Jauregui.

thirty three

For the first time since I got the suit, I laughed. "Thank you Mila," I looked at her.

"Lo, we're not going to let him take Averi. We're her family, and we'll make sure the judge sees it that way too," She said and I thanked her.

We continued to talk about this suit. As utterly terrified as I was, talking and planning out truly helped. Soon after, I decided to go back home.

"Are you sure? You can stay here tonight," She offered.

"It's okay. Taylor's at home and I need to call my attorney. But thank you Camz, I love you," I hugged the younger brunette.

"I love you too Lo. And stay strong for Av and Tay. They need you right now. And we'll take that bastard down," She said.

I returned to my apartment, placing Averi on the couch opposite from Taylor who was also asleep.

I sat at the dining room table and got out my phone and paper, getting to work. This was going to be a long night.

An hour or so later, I heard walking and looked up from the piles of paperwork to see Averi standing by the banister.

"How are you feeling, babe?" I asked my daughter, softly.

She cleared her throat and walked towards me. "That man, the man I saw today isn't my father. I don't have a father, and I don't need a father. I'm not missing out one bit. I have you, the best mother ever, Cammie, the best kinda mother, Taylor, and all the other girls. You guys are my family. And that man is nothing. Matthew is nothing to me other than the man who supplied me with genetic makeup. And I know the judges are going to see that. Younare my family and we belong together," She finished her speech and I looked at her, bestowed.

"Are you sure you're eleven?" I asked and she giggled, wiping the lone tear from her cheek. I grabbed her and sat her down on my lap.

"How lucky am I to have such an intellectual, brave, kindhearted, sweet daugher. I don't know how I got so blessed," I shook my head, amazed by the strength my daughter has.

"I learned it from the best person I know–you," She said and I pulled her into my arms. Somehow, that told me we were going to be okay, hopefully.

-

The next day, I woke up dreading the day. After Averi poured her heart out, Taylor woke up and I explained the situation to her. To say she was upset would be an understatement. She refused to sleep without Averi that night. Today however, I had a meeting with my lawyers to come up with the best defense plan to ensure we won. I quickly showered and changed, kissing Averi and Taylor's heads before heading out. There was no need to wake them up, and have them stress. And I had Camila on standby in case they needed anything.

I arrived at the office building my lawyers had planned the meeting in and walked in, being greeted by them immediately. Once we got settled in, the work began

-

Sighing, I checked my phone as I arrived to my car. 8:13pm. We were at this for 13 hours. But for my daughter, I'd stay up years, if if meant keeping her. My lawyers and I had come up with a strong case and will continuously build on it during the days leading up to the hearing, set exactly two weeks from today. For the first time, I saw a ray of hope as my confidence grew a bit. We can do this.

-

"So what happened?" Averi and Taylor asked as soon as I opened the door, clearly worrying.

"We planned the case out. Just the base, but we'll build on it. We discussed defense tactics and answered questions," I had made a vow not to lie to the two about this ongoing situation we had just begun in our lives.

"Do we have a shot?" Averi asked, looked to the floor.

"Hey," I knelt down, lifting her chin up gently.

"Are you forgetting who your mother is? Am I someone who gives up?" I asked both seriously and rhetorically.

"No..." Averi said, smiling slightly.

"Good. Now remember that as we kick his ass and remind his idiotic brain never to mess with Jauregui's," I grinned.

"Jauregui on three?" Taylor offered and we all put our hands in.

"Jauregui on three,"

"Jauregui on three,"

"One, two,three, JAUREGUI!" The three of us shouted and laughed.

The ray of hope just widended a sliver.

-
I'm so sorry for the lack of updates!

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