Falling for the Fine White Man.... Again

Chapter 1

Cade

“Are you sure we can’t get him as a witness?”

I shake my head, interrupting Jim before he can answer Randall’s question. I lean forward at the head of the table. “We can, I’m sure of it.”

“I don’t know, Cade. He seemed pretty insistent.”

“Well, that’s why I’m president of the firm. I can get things done that no one else can.” I know how harsh it sounds, but I’m just stating facts. Thankfully, my team is used to my demeanor. 

“When we get him, this is an easy win for us. His testimony puts the defense at the crime. And he’s reputable,” I continue, watching them look hesitantly at one another, unsure if they should relax yet.

“This is a big one for us,” Jim states. “We need to win.”

“And we will. And if you hold your own on this one, the next one just may be yours.”

Jim’s eyes widen in disbelief before quickly clearing his throat. “Yes, sir.”

My eyes scan over the documents spread out before us, looking for another approach. We need another safety net, just in case…

“What do we have other than the current accusation against this guy?”

Randall and Jim list things off and shuffle through paperwork, but my mind races with a different thought. We need to think outside the box here.

I lean back into my chair and run my hand through my sandy-brown hair, forcing myself to not pull it in frustration. The motion slows my mind as I try to see a different way to approach this case. 

Jim is right. This is a high-stakes case for us. And it's cases like this one that make me feel much older than my ripe 34 years.

“We need to think about what the defense is going to use to—”

I stop mid-sentence as my phone vibrates angrily at me. The others pause in suspenseful silence, waiting for me to finish my thought.

Irritated at being interrupted, I still look, knowing it could be something to do with this case.

I see the caller ID, and my irritation rises. Standing, I straighten my tailored suit. “Excuse me.” 

The two young men look at me confused but nod, continuing to speak in a low murmur to keep strategizing. 

I’m out of the large room in seconds with my long stride, gripping the buzzing phone tightly in my hand.

 The phone stops buzzing before I make it to my office, but a voicemail appears on the screen. Since I don’t need to exchange words, I stop in the hall and listen.

My ex-wife’s voice is tight and broken, as if she’s trying not to sob. I press the phone closer to my ear to make sure I catch every word, my stomach now sick with the unknown.

“…It just happened so suddenly. Thomas was just sick, and the flu was going around, and so I thought it was nothing. But he’s gotten worse, so I took him to Urgent Care, and now it seems much more serious. We’re at the hospital now, but they haven’t told me anything yet…”

Her voice crackles over the speaker as she gasps to regain control over her emotions. I can picture her dark brown eyes filled with tears, biting her full lips to keep the tears at bay. I see it as clearly as if she’s telling me the news in person. “Just get down here as soon as possible. Please, Cade. This is bigger than work. We—Thomas needs you.”

My mind instantly starts thinking of solutions to Thomas’s illness. Maybe Kalcey is just overreacting, and the doctors are being extra cautious. 

She can be overprotective at times. Still, her voice didn’t sound as if she was using this as punishment for me not being able to see Thomas the last couple of weeks. Usually, she never misses the opportunity to berate me for being an ‘absent father,’ but this voice, her tone…

Taking a breath to calm my over-analyzing mind, I reach my office quickly and grab my jacket and keys. 

“Mr. Dannington?” Patricia, my secretary, calls curiously as I whisk by her.

“Hold my calls and let the guys know to finish up the day without me. I’ll be available by phone tomorrow and check in to see their progress.” 

I don’t even glance back to see her response. I can already hear her dialing to the conference room.

The drive over feels like it takes years, and all I can think about is how I could have tried harder to see him the last couple of weeks. Sure, I was busy with work, but I always am. I just try to avoid any interaction with Kalcey. It’s strained and uncomfortable, and I’d rather just not deal with it.

“That’s a piss poor excuse to not see your son,” I mumble to myself, trying to push back worst-case scenarios as to why Thomas got moved to the hospital and if I’ll get these last missed weeks back to make up to him.

