Matters of the Heart (12 page)

“Don’t you
think this would make a pretty necklace for Presley when she’s older?” asked
Lucy.

“Sure would,
it’s beautiful. We should write a thank you note to Sadie for it, for
babysitting, and introducing me to you.”

He kissed her
neck again as the doorbell rang.

“Hope it’s
not more crazy ladies with skillets,” said Brad.

“You want me
to get it?”

“Nope,
hopefully whoever it is won’t stay long.”

Lucy had just
picked up Presley when she heard Brad’s voice drifting up from downstairs. With
each word he spoke, the volume got louder until he was shouting. She lifted up
Presley from her crib and crept to the top of the stairs where she now heard a
woman shouting back at Brad.

“You dump
your baby on a doorstep in the cold and then as usual, you have second thoughts
and back you come for the baby.”

“Everyone’s
allowed to make mistakes in their lives,” said the woman.

“Yeah and I
made my biggest one when I hooked up with you.”

“I want my
daughter back.”

“She’s my
baby too and I say no, you’re an unfit mother.”

“Do you
really think that she’s yours? If you brought that then you’re a bigger fool
than I gave you credit for, Brad.”

Lucy squeezed
her eyes together and pulled Presley in closer.

“Not mine,
really, then why did you abandon her with me?”

“You were the
only person I knew who’d take care of her.”

“
Nevie
, you are the biggest liar I’ve ever met. Presley is
mine. She has my eyes and my mother’s smile. She’s more Ryan than she is your
side of the family.”

“My husband’s
her father and we want her back so we can be a family.”

“She’s mine,
and only
mine
now, and you are not getting her. I’ll
get a court order if I have to.”

“You can’t
take what’s mine.”

“Okay, we’ll
have a paternity test run, but while we wait for the results she’s staying
under my roof.”

Presley chose
that moment to cry.

“My
little girl.
I want to see my baby.”

“You can see
her but that’s all.”

Brad headed
up the stairs and Lucy looked at him. “I can’t believe that bitch. Could you
bring Presley down to see her?”

Lucy followed
Brad down the stairs where a tall leggy blonde in tight black leggings and a
red ski jacket stood waiting. She was beautiful and suddenly Lucy felt jealous
even though she knew whatever they’d been between Brad and she was over.

“
Nevie
, this is Lucy, Lucy this is
Nevie
.”

Lucy didn’t
speak but instead nodded to her.

“Oh I see
you’re playing happy families yourself, are you Brad?
Didn’t
take you long.
Come here Presley, let mommy take a look at you to make
sure they’ve been treating you right.”

Nevie
put her arms
out to take Presley. Lucy looked at Brad who nodded okay.

Nevie
lifted
Presley into the air. “I think you’ve grown and once mommy has you back daddy,
you and I are going to live in
Oregon
.”

Brad snatched
Presley back, causing her to scream at the top of her lungs.

“See what
you’ve done,” said
Nevie
.

“Get out of
my house and away from my daughter. I’ll get the tests done today and from now
on let’s communicate through our attorneys. And don’t ever come to this house
again.”

Nevie
opened her
mouth and was about to say something but then turned, opened the door and
slammed it shut on the way out.

Brad kissed
the top of Presley’s head.

“I love this
little girl so much, what am I going to do if
Nevie’s
not lying and she’s not mine? I don’t think I could give her up now.”

****

Why was it
when you thought your life’s was finally working out that something always came
along to mess it up?

For Brad that
something was
Nevie
. She’d walked out on him, leaving
him feeling like the biggest loser of all time, but he’d gotten over it,
finally realizing it had actually been for the best. Then this beautiful baby,
his baby
, came into his life and if that
wasn’t enough joy, along came Lucy too.

She’d gone
with him and held Presley while he and his daughter had both taken tests to
establish whether or not he was the baby’s father. As the sheriff’s department
often used the lab and the director knew him well, they’d promised they’d rush
the results.
 

He pulled up
the collar on his jacket as he waited for the steaks to brown on the grill.
Lucy had offered to cook but he’d told her he had a craving for a thick juicy
steak. Brad stamped his feet. He wasn’t really hungry but he wanted to be
alone, and outside where the cold air would hopefully clear his head.

Smoke began
billowing from the grill so he lifted the lid and turned the meat. Through the
kitchen window he could see Lucy holding Presley and dancing around with her as
his little girl smiled.
 
Definitely his mom’s smile.

But what if
it was all in his mind and that test came back revealing that
Nevie
had told the truth about him not being the daddy?
He’d have no claim to the child. Even if
Nevie
was
the shittiest mother in the world, he’d have to hand the baby over. Definitely
not to
Nevie
, but to social services where she might
be put into foster care and even one day adopted. He might never see her again.

He’d grown to
love that little girl. No, that wasn’t true. If he was perfectly honest he’d
have to admit that he’d fallen in love with her the second he’d seen her on the
doorstep of the sheriff’s office. It was almost as if he knew she was his
before he’d read the letter from
Nevie
.

After he’d
checked the meat again he glanced in the window. Lucy was looking straight at
him. She smiled and lifted Presley’s hand pretending his daughter was waving at
him. Brad waved back.

