Page 86 of Claimed By the Cowboys
“I had an incredibly difficult pregnancy,” Caroline sniffed, her eyes already half filled with crocodile tears. “And then, after I had D—” She stopped abruptly as Lance gripped her thigh beneath the table, turning the stammer into a hiccup before she covered as gracefully as she could. “M-Maisie,” she bit out before stumbling on. “I was in the throes of such a dark postpartum depression that I simply couldn’t see carrying on.” She brought a tissue to her eyes dramatically.
At this, Zeke stopped his note-taking and clicked his pen closed, sitting back in his chair to regard Caroline and the others with an easy, open smile.
“Thank you, Miss Ross.” The mediator concluded her own note-taking before she turned her gaze to Mr. Menucci. “What are the terms and conditions for settlement that Miss Ross and Pack Adamar are putting forward?” she asked, peering over the rims of her reading glasses.
“Miss Ross is seeking damages for impact to her career and property ownership prospects. She is also seeking to claim her rights to a percentage of proceeds of profits from the ranch, or equivalent ownership of properties and profits therein,” her lawyer began flatly, sending one of Zeke’s golden brows into a curious upward arch.
“Miss Ross will also be seeking partial custody of her child, Maisie Blackwood, along with mandated relationship counseling sessions with her ex-partner Clayton Blackwood and any other pack members who she would be co-parenting her daughter with.”
Those last words sank into my stomach like a rock.
It was one thing for Caroline to drag me and the boys through all of this nonsense; it was quite another to bring poor, innocent little Maisie into such a mess.
There was nothing to be gained by forcing Maisie to meet a woman who had abandoned her six weeks after she entered the world—a woman who would just as likely abandon her again as soon as the wind guided her to brighter and more lucrative prospects.
“Thank you very much, Miss Ross, Mister Menucci, Pack Adamar.” The mediator smoothed her papers before she turned to face Zeke and the rest of Pack Blackwood.
“Very well, Mr. Hunter, Pack Blackwood. What is your position on Miss Ross’s proposed settlement?”
“Angela—I’m sorry—Mrs. Bernat,” Zeke began in his un-accented academic tone, once again leaning into his familiarity with the mediator. “While you know that I’m here representing Pack Blackwood, I’m also in the unique position of being a member of the pack and an employee of the ranch.” He flashed his winning smile before continuing.
“I’d like to give my client and pack lead, Clayton Blackwood, the opportunity to address the mediation group before I say my piece as the pack’s lawyer—if I may.”
“You may, Mr. Blackwood.” Gesturing to Clay, she said, “You may speak.”
“Madam mediator, while it may be true that Caroline Ross was formerly employed at Blackwood Ranch, that was nearly four years ago,” Clay explained evenly as I held my breath, the laptop clutched tightly in my hands. “While it is also true that Miss Ross was romantically involved with myself and several members of my pack during the last year of her employment with Blackwood Ranch, Miss Ross ultimately lost her position due to job abandonment after she left not only her place of work, but her home and her six-week-old daughter, Maisie Rae Blackwood,” he managed to explain calmly.
This drew a squirm from Caroline and a microscopic raise of the mediator’s brow.
“After Miss Ross’s departure, every effort was made to reconnect her with Maisie. Miss Ross not only refused to return, but demanded that Clayton Blackwood compensate her for what she stated were ‘damages’ to her body due to her pregnancy and subsequent childbirth.” Zeke reached into a large leather folio and produced two copies of a single printed document for the mediator, and for Caroline and her team. “Mr. Blackwood paid Miss Ross fifty thousand dollars, per their agreement that she would not return to claim additional funds from Mr. Blackwood.”
The mediator nodded before asking, “Was there no documented discussion of custody at that time?”
“There was not a formal discussion of custody, no—though we do have some emails from that time period that detail Miss Ross’s disinterest in raising her daughter. As such, Mr.Blackwood and the members of his pack assumed it was a non-issue.”
Mrs. Bernat nodded solemnly before she pressed on. “What are your proposed terms and conditions for settlement?”
I sat with my knees hugged to my chest, my bottom lip caught between my teeth as Zeke laid down the hammer.
“Pack Blackwood is willing to provide a final one-time payment to Miss Ross to help her continue on her path of independence,” he began crisply. “In light of the previous payment, Mr. Blackwood is willing to pay the equivalent of one month of Miss Ross’s former forty-five thousand dollars yearly salary, rounded up. Since that would cover the unpaid wages for the amount of time between Miss Ross’s original job abandonment, to her termination. The final amount would be four thousand dollars, paid in full at the time of settlement.”
Across the table, Caroline and her team hissed in hushed whispers until the mediator cleared her voice.
Zeke waited until the room was silent again to give his closing. “As Caroline has not seen her daughter since she chose to relinquish the six-week-old infant toour care…” Zeke’s voice wobbled slightly, his big heart getting the better of him as his eyes sparkled with unshed tears. “And she has similarly been absent from any Pack Blackwood dealings and remains unbonded with Pack Blackwood, we deny her requests for custody. Similarly, we will move to dispute Miss Ross’s claims to Blackwood Ranch properties and profits if she does not drop said claims herself as a result of this mediation,” he concluded with cold finality.
But before Angela Bernat could open the floor for guided discussion, Caroline was up and out of her chair, hands pressed flat against the table in outrage.
“Well, it sounds like we’ll see you in court!” she shrilled, icy eyes fixed hatefully on Clayton across the table.
Knocked off balance by her outburst, Pack Adamar and Mr. Menucci shot each other worried looks as they scrambled to gather their documents from the conference table.
“Typically, we revisit the proposed compromise together before there’s any definitive decision to escalate—” The mediator made an earnest attempt to get Caroline to sit back down at the table and discuss, but she was already on her way out of the web camera frame, stomping away on her high heels.
“Well, then.” The mediator bristled as Mr. Menucci and Pack Adamar rushed after Caroline. “I suppose that brings our session to a close. Mr. Hunter, best of luck on your trip to civil court,” she sighed with resignation.
“Thank you very much for your time today, Angela. Say hi to Rob and the puppers for me, would ya?” Zeke grinned, offering the mediator a hand to shake before the video conference call suddenly disconnected.
I slammed the laptop shut and flopped backward onto the couch, my heart beating furiously in my chest.
