Page 67 of A Billionaire Gentleman

“Ms. Stafford.”

I looked up at the familiar voice. “Mrs. Islip?” Another woman came in behind my PO, and my heart leaped. “Ms. Stanton?” I automatically looked for Dallas, even though I knew he wouldn’t be here.

“You have some very good friends in high places,” Mrs. Islip said as she sat down across from me. “And while that would normally be problematic for me, I’ve been apprised of the situation regarding your arrest. While your conviction still needs to go through the proper channels to be overturned, I’m here to provide my report to Ms. Stanton.”

I didn’t want to hope that this meant what I thought it did. It would hurt too much when I was let down.

Mrs. Islip continued, “Giving her my report like this is unusual, but these circumstances have been anything but usual.” She handed an envelope to Ms. Stanton but kept her eyes on me. “I’ve written all of this down, but I wanted you to hear this from me. I’d already thought well of how you complied with the terms of your probation, not just following the rules, but not complaining about them. You have been exemplary, and now that I know you were innocent of the charges, my admiration of you has only increased. As much as I am able in my position to do so, I am recommending that full custody be returned to you immediately.”

Tears burned my eyes. “Thank you. I’ve appreciated how fairly you’ve treated me. You had no way of knowing I was innocent, but you never made me feel as if I didn’t deserve the chance to be better.”

She gave me a tight smile and then stood. “I’ll leave the two of you to it then. If there’s anything else I can help with, please give me a call.”

“As Marge said, you have friends in high places,” Ms. Stanton said.

It took me a moment to realize she was talking about Mrs. Islip. “I don’t understand.”

“Normally, there’d be a mountain of paperwork and hearings before we’d be able to return Dallas to you. Even the best-case scenario would be twenty-four hours since it’s a Sunday afternoon and I’d need a judge’s signature, but the people you have looking out for you have enough clout to get one of the crankiest judges in the city to sign an emergency custody order to release Dallas to you today.”

I leaned back in my chair, completely taken off-guard. If I’d been asked what I wanted more than anything else, it would’ve been to get to take Dallas home tonight, but I’d never imagined it could actually happen.

“Now, we have a lot of paperwork to do, but once it’s finished, I’ll be able to get Dallas and bring him to you.”

“Where is he?” I asked. “If Mead’s going to be arrested right now, where’s my son?”

“Safe,” she assured me. “Dallas was already with his grandmother when the warrant was served.”

A knot of anxiety formed immediately in my stomach. “She’s never going to hand him over if she knows he’ll be given back to me.”

“She will,” Ms. Stanton said grimly. “Or I’ll have her arrested for interfering with a court order.”

I allowed myself the momentary entertainment of imagining Mead’s mother being arrested. She’d never liked me, and she’d made my marriage even more miserable than it already had been. She’d reinforced Mead’s emotional and mental abuse by telling me that everything was my fault and what a horrible wife and mother I was.

“Let’s get going on filling out this paperwork,” she said. “Once it’s done, I can go get Dallas and bring him here.”

“Why here?” I asked.

“Because if Mead’s mother decides to follow me and try to take Dallas from you, I want people in place to handle it.”

Shit. I hadn’t even thought about that. “What if she decides to come to my apartment?”

Ms. Stanton scribbled something down on a business card and handed it to me. “Don’t let her in. Call 9-1-1, and then call me.”

I nodded. “All right.” I took a deep breath. “Where do I start?”

She pointed, and I began writing.

* * *

Ms. Stantonand I had just finished up the paperwork when Deklin appeared in the doorway. The ear-to-ear smile he was sporting made my heart leap.

“You’re going to want to see this.” He took my hand when I came over to stand next to him.

Ms. Stanton touched my shoulder. “I’m going to go get this started. I’ll bring Dallas back here, so don’t leave.”

“What if something goes wrong?”

Deklin squeezed my hand but didn’t give me clichés or platitudes. I wasn’t being paranoid. Mead had proven just how ruthless he was when it came to getting what he wanted.

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