It was something like meditation. Pizza dough and toppings were my Zen.
While the pizza baked, I took the opportunity to check in with the manager I’d hired to oversee the restaurant. She showed me the books, and we talked about some issues that had come up over the last few weeks. There wasn’t anything serious, but I took notes about needing to refresh the menu and the possibility of more variety in the specials.
“And then there’s the banquet room,” Lisa said.
I groaned. “You know we’ve talked about that before. That’s not what this place is supposed to be. I don’t want to become a birthday party destination. I want people to be able to come here and enjoy a quiet dinner or a simple date. Banquet rooms get loud, they alienate other customers, and they’re a money pit. The people in them stay for hours, and there isn’t enough turnaround for it to be worthwhile for the restaurant or the server.”
“What if there were guidelines,” she said. “Rules about the types of events held there. Time limits. Cost thresholds. It could really work.”
“I’ll consider it,” I said. “But only because my pizza is almost done.”
She grinned. “Good enough.”
I got my pizza and headed back to the compound with it sitting on my passenger seat. The time spent at the shop did just what I hoped and let me really think about the interaction with Lindsey. Maybe I showed my feelings too much. I could have given away that I was crushing like a high schooler. But she didn’t give any sort of negative response. She didn’t necessarily give a positive one, either.
I got back to the office and pulled my business persona on. The days away would give me some space from her for a while. Maybe that would make everything clearer.16LindseyThe delightfully mischievous look on Charlie’s face when he had talked about Grant’s lawyer making a rookie mistake said it all. It was such a silly oversight, but one that had a massive impact on the entire case. This wasn’t just a typo that made the brief look sloppy. It wasn’t a bit of punctuation that wasn’t there or a stray letter that found its way into a word. The typo altered the brief in such a way that it was no longer admissible, giving my lawyer an unexpected advantage.
It was still strange to even think of him that way. I never thought I would have a lawyer, especially not in this situation. And most definitely not a lawyer like Charlie. He wasn’t just some run-of-the-mill bus stop bench attorney. He was one of the most high-powered lawyers in the area and had handled many complicated, high-profile cases over the years. And now he was handling mine.
It was surreal to say the least. But when I read the brief he came up with, I was nothing short of ecstatic. His skill came through loud and clear with that masterfully written document. The mistake by Grant’s attorney opened up the opportunity for Charlie to jump in, and he did with abandon. There were no punches being pulled. His brief bucked against the one from Grants attorney, in no uncertain terms declaring it outlandish, irrational, and damaging to Remy.
Reading that brief gave me a boost at first. It felt good knowing I wasn’t just on the receiving end of a declaration. I wasn’t just having something done to me. Instead, Charlie was fighting back against them on my behalf and also making my side well-known. He wasn’t just going to rest with preventing Grant from keeping Remy from me entirely. His brief took it a step further, insisting on me having more rights, including shared custody and a formally established schedule.
The thrill of it started to fade that night at the bar. That’s when it really sunk in that Charlie had taken the signed document and was going to send it to the court. That meant it was going to get back to Grant’s team and he would know all about it. Not just that I wasn’t going to lie down and let him trample me more, but also that I was standing up against him in a way I never had before. I was contesting his full custody of Remy, demanding we share custody, and insisting on limitations being placed on his parents’ involvement.
All that sounded fantastic on paper, and I hoped with everything in me it would unfold in my favor. But that wasn’t coming easily. I woke up Thursday morning with a knot in my stomach and immediately checked my phone. I hadn’t heard it ring, but there was still a nagging voice in the back of my mind that Grant might have already found out. The chances were slim, considering how early it was. The courts hadn’t had a chance to receive the paperwork and process it yet.