Page 20 of Laws of Love
Knox had one, but he couldn’t ask it yet. Well, he could, but he wouldn’t. He didn’t want to compromise her professionalism, and he had no intention of bringing her into his divorce drama in any capacity other than his lawyer. Once things were completed, he’d ask her what he wanted to. So, he shook his head, telling her no.
“Alright. One last thing. When mediation starts, be sure that you don’t speak to Mia about anything unless it’s regarding Yasmine, and even then, do not speak to her about custody. Continue to record the conversations like you’ve been doing, but if it shifts to things that should be discussed in the presence of your lawyers, end the call.”
“Noted,” Knox responded. He had no plans to speak to Mia outside of Yasmine’s well-being as he’d been doing. Even now, when she called or sent him a text, he didn’t engage with her. Just listened to her rant and rave.
“If there’s nothing else, I’ll see you at our first mediation meeting, whenever that is. If you have questions before then, call me.”
Knox stood, Aiva doing the same, and he took her soft hand into his, shaking it before thanking her for her time and leaving her office. He didn’t have plans for the day. Mia would have Yasmine, which left him free. Knox mildly thought about checking in on his dealerships, but it never failed that when he did, he ended up working or being there talking to customers for hours.
Knox didn’t mind the latter, but the entire reason he had someone else run the dealerships and his other business ventures was that he enjoyed being able to sit back and earn a passive income. It was why he’d bought car dealerships, real estate, and a couple of gyms before retiring from the league. He wanted to make sure he was still bringing in income with little work on his part.
Getting into his car, Knox decided he would stop and get some lunch, and maybe spend some time looking for new real estate properties to buy.
11
“Daddy, what’s a gold-digging heifer?” Yasmine questioned, and Knox snapped his head in her direction. She sat beside him on the couch, her attention still on the educational game she was playing on her tablet.
“Where did you hear that?” he questioned instead of answering her immediately.
“From Molly. She babysat the other night and was on the phone after she put me to bed. I had to go to the bathroom and heard her say that mommy was a gold-digging heifer.”
Knox stayed quiet for a moment, letting the fact that he’d heard those words in his daughter’s sweet little voice sink in. He also didn’t know how to answer her. Knox didn’t make it a point of lying to Yasmine or telling her she didn’t need to know about certain things when she asked because he believed in open communication. He explained things to her in a kid-friendly way she could understand while also not taking away from whatever the subject was.
Knox chose his words carefully. “It’s a woman who likes money.” It was a simple answer, but it was the truth.
“I like money. That means I can be a gold-digging heifer, too.”
Knox’s eyes widened, and he was sure a look of mortification passed over his face before he could school it. Luckily for him, Yasmine finished the level she was on before she turned her attention to him.
“No, sweetheart. You cannot. It’s not a nice term, and Molly shouldn’t have said that about your mom.”
Knox wanted to add on even if it was true but refrained from doing so. He never spoke ill of Mia to or in front of Yasmine. Hell, he hardly ever spoke ill of her because, if he could help it, he didn’t speak about her often.
That was why Knox always tried to be honest when answering Yasmine’s questions. Making it too child-friendly could come back and bite him in situations like this if he didn’t explain it well.
“That means I shouldn’t say that?” she questioned, her brown eyes filled with curiosity.
“That’s exactly what it means. We don’t say things that aren’t nice.”
Yasmine nodded at him and turned her attention back to her tablet. Knox picked up his phone from the coffee table, intent on sending Molly a message. She’d been Yasmine’s babysitter for years. Even before he and Mia separated. She mainly babysat when Yasmine was with Mia, but on the rare occasion that Knox had to take care of something and he couldn’t take her, and his parents were unavailable, he’d call Molly to babysit.
He wasn’t upset by what Molly said about Mia or even that Yasmine heard her because she believed his daughter was sleeping. However, he wanted to let her know that he’d explained it to Yasmine and what he’d said so that they were on the same page if she questioned Molly later.
After sending his text, Knox glanced at the time and found that it was twenty minutes after eight. He placed his phone down and looked over to see how close Yasmine was to finishing the level she’d started.
“Yas, pick out your bedclothes when you finish this level,” he instructed.
“Okay, Daddy,” she responded.
While she finished that level, Knox went into the kitchen, grabbed a cup from the cabinet, and filled it with water. He went down the hall into Yasmine’s room and poured the water into the night light that sat on her bedside table. The lights were in the bottom under a thick plastic to keep them dry. It changed colors periodically, and a mechanism caused the water to bubble.
After screwing the top on it tightly, he went into her bathroom and started the water in the bathtub. Knox added some bubbles before leaving the room to take the cup back into the kitchen, passing Yasmine as she headed to her bedroom.
He grabbed her tablet and placed it on the charger before grabbing his phone, and then turning off the television and the lights. When he returned to Yasmine’s room, her clothes were laid out on her bed, and she was in the bathroom. He walked in and turned the water off while she stood on her stool and brushed her teeth.
“Do you need help?” he questioned, even though he knew the answer. Yasmine shook her head at him as he knew she would. She enjoyed being independent and doing things for herself. “Okay, I’ll be back in twenty minutes.”
With that, Knox went to his bedroom. He showered while Yasmine took her bath, but had no intention of going to bed this early.
