“Your Honor, may I have moment with my lawyer please?” she asked suddenly.
“This is highly unusual, miss.” But he gave her a kind look and nodded. “You have five minutes, and you may use my office.”
Exactly five minutes later, Willa, Jake, and Gabe rejoined the group at the table. The men wore scowls, but Willa ignored them.
Gabe addressed the judge. “Your Honor, against my advice, my client is prepared to offer a deal to the plaintiff. She is prepared to give each a quarter of the estate in exchange for their written word they will seek financial counseling.”
Jeffery Montgomery was instantly on his feet. “Do you know who I am? How dare you even suggest such a thing!” Mr. Sleaze tried to pull him back into his seat to no avail.
“We’ll take it!” Willa’s mother readily agreed, apparently, not too proud to beg. Willa felt her heart ache. Her mother had never been much of a mother, but it was still hard seeing the proud women reduced so low.
Mr. Sleaze finally succeeded in restraining his client. “This is very unusual, Your Honor.”
“I agree. Mrs. Montgomery, you realize you are not bound by the law to give them anything?” the judge pointed out.
Willa shrugged. She’d heard all the arguments from Gabe and Jake just minutes ago. “They are family. They may not be much of a family, but there it is. Honestly, I just want to be left alone, and I know as long as I have this money, they won’t comply. So they can take it. It doesn’t really mean that much to me, but I do have some plans, so I’m keeping half.”
“What plans?” This came from her mother, and Willa sighed because she knew her mother was envisioning something like plastic surgery.
“I’m starting a charitable foundation.”
“Why?” It saddened Willa that her mother truly didn’t understand.
“Because it’s needed, Mother.” How could you explain the need to do something good to someone so shallow?
With a shake of her bleached-blonde head, her mother said, “I’ve never understood you. You’re nothing like the rest of us. Maybe I shouldn’t have left you with the nannies so much when you were little.”
“Oh, Mother, I’m glad you did. They were mostly good to me. What I’ve never understood was why you had my sister and me when you so obviously don’t want children.”
She actually shrugged a slight shoulder. “It was a stipulation of the prenup agreement your father forced me to sign. I tried to tell him I wasn’t cut out to be a mother, but he wanted heirs even if he didn’t have any money to leave them.”
Willa felt her heart twist, and a feeling of absolute despair washed over her. She’d never felt like she fit in, but to feel so unwanted… Then Jake’s arm was around her, and he was pulling her to him.
“Shh, baby,” he whispered in her ear. And a new sense of peace came over her. Jake would always want her, would always be there for her. He was her family now. That was all that mattered.
Epilogue
“I can’t believe I’m doing this.” Willa laughed nervously.
“You’ve been practicing. You aced the class. You’ll be fine,” Jake assured her. The pride and acceptance she saw on his face made her heart swell.
Willa slid the face shield down on her helmet and shifted her brand new motorcycle into gear. It was a gorgeous little 250cc from Backoff Bikes. Jake had surprised her with a custom paint job with airbrushed roses on the metallic black finish. She absolutely loved it!
The last few months had been the most amazing of Willa’s life, filled with much joy and a few tears.
The day Reb had come to take his daughter to their new home had been a sad one, but the look of joy on her darling face at the sight of her beloved father was heartwarming. They would start a new life in a safe home in a secret location. She would miss the child terribly but was happy for the fresh start they’d been given.
Another joyous event had taken place just a few days before. Smokey had married his Glory in a quiet but elegant ceremony. Gloria had been breathtakingly beautiful in her simple blue sundress. Gabe had stood proudly as his father’s best man. And it was no shock to anyone when Gloria had aimed the bouquet right at Willa’s head. Jake had received a lot of grief from the men, but he’d taken it in stride.
The best news of all had come from Danny and Gabe just last night. They had announced they were expecting. Willa had cried when they had asked her and Jake to be godparents.
“Ready to ride?” Jake asked, bringing her out of her thoughts and back to the present. He gave her a wide grin, and her heart swelled with the love she felt for him.
“Always!” she replied, returning his smile. She’d ride anywhere with him.
As they pulled out onto the highway, several more riders joined them. Willa felt a warmth flood her. Her life was so full, filled with laughter, companionship, and love.
She turned to the man on the bike to her right. Bo had become a quiet but constant presence. She knew Jake was worried about his cousin. According to Jake, Bo hadn’t always been so closed off, but when she’d wanted to do something about it, Jake had shut her down. He’d insisted Bo would come out of his shell when he was ready. It would no doubt earn her one hell of a spanking, but she liked Bo too much to leave it alone. And she had a plan.
THE END
WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/GRAEMCTAVISH
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Grae McTavish has always had a very active imagination that sometimes got her into trouble growing up. As a voracious reader, the natural progression was to put that imagination into writing.
Growing up around bikers, it was impossible to resist adding some of the rowdiness into her writing as well.
She is married to her own sexy biker who inspires her wicked imagination every day. Her two wonderful children keep her rounded and grounded and make her life complete.
Visit her on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/GraeMcTavish
For all titles by Grae McTavish, please visit
www.bookstrand.com/grae-mctavish
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
Breaking Away [Smoky Mountain Motorcycles] (Siren Publishing Classic) Page 14
