Chapter 19

NINETEEN

TULLY

I sensed Dev’s tension the moment I pulled the car into the parking lot of the clinic. There was some barely perceptible change in his breathing, or maybe he made a low sound in his throat. Either way, my eyes flicked to his in the rearview mirror.

Dev’s eyes carried a world of pain. I’d seen that emotion in his expression before, and I was desperate to understand it so I could try to ease it in some way.

“Nervous?” I asked.

“It’s my parents. I don’t know why they’re here, or?—”

Kenji muttered a curse under his breath and began tapping on his tablet from the passenger seat next to me.

“The Scotts must have told them,” I said. “You said they go to the Scotts’ church, right? I wouldn’t put it past Pastor Scott to use that to his advantage.”

Kenji remained calm, which seemed to be his superpower. “You don’t have to speak to them. In fact, I can get a protective order started…”

“No,” Dev said firmly. “I’ll talk to them, but not until after the test. I want this over with, especially while Lellie is in a good mood. But if… if things go bad…”

After throwing the vehicle into Park, I turned and met his eyes. “Kenji and I will get her out of here. You can get a ride back to the house.”

He reached out and squeezed my shoulder. “Thank you. That would make me feel much better. I don’t want her caught up in the middle of this.”

Neither do I.

I didn’t say the words, but I felt them just as strongly as he did.

We got out of the car. Dev unbuckled Lellie while Kenji and I stood behind him, blocking them from view. I’d chosen a parking spot on the other side of the lot, but I could see the cluster of people with the Scotts heading our way.

I also saw Susanna waiting for us near the entrance. After waving her over, I met her partway and skipped the pleasantries. “Those are the plaintiffs, as well as Dev’s parents, who we didn’t expect. We think the Scotts might have recruited them to their cause.”

“Got it. I’ll handle them. You get everyone inside. The clinic is good about taking patients back to a private room and making everyone else stay in the waiting room. They’ll only allow the plaintiff’s attorney to send back a witness to observe silently and sign paperwork to that effect. If there’s any misbehavior, they won’t hesitate to kick people out.”

She turned to greet the Scotts with a friendly smile while I turned back to Dev. He was ghost-pale but determined. His biceps and shoulders bulged against the fabric of his shirt as he held Lellie on his hip. He was wearing a pressed button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and the dark hair on his exposed forearms was giving me thoughts wholly inappropriate for this moment.

I rapidly blinked my eyes as I turned away. Pretty sure Kenji caught me at it.

As we approached the group Susanna was trying to hold back, Pastor Scott approached me, all smiles. “Tully, there you are. Great to see you again. And let me get a look at my granddaughter. Hi, Eleanor, sweetie. What a big girl you are!”

Lellie immediately clung onto Dev more tightly and leaned her head against his shoulder. She wasn’t great with people she didn’t know well. While Katie hadn’t been estranged from her parents completely, she hadn’t spent much time with them and Lellie.

“Like I said,” Susanna said, stepping between Pastor Scott and Dev as we continued to move toward the clinic’s entrance, “you are welcome to wait out here or in the waiting room, but we simply ask you to allow my client to proceed straight to the appointment first. I’m sure you agree it’s in our best interest to collect this evidence as quickly as possible.”

“Of course, of course,” Pastor Scott said.

I recognized the attorney standing next to him and gave him a cool nod. Brock Lois was an attorney with his own practice who occasionally worked with Dunlevy, Pace, and Trumble. I assumed Orris had been the one to refer the Scotts to him since he was well-known at our firm as a bulldog in family law cases. I didn’t trust Brock for shit, but I was grateful the case was no longer causing a potential conflict of interest with my own firm.

Then I noticed the man behind Katie’s dad.

Orris Dunlevy stepped around Pastor Scott. “Tully! Good of you to come. Thank you for escorting everyone here safely. I’ll take it from here.”

