8. Ollie

CHAPTER 8

Ollie

“This is absolute bullshit.” I yelled. “No. Absolutely not.”

“Either you agree to the gag order being put in place or my client will not only refuse to sign over her parental rights, but she will also file for full custody of her son.” The cheap-suit wearing piece of shit lawyer Julia dragged into this meeting stated so smugly that it took every bit of willpower I had not to knock his teeth out. “In case you haven’t been keeping score, she can prove that you left your son in the care of someone else too. Seems neither of you have the better leg to stand on where child abandonment is concerned.”

That smarmy fucker would be lucky if I didn’t do worse than knock his fucking teeth out when this was all said and done.

“Except you’re conveniently forgetting the fact that I’ve been there raising my son, right beside my wife, up until your client tried to blackmail me.” I seethed.

Caleb rested his hand on my arm and shook his head. The plan had been for me to not engage, but my temper had gotten the best of me as Julia – fucking Jia – sat there filing her fingernails without a care in the world.

She didn’t want custody of our son and she’d get it over my dead fucking body. I’d send my wife into hiding with my boy before I let that bitch get ahold of Denmark.

“There will not be a gag order, especially since your client already set precedent that she’s willing to talk about the situation publicly.” Caleb threw back at him. “You and I both know that Judge Grant will never agree to gagging one side when the other started this media circus.”

Her lawyer paled a little and adjusted his tie as he turned narrowed eyes on his client. “You have no proof she was the one that leaked your past to the press.”

“She leaked lies, not our past or shared history. Fucking lies!” I yelled across the table.

“In fact, we do have signed affidavits from staff at The Chronicle, who surprisingly did their homework before printing her story and chose not to print her fabricated bullshit,” Caleb stated.

The smarmy ass-wipe swiped away Caleb’s words, “Hearsay.”

“Not when there’s a video of your client’s supposed confession about her past. Funny enough, it’s a little contradictory to the story she told the other tabloids because your client couldn’t keep her lies straight when questioned by someone who was paying attention to more than their instant payout.”

That caught Julia’s attention. She narrowed her eyes on Caleb and hissed at him. Like a fucking spitting mad cat. My friend turned to look at me with a raised eyebrow. Yeah, I hadn’t missed that the bitch was crazy. It seemed to have gotten worse over time instead of her chilling out with age, like I once thought would happen when she told me she was pregnant with my son almost nine years ago.

“No amount of hissing or evil eye can erase the mistakes you made,” Caleb pointed out. “Now, we can either be serious about this and your client can avoid the jailtime coming her way when the District Attorney gets involved or we can discuss the civil ramifications and my client might not press charges.” Caleb leveled a serious look at my ex-girlfriend. “Do you know what it’s called when you coerce someone to have sex with you through the use of blackmail?”

“Now wait just a minute,” Dan, the cheapest lawyer Julia could find shouted. “You’re talking about sex crimes that get people added to predator lists.”

“Yeah, exactly.”

“The first act was consensual and there is video evidence of that,” Dan argued.

“Oh, you mean the first act, whereby video of sexual intercourse was recorded and produced without consent and then used as revenge porn? You do realize that was also a crime, right?” Caleb asked.

As Julia’s lawyer stammered and tried to think his way out of the box she’d shoved him into, my ex stared hatefully across the table at me.

“We have proof of the blackmail and her own attempt to coerce my client into more sex acts with her, using the blackmail as leverage to do so. We have proof she lied to the press, proof she abandoned her child seven and a half years ago,” Caleb ticked off.

“What proof of abandonment?”

“You mean besides the fact that she left town and didn’t come back until three months ago?” Caleb pulled out the note that Julia had left behind with the baby. “My client saved the note she left all those years ago, as well as the security video that shows she left Denmark outside, on the porch of my client’s house without supervision. The baby was there for more than twenty minutes alone because that is how long it took my client to get home when he noticed his ex-girlfriend leaving her son there by himself. If it hadn’t been for his security camera, there is no telling what might have happened to the baby.”

“Do you remember when I told you that you had to be up front with me if you wanted me to represent you in this matter?” Mr. Not-so-confident-now asked Julia. She nodded and sat up straighter. “Well, you failed to do that on all counts and I can no longer represent you as a result. I will file the necessary paperwork to remove myself from your case. I suggest you find new counsel before speaking on any further matters.” The man stood, gathered his mostly empty briefcase, and left the room.

Julia sat there staring at the door as it closed behind him. “Unless you want to sign over your parental rights and create a video statement to refute the bullshit lies you told about Steph, I suggest you leave.”

“I’ll sign, but I’m not doing a video. That would be career suicide.”

“Seems like that would be a better alternative to jail time and being placed on a sex offender registry,” Caleb stated.

“You would really do that to me?” Julia had the nerve to ask as she looked at me with wounded eyes.

“After what you’ve done to me and my family, I’d do it in a heartbeat. The only reason I agreed to this is because I love my son more than I hate you.”

She smiled at that, as if it meant more than she obviously read into it. “I knew you could never hate me, no matter what.”

“That’s where you’re mistaken. You fucked with my family. People I love more than life itself.”

Julia laughed. “Yeah, you loved your wife more than life itself until the better pussy rolled into town and you just couldn’t help yourself.”

“Let’s get one thing clear,” I said. “You were never the better anything. You were a moment of dumbass nostalgia, of the longing for what I thought we could be back when you told me you were pregnant. Steph is a better woman, far better in bed, and an amazing mom to my son where you were just a shitty womb that gave him life.”

She gasped in shock. “You don’t feel that way.”

“I feel so much more. If you were to get hit by another car, I’d hope like hell you didn’t make it out alive this time, so at least then, I’d have some positive news for my son.”

“Ollie,” Caleb chastised and grabbed my arm. I didn’t even realize I’d stood as I spit the venom from my mouth. Julia’s eyes teared up as she leaned over and signed away her parental rights. Then she turned her whole attention toward Caleb. “I’ll do your stupid video, but not with him here.”

“Fine!” I huffed. “Don’t let her walk out with those papers. It wouldn’t be the first time she tried to walk away with more than she was entitled to.” I lobbed the warning at Caleb as I picked up my suit jacket and left the room. Once outside the conference room, I leaned back against the wall to give myself a minute to breathe before I faced the onslaught of attention that would hit me the minute I stepped out the office doors.

“I can try to sneak you out through the parking garage.” I turned to see Hillary, Caleb’s assistant. She smiled up at me with adoration in her eyes and I felt sick at the sight of it. She had been another woman who had tried to gain my attention, even while knowing I was married to Steph. She had probably overheard the conversations between Caleb and me over the years that led her to believe I didn’t care about my wife.

“No. I need to address the media anyway.”

“Does Caleb know? That’s probably not wise,” she insisted and shifted to go to the conference room.

“They are recording a deposition in there. Do not disturb them. Caleb already knows my plans for the day.” I walked away, headed for the elevator bank before I decided to nip this problem in the bud too.

I turned back and Hillary’s smile warmed again. “It will never happen. No matter how many adoring smiles you throw my way, how many low cut blouses and displays of cleavage you try to shove in my face, I will never go there with you.”

“W-what?” She sputtered.

“I’m a married man. Have some self-respect.”

“Not for long, from what I hear.”

“Even if I was single, I’d never go there with you.” I turned and walked away before I said something more to her that would mean my best friend had to hunt for new help. He might just end up doing that later, when I told him about our interaction, but at least he wouldn’t be left in the lurch until then.