Page 53 of For the Love of the Lawyer

"Please, God, don't be mad at me. I told myself if your parents were both deceased, I'd never tell you about them, but when I found out you have a little sister, I just couldn't keep it to myself.”

Mickey didn't know what to say, so he didn't speak for a few minutes. He pulled Jon closer and turned him around so they could relax together with Jon in his arms and leaning against his chest.

At that moment, Mickey didn't really want to consider the news Jon had given him, and he didn't want his man to think he was mad. Shock and disbelief were all that came to his mind as he held his lover in his arms.

It was their weekend together, and he wasn't going to allow the news about his father and little sister to take anything away from it. There would be plenty of time to stew over it when he returned to Holloway.

"Thank you, Jonny. Can I think about it for a while, and we’ll talk about it later?"

Jon kissed him, giving Mickey his answer.

"Mickey, it's so good to see you.” Audrey hugged him when he opened the door for her. Jon was in the bathroom getting himself together because they'd made love all night, and Mickey would call itmaking lovebecause they'd professed feelings for each other that made his heart sing.

They'd fallen asleep just as the sun came up and slept until ten that morning. Mickey had made them some scrambled eggs and heated the leftover biscuits from the barbecue dinner they'd shared the previous night.

He'd fed Jon breakfast, literally, and then, they got very dirty on the bed, on the floor, and up against the dresser facing the mirror. Mickey loved the feeling of being inside Jon as much as he loved feeling Jon inside him, and the fact they were equals when it came to lovemaking was something he hadn’t expected. Jon Wells took as well as he gave.

"You too, Audrey. I'm supposed to invite you to the ranch so you can watch the boys’ last Little League game right before school starts. It's in three weeks.” Mickey hugged her tightly in return, truly happy to see her again.

When she pulled away, she looked into his eyes and smiled brightly. "I'll make sure I can be there to see them. Are they looking forward to school starting soon?" She stepped into the condo and hung her purse on the hall tree in Jon's foyer.

"Really excited. Rocky's been working with his tutors over the summer, and it's helped a lot. His reading level is up, though I think that has more to do with his obsession withHarry Potter. He reads the books to Ryan, Tim, Matt, and me every night we'll listen. I know Ryan's more into The Lord of the Rings, but helistens to his brother, and he beams when Rocky gets through it without stumblin'. Do you know when Tim and Matt can start asking to adopt the boy?"

Audrey nodded. "Next February, as a matter of fact. I filed the paperwork with DFS last week, and I got a call from the current caseworker, explaining they can begin the process in February. It'll be subject to stepped-up visits by social workers and all that stuff I'll need to coordinate with Matt and Tim, but I have a very good feeling about this, Mickey.

“Nobody deserves love as much as Rocky, and I honestly believe the caseworker will see how important it is he be allowed to stay with the family. Where's Jonny?" She looked around the condo with a sly grin.

Just then, Mickey heard the shower turn off, and he couldn't hold the evil smirk inside. He'd quickly showered, but Jon said he had to stand under the shower head. "I've got aches in places I didn't know could ache," he'd told Mickey, referring to their enthusiastic lovemaking. Mickey just laughed and gave him a kiss on the lips.

"He's finishin' up his shower. He's runnin' behind.” Mickey added the wink for emphasis.

Audrey guffawed loudly, surprising Mickey. He'd never heard her laugh so raucously, but it was magnificent to hear. Laughter was the best medicine for heartache, and if she was able to find such joy in something so silly, he hoped she was working through her own troubles.

"Oh, you're very good for Jon, Mickey. I'm so glad you came along.” She gave him a tender pat on the cheek. He was glad he’d come along as well, if he was being honest.

In Mickey's mind, love made the whole world shiny and new for him. He was looking forward to discovering new things with Jon and becoming good friends with Audrey Langley. Life waslooking up from where Mickey Warren stood on the hardwood floor of his lover’s condo.

Chapter Twenty

Jon was pacing the hallway of the courthouse while waiting for the social worker, Cece Wright, to bring Megan to the family court hallway. They'd found a nice couple, Mark and Rene Asberry, who’d agreed to foster Megan. They had another foster child, Miles, who was deaf, and they’d been model foster parents to the boy, both learning sign language at their own expense.

When Cece approached them to ask about taking another foster child, they said they'd take her on a trial basis. Jon was immediately worried about the fact they’d put a condition on fostering the girl, but Cece had told him she believed they were being prudent by taking the child on a trial basis to see what having the girl in their home would entail, especially since they already had Miles. Cece was confident the couple would come through for the child in the end.

The police had been able to track down Megan's family, finding her parents had been killed months prior in an auto accident, and the girl had been given to her grandmother for custody. Unfortunately, the woman had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's, and she found herself slipping fast, such that she didn’t trust herself to provide the child with the care the girl deserved.

The grandmother had taken Megan to the firehouse under the Commonwealth's safe haven laws, and she was horribly upset when the police tracked her down. The woman explained there was no other family, and she didn't want the child to be neglected at her hand because she was already suffering severely due to her disease.

After the investigation and interview with the woman and a few of her friends who knew the dire situation but were unwilling to assist with the little girl, the Commonwealth Attorney declined prosecuting the grandmother, citing evidence the child was in excellent health and well-being when she was dropped off. He concluded the child’s grandmother did what she believed was the best thing for the minor.

Jon agreed, but it was still a tragedy. Thankfully, the grandmother was lucid enough to make the child a ward of the state so she could be placed with a foster family without any pending custody issues.

When he heard a giggle, Jon turned to see Megan walking down the hallway with her hand in Cece's. She looked adorable in a purple dress with a white pinafore apron over it. Her hair was pulled up into a bun on top of her head, and in Jon's opinion, she looked like every happy thought he'd ever had in his life.

The Asberry's had gone to meet and spend time with her at the group home for children with special needs where she was temporarily staying. Jon had gone to meet his client, too, and he had high hopes for a match.

Jon knelt in front of her. "Hello, Angel. How are you?" he asked her as she wrapped her arms around his neck for a hug.

"You're funny, Mr. Jon. I'm fine. Do you think I look okay to meet the judge?" the little girl asked before twirling in front of him.

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