Taylor's Law by Jennifer Raines

Author:Jennifer Raines
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Child Custody, Custody battle, Mom's Death, Lawyer, Family sqabbles, second chance at love, deadbeat dad, small town romance
Publisher: Inkspell Publishing
Published: 2022-06-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seven

Walking back into the living room ahead of Jake was like walking into a spider’s web. The sudden silence wrapped around Ella with sticky discomfort. Her stomach knotted. A different dread to the morning she’d entered Jake’s office. Drew represented a dark shadow where she couldn’t find the contours or angles to the threat. Jake didn’t break stride, swinging Tessa from his shoulders and plopping her on the sofa beside Bronwyn.

“’Ootles.” Tessa giggled, gathering the bear into her arms.

“Is ’Ootles a friend?” asked Bronwyn, laying a hand on the bear’s leg.

“’Ootles,” repeated Tessa. “Me car.” Tessa pointed towards the door.

“Does the room suit you, Ella?” An old-fashioned gentleman, Peter had stood when she’d entered and, when Ella sat beside Tessa, resumed his seat on the other side of the fireplace.

“It’s lovely. I could have looked out the windows for hours.” Ella passed the cloth bag she’d collected from her suitcase to Bronwyn. “Tessa and I brought you a gift from the farm.” Tessa’s head swung from her aunt to Bronwyn.

“You didn’t need to.” Bronwyn peered into the bag. “Cheese.”

“Farmhouse cheddar.” Ella met Jake’s gaze across the room. His raised brow asked the question, Are you sure you could spare it? His unspoken communication cut through the tension swirling in the room, making her feel less like she was facing a firing squad. A firing squad of one, she reminded herself.

“Chrissy said you liked the country. She hated it.” Drew wandered to the sideboard. “Can I get anyone a drink before lunch?”

“White wine would be great.” Ella guessed she and Tessa had been the topic of conversation before they’d arrived. She hadn’t expected the farm to rate a mention. “You’re right. I can’t remember a time when Chrissy didn’t want to leave the farm.”

“Not for me,” Jake said, leaving the room. And abandoning her.

Drew took centre stage, pouring wine into long-stemmed glasses before handing one to each of his parents and her. Collecting his own, he quickly swallowed a mouthful. Not as elegant as his earlier moves.

“Hearing of Chrissy’s death shocked me. I hadn’t heard of her on the scene for a while. Assumed she’d stopped working. But dead?” Drew shook his head as if struggling to come to terms with old news.

“It was an aggressive cancer, detected during her pregnancy.” Ella’s hand tightened on her glass.

Drew waved towards Tessa with his glass. “The child. Is she mine?”

The bluntness of the question coupled with his offhand gesture enraged Ella. She glanced towards Tessa to check she was absorbed introducing Tootles to her grandmother. “Chrissy said so.”

Drew downed the rest of his wine and returned to the sideboard to refill his glass, leaning back against the graceful walnut antique to survey them. His eyes narrowed to slits as he focused on Bronwyn, then Peter, who smiled benevolently at the picture of his wife and grandchild. The hairs on the back of Ella’s neck rose, like tiny antennae, an early warning system. Before Drew, she’d been in no doubt about where the Brownings’ or Jake’s loyalties lay.

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