Mark smiled at the attorney and at the Jackson’s. So they thought by jumping right in and going for intimidation was their best tactic, well they had never dealt with a man as powerful as him before. He found he was actually enjoying himself.
He glanced over at Emily and saw the fear in her eyes and his enjoyment evaporated. He may have been used to dealing with crooked people but she wasn’t and he needed to remember that. He placed his hand on her leg and gave it a reassuring squeeze, to let her know it would all be okay.
“Mr. Abrams, I don’t want this to turn into a power match, so we’re going to get right to the point. We have documentation here showing the harassment your clients have done to Mrs. Anderson. We also have witness statements from personal friends of the Jacksons, showing they’ve shown no interest in the child, ever. Here’s the video from the wedding showing Mrs. Jackson’s true intentions for taking custody of the child,” their attorney began.
“This is all hearsay and you know it,” Mr. Abrams said, seemingly unconcerned.
“We also hired a private investigator, who has managed to find some interesting information on how Mr. Jackson runs his business,” the attorney said and passed copies of all the evidence. Emily watched as both Mr. and Mrs. Jackson turned white as they glanced down at the papers before them.
Their attorney, who had seemed so confident and smug only moments before, now looked confused as he bent his head to speak privately with his clients. Mark sat back and watched them try and regroup. Their own attorney said nothing else as they waited for the full realization of the situation to set it.
“This has nothing to do with the custody case,” Mr. Abrams sputtered, trying to recover from the shock.
“You’re very correct that it doesn’t have anything to do with the custody case but Trevor has nothing to do with the case either. The Jackson’s are trying to take custody for some sort of position within their community, or for revenge but not out of concern for the child. My client’s a loving mother and isn’t going to relinquish custody. If your clients want to pursue this matter further, then we will bring all of this evidence to court. If they would like to go ahead and sign these papers here, giving up this battle, we’ll leave them alone,” their attorney said, with a deadly calm.
Emily realized why Mark had chosen this particular law firm. The men were really good at their job. She was actually starting to have some real hope.
“We will return in a moment. I need some time to talk privately with my clients,” Mr. Abrams said, as he stepped out of the room with her ex in-laws.
Mark turned to smile at her. “We have them on the run. This will all be over in a matter of minutes,” he reassured her.
“Are you sure?”
“They’ve never wanted Trevor. They just wanted to play some power game with you and they’ve lost. They’re going to have no choice but to admit defeat,” he reassured her.
Emily wouldn’t celebrate until the paper was signed. If and when it was, then she’d jump up and down for joy. She warily eyed the Jacksons and their attorney as they walked back into the room. They seemed older to her somehow, as they stepped through those doors.
There was no glaring this time around. No one even made eye contact as they made their way back to the table and sat down.
“My clients have agreed to sign the documents, so long as you sign a paper saying you’ll never pursue this other matter,” Mr. Abrams quietly said.
Their attorneys looked over at them and Mark shook his head yes. “Done,” the attorneys said. It was all over within a few minutes and Emily found herself sitting alone with Mark.
“It really is done?” she asked him.
“Yes, they can’t come after you again. They’ve relinquished all rights to Trevor,” he reassured her.
“Thank you so much Mark. I don’t know how I can possibly repay you,” she gasped. She threw her arms around him and held on tight, as the tears of relief washed down her face. He rubbed her back, as she let the joy and sorrow wash through her.
“Now that all of this mess is over, how about we start our honeymoon?” he asked her.
Emily looked into her strong husband’s eyes and was in total conflict. She wanted to be rushed off to a romantic location, where they could lay by the beach for hours, making love all night but the mother in her needed to hold her son and be reassured they really were going to be together, with no chance of him being taken away.
Mark saw the turmoil in her face and was one step ahead of her. He’d known she would want to be with her son. He knew Emily more than she realized.
“Why don’t we start with a nice lunch? You’ve barely eaten the last couple of days,” he said.
Emily realized she was starving. The stress of the upcoming court battle had taken all appetite away and now, with it over she could clear out an entire buffet table.
“That sounds great. I could really use some Mexican food,” she said hopefully.
“Great, then I know the perfect spot to take you,” he told her and hailed a cab once they got outside.
He brought her to a great little Mexican cantina and Emily gobbled down almost the entire bowl of chips and salsa. She laughed a little sheepishly and shrugged at him.
They sat there, right on the beach with the wind blowing over the patio and had a few margaritas, eating far too much food and Emily felt pretty good. She was anxious to get to her son though.
“Can we head back tonight?” she asked Mark.
“I want to show you something first,” he said to her.
“Okay,” she agreed reluctantly.
