First and Ten (23 page)

“We’ll give you some privacy.” Stanton stood
and pointed to the stairs. “How about you show me that third floor
and I’ll try to give you some ideas?”

“We sure we can trust them?” Rome asked as
they walked out of the room. “She still has her phone.”

“And her lawyer knows I know that. If she
puts anything up or out she’s screwed. She’s been put on
notice.”

Stanton was ahead of him when Rome caught
something that stopped his ascension.

“When was the last time you took your meds?”
Mr. Puckett asked.

“I told you, I don’t like the way they make
me feel.”

“You can’t go on and off them as you please.
You know that. The doctor said—”

“The doctor isn’t the one seeing the world
with a soft focus filter. I am.”

“Come on, Rome,” Stanton said, but Rome held
up his hand. “Whatever he’s saying to her we can’t use.”

“But—”

“I told you I don’t play dirty. You want
that, I’ll leave.”

Trudging up the stairs, Rome wished his
mother had been a sneaky conniving person. It would make it easier
for him, but she hadn’t been and the moral compass she had branded
to his heart couldn’t be removed. He just prayed it didn’t cost him
his son. Worse yet, if what he heard was correct, his son was in
more danger than he thought.

Misunderstandings happened in the best of
circumstances. Dani knew that. She’d been finishing up her
assignments so her graduation in a few weeks wouldn’t have an
asterisk by it. When they first met, Rome told her he would be
coming out of his dead period and working out constantly. She knew
that. She’d accepted that they’d only have a few weeks of freedom.
Even with that she’d limited their time more by making him a damn
Tuesday Treat. Well that was stopping today. Today he was going to
be her Saturday Satisfaction.

“Becky,” Candace said as she whipped open
Rome’s front door.

“We both know that isn’t my name.” Dani
crossed her arms.

“Why are you here? I think Rome has been more
than patient with your stalker ass. Be gone.”

“What? I need to see Rome.”

“Honey, I know your thirsty socialite ass is
used to getting your way, but not this time. Not with my man.”

“Your man?” Dani laughed, only to have
Candace cross her arms and her diamond engagement ring caught the
sunlight causing a flash in Dani’s eyes.

“Yes, now be gone, Becky, you’re trip
downtown is over.”

Dani wanted to challenge the woman on the
fact that Lincoln Park wasn’t downtown and far from the bad side of
town. She may have been raised in the ‘burbs but she came from the
South Shore. Being the spoiled kid going to private school made her
a target in her neighborhood not some pretty, pretty princess who
was worshiped from a far.

“Where’s Rome?”

“I’m answering his door, that should tell you
everything you need to know about where he’s at and what he thinks
of you. He hates confrontation when it comes to his women. Must be
why you and I are becoming besties on the front step.”

Dani wanted to challenge her. Shove her way
into the house, but as soon as she stepped forward a flash went off
behind her and she could feel the hair on the back of her neck
rise. Not again. Tears muddied her vision as she tamped down any
emotion she wanted to show. She wouldn’t call Rome again. It would
be on him to contact her. Here she’d just spent the whole day
defending him to her clients like a damn fool. Life coach. She’s
the one who needed a damn life coach. Or at least someone to put
her head on straight because somewhere in the last month she’d let
a man into her heart and now she knew she wouldn’t make that
mistake again.

Steeling herself she turned, smiled for the
asshole photographer, and walked down the steps to her car as if
she could careless about being denied entry. He kept snapping as
she got into her vehicle and he gave her a quizzical look. Yes, she
is the daughter of a millionaire and drives a ten-year-old
Civic.
It could be worse. She could be like her brother who
used public transport. Heading back home she had some serious
thinking to do. Somehow, in a few days she’d gone from a secure
relationship to discovering she had no idea what was going on.
Maybe that was how it was in Rome’s world, but not hers.

After parking her car, she was about to let
down her garage door when she followed the light to her dad’s ’87
Malibu. He hadn’t tricked it out or shined it up for a trophy car.
Nope, it was the same as it had been when he used to drop her off
as a kid. The same as when he drove it in college.
You don’t
throw away anything that you can rely on in a pinch.
His words
of wisdom when he’d offered to sell it to her for fair market
value. She opened the door and slid behind the wheel on the bench
seat. Adjusting the rear view mirror, the backseat reflected back
at her and she saw her brother in the middle with her sister and
her flanking him.

How had her sister found a way to fit in?
Assumptions had been made about her since the start. Being nouveau
riche, her mother was aware from her first formal function that
they were being watched. Much like her father, her mother tried to
learn everything about the world they were entering without asking
for help. The help they’d found along the way was self-serving.
With Rome, she thought she’d found someone who understood the two
worlds she lived in.

“Birdie,” her brother Jericho howled as he
tapped on the top of the car and scared the ever living crap out of
her. “You okay in there?”

“Just hoping Dad has scotch guard because I’m
pretty sure I just peed myself.”

“Score, bonus points.”

“What are you doing home?” she asked as she
got out of the car and fell into a hug. Her brother had only a few
inches on her since she was wearing four-inch heels. Trim, with
just a little bit of muscular definition, it was his smile that had
all the girls coming for him. Dark hair flopped to the side and
came down to his ears, but thankfully didn’t cover his pale blue
eyes. “Not that I’m mad, but last I heard you had an internship to
do this summer.”

