Page 139 of Falling for Love

Never should have put that pressure on Liam.

Liam shrugged, but his smile widened. “He makes it easy. Besides, he’s a lot like you. And I think I handle you pretty well.”

I chuckled. “Oh? And what’s that supposed to mean?”

“Smart, stubborn, impossible not to like,” he said, his tone teasing but his eyes warm.

“Flattery will get you nowhere,” I said, rolling my eyes.

“Good thing I’m not trying to get anywhere,” he shot back, grinning. “Let’s get back inside.”

My phone rang, and I nearly jumped through the door.

“It’s my attorney.”

I quickly answered it and heard Mr. Harrington’s cheery greeting.

“Quite the interesting developments,” he said with a low chuckle. “But first, I want to ask how you’re handling everything.”

“I had a friend stay the night. To be honest, it really scared me.”

I put him on speakerphone and glanced at Liam

“In addition to what you sent, we did some more digging.”

“You did?”

“Kyle has accumulated significant financial debts. There’s a history of missed payments and legal actions against him for defaulting on loans. It’s possible he’s pursuing custody as a way to create leverage. Anyway, he hasn’t paid his current attorney either.”

I blinked, trying to make sense of it. “What does this mean, exactly?”

Mr. Harrington sighed. “I can’t promise the world, but I can tell you that his attorney wants to recuse himself from the case.”

“He can do that?”

“Oh, yes.” He cleared his throat. “But what’s more important is that after he spoke to his client, your ex-husband backed down. They’re withdrawing the petition once Kyle comes up with the remaining balance owed to his legal team.”

Excitement brewed deep in my belly.

So did resentment.

“Was this a game?” I asked, biting back my anger.

It wasn’t my attorney’s fault.

“I don’t like to use that term, but I think it’s appropriate. I think he thought he could scare you into something, but his misstep last night resulted in a domino effect.” The laughter from my attorney surprised me. “Sometimes, we get these happy surprises in law.”

“But could he do this again?”

Mr. Harrington sighed as Liam squeezed my shoulder.

“Yeah. Unfortunately, there are no guarantees. But if I were to guess based on his life’s habits, I’d say it’s unlikely.”

The weight of the world came crashing down. I was in this middle ground of disbelief and adulation.

“We’ll handle this, Evie,” Mr. Harrington assured me. “Whether Kyle knew it or not, him trying to scare you or threaten you last night backfired. You’re doing everything right.”

“For once,” I whispered, my heart pounding.

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