Slow Ride (Riding with Honor) (14 page)

Grabbing Lilly’s phone she pushed the button and said
, “Hello.”

Silence.

“This is Lilly’s phone, Dana speaking…Hello?” she said, trying not to laugh at the faces Lilly was making.

More silence.

“Umm… is this Bobby by any chance?” she asked.  She could hear him breathing…
why wouldn’t he say anything?
  “Lilly went to the bathroom and left her purse and phone here.  We’re leaving as soon as she’s done.  I’ll drop her off at the business…the shop…where you work I mean.”

“I don’t know
what
you ladies are up to but I know you’re not at the restaurant because Dickie has been sitting outside of it for almost an hour,” he said as Lilly pressed her ear up next to Dana’s head to hear what he was saying.

“Well we thought we’d do a little shopping
,” she replied.

“Lilly I know you’re listening.  When you get here we are going to have a talk in the office…with the blinds down…and the radio on…understand?”
he said.

Lilly giggled and then moved away from Dana to cover her mouth.  Dana could hear him laugh and then he said
, “I’ll see you girls when you get back.”

“Are you sure you want to do this now?  Tell him
, I mean.” she asked as they pulled into the parking lot of the shop.

“Yea, we made a promise not to hide things from each other and to always be honest so…the sooner I do this the better
,” Lilly replied.

She followed Lilly into the large garage bay of the shop.  Her eyes were immediately drawn to Tommy.  He looked up from working on a motorcycle
that appeared in the midst of being constructed to stare at her.  An electrical spark seemed to shoot across the room from where he crouched by the bike to where she stood.

“I need to talk to you
,” Lilly said to Bobby before grabbing her hand and pulling her through a door that had the word ‘office’ scrolled across it.

Entering the office area of the garage was like a night and day difference.  Here everything was organized and…
clean. 
Bobby followed them inside.

“I…uh…well
, you know I haven’t been feeling very well the past few days.  So Dana and I got to talking today and she suggested that I take a pregnancy test…” Lilly said finally meeting his gaze.

She didn’t envy her one bit, it seemed the more he looked at her the darker his eyes became and the deeper his scowl.

“I…it came back positive…I swear I didn’t think this could happen,” Lilly said nervously.

Bobby stood there for a moment and then he smiled and grabbed Lilly by the back of her neck and kissed her with the force of whirlwind.  After a few seconds he released her and looked at
Dana.

“Can you give us a few minutes?”
he asked.

“Actually I need to go…”
she replied.

“I’ll call you later
, ok?” Lilly asked.

“Sure…anytime
,” she replied.

As she headed for the door Bobby said
, “Dana…thanks for today.”

Turning back to look at him she noticed him smile at her and then back at Lilly.  He was actually handsome when he wasn’t scowling.  She figured he was thanking her for being there for Lilly so she simply said
, “You’re welcome” and then left the office.

As she exited the office she looked over to where Tommy sat
, still working on the motorcycle.  Looking up he again stared at her.  After several seconds of awkwardness she headed for her car. 

As she unlocked it and climbed inside, she felt disappointed.  She had thought that Tommy would at least say ‘Hi’ to her or something. 
Had something happened to change his mind about her?
  Maybe he was just busy…he was at work after all.

Today was the first step in cleaning up the mess he’d made of his life.  In a few minutes Becca would be explaining to the
judge why he was asking for full custody of Melody.  Knowing Casey sat just one table over made him want to vomit. 

She had some nerve even showing up.  Her side was empty while his side contained all the guys from the shop along with Lilly and Gran.  Bobby had closed the shop for the morning so everyone could be there to support him. 

Carmen was also in attendance so the only one missing was Dana.  Half of him wanted her to come so she could hear the whole story…the other half didn’t want her to know. 

With Gretchen in school and Melody still in the hospital
, it was up to him to make sure they stayed safe…away from Casey.

The
judge sat down and asked Becca to present her case.

“My client was granted temporary custody of the minor child Melody McMurray in conjunction with a
DNA test that was administered and found to conclusively show him as the biological father,” Becca began.

“My client wishes to remain the child’s sole custodian and residential parent.  We are prepared to show good reason why the minor child should remain with my client and any and all visitation with the biological mother be denied
,” Becca continued. 

“
We have character witnesses to include friends and employers of my client, medical affidavits regarding the child’s current and previous medical conditions, along with documentation and testimony from the Child and Family Services department to substantiate my client’s motion to the court.  Thank You,” she finished.

Becca sat down and Casey’s attorney stood
.

“My client is interested in a shared custody arrangement that would benefit both the minor child Melody McMurray as well as both parents
,” the man said.

“My client is prepared to enter a drug and alcohol treatment facility and is willing to submit to any testing the court should see fit.  My client has already begun therapy sessions and has been clean and sober for the past two weeks.  Furthermore, my client asks that the courts not punish her children for her indiscretions by denying them the love and care that she is willing and able to provide.  Thank You.”

“Excuse me Your Honor…I apologize for disrupting the court and these proceedings.  However, I have information relevant to this case that effectively renders this an emergency hearing rather than a preliminary one.  With your permission I’d like to approach the bench,” Dana said.

