Beating Heart: A Small Town, Single Dad Romance (Magnolia Falls Series Book 4)

The weekend had been a blur and ended in the best way. After I’d reached out to Emerson’s brother, Easton, he’d arranged for me and Cutler to come to Rosewood River.

We had become friends since that first day we met, and we’d texted a few times. He was a cool dude, and as it turns out, her whole family was amazing.

It didn’t surprise me. My girl was the best, and of course, she’d have a family that adored her.

Today was a big day because it was Cutler’s Star Student Day at school, and then we had the meeting with Tara at River’s office to deal with after we dropped him off.

Emerson was in the bathroom with Cutler, helping him style his hair for his Star Student Day. This kid lived for these special moments, and he’d found a woman who wanted to celebrate them with him.

“What do you think, Pops?” He strolled out of the bathroom looking like a damn mob boss. He wore a white button-up, a black leather coat, and dark jeans with black dress shoes, and his hair was gelled and slicked into place.

Emerson was just staring at him like he was the most perfect thing she’d ever seen.

“You look cool, buddy.”

“Look at my Sunny’s shirt,” he said.

Emerson puffed her chest out, and her tee read: Beefcake’s Girl.

She had a basket full of these Rice Krispie treats that my boy was obsessed with. And damn if it didn’t make me proud that she knew what to do and how to make it special for him.

“I like it,” I said, waggling my brows because, damn, my girl was gorgeous.

“Good. You have a matching shirt that you need to go put on.” She moved to the counter and tossed me the tee she had sitting on the barstool.

Beefcake’s Pops.

These weren’t written in Sharpie. She’d had them made in advance.

And I fucking loved it.

I went to change into the ridiculous tee, and the three of us made our way to school. Normally, I’d just hand the teacher the store-bought treats and head to work, but today, we took photos together in front of the classroom, and all the kids came running over to see what he’d brought.

Cutler beamed up at Emerson as his classmates came over to say hello to their pediatrician. She was basically a celebrity here.

Apparently, she’d called Doc Dolby while she was home to tell him that she’d had a change of heart, and she wanted to stay in Magnolia Falls. I’d laughed my ass off when she’d told me that he’d never really interviewed anyone else because he felt confident that she’d change her mind. He’d just figured if she left, he’d step back in and start over with the hiring process.

He’d found the person he wanted to take over his practice, and he’d been determined to keep her.

Just like I was.

“Thanks for making my Star Student Day the best. Sorry, Pops. But Emerson makes the best treats,” Cutler said, and she bent down to hug him goodbye.

“I know. Unicorn Krispies are not in my wheelhouse.” I chuckled.

“Have the best day. We’ll pick you up after school, okay?” Emerson said, leaning down to kiss his cheek.

I noticed that her eyes were wet with emotion as I took her hand in mine, and we walked out of the school.

“You okay?” I asked.

“Yeah.” She turned to face me as I opened the passenger door. “That was just really special. I loved getting to be there for him.”

“He loved it, too. Thank you for being there for my boy.”

“Of course,” she said, as I drove toward her office.

“Oh, I’m not going in until later. Doc is covering. I want to be there with you today, if you’re all right with that.”

I paused at the stop sign to look at her. “You sure about that? Tara’s a lot to handle, and she’ll have her boyfriend there, so things may get ugly.”

“We’re in this together. That’s how this works. The good and the bad. I want to be there beside you.”

And that’s exactly where I wanted her to be.

“Thank you.” I cleared my throat.

“Are you okay?” she asked, as I pulled into the parking spot near River’s law office.

“Yeah, I’m good. I’m not used to counting on anyone but the guys. So you keep catching me off guard by showing up every time I need you.”

“Get used to it. I’m not going anywhere.” She smirked, and I jumped out of the car and came around to get her door.

“Easiest thing I’ve ever needed to get used to.” I pressed her up against the car and kissed her before pulling back and leading her inside.