He paid the bill and then headed out to the street to call another cab. It pulled up in front of a fancy hotel and Emily had to fight her disappointment. She did love Mark and spending time with him was always amazing but she wanted to reassure herself her son was safe. She needed to hold him in her arms.
She followed Mark inside and resigned herself to seeing her son the next day. Mark was tired and didn’t want to make the return flight home. She could understand that.
Mark stepped through the lobby and around the back of the hotel, through a double set of doors. They were standing at a huge pool with slides, diving boards and fountains. There was even a little bar floating in the middle of it all.
“Wow Mark, that’s the coolest pool I’ve ever seen,” she said.
“I thought you may like that,” he said with a wink.
“Mom, Mark you finally got here,” Emily heard her son calling.
She whipped her head around and running down the side of the pool was Trevor, followed by Jasmine. She saw Lucas and Amy, Alex and Jessica and all the other kids milling around too. Her eyes filled with tears once again, as she thought about how amazing Mark was. He knew she would need to be with her son, so he was giving her a honeymoon and her son. She kissed him gently on the lips, before bending down to take her son into her arms.
“Mom I got to fly on a real airplane with Jasmine and everyone. They gave us drinks with tiny umbrellas in them and we even got to watch a movie. It was so cool, Mom,” he was talking to her at ninety miles an hour.
“Wow, Trevor. That sounds so great.”
“I’m going to swim some more with Jasmine. We swim to the spot over there and then the guy gives us soda in a coconut,” Trevor said, trembling with his excitement.
Emily laughed at her son’s enthusiasm. She loved he was having such a great time. She loved how happy he was and she loved that Mark was the person responsible for it all.
“Have fun then baby, I will keep an eye on you from here.”
“Ah mom, I’m not a baby,” he mumbled and looked around to see if anyone else had heard.
“I’m sorry, Honey, or course you aren’t,” she apologized and then ruffled his hair.
Trevor was appeased and jumped back into the pool with Jasmine, where they made a beeline for the floating bar.
“Have I told you how completely amazing you are?” she asked Mark, as she once again threw her arms around him.
“I don’t think I’ve ever heard you say that,” he joked with her.
“Well you’re the most amazing man in the world. You think of everything, don’t you?”
“I’m thinking I should take you up to our room to change right now,” he said seductively, as he pushed on her lower back, bringing her in contact with his hard body.
“Mmm, see, you’re always thinking,” she said and rubbed her tongue over his bottom lip. Mark groaned, before locking his lips onto hers and gripping her backside, so she could feel his desire.
“I hate to break this up guys but there are kids all over the place and you are getting a bit X-rated,” Lucas spoke to them, while unsuccessfully trying to hide his laughter.
Mark finally broke the kiss but only to glare at his brother. “We’ll be back,” Mark growled and took Emily’s hand, as he led her towards the elevators.
“Poor Lucas, you were kinda rude to him,” Emily teased Mark.
“He’s lucky he didn’t get punched in the face,” Mark growled.
Mark pulled her onto the elevator, where thankfully they were alone. He slipped his hand under her shirt and massaged her aching br**sts, while his lips devoured hers. When the bell chimed its arrival at their floor, he dragged her down the hallway and had her in the room in seconds.
They didn’t return back to the pool for several hours. When they did, Lucas and Alex looked knowingly at the newlywed couple and Jessica and Amy made their own plans to get their husbands alone a little bit later.
Chapter Nine
“Let’s go, Mom,” Trevor said, as he jumped on the bed between Mark and Emily.
“What time is it?” she groggily asked her son.
“It’s Eight already. We have to hurry so I can have breakfast with Mickey Mouse,” he said while bouncing on the bed.
“Okay, Okay,” she mumbled. “Go back over with the other kids so Mom can get a shower and get dressed,” she pled with her son. He sighed at her like she was killing him but obeyed.
“How about I join you in the shower and wash your back,” Mark offered with a wicked smile.
“If you do, we’re never going to make it downstairs and Trevor will disown us both,” Emily said sadly. She was reconsidering having her son on her honeymoon. They’d switched hotels yesterday and were now staying in the Disneyland Park. The kids were all excited and she had to admit she was enjoying it too.
She was enjoying everything except getting up far too early, when she’d made love with her new husband half the night.
She and Mark made their way downstairs to the lobby, where the rest of their family was already sitting down. Trevor was squealing with joy as Mickey Mouse was talking to him. Jasmine was smiling up at one of the Disney Princesses and the adults were all gulping down coffee like it was a lifeline.
“You look tired, Bro,” Alex said with a smirk, as they approached. “Did something keep you up all night?” he asked and then winked at Emily. Her face instantly turned a dark shade of red.
“You’re one to talk, as I see some pretty dark circles under your eyes,” Mark said.