“So your current source of income is...?” The social worker was pleasant enough, Ryan thought, but she rubbed him the wrong way. She’d obviously looked him up and studied him, and he wasn’t surprised when, after a short interview with both him and Frankie, she’d asked to speak to him alone. He’d seen the concern in Frankie’s eyes when he agreed. He kissed her lightly and said he’d be back. Pressley had told Frankie it was protocol but Ryan wondered if that was true. He should have asked Daniel before he and Max left to go back to L.A.
“I have investments. I have money in the bank. Look, you obviously know what I did for a living. I have money. I have some plans to make furniture, but honestly, it’s not what I’m going to use to pay the bills.”
“You have a history of drug use.”
He clenched his fists. “No. I’ve never used drugs. All charges were dropped.”
He leaned against the hard back of his dining room chair. The living room had seemed too inviting. She took notes and glanced up at him, one eyebrow arched. He took a sip of the water he’d poured, his mouth unexpectedly dry. He leaned forward before he spoke again, his arms resting on the table.
“You want to ask me questions, that’s fine. I’ll be honest with you because I have nothing to hide. But if you’re going to base your report on what you’ve read about me, then you’re not interested in the truth.”
She took off her thin, wire-framed glasses, set them on the table, and met his gaze. “I am interested in the truth, Mr. Walker. I just need to verify some of the things that have been publicized about you. I’m sorry if you felt like I was judging you,” she said genuinely, setting her pen down. He thought he’d grown out of being defensive but apparently, he was wrong.
“Tell me about your relationship with the boys.”
He explained to her how he’d met them and the way Frankie had just naturally assumed responsibility for them. He spoke of each of them, but mostly of Carter because despite liking all three, he felt like he had the closest connection with the oldest boy.
“It sounds like you are a very good influence on them,” Pressley said, making more notes.
“I don’t know about that. But I want to see them do well. Each of them has their own thing that they’re good at. Carter is naturally athletic and I think if he finished school, he’d have a good chance at a scholarship. Travis is smart. Quieter than the other two. He loves to cook and he comes up with strange twists to make plain food fancy.”
“And Miles?”
“Miles’s gift is making everyone smile. He’s a good kid. Loves to tell stories.”
She asked more questions about his relationship with Frankie, about their future, and the role he thought he’d play in the boys’ lives.
“Do you plan on marrying Ms. Vaughn?”
Jesus. Was that even relevant? As far as he knew, Frankie didn’t need to be married to be a foster parent. He clenched his jaw and pushed his now-empty water glass around in small circles. “With all due respect, if I did or I do, I think I’d rather share that with Frankie first. What I can tell you is that I have no plans of letting her go. I will support her and the boys however I can. Frankie is one hundred percent in this. And so am I.”
How the hell could he say right this minute if he wanted to marry her? After his divorce, he’d told himself he’d never do that again, never legally bind himself to someone who would one day rip him into shreds just because she could. But Frankie was not Victoria. And the more time that passed, the more Ryan realized that their marriage hadn’t been one based on love and respect.
Pressley nodded but he couldn’t tell if she was pleased with his answer. He showed her around the house while she prodded some more. Subtle questions that he thought were asking more than they seemed to on the surface.
“You have a beautiful house,” she remarked when they came back down the stairs.
He shoved his hands in his pockets and tried not to be irritated. “Thanks. I like it.”
She asked more routine questions and Ryan couldn’t say it was a bad visit but he couldn’t say he was sure it went well either. When he’d done interviews in the past, he’d known instinctively whether or not he’d said something stupid. He could ride that out, cover it with a joke. But there was nothing funny about this situation. He didn’t want to be the reason things didn’t, or did, work out. He checked his watch when Pressley left and figured he’d swing by practice, maybe see Carter and help the boys. Frankie was showing Chloe around town. Not that it would take long but he figured that it would be good to work off the unease that was settling in his gut. Nothing like baseball to ease a man’s troubles. Even if he wasn’t playing.