Cassie, River’s assistant, was just handing him a cup of coffee when we walked in, and he was pinching the bridge of his nose and calmly trying to tell her that she’d made it wrong. Again. It took everything I had in me not to laugh as she repeated the order three times and left with the mug.

“Hey,” he said, coming around to clamp me on the shoulder before pulling Emerson in for a hug. “If you two order coffee, it might be best to just order it black.”

We chuckled as Cassie returned with his coffee and took our orders.

Two black coffees.

We made our way to the conference room and took our seats, just as Cassie brought Tara, with the guy I assumed was her boyfriend right behind her, sans legal representation.

Shocker.

She didn’t care enough to find someone to help her understand what today was about. She could have hired someone or reached out to postpone the date until she found someone to represent her. But she’d never take the time to do that.

It shouldn’t surprise me.

She’d never cared, had she?

“Hey,” Tara said, her eyes landing on Emerson, before glaring in her direction.

I found my girl’s hand beneath the table and intertwined our fingers. “This is my husband, Mark.”

River and I shared a look of surprise as he turned back toward Tara. “I hadn’t realized you were married. So this will affect both of you, then.”

“We’ve been married for over a year. So I won’t tolerate my wife being mistreated by anyone,” Mark said, and I covered my mouth with my hand to stifle a laugh, and he definitely noticed.

She was not the victim.

“And you are choosing not to have council present?” River asked as he opened his file.

“Mark and I can speak for ourselves.” Tara leaned forward, her smile forced. “There is no need to take a paternity test; I know that Cutler is your son. I shouldn’t have said that.”

“You don’t need to apologize, baby. You were upset,” Mark said, reaching for her hand.

“Well, it was a shitty thing to say to a man who loves his son, and it’s a dangerous game to play, Tara. But it’s for the better because it was time for this to come to a head,” I said.

“Meaning?”

“This is how things are going to play out.” River took charge, sliding over a packet to each one of them. “These are the numbers for back child support, should you pursue custody. You would also be expected to pay child support moving forward, as well. You have never paid a dime for your son, and all the financial and emotional responsibility has fallen on the shoulders of my client, who does it happily. He would like to continue to do it.”

“Well, then why would I pay him if he wants to continue with the arrangement that we have?” she asked, as her husband gaped at the numbers on the pages that were set in front of him.

No shit, jackass. Raising kids is expensive.

“We’re not paying this. She sees that kid once every couple of years, so there’s no need to pay. You can keep the arrangement you have, as we don’t want children,” the scrawny asshole hissed, and Tara shrugged.

Emerson squeezed my hand beneath the table.

“Great. Then you will need to sign over full custody to Nash. This means that you don’t get to come to town and decide when or how often you see Cutler. You are giving up that right, but you gave it up years ago anyway. This is just a formality to protect my client and his son.”

“Our son,” Tara said, and Mark shot her what looked like some sort of warning look.

“Your name is on the birth certificate, but you haven’t been a mother to that little boy, and you know it,” I said. My voice was even and calm, and I reserved judgment because I wanted to try to talk some sense into her. “Come on, Tara. Do the right thing here. You don’t want to be part of his life, so you can’t just come around whenever things go wrong in your relationship and mess with his head.”

The room fell silent, and she looked away, staring out the window for a long moment.

“He’s right,” Mark said, keeping his voice low. “We’ve got our own lives, and it doesn’t include this town or the people in it. You’ve said it yourself.”

“That doesn’t mean I don’t care about him.” She looked back over at me, chin high.

“No one’s saying that you don’t care about him. I was sort of hoping that you did care about him enough to do the right thing,” I said.

“Listen, we’re not here to judge you or debate whether or not you care. This is a legal matter at this point. You either take responsibility, which includes financial responsibility, or you sign the papers and let the man who’s been raising him continue to do so,” River said, as he pushed the custody agreement across the table.

“And what if I want to come to town once in a while and say hello?” she asked.

