Total pages in book: 122
Estimated words: 115706 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 579(@200wpm)___ 463(@250wpm)___ 386(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115706 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 579(@200wpm)___ 463(@250wpm)___ 386(@300wpm)
“No, I’m not going to wait three weeks to meet my child.” I stand. “Now that I know the situation, I’m going to help her, right fucking now.”
Paula rolls her eyes. “I love your enthusiasm, but you know full well this rehab was court ordered, and you’ve still got three weeks left.”
“There’s got to be a loophole for family emergencies. Especially if I handle this quickly.”
“Caleb—”
“No, listen to me. I’ll fly to Montana tonight or tomorrow, whichever we can line up; and then, I’ll bring my kid back here the following day, stow her with a nanny, and then return here to finish my rehab. On that timeline, I’ll be back here on Monday, at the latest.”
Paula snorts. “Court-ordered rehab doesn’t work like that. You’re stuck here, whether you like it or not. So, let’s please get Aubrey on the phone and—”
“No, Paula. I’m going to Prairie Springs now to do what I should have done two years ago. Do me a favor and find me a really good nanny while I’m gone, okay?” With that, I start walking toward the door of the visitor’s lounge.
“Wait, Caleb!” Paula calls out. “Stop! If you leave without authorization, you’ll need to start rehab all over again, from day one, when you get back.”
I stop and turn around with a scowl. “I’ll be gone for three or four days.” When Paula says nothing, I throw up my arms. “We’re talking about my child, for fuck’s sake. She’s in peril, and I’m the only one who can save her. That’s what you’ve been saying, right? That I’m the kid’s only blood relative, besides a monster of a grandfather who’s never met her and is a known wife beater?”
Paula twists her mouth, apparently conceding my point.
“How much do nannies cost? Less than thirty grand per month?”
Paula snorts. “A lot less than that. Mine costs about a hundred grand per year. So, eight or nine grand per month. But that’s for two kids.”
“That’s it? If I’d known that, maybe I would have done things differently, right out of the gate. Jesus Christ.” I start heading down the hallway again. After two years of guilt, regret, and shame, after two failed attempts at getting Claudia to bring my kid to LA for a visit, I’m finally going to meet my child. My daughter. Raine. Granted, this miracle is happening after my mom’s passing, which is a gut punch. But even so, better late than never. At least, I can take comfort in the idea that Mom might be smiling down on Raine and me, as I finally do what I should have done, all along.
“Caleb, please, listen to me,” Paula calls out. She’s scurrying behind me down the hallway, her heels clacking on the linoleum. “You can’t show up in Montana, unannounced, rip your daughter out of Aubrey’s arms, and fly her off to a whole new life in a brand-new city.”
“You said my paternity is already established.”
“Would you stop, please? Your legs are long and I’m in heels.”
I stop and turn around.
“I’m not talking about legalities,” Paula says breathlessly. “I’m talking about what’s best for the child. Raine doesn’t know you from Adam. You’re going to need to build trust with her before taking her away from Aubrey, or you’re going to traumatize her, even more. Not to mention, you might also give Claudia’s father some hefty ammunition to use against you at the custody hearing.”
I quirk my eyebrow. “Ammunition?”
“What father with his child’s best interests at heart would solve the present crisis by ripping his child away from the only person she knows and loves? At the custody hearing, we’ll need to prove you’re a fit father, Caleb. And, frankly, a fit father would never do that.”
“Fuck.” I look out a window to where that cool actor dude is playing ping pong with a newbie. “Okay, then,” I say, returning my gaze to Paula’s. “I’ll bring both Raine and Aubrey back to my place in LA. Aubrey will be Raine’s nanny, until Raine has gotten to know and trust me.”
Paula pulls a face that suggests she doesn’t hate the idea. But what she says is, “You’re assuming Aubrey will say yes to that arrangement, and that’s not a given.”
I scoff. “I’ll make her an offer she can’t refuse. You said she’s a twenty-four-year-old waitress, right? Okay, then I’ll offer her more money than she’s ever made in her life to take care of a toddler she’s already taking care of for free. Who would say no to that?” When Paula doesn’t supply an answer to my rhetorical question, I wink and add, “Don’t worry about anything except springing me from this jail—I mean, rehab—for four days, tops, and filing that custody paperwork. Other than that, I promise, I’ll handle everything else like a champ.”
Chapter 4
Caleb
As I drive in my rental car down Main Street in Prairie Springs, I’m flooded with a thousand childhood memories. I haven’t been back here in well over fifteen years, ever since Grandpa fell in love with a woman in Kansas and started renting out the lake house as an Airbnb. And yet, despite the passage of time, driving through this place still feels like coming home.