Heat filled my face as a swell of embarrassment twisted my stomach. Before I could say anything, Dev broke his silent, stoic act. “He’s here at my request. Until this situation is settled, I believe it’s in everyone’s best interest for Lellie to have as much support as possible, both legally and personally.”

It was enough to stop the Scotts and their attorneys in their tracks and allow us to continue into the clinic without further interference.

“Well done,” I murmured as Susanna stepped forward to check Dev and Lellie in for the appointment.

Dev turned and shoved Lellie into my arms. Thankfully, she came willingly and clung to me as tightly as she’d clung to Dev. “If you’re her representative at this appointment, they’ll let you back with us,” he murmured.

I glanced up and saw the nerves in his expression. He was terrified, and I couldn’t figure out why.

Thankfully, a nurse called us back very quickly, and I followed Dev while Susanna held the door and ensured no one else followed us other than a nondescript junior attorney from Brock’s firm who had been sent as the eyewitness. Kenji settled himself in a chair in the waiting room and remained unruffled.

Orris shot me a final glare as the door closed behind us.

When we got to the exam cubicle, I reached for Dev’s arm. “Hey. You know it’s not a blood test, right? It’s a cheek swab.”

“I know.”

I lowered my voice. “Why are you shaking?”

“What if this is it? What if she’s not really mine?”

I wanted to bark out a laugh, but I could tell he wasn’t joking.

“Devon,” I said, making sure my voice was still low but also firm. “This child is your clone. Look at her. Look at her eyes. They’re the color of southern pine and sweet tea.” I flicked one of her dark curls and then reached out to wrap one of his thicker waves around my finger before tugging. “I wish you could see it like the rest of us do.”

Susanna must have realized what was happening because her expression softened, and she grinned at him. “He’s right. Anyone who saw you holding her out there knows how ridiculous this performance is. She looks more like you than my twin brother looks like me.”

Dev inhaled a shaky breath. “Thank you. I know it’s silly. I just got here and suddenly worried that they would find a way to take her from me. The fact I’m her biological parent is the only thing on my side.”

I wanted to tell him that wasn’t true, that there were a million other things about him that made him Lellie’s perfect choice, but a lab tech walked in before I had a chance to speak.

After briefly introducing himself, the tech had everyone sign the necessary consent forms before getting down to business. It seemed to take forever to gather multiple samples and line them up carefully in a tray with barcoded labels indicating Dev and Lellie’s names and birthdates. We even had to sign the envelopes the samples were being sent in. And then, just when it looked like we were done, we each had to sign off on witness statements to ensure proper chain of custody of the samples, too.

Lellie was good throughout most of the long, boring process, only making a break for it once while Dev and I were signing the last few items. Susanna stepped out to take a call, and Lellie tried to follow, but fortunately, her toddler stumble was unsteady enough that we noticed her escape attempt immediately. I headed her off while Dev swooped in from behind, scooped her up, and tickled her.

“Not so much different than cutting horses,” I teased so only Dev could hear.

“True.” Dev gave me one of his genuine, devastating smiles. “And easier with teamwork,” he said softly, making my heart race.

The tech produced a lollipop for Lellie, ensuring her continued cooperation, and we returned to witness the tech slide the samples into the labeled packages, seal them, and sign the final couple of forms without incident before making our way back out to the waiting room…

Where everyone and their damned brother was waiting for us.

My happy mood immediately soured, and I could sense Dev’s anxiety rising again.

I’d spotted Dev’s parents as soon as we’d pulled into the parking lot. His father had the same head of dark hair, and his mother had something of Dev in the shape of her face or the set of her mouth. They’d stayed quiet up to now, seeming to wait to be called on by Pastor Scott before asking to see their only grandchild.

My boss approached as soon as we came from the back into the larger waiting room. “I think it would be a sign of good faith to allow the Scotts to take Eleanor for the night.”

I tilted my head at Orris while holding Lellie tighter. “I’m not sure I understand what you mean by ‘good faith’ in this case.”

