Pushing Up Daisies (29 page)

“That’s all, Your Honor. We rest our case.” Kenneth walked away.

“Cross-examination?” the judge called out.

“We rest,” the Stevenses’ attorney replied.

The judge looked down at his podium and flipped through some papers, then cleared his throat. “Well, based on the testimony heard today and the sealed legal videotape that I’ve watched, my decision is made. Jasper Stevens spoke from the grave today and asked the court to save his son, Jay. He was thorough with his story, giving just about every detail spoken in this room. And because the court or doctors cannot dispute his paternity I will uphold that he is Jay’s father. I will also uphold his request as to where Jay shall be placed. The great thing about this case is that it proves that a person doesn’t have to be biologically related to love a child. A lot of the information revealed here was sad and enlightening. The DNA test taught me something I didn’t know. However, there was one thing that the DNA test didn’t need to reveal: no medical document or court can dispute where this child needs to be. Jonathan Jasper Stevens needs to be with his mother, Daisy Parker. Daisy Parker, I grant you full custody. Jay, you can go to your mother now.”

“Come on, baby. Let’s go home.” Daisy held her arms out and embraced him.

“Forever?”

“Forever. I told you I’d never leave you.”

Daisy sat at Ms. Christine’s kitchen table and watched through the window as Jay and Lani played outside. She was smiling so hard that her face hurt. Seeing her children playing together was magical, even if she was pretending to be an aunt to one of them.

“They’re something else, hunh?” Ms. Christine said as she peeled an orange.

“Yes, they are. They get along so well. Like brother and sister.”

Ms. Christine shot Daisy a don’t-you-start-that look.

“Don’t worry, Ma. I didn’t mean it like that.”

“Good. Have you talked to Brea? She said she was going to call you.”

“I just got here last night, Ma. When did she tell you that?”

“This morning, when she dropped Lani off. Right before she went to work. You know she lost her baby?”

Daisy shook her head. “No. I didn’t know. How is she?”

“When you talk to her, ask her. I’m tired of being y’all’s go-between.”

Daisy bit her lip.

“And straighten your face before I warm your behind.”

Daisy laughed. “Do you know how I can reach Calvin? I want to talk to him about dropping his custody suit.”

Ms. Christine smiled. “Yes, I have his number around here somewhere.” She got up from the table. “Let me go find it for you.”

Daisy got up and walked outside onto the side porch. She leaned against the rail and watched the kids play softball. “You two be careful not to break your grandmother’s window. I don’t want to hear her mouth.”

“Okay, Mom,” Jay said as he held the bat and waited for Lani to throw.

“Yes, Aunt Daisy.” Lani wound her arm as if she were pitching for the big leagues. “You ready, Jay? ’Cause I’m going to dust you.” Her reddish, shoulder-length ponytail bounced with the movement of her head.

“Because,
Lani. Not
’cause.”

Lani smiled. “Okay, Aunt Daisy. I’m still going to dust him, though.” She giggled.

“You wish,” Jay said.

Ms. Christine tapped Daisy on the shoulder and handed her Calvin’s number. “Here you go. Use the phone in my room, in case you want to show out again,” she teased.

Daisy sat on her parents’ king-size bed and propped herself up on the many pillows.
Well, here goes nothing.
She dialed.

A woman, whom Daisy assumed was Calvin’s wife, answered on the second ring.

“Hello, this is Daisy Parker. Is Calvin in? I’d like to speak to him about Lalani.” Daisy figured she’d give his wife all the information up front. She wouldn’t want some woman calling her house and just asking for her husband. She wanted to show her the same respect that she’d want to receive if it were her on the other end of the line.

“Just a second,” the woman said cordially, and put Daisy on hold.

“Yeah?” Calvin said.

Daisy cleared her throat. “Calvin, would it be possible for us to meet and talk about Lani? I’ll be here until my son’s spring break is over.”

Calvin was silent for a moment. “Just a second.”

Daisy could hear him relating her request to his wife. She smiled when she heard his wife tell him to meet Daisy.

“Where do you want to meet?” he asked when he returned to the line.

“It doesn’t matter.”

She heard the phone fumble on Calvin’s end.

