Page 129 of Clinically Delicious
“—Richard Castellano brings in character witnesses who say Gabriel works too much and I’m unqualified, and we got married too fast and—”
“Cate.”
“—what if they find out about the skateboard incident? What if they twist it to make me look negligent? What if they say I’m a danger to children and—”
“CATE.”
I stopped, breathing hard.
Fitz was looking at me with a mixture of amusement and concern. “You need to stop googling worst-case scenarios at 3 AM.”
“How did you—”
“Because I know an anxiety spiral when I see one. And yours is particularly creative.” He squeezed my shoulder. “Listen to me. Gabriel is one of the best fathers I know. He’s dedicated, loving, and present. Even with his crazy schedule, he makes time for Megan. That’s going to count for something.”
“But—”
“And Tonya abandoned her. For three years. That’s not a mistake. That’s a choice. A judge isn’t going to ignore that.”
“Richard Castellano might make them ignore it.”
“Then Anthony Gallagher will make them remember it.” Fitz leaned back against the bench. “Gabriel told me about him. Biker lawyer from New York, never lost a custody case. That’s who you want in your corner.”
“He was kind of intense.”
“Good. You need intense. Richard Castellano is a shark? Fine. Anthony Gallagher is a bigger shark. With a motorcycle.”
Despite everything, I felt my mouth twitch. “That’s a weird mental image.”
“Shark on a motorcycle. Coming to a courtroom near you.”
I laughed. A slightly hysterical sound, but still a laugh.
“There we go.” Fitz smiled. “See? It’s going to be okay.”
“You don’t know that.”
“I know Gabriel. And I know he’s not going to let anyone take Megan away. Especially not Tonya.” He paused. “And I know he’s not going to let anyone hurt you, either.”
Something in my chest squeezed. “We barely know each other.”
“Cate. The man married you.”
“For the custody case.”
“Is that really why?”
I opened my mouth. Closed it.
Was it?
Is that really the only reason?
Or is it because when he looks at me, I feel like I’m the only person in the room?
Because when he touches me, everything else disappears?
Because when he said ‘stay,’ I knew I’d never be able to leave?
