32. Tish

Chapter Thirty-Two

Tish

I re-read Griffin's text a few times over the following days. I missed him. A lot. I was startled at how quickly I had become accustomed to his presence in my life.

Allie and Madison invited me over for dinner one evening. When I arrived, Allie gestured to a row of nail polish bottles on the table. "We're doing nails tonight," she offered with a grin.

"Really?" I looked at my neglected nails and laughed softly as I sat down at the kitchen table. "I could definitely use something to make mine look better."

"Madison taught me how to do nails better," Allie explained. "She also helps me with my hair, but I don't dye it myself anymore."

Madison set a casserole pan in the middle of the table. "Let's eat first. Do you want something to drink?"

"Just water," I replied. I had nursed Teddy before I came over and he was down for the count in his car seat. I loved how handy car seats were. Maisie had suggested I keep a car seat in the house because they made easy portable nap spots, so I carried him in his seat often.

With Allie checking on Teddy, we ate and chatted. I was bursting to ask how Madison handled Graham being a hotshot firefighter, but I held back. Once we finished eating and settled in to take care of our nails, Madison's eyes lifted to mine. "You'll get used to it."

"Used to what?" I hedged.

"Being with someone who flies out to the middle of nowhere to fight fires. Allie's dealt with it for years because Graham's been a firefighter since she was little."

"Did he always fly out?" I couldn't help but ask.

Allie was carefully painting my nails for me. She glanced up as she shook her head. "When I was little, he worked on the town crew. When I started high school, he switched to the hotshot crew. My grandparents are here in town, so I used to stay with them when he went out for fires. That was before he met Madison." Her smile was warm when she looked up quickly at Madison.

I was curious about Allie's mom, but I didn't feel like it was my place to ask. As if she could read my thoughts, she added, "My bio mom's never been around much. I was an unplanned high school pregnancy. She bolted after I was born. She visits once in a while, but hardly ever." Allie shrugged, but her gaze was somber.

"I'm sorry," I said quickly.

Pain flickered in her gaze before she glanced toward Madison. "It's okay. My dad's awesome when he's not driving me crazy and I've got Madison." Her eyes softened. "She's pretty great."

Madison smiled warmly. "I try."

As I contemplated if I should say anything else, Allie shifted the track of our conversation. "I hope Griffin is good to you."

Heat flared in my cheeks. "He is so far."

Madison looked from Allie to me, her lips curling in a bemused smile. "Allie demanded that Graham warn Griffin that he'd better treat you well. I don't know if Griffin mentioned that to you."

I let out a disbelieving laugh. "Seriously?"

Allie finished one hand in the rich, maroon color she'd selected before switching to the other hand. "Griffin seems nice, but you deserve somebody to treat you well and so does Teddy. Griffin can't just be—" She waved a hand in the air before her cheeks went pink. "I don't know, casual."

I smiled, feeling my heart tighten in my chest. "That's really sweet that you want to make sure he's good to me. I appreciate it."

Allie studied me for a moment. "Do you like Griffin a lot?"

My heartbeat picked up its pace. I finally nodded. "I think I do. He's definitely not someone I was expecting. Teddy sure likes him."

"Is he good with Teddy?" Allie prompted as she focused on my nails again.

"He really is. He has a few nieces and nephews, so he's had a little practice with babies. That's a bonus." I glanced toward Madison. "Do you ever hear from Graham when he's out at a fire?"

"Not usually. There's not a lot of reception out there. Once they get closer to towns, we hear from them," she explained.

"Has he ever gotten hurt?" I couldn't help but ask.

Madison shrugged. "Not seriously, but a few minor things. They carry a lot of gear and the work is hard. It's definitely a possibility, so you have to live with that." Her tone was practical.

Anxiety spun in my chest.

I thought about her comment over the following days. I was a little startled at how much I missed Griffin. The intensity of our connection was powerful. I felt as if the invisible bonds between us were tightening swiftly, the distance almost strengthening it.

He had been gone for over four days when I got a call from an unfamiliar number. My stomach started churning when I saw I had a voicemail. My thumb hovered over the voicemail, itching to hit delete. Nausea welled up when I eventually listened to the message.

It's Paul. I heard through the grapevine that you moved away from Fireweed Harbor. My parents want to meet the baby if it's mine.

