Page 68 of Inheriting Miss Fortune

While we loaded up the car, I realized I was feeling much better about the trip to the clinic. Even though I dreaded seeing the Scotts, I was looking forward to getting one step closer to proving I was Lellie’s father and the best person to raise her.

It only took half an hour before my optimism died a quick and sudden death.

When it wasn’t just the Scotts waiting outside the paternity clinic but my parents, too.

NINETEEN

TULLY

I sensed Dev’s tension the moment I pulled the car into the parking lot of the clinic. There was some barely perceptible change in his breathing, or maybe he made a low sound in his throat. Either way, my eyes flicked to his in the rearview mirror.

Dev’s eyes carried a world of pain. I’d seen that emotion in his expression before, and I was desperate to understand it so I could try to ease it in some way.

“Nervous?” I asked.

“It’s my parents. I don’t know why they’re here, or?—”

Kenji muttered a curse under his breath and began tapping on his tablet from the passenger seat next to me.

“The Scotts must have told them,” I said. “You said they go to the Scotts’ church, right? I wouldn’t put it past Pastor Scott to use that to his advantage.”

Kenji remained calm, which seemed to be his superpower. “You don’t have to speak to them. In fact, I can get a protective order started…”

“No,” Dev said firmly. “I’ll talk to them, but not until after the test. I want this over with, especially while Lellie is in a good mood. But if… if things go bad…”

After throwing the vehicle into Park, I turned and met his eyes. “Kenji and I will get her out of here. You can get a ride back to the house.”

He reached out and squeezed my shoulder. “Thank you. That would make me feel much better. I don’t want her caught up in the middle of this.”

Neither do I.

I didn’t say the words, but I felt them just as strongly as he did.

We got out of the car. Dev unbuckled Lellie while Kenji and I stood behind him, blocking them from view. I’d chosen a parking spot on the other side of the lot, but I could see the cluster of people with the Scotts heading our way.

I also saw Susanna waiting for us near the entrance. After waving her over, I met her partway and skipped the pleasantries. “Those are the plaintiffs, as well as Dev’s parents, who we didn’t expect. We think the Scotts might have recruited them to their cause.”

“Got it. I’ll handle them. You get everyone inside. The clinic is good about taking patients back to a private room and making everyone else stay in the waiting room. They’ll only allow the plaintiff’s attorney to send back a witness to observe silently and sign paperwork to that effect. If there’s any misbehavior, they won’t hesitate to kick people out.”

She turned to greet the Scotts with a friendly smile while I turned back to Dev. He was ghost-pale but determined. His biceps and shoulders bulged against the fabric of his shirt as he held Lellie on his hip. He was wearing a pressed button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and the dark hair on his exposed forearms was giving me thoughts wholly inappropriate for this moment.

I rapidly blinked my eyes as I turned away. Pretty sure Kenji caught me at it.

As we approached the group Susanna was trying to hold back, Pastor Scott approached me, all smiles. “Tully, there you are. Great to see you again. And let me get a look at my granddaughter. Hi, Eleanor, sweetie. What a big girl you are!”

Lellie immediately clung onto Dev more tightly and leaned her head against his shoulder. She wasn’t great with people she didn’t know well. While Katie hadn’t been estranged from her parents completely, she hadn’t spent much time with them and Lellie.

“Like I said,” Susanna said, stepping between Pastor Scott and Dev as we continued to move toward the clinic’s entrance, “you are welcome to wait out here or in the waiting room, but we simply ask you to allow my client to proceed straight to the appointment first. I’m sure you agree it’s in our best interest to collect this evidence as quickly as possible.”

“Of course, of course,” Pastor Scott said.

I recognized the attorney standing next to him and gave him a cool nod. Brock Lois was an attorney with his own practice who occasionally worked with Dunlevy, Pace, and Trumble. I assumed Orris had been the one to refer the Scotts to him since he was well-known at our firm as a bulldog in family law cases. I didn’t trust Brock for shit, but I was grateful the case was no longer causing a potential conflict of interest with my own firm.

Then I noticed the man behind Katie’s dad.

Orris Dunlevy stepped around Pastor Scott. “Tully! Good of you to come. Thank you for escorting everyone here safely. I’ll take it from here.”

Heat filled my face as a swell of embarrassment twisted my stomach. Before I could say anything, Dev broke his silent, stoic act. “He’s here at my request. Until this situation is settled, I believe it’s in everyone’s best interest for Lellie to have as much support as possible, both legally and personally.”

---