Vulnerable [Suncoast Society] (Suncoast Society #29)(57)

“Sure.” She fished it out and handed it to him.

He unlocked it and thumbed through the contacts list. He found Carl’s number first and called him. Carl assured Jesse he’d call the others and they’d shuffle things around to keep the shop running for Leo.

“Can I come down and see him tonight?” Carl asked.

Jesse glanced around. By his best guess, out of the thirty or so people currently in the waiting room, at least twenty of them were there for him and Leo. “Yeah,” he said. “That’d be fine.”

“Eva’s * parents there?”

He was glad Laurel couldn’t hear the man. “Yeah. Ed’s talking to them and Eva now.”

“I’ll be right down. Gimme about thirty minutes to change and get over there.” One of the security guards emerged from the consultation room, closed the door, and headed into the medical unit.

“Thanks.”

Jesse hung up and tucked Leo’s phone into the back pocket of his jeans. He’d have to call Leo’s parents, too, at some point. That would be awkward, considering he’d never even met them.

He also needed to contact his job, and that was something that would require less brain cells or nerves, so he chickened out and tackled that first. He called his boss and let him know he wouldn’t be in tomorrow, and maybe not for several days, and why. Fortunately, the man was understanding and sympathetic.

The guard emerged from the medical unit with the female doctor in tow. The voices in the conference room went silent when they opened the door and stepped inside, closing the door after them. Moments later, the voices rose in volume again.

Then Ross stepped outside, the voices’ volume briefly flaring until the door closed behind him. He was on his phone and headed to the far end of the waiting room.

Loren got up and followed him, leaning in close for a moment before hurrying back to the others. “He’s on the phone with Pat Donnelly.”

Tony pumped his fist. “Yes.”

“Who?” Jesse asked.

Tony had settled into a seat directly across from Jesse. The man wore a pleased smile. “He’s a close personal friend of…ours.” He used his right index finger to circle the room, indicating their group.

Meaning the Suncoast Society.

“But who is he?”

Tony smiled and put a finger to his lips, nodding toward Laurel.

Whoever the man was, Tony didn’t want to say a lot in front of Laurel, obviously.

Ross ended his call and headed back into the conference room.

“Shouldn’t I be in there?” Jesse asked, reluctant to let go of Laurel.

“No,” Tony said. “You’ve got Tilly, Ed, Ross, and Landry in there. If you were supposed to be in there, Ed would call for you.” He pointed at Laurel. “She’s your job, right there. You know that’s what he wants.”

Jesse nodded, wrapping both arms around the little girl again. At least she’d stopped crying, although she sniffled occasionally in his arms.

“Is Mommy fighting with everyone?” Laurel softly asked.

“I don’t know, sweetheart.”

“She won’t make me go with Gramma and Grampa, will she? They looked angry. I don’t like that. I want to stay here with you and Daddy. I don’t want to leave Daddy here alone. Daddy said I’m not allowed to ever go anywhere with them alone.”

That was news to Jesse, but he’d deal with it later. “I’ll do my best, sweetheart.” He hated like hell that he couldn’t promise the little girl more than that. Legally, he knew he had no leg to stand on if Eva wanted to take her from him.

Twenty minutes later, the group in the conference room was still arguing in voices loud enough to be heard in the waiting room when an older man walked in. He wore shorts, a T-shirt, and flip-flops, and carried a laptop case slung over his shoulder. His hair was disheveled and he looked like he’d been rolled out of bed.

Tony got up and intercepted him, leading him to the consultation room and letting him in. When Tony returned to his seat across from Jesse, he wore a beaming grin.

“What?” Jesse noticed the voices in the consultation room had gone completely quiet, except for one man talking, but he couldn’t make out the words.

“Don’t worry,” Tony assured him. “This is about to get settled right now.”

“Why? Who was that?”

“You haven’t met him yet, but that is Pat Donnelly.”

Jesse was at the end of his patience. “Please, just tell me who he is.”

Loren giggled. “He’s better known as the Honorable Patrick Donnelly, seated family court judge for Sarasota County. Coincidentally, he’s also the judge handling…” She hesitated, pointed at Laurel, then pointed at her own wedding band.

Ah. The judge handling Leo’s divorce. Jesse nodded that he understood.

“He’s also…a friend in common,” Loren added.

Jesse closed his eyes and fought the urge to burst out laughing. He knew if he did, it’d quickly turn into relieved tears.

The door to the consultation room opened fifteen minutes later. Eva’s parents stormed out, leaving the waiting room without so much as a look in Laurel’s direction.

The security guards followed Eva’s parents out.

Then Landry, Tilly, and Eva emerged. Eva was crying, but she also appeared to be leaning on Tilly, who had an arm draped around Eva’s shoulders on one side. Landry had his arm around Eva’s waist on the other. The doctor also emerged, talking with Ed, Ross, and the judge.