“Calder...” he started, then sighed. “I’m still not sure dinner is a good idea.”
“Did you get someone to watch the girls?” I asked, undeterred by his reluctance.
“Yes, my stepmom picked them up from school and is taking them out for dinner at their favorite burger place.”
“See? They get a treat. You get a treat. It really is that simple.” I gestured like I was handing out treats and managed to get a laugh out of Felix.
“You’re persistent. Maybe—”
“Felix.” A nasal voice cut him off. Tim. Shorter than me but taller than Felix, he was thin with a hawkish nose and hard eyes. Some would probably find his surly Hollywood star looks hot, but I wasn’t one.
“I see you brought your lawyer.” Felix regarded him and the younger man accompanying him coolly.
“Well, if you’re going to haul me back in front of the mediator instead of settling this quietly, like adults, I had no choice,” Tim said archly, as if he had the high ground here.
“We tried settling quietly. Multiple times.” Felix’s voice was strained. “But then you went and gambled away my property.”
“Maybe we should save the complaining for the mediator?” the younger lawyer guy proposed. He wore a slick gray suit and had a sneer for Felix even as he used an agreeable tone.
“Good point,” Felix said tightly.
I wanted to touch him, steer him away from these jerks. And it was my fault he had to deal with them. I’d pushed the issue in large part because I had wanted an excuse to see Felix again. That and I didn’t take losing well, but the set of Felix’s shoulders and tension around his eyes made my stomach cramp.
I didn’t have another chance to speak to Felix before we were led to a conference room where Felix’s own attorney, a pleasant if overly formal middle-aged woman in a purple suit, was waiting for us. Then the mediator, a stern-faced woman in somber black, joined us, along with a couple of assorted clerks and record keepers.
Quite a crowd. I should have simply let this go and asked Felix out like a normal person. Having miscalculated so grievously was not a comfortable feeling, and my feet itched every time I glanced at the door or at Felix next to me. I wanted to grab his hand and make a break for it. But this wasn’t a heist movie, and instead I had to show my documents and present my account of what happened and watch Felix getting more and more tense.
“So the question is whether Mr. Spalding could convey the property given that the latest settlement awarded it to Mr. Sigund?” The mediator clicked around on a slim laptop, face impassive.
“Mr. Spalding contends that the bet happened prior to that settlement.” Tim’s attorney had an officious tone and a crafty glint in his eye. He reminded me of the guys in school who lived to make others feel dumb. I’d had more than one officer like him too, young lieutenants with puffed-up egos and a knack for one-upmanship.
But I wasn’t here to play games, and my elbow dug into the padded arm of my chair as I racked my brain for how I could make this better for Felix.
“Even if so, at most Mr. Spalding could convey a half interest in the property, but all disputed assets were agreed to be frozen pending settlement.” Felix’s lawyer was equally good at adopting a persuasive tone, her clipped East Coast accent skewering Tim as much as her steely gaze. “Thus, regardless of the date on the deed he gave Mr. Euler, he could not convey his interest in the property.”
The date? I stared down at my paperwork. Huh. That didn’t make sense. “He didn’t get me paperwork until last Thursday.”
I was undoubtedly shooting my own case in the foot, but all the lawyer-speak was making my head hurt. I had expected a swift rebuke of Tim’s actions, not this legal maneuvering. I could see a possible outcome where I had a half interest in the cabin and never got to kiss Felix again and that simply wouldn’t do.
“So you’re saying the paperwork is backdated?” The mediator’s eyes narrowed.
“Yes.” I nodded and that set off a flurry of new arguments from the attorneys. While they bickered, I chanced a glance at Felix. Eyes fixed on a bland ocean print on the wall, he looked so tired and worn down.
Fucking hell. This was what love got a person. Felix was generous and caring and Tim had not deserved an ounce of his affection. I didn’t care how many good years they’d had together, no one should get to treat someone else like an ATM. Love made people so fucking entitled. And no way could I continue to add to Felix’s suffering.
“I don’t want a half interest.” I raised my voice to be heard over the bickering attorneys. “Tim—Mr. Spalding—never should have bet the cabin deed. Tell me what to sign so Mr. Sigund gets to keep the property as they apparently originally agreed on.”
I glared at Tim, letting him know exactly what I thought of people who went back on their words.
“You’re sure you don’t want to pursue compensation or ownership?” The mediator pursed her mouth. “You might want to consult with counsel of your own about your options in small claims court.”
“Oh, Mr. Spalding owes me compensation. But this property wasn’t his to gamble, and I’m not going to tie the property up in a separate lawsuit. I’ll sign whatever Mr. Sigund needs to prove it’s his free and clear as long as Mr. Spalding doesn’t get a piece.”
Felix blinked at that and sat up straighter. “You don’t have to do this.”
“It’s the right thing to do,” I insisted, speaking only to him and shutting out the rest of the room. “You deserve it. He broke his word. It’s yours.”
“Thank you.” Felix’s knuckles were white around the pen he had a death grip on.
“Your forthrightness is appreciated, Mr. Euler.” The mediator nodded at me. “Now let’s review the final settlement terms and what it would mean to be in contempt of those terms.”
She proceeded to go over a lot of legalese, including warning Tim about failure to follow the settlement. Tim’s attorney wanted to argue something about rising property tax values, the upshot of which seemed to be Felix owing him more.
“Oh and since the cabin is apparently yours, you can deal with this.” Tim slid a piece of paper across the table at Felix. “It’s a list of repairs the property management people want before they can rent it again. Came to my email by mistake along with a bill for driveway plowing.”
“Lovely.” Felix scrubbed at his hair, and I wanted to smooth it back down.
And maybe I couldn’t make up for Tim being an ass, but I did have something to offer. I waited until the lawyers were arguing again to lean toward Felix and drop my voice to a whisper. “I’ll help you with the repairs.”