Breaking Through (Atlanta #3) (39 page)

Only after he said what he needed to did he look over to Jenna. Her warm brown eyes sparkled in a display of pure love.
 

"Because I love you and because you're a good man," she stated with such simple honesty. He pulled her over for a deep, sensual kiss and then exited the car. Hand-in-hand they walked toward their front door.
 

Luke's goal for their first time together as husband and wife was to show Jenna every bit of his need-soaked love. Luke had never been so focused on her heart as he was that evening. She was the center of his entire world.
 

He carried her over the threshold of their house while she rested her head delicately on his strong chest. He was about to walk her to the bedroom but she stopped him.

"Wait here," she instructed with a seductive smile. She eased herself from his arms and walked to the bedroom for a quiet minute. Waiting for her was torture, but when he finally had a chance to see her, he was blown away. He'd never seen Jenna looking more beautiful or sexy.

"My angel," he breathed when he saw Jenna in a white satin and lace nightie she splurged on for their first time together as husband and wife. "You are absolutely beautiful."

Jenna had butterflies dancing madly through her whole body as she walked toward her new husband.
Husband!
The look in his eyes sent her world spinning. Luke slowly ogled every curve of her body while he gently picked her up and cradled her to his chest again. Jenna simply closed her eyes and let him carry her to their bed. Every emotion resonated through each of them as they clung to each other down the little hallway.

"I love you," he breathed. "You're mine forever…"

She could only sigh with a dreamy, peaceful calm resting on her features. "Forever."

So gently he laid her down on the bed and stretched himself out beside her. His lips found their way to the top curve of her breast and Jenna was immediately lost to him again. Her skin tingled as she received every worshipping kiss and every gentle touch of his hand gliding along her body.
 

His lips kissed every part of her as he promised over and over again to love her always, in every way he knew how. More than once he whispered "my beautiful wife" along her skin. She couldn't get any more intoxicated from the strength of his emotions, and she needed to share as much with him. She rolled him to his back and looked at him with a loving smile.
 

To Jenna's surprise, Luke allowed her the same indulgent exploration of each muscled plane of his hard body. For hours the two touched and kissed and made love. A more perfect honeymoon could never have existed for the two of them. Dawn had nearly broken when Jenna fell asleep blissfully in Luke's arms, happily and quietly celebrating their amazing life.

Too soon, however, the sun rose completely and reality picked back up. Their honeymoon was short-lived as they returned to their day-to-day routine. Jenna had to work full shifts nearly every day up to the court date, as well as more unpacking to do in their house and a final organization of everything related to the custody hearing.
 

A court-appointed social worker came for an interview and house inspection one evening. Things were moving forward with regards to the custody hearing, but both were still nervous about the outcome. Their world seemed to be in a state of limbo until the court date.
 

The weekend before the hearing was Marcus's big fight in Vegas, and Scott, Cassie, and Erin all travelled to watch the last match in his MMA career. Though Luke and Jenna couldn't afford the time or tickets to get to Vegas, at least they were able to watch him dominate his opponent via pay-per-view. As always, Marcus's raw power and brilliant strategy overpowered the other fighter in the cage. This fight lasted only half way through the second round before Marcus stood victorious. Jenna and Luke screamed wildly in their little house.
 

When the excitement of the fight died down, Jenna figured that evening was the best time to bring up something she'd been thinking about for a long time. They were each so happy, the timing seemed ideal.

"Luke, can I ask you something?"

"Of course," he said, pulling her down on his lap and rubbing his hands along her denim-clad legs.
 

"I know finances would be tight, but if we get custody of Sophie, I think maybe I'd like to be a stay-at-home mom. There'd be no daycare cost, and I can be here to take care of Cassie's baby, too," she smiled. "Cassie's going back part time after she has the baby, and I know she's wondering about babysitting."

Jenna took a deep breath and looked up to Luke's face, unsure of what he would say. "What do you think?"