Sheer panic surged inside. Part of me wanted to immediately call back and tell him to fuck right off. I had enough sense not to do that and decided to ignore his message until I had a chance to talk to an attorney. I wished Griffin were here because he would know what to tell me.

With anxiety churning like a storm in my chest, I dropped Teddy off at daycare. I managed to keep myself from completely falling apart until I got into my office and closed the door. I sat down at my desk with my hands shaking. I didn't want Paul to be involved in Teddy's life. I didn't trust him at all. I thought about calling my parents. They'd come up to visit a couple of times since Teddy was born. And yet, I'd kept the details about Paul vague because it was embarrassing. Even though I knew I'd done nothing wrong, I was still ashamed.

As I scrambled inside, my brain finally landed on Quinn Blackthorne. She was the lead corporate attorney for Fireweed Industries. She would know what to do. With my hands still shaking, I pulled up her number and called her.

"Quinn Blackthorn," she answered, her tone crisp.

"Um, hi, Quinn. It's Tish Reeves."

She must've heard something in my voice. "Tish? Are you okay?"

I cleared my throat, scraping for what little composure I could dredge up. "I'm sure you know I had a baby and the father isn't involved at all. But, um, I got a message from him this morning. He says his parents would like to meet Teddy. I don't want him involved at all! What do I do?" My voice was rising to a squeaky pitch.

"Okay, we'll figure this out. I can put you in touch with Colin, my cousin at our law firm. He handles all the family law cases. But first, breathe."

I forced myself to draw in a slow breath. "I'm sure I sound like I'm freaking out, I'm sorry. I just didn't expect this call."

"It's okay. I'm sure it's stressful," she said in a soothing lawyer tone.

"Do you mind giving me Colin's number?"

"Already planning on it. I'll reach out to him so he knows who you are. He's a good guy and an excellent attorney," she assured me.

"Thank you, Quinn."

While Quinn and I weren't that close personally, she had always been nice to me around the office. She was married to Kenan, one of Griffin's older brothers.

"If you don't hear from Colin this morning, zap me a text and I'll nag him. Unless he's tied up in meetings or court, I expect him to reach out to you immediately," she added.

Seconds after we ended the call, my phone vibrated with her forwarding his contact information. Just as I saved it to my contacts, his call came through.

"Hi Colin, it's Tish. I'm assuming Quinn reached out to you," I said.

Colin's voice was warm. "She said it was really important that I reach out as soon as I could."

I quickly summarized the situation, ending with, "Paul hasn't been in touch at all, and I just don't trust him. Not after what he did." Although I'd had to force myself through it, I'd explained how I ended up pregnant.

"Grandparents don't have legal rights, but they can petition the court for visitation," he explained. "In this case, I strongly recommend we file to make sure you have full legal and physical custody. Are you opposed to the grandparents having visitation?"

"No, as long as Paul doesn't have a say. I was honestly relieved he hadn't responded to my message before. I decided to have my baby because I wanted to anyway, but I still don't trust him after what happened."

"So he's never responded until now?"

"This is the first I've heard from him."

"You're on strong legal ground, but he could try to be involved. I just want to caution you about that."

"I don't want child support. I want nothing from him," I said vehemently.

"I completely understand."

"I don't even want to respond," I added.

Colin was quiet for a beat before replying, "You don't have to, however it's my experience that a response can minimize tension."

"I guess I didn't really consider him ever reaching out," I finally said.

"My suggestion would be for you to respond to the message, to get a sense of what his parents would like. If you're not comfortable with that, I'm willing to reach out to them first, but it may not be necessary. Think about it."

After I ended the call with Colin, I let out a heavy sigh and leaned back in my desk chair. I deeply wished Teddy hadn't been conceived in the accidental way he had. I knew I'd been taking a risk when I decided to go forward with my pregnancy. Paul's actions were a huge violation of my trust. In some states, stealthing was considered a form of sexual assault, although that wasn't the case in Alaska, not yet.

I'd known someday there would be questions from Teddy about his father. I also knew I'd mentally shoved those away, telling myself I had plenty of time to figure out how to handle that. When Paul hadn't responded at all, until now, he had made it easy for me to ignore what could happen.

My fury at the situation churned in my chest. Intellectually, I understood his parents wanting to know their grandson. But I didn't trust Paul, not even a little. I didn't know how to navigate this.