Smiling softly, Danica felt her insides knot up because her sister stared at the photo for a moment longer, eyes wide, jaw slightly open. She knew what Delia must be thinking: that her main attraction to this guy must be his looks. If only she knew. There was no arguing Orlando was beyond good-looking. Danica wouldn’t even try to tone that part of this down. But there was so much more to her connection to him. She could feel herself falling for him hard already.
“Believe it or not, he’s got a lot more to offer than just his looks. He’s a super sweet guy.” She stopped short of telling her sister how Orlando’s obvious adoration for his son what was had really reeled her in. Danica had always gravitated toward older men. When she’d decided to put her plan into play, because she’d been so desperate to be with the baby again, she never imagined things would turn out the way they had. Aside from her admiration, Danica had given little worry to just what a hot bad boy her first impression of Orlando had been. Surely, he could replace her in a heartbeat. Strangely, everything she’d gone through in life had prepared her for the worst, and losing a man to another woman was hardly the worst thing she could endure—even with a man like him. Yes, it would be heartbreaking but not more heartrending than having to live without Oreo. She knew in her heart of hearts nothing would be more devastating than the baby being ripped from her life again. It was now her biggest fear.
They spoke a little more about Orlando, but it was mostly fluff. They had even more giggly girl talk like they hadn’t done in years and it felt good. Danica managed to sneak into her room while her sister was busy with the kids to grab some of her things to take to Orlando’s. She wasn’t sure how long she’d be gone this time, but it excited her to think she might be spending the night with Orlando and the baby often now. She could hardly believe things had turned out this way.
Less than an hour later she was on the road again, lost in thought. Could this really be happening? Was she really in a relationship with the baby’s father who, in not so many words, was already suggesting she just move in with them?
Before she could fully smile, thoughts of her upcoming court date resurfaced, and the Jaws music started up again. She’d been honest with Orlando about Ted having been the one who’d helped her retain her attorney. She’d just left out the fact that Blaine—his son—was said attorney. She was counting on the fact that Blaine was very professional. She didn’t anticipate him breaking their attorney-client privilege and involve Ted in her case in any way. It hadn’t felt like a big deal before not to give Orlando that detail about it. Only things were different now. She now knew what she’d thought she’d imagined when Orlando had gotten a little too intense the several times he’d interrupted the friendly banter between her and other guys. It’d been the very same expression and tone he’d used when questioning her about her tattoo. Orlando wouldn’t take too kindly to knowing she was still in touch with Ted in any way. She’d just have to hope Blaine’s professionalism and Ted’s fear of her threat to out him to the public about what a controlling and borderline abusive jerk he could really be would keep him at bay. Still, slowly and menacingly, the Jaws music got louder, and her heart pounded as she turned the corner onto Orlando’s street.
Chapter 22
Danica
Rushing up the stairs of the courthouse, Danica dug through her purse for the documents she was told to bring with her. She’d been waiting on this day for over a year, but it’d never felt as urgent to get this taken care of as it did now. Despite her angst about hoping today went well, the endless flutter in her heart was still there. It’d been there since that very first kiss from Orlando. Could this really be happening? Of course, it could. Only under these circumstances could such a perfect guy—the father of her precious Oreo—have some genuine interest in a woman like her? As Danica got through the security clearance at the entrance of the courthouse, she spotted Blaine. As usual, he was standing in the crowded hallway of the courthouse, attaché on the floor next to him as he read through some paperwork in his hands—Danica’s paperwork no doubt—that would hopefully finally get her felony conviction reduced to a misdemeanor. Blaine did a double take when he glanced up and spotted Danica walking toward him. He smiled, giving Danica hope that he had good news. “Anything yet?”
“Not yet,” Blaine said but continued to smile. “I think it’s a go though. Last time I spoke with the district attorney he said everything looked good. As long as you continue to stay out of trouble, and I can’t stress this enough, Danica. You cannot get into any kind of trouble from now until they decide. But if all goes well, he didn’t see any reason why the judge wouldn’t agree to this.”
Danica gulped, remembering the day her sister pulled out the gun on Ted and then how she’d hidden in the bedroom when the police arrived as Delia explained to them about the incident. Once again, her sister had covered for her, explaining that her ex, not Danica’s, had showed up demanding to talk to her. That when she asked him to leave, he got pushy, and it’s why she’d called the cops. She never mentioned the gun to them or that Danica had even been there. Danica had no idea what kind of trouble that might have meant for her had the incident gone on her record, but she was just glad it hadn’t, especially now that she needed this so bad. She wondered now if Ted had mentioned the incident at all to either of his kids. But given the fact that he’d told them the breakup was just them going through a rough patch, she’d assumed he hadn’t. Danica would just as soon not mention it either. She was certain Blaine would not approve, despite the circumstances warranting the way her sister had taken matters into her own hands. A few minutes remained until they let people into the courtroom. Blaine walked away to discuss something with another client. Danica stood in the busy hallway of the courthouse. She was lost in thought when someone nearly collided with her.
“So sorry—” To her surprise, a startled Felicia stopped in front of her. “Danica?” She glanced at the door behind Danica. “Hey,” she said, turning back to peer at Danica in question. “How’s it going?”
“Good.” Danica nodded, smiling nervously.
“You still watching Baby O?”
“Yes.” Danica nodded again, clutching the paperwork in her hands. “Matter of fact, I’m headed there later today.”
This time Felicia did the nodding. She glanced behind Danica again at the courtroom she’d be walking into shortly, her eyes furrowing a bit. “Oh.” Felicia lifted the file of paperwork she was holding for Danica to see. “I work for a law firm. I just dropped off and picked up paperwork.” With a tilt of her head, Felicia’s eyes traveled down to the paperwork Danica clutched even tighter now. “Why are you here?”
“I . . .” Danica lifted a finger toward the courthouse, scrambling for a lie because, even though Orlando knew the truth now, she didn’t feel like sharing about this with Felicia. “Just have some business regarding my parents’ estate to take care of.” Another past fact in Danica’s life that came in handy now so she wouldn’t have to pull a complete lie out of nowhere. “I remember now. Orlando had mentioned you worked for a law firm,” she added in an attempt to change the subject.