The Deadline (The Friessens: A New Beginning) by Lorhainne Eckhart
Authors: Lorhainne Eckhart
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it now, but I didn’t mean to lay it on you. I like Laura, and I see she loves her son. I know you love him, too. I can see that. I can see why you hate the idea of talking to her family after they abandoned her. You’re going to call them, aren’t you?”
“ Yeah, and that kid who got her pregnant. It’s just…” Andy wasn’t sure he wanted to voice his fears, but in the back of his mind, the idea of someone else being Gabriel’s father, being in his life, didn’t sit right. A whole lot of what-ifs were starting to take shape.
“It’s just what , Andy? What are you worried about? I can see you’re tired. I can tell, because you’re not hiding things well.”
Andy sucked in a deep breath and ran his hands over his head again. “There are just too many loose ends. Legally, Gabriel is not mine. If something happened to Laura…” He hesitated. He didn’t want to finish that thought, the one that had been there all night as he sat alone in the hospital chair beside Gabriel’s bed, watching the little boy he felt was his in every sense of the word—except in the eyes of the law. “I screwed up. With everything that happened, moving to Montana, I meant to take steps to legally adopt him.”
“ Well, first things first, Andy: You need to talk to these people. I’ll go with you. I think you need someone objective, someone who knows how to swing a deal and think fast on his feet.”
“I can think fast , and I’ve put together more deals than I can count,” Andy snapped.
“Maybe so, but reverse the positions , Andy. This is your kid, and you’re emotionally involved. I can bet you’d rather plant your fist in something or someone than have to sit down and be reasonable.”
If he thought about it long enough, Andy was sure he would agree, but Neil was being far more honest than he wanted.
Chapter 18
Laura was squeezed in the backseat of Andy’s truck , in between Chelsea and Jeremy, in the spot where Gabriel usually sat. She had never sat back here, and the view was surreal. She was so tired that her head ached.
Candy was in the passenger seat beside Neil, who had spoken to her only once, when keying the address into the GPS. He spoke with his wife, an easy conversation that flowed back and forth, though Laura wasn’t really paying attention to what they said to each other. She didn’t miss their linked hands, their fingers resting together on the center console.
“Laura , you all right back there?” Neil asked, and she met the amber sparkle of his eyes in the rear-view mirror. He was such a handsome man, so clean cut. He resembled Andy in many ways, and in many others he didn’t. Her husband had a shrewdness she didn’t believe Neil had.
Candy turned her head when she didn’t answer . “You’re tired, aren’t you?”
“I am . My head hurts. I just don’t know whether I’ll be able to sleep if I lie down,” she said, wishing she was still back at the hospital, reliving in her mind how sick Gabriel had been when they left. After his first course of treatment, he had been wiped out but had thrown up only once. He seemed to find comfort lying in Andy’s arms. “They said there would be mouth sores, hair loss, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, loss of appetite,” Laura murmured, saying out loud what had been running through her mind over and over again.
Candy rustled in the front seat , leaning around the console. “Who said that?” she asked.
Laura realized they were both watching her, Neil in the rear -view mirror and Candy, who looked over to her husband and back at Laura again. “The doctor did, or was it the oncologist? Those are the side effects for Gabriel. How does he deserve this? It’s not fair,” she said. Her chest ached from the sorrow she’d been trying to bottle up, all the endless tears that kept flowing. Andy was tired, too, but he was handling it better, way better than she was. She rubbed her forehead and tucked her knotted hair behind her ears. She couldn’t
“ Yeah, and that kid who got her pregnant. It’s just…” Andy wasn’t sure he wanted to voice his fears, but in the back of his mind, the idea of someone else being Gabriel’s father, being in his life, didn’t sit right. A whole lot of what-ifs were starting to take shape.
“It’s just what , Andy? What are you worried about? I can see you’re tired. I can tell, because you’re not hiding things well.”
Andy sucked in a deep breath and ran his hands over his head again. “There are just too many loose ends. Legally, Gabriel is not mine. If something happened to Laura…” He hesitated. He didn’t want to finish that thought, the one that had been there all night as he sat alone in the hospital chair beside Gabriel’s bed, watching the little boy he felt was his in every sense of the word—except in the eyes of the law. “I screwed up. With everything that happened, moving to Montana, I meant to take steps to legally adopt him.”
“ Well, first things first, Andy: You need to talk to these people. I’ll go with you. I think you need someone objective, someone who knows how to swing a deal and think fast on his feet.”
“I can think fast , and I’ve put together more deals than I can count,” Andy snapped.
“Maybe so, but reverse the positions , Andy. This is your kid, and you’re emotionally involved. I can bet you’d rather plant your fist in something or someone than have to sit down and be reasonable.”
If he thought about it long enough, Andy was sure he would agree, but Neil was being far more honest than he wanted.
Chapter 18
Laura was squeezed in the backseat of Andy’s truck , in between Chelsea and Jeremy, in the spot where Gabriel usually sat. She had never sat back here, and the view was surreal. She was so tired that her head ached.
Candy was in the passenger seat beside Neil, who had spoken to her only once, when keying the address into the GPS. He spoke with his wife, an easy conversation that flowed back and forth, though Laura wasn’t really paying attention to what they said to each other. She didn’t miss their linked hands, their fingers resting together on the center console.
“Laura , you all right back there?” Neil asked, and she met the amber sparkle of his eyes in the rear-view mirror. He was such a handsome man, so clean cut. He resembled Andy in many ways, and in many others he didn’t. Her husband had a shrewdness she didn’t believe Neil had.
Candy turned her head when she didn’t answer . “You’re tired, aren’t you?”
“I am . My head hurts. I just don’t know whether I’ll be able to sleep if I lie down,” she said, wishing she was still back at the hospital, reliving in her mind how sick Gabriel had been when they left. After his first course of treatment, he had been wiped out but had thrown up only once. He seemed to find comfort lying in Andy’s arms. “They said there would be mouth sores, hair loss, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, loss of appetite,” Laura murmured, saying out loud what had been running through her mind over and over again.
Candy rustled in the front seat , leaning around the console. “Who said that?” she asked.
Laura realized they were both watching her, Neil in the rear -view mirror and Candy, who looked over to her husband and back at Laura again. “The doctor did, or was it the oncologist? Those are the side effects for Gabriel. How does he deserve this? It’s not fair,” she said. Her chest ached from the sorrow she’d been trying to bottle up, all the endless tears that kept flowing. Andy was tired, too, but he was handling it better, way better than she was. She rubbed her forehead and tucked her knotted hair behind her ears. She couldn’t
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