“I’ve made it clear, Richard, that I am to be with her at all times.” I heard Addison say something, but Heather quickly shushed her.
“Why are you making this so hard, Heather? You might not like me, but I've done nothing to suggest that I'm a bad father."
“The judge hasn’t said that I need to let you have one on one time with her yet, so you’re the one who’s making this hard.”
“You know damn well that I’m a good father, Heather. You only insist on being there to try and put the heat on me. How stupid do you think I am?”
Our attorneys were still going back and forth over how much I was to pay her. Danielle was doing everything that she could to avoid a large payment plus back child support, and Heather wasn’t backing down.
“It’s not my fault that you’re cheap,” she hissed into the phone.
I knew Addison was near Heather, and I didn’t want her to overhear anything that I was saying.
“All I’m asking is one session without you, Heather. That’s it. You chose to keep her from me all of these years, and then out of the blue, you show up. You’re demanding an excessive amount of money, but let’s keep that between our lawyers, okay? Please. Just one day with Addison.”
There was a long pause on her end, but I refused to back down. After everything she put me through, she owed me at least one visit with Addison on my own.
“Not today, Richard. We’ll meet you at Sprinkles at noon.”
I hung up the phone and then chucked it onto my bed out of anger. I needed to cool off.
As I got into the shower, I thought about when I should tell Annie about Addison. I had wanted to do so at dinner two weeks before. There were several opportunities that night to do so, and she could sense something was wrong with me. My thoughts kept racing and distracting me from our conversation that night, and every time I looked at her, I had lost the nerve to tell her about my love child. I was worried about how she would take the news.
Annie had moved forward with her lifestyle brand and had a second virtual meeting with the investor in a few days. Both of us were working incredibly long days. Sometimes she worked longer ones than I did. I was proud of her, though. Whenever both of us had time to spend together, be it dinner at a restaurant or a movie in bed, I didn’t want to put the pressure and stress on her, not knowing when I would see her next. I wanted it to just be about us.
The legal work over the custody of Addison was getting messier, though. Heather wasn’t making it easy, and I was worried that it’d scare Annie away. My worst nightmare would be Heather confronting Annie and screaming at her. Even after all of it was said and done, Heather would always be in my life because of Addison.
Annie was a completely different person than Heather, too. Unlike Heather, she was down to earth and wasn't concerned with material possessions. Most of her clothes came from vintage stores, and not the kind that Heather frequented. She didn’t deserve to be around someone so nasty and cynical, yet that would be the case if we stayed together. I could see Heather calling her offensive names, even in front of Addison too.
I let out a sigh as I dried myself off, then made my way to my clothes closet. As I was buttoning my jeans, Danielle called my cellphone.
“Did you get the paternity test results yet?" I immediately regretted being so forward since my parents had raised me to be polite.
“Yes, Richard. They are conclusive. You are the father.”
I breathed a sigh of relief, even though it was clear that I was Addison’s dad.
“I’m setting up a meeting with her attorney and Heather for negotiations. I’ll get back to you with the date as soon as I know, okay?”
“Thank you so much, Danielle.” I hung up the phone and sat down on my bed.
I wondered whether or not I should tell Heather at the ice cream shop that day, but decided not to. She'd be upset that I was even questioning it, plus that time was for Addison and me.
Whenever Heather even looked at her, Addison would just roll her eyes and look away, especially when Heather was on her cellphone. That was all she did during those supervised visits, too. She’d just sit there, scrolling through her phone while Addison and I got to know each other. Occasionally Heather would let out a disgusted sigh, and Addison would look right at her.
She might be young, but she was incredibly intuitive.
I went downstairs and grabbed a cup of coffee, then sat down to read through some legal documents Danielle had sent over. They were options for child support and visitation rights. Money wasn’t an issue, but I would need proof that every penny was going toward Addison.
There was no way in hell that I’d let any of it go toward Heather’s obvious expensive shopping habits.
“What a nightmare,” I said to myself, flipping through the pages.
My head jolted up as soon as I heard a knock at the door.
As I walked closer, I could tell that it was Annie through the side windows. She was breathtaking as usual, wearing a black tank top and cutoff denim shorts. Her long, black hair looked like satin, and her ruby red lips pulled the whole outfit together.
“Good morning, handsome.”
