Bethany got stuck in traffic on the Folly Beach Bridge on the way home from work. She wanted to get home and curl up on her couch with a book. Maybe Hexa would even snuggle next to her. She wasn’t happy about having Jamie in her house, but she loved his dog.
She’d thought about getting one over the years. She had one growing up, but it died when she was in high school. Dogs were a lot of work and responsibility. Plus, she never knew what her money situation would be, and she had a hard enough time handling financial crises with her house. She didn’t want to worry about how she would pay for surgery or something with her dog. So for now she’d use Jamie’s dog.
She frowned. The incident in the kitchen bothered her. Not because he was taking pictures of her but because she worried that something would happen between them eventually. In the forty-eight hours he’d been at her house, she’d nearly kissed him. She shivered at the thought.
She didn’t know how things would work if they were involved with one another. She’d had exactly two relationships in her life, and one had ended after two weeks. The other was awkward and weird and made her never want to even think about trying again. She simply didn’t know how to relax around men. This would not end well, and as he pointed out, she needed his money. That made her face burn with shame. Maybe she didn’t deserve the old house if she couldn’t even afford to take care of it. If something major happened and it needed to be repaired, she didn’t have the money to do so.
She’d googled Jamie like he’d told her to. His pictures were stunning. He took completely ordinary situations and made them look otherworldly. But his pictures were completely realistic. She clicked on several of the pictures, and when she saw the print prices, she knew she’d never be able to afford even a small one.
When she pulled into her garage, she noticed a red Mercedes in the driveway. That wasn’t the same car Jamie drove yesterday. Maybe he switched.
Hexa greeted her as she opened the door. Bethany scratched her behind the ears. She walked into the kitchen and found Jamie sitting at the kitchen table eating Chinese takeout with a gorgeous leggy blonde. She could’ve given Bunny a run for her money.
So much for reading on the couch. Bethany wasn’t going to spend the whole night watching those two make kissy faces at each other. Why would he do something like that after he nearly kissed her this morning? Or maybe she misread his signals. She was so bad at this. Here she was thinking he might be interested in her, and instead he was seeing someone else. She’d been dumb even thinking that. Look at the woman he chose. Bethany wasn’t nearly as pretty.
She didn’t want to know when they retired to the bedroom, which they were bound to do. The chemistry between them was undeniable. That woman was giving Jamie a look she’d only ever seen Bunny give Danny. Bethany would make herself a sandwich and eat upstairs.
She gave a forced grin to the two of them, and Jamie stood up.
“Bethany, come join us. There’s plenty of food.”
Oh, no way. She smiled. “No, that’s okay. Looks like a cozy date. I’ll let you two have your privacy.”
The woman laughed and placed her hand on Jamie’s arm, gazing up at him with adoration. “This isn’t what it looks like. Please come join us. I wanted to talk to you anyway.”
Not what it looks like? Then why was she clutching Jamie’s arm like she owned him? And that look that woman gave him. If that was what love looked like, Bethany wasn’t interested.
Bethany frowned and cautiously made her way to the table. This was odd. She might as well see what the woman had to say anyway. Jamie grabbed another plate from the cupboard and set it down across from himself.
The woman reached out her hand. “I’m Annabelle. It’s nice to meet you.”
Bethany took it and then sat down. She dished herself up some fried rice and a beef dish she’d never seen before. She hoped it wasn’t spicy.
Jamie spoke. “Annabelle is my attorney. She thinks you need to know exactly why I’m here so that if people come snooping around, you’ll understand.”
Bethany jerked her head up. “Excuse me? What have you gotten me into?” An attorney was not good news.
Jamie laughed. “Nothing bad. I swear.” He grinned and leaned forward. “I have a six-year-old son who I’m trying to gain custody of.”
Annabelle scooted closer to Jamie, and Bethany wondered if she was hoping to land more than a client with Jamie.
Bethany spoke without thinking. “I was under the impression I was getting a roommate, not a family.”
“Don’t worry. If I win, I’ll move out. There’s a long road until we get to that point. His mother was none too happy to receive the court petition.”
“Where does she live?”
“Down the street. That’s why I wanted to rent a place in this neighborhood.”
“If he’s six, why do you suddenly want to have something to do with him? Seems kinda late.”
“I didn’t find out about him until a few months ago. I called Zoe a thousand times and finally decided to go through the legal system. I saw her a few days ago, and she refused to let me see him and told me he wasn’t mine. But I had a paternity test before I got here, so I know she’s lying.”
Bethany raised her eyebrows. “She doesn’t know about the test?”
Jamie nodded.
“How’d you pull that off?”
“Zoe doesn’t have a lot of money, and so I arranged for Garrett to receive a scholarship at a private school. They got me a DNA sample. It was pretty easy.”
Bethany didn’t know if she should be impressed or frightened by his abilities. “Why not just go after visitation? Custody seems a little extreme, don’t you think?”
Jamie took a deep breath. “At first that was all I wanted, but my PI told me that within the last couple of months Garrett has been coming to school with unexplained bruises, cuts, and scratches.”
Jamie having a son surprised Bethany. He didn’t seem like the daddy type. Though this was all new to him. She hadn’t wanted to get involved before, but now she should keep her distance. She wasn’t great with kids.
“There could be explanations for that.”
“There could. Except a few months ago she hooked up with an old flame. The injuries started after he moved in with them. We did a background check and found out he’s been arrested a few times for assault. If she’s willing to let him beat up my son, then she’s not fit to keep him.”
Bethany nodded. “What’s this got to do with me?”
Annabelle answered. “Lawyers and other court officers may come to check out the house. Jamie paid six months up front so he could start to establish residency. I know he said he plans to move out if he gets custody, but that can’t come out. As far as everyone knows, the boy will live here with him.”
Bethany thought about it for a few minutes. A child couldn’t hurt her house any more than Hexa could. In some ways it might make things easier. Knowing Jamie was there for such a noble thing made his presence less intimidating somehow. “I guess that’s okay. How long do you expect the custody thing to last?”
Annabelle spoke up. “Considering how difficult Zoe is being, probably six months to a year.”
“But if he’s being abused, don’t you want to get him out of there faster?”
Annabelle nudged Jamie’s shoulder. “We can’t prove anything. The school has filed an official complaint with DFS, but they have so many cases on their hands that it takes time to process them. We’re hoping that if something happens and they remove the boy from the home, that he can stay with Jamie. But the first step is to prove he’s the father.”
“You sound like you know what you’re doing,” Bethany said. She fiddled with her food. A little kid in her house would be a challenge, and she was a little irritated that Jamie didn’t mention Garrett when he moved in, but things could be worse.
Annabelle nodded. “I do. I’m the best in the state.”
“Annabelle is also an old friend. We went to school together. I’d lost touch with her, but when I needed an attorney, I called my buddy David, and he told me she was down here.”
Bethany finished eating quickly after that. She needed to process this new information. When she first found out she was getting a roommate, her biggest concern was how she and Bunny would deal with d-day. Now she was knee deep in a child custody case. She almost laughed out loud. This was too much.
“I’ll let you two catch up,” she said as she stood.
“Thanks, Bethany, it was nice meeting you.” But Annabelle wasn’t even looking at her. She had eyes only for Jamie.