Luke had the most indescribable look of love and wonder on his face. "You'd give up your job to take care of my little girl?"

"Ours," she smiled.
 

"But you worked hard to get that job…"

"And I'll go back someday. This is more important. And it's something I want to do. My mom stayed home with me and I know it made a big difference. Plus, what could be better for any of us?"

Luke's only response was to pull her in tight and kiss her hair over her neck. "My angel," he breathed. "
Nothing
could be better."

Jenna pulled away to smile at him again. "And when we make our own beautiful babies, I can take care of them, too."
 

"We will have
beautiful
babies," he smiled softly.

The morning of June 23 came, and Jenna was nervous beyond measure. She wanted so desperately to be a family with Luke and Sophie, even more so for Sophie's and Luke's sake. He worried about his little girl all the time now, especially with Miranda spiraling downward. The nightmares which had subsided recently began to plague him once again. They weren't as bad as before, and he still accepted Jenna's comfort, but his angst was obvious.
 

But Jenna had the perfect way to get his mind off of things. She'd been planning this for a while, and already got both of their schedules cleared for the morning of the hearing. They didn't have to be at the courthouse until two, so they had plenty of time for Jenna's plan.
 

"Luke, you don't have to work this morning," she said with a smile. "I already talked to George, and he agreed to give you the time off. We have something important to take care of."

"We do?" Luke asked, confused.

"Do you trust me?"

"Of course…" he hesitated, still confused. "What are we doing?"

"Just get in the car with me, ok?"

Luke kicked his shoes on and followed her out to the strawberry. His inquisitive stare wouldn't leave his face.

"This is a good thing," Jenna promised.

She drove him into downtown Atlanta and his eyes nearly bugged out when she parked in front of a tattoo parlor. It was the same shop that did Cassie's ink the year before.
 

"You're getting a tattoo?" he asked, shocked at the prospect.

"No, we're fixing yours," she smiled sweetly.

Luke's face went pale. "You can't." His voice barely made it past his lips.

She looked at him with warmth and understanding. "We're not erasing your friends," she promised. "You can trust me. Will you come in?"

Luke stared in silence for a moment and then slowly got out of the car. He was voiceless and slightly in shock, but he let himself trust her. When they walked through the door, the artist greeted Jenna by name. She had already come in to explain the situation so the artist wouldn't ask any loaded questions without realizing what he was doing.

"Hi," she returned. "This is my husband, Luke. He has a picture on his shoulder that needs touched up."

Luke's eyes shot to Jenna and she saw clarity in his gaze. He understood exactly what she was asking. He obviously wasn't sure he could let her.

"Luke," Jenna whispered as she wrapped her arms around his ribs. "
Forgiveness is the strongest form of love,
right? I love you. Sophie loves you. Our friends love you. But you can't move forward with me as a family if you won't love yourself. Please…
please
…forgive yourself. Honor your friends by loving them enough to let go of your anger. Today might have a brand new life for us waiting at the end. Can you be there with me? Loving? Forgiven? Ready to let go?"

Luke started shaking and a single tear escaped his eye.
 

"Jenna…" he breathed.
 

"I know, babe. I get it. But it's time. You know it is."

Luke squeezed harder and kissed her on the head. She felt his nod and she smiled softly. "Good. Now take your shirt off. There's a broken heart on your shoulder. It can heal along with yours."

Luke sat in the tattoo artist's chair and held still for a few minutes while the tiny broken heart on his shoulder was filled in with the love Jenna allowed him to feel. He asked that her initials be added below the heart. She held his hand and smiled softly at her badass teddy bear while he barely held his emotions at bay.

"You deserve every bit of love you have," she said with a smile.

Still conflicted, Luke looked at her deeply. He reached for Jenna's hand as they thanked the artist, paid for his services and left for home.

The two spent the rest of the morning quietly in each other's arms, offering the support they needed to prepare themselves for the hearing. When the hour finally came to leave for the courthouse, Luke put on the suit he bought for the occasion and Jenna dressed in a conservative skirt and blouse. With their a few additions to their file in hand, Luke and Jenna left for downtown again.

