Chapter 18

Days passed, and I survived on baked goods from Maria. The morning after the hospital, I didn't get out of bed until my body forced me to. Instead, I'd laid in Maria's room staring at the ring still on my hand. I'd need to give it back to him. Maria had gone to the bakery, and when she returned she told me that Sofie had helped her man the counter. The day after that, I'd moved to the air mattress so Maria could have her bed back. Then I'd tortured myself by watching highlights from the Glacier Bay hockey team on my laptop. I'd used so many tissues my room looked like a blizzard had hit. Maria sighed, and brought me a garbage can.

By the third day though, I was tired of wallowing. I picked myself up, cleaned up my mess of tissues and started a cleaning frenzy. Maria had come home to a floor so clean she could have served food on it. Not that she would, that would be crazy.

On the fourth day I got a phone call from an unknown number. I'd answered, just in case it was CPS wanting something from me. But it wasn't. It was the salon owner in Crestfield.

"Lia, Kim told me you're amazing. Are you available for an interview?" she asked.

Completely shocked, I agreed. She asked me questions about my license and experience.

Near the end of the call she paused, and I waited for her to ask about Erin's video.

"I don't understand something. If you've had your license for 6 years, why do you only have a few months of recent experience?"

Not the question I was expecting. "I got my license and then worked towards getting my MBA in business."

"You didn't mention an MBA."

"That's because I didn't finish the last semester of my schooling."

"So it wouldn't take very long to get it?"

"No." While looking for more jobs, I'd also looked into seeing if I could finish my degree online.

"Well that's all I need to hear. I have an unusual proposal for you."

Can't be worse than the last one. "Let's hear it."

"I've been contacted about opening up a second salon by an exclusive resort company. They're in the process of finishing a resort in Glacier Bay and they want a salon that can handle high-end clients. I need someone to manage my business from Glacier Bay for me. What do you think?"

My jaw dropped open. "Are you serious?"

"You'll need to train in Crestfield until the resort opens, but if you want the job it's yours." She rattled off a salary amount.

The amount would be enough to move out on my own and afford my bills. It was even enough for me to start saving."I'll take it."

With hope for my future finances restored, I felt up to working at the bakery on the fifth day. I got up early and put on my favorite bakery t-shirt, that said I've got 99 problems, but a batch ain't one . I stepped out of Maria's apartment ready to go to work.

The apartment door next to our's opened and much to my surprise, Lou stuck his head out.

I gave him a little wave. Hoping he'd go back inside.

Instead, he stepped out into the hallway. "Lia, I thought you were going to Court with Nate."

Fiddling with the hem of my shirt I shook my head no. "I haven't heard anything from him, so I didn't think he'd want me there."

Lou grumbled and said something about Nate being an idiot under his breath. "Trust me, he wants you there."

"What would I even do there?" I asked him, my voice laden with uncertainty. It was a debate I'd been having for the last four days.

Lou gave me a sympathetic shake of his head, his eyes held understanding. "Sometimes just being there is all you need to do. In a faceoff, there's nothing I can do for Nate aside from being where he needs me to be. I can't help him get that puck when it drops, but he knows where I am when he needs to send it to me."

Much to my surprise, his analogy made sense to me. "I made everything so much worse for him."

The weight of my guilt pressed down on me, and I looked down at the laces on my sneakers.

"Did you though?" he asked. "

His response caught me off guard. "His life became a media circus because of me."

He laughed, "Have you met Erin? It's been pretty tame compared to when she talked him into that ridiculous TV show. Before you, Nate had two things he thought about. Penelope and hockey. Everything he did was for one of those things."

But my guilt lingered, and I stubbornly refused to hear what he was telling me. "Penelope got hurt because of me, and I don't think he can ever forgive me." I admitted quietly, the words heavy.

"From what Nate told me, it was all an accident. He's been meaning to get rid of that rug for a while."

A tiny bit of hope cracked through the guilt, until I remembered that it was all pretend. "That sounds great and all, but we only pretended to be engaged. Nothing about our relationship is real. He only made a show of it to help his chances in court to get custody of Penelope."

He looked at me like I was an idiot and grumbled under his breath. His next words were a beacon of wisdom in the darkness of my doubts. "To quote the great Wayne Gretzky, 'You miss one hundred percent of the shots you don't take.' Don't you think it's better to find that out for certain than to assume it and miss out?"

I mulled over his words, each syllable a lifeline of hope that I wanted to cling to. "You're pretty smart, Lou," I acknowledged, a glimmer of gratitude in my eyes.

His response was a humble shrug, his grin belying his modesty. "That's what my mamma says."

A playful retort slipped from my lips, a feeble attempt to mask the vulnerability I was feeling. "Yeah, well, maybe don't let it go to your head."

He shrugged once more, his grin unyielding. "Too late for that."

"Think you could give me a ride to the courthouse?"

"I was hoping you'd ask." He lifted up a pair of keys.

Smiling I told him. "Give me twenty minutes to get ready."

In that time I swapped my shirt and jeans for my favorite yellow sweater and navy skirt. Grateful I was having a good hair day, I fussed with it just enough to make sure I wouldn't have a case of flat or frizzy hair when I saw Nate. My makeup was already done in a more natural look since I had planned on going to the bakery. I slipped on a pair of matching navy heels and picked up my purse from where I'd left it on the kitchen table. The only jewelry I wore was the ring Nate gave me.

Just before I left the apartment I saw that there was still a brownie left in the pan on the counter. Maria had made me a batch every day, and I was feeling a little sick of them. I grabbed a napkin and put the brownie on it for Lou.

