Nikki Benjamin - The Baby They Both Loved

But then common sense had come to the fore. Simon wanted her cooperation only so that he could gain custody of his son without a legal battle. Once he’d accomplished that task, he’d have no need of her. She would be shuffled off to the sidelines, and eventually, as time passed, the child she’d come to love as her own would be lost to her forever.

The possibility that such a fate awaited her anyway loomed large in Kit’s mind as she retrieved Nathan’s bottle from the table where she’d set it earlier. Through the adoption process, she had learned a little about the laws regarding child custody. But not nearly enough, she admitted now, the dread that had made her stomach roil settling into her soul, as well.

She knew that biological parents had certain rights where their children were concerned unless they gave up those rights willingly or had them taken away by the court. Simon had made it clear that he wanted custody of his son, so he certainly wasn’t going to give up his rights voluntarily. Unless he could be proven to be a danger to the child, the court wasn’t likely to stand in his way, either.

But what about Lucy’s rights, not to mention her wishes? Wouldn’t a mother’s say about who raised her child have some sway with a judge? And if not, where did that leave her? Kit wondered. She would have to call Isaac Woodrow just as soon as she could. Surely he would be able to answer her questions and perhaps even calm her fears.

First things first, though, she told herself as she shifted her attention to the little boy she held in her arms. Ready for his bottle and afternoon nap, Nathan had begun to squirm and fuss impatiently while she let her fears get the better of her. She would be no good to herself or Nathan or to Lucy’s memory if she adopted a defeatist attitude before she had all the facts of the matter.

“Come on, kiddo. Let’s get you settled,” Kit said, glancing at the clock in the kitchen, then heading for the kitchen doorway.

Amazingly it wasn’t quite eleven-thirty. She shouldn’t be surprised since Sara Hale, the college student who looked after Nathan from eleven-thirty till three, hadn’t arrived yet and she was always on time. Still, to Kit, it seemed impossible that so little time had passed considering how completely her life had been changed since Simon had first strolled into the Dinner Belle Diner that morning.

The biggest worry she’d had to face when her alarm had sounded at dawn had been finding a buyer for the diner. Now that seemed like hardly any problem at all, faced as she suddenly was with the possibility of losing Nathan.

Aware that she’d have an easier time slipping back down to the diner if Nathan was asleep when Sara arrived, Kit made fast work of changing the little boy’s diaper and tucking him into his bed with his bottle. He gazed at her with sleepy eyes and smiled at her for an instant, his little mouth curving around the bottle’s nipple in a way that made her heart ache.

Gripping the bed rail with both hands, she stood over him until he let go of the bottle and drifted off to sleep. She reached out to take the bottle with one hand and, with the other, she gently smoothed his dark curls from his forehead.

As her fingers grazed the downy softness of the child’s skin, Kit thought again of how Simon had touched her, but in another, less defensive, light. She had been shocked and appalled by the familiar way in which he’d kissed her. But they had been friends once, and if what he’d said about Lucy was true, he would have had no reason to expect anything but a warm welcome from her.

She’d been startled by his tenderness when he’d caught her on the staircase, as well, especially coming as it had on the heels of his rant about fatherly rights. But looking back on the moment, she couldn’t reject the caring and concern he’d shown her as being insincere.

She had seen the candor in his eyes and heard it in his voice as he’d said that he wanted her with him, and she had responded, if only for an instant, in a way that had frightened her then, and now. She had been alone so long, facing one tragedy after another—her mother’s illness, then her death and then Lucy’s death. How easy it would be to lean on him, just as she had done when she’d stumbled on the steps and he’d saved her from a fall. How easy it had been to trust in the promise of benevolence he’d held out to her then.

Kit had never thought of Simon Gilmore as a hurtful person until he’d abandoned Lucy. And if he hadn’t run out on his responsibilities as Lucy had claimed—if, in fact, Lucy had lied to him as well to her—then she had no reason to think of him as a hurtful person now.

Only, he’d said he was going to take Nathan away from her. There was no more hurtful thing he could do to her.

A soft tap on the front door announced Sara’s arrival. Time to put Simon out of her mind—ditto the havoc he could cause, Kit thought. Tables had likely begun to fill in the diner and much as she wanted to call Isaac immediately, she knew her help would be needed there until the crowd dwindled.

Reluctantly Kit left Nathan sleeping in his bed and hurried to answer the door, managing somehow to dredge up a smile for sweet, young Sara somewhere along the way.

“You didn’t tell me that you knew the identity of Nathan’s father,” Isaac Woodrow said, his tone slightly accusatory.

“You didn’t ask,” Kit answered, trying not to sound as defensive as she felt.

She had called Isaac as planned after the diner’s 3:30 p.m. closing time, and had explained the situation to him as calmly as she could. He’d listened without comment until she’d finished. But then, instead of offering her the reassurance she’d needed, her lawyer had made her sound like the culpable party.

“I assumed Ms. Kane wasn’t sure who the father was since she didn’t list a name on the child’s birth certificate.”

“I didn’t think it mattered who Nathan’s father was since Lucy named me as his guardian. She obviously didn’t want Simon Gilmore to have him. I had to agree with her because of the way he abandoned her.”

“But you’re saying now that Mr. Gilmore is claiming Ms. Kane told him he wasn’t the father of her child. That would preclude any attempt at accusing him of abandonment.”

“Maybe Lucy had a reason why she didn’t want Simon involved in Nathan’s upbringing. Maybe he behaved badly toward her,” Kit insisted, though she admitted to herself that it was highly unlikely.

“That would have to be proven, Ms. Davenport.”

“He could be lying about what Lucy told him,” she said, returning to her original argument. “So it would be his word against mine, wouldn’t it?”

“Regardless of what occurred between Mr. Gilmore and Ms. Kane three years ago, if Mr. Gilmore is the child’s biological father and if he wants custody of the child, then the court will give his claim serious consideration,” Isaac explained patiently. “And to be perfectly frank, unless he can be proven to be a danger to the child, his rights will most certainly take precedence over yours.”

“How can that be possible? I’m his legal guardian,” Kit pointed out, unwilling to just give up.

“I’m sorry, Ms. Davenport, but it’s the law. Be grateful he’s shown up now instead of two years from now when the transition for Nathan would be even more difficult. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves here with worst-case scenarios. Mr. Gilmore may actually be willing to give up his rights once he’s considered all that’s involved in becoming a single parent. He was understandably angry about what he believes to be Ms. Kane’s deception, and he reacted accordingly. Given a little time to think about what he’d be taking on, perhaps he’ll change his mind. Did he say he’d be hiring an attorney?”