Mr. Cruz met them in the lobby and smiled at them encouragingly. "Did you bring all your papers?"

Luke held up the little folder and Cruz smiled at him. "This looks good," their lawyer nodded as he perused the additions.

"There's one more thing," Luke said with a soft, proud smile. "Jenna's planning on staying home with Sophie if we're awarded full custody. Sophie will have a parent to take care of her all the time."

Jorge Cruz smiled so wide. "That's wonderful. I'll make sure to emphasize that in the hearing. I don't like to assume anything, but I have confidence this will work out in your favor. You ready?"

Both nodded and followed Cruz into the courtroom.

Only a few nervous minutes passed before the bailiff announced the presiding judge, who then called court into session.
 

Miranda's presence tainted the atmosphere, but luckily Sophie didn't have to be there to experience all the tension. The thought of Miranda's bitter face being Sophie's view every day made Jenna hope that much harder for full custody. She silently thanked Scott for recommending Jorge Cruz. He'd been kind and professional, but now in open court he was obviously in his element.

Jenna was amazed by Cruz's finesse. He introduced both Luke and Jenna, talked about his personal feelings after having worked with them, offered his regrets on having to present evidence of Miranda's negative influence, and then finalized his part of the hearing with the documentation of all efforts made on Sophie's behalf by Luke and Jenna. All of this took more then an hour with the judge interrupting every so often to ask questions and clarify points of matter. Jenna's favorite moment came when during Cruz's final comments.
 

"Mr. and Mrs. Baylor are dedicated parents to Sophie already, even without paperwork to allow it. Their focus is on her, their house is designed around her, and their love includes her. There is only benefit to the child if she is given the privilege of being a permanent part of their family. The Baylors have a true
home,
and every child deserves no less."
 

Miranda's lawyer had little to offer other than the concept of maternal rights and a history with the child. The other main part of her case relied on negative opinions on Luke's character, not backed up with any specific examples or evidence.

"His violent nature is shown through his decadent time spent in fight training," Miranda's lawyer said.
 

The judge considered her comments, but needed clarification. "Does his 'violent nature' show itself outside of training? Is there documentation of domestic abuse or police reports of assault or other violent altercations?"

Jenna almost smiled as the lawyer once again had no evidence to support her negative claims. What little she had with regards to Luke's problems had already been countered by Jorge Cruz. All the issues of no-job-no-apartment-no-stability weren't accurate any longer. They hadn't been for a long while.

Luke strained to remain calm the entire hearing. Listening to Miranda's lawyer attack his character was rage-inducing, but he took solace his case was obviously strong in comparison to her relative whining.
 

After hearing both sides, which took all afternoon, the judge called a two-day recess during which he would review all documents and consider all testimony. He would also go over the social worker's interviews with both parties involved as well as the two homes in question. He assured a decision would be offered at the next hearing.
 

Those two days were the longest of their lives. All they could do was try to go about their jobs while they waited with nervous energy. Luke spent extra hours at the gym with Jenna's blessing. When forty-eight hours finally passed, the two were back at the courthouse ready to start their future with Sophie. That was their full-souled, desperate hope. Jenna held Luke's hand as he took deep breaths often. Miranda's angry glare was aimed in their direction nearly the entire time, but neither would engage her at all.
 

Everyone fell into a quiet hush when the judge entered the courtroom again. A gavel strike served as the only introduction for his findings. He wasted no time.

"It's very apparent where priorities lie with all parties involved. With regards to the environment at your house, Ms. Walsh, a degree of indifference, with the exception of possessive ownership, seems to rule the interactions and attitudes for the child. With Mr. and Mrs. Baylor, many specific efforts have already been made on the child's behalf, solely for her benefit, even before receiving custody. Ample attention is being paid with regards to her future, and a stable home environment with two dedicated parents is offered her.