Page 38 of The Boss and the Adoption Mess
“You’ve gotta work a little to make sure Rosie’s okay.”
Unfortunately, Catherine managed to talk her way out of it, playing the perfect victim, so child services couldn’t do anything, and Rosie stayed with her.
“Or you could just buy her from me. Hmm?” Catherine taps my chest with those blood-red, pointed nails. “I just want enough cash in my account so I can enjoy my life. It’s that simple.”
“You know I’ll always support you, but not like that.” There are strict rules to follow when you’re trying to adopt. If I transferred a few million to her, it could look very bad. But she doesn’t know I’ve already set things in motion, so she can’t prepare for it. “I’ll keep supporting you, though.”
“Well, I know that.” She pats my cheek with a wide grin; I let it happen because I don’t want to rile her up. She could take Rosie and cut me off if she wanted. “But in, what, fourteen years at most, you’ll drop me like a hot potato. Then the kid will be an adult, and you'll have no reason to pay me even a single pound.” She’s not wrong.
“Like I said—I'll always support you.”
“Liar. L. I. A…r. Or something.”
Even spelling is effort for her. Her breath is unbearable. How much did she have to drink? Terrible.
“Robin will be here downstairs soon and drive you to whatever club you want.”
I can only hope Catherine loses interest in Rosie quickly and brings her back to me right away. My sister isn’t changing—at least not in this lifetime.
“Cool.” She waves the cash in my face. I take a half-step back. “Next time: more money. This is nothing. Ridiculous.”
Catherine turns to leave, and for a second I imagine hiring someone to make her disappear. Forever. But I can’t do that to Rosie. Catherine’s her mother. And maybe—just maybe—she’ll change someday.
Until then, though, I’ll do whatever it takes to get Rosie away from her. No matter the cost.
When Catherine leaves, I only let myself breathe once the door shuts her out. I need a moment to collect myself. It’s unbelievably hard to stay calm and not throttle her. I’m stuck at her mercy until I have custody or even visitation rights.
It’s tough to prove anything against her because I never know where she is or how long she’ll be gone. Sometimes she flies abroad, sometimes she heads to other cities. Sometimes she stays in London for months, then disappears again. She’s unpredictable—and it isn’t illegal for her to go out partying. After all, she always brings Rosie to me. And, as my lawyer would say: she still behavesresponsibly enoughthat there’s no clear reason to take Rosie away. Plenty of parents let relatives care for their kids for days or weeks when they need a break.
I need a woman. Someone like Kimberley who can look after Rosie so I can keep working. That’s my only shot. It’ll be a long fight… but I’ll do anything to make sure Rosie’s safe.
“Gabriel?” Rosie’s tentative voice floats out. I turn, startled, and see her peeking from behind the bedroom wall, eyes wide and round.
“Did I wake you?” I hope she didn’t hear her mother.
“Was Mom drunk again?”
Damn it.
“She’s gone home to sleep. She’ll come by tomorrow and—”
“She was only here for money. She didn’t care about me at all, did she?”
Why do kids always have to overhear things not meant for them?
“She didn’t want to wake you,” I tell her, but Rosie’s smarter than I usually give her credit for.
“I don’t want to go with her. I want to stay here.” She sniffles. It breaks my heart. I want nothing more than to scoop her up and run somewhere Catherine can’t find us—raise Rosie there until she can make her own choices.
“You’ll always have a home here, little one.” I walk over to her, lift her into my arms, and sit with her on the bed. “Tomorrow will surely be a wonderful day.”
“If you don’t saypromise, then it’s a lie. I might be small, but I notice everything.”
Clever girl. Too clever. Rosie crawls under the blanket.
“If Mom doesn’t find me tomorrow, she can’t take me away.”
If only it were that simple.
