Wicked Intentions Book 1 ✅

Chapter 21. Court

Nearly a month has passed and I still have Braylee. I just received a letter from the court. Today Aubrey and I will appear in court for our divorce and they will read the DNA results. I keep hoping and praying I'm Braylee's father. It would crush me to hear I'm not her father. It would also crush me knowing Aubrey betrayed me with my best friend and he's, her father.

"Please, God, let the test results reveal I'm her father like the test results revealed I'm Mateo's father," I whisper before grabbing my cell phone and wallet.

"Daddy, I can't find Dora," Braylee says as she places her hands on her hips. I bend down and wrap my arms around her.

"Braylee, no matter happens today, I want you to know I love you more than anything in this world. You will always be my baby girl," I assure her.

"Daddy, I can't breathe. Why are you hugging me so tight?" she gasps.

"Sorry, I just want to make sure you know how much daddy loves you. Nothing will ever make me stop loving you, Braylee."

"I know that, daddy. Can you please find Dora now?"

"Dora is in your room in your Dora toy box, Braylee."

"Oh yeah, I put her in there this morning. Thank you, daddy," she cheers as she skips back to her room.

"I need to stay calm, breathe, and have faith today will go the way it should. There is no way Ken is Braylee's father, because I know in my heart I'm her father," I sigh before sipping my coffee.

"Daddy, someone is knocking on the door."

"I hear them, Braylee. Thank you."

"Lydia, come in," I say as I step to the side to allow her in.

"Cruz. Thank you for calling me. I am happy you asked me to come and stay with Braylee. I really miss her."

"You're welcome. And I know you miss her. To be honest, Braylee begged me to call you because she misses you. All I ask is please honor our agreement. You are not to leave the apartment with her."

"I understand. I will honor our agreement."

"Thank you. I'm not sure how long court will take. If it's more than two hours, I will text you."

"Cruz, is there any way at all you and Aubrey can work on your marriage?"

"What marriage, Lydia? Both of us have hurt each other beyond repair. I didn't want this to happen, and I don't think Aubrey did either, but here we are. I just don't see how we can come back from all the pain we inflicted on each other."

"This is all Kendall's fault."

"It would be so easy to blame all of this on Kendall, but Kendall didn't put my wife in bed with my best friend, and Kendall didn't lie to me about my daughter's father."

"That's not fair, Cruz. You haven't been innocent in this."

"No, I haven't. I also haven't screwed my wife's best friend and lie about who my daughter's real father is. Make sure Braylee brushes her teeth after lunch."

"Okay, I won't forget."

"I'll text you later." 

As I park the car, I take a deep breath and think about how adamant Aubrey was when she kept telling me I'm Braylee's father. The look in her eyes and the sound of her voice were of sincerity. I have never known Aubrey to lie to me, especially about our daughter.

"Okay, Cruz, you really need to stop and think about who lied. It wasn't my wife, it was me. Aubrey never gave me any reason to question her loyalty. I cheated and lied my ass off. There is no way she would lie to me about my daughter. Please let Mr. Sloan come through for me." I say before looking at my watch. As I climb out of the car, I see Mr. Sloan approaching me.