“You can come over here and talk,” his wife offered.

“Thanks,” Daisy said. “When would be a good time?”

“Now, if it’s okay with you. Write the address down. You and Calvin need to come to some sort of agreement.”

Daisy rang the bell, stomping her feet to shake off the jitters.

The door opened, and Calvin appeared. “Come on in,” he said, holding the screen open.

Daisy stepped inside and looked around, admiring his wife’s taste and simplicity. Not a thing was out of place.

Calvin gestured toward the sofa. “Sit down. Would you like something to drink?”

“That’s okay,” Daisy said, wanting to make her visit as short as possible.

Calvin sat down across from her.

“Where’s your wife? She’s welcome to sit in. I don’t want her to feel as if I’m disrespecting.”

“She’s in the bedroom. She’ll be out to meet you when we finish. Lani’s our daughter. She won’t take part in any decisions, but she’ll support mine.”

Daisy shook her head. “Okay. Well, you know I’m here to talk about custody.”

“You want custody?”

Daisy shook her head. “You know I’d love to have her. But, no, I’m not going after her. I’ve done a lot of thinking, and a lot of growing. It wouldn’t be fair for me to rip her from the only parents she’s ever known.”

“You’re serious, aren’t you?”

“Yes. I just got Jay back, and I realized a lot while I was fighting for him. It hurt both of us when he was taken away. I’m the only mother he’s ever known. Call it a revelation—a deciding factor.”

Calvin scooted to the edge of his seat. “Daisy, let me ask you a question. How well do you know Lani?”

Daisy swallowed hard. “Not too well. Hardly at all. I’d seen her a couple of times, but then I disappeared for a while. Personal reasons.”

“So you understand how much it kills me not to know her.”

“Yes, I do. I’m here to ask you to give up on the custody suit, but I’m not suggesting that you give up knowing her. I think I’ve come up with a solution. If we can convince my sister, then we should all be happy. Satisfied, at least.”

“What’s the solution?”

“Well, Lani doesn’t have godparents. I remember that much. Maybe you and I can be her legal godparents. That way, if anything should ever happen…”

“I gotcha.” He paused. “As much as I’d like to say no, it may be a good idea. It wouldn’t be fair for us to disrupt her life. If we were her godparents, we wouldn’t be yanking her away from Brea, we’d just be adding to her circle.”

“Exactly.”

“Well, if it’s done legally, I don’t see why not.”

Daisy sat on the swing next to her sister as Jay and Lani played on the park’s playground. She looked over at Brea and thought she was still just as beautiful as she’d been when they were teenagers. Her thick, sandy-brown hair still hung down her back, and her deep brown eyes were still as wise as if she’d lived a few times before.

Daisy smiled and prepared herself for the talk that she hoped wouldn’t end up as an argument. They hadn’t had a friendly conversation in a while, and Daisy realized how much she had missed her sister.
Maybe we can be friends.

Brea turned to her as if on cue. “So, what are we here to talk about?”

Daisy nodded toward Lani.

Brea stopped swinging. “Daisy, I don’t know why you want to take that child away from me. You don’t even know her—”

“Let me stop you right there before this gets ugly. I didn’t bring you here to fight.”

“Then what did you bring me here for?”

“Well, me and Calvin—”

“You and
who?
I know you and Calvin aren’t trying to cook something up to take Lani away from me. I should’ve known—”

“Wait, Brea. Hear me out.”

Brea stood. “No, you hear me out. You’re not getting her.”

“We don’t want custody. Calvin and I have decided against it.”

“You and Calvin don’t want custody? Yeah, right.”

“I’m serious, Brea. I went to his house yesterday and talked to him. But we would like to be in her life.”

Brea crossed her arms. “See, I knew it was a trick.”

Daisy flung up her hands in surrender. “No tricks. She’ll be yours legally. She’ll still be your daughter. We won’t ever try to take her away from you. All we want is to be her godparents. Nothing more.”

Brea grabbed Daisy by the chin as she had when they were little. “Say it again. I want to see your eyes when you say it. I can tell if you’re lying. You know I can.”

“I said no tricks, Brea. She’ll be legally yours. All we want is to be her godparents. We just want to do godparent things with her.”