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previous custodial rights agreements too hard. I m not going back and changing what was already
written and agreed upon. Mrs. Montgomery-Warren will retain full custodial rights. Mr. Warren had
the previously agreed upon visitation. However, in light of the fact that he hasn t visited the children
once in the past year this has been in place, I m adding that his visitations will be supervised
visitation only. The judge turned and addressed Richard directly.  Mr. Warren, you ve not once
visited your children in all this time. If you had, perhaps things would have gone differently for you. I
am dismissing this case with prejudice. Should you attempt another end-run, Mr. Warren, I assure you
it will go hard on you. Court is adjourned. The judge got up and left without so much as a glance at
those in the room.
Meghan blinked, unsure of what she d just witnessed. She d won? She could keep her babies?
How& how had that happened so quickly? Her lawyer came up to her and said congratulations.
Meghan could only nod, not able to comprehend much of anything else at the moment.
Luc pulled her up, and she walked on shaky legs out of the room, leaning heavily on his large
body.
 What just happened? she whispered.
 I think you won, Luc whispered back, his body shaking much like hers.
It didn t make sense. Everything had happened so fast she wasn t sure what she was doing. She
sucked in a breath, knowing she needed to leave the building before she did something stupid like
throw herself at the judge and thank her.
Instead, she wrapped her arms around Luc s middle and beamed up at him.  I can t believe it.
 It hasn t settled in yet.
She shook her head and rested her cheek on his chest. His heart beat against her ear, and she
smiled. Of course, her smile only lasted a moment when she caught the look in Richard s eye. The
bastard didn t sneer like usual. No, this was something far more dangerous.
The man seethed.
Ambrosia flounced by him, and he snarled something before turning away from Meghan and Luc.
She let out a sigh then sucked in a breath as Luc s arms tightened around her.
 I don t like that man.
 I don t either, she whispered, knowing the walls had ears.  Let s go home to the kids.
Home.
It didn t escape either of them that she d said it as if they were a family in more ways than one.
One thing at a time, but damn if it didn t sound right to say home with Luc in the same sentence.
He kissed her head, and she smiled.
Yes, things would be all right.
Finally.
****
Luc ran a hand over Meghan s shoulder as they sat on the couch, watching Cliff and Sasha play
knight and dragon on the living room floor with Boomer playing guard. The sound of children s
laughter and the sweet tinkle of Meghan joining in calmed him. He hadn t had any idea of what to
expect walking into those chambers that morning, but now that it was over, all he could do was
breathe out in relief. He had the woman he loved in his arms and the children he loved as his own
playing in front of him. He couldn t ask for more.
Of course, he could ask for a lot more, and he knew that would come. Meghan loved him, and the
kids looked to him for advice and genuinely liked him being around. That was a hell of a lot more
progress than he d ever thought possible when he gave Meghan a ride to the project site all those
months ago.
There was only one thing left that needed to be taken care of, though, before they could take the
next step.
 Hey, Cliff, can you come here a minute.
Meghan leaned up and gave him a questioning look, but he shook his head.
Cliff frowned but came toward them until he stood in front of the couch. Sasha, curious as ever,
bounced until she sat next to Luc, leaning on him and smelling like little girl and jam. Seriously, the
kid was always sticky and tended to have damn jam hands, but he loved her.
 What is it? Cliff asked, his voice low and a little scared.
 You know your mom and I had a meeting with the judge today, right? Luc asked.
Meghan sat up straight and put her hand on his knee. After they got home, they d told the kids
some of what had happened. They explained that they wouldn t have to leave and that Meghan would
always be there. Both kids had looked relieved, but there was still something off with Cliff.
It was far past time for them to deal with that.
 Yeah, Cliff said softly.
 Now that you know you re here with us always, why don t you tell your mom and me what s
been bothering you? He had a feeling he knew, but Cliff had to be the one to say it. It had gone on for
far too long, and Meghan hurt every day because of it.
 I&  The little boy shuffled from foot to foot.
Damn it. Well, maybe Luc had to be the one to say it after all. Or at least get the ball going.
He leaned forward, moving so both of his arms rested on his thighs. This put him at Cliff s eye
level.  You know your dad left because that was his problem, right?
Meghan sucked in a breath, and Sasha burrowed into his side.  Luc, Meghan whispered.
He didn t respond to her, his eyes on Cliff s alone.  He left because he had problems of his own.
He did not leave because of you. He did not leave because of something you did. Or because of
something Sasha did. Or because of something your mom did. He swallowed hard, Meghan s
fingernails digging into his side.  What happened was not your fault. Not. Your. Fault.
Cliff s eyes filled with tears, and he shook his head.  Dad said I was bad. He said I was too loud
and not nice to Sasha. That s why he left.
 Oh, baby, Meghan said, pulling her son into her arms. She soothed his back as he cried and she
murmured to him.
Luc turned and brought a crying Sasha into his arms. She curled up, and he leaned into Meghan,
knowing all four of them needed each other now more than ever. Boomer jumped onto the couch,
though he wasn t supposed to, and leaned on Meghan s other side.
 Your dad left because of his own issues, he repeated once Cliff and Sasha settled down. He
cleared his throat.  Your mom is never going to leave you. I am never going to leave you.
Meghan met his gaze, her eyes wide, and she nodded.  We re here to stay, Cliff. Your dad said
things that hurt all of us, but no matter what, he can t hurt us again. The four of us are here together,
and we re going to stay that way. She cupped Cliff s face and kissed his forehead.  I m sorry I
didn t know what was wrong before. I m sorry I couldn t make it better.
 I m sorry I was a brat.
Meghan hiccupped a laugh, and Luc shook his head.  You weren t a brat. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]