to the judge and her attorney. Those were the only two things she could control.
Everything else, she would have to put in someone else's hands.
The judge sat forward and braced his elbows on the surface of his desk.
For a moment, Seaton worried about what she thought was a strange way to begin a hearing.
A moment later, she understood why.
"Excuse me? Mister Miller?"
Seaton refused to look over at her ex.
He tended to bask in attention.
"Mister Miller," the judge leaned back in his chair, folding his arms across his chest., "I'm the one talking here. You do not need to stare at your ex-wife, sir."
The courtroom around her went still.
Sighing, the judge took off his glasses and dangled them from his fingers. "In this courtroom, unless you are addressing one of the attorneys here, do NOT make the mistake of glaring at your ex-wife. It willnothelp you."
Seaton heard Daryl scoff under his breath, and she started to believe that the hearing would end up in her favor.
The judge addressed the courtroom.
"Alright. You folks can sit down." He turned to his clerk. "What are we doing today?"
CADDO
When they got home, the world felt smaller to him.
It wasn't a bad thing for either of them.
Having been surrounded by the firehouse family, he could tell that Seaton felt the rush of support, but she'd also expended a lot of energy.
The hearing couldn't have gone better. Daryl had been ordered to stay far, far away from her and not to come anywhere near her home or workplace.
After they'd left, Calleigh had invited them out for a meal, so had his firehouse family, but they'd also recognized how exhausted Seaton was, so they stepped back and let Sam take her home.
He filled her tub with hot water and set out a nightshirt for her and a pair of sleep shorts that would be comfortable.
Sam had intended to leave her when she'd gone in to take a bath, he didn't want to crowd her, but just before she stepped into the bathroom, she looked at him and her eyes... her beautiful eyes... made him ache for her.
"Sam?" Her voice was barely a whisper. "Could you-"