"Don't tell Maria."

He took the treat from me like it was the holy grail. I chuckled as I locked up the apartment behind me.

Nate was talking to his lawyer as I stepped into the courtroom. His lawyer was in a gray suit with a darker gray tie. Nate was in a dark navy blue suit with a matching tie. I caught a peek of gold cuff links when Nate picked up a glass of water and took a drink. I didn't want to distract them so I slipped onto a bench near the back.

I looked around for Penelope, and saw her sitting on a bench near the front. Nate called her name and she looked up and smiled at him. She got up and walked to him. She was adorable in a long-sleeved lilac dress and black flats. Her hair was left long and loose and hung down her back. Nate gave her a quick hug and a kiss on top of her head. It was when he looked up, that he saw me. He froze, and Penelope looked to see what he was staring at. I gave her a little wave, but she looked away.

Erin strutted into the room with her phone in her hand. She was wearing a creamy-white, cable knit turtleneck dress with a black belt that made her waist look amazing. Her heels clicked as she confidently took her seat next to her lawyer. Nate frowned and said something to his lawyer.

"Well, that was interesting." Lou slid onto the bench next to me.

"Parking?" I asked.

He shook his head, but before he could tell me more, people stood and the judge entered. The hearing started, and there was a lot of back and forth between Erin's and Nate's lawyers. I watched Penelope and saw her shoulders hunch. I didn't know how many times she'd been through this, and I hated that she was being put through it again. If I would had picked a spot closer to her I would have reached over to hold her hand. Erin glanced back, saw me, and then whispered something to her lawyer.

The judge, a man with greying hair and a thick mustache, looked at the things they presented. His facial expressions didn't give any indications of what he was thinking.

Erin's lawyer presented the evidence that Nate had Penelope when it wasn't his time with her. Date-stamped photos from the press at Charlie's, and at the hockey games were provided. Nate's lawyer provided the texts between Erin and Nate to show that Erin asked Nate to take Penelope for several of the dates.

The evidence of Penelope's injury was presented, and I was relieved when I heard Nate's attorney point to the CPS report saying that no one was at fault for the accident. Furthermore, CPS found Nate to be providing a safe and loving home environment. Erin looked back at me, and then at the closed courtroom doors. Nate's lawyer brought up that Erin intended to move and take Penelope with her.

Erin smiled, and her lawyer asked to present a video clip.

On the screen for everyone to see, was a video of Nate and me in the hospital lobby. We were talking, and you could clearly hear me saying it was my fault. Erin must have recorded it.

The lawyers argued about it, and I heard steps from the hallway and excited voices. The doors to the courtroom opened, and a stampede of reporters rushed inside just as the video continued to play.

I couldn't stop the video, and I froze in absolute horror as I watched myself tell Nate that he should dump me. I knew what was coming next, and I looked at Erin. She was absolutely beaming when the words left my mouth in the video. The truth that my engagement to Nate was fake.

The courtroom was in complete pandemonium. Nate had rushed to pick up Penelope and protect her from pushy reporters wanting the juiciest scoop. Lou was standing and blocking people from getting at me. The judge was ordering the reporters out, and Erin was posing and playing the perfect victim.

After the reporters were gone, the judge gave a heavy sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Your honor," Nate's lawyer began.

The judge held up a hand. "Let's take a brief recess. We'll reconvene in fifteen minutes."

Erin left the courtroom as soon as she could, no doubt to capitalize on the attention.

"Will you be okay if I step out?" Lou asked me.

I nodded. "Thank you."

He left, and I took a steadying breath before I looked at Nate. He was holding a glass of water out to Penelope. She looked shaken, and pale. I didn't know what I was going to say, but I wanted Nate and Penelope to know how sorry I was. As Nate offered comfort to Penelope, a surge of emotion overwhelmed me, and for the second time in court, I was struck speechless. It was in this moment of vulnerability that I came to a startling revelation.

I love him.

Lou was right. I'm an idiot. I love Nate and Penelope. I walked on shaky legs towards them. Nate saw me coming, and he told Penelope something before he met me halfway down the aisle between the benches. The skin around his eyes was tight from stress, but I didn't see any anger as he looked at me.

"You're here," He said. "I didn't think you would come."

"At first I didn't think I would either."

"What changed?"

"Lou gives a good pep talk. Reminded me that it's important to show up even if I can't do anything."

He smiled, "I'll have to thank him."

"I'm so sorry Nate?—"

"You've done nothing wrong, Lia."

"But that video."

"Was preying on a vulnerable moment when you were emotionally distraught."

"And the press?—"

"Hannah is taking care of it. Lou overheard Erin on her phone before she came into the courtroom."

"Do you think Penelope will ever forgive me? She wouldn't even talk to me at the hospital before she left."

Penelope stepped around her dad, "I thought you were mad at me."

"Never," I told her.

"But Mom said you were saying bad things about me to Dad. That I was a brat and you couldn't wait until I was gone."

Nate stooped down beside her so they were eye to eye, "Sweat Pea, I'll never want you gone. You're my girl."

"I thought Lia was your girl?"

He smiled, and the look he gave me was absolutely devastating. My knees went weak. "I love her, and I hope she'll still have me."

A rush of emotions flooded through me and I couldn't hold back. Stepping closer, I reached out to cup his cheek, my heart pounding in my chest. And then, with a surge of courage, I closed the distance between us, pressing my lips to his in a tender, heartfelt kiss.