My Only - Alex & Jamie (27 page)

He smiled, one of his ‘all access’ smiles, and pushed off of her, heading to the bathroom. She instantly missed the fullness of his body being inside of her. She knew that sex might change things, but, wow - she never thought it would turn her into a nympho! She shook her head, smiling at that thought.

As Alex laid back down on the bed, he pulled her into his arms. Jamie curled up beside him, her head resting on his chest. She could feel his heart beating beneath her cheek as his hand ran up and down her back. As amazing as the sex had just been, this was equally as fulfilling.

“That was amazing,” Alex said with a hint of awe tinging his voice.

Jamie lifted her head so that she could see his face, and her eyes widened at her admission, “I honestly didn’t know it could be like that.”

The corner of his mouth lifted, “Neither did I.”

“Really?” Jamie hadn’t meant to sound so shocked, but she had just assumed, with his past, that nights like these were probably just a Tuesday for him.

“Really,” he confirmed with a little laugh. Then shaking his head, he squeezed her tighter against him. “God, you are so damn cute.”

Jamie laid her head back down on Alex’s chest, smiling at his words. She had no idea why he thought she was cute, or beautiful, or special. But she did know that when he said those things about her, he meant it...and that almost made her feel like she
was
all of those things.

She also knew this was the – Best. Sleepover. Ever.

Jamie sat in Katie’s beautifully furnished office and gazed out the large picture window that overlooked the river. She was trying really hard not to be nervous. Although in Jamie’s world, she usually viewed distractions as a bad thing, today she was happy to have the memories of last night with Alex to keep her mind occupied while Katie looked over the documentation she had brought in.

“Alright, I’m just going to go over what you’ve brought with you. Let me know if I’m missing anything,” Katie said, sounding very professional.

“Okay,” Jamie replied.

The only time Jamie had spent any time around Katie was when she was with Jason, where she seemed young and carefree. It had actually shocked Jamie the first time she had heard that Katie was an attorney, since Jamie had thought she couldn’t be more than twenty-one or twenty-two years old. Seeing her now though, Jamie saw that she fit in this role just as much as the young, carefree girl she had observed with Jason.

“So, Jeremy passed away when you were four months pregnant,” Katie began.

“Yes.”

Katie nodded as she made notes on a yellow legal pad she had pulled out from the top drawer of her cherry wood desk. Continuing, she asked, “Did Jeremy’s parents know at that time that you were carrying his child?”

“Yes, Mr. and Mrs. Remington knew that I was pregnant and that Jeremy was the father,” Jamie explained.

“Do you have firsthand knowledge of that or was it relayed to you second-hand?”

Jamie hated thinking about that time in her life. Looking back now, it felt like it was a lifetime ago, not just six years. She liked it that way. She felt like pulling the lid off of those memories would be the same as shaking a can of soda and then popping the top. Things would get messy.

“I was there when they found out.” Jamie had really hoped that she would not have to go into the gory details.

“How did they respond?”

Well, that’s what she got for hoping.

“They were...not happy about it.” She crossed her fingers that that would be enough information.

“What led you to believe they were unhappy about the news of your pregnancy?” Katie asked, in full ‘lawyer’ tone.

Okay, so it looked like neither hope nor superstition would be her savior today. Oh well. Jamie decided it would probably just be best to lay it all on the table in one shot. Just like when she has to pull off one of Joey’s Band-Aids. Better to rip it off than slowly peel.

Taking a deep breath, she dove into the emotional pool of her past and decided that if she could just manage to tread water and not drown, then she would view that as a success.

“Jeremy and I started dating over Christmas break our senior year. We were together for six months off and on. We broke up twice, for about a week each time. Both times we broke up because I would get freaked out that I would never fit into his life. His family is very wealthy and,” Jamie paused trying to think about how to put this delicately, “well, it was just me and my mom, and we lived in a small one bedroom apartment on the wrong side of the tracks, so to speak.

“The third and last time we broke up was about a week before graduation. I had just found out that I was pregnant and I wasn’t sure if I was going to keep it, so I panicked and broke up with him. He had been trying to talk to me all week at school and then finally, at our graduation ceremony, he convinced me to come to his house that night for the party his parents were throwing him.

“When I got there, he was drunk. I tried to leave and he grabbed my arm to pull me back. It hurt. That’s when I told him to stop, because I was pregnant.

“Mrs. Remington had come outside to see where Jeremy was and overheard my confession. She called me a liar and a whore and said that I was just trying to trap Jeremy. She was yelling so loud that Mr. Remington came out of the house to see what was going on. When he heard the news he had me escorted off of their property by one of their security staff. Jeremy was arguing with them the whole time. He defended me and the baby.”

Jamie wasn’t sure how to get this next part out. She swallowed hard. She felt tears welling up in her eyes, “I left Jeremy’s house around ten p.m. Then at three-thirty a.m. I received a call from Jeremy’s sister, Blair, saying that Jeremy had been in a car accident and was pronounced dead on the scene.

“He had wrapped his car around a light pole. He was speeding and the autopsy later showed that his blood alcohol level was three times the legal limit. At the funeral, Mrs. Remington stood up, pointed at me and said, 'That whore killed my son.' I left, not wanting to upset them.”

Jamie could tell that her story had affected Katie. She looked empathetic and, although she maintained her professional demeanor, sympathy etched her face.

“Was that the last contact you had with Mr. and Mrs. Remington?” Katie asked, her voice remaining steady.

“No,” Jamie cleared her throat, so that she too had a steady voice, “After the paternity results came back, Mr. Remington showed up at my door and said, 'You and your bastard need to stay away from me and my family. Do not ever contact us again.' Then he looked like he was going to say more. He stood at my doorstep for what felt like forever, but in reality was probably a minute or two. Then he just turned around and left.”

