“You’ve only had him for a few months. That doesn’t make you an expert.”
“You need to take some time and think about what’s best for him. He just moved here and had to adjust to a new school and make new friends. And it’s not like he’d be returning to his old school; he’d have to adjust to yet another school.” I let the frustration I was feeling seep into my voice.
“You’re keeping my son from me. No judge will allow that.”
Talk of a judge getting involved scared me. I didn’t have the cleanest history. I’d had some run-ins with the law. Juvenile records were supposed to be sealed, but I wasn’t sure if a judge could see that I had one. Then there was the issue that Corey got into trouble on my watch.
I clenched my jaw. “I’m not keeping him from you. You can come here and see him anytime you want. Heck you could move here, and we’d share custody, but there’s no way I’m sending him back to Texas.”
I’d let a judge make that decision.
“Corey’s twelve now. He’s probably old enough to make his own decisions.”
“Are you positive his answer will be with you?” The only thing was, I wasn’t sure what he’d say. He seemed happy, but maybe I’d read him wrong.
I needed to talk to Avery to see if she handled custody issues.
“This isn’t the end of this,” she said, then hung up.
My heart was racing. I could only hope a judge would see things my way. I suspected a mother might get deference if she was the primary parent for so many years.
With the garage taking off, I needed to be here. I couldn’t move back. I didn’t even want to think about the possibility if Corey was sent back.
* * *
I called to make an appointment with the attorney, Avery Arrington, who was handling Corey’s case. The receptionist assured me she handled custody disputes. I didn’t even know if the case would be in Maryland or Texas.
I ran my hands through my hair for the millionth time since I talked to Tiffany, then opened the door to Hailey’s shop.
“Hey, thanks for keeping him a little longer.”
“No problem. He said he had some homework he needed to do, so he’s in my office working on it.”
“I have to say it’s nice to hear he’s doing homework on a Friday night.”
Hailey smiled. “He’s a good kid.”
“Yeah.” I sighed, unable to shake the sense of impending doom.
Hailey came around the counter to stand in front of me. “Is everything okay?”
I glanced down the hall, and not seeing Corey, I lowered my voice. “Tiffany called.”
Hailey’s forehead wrinkled. “What did she want?”
“She wants Corey to move back.” I couldn’t say return home because I thought of his home as mine now.
Hailey sucked in a breath. “Why?”
“She said it was meant to be temporary, which I guess it was, but I didn’t understand then how big of a deal it was for him to move here.”
“New school, friends, and home. It’s huge.”
“Exactly, and she moved in with a boyfriend in a different school district. So, he wouldn’t even be returning to his old home and school.”
“Why did she change her mind?”
“I don’t know what’s going on with her, but I can only assume she’s doing whatever is convenient for her without much thought as to Corey’s best interests.” My tone was bitter.