“What he’s trying to do now is take Faye to court for full custody,” I tell them.
“Unless she leaves James.”
“His sticking point is the fact that he makes more money and can afford to have a nanny instead of daycare.”
“I’ll be more than happy to watch the baby,” her mother says.
“Mrs. Ferguson, I was hoping you’d say that.”
Mr. Ferguson bows his head. “I’m ashamed of the way we acted. We just didn’t want her to go through what we did.”
“You need to tell her that yourself, sir,” I say.
“I will.” He nods.
“Tell us what you want us to do, son. You seem like you’ve already got this figured out, and we owe our daughter.”
I smile and begin to lay everything out.
“DR. BAILEY.”
I glance up from the paperwork on my desk.
“There’s someone out th
ere who insists on seeing you.”
“Is something wrong?”
“No, they had their dog in for a regular check-up, and when we were done, they requested you.”
“Don’t worry about it Carole. Sometimes people just like to see the man who they’re familiar with. Dr. Parsons didn’t have any issues with him, did she?”
“No, she said it was textbook perfect.”
I smile. “I’ll be out to speak with them shortly.”
“Thank you.”
Lowering my head, I inhale and release the breath slowly. I don’t have my usual enthusiasm for work lately. I haven’t seen or talked to Faye in over a week, and the wait for Warren to set things up has been torture. I start to drive to her home and turn away at the last minute at least once a day. I want to know if her back is hurting, what she’s craving now, and how much Flora has grown. Sleep eludes me until exhaustion takes me out. Rolling my shoulders, I put on my business face and walk up the hall to the entrance.
I freeze at the sight of Preston holding Monty in his arms.
“Well, hello, Dr. Bailey.” Preston smiles so wide I’m shocked his jaw doesn’t break.
I grit my teeth. He has some fucking nerve showing up here.
“Did you know he found my Monty when he ran away during Christmas?” Preston purrs, playing the part of grateful owner.
“You never told us about this,” Jen says.
I shrug. “I was just helping out a four-legged friend.”
“You’re a hero.”
“So modest, Doc. Take some credit.”
“I’m glad to see Monty is doing well.