“Did Mr. Remington threaten you?” Katie asked.

“No, that was all he said.”

“And that was two years ago?” Katie shuffled through her papers before finding the one she wanted.

“Yes. When Joey was almost three, he was diagnosed with asthma. I was a full-time student and worked two part-time jobs, neither of which provided health insurance. One of the girls in my class, someone that had gone to high school with Jeremy and me, said that if I had a paternity test done then I could collect Jeremy’s social security for Joey and use it for his health care costs.

“I asked Blair, Jeremy’s sister, to provide the DNA sample. All she had to do was get her cheek swabbed. She agreed. The results came about six weeks later. I’m assuming that she is the one who showed the results to her parents.”

“I see here that the results show a DNA match of 98.6 %, which is a high percentage considering the sample came from a sibling of the parent.”

Jamie nodded, she had done her research and knew that that percentage was high.

“And the birth announcement and three birthday invitations were the only attempts you made to contact Mr. and Mrs. Remington.”

“Yes, and they were all returned.”

“And the only reason you stopped sending the Remingtons birthday invitations was because you were told by Mr. Remington to stay away and not to contact them, correct?” Katie clarified.

“Yes,” Jamie confirmed.

“How would you feel about sitting down with Mr. and Mrs. Remington in a mediation setting instead of a courtroom?”

Jamie hadn’t thought of that, but now that she did, it sounded good to her. She would much rather just sit down with them face to face, as opposed to across an aisle with a judge staring down at her.

“That would be great.”

“Okay, then. I am going to contact Mr. and Mrs. Remington’s attorney and request mediation. If they are serious about wanting to work out time to see Joey, then I don’t see why they wouldn’t agree. And, worst case scenario, if they are not open to it and still want to go before a judge, well, that only makes our case stronger. It shows your willingness to resolve this without going to court.”

“If they agree, will you be there? At the mediation?” Jamie asked, trying not to sound like a kid asking her parents if they were going to her dance recital.

“I can be there if you would like, but I am not required to be there,” Katie hesitated for a moment before continuing, “If this goes to mediation, there will be a court appointed mediator present. Parties are encouraged to speak for themselves and to come up with their own solutions. Normally I do not advise my clients one way or the other as to my presence there. I leave it up to them and their individual comfort level. But in this case, I would advise you to have someone there. If not me then…someone.”

Jamie knew she was probably referring to Alex. When Jamie had picked Joey up from Hazel’s to take him to school this morning, Hazel had hugged her and told her she was proud of her. When Jamie had questioned her about why that was, she had winked and said, “I’m not saying I know where you spent the night, but I do know where your car did.”

Jamie figured the whole town knew by now.

“I would like you to be there,” Jamie said before asking, “And do you have an estimate of what this is going to cost?”

“There is no cost for mediation.” Katie began collecting Jamie’s papers and placing them in a file.

“Oh, that’s great,” Jamie knew that lawyers were not cheap, so she didn’t get too excited, but at least if the Remingtons agreed to mediation she could save some money there.

“And what about your fee?” Jamie asked, bracing herself for the number.

“This case is pro-bono,” Katie said, smiling up at her.

“No, Katie, I can’t let you do that,” Jamie firmly stated.

“Yes. You can.” Katie smiled brightly as she stood, indicating the meeting was over.

Jamie remained seated, “Katie, seriously, I don’t know what Alex told you, but…”

Katie held up her hand. “All Alex did was ask me what I knew about grandparent’s rights. Then I started shooting rapid fire questions at the poor guy. This has nothing to do with Alex.”

Jamie tried to plead her case again, “Katie, really, I would feel so much better…”

“Look,” Katie interrupted sharply, then softened her tone as moisture filled her eyes, “My dad left when I was four. My mom was a single mother who worked two jobs. Because of the incredible sacrifices she made, I am who I am and do what I do today. I was able to attend Pepperdine and become a lawyer.” She took a breath before slowly continuing, “I am not taking your money.”

Jamie took a deep breath. She wanted to hug Katie, and hug Katie’s mom, but instead she simply nodded her head in agreement, “Okay.
Thank you so much. If you, or your mom, ever need anything, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

Katie’s eyes lit up, “Well, there is one thing.”

Oh, Lord! Jamie’s stomach dropped. Katie knew where she had spent the night. She was going to ask her about Alex.

“What’s that?” Jamie asked trying to sound normal, nonchalant even.

Katie’s head tilted and her eyes narrowed, “Well, since I moved back here from San Francisco, I have not been able to find a decent tailor. No suits or slacks come in my size, even the petites. I heard through the grapevine that you sew. Would you mind taking a few things in for me?”

“Yes!” Jamie said a little too enthusiastically. She was just so relieved. “Of course, just drop them off, or I could pick them up…”

Katie face lit up as she pointed her finger at Jamie, “You thought I was going to ask you about Alex.”

“What?” Jamie asked too quickly, probably sounding guilty.

“You did, didn’t you? That’s why you got that weird look on your face when I said there was one thing.”

Jamie figured that there was no point denying it. “Dang it, you really are Sherlock Holmes.”

“Yes, I am,” Katie declared proudly.

Jamie smiled as she stood and started towards the door.

Katie stepped beside her, “And, don’t worry. I’m not going to ask you about Alex.”

“Thanks,” Jamie said sincerely.

Katie opened her office door and, as Jamie was leaving, added, “I’ll just wait ‘till you two are happily married, then you’ll spill all the goods.”

Jamie turned but Katie was already shutting the door, giggling.