Page 18 of Royal

“Right before he died, he found out that his estranged grandparents left him a massive sum of inheritance.” He has a sad look as he says this. “He came to me since I was a lawyer and had me make a will that if something ever happened to him, then you would receive the money.”

Holy shit.

I look at Royal, completely blown away at this turn of events. He puts his hand on the back of my neck, anchoring me.

“Today was his birthday,” I realize.

His uncle nods sadly. “His parents have been fighting his will since he died, but it's ironclad. I ensured as such when I made the will for him. He wanted you to have everything.”

My throat thickens with unshed tears. We loved each other but we weren’t in love as the years passed. We just needed each other. His parents were mean to him, and I never had any parents to look after me.

James’s uncle smiles at me, then reaches out and hands me his card. “But there is more.”

How could there be more? I’m shocked, and I don’t even know how much I will be receiving. I’m just touched that James even thought of me all those years ago.

“His now late grandparents set up another trust fund for any children James might have, and as we know, Donovan is his.”

I nod. “I had to do a paternity test because his parents didn’t believe me, and I gave them the papers, then never saw them again.”

He chuckles. “You ruined their lives because that trust fund has accumulated a lot of money. It will grow with interest until Donovan goes to college, and all the funds will be given to him when he is twenty-one.”

“Why didn’t his parents get anything?” I ask, rubbing my forehead with the back of my hand.

“Because they’re horrible and evil people. My parents disapproved of how my sister has treated others, and them for that matter, but they loved their grandson and my kids.”

Wow.

“They did treat him poorly,” I confess, seeing firsthand how they told him daily that he was an embarrassment to the family’s name.

“Yes, and they knew that. I have avoided them for years, and now it’s time to hand over what belongs to you.”

He opens his briefcase and starts shuffling through the papers inside. I look at Royal to see if he is as shocked as I am, but he is just watching the lawyer with his jaw clenched like he is making sure everything is legit.

Now that I know the situation, I remember James mentioning an uncle he cared about who treated him well.

“This is the sum you will be receiving.” He slides a document over in front of me, and I almost fall over at the numbers on the paper.

“Wait, is this right?” I ask.

He chuckles. “Yes, one hundred million dollars is yours, and your son will have twenty-five million.”

My world has changed in a split second. “Let me get our club lawyer in on this to ensure everything is legit,” Royal says, being the voice of reason.

James’s uncle nods, and I look down at the business card. It reads that his name is Andrew Smith.

“While we wait, let’s get some lunch?” Royal suggests and waves to Marie, so we can tell her our orders.

The wait for the clubhouse lawyer to come meet us is intense. Every time the door opens, I glance over. Eventually, a man in a suit walks into the diner and looks around until he spots us.

Royal stands and shakes his hand. The club lawyer shakes hands with me and Andrew next, then sits at the booth to review all the paperwork.

Royal puts his arm around me, and I feel much better now, knowing no one is here to try to take my son.

The thought of losing him to those horrible people is unimaginable. I honestly think I’d kill them before I ever let that happen. That’s dark of me to say but protecting him from all negative things is what’s important.

I wish I were protected, though my brother and I weren’t. My mom would have sex right out in the open with men, and we would walk in on them after we got home from school.

Lost in thought, the club lawyer speaks loudly with a smile on his face. “Well, it looks like you just became a very wealthy woman, Naomi Watts. It’s all legit and ironclad.” He grabs some papers and slides them to me. “Sign here and here.”

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