“Then you call Nash, and you schedule a visit. But you won’t make demands or play head games with either one of them. The truth is, you should be thanking this man for stepping up for your son. Cutler is the best kid I’ve ever known. He has a massive heart, he’s smart, he’s kind, he’s everything you want your child to be. And that’s due to the job that Nash has done. Day in and day out. He’s shown up for that little boy, and if you really look at your son, you’d see that,” River said, as he stared right at her.

My chest squeezed at his words.

All I wanted was to do a good job raising my little boy. If it was the one thing I accomplished in life, it would be a win.

So hearing him speak this way about my son, it hit me hard.

Because Cutler was the best kid in the world. He was all the things River had just said, and then some.

Tara’s eyes watered the slightest bit, and she nodded. “He’s a really good boy, Nash.”

“He is,” I said, and Emerson’s grip on my hand beneath the table tightened again.

“Then just sign the papers. Nothing changes. He’s not saying you can’t come visit every couple years. But at least we won’t have to pay for the kid.” Mark wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

I was equal parts relieved and offended by his words.

There was no price that I could put on the happiness my son had brought into my life. If you said I’d have to give away everything I owned and every penny I’d made until the day I died just to keep him with me, it would be a no-brainer.

I would give it all.

But not everyone felt that way, and Tara had never had that maternal bond with him. Sometimes I felt guilty that a part of me was relieved I didn’t have to share him. I loved having my boy with me full-time.

I didn’t know what I’d do if it hadn’t worked out that way.

Tara picked up the pen and signed her name. “I never wanted to be a mama, you know?”

I nodded. “I do.”

“But it doesn’t mean that I don’t want the best for him.”

“Understood,” River said, reaching across the table and picking up the piece of paper. I didn’t miss the look of relief in his gaze when it met mine.

“So, we’re going to leave town later tonight.” Tara shrugged. “Can I say goodbye to him?”

There was Emerson, squeezing my hand beneath the table again, urging me to do the right thing. The kind thing.

“How about Emerson and I pick him up early from school and meet you two at the Golden Goose for a milkshake before you get on the road?” I said, looking over to see the corner of my girl’s lips turn up the slightest bit.

Tara turned to Mark. “I’d like to do that so I can say goodbye.”

“As long as we aren’t buying for everyone,” her husband grumped, and it took all I had in me not to rip his head off. I had no desire to go sit with these two assholes at the diner. But I was doing it for Cutler so he wouldn’t wonder why she didn’t say goodbye.

“I’m happy to spring for the shakes,” I said, and River barked out a laugh.

“Sorry. It’s just—” River shook his head. “Some people have a whole lot of nerve.”

The comment went straight over their heads as they were already discussing what kind of ice cream they’d get.

There was no love there between the four of us, but what mattered most was the love that I had for my son.

That’s the reason I pushed to do the right thing, even when I didn’t want to.

We agreed to meet at the diner in an hour, and Emerson and I made our way to the school to pick up our superstar student early.

He was thrilled when he saw us.

I didn’t tell him why we were going, just that we wanted to celebrate him.

We parked two blocks away from the diner, and Cutler walked between Emerson and me, one hand in each of ours as he filled us in on his day.

“All the kids said my parents sent the coolest snacks ever,” Cutler said, and my fucking chest felt like it would cave in from the way it tightened at his words.

Emerson beamed as she smiled at him. “We’ll have to come up with cool new snacks every year now, because we’ll just have to keep getting better and better.”

I pulled the door open and followed my family inside.

These two are my entire world.

And I was going to hold on tight and enjoy the ride.

I glanced around the diner and didn’t see Tara and Mark, but I just asked for the large booth in the back.

They never showed up that day, and my ex sent a text saying that they needed to get on the road so they wouldn’t hit traffic.

But none of that mattered, because my son actually never inquired about where she went.

Because he had everything he needed right here.

And so did I.