He frowned. “They’re her grandparents. It’s only right to allow them a visit while all of this gets sorted out.”

Dev’s mom was clearly listening because she nodded her head emphatically, her eyes never leaving her granddaughter.

I felt Dev move behind me. His hand brushed gently across my lower back where no one could see it before he came around me and reached for Lellie with a murmured thanks.

He stepped forward into the center of the small crowd. “Mom, Dad, this is Lellie. My daughter.”

I wondered later if their quick glance at Pastor Scott for permission to approach had anything to do with what happened next. To be fair to Dev, he tried to ignore it at first.

Pastor Scott approached from the side with his arms out. “Come to Grandpa, sweetie. We sure are happy to see you, yes we are.”

Mrs. Scott was already crying while Mrs. McKay clutched her hands together in white-knuckled control.

Dev glanced at Katie’s father. “Pastor Scott, respectfully, since you’ve already met Lellie, I’d like a few minutes with my parents. I’m sure you can agree they have some lost time to make up for.”

Again, the McKays watched Pastor Scott for his response. He frowned. “And whose fault was that? Kathryn obviously didn’t feel that a relationship with any paternal relatives was necessary.”

Dev remained calm. “Until she gave me full custody of Lellie in her will. And given that I will now be her full legal guardian, I’m sure you can respect my attempts to honor my father and my mother by allowing them to meet their grandchild. I will ask you again politely to move back and allow me to have a moment with my parents.”

Pastor Scott’s nostrils flared, but he finally tilted his chin down and allowed Dev to move to the side where he and his parents could have a moment. After a significant look and head tilt from Orris, I followed him to the opposite side of the room.

“Don’t worry,” he said in a low voice. “The McKays know what to do.”

I glanced over at Dev, who seemed to be involved in an awkward introduction between Lellie and his parents. She clung to him and resisted all of his parents’ attempts to reach for her.

“What do you mean?” I asked. “What will they do?”

“They’ve given John’s team plenty of information to help prove he would be an unfit parent. Their loyalty is well-placed as they’ve been members of the Scotts’ congregation for quite a while now.”

My stomach dropped. “What kind of information?” I looked for Susanna, who caught my glance and crinkled her eyebrows.

“He has a history of wild spending—they suspect gambling may have been involved, suspicion of reckless endangerment, and he’s neglected to communicate with his parents for over five years. Apparently, he’s not what you’d call a family man.”

I nodded along as he continued to tell me that John had the case fully in hand and that Orris appreciated me keeping such a close eye on the Scotts’ “precious treasure.”

“Now, we could really use your help. The Scotts would like some alone time with their granddaughter. Do you think the best way to go about it would be to arrange for the McKays to take her overnight? McKay might be more amenable to his own parents’ request, and I’m sure Franklin and Delaney would be happy to host them at their house so they can all enjoy some quality time with her.”

I wanted to be petulant. To ask him why the fuck he would imagine Dev had any intention of allowing any of them to take Lellie for the night considering how they were treating him, but I held my tongue. Not only was it not my place to fight Dev’s battles for him, but it was also a waste of time.

Even if I wanted to try, there was nothing I could say to convince Dev to hand Lellie over to the Scotts, even just for one night. And I couldn’t imagine he was keen to allow his parents to take her after they’d refused to speak to him for over five years.

Because I knew the truth of the “neglect to communicate” situation, and it wasn’t Dev’s decision. He’d told me how much their rejection had crushed him, and I knew he would never have been the one to shut them out the way Orris implied.

“I think we should leave it up to Brock to handle,” I said as neutrally as possible. “He’s in the best position to manage it without anyone accusing our firm of a conflict of interest.”

Orris watched Dev interact with his parents. I could sense Dev’s discomfort in the stiff line of his spine and the protective way his arms curled around Lellie’s little body.

“He seems off to me,” Orris said in a low voice. “What was he like in Wyoming?”