“Yes, but the rent here is so much cheaper
and the last thing I wanted to do was intern for sixty hours a week
and work for eighty. Something about that math would have me
admitted to a hospital for exhaustion and with how you and Tawny
are, God knows how they’d spin it.”

“I hate you and everything you stand
for.”

“Makes sense, but at least I’ll be here for
your graduation.”

“Happy claps.”

“Please tell me the whole offensive line will
be escorting Jerome Speed,” her brother said as they walked into
the house.

“I was planning on inviting one of them, but
now I’m not sure and I doubt Jerome will be there.”

“What? But you two are—”

“More like were,” she corrected.

“Still you were a couple.”

“I don’t know what we were, but I think I’m
going to make our mother’s day and take the cap off the guest
list.”

“Oh dear God say it isn’t so,” Jericho backed
away from her. “A Bonnie Albright my kid did something awesome
party. Oh holy hell, think before you release the Kraken.”

“What mythical creature is Birdie about to
release?” their mother asked as she came into the room.

“Dear Lord it’s loose,” Jericho laughed.

“My kids are a laugh riot,” she replied then
looked to Dani. “What’s he talking about?”

“I think I want a no holds barred party. Big,
annoying to the point that I’ll spend the whole time hiding in my
room party.”

“Hold in your excitement,” Bonnie mocked.
“You want that I’ll do it, but what caused the change of
heart?”

“I need positive PR. I spent the whole damn
day defending myself and I’m tired of it. I’ll send you my client
list, then you hit everyone else.”

A smile lit up her mother’s face and her
brother shielded his eyes like a vampire fearing the sun. “Dear
Lord the townsfolk. Did you think about the townsfolk before you
released the beast?”

“Why are you at my door?” Rome asked Candi as
he came out of the bathroom.

“You invited that photographer to come?” she
snapped.

“No, I told him to come down to my lawyer’s
office on Monday for a deposition.”

“Oh, then you’re fine that I sent him
away.”

“Yes, can you come back in the living
room?”

“I’m tired. I told you those pills make me
sleepy.”

“Then go up to DeMonte’s room and lie down,”
he offered.

“Why can’t I sleep in your bed?”

Rome wasn’t sure how far gone Candace was
mentally. He’d never had to deal with a person with schizophrenia
and the media depicted it as a person hearing voices. Now the hills
and valleys of their relationship made more sense. Answering this
question could send her into some sort of tailspin or not.

“My sheets haven’t been washed in a few days.
I’ve been up at camp,” he said, suddenly treating her with kid
gloves.

“Okay.” She headed upstairs and he watched as
he questioned so many parts of their relationship. He’d genuinely
cared for Candace and if it hadn’t been for a breakdown she’d
hidden from him they might still be together.

He went back into the living room and looked
at her mother sitting on the couch with his son. “Thank you for
coming over.”

“I’m just glad you were able to get her to
give you my number. I’ve tried for a conservatorship, but I don’t
even know where to start. All I can do is keep DeMonte from time to
time.”

“How often do you watch DeMonte?” Mr.
Trundell asked.

“My baby is a good mother when she’s on her
meds.”

“I understand you believe that, but keeping
her on them is the problem.”

“She’s not violent, sir,” the woman assured
as she knitted her fingers. Candace’s mother was too old to be
keeping up with a three-year-old. She had been in her early forties
when she had Candace and had a heart bypass when the two of them
had been together. “Her delusions are mostly about men.”

“We’re talking about giving a woman with
impulse control issues over ten grand a month to pay to raise a
child,” Stanton added.

“That’s more than enough to pay for her to
have a nanny for DeMonte,” she said. “I could be there.”

“You can’t control her and until she wants
help, you won’t know if she’s living on the streets or using
DeMonte’s child support money to put herself up in a hotel
downtown.” Stanton put his hands together in prayer formation.
“Mrs. Powell, your daughter is not well and her lawyer and I both
agree we need to err on the side of caution when it comes to what
is best for DeMonte.”

“When it comes down to it,” Mr. Trundell
said. “Even though we have our teams, DeMonte is our priority. I
told Candace if she wasn’t on her meds I couldn’t represent
her.”

“But you’re taking her money,” Mrs. Powell
pointed out. “Aren’t you? He gets my grandson and I’ll never see
him again.”

“Mama Powell, I’ve never been like that. When
your daughter lived with me I asked her if I could move you closer
to us. I never liked you living where you were.”

“She…she never said.” Mrs. Powell hugged
DeMonte closer to her until the young boy protested and she let
go.

“We can help get her and you help. I don’t
want DeMonte to ever lose his connection with you. You’re his
grandmother and I’m blessed to have you living so close. My mother
won’t leave Omaha because she loves her church.”

“Well, I can’t blame her for that. I tell you
what, young man, I’m scared,” her voice trembled and she let
DeMonte wander over to the bookshelf where Rome had his trophies.
He turned his little head up as he sucked on his thumb. “I’ve
talked with social workers and gotten nowhere because she’d always
take off.”

Rome reached his hand over to hers and
covered it with his. “Mama Powell, I’m telling you now I will be
there through this whole process, but we need you to sign the
papers before we can call for an ambulance.”