He was stunned
, as he turned in his seat along with everyone else in the court to look at her.  She stood alongside a tall man with snow white hair and glasses.  A blonde woman moved to take a seat in the back row of the courtroom.

“State your name and your relationship if any to the minor child in question
,” the judge said.

“Your Honor, I am Leonard Atkinson,
attorney and father of Ms. Dana Atkinson.  My client was granted temporary placement through Child and Family Services of the minor child in question, Melody McMurray.  With your permission we would like to approach the bench,” the tall man said.

Becca looked at him for explanation but he had none
, so he could only shrug at her.

“Granted…Counselors approach please
,” the judge said, eyeing Dana thoughtfully.

“My client wishes to submit into evidence a CD containing video image
s of the defendant knowingly and willingly participating in a drug transaction this Tuesday past.  We ask that the court review the material contained on the CD and determine if it is admissible to these proceedings,” Mr. Atkinson said.

“The video images remain on my client’s cell phone and clearly show both a date and time when the video was captured.  My client is willing to submit the cell phone in lieu of the disc if necessary.  However, should it be found that the CD is sufficient my client intends to provide the cell
phone to local law enforcement,” he finished, handing the judge the CD.

“She’s lying!” Casey cried.

“Quiet in the court,” the judge said taking the CD.

“The
plaintiff obviously has no objection to this Your Honor,” Becca said.

“The
defendant obviously
does
object, Your Honor!” Casey’s attorney said.  The man’s face was red and Tommy almost felt bad for him knowing what it was like to be duped by Casey himself.

“Judge she’s lying, she is only doing this because she’s fucking Tommy!” Casey shouted.

“Counselor, I would advise you to control your client because that language will
not
be tolerated in
my
courtroom!” the judge said.

Casey’s attorney walked over to her and whispered something to her
before returning to stand in front of the judge. 

“I would hope that in light of the undiplomatic reference made by the defendant that her statement is not true
, Ms. Atkinson,” the judge said, looking at Dana.

“I can assure you that the statement is completely false
,” Dana replied.

“Yea…right!” Casey huffed
, sitting back in her chair and folding her arms.

“One more word and you will be held in contempt
of court.  Do you understand?” the judge asked Casey directly.

“Sorry
,” she said, slouching even further in her chair.

Looking back at Dana
, the judge stared at her for a few minutes as though trying to determine if she was telling the truth.  Tommy could see how uneasy she was becoming not only from Casey’s outburst but at the possibility she wouldn’t be believed.

“I am not currently
, nor have I ever had… sex… with Mr. McMurray.  I’m a virgin,” she said. 
What?

“I appreciate your need to emphasize your honesty to this court.  However, I am less concerned with your sexual activities or lack thereof
, than I am with the contents of this CD.  Therefore, this court will recess for up to thirty minutes to allow me time to review its contents,” the judge said.

The
judge then took the CD and exited through a door behind the bench.  Dana turned and ran out of the courtroom.   Her father followed her out as did the blonde woman in the last row.  He stood up to follow her.

“Tommy
, No!” Becca said, grabbing his arm.

He glanced back helplessly at Lilly who whispered something to Bobby and then got
up from her seat and headed out of the courtroom after Dana. 

She had humiliated herself to help him and the girls.  He hadn’t missed her flushed cheeks and how she avoided looking at anyone as she’d r
un from the room.  He’d never hit a woman in his life but he would seriously consider making an exception for Casey.

Why hadn’t she told him about the CD?  He’d been too busy trying to catch up on his part of the build
due to all the time off he’d taken for Melody to talk to her on Wednesday. 

She hadn’t been home when he’d stopped by yesterday.  She’d
gone to her parents asking for their help and then shown up here…why? Why would she do that for him?

A virgin?
  It didn’t seem possible…she was pretty and full of fire and passion…and that hair!  How had no man ever…?  Why hadn’t she told him… especially after what he’d done to her in her apartment?

Dana could see Lilly approaching from beyond her Mother’s shoulder. 
Oh God!  She just wanted to die! 
Why had she admitted that in a room full of people? 

Desperation had kicked in when she thought that the
judge wouldn’t at least
watch
the CD and as she did so often she’d blurted out the first thing that came to mind.  The worst part was she would have to go back in and face everyone in less than a half an hour…including Tommy!

Stopping in front of her Lilly suddenly laughed
, “Oh my God! You have balls that clank!  I cannot believe you recorded video of her buying or doing drugs or whatever…and then just marched in and basically demanded the judge look at it,” she said with an astounded look on her face. “I could never in a million years do anything like that!”

She couldn’t help the
giggle that escaped her lips.  Glancing at her parents expecting to see frowns of disapproval or shock, she was surprised to see her mother hiding a smile behind her hand and her father was chuckling.

“She takes after her father in more than just looks.  I’m Patricia Atkinson and this is my husband Leonard
,” her mother said, extending her hand to Lilly.

“Lilly Warner, it’s so nice to meet you
,” she said shaking hands. “Sorry for that…”

“I want to absolutely crawl in a hole and pull the dirt down over top of me
,” Dana said.

“Why?  Because you’re a virgin?  Are you kidding me?  That shut her up better than the
judge’s threats did I think.  Besides in this day and age, you should be proud,” Lilly said while watching as Dana’s father made a hasty retreat back toward the court room.