Page 3 of Cowboy's Christmas Wife

“That’s right—your dad was kind of an oops baby, right?” Jeanette asked.

“Yeah, from what I’ve heard, he was a total surprise. My grandmother had thought she wasn’t able to have children. They were older when he was born. My dad always said his mom was great—very loving—but she died when I was a baby. And my grandfather…was a good provider, I guess. That part of being a father, he knew how to handle. Actively parenting? Not so much. And he definitely wasn’t equipped to handle having a traumatized twelve-year-old dumped on him when he was already in his eighties.”

“Okay, fair enough,” Jeanette conceded, “but while he was old, he wasn’tactuallyfrom the Dark Ages, right? Or maybe the eighteen hundreds? Because the trust he set up to manage your inheritance kind of reads like something from a Jane Austen novel. I can’t believe he actually wrote it into the paperwork that you would have to share control over your trust fund with your husband.”

Laura shrugged helplessly. “When he made that last provision, I was all of twenty-two. I guess he didn’t think I could handle the responsibility of that much money on my own. He didn’t leaveallof the control in someone else’s hands.”

“Sure,” Jeanette agreed. “Just half of it. You have fifty percent control, and your scumbag ex has the other fifty percent, so that outside of your regular allowance, any withdrawals you want to make need approval from both of you.”

Laura sank back, resting her head against the top of the chair. “I know all that. And I always thought it was weird and kind of horrible, but it was never really an issue—before. I mean, I still had half of the control, so it wasn’t like Clark could drain the account without clearing it with me. The money was safe, we just had to agree on how to spend it, which I never imagined would be a problem. It’s certainly a problemnow,though.”

“That’s because your ex is a petty little bitch,” Jeanette replied.

Laura rolled her eyes. “Not in front of the baby, Jeanie. Honestly!”

Jeanette snorted. “She’s picking up on the tone of my voice and not much else, and you know it. Isn’t that right, sweetheart?” she said, picking up a freshly changed Lily and bouncing her in her arms. “Your daddy’s a petty little bitch, isn’t he?” she cooed. “Yes, he is! Yes, he is!”

Laura couldn’t help but laugh, holding her arms out as Jeanette brought the baby back to her; Laura pulled her close, running the tip of her nose into Lily’s soft, blonde hair. She had wanted to be a mother for so long. For five years she and Clark held their breath every month, and every negative pregnancy test was a blow to both of them. Finding out that she was finally going to have her baby the month after she filed for divorce was a bitter pill to swallow, but the pregnancy had given her the extra push she needed to get on her own two feet. To get out from under Clark’s thumb rather than crawling back to him, as he’d expected.

Her ex had worked very hard to groom her into exactly what he wanted, which was a meek and obedient wife who was totally dependent on him. At his insistence, she hadn’t done anything with her degree in marketing, opting instead to organize charities that would make her husband’s brokerage firm look good. He’d systematically undermined her confidence and any sense of capability she might have had, gaslighting her constantly and making her second-guess every decision she made for herself. He’d thought that he’d broken her spirit completely, but he hadn’t. She’d been able to pull herself together—not for her own sake but for her daughter’s. And she wouldneverlet anyone control her again.

Though, of course, that hadn’t stopped Clark from trying.

“And here I’d hoped that he’d stop making trouble for me once the divorce was finalized,” Laura mused.

“Well, Clark’s vehement tries to stop the divorce were a pretty good indicator that he wasn’t going to step aside easily,” Jeanette pointed out. “Most people may not be thrilled about a divorce; they might even fight over the assets and kids tooth and nail. But I have never seen a man want a judge todemandthat you stay married.”

Laura grunted at the memory. Clark had all but stomped his foot when the judge told him that as the wronged party, Laura had all the right in the world to pull the plug and walk away. For a brief, wonderful moment, she thought she was home free until that same judge decided that he couldn’t remove Clark from his position of authority over her trust fund. “I called Clark today,” she said. “I need his sign-off on the disbursement of some money so that I can get some repairs done on my parents’ house. The monthly allowance I get is enough for groceries and utilities, but there isn’t enough left over to pay for any major repairs.”

