Page 115 of For Your Consideration

“Obviously, I agree that’s an unacceptable outcome. I was simply explaining to Sutton so she understood what he was seeking. She needs to be informed of every part of this.” She gave him a look that would have been intimidating if she wasn’t in my corner.

“Better explain before he snaps,” Knight called from Asher’s side.

Maya looked up at Will. “Your PI is helpful and I will have enough when he’s done to bury Ben so deep he can’t get out. Custody of a child he has no interest in will be the least of his problems.”

“Careful,” Asher grumbled. I knew it was in relation to the lack of regard for Sophie. I rested my free hand on his forearm.

“She’s not wrong. And it has nothing to do with Soph,” I said gently to him.

“Do you want him to get a warning or to take it to court?” Maya was still looking at Will.

“You’re actually asking my opinion?” He looked at her, genuinely confused.

“This is your call. I’m fine either way but I know Sutton will be more comfortable if we make the decision together.” She looked over at me and smiled. I let out a breath and sat back, leaning into Asher’s side. There was nothing about how she was talking that made her seem unsure. I was so thankful Will had called her.

“What did you find?” Asher asked, his voice still gruff. I sometimes forgot he was that way with everyone else but me.

“He’s got a lot of credit card debt.” She pulled out another file from her case and handed it over to Will without looking at him.

“Man is true trash,” Iris called from where she was sitting with the tea that Asher had gotten her. She’d never met Ben but she’d hated him from the first moment I told her why I was alone with a young child.

“Agreed.” Jaxson held out his fist toward Iris and to my surprise, she knew what to do and bumped him back with a smile on her face.

“Well.” Maya pulled everyone’s attention back to her. “He’s buried in it. Seems that he has a sports betting problem and loses a lot of money online. He’s not financially stable enough to show he could support a child or even pay child support since he hasn’t given you a penny since she was born.

“So on top of him having no prior involvement and a clear lack of interest in his daughter, we’ve dug into his personal life. He isn’t overly well liked at work and has had a number of poor performance reviews and HR complaints.

“He has a couple of unpaid parking tickets, and he’s currently renting and can’t seem to stay somewhere longer than a year. He hangs around a few guys who’ve been arrested before, one for drug possession and one for assault and battery. Everything I’ve had them dig for so far shows he isn’t fit to be a parent.”

“And there would be enough here to destroy his life.” Will looked up thoughtfully from the folder.

“That isn’t everything.” Maya sent me a smug look. “Do you need to know more?”

“Yes.”

“No.”

Asher and I had spoken at the same time. I looked over at him. “If you want to know, Will can tell you later. But I don’t need to know anything above what she’s using in court. I don’t want to have to tell Sophie more than this one day when she’s older.”

I looked away from him to Sophie on the floor. My heart hurt. I already knew I was going to have to tell her about her father one day, but I didn’t need to add all his indiscretions to the list. Because if she asked when she was older, I didn’t want to have to lie to her.

When I looked back at Asher, he had a funny look on his face, almost like he was hurt. But he cleared his throat, the emotion gone as quickly as it came, and then nodded.

Maya looked at me. “If you give them a warning on what we’re bringing forward he might drop it, but it also gives him time to try and explain his way out of things. It lowers your chances of going to court but doesn’t eliminate them.”

I took a deep breath, looking over at Sophie. “You think we should just take it to a judge.”

“I know it sounds more stressful but bringing it to court eliminates the back and forth and game playing his attorney could try. It really closes the book. If I expedite it, which I do have the connections to do, then you won’t have to worry for as long.”

I looked back at her, my grip tightening in Asher’s again. “But it could mean shared custody.”

“I won’t promise you anything, Sutton, but I’m good at what I do and there is a very clear case that he has no place in Sophie’s life.”

When I looked over at Asher, his eyes were already locked on me. He was here supporting me but letting me make this decision, although I knew that the second I asked for his opinion he would give it.

I knew what I needed to do.

I glanced at Will, and he gave me an encouraging nod. Everyone was watching, waiting.