Read Online Righteous Lies (Book 1: Dancing Moon Ranch Series) by Patricia Watters - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Patricia Watters
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leaving."
"Fine
then. Pick up Mei Ling and take her to the bedroom."
"Right."
When Jack crouched to pick up Mei Ling, Ricky shoved his hand away, and said,
"My cat. You go."
"Oh
shit," Jack said. He stood, and with his hands on his hips, looked down at
Ricky and Mei Ling as if he hadn't a clue what to do next.
"Shit,"
Ricky repeated, looking up at Jack.
"No...
you're not supposed to say that—" Jack clamped his jaws shut and glared at
Grace, who shrugged, and said, "Mei Ling's happy with her bed by the fire,
and if you put her sky room by the front window she won't roam around the place,
at least not much. She has no fleas, and she uses her scratching posts, and she
likes sitting on the mantle."
Jack looked
down at Ricky, who continued to pet Mei Ling, and said, "I'll talk to
Flo."
"Thank you,"
Grace replied. "You'll make a little boy very happy, as well as the mother
of your son."
That seemed to
catch Jack's attention. "Then you're resigned to it?"
"I have no
choice," Grace said. "It's fairly obvious you're his father since the
baby I'm carrying is the size of a young Titan." She smiled.
Jack didn't
smile back. "That's not what I meant. I'm talking about you allowing the
petition I filed to go unchallenged so I'll get my paternity rights and joint
custody."
Grace looked at
Jack, whose face was dead sober, and said, "If I give you joint custody
you'll have him half the time and he'll be constantly moved back and forth
between my place and yours. I'm not sure I can live with that."
"You're
not getting him all to yourself," Jack said. "That's not an option.
I'll fight you to the bitter end to get the right to have my son half the time.
He's going to learn to ride and shoot a rifle and run this ranch so someday it
will be half his."
"That's
what terrifies me about letting you have joint custody," Grace said.
"You're already planning his life. What if he doesn't want to run this
ranch? What if he wants to live in the city? Or be a businessman? You're so set
in your ways, your ways being the only ways, he won't have any choice but to do
what you lay out for him. You're not a man a boy would challenge, at least not
until he's as big as you, and even then he'll more than likely avoid it. I want
our son to grow up to be a decent, morally upstanding man, but to be able to
choose his own goals in life. It's not just about him being Jack Hansen
Junior."
Jack stared at
her, the look on his face grim. Then he swallowed hard, and said, "He'll
never be Jack Hansen Junior, but I will have joint custody."
Grace glared at
Jack. "Yes, I suppose you will," she clipped, "because I don’t
have the money or the fight in me to go up against you." She turned the
wheelchair and motored into the bedroom, slamming the door.
Whatever pipe
dreams she'd had about being Jack's wife had vanished. She had no desire to be
the wife of a man who would run her life as well as the life of their son. But
there was no way she could stop Jack from getting joint custody because he'd
fight as long as it took to succeed. He had the money, the resolve, and the
determination to do it. And she felt exhausted just thinking about trying to
stop him.
The
cross-stitching on the bedstand caught her eye. She'd placed it there when the
men arrived with the wheelchair. She'd already stitched the building blocks and
alphabet letters, but when she came to the line for the name, the name Marc was
out. She wasn't carrying a Marc. She was carrying a Jack. She'd even stitched a
"J" in anticipation of telling Jack she thought they should name
their child after him since Jack would be the one welcoming his son into the
world. But Jack made it clear, for whatever reason, that his child would not be
named after him. But when she tried to think of another name for an overly large
baby, who doggedly remained lying on her bladder, and whose big baby foot was
determined to kick her navel out, the only name that seemed to fit was Jack.
CHAPTER 5
The rest of the
week was
"Fine
then. Pick up Mei Ling and take her to the bedroom."
"Right."
When Jack crouched to pick up Mei Ling, Ricky shoved his hand away, and said,
"My cat. You go."
"Oh
shit," Jack said. He stood, and with his hands on his hips, looked down at
Ricky and Mei Ling as if he hadn't a clue what to do next.
"Shit,"
Ricky repeated, looking up at Jack.
"No...
you're not supposed to say that—" Jack clamped his jaws shut and glared at
Grace, who shrugged, and said, "Mei Ling's happy with her bed by the fire,
and if you put her sky room by the front window she won't roam around the place,
at least not much. She has no fleas, and she uses her scratching posts, and she
likes sitting on the mantle."
Jack looked
down at Ricky, who continued to pet Mei Ling, and said, "I'll talk to
Flo."
"Thank you,"
Grace replied. "You'll make a little boy very happy, as well as the mother
of your son."
That seemed to
catch Jack's attention. "Then you're resigned to it?"
"I have no
choice," Grace said. "It's fairly obvious you're his father since the
baby I'm carrying is the size of a young Titan." She smiled.
Jack didn't
smile back. "That's not what I meant. I'm talking about you allowing the
petition I filed to go unchallenged so I'll get my paternity rights and joint
custody."
Grace looked at
Jack, whose face was dead sober, and said, "If I give you joint custody
you'll have him half the time and he'll be constantly moved back and forth
between my place and yours. I'm not sure I can live with that."
"You're
not getting him all to yourself," Jack said. "That's not an option.
I'll fight you to the bitter end to get the right to have my son half the time.
He's going to learn to ride and shoot a rifle and run this ranch so someday it
will be half his."
"That's
what terrifies me about letting you have joint custody," Grace said.
"You're already planning his life. What if he doesn't want to run this
ranch? What if he wants to live in the city? Or be a businessman? You're so set
in your ways, your ways being the only ways, he won't have any choice but to do
what you lay out for him. You're not a man a boy would challenge, at least not
until he's as big as you, and even then he'll more than likely avoid it. I want
our son to grow up to be a decent, morally upstanding man, but to be able to
choose his own goals in life. It's not just about him being Jack Hansen
Junior."
Jack stared at
her, the look on his face grim. Then he swallowed hard, and said, "He'll
never be Jack Hansen Junior, but I will have joint custody."
Grace glared at
Jack. "Yes, I suppose you will," she clipped, "because I don’t
have the money or the fight in me to go up against you." She turned the
wheelchair and motored into the bedroom, slamming the door.
Whatever pipe
dreams she'd had about being Jack's wife had vanished. She had no desire to be
the wife of a man who would run her life as well as the life of their son. But
there was no way she could stop Jack from getting joint custody because he'd
fight as long as it took to succeed. He had the money, the resolve, and the
determination to do it. And she felt exhausted just thinking about trying to
stop him.
The
cross-stitching on the bedstand caught her eye. She'd placed it there when the
men arrived with the wheelchair. She'd already stitched the building blocks and
alphabet letters, but when she came to the line for the name, the name Marc was
out. She wasn't carrying a Marc. She was carrying a Jack. She'd even stitched a
"J" in anticipation of telling Jack she thought they should name
their child after him since Jack would be the one welcoming his son into the
world. But Jack made it clear, for whatever reason, that his child would not be
named after him. But when she tried to think of another name for an overly large
baby, who doggedly remained lying on her bladder, and whose big baby foot was
determined to kick her navel out, the only name that seemed to fit was Jack.
CHAPTER 5
The rest of the
week was
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