Jeanette eyed her warily. “How’d that go?”

“He told me that we can fix the house together when I bring his daughter home.” She tried to keep her voice flat and unaffected, but her words cracked at the end. Tears stung behind her eyes, and she rubbed at her face with the heels of her hand to try and hold them back. The only thing keeping her grounded was Lily; she did her best not to squeeze the dozing infant. “He acts like I’m the one that broke up our happy marriage—that I didn’t try hard enough to forgive him for his cheating. How did I ever love him?”

Jeanette moved a box of tissues that were on the table closer to her. She was used to Laura getting so flustered that she cried by now. Hating herself just a little, Laura reached out and snatched a tissue and blotted her face with it. “He’s a charming guy,” Jeanette told her. “He’s got that smile and those looks, and I think in his own way, he does love you, but that love is dependent on you toeing the line.”

Never again, Laura seethed.Not for him, or anyone else.That was the one thing that continued to bother her. She’d long gotten over her failed marriage: she’d seen her husband for who he was, and she refused to miss anything about him. But the fact that she used to allow him to have so much say? To the point that he still felt entitled to meddle in her life? It drove her crazy. “There has to be something we can do to get him removed from the trust. Lily and I need that money to make repairs on the house and start over.” She hadn’t wanted to tell Daryl earlier, but her parents’ house was in a worse condition than she had let on. It was functional at the moment, but both the roof and the plumbing were barely holding together. If things went on for too much longer as they were, she was going to have find somewhere else to live. She didn’t know how she’d afford that—or whether her heart would be able to handle it.

Her parents’ house was full of happy memories of the people who loved her more than anything. She wanted to raise her daughter there, surrounded by the love that was soaked into the very walls. Lily deserved that kind of upbringing, and she deserved to have this one thing.

“The likelihood of getting another hearing is slim,” Jeanette said. Laura loved that about her: she pulled no punches. Even if she knew it was going to be upsetting, she always told the truth. That had become increasingly important to her over the last fourteen months.

“So, him refusing to work with me—continuing this stupid stalemate we have—isn’t emotional abuse?”

Jeanette cleared her throat. “You know what he wants in exchange for removing himself from the trust.”

Laura felt the blood drain from her face. “No.” The word was strong and sure, absolute. “He can’t have that. He can’t haveher.” She looked down at Lily. Clark’s lawyer had told Jeanette that if Laura would accept sharing custody of Lily, then he would have himself removed from the trust entirely—the paperwork also allowed for them to add or remove trustees if, and only if, both the current trustees agreed. But it was just another ploy to bind them together—just another game he was playing to reestablish his precious control. Laura had gotten sole custody of the baby: Clark’s affair and his withholding of funds for prenatal care had caught up to him. He was required to pay child support, too, though his lawyer had managed to arrange for it to be an absurdly small amount, considering how much Clark earned every year. Laura hadn’t cared enough to fight it. She didn’t want his money. She didn’t want anything from Clark but to be left alone. “There has to be something else.” The lawyer sighed and patted Laura’s arm, but then she let out a little scoffing laugh. “What is it?” Laura asked.

Jeanette laughed again. “Well, I was just thinking… You could always get a new husband,” she said.

Laura blinked. “What?”

“That’s the weirdest thing about that paperwork your grandfather filed. It doesn’t actually name Clark Longbottom. It just says that the authority will be shared between ‘Laura and her husband.’”

“I know,” Laura said, a little confused. “That’s what we argued, right? That since Clark wasn’t my husband anymore, he didn’t fit the requirement to stay on as trustee.”

“Yeah, but Clark’s lawyer said that your grandfather was clearly referring to Clark, because the paperwork was filed right before your wedding, and it wasn’t like you had any other husband. But if someone elsedidfit that title, maybe the judge would reconsider.” She shrugged. “Seems like you just need to get hitched again—that would be something we could take back to the judge.” She looked at her watch. “Look, I have another client coming in, and besides my continued advice to avoid calling Clark unless you absolutely have to, I’ve got nothing today. I’ll keep looking for a legal loophole, okay? We can talk about it next weekend at breakfast.”

Laura snorted. “Will that be on my dime or yours?”

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