Oakley barely remembered to threaten me with her attorney. Not that she had much of a case against me. I gave her child support every month based on the state calculation.
I wanted to ensure that Lilliana had everything she needed.
I left a message for Ashton early this morning, and his assistant returned my call, saying I could come by this afternoon. After lunch, I cleaned up as best I could and drove to his office.
When I arrived, his assistant ushered me. Behind his desk, his degrees were framed and hung, flanked by two large picture windows. The furniture was heavy, dark wood.
Ashton stood and shook my hand, then gestured for me to sit across from him. When I was settled, he asked, "What's going on?"
I clasped my hands on my lap. "I hired a live-in nanny to help me with Lilliana since Oakley drops her off whenever she wants."
He raised a brow. "You're still not on any kind of a schedule?"
I sighed, running a hand through my hair. "No, and she doesn't give me any notice as to when she'll drop by."
Ashton pulled out a legal pad and a pen. "I assume you did your due diligence when you hired someone?"
"Blake’s taking a break from getting her doctorate in child psychology at the University of Florida. She's worked multiple nanny jobs in the past and came highly recommended. My brother hired her as a part-time nanny for Henry, and that's how I found out about her. She's been around my family and Lilliana for over a year now. And she's not cheap."
"I assume it's easier to have her living with you since Oakley drops by whenever it's good for her?"
"I can't keep coming into work late or not at all. I want to see Lilliana, but I need to be reliable. My family has been understanding up to this point."
Ashton held up a hand. "I'm not saying you're making wrong choices."
"Oakley has this way of making me feel like everything I do is wrong, and she could go to a judge at any minute and get Lilliana removed from my care."
"I'm starting to wonder if that's even her goal, or it's the threat that's the point," Ashton remarked.
"Blake stepped in last night and was able to get her out of the house before she upset Lilliana. But not before she threatened to go to her attorney. Is there anything she could do about me having a nanny?"
Ashton chuckled. "I assume Oakley is jealous about you living with another woman. She's probably always held out hope that you'd come to your senses and go back to her."
"That's not going to happen." I ground my teeth together. I just wanted to co-parent our daughter.
"She doesn't know that," he said simply.
I sighed. "So what now?"
"Her attorney has already reached out to me to say that you're living with someone inappropriate, and that you should have discussed any babysitting arrangement with her first."
My brow furrowed. "If she had asked me about Blake in a normal tone of voice, I would have told her everything I said to you. I'm lucky to have Blake, and so is Lilliana."
"I imagine Oakley will continue to escalate as long as Blake is living with you."
"I was able to go to work on time for the first time in months today. I'm not willing to let Blake go." There was another reason I didn't want to admit. I liked Blake. Not only was she good for Lilliana, but I also suspected she would be good for me. She was showing me another way to be with Oakley. I was eager to learn from her.
I'd been second-guessing myself for a while now, and Blake had given me peace of mind. I had a feeling if she stuck around, I'd be stronger when it came to Oakley. I wouldn't let her walk all over me, and maybe that was a good thing for me and Lilliana.
Ashton stood and braced his hands on the desk. "If you appear to be the stable option, a court will look favorably on you."
"I don't think I'm ready to go to court yet." Ashton had effectively scared me with his stories about other similar custody cases.
He started to pace. "This situation is untenable for you. Oakley's dropping Lilliana off whenever she wants to and picking her up when it's convenient for her. What if she drops her off at a jobsite?"
"She hasn't done that yet. She usually calls me, and I meet her wherever she is," I said carefully.
He paused and leveled me with a look. "I know you don't want to do this, but you have to set boundaries with her."
