CHAPTER TEN
Blake wraps his arm around my waist and tugs me to his chest. I nuzzle my face against his button-down shirt and squeeze him tightly. He coils his fingers through the base of my hair and sighs.
"Tori made every bad choice herself, but it doesn't comfort me. I don't know if I can sit there and watch our lawyer pick apart all her mistakes in front of the judge, but I need London back, she has to come home with us."
"Nothing about this is easy, but we have no other choice." I grip onto the back of his shirt and sigh with dismay.
"We're due in," our lawyer comments.
I squeeze his body before leaning back to peek at his face. Blake squeezes his eyes shut and nods. His breath is warm against my forehead.
"Let's hope this goes quickly," Blake grumbles.
I unwrap myself from his body and weave my fingers through his. We follow Mr. Ainsworth into the courtroom. Tori and her lawyer are already seated at the desk. She brushes a curly strand of blonde hair behind her ear and sniffles.
Blake's grip tightens on my hand as we move through the room. We take our seat at the table and Mr. Ainsworth unpacks his briefcase.
"Please rise for your Honour," the man in the corner of the room announces.
We jump to our feet and wait for her to enter the room. She climbs behind the desk and takes a seat on a squeaky leather chair.
"We're here to discuss the custody of London Rivers. Mr. Ainsworth, please present your case against Tori Stratton." She leans back and glances between us.
"Your Honour, I've compiled a list of evidence that without a doubt, shows Miss Stratton's lack of ability to parent London Rivers. Our previous dealings in court display her creative imagination which is distressing knowing that she has a young, impressionable child in her care. In previous years, she has abandoned her child, which displays cannot provide a stable home like Mrs. Rivers can."
"Yes." She sighs. "Please come forward and present your evidence."
Mr. Ainsworth collects the papers and passes them to a security guard which hands them to the judge. She shuffles through the paper, a heavy frown on her face.
Tori buries her hands in her lap and chews on her bottom lip.
"There are character witnesses from everyone, so it seems." She flicks through more pages before handing them to the security guard.
"Miss Stratton, you've failed to show me that you have grown up, therefore, I will award Mrs. Rivers full-custody. Miss Stratton, you will be allowed two hours of supervised visits per week. I advise you undergo counseling. You have twenty-four hours to place London Rivers in the care of Mrs. Rivers."
"Thank you, your Honour," Mr. Ainsworth comments.
The judge stands up, and so we leap to our feet. She hurries out of the room as Tori bursts into tears. Her cries wail through the air which causes my heart to ache. Tori's lawyer tugs her into a hug and whispers something. She nods her head and swiftly exits the room.
Blake squeezes my hand and bites his lower lip as we move through the courtroom. Once we're outside, her lawyer steps in front of us.
"Miss Stratton will deliver London to your house tomorrow morning. If she does not appear, please contact me first." She digs out a business card from her suit jacket and hands it to Blake.
"Thank you." He takes the card and shoves it into his back pocket.
As she strides away, Mr. Ainsworth shakes his head.
"If Miss Stratton doesn't provide you with London in the next twenty-four hours, you call the police. If you want to maintain custody over London, you will need to document every wrong move Miss Stratton makes so that she can't contest the decision."
"Okay." Blake nods.
"Congratulation on the win, I wish you the best of luck with your life. If you need anymore legal counseling, do call at any hour of the day or night."
"Thank you for everything, Mr. Ainsworth." I smile.
"No problem! Goodbye now." He grins.
I take Blake's hand and drag him outside the courthouse, and onto the bustling street. He swings me around and crashes his lips to mine. I weave my fingers through his hair and press my forehead against his.
"We did it baby, we did it!"
"I knew we could, but damn, I've never been so relieved in my life." He chuckles.
"Now we need to call our parents and give them the good news."
"Can't we go home and celebrate first?" Blake grins.
"If we tell them now, we won't be disturbed later."
"Damn, you're right there."
Blake takes my hand while I remove the phone from my handbag. We weave through people as the phone rings.
"When should we be over tomorrow?" I wince as Angela shout with excitement.
He tugs me to his side and smiles.
"Around twelve? London should be home in the morning, and that'll give us enough time to settle her back in and prepare."
"Don't bother buying a thing, I've already got the meat."
"Of course you have." I burst with laughter. "London will be so happy tomorrow!"
"I have all her favourite things, including unicorn plates and cups."
"Thank you, Angela." I smile.
* * * * *
Blake leans against the doorframe to London's room and smiles. I circle an arm around his waist and kiss his shoulder.
"I can't believe our little girl will be home tomorrow."
"Tomorrow feels so far away, though." I sigh.
He covers my hand with his and softly chuckles.
"I was thinking about blueberry pancakes for breakfast."
"Mm, that would be delicious." I nod.
Blake turns to the side and engulfs me in a tight hug. He nuzzles his face into the crook of my neck and sighs. I lean up and tug him closer.
"How'd the doctors go?" His breath tickles my skin.
"Still waiting for the results," I admit.
"The waiting is killing me! I can go to the twenty-four-hour chemist and buy a pregnancy test."
I take a step back and lean against the doorframe. Blake rests his hands on my hips and kisses my forehead.
"Are you scared?"
"I just . . . I think I need some time before we find out. Tonight and tomorrow, I want to focus on cleaning the house and celebrating London's return."
Blake nods his head and smiles.
"Not knowing is okay too." He nods. "Either way, I love you so much."
"I love you too." I grin.
Blake hooks his finger into the waistband of my pj pants and tugs me forwards. I lean against his broad chest and wrap my arms around his neck. He softly brushes his lips against mine, then pins me against the wall. My toes curl as passion explodes through us.