“Let’s get some rest. No sense staying up worrying about something we can’t control.”
He’s right, so I give him a kiss and sneak into the bedroom with Emily without waking her up. I don't know what I’d do if I lost her.
***
TODAY IS THE EMERGENCYhearing, and after last night, I feel confident it will go my way today. It must. With Chris’s history, there will be no way a judge will grant him even temporary custody. Not after hearing how he left, abandoned us, and then didn’t reach out for at least three years. My lawyer is pretty confident. Especially after he swooped in and took her from school.
“Breakfast is ready!” I yell, alerting Emily and Damon.
“Smells delicious,” Damon says, sneaking a kiss to my cheek before sitting down.
We enjoy our pancakes, eggs, and bacon in silence. Emily isn’t aware of what today is, and I want to keep it that way. All this legal stuff doesn’t need to impact her life. For her, she will go to school like normal and be none the wiser. Chris really screwed up his relationship with Emily by taking her. That’s on him.
Afterward, Damon and I head to drop her off at school.
“Don’t forget, we have our field trip today.”
I completely forgot. “That’s right. The Gardens, right? It’s beautiful. You’re going to love it,” I reply, smoothing down her hair in the back.
With everything going on recently, I blanked on the field trip, but I am glad I didn’t sign up to chaperone. There will be no way I can add that to my plate right now. The stress of this emergency hearing is already making my hair fall out, and for a short time, I consider picking up smoking to relieve some of the stress. “Make sure to listen to your teacher. Stay close to them, okay?”
“I will, Mama,” she says, getting out of the car and running inside the school.
Damon takes today off and gets Liam to cover so he can come to court with me for moral support. His buddies at work are probably sick of him missing because of me, but I don’t let it get to me. It is nice to have someone to support me during these times, especially with my mother being so far away. The outcome of today’s hearing could change both mine and Emily’s lives forever, and with everything inside me, I hope and pray that it goes our way.
“You ready?” he says, his hand landing back on my thigh. “Remember to take a deep breath and stay calm. Even if it doesn’t go our way.”
“What are we gonna do if they give it to him?” I ask, fighting back tears.
“We’ll cross that bridge if so. Until then, don’t stress yourself out.”
We walk inside the courthouse, hands entwined, and find my lawyer who is standing outside the room in a suit. This man is going to fight for me and Emily. I have to keep my faith in him.
“Are you ready?” he asks, waiting for my signal, and then we walk inside together.
The hearing is over within ten minutes and leaves me happy. The guardian ad litem recommends that I retain temporary custody and the judge rules in the same favor. I almost jump for joy knowing that I get to keep my baby girl.
“See! No need to worry.”
“We still have the hearing for permanent custody. Yet, after hearing him rule in my favor, I don’t think I have anything to worry about. Randall has evidence and witnesses to prove Chris being unfit. I’m sure we will come up with even more by the time the hearing is here.”
We enjoy the rest of the day before Emily gets out of school. Things have been nonstop hectic since Damon and I got together. Now, things can slow back down so we can enjoy our time together. Thanksgiving is tomorrow, and groceries have been acquired to cook an amazing meal for our guests. I’ve never been able to cook a full-fledged meal on a holiday so this will be new to Emily and me.
“You’re not nervous about tomorrow, are you? Everything will go fine,” Damon says, reading me like an open book.
“How do you do that? Know how I’m feeling. It’s sort of creepy sometimes.”
“You give it away with your facial expressions. You’re not very good at hiding things.”
After picking up Emily, we go home and plan out our meal for tomorrow. It will be the first holiday we spend together and his family will be here too. They seem to like us which is good, ’cause if they didn’t, that could cause problems. Who wants to date someone their family hates?
I throw on some jeans and a t-shirt and get ready to meet Harper.
“Is that what you are wearing?” Damon asks.
“Yeah, what’s wrong with it?”
“Nothing. Don’t girls usually dress up for these sorts of things or is that just in movies?”