Not wanting to waste time looking for a spot, I pull into a loading zone only and slam my car into park. I can handle the violation later.

My Johnston and Murphy Oxfords echo through the calm hospital corridor, creating a stark and bleak contrast. The clicks give away the building anxiety I’m trying to keep buried beneath my usual controlled exterior. 

Before I make my way to the front desk, I spot Kalcey pacing back and forth in front of the emergency room. Her restless stride instantly tells me she’s fighting to keep her inner turmoil from bubbling to the surface. Her dimples are shadowed with worry instead of her usual warm smile.

My throat tightens at the sight.

This has to be bad.

I force myself not to run over to her and take her into my arms. Despite the resentment between us, I still hate to see her like this, especially with our son.

“Kalcey? What’s going on, what have you heard?”

Her bright brown eyes glow against her dark skin as she spins to face me, completely unaware of any presence.

She looks as if she wants to come to me but stops herself short and clears her throat.

“Cade. I’m so glad you’re here. They haven’t told me anything yet. I’ve been here just waiting.”

“It’s okay, Kalcey. Breathe and tell me what happened.”

Her fingers twitch at her sides as she takes a slow inhale to steady herself.

“Well, like I said on the message, he was fine. He was kind of worn out and achy for a couple of days, but I thought it was the flu. But then he got worse today, and I just wanted to make sure. So I took him into Urgent Care, and they ran a couple of tests.”

“What kind of tests?”

“I don’t know! I just thought they were checking for the usual.” I can see her on the edge of losing control, but she reins her voice back in and takes another deep breath. “When the tests came back, they said he needed to go to the hospital just to make sure things were okay. So, they sent us here and called ahead. The moment we got here, they took Thomas. He’s been back there ever since, and… and…”

“Okay, so let me get this straight. Thomas only had the flu, but you took him in. So why are we at the hospital?”

“I don’t know!” she snaps.

The lack of answers she’s able to give adds to my growing frustration. The need to comfort her is replaced with fury.

“How can you not know? You’re his mother, Kalcey. If it’s so bad, how could you not have noticed anything strange?” I ask harshly. My worry has turned to anger. “Whatever this is…” I wave my hands around. “Could have been prevented.”

The sadness of her big eyes turns to venomous daggers as they narrow at me. 

“How dare you?”

“How dare me? Are you even paying attention to what’s been going on? Or have you been too busy teaching and chasing that master’s degree of yours to take care of our son?”

I see her fist clench and momentarily dare her to slap me.

“You have no right! I’m always there for him! For ten years, I have done everything for him, and where have you been?”

“I was there for five years, and it’s your fault I haven’t been a constant in the last five.”

“Bullshit!” she growls through gritted teeth. She puffs herself up, looking somehow much taller than her five and a half feet, and looks up into my face. “You never were there. Why do you think we got divorced? It was always work over us. Over your son. Over me! Even these last few weeks, you were supposed to have him, and what were you doing?”

“Work! I’m busy. I have to provide—”

“Oh, shove it, Cade. I can’t stand to hear the same bullshit excuses from you one more fucking time—”

I feel my anger rising enough to flush my cheeks.

“You think I would make excuses to avoid seeing my son? I run the firm. I have cases that pay your bills. In order to make it here, I have to be on top of it.”

“You don’t think I have the same problems as you?” she snarls, pushing my chest in frustration.

“I know you do, but you’re his mother—”

“And you’re his father!

“And I’m here! God, Kalcey. I can’t do anything if you don’t tell me what’s going on. This is why I hate picking him up from you. You always want to pick a fight and bring up old shit.”

“Old shit? This is what tore our family apart. It’s your shit and inability to compromise.”

“You think it was easy for me to go to work knowing I was missing things with Thomas and pissing you off every time I went? I couldn’t win with you, just like now!”

I see her fist clench again as she shakes in angry silence, trying to come up with the next insult at me.

“Do it,” I finally say. She looks at me in confusion.

“Slap me or scream at me, whatever makes you feel better and ends this faster.”

She sucks in a breath as I wait for her to decide.