“He’s a great father, Orris,” I said. “He cares about her very much and has a stable life there with plenty of friends and family to support him.”

Orris turned to me. “I thought the McKays were his only living family?”

I realized my mistake. “I meant he has close friends there who are like family. And he’s been embraced by the family who owns the ranch where he lives and works. They all love Lellie and want to help him raise her. It’s a small town that’s very family-centered, and he’s been established there for over a year with friends he’s had for a decade.”

He clapped me on the shoulder. “We’ll figure it out. Just keep doing what you’re doing by keeping an eye out. Anything you find, you just make a note of it in the case file, and I’ll take care of the rest.”

I stared after him in shock. From the very first meeting after Katie’s death, he’d bent the ethical rules to support his friend and client and made all sorts of implications about what he expected of me, but stating it outright like this was something else entirely. “Sir, with all due respect, I will not be a party to breaking client privilege. Surely that’s not what you’re implying here.”

I’d joined Dunlevy, Pace, and Trumble because of its reputation for excellence, its impressive client list, and its strong leadership in the legal community. Were the founding partners typical good ole boys sometimes? Absolutely. Had Orris pushed some ethical boundaries this week? No doubt. But until now, I’d always felt like he was careful to toe the line and act within the bounds of legality.

He widened his eyes in surprise. “Absolutely not, Tully, and I’m offended you’d imply such a thing.”

“I’m sorry. Please explain it to me so I can understand what you meant.”

“It’s very simple. Devon McKay is not our client. Quite frankly, neither is Eleanor. Not technically. Her current legal guardian is Mr. McKay, who does not have an agreement of representation on file with our firm. Hence, we are not bound by any privilege.”

He was right. My head swam with the realization that while I felt bound to Lellie’s best interests as an extension of Katie, who had been my client, the firm wasn’t actually legally obligated to anyone other than Katie now that Katie no longer held legal custody of Lellie.

“I see,” I said weakly.

Orris nodded. “It is not our responsibility to educate Mr. McKay on how the law works. We can leave that up to Ms. Botero over there,” he said, tilting his head toward Susanna, who was sticking close to Dev but didn’t seem to be interfering. “In the meantime, if Mr. McKay happens to give us information that can help us with an ongoing case one of our actual clients is involved in, I don’t see the problem with that.”

While it may not have been illegal, it was certainly shady as fuck. I did my best not to show my boss how disappointed in him I was. Instead, I ended the conversation as gracefully as I could by mentioning a need to speak to Susanna about something.

After making my way over to her, Dev caught my eye. His expression was haggard and full of pain. I wanted to approach him and pull him into my arms, carry him far away from here where he, Lellie, and I could hide out and be safe and happy together.

Instead, I gave him a reassuring smile and asked if he needed anything.

“Tully, I’d like you to meet my parents. Mom, Dad, this is Tully Bowman. He was a good friend of Katie’s, as well as her attorney.” As he finished the introductions, Lellie hurled herself out of his arms and into mine.

“Tuh-wee.” She said my name with a whine that I was rapidly coming to recognize as a precursor to a meltdown.

“Are you hungry, baby?” I murmured. “Thirsty?”

“Wah-guh.”

Dev immediately pulled her water bottle out of the backpack and handed it to her. She sipped it greedily while laying her head on my shoulder. I could feel the heat of everyone’s eyes on me. I could also feel it on my cheeks as my face flared with embarrassment.

We looked like a married couple. Like a family. And while it might have been very much like some of my most secret fantasies, it definitely wasn’t something I wanted any of these people to witness or misconstrue.

I shot Dev a look that he must have correctly interpreted because he quickly pulled Lellie back out of my arms and set her down on the ground before taking her tiny hand in his. “Want to walk outside a little bit? We can go look at the tree with the pretty pink flowers on it.”

Thankfully, everyone allowed them to walk out unmolested. Then, we all followed them like a little trail of highly litigious ducks.

