“I’d like to get all of this moving as quickly as possible.”
Preston crossed to Bee and held out his hand. “You must be Gina?”
She shook his hand. “Yes. Thanks for helping Jared, Mr. Shaw.”
“Preston, please.” His smile was professional and a little stiff. Preston had always been a bit on the formal side. “Let me take your coat.” She handed it over. He quickly hung it on a peg behind the door. “Please, sit down.”
I sat next to Gina and clasped my hands under the table.
Preston slid a folder down in front of us. “The lab sent a copy of the report to you, but since you signed off for a copy to be sent to me, I got a digital one from the clinic.”
My knee started bouncing under the table. “And?”
Preston smiled. “You are definitely the father.”
I let out a slow breath. Gina’s hand settled on my knee and I stopped jittering. “Good.”
“Yes, very good. You told me you wanted to keep the baby regardless, but this makes things easier.”
Gina’s head swiveled to stare at me. “You did?”
“Of course.” I covered her hand. “She’s mine.” I ached to say ours, but I didn’t want to upset her. That word seemed off-limits lately. And I was going to get to the bottom of that today.
“Yes, we’d have a much harder road to travel, but I’ve seen it done before. However, we don’t have to worry about that. We’ve located the baby’s biological mother. She was very worried she was in legal trouble for leaving the baby with you, but once I explained you weren’t looking to file charges, she’s been much easier to speak with.”
The three-hundred-pound weight of worry dropped off me instantly. I clutched Gina’s hand on my knee. “I’d looked into her, but I was afraid I’d hurt my chances of keeping Sami if I did anything untoward.”
“I appreciate that. It makes my job much easier with the judge. You have a great reputation and the few people I pooled for references—”
“You did what?”
Preston gave me a brief smile. “It was easier to go about getting references without your knowledge so I could get an accurate assessment. Again, I knew I wouldn’t have issues. You’re a stand-up man, Jared. Your town respects you greatly.”
I swallowed and looked down at the table. Being a man of law and order in town meant I didn’t always make the Christmas card list. I was fair, but I wasn’t a pushover. “That’s very nice to hear.”
“And with that, I have just a few things for you to read over and sign. We’ll file the petition for all parental rights for Samantha Mae to be yours. Trina will not have any legal rights to the baby, but if you choose to allow her into your daughter’s life in the future, we can revisit things.”
“Not in this lifetime.”
Bee covered my hand with her other hand. “Things change, Brooks. But for now, you will have her safe and sound in your house.”
“Our house.”
She looked away, and one hand slipped away.
“In most cases, a marriage would help this case, but in this instance, it isn’t necessary. I expect Trina to sign off on the paperwork without any issues. She was mostly worried about getting in trouble.”
“She should have been. It was a cold night, and she left my little girl on the porch. I would have helped her. I would have taken the baby.”
“She didn’t know that. She’s a scared young woman who was overwhelmed. But now Sami has a wonderful family.” He looked at Gina and then at me. “I’ll leave you both to read over the paperwork. Take your time.” He stood and held his hand out to me. “I know it wasn’t the best way to get us talking again, but I’m glad I could help.”
I rose. “Thanks, Pres.”
He smiled and left as quietly as he’d come in.
I slipped the piece of paper out of the folder and skimmed the contents. A lot of it was legalese and dry, but the gist of it meant Sami would be mine very soon.
Not that she wasn’t already, but I could make sure everything had my goddamn stamp on it. And she had my name legally.
I quickly signed the paper and slid it back into the folder.
“Tell me why you keep saying you aren’t Sami’s mom.”
Bee flinched. “Because I’m not.”
I turned in my chair, and then spun her around to face me. “You are. In my heart, you