“Right.” His fingers changed directions, spearing into her hair and massaging her scalp. She could happily melt into a puddle of not caring about anything outside of this bunkhouse.
“This doesn’t make any sense,” she said. “What could have changed that he wants to exert a paternal claim now?”
“Usually, that kind of pull is reserved for emergencies,” he added. “When we were orphaned, it took a week for them to get everyone into the court at the same time.”
His voice was as soothing as his hands. Floating somewhere just shy of bliss, she let go, listening and surrendering.
“We stayed with Isaiah that week, but he couldn’t run herd on the three of us and he didn’t have the money to hire help. The court decided to dump us on our aunt. Amelia complained bitterly from that day forward about the burden of three children she never wanted.”
“Have things improved with her since you’re all grown up?” Mia asked.
“She died when we were twenty-one.”
She sat up now, twisting to catch his hand in hers. “I’m sorry.”
He frowned at their joined hands. “Don’t be. The four of us did little more than survive those years. My siblings and I were as relieved to cut loose at eighteen as she was to see us go. Why was your ex mad about the pregnancy?”
“He never wanted kids. We agreed not to have children before we married, so he felt betrayed. He reminded me he married a model and expected me to stay in photogenic form.”
“So he married you because you were hot, too.” Jarvis’s eyebrows jumped up and down in a comical innuendo. “Can’t fault him for that.”
The man could make her laugh, even while her ears burned at the compliment. “And my money,” she agreed. Reaching for a bottle of water, she took a long drink. She crossed to the bag of supplies on the counter and pulled out her vitamins. Silas needed her to stay healthy and strong. And calm. “Our marriage wasn’t as cold as it sounds. We did care about each other.” She paused for another sip of water. “I thought it was love. A good and solid love that would last.”
“Until you got pregnant.”
“Yes.” Her gaze went to Silas. “We were both shocked, but I saw it as a miracle and he saw it as a problem. So we parted ways. If it wasn’t amicable, it was civil.”
“You miss him.”
She sighed in defeat. “Not as much as I should.”
“Come sit down.” Jarvis pulled out the chair for her again. When she sat, he started massaging her shoulders. “Read the message again.”
Her laptop was closer, so she used that instead, regretting the loss when his hands fell away for a moment. He stood behind her, somehow without looming, as she opened the email. “Hang on.” She looked closer. “This isn’t his primary email address. There’s a dot here when it should be all one word.”
“Then let’s assume that link to the court calendar isn’t valid, either.”
She used the track pad to hover the cursor over the link without clicking it. “One way to check.” Opening a new tab on her browser, she entered the family court into the search bar. As she compared the links, it was clear someone was trying to fool her.
It was chilling that anyone would attempt this. Not anyone. “Regina,” she said with a hiss as a new wave of fury blasted through her system. She pushed back from the table, pacing back and forth across the bunkhouse. “I don’t know how she did it, but it has to be her.”
“Agreed.”
“I would’ve gone,” she said as disappointment in herself chased the temper. “I would’ve rushed Silas right into her trap.”
“What happens to Silas if, um, if something were to happen to you?”
She met his gaze and saw a flash of the wounded little boy he’d once been. “My will stipulates management of his college fund to his legal guardian along with his daily expenses. Naturally, I left him a trust fund, too, that he can access when he’s twenty-one.”
“Who’s the guardian?”
“Melody Williams, my best friend from college. She loves kids and we have similar values and philosophies,” she added. “She was my labor coach and she stayed with me at the house for the first couple of weeks. She’s done video chats with us since she had to go back home.”
Jarvis frowned. “Why hide in the warming hut instead of with her?”
“I couldn’t put her in the line of fire too,” she countered.
“Fair point.” Jarvis held his hands up in surrender. “I’m staying again tonight.”