Lucy would be
heartbroken too if he lost Presley. She hadn’t said as much but after
Nevie
had left he’d seen tears in her eyes. Brad wiped his
cheek with the back of his glove. He hadn’t realized he’d been crying. Being a
dad had really turned him into this overly sensitive guy. Or maybe falling in
love with Lucy had.

He glanced at
her again. She was dancing the teddy bear in front of Presley who was fingering
it. Just before all this crap had happened he couldn’t think of anything but
the family they might be.
Him and Lucy someday making Presley
a big sister and them all living happily ever after.

Some snow
falling on his face shook him out of that train of thought. At least he could
blame him wet cheeks on Mother Nature and not tears. Not that Lucy would think
anything less of him. That was one of the things he loved her about her. She
accepted people for who they
were,
faults and all.

He lifted the
lid of the grill and put the two steaks on to the plate, turned off the butane,
and headed inside. Lucy had made baked potatoes and a tossed salad to go along
with the T-bones. Normally he would have dived straight in there but tonight he
knew everything was going to stick in his throat.

****

Lucy sensed
that Brad needed his alone time with Presley so she let him put her to bed.
However, he’d been in her room a good thirty minutes and now she was getting
worried. She walked along the hallway and saw that the door was half open. Brad
was sitting by the crib reading to his daughter. On his last trip to the grocery
store he’d come home with a copy Mother Goose tales. He was planning on reading
it to her when she was a few months older but he obviously thought he might not
get a chance to do that now.

She leaned
against the doorjamb with him unaware she was there. He was totally engrossed
in the story, using different voices and pitches for each character. She almost
felt like she was intruding on this very special time between father and baby.

Lucy leaned
her head against the wood surround on the door. What if Presley wasn’t his?
He’d be heartbroken. He loved that little girl. And yes, this was a bit selfish
on her part but if that was the case she’d no longer have the nanny’s job.
She’d probably have to go back to
Helena
and look for work because she didn’t think they’d be a nurse’s position for her
in Pine Ridge.
 
Miles
away from Brad.
And no longer having Presley around would break her
heart too. She loved them both more than she cared to admit.

Her left foot
ached and she moved, causing the floorboard to creek. Brad looked up from the
book, stopping the story in mid-sentence.

He was
crying. She ran to him. He dropped the book as she knelt beside him and wrapped
her arms around him. She kissed his chest as they held onto one another.

“Do you
believe in miracles?” he whispered to her.

“I didn’t,
but then I met you?”

Chapter Ten

Brad hadn’t
realized he’d been chewing on the pencil in his hand until he felt something
sharp bite into his lip and noticed that he’d actually splintered its wood. He
threw it down on his desk.

The paternity
test results would be back later today.

At least the
wait would be over. He’d made up his mind what he was going to do whichever way
this turned out. If he was Presley’s father he’d get his attorney to file for
sole custody. If he wasn’t, he’d contact social services and have Presley
placed in their care away from
Nevie
so there was
never a chance she’d drop her on a doorstep again.

There was a
knock on his door and there stood Lucy holding Presley. She’d promised him
she’d be with him when he got the results.

“I think
she’s grown in the last week,” said Brad taking Presley and putting her on his
knee.

“She ate some
baby cereal this morning. And I think we could try some mashed veggies next
week.”

He looked at
her, sure that she’d realized that there might not be a next week for them.

The phone
rang and they both jumped.

Brad felt his
stomach flip and the acid inside it churn as he picked it up.

“Sheriff
Ryan here.”

“Hi Brad,
it’s
Todd.”

Brad squeezed
his eyes together. This was it.

He reached
over for Lucy’s hand and held it tightly.

“Okay Todd,
just tell me straight and put me out of my misery.”

“Congratulations,
it’s a girl. You are definitely Presley’s father.”

He let his
shoulders relax and mouthed
I’m her dad
to Lucy.

She squeezed
his hand back.

“That’s
wonderful news and you’ll put everything in writing for my attorney.”

“I’m doing
that right now.”

“I can’t
thank you enough for getting that through as quick as you did.”

“No, problem
and I’m glad it worked out for you.”

Brad put the
phone back and finally let his body relax.

“I can’t tell
you what a weight off my shoulders that is. I’m going to phone my attorney and
have him file for sole custody right away.”

Lucy leaned
over and kissed him. He held her hand again.

“I’ve sort of
neglected you since
Nevie
stepped onto the doorstep
that morning,” said Brad. “But I’m going to make it up to you.”

She ran her
hand down the side of his face. “I’m sure you will.”

****

Lucy leaned
her head back on the towel she’d folded up and placed at the back of her neck
in the bath. She lifted her hand and let the bubbles on her skin disappear.
Brad had suggested that she take the evening off and while she took a bubble
bath he’d read a story to Presley before she went to sleep. She closed her
eyes. He was back to being his old self now that he knew Presley really was his
daughter. She hoped everything would be smooth sailing for them both.

There was a
tap on the door and in walked Brad.

“Are you
decent?” he asked.

“I’m covered
by bubbles if that’s what you mean.”

“Darn, then I
won’t bother to come inside.”

Lucy lifted
her hand and beckoned him in with her finger. He sat down beside the bath and
they held hands.