The Rules of Dating(62)
Saylor’s eyes widened with a sparkle. “You’re not really wearing my underwear are you, Daddy?”
“I don’t know. Do you have pink ones with little purple butterflies on them?”
She nodded fast.
“Hmm. Okay, well, good thing then. Because the ones I have on are black and don’t have any butterflies on them.” I rubbed my nose with hers. “You don’t really think I can fit into your undies, do you?”
She giggled again, and it felt like a salve had been rubbed on the gaping wound in my heart. I carried her into her room and opened her dresser drawer, pulling out a pair of her underwear and socks. “Here you go. But you better get a move on. We only have ten minutes before we have to leave for preschool.”
“Okay, Daddy.”
A half hour later, I rounded the corner back onto my block after dropping Saylor at school. I felt angry and bitter, but also a whole lot scared as I opened the door to the diner and looked around.
Maya held up her hand and smiled and waved like we were besties having a friendly breakfast. Is she serious? I took a deep breath before marching to the table. My face was anything but friendly.
“Hello, Colby.”
The first thing I noticed is that she was dressed differently than last night. Today she had on a business suit, while last night she’d worn jeans and a top I couldn’t even remember. I only knew she’d been casual, and now it looked like she was all business. Her dark hair was tied up, and she had on a pair of thick-rimmed glasses. I had no idea she even wore fucking glasses.
I nodded and sat down. “What do you want?”
The waitress walked over. “Can I get you some coffee or juice?”
I waved her off. “Nothing for me, thank you. I won’t be staying long.”
Maya smiled at the woman. “I’ll take a coffee, with milk and sugar, please.”
I barely waited until the waitress disappeared. “So what do you want from me?”
Maya folded her hands in front of her on the table. “I need you to marry me. They’re trying to deport me.”
My brows jumped. “Are you freaking high?”
“No. I’m very sober.”
“Then just mentally insane? I’m not fucking marrying you. I can’t stand the sight of you.”
“If you do it, I will sign over full custody of Saylor. My attorney has advised me that I have two ways to stay in the country at this point: either file for custody of my daughter and apply for a green card as the primary caretaker of my child, or marry an American citizen. You’re the most logical choice, and I’m told we would likely sail through the immigration process if we say we’ve been together since Saylor was conceived.”
I stared at her for the longest time before speaking again. “Saylor’s doing great. Thanks for asking.”
Maya took a deep breath and exhaled. “I’m trying to keep emotions out of this, Colby.”
“Well, isn’t that grand of you? It must be nice to be able to see your child as nothing more than a business transaction you can barter.”
The waitress returned with coffee and poured a cup for Maya. She looked back and forth between us. “Are you guys ready to place an order?”
Maya shook her head. “We need a few more minutes, please.”
“No problem.”
I leaned forward. “You don’t even want custody of her, do you?”
“Like I said, I think it’s best if we keep emotions out of this conversation. Let’s just make it simple. I need something from you. You need something from me. Marry me, and as soon as I get my green card, we’ll divorce, and you will forever not have to worry about custody.”
I glared at her. “I’m not worried about it now. No judge in the world is going to give you custody.”
“You’re speaking from an emotional place because I’ve made you feel threatened.”
I lifted my chin. “Go fuck yourself.”
“Do your homework, Colby. Consult a family law attorney. Whoever you pick is going to tell you that I will get visitation once I file that paperwork. It may be limited at first. But courts like mothers in their children’s lives, especially a little girl. Eventually, when I do everything correctly and a little time passes, I’ll be awarded shared custody.”
“You’d uproot a little girl’s life to serve your own purposes without blinking twice? You already walked out on her, isn’t that enough damage?”
Maya picked imaginary lint off her pants.
I couldn’t take it anymore. Her nonchalance had my blood boiling. I stood, the bottom of the chair scraping loudly against the tile floor. “I’m done here.”
When I turned, Maya grabbed my wrist. “Go see a lawyer,” she said. “Confirm what I’ve told you. Then meet me back here one week from today at the same time. I’ll hold off filing the paperwork until then. I realize this is a lot for you to digest.”
I pulled my wrist from her grip and looked her in the eye. “Go fuck yourself.”
“Same time next week, Colby. I’ll see you then.”
CHAPTER 18
Billie
It was one of those days where it was so rainy that it almost looked like nighttime. The weather was an exact match for my mood. I’d also been dropping things all morning. Deek looked over at me curiously every time. It would be great if I could get through this workday without losing my mind. Thankfully, I hadn’t screwed up any tattoos yet, but the day was still young. All morning, I hadn’t been able to think of anything except Colby’s meeting with Saylor’s mother.