Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 82214 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 411(@200wpm)___ 329(@250wpm)___ 274(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82214 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 411(@200wpm)___ 329(@250wpm)___ 274(@300wpm)
“You could. If you wanted to. That’s the problem. You haven’t been with your so-called family for the past three months. What does that tell James?”
“I was here last month.”
She scoffed, her dark-red-painted lips curling into a sneer. “A few hours doesn’t make up for the weeks between.” She walked the rest of the way to her car and opened the passenger side to shove in her bag.
As she made her way around to the other side, I shuffled toward the driveway, a question nagging at my thoughts. “Why now?”
“Huh?”
I pointed to the pristine white siding and the fresh fascia that made the house look almost brand new. “Why did you have this Duke paint it now?”
She sighed, tapping her nails on the white roof of her Mazda as if she were debating whether to tell me the truth. “Duke wants to move up north. We’re getting ready to sell.”
“Up north? For what?” She had won the house in the divorce a few months ago. She wanted to sell it already? Without even telling me?
“To be closer to his family.”
That, I couldn’t take. I stormed to her car, my head pulsing with anger I’d held back until now, and before I reached the passenger side, I heard the small click of the lock and her cold gaze from within her fading tinted windows.
I peered in, leaning down so she could see my face. “You are actively trying to take my son away from me, and I swear on my grave, Darlene, that if you try to take him out of state, where it’s near impossible for me to see him when I can, I will make damn sure you regret it.”
She left, hiding her face as always. I knew it scared her when I was angry, and as her car disappeared around the corner, I chewed on my own words. I hated it when I got that way. It made me the shithead. But she just gnawed at my nerves, and I couldn’t stand to think she always had the winning hand. I wanted nothing more than to win for once, and I started to feel like I finally had a chance. I just had to make the right moves, and maybe I’d come out a winner on the other side.
I took out my new phone and made the call. I was going nuclear.
“Jerry Monroe,” he said in his monotone voice.
“Yeah, Jerry. It’s Ryan.”
“Ryan,” he said with some hint of recognition to his tone.
“Yeah. Hey, so, uh . . . those papers. We still good to pursue it?”
“You’re talking about the custody thing, right? Does this mean you’re prepared to pursue full custody?”
I exhaled a long breath, shaking my head. I didn’t want to do this. I didn’t want to go this far. But if Darlene were going to move north, she would have full custody whether it was legal or not. I wouldn’t have a chance, and no matter how this ended, she would pursue some kind of child support, which would mean I’d have to work extra-long just to make the payments.
I didn’t want to do this. We weren’t supposed to get to this point. I’d always thought if we divorced, we’d be the best co-parents ever. I hadn’t meant to be a shitty husband, and as often as I had thought I just needed a little more time, now time was out, and I had to choose between being the good guy with nothing or the bad guy who saw his son.
“Ryan?”
“Yeah,” I mumbled, my voice cracking with emotion. “I want to do it.”
I heard shuffling on the other end but didn’t think about it too much. I scratched my head and looked around the neighborhood where I used to live. A lawnmower a couple of houses away made it difficult enough to hear what my attorney had to say. I didn’t know anything about this stuff, and until now, I hadn’t thought about what it would entail. Until now, I didn’t think I’d need to know.
“So, I’ve reviewed the risks with you, right? Your temporary conservatorship—”
“Sorry, Jerry ... I can’t …”
“If you move forward with this—”
“Jerry, hold on.”
“Oh.”
I got into my truck and started it, closing out the world and blasting the AC.
If I didn’t do this, Darlene would. I just knew it. And even if she didn’t, this idea of moving was her way of taking full custody without worrying about the legalities.
A realization came to mind.
“You there?”
A hopeful feeling swelled in my gut, and I pressed the phone tight to my ear. “Do you remember if the divorce papers say anything about taking him out of state?”
“Well, as of right now, the temporary orders are joint. She shouldn’t be leaving the state. You guys had agreed on that in mediation. But if she has permission . . .”