As soon as Dev had reached the little patch of lawn with the big crepe myrtle in bloom, the Scotts finally approached again. Just like with the McKays, it was awkward and strained. I could tell Dev was doing his best to allow them a moment to interact with their granddaughter, as if he was honor-bound to act the gentleman.

I wanted to rip everyone away from him and his precious baby girl and hurl obscenities at them until they fucked all the way off. My temper was holding on by the barest gossamer thread.

You don’t have to do this , I kept thinking. You’re a better person than they are.

And it was right then, as I watched him bite his tongue against overly intrusive and downright insulting questions from both his parents and the Scotts, as I had to clench my own fists from riding in on a white horse to save him, that I realized I was falling in love with him.

No… that wasn’t quite right. I wasn’t falling. I’d fallen a while ago. Maybe even two full years ago.

But right now, watching him try his best to allow Lellie to know both sets of grandparents, despite their being complete assholes, I realized he was the best of men.

He was generous and kind, patient and loving, loyal to a fault, and also sexy as fuck. He crouched down to be at Lellie’s level, which pulled the seat of his trousers tight across his ass and thigh muscles, and I was faced with just how inappropriate a paternity clinic boner was.

“Fuck,” I said under my breath.

I heard a soft snort from behind me and turned to see Kenji. My cheeks burned again.

“You’ll have to keep a close eye on him if you come to Zane’s concert,” he said with a knowing smirk. It was so different from his usual neutral expression I blinked.

“What do you mean?”

“He’s a chick magnet. And god forbid they find out he knows the lead singer of the band. It gets a little crazy sometimes. But don’t worry. Zane has security. I’ll let Ryan know to arrange an escort for us in case we’re able to make it back to Majestic in time for the concert.” He pulled out his phone and tapped away without explaining who Ryan was.

Raised voices alerted me to trouble. Kenji’s head popped up just as I began striding closer to find out what was going on. Susanna held up her hand and stepped between Dev and Pastor Scott, who was suddenly berating him.

It happened in a split second. Mrs. Scott swooped in and grabbed Lellie, causing the poor girl to yelp in surprise. The McKays stood motionless while Mrs. Scott turned and hotfooted it toward a dark blue minivan.

Dev immediately lurched toward them, but Pastor Scott held his arm. Dev’s father stepped to the other side of Dev and looked like he was trying to reason with him while holding him back with a palm to his chest.

I raced across the parking lot without thinking, hell-bent on preventing Mrs. Scott from absconding with Lellie. There was no way to know what her intention was, but I knew enough to fear that this would escalate an already tense situation into a criminal case of some kind.

Mrs. Scott threw open the sliding door to the van and climbed inside. I caught sight of someone already in the driver’s seat.

“Kenji, call 9-1-1,” I barked over my shoulder while fumbling with my phone to try and get a picture of the license plate in case they managed to leave.

I heard Dev’s terror as he screamed for them to stop. Just as the van began backing out of the parking spot, I grabbed the door handle and yanked, nearly face-planting when it opened. I dove inside, noting the car seat with a screaming Lellie halfway buckled into it. Thankfully, she was fighting Mrs. Scott every step of the way.

“Baby, I’m here,” I said, reaching for her and elbowing Mrs. Scott out of the way. Lellie’s eyes swam with tears, and her little chubby hands reached for my shirt, fisting the material and grabbing some of my chest hairs in the process.

“Tuh-wee,” she wailed, nearly breaking my fucking heart. “Tuh-weeee!”

Once she was free from the straps, I pulled her close to my chest and tucked her face into my neck before wrapping my hand gently around the front of the driver’s neck and growling, “Park this car right this minute before you are charged with felony kidnapping. The cops are on their way.”

Mrs. Scott was fretting behind me. “It’s not kidnapping! That’s my grandchild, and you have no right to keep her from me. All I wanted was a visit. I have a right to a visit with my own granddaughter!”

