Page 43 of Unexpected Love

Joseph Henry, Nicole’s lawyer, leans toward her, whispering something in her ear before turning back to the judge. “Sorry, Your Honor. It won’t happen again.”

“Ms. Day, you may proceed.”

“Mr. Marks has always been present in Max’s life. There’s no evidence to show Mr. Marks as an unfit parent. What kind of precedent will it set to remove Max from his custody simply because his biological mother, who abandoned him when he was two, wants to be back in his life?” I pause, taking a breath.

I know I should be a little more impartial to this, but I can’t. Scott Marks is the kind of father every man should strive to be. The way he loves those he cares for is something to be witnessed.

“That’s all, Your Honor,” I finish, retaking my seat next to Scott.

“All right. I’ve heard from both sides?—”

“Your Honor—” Mr. Henry tries to interrupt.

“Mr. Henry, you had your chance,” the judge stops him, speaking sternly. “This isn’t a trial where you need to defend your client. This is a preliminary hearing to determine next steps. Which is what I’m about to go over with you.” He pauses as if to ensure he won’t be interrupted again.

The judge looks to me and back to Mr. Henry before he states, “I will be ordering the two of you to mediation. If an agreement has not been reached after two months, we’ll schedule a hearing where I will make a decision.”

He turns to Scott. “Mr. Marks, I do not envy your position, and while I’m sure you have prepared as much as possible for the future, I ask you to seriously consider what is in your son's best interest.” Now he turns to Nicole. “Mrs. Williams, I know people change, and I hope you have. But I urge you to think about how the courts will view your absence from your son’s life for the past ten years. Think hard about what you are asking of this court, and more importantly, your son. Know that all of thiswill influence any decision made.” The judge looks down and shuffles some papers around in front of him before looking back up at Mr. Henry and me. “Thank you for your time today. Court is adjourned.”

“All rise,” the bailiff calls.

As soon as the judge has closed the door behind him, I turn to speak to everyone in the first row behind Scott and me.

“That’s exactly what we expected and hoped for,” I say, a comforting smile forming on my lips. “I’ll?—”

“Where is he? Why didn’t you bring him today?” Nicole storms over, interrupting me.

Scott slowly turns, studying her. I don’t know what he’s thinking, but a flash of pain crosses his face. I can’t imagine what this feels like. I don’t know the full story, but I know he was madly in love with her. It would be so easy to assume, after everything she did, that one could simply forget those feelings and move on, but that crease in his brow and those shadows in his eyes prove that’s not the case.

“We left the decision up to him. He chose to remain at school, rather than be here today,” Scott says, his voice void of all emotion.

“What lies have you been telling him about me?”

“Mom, come on,” Caleb interjects. “No one has told him any lies. What lies would we even have to say? You left him when he was two, and we haven’t heard from you since.” Caleb’s hands clench at his sides, and Emily reaches for him.

“I think it would be best to wait to discuss this in mediation.” I step forward. “Mr. Henry, you have my contact information. Let’s schedule a time to discuss the mediation as soon as possible.” I don’t wait for a response before taking Scott’s arm and ushering him from the courtroom.

It’s not until I’m outside with him that I realize we’re missing Declan and Quinn. We all look to the courthouse doors,expecting them to walk out momentarily. When they don’t, I turn to the Scott, Caleb, and Emily.

“Look. I know it’s not what we wanted, but it’s what we expected.” I grab Scott’s forearm, waiting for him to look at me. “I won’t stop until you can rest easy knowing Max will never go anywhere. I’m going to do everything I can to make sure of that.”

He takes my hand in his, squeezing and offering a small lift of his lips. “I know that.”

“We should do something tonight,” Emily says in the silence that takes over.

“What?” Caleb looks down at her, confused.

“Yeah, like, go out or something. Just forget about all of this for a night and have fun.” She nods her head like she’s really enjoying this idea the more she thinks about it.

“I don’t—” Caleb starts.

“I think that’s a great idea. You all should go out,” Scott interrupts. “But I’m going to stay in, spend some time with Max. I know he’s been nervous about everything. I think it’ll be good for him.”

“I’d like to join you, if that’s all right?” Caleb asks, shifting his balance from foot to foot.

“Of course.”

“Okay, then a ladies’ night,” I say.

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