Page 20 of Royal

Naomi gasps. “You did not just say that! You treated your son like shit, and I know exactly why you’re here. After all this time, you show your face for one thing you love more than anything. More than your own family.” Naomi lays it down straight for her, making me proud.

“What’s that?” the woman, James’s mother, sneers at her like she is above Naomi.

No, my woman is above her, and James’s mother is fucking rotten to the core. I don’t hit women, but if I were to smack a bitch then she would be the one I choose.

“Because of the money James left.”

Her eyes widen in shock, and I take great pleasure because the lawyer got to Naomi before this woman could.

“W-what are you talking about?” she stutters, and her wicked attitude is gone. Her face turns pale.

Naomi laughs slightly at her change of expression. “I just met with your brother Andrew, the lawyer? It seems your son left me and our son a ton of money.”

Her face reddens at this. “How dare you steal my son’s money,” she screeches in an awful tone.

Naomi rolls her eyes. “You know that’s not the truth. You know Donovan is his, so why else would you be here? You want his trust fund.” James’s mother pales even further. “Ah, didn’t expect me to know about that either, did you?”

She looks like a stiff wind could push her over.

“You didn’t want anything to do with him when you found out he was your grandson, and you sure are not going to be a part of his life now because you want money.”

The woman is sweating, you can see the beads of perspiration pooling on her forehead. Naomi is pissed, her hands clenched by her sides, and I cover my mouth with my hand because it’s the most adorable fucking thing I have ever seen. I expect her to stomp her foot any minute in anger.

Meanwhile, the day care lady is trying to hide her smile, too.

I kiss Naomi’s head, letting her know I’m still here. “I never asked you for money. Never. I took care of my baby by myself. Do you know the struggle of wondering when your next meal will be? Donovan never knew that feeling because I would rather starve and die before I let him feel an ounce of hunger. Can you say you would do the same thing for your son if he were alive?”

The woman flinches at the end of Naomi’s rant, and it fucking shatters me to know the extent of her struggles. She is a good fucking woman but an even better mother. It makes me want to have at least ten babies with her.

The woman walks past Naomi, stopping to look over her shoulder. “This is not over. See you in court, bitch.”

Naomi doesn’t seem fazed on the outside, but looking into her eyes, I know she is terrified. The woman walks out of the day care, and Cindy runs across, locking the door so she can’t come back in.

“I’m so sorry that happened in here,” Naomi apologizes. She is too nice for her own good.

“No! Don’t apologize, you can’t control other people’s actions,” Cindy tells her with a hug.

One thing for sure is, this is not going to make it to court, even if I must finish this shit myself.

She has been through too much in her life for a fucking money-hungry bitch. That woman will regret ever showing her face.

Chapter 6

Naomi

I’m trying to wrap my head around the fact that my ex’s mother was trying to take Donovan out of day care when she has never even seen him his whole life.

What if she managed to get him? He would have been terrified. Would she have held him hostage to make sure I gave her the money her son left for us?

Cindy, the day care owner, is watching me with a look of sadness, and I know I won’t need her anymore. Donovan is going to miss her. He calls her Sissy because he can’t say her name correctly.

“I’m sure you heard much of that conversation about the money.”

She nods. “Yes, I didn’t want to eavesdrop, but I needed to stay and guard the door in case she tried to make a run for it.”

“I want to make a donation because God knows how much I owe you for all the times I have been short in paying my fees. You have been a lifesaver, and I’d like to cover the costs of struggling parents.”

Tears fill her eyes and she hugs me tightly. “Thanks for everything.” I thank her in return and take a step back, right into Royal’s arms. “I will get Donovan for you,” she tells me, and I wait anxiously for my boy.

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