I ignored her and tightened my hand around the man’s throat just enough to remind him it was there. “Do it now. I am an officer of the court, and my location is actively tracked. You will be caught and punished if you do not stop this insanity before leaving the property.”

There was no need to inform him that my location was only really tracked by my Find My iPhone app. I was sure law enforcement would be able to access my location if needed since I had my phone and watch, as well as an AirTag in my wallet due to a small and incredibly unimportant habit of leaving my wallet in various locations across town by mistake.

He threw the vehicle into Park. I yanked open the door closest to me and hopped out, walking quickly away while holding Lellie close.

Running footsteps approached, but I could tell they were Dev’s. As soon as he reached us, instead of grabbing Lellie out of my arms, he threw his arms around both of us and held on tight. “Oh god. Oh fuck. Tully .”

I tried to reassure him, even though my heart was thundering. “She’s okay, just scared.”

As much as I loved the embrace and wanted to wallow in it as long as possible, I quickly pulled away and handed Lellie to Dev, sending an apologetic look to him as the rest of the party approached us.

He closed his eyes and exhaled, nodding slightly in understanding. My boss was here watching everything. The Scotts’ asshole attorney was here. Susanna. Pastor Scott, who wanted any excuse to declare Dev an unfit parent. And lastly, the McKays, who seemed shell-shocked altogether.

Lellie was hiccuping, her eyes wide and bright with tears. “It’s okay, sweetheart,” Dev murmured into her hair, pressing kisses between his reassurances. “Daddy’s here. Daddy has you. It’s okay.”

My heart felt like it was going to implode. It was the first time he’d referred to himself as “Daddy,” and I was pretty sure he didn’t even realize he was doing it.

Police cars with sirens and lights came screaming into the lot. Susanna pulled Dev farther off to the side as clinic personnel came flooding out of the front doors to see what was going on.

Pastor Scott was blustering, but thankfully, Brock seemed to realize calming down his client was the first step toward mitigating the potential criminal situation. I overheard Susanna ask Dev if he wanted to press charges, but she added a warning that criminal law wasn’t her forte. “I can call my brother Tomas, who’s a criminal defense attorney, to advise us.”

Dev nodded. “I’d like some help figuring out the best course of action. I can’t think straight right now.”

Kenji stood calmly at Dev’s elbow, handing him a muslin cloth from the diaper bag to help wash the tears and snot off Lellie’s face. “I can call the firm in New York, too,” he said quietly. Dev nodded again, spurring Kenji to pull his phone out and walk away.

Susanna seemed ready and willing to throw herself into the ring bodily to protect Lellie. “At the very least, we should have them held for attempted kidnapping while we consider our options. We can always dial it back, but it’s harder to get more aggressive after being lenient.”

“Agreed,” I said in a voice too low for Orris to hear. He was watching me carefully from where he stood near Brock, and I expected any moment to get pulled into a conversation with him in which he demanded that I pressure Dev into “being reasonable.”

Susanna walked over to speak to the law enforcement officers. Brock and Orris promptly joined them.

Mrs. Scott had somehow pulled herself together and was saying in a loud voice that it was a misunderstanding and that all she wanted was to get Lellie out of the heat for a few minutes.

Dev met my eyes over Lellie’s head. “Do you think they planned this?”

I shrugged. “Hard to say. If so, they should have backed into the parking spot. If they had, I wouldn’t have reached them in time.”

“Thank you,” he said in a rough voice. “Thank you so much, Tully.”

My jaw ached with suppressed emotions. I was trying my hardest to keep it together, but I was rattled. Were my actions today going to cost me my job? Did I overreact?

Did I care?

“They had a car seat,” I said, glancing back at the van. “They obviously planned something. Maybe they were just optimistic about getting a visit with her. Maybe it was an act of desperation when you didn’t agree.”

“That’s the thing, though…” Dev said. It was clear he was having the same problem keeping his emotions under control. “I did agree.”