The Sheriff's Mail-Order Bride (The Watson Brothers #2)(43)

“Did you stop to think of what you wanted for yourself out of life?”

“No. I’ve had to look out for myself for years, even before my father died. So this was no different in my mind.”

Layla smiled, a gesture that reminded Rory of a cat taking an extra slurp of cream from the bowl. “You two seem rather cozy to me.”

“We fell in love.” He glanced at Chance who gave him a small nod. “It worked for Chance and Callie so I took the risk it would work for us too.”

Layla looked at them with her mouth wide open, words escaping her for the moment. She glanced between the brothers and cast a quick glance at Tyson who had his head down, a frown on his face. She closed her mouth and cleared her throat, seemingly swallowing with difficulty. “Right.” Still shocked, she picked up her pen and clicked it a couple of times, seeming to gather her wits.

Rory came to the rescue. “Stranger things have happened.”

“Sure they do. Look, the courts are going to find it rather convenient that you two suddenly fell in love. Sounds a bit saccharine, if you see what I mean. And being an officer of the law yourself, I’m sure you don’t believe in coincidences.”

“Tough. We have and we’ll be married when our house is renovated.”

Layla put her pen down and clasped her fingers together in front of her face. “If you want my opinion, and Chance is paying very handsomely for it, get married now. Prove this isn’t just a convenient way to try to cheat the courts.”

“That’s not fair. Rory wanted to get married in our own place when we were ready.” Gina glanced around the table. “They can’t do this to us, it’s not right.”

*

“Do you want to lose your son?”

“That’s a little bit below the belt, don’t you think?” Gina stared at the woman who a moment ago had her full support.

“No, not if it gets us what we want.” She leaned forward on her elbows. “We have to show the court two things. One, the Bellinghams are wrong in as much as it wasn’t you leading their son astray, it was him that put you in the position you are in now. I doubt public opinion would be able to soften the blow to their case if it got out that a spoilt rich kid on drugs got you pregnant and left you in poverty. And two, this is a committed loving relationship that would be the best place for your son to grow up. You have Rory’s family here—his brothers and sister-in-law.”

Layla looked at Chance, a line marring her perfect forehead. “Is your father still alive?”

He scowled and crossed his arms.

“I’ll take that as a yes, then. Do you mean to tell me that after all these years, you haven’t made peace with that man?” She stared at him, her mouth set and he looked away.

“This isn’t about me, Layla. Let’s keep it that way.” Everyone in the room watched the play between the two of them.

“Actually it is. You pay me for my opinion and now you’re getting it. I helped you set up bank accounts to keep this family afloat and made sure they had what they needed. Now they need you to step up one more time. Make up with your father, Chance. At least enough that he will have some contact with Fisher. It’s important to show a united, loving family. From what I can find out about the Bellinghams, Fisher would probably be brought up by nannies and spend his formative years in boarding school, just as his father did. I doubt they would change their very busy lifestyle to accommodate a small child. We need to go one better and show the courts the opposite.”

Gina held her breath, waiting expectantly to hear what he said. Chance glanced at her and Callie dug him in the ribs with her elbow. “Stop being such a hard ass. Hell, Chance, if my mother died and left Dad alone with us kids, I wouldn’t blame him for hitting the bottle. Might be hard but I’d still love him and understand why he did it.”

“You weren’t here.” He glared down at her and she ignored him.

“Seems to me you’ve been precious long enough. Make up with him and then maybe your own kids will be able to have a grandfather around. Heaven knows it’s not going to happen from my side of the family.” She looked down at her hands, her shoulders drooping.

He placed an arm around her and looked back at Gina before sliding his gaze to the lawyer. “Hard hitter.”

She smiled and let go a tiny “whoop,” fist pumping the air. “Knew you’d see things my way eventually.”

Gina sagged in her chair. It was all getting too much for her. The tears rolled down her cheeks and there was nothing she could do to stop them.

“Hey, come here, honey. I’ve got you.” Rory pushed his chair out and pulled her onto his knee where he crooned to her softly as she let it all out. She sobbed for the father she lost, the father Fisher had never known, and the agony she would go through if they lost this case. When her tears eased, Rory wiped her cheeks with a tissue. Gina glanced around the table. Everyone sat watching her meltdown.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to lose it like that. I try to pride myself on not being a weepy female.”

Callie jumped up and hurried over to her. “Aw, babe, it’s okay. We’d all do the same, believe me, and I don’t think any less of you for letting your emotions get the better of you. You’ve been through a lot these last couple of years. Let me get you a cup of coffee while we finish this off. Layla said she won’t be much longer.”