“That better?” I asked.
“Mhm,” Lanie said, humming.
“Listen, Amanda is coming for dinner,” I said.
“Good. I miss Mommy,” Lanie said sleepily as her eyelids drooped.
I was stunned as an unexpected warmth trickled through my veins. Mommy? Had Lanie been calling Amanda that?
“Lanie. Have you ever called Amanda that?” I asked.
“Uh huh. She smiles. And I feel happy,” Lanie said.
“She smiles?” I asked. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah. Smiles and hugs me.”
I sat back on my heels and looked down at my niece as her eyes fluttered closed and her breathing evened out.
Once she was sure Lanie was asleep, Tanya cleared her throat, causing me to look up at her.
“Sounds like she’s pretty attached,” Tanya said quietly, studying me for a reaction.
“Yeah, I guess she is,” I said.
“And from the looks of it, so are you,” Tanya observed, with a sly smile.
Before I had a chance to answer, my phone rang in my pocket, saving me from having to have this conversation with my nanny. I stood and pulled the phone from my pocket as Tanya continued to stare up at me with a shit-eating grin on her face.
“Hello there,” I said. “Are we all set for tomorrow?”
“I was calling to ask you the same thing. Run down for me what’s going on with you,” my lawyer said.
“Amanda and I aren’t going to be getting married before the court date tomorrow,” I said.
“I figured. I hadn’t seen any paperwork hit the system yet. But I do have proof that you filed for a marriage license, and I received your picture of the receipt for the ring. That’s a hell of a ring to buy a woman for this type of situation.”
“Yeah, well. It needs to look real,” I said.
“And this woman will be accompanying you to court tomorrow, yes?” he asked.
“Yes. If I ask her to, she will be there. She’s willing to do anything to help me win custody,” I answered.
“If she’s there, she needs to be wearing that ring. And the two of you have to look like you’re in love,” she said.
“Don’t worry. We can pull it off. Did you get the pictures I sent of Amanda playing with Lanie?” I asked.
“I did. They’re wonderful pictures. The judge will love them, I’m sure. Just get that ring on her finger and make sure you’re on time. Everything else is set up well for tomorrow.”
“Have you heard from my P.I. yet?” I asked.
“The last time I talked with him he said he was onto something, but he didn’t want to bother you until he had something concrete. But he did inform me he wouldn’t have anything for tomorrow, so we’re pushing forward until I hear from him again.”
“Damn, I was really hoping he had some dirt that we could use,” I said.
“What you need to do now is take some deep breaths. I can hear the nerves in your voice. Settle your body down. We’re not going to give Lanie to his man. Trust me.,” he said.
“Thanks. What time is appropriate to be at the courthouse?” I asked.
“Thirty minutes before should do it. But give yourself fifteen to park and get inside the building. You don’t want to be running in and looked frazzled.”
“Will do. See you tomorrow around nine thirty.”
“See you then.”
CHAPTER 27
Amanda
I walked into the cabin, and my eyes fell immediately onto Lanie. She was sitting in her chair, but I could tell she wasn’t feeling well. I rushed to her side and wrapped my arms around her, pressing kisses against her forehead as she leaned into me.
“Hi, Mommy,” Lanie said.
My eyes shot to Brian as Lanie called me ‘mommy’ and I was afraid of what I might see on his face. Instead of concern or disdain, I saw a look of genuine appreciation.
And it confused me more than ever. This man was the most difficult person to read that I’d ever come in contact with. One moment we were rolling around in his bed talking about getting married, and the next he was asking me to leave, his voice devoid of all emotion. Then he calls to ask me to dinner and looks pleased when his niece calls me ‘mommy’. It was almost too much to wrap my head around.
We sat down to pizza and Lanie was insistent that I sit by her. I helped cut her pizza and rubbed her back as she ate. It broke my heart to see her not feeling well, and I wished there was something more I could do for her. When she’d barely eaten half of her dinner, I wiped the sauce from her face and cradled her head against my side where she rested it.
At that moment, there was a knock at the door and Brian immediately tensed. We shared a look that said, ‘who in the hell could that be?’ I picked Lanie up and held her close to me as Brian got up to answer the door.