Page 74 of Broken Vows
“Hey, you trusted him with business,” she sasses. “That makes you just as bad as me, in some respects.” She hums, eyes twinkling. “Maybe even worse.”
I narrow my eyes playfully. “We’ll have to agree to disagree.” I pinch her ass, making her yelp, followed by a giggle. “Come on. It’s time to grab our kids.”
Her eyebrows lift, those stormy blue eyes wide. “Our kids?”
“Got a problem with that?” I challenge. She watches me for the longest moment, her shrewd gaze assessing my sincerity, but then her head shakes from side to side.
“You know what? No.” Lynley’s smile is slow coming, but takes over her entire face. “No, I don’t.”
Chapter 28
Grafton
Knox leans back in the chair on the other side of my desk, his silvery gray eyes fixed on me. “Never thought you’d switch out city life for small-town shenanigans.”
My mouth twitches. “I might have to change my mind if I’m going to start saying shit likeshenanigans.” My amusement fades away as I pin him with a serious look. “What kind of consequences are we facing if I release the footage?”
“The footage?” he echoes, rubbing a hand over his jaw. “I’m not a lawyer, but you’re opening yourself up to a potential lawsuit. And Delcourt seems like the type to use any opportunity that comes his way to stir shit up. Would it be worth it?”
I bare my teeth in a sharp smile. “Very worth it. After they ambushed Lynley last week, I got the very clear sense that the Delcourts aren’t going to give her peace until they’re dealt with. I don’t want her living in fear that, one day, they’ll decide to come after her or the kids.”
Knox chuckles. “Never thought I’d see the day that youwere smitten.” He tilts his head to the side, eyes gleaming. “It’s a good look on you.”
I rest an elbow on the armrests of my chair, pressing my fingertips together. “How’s Jamie?”
His smile falters before he fixes it back into place. “She’s good. The bakery is doing well.” He rolls his eyes. “Still can’t believe she went with the name Frothy Cakes.”
“How long have you two been married now?”
He tilts his head back, as if the answer might be painted on the ceiling of my office. “Five years,” he finally says, “and three months.”
“Pretty impressive.”
He drops his head back down, his dark brows casting a shadow over his eyes. “I’ve looked into Francine and Bradley Delcourt,” he says, efficiently steering us back to the matter at hand. “Their finances are tied up in the family estate. They receive monthly stipends, which are generous and more than enough for them to live on. Christopher, on the other hand, has bled his trust fund dry.”
I lean forward, frowning. “He’s got money, though. I know that you and Lynley’s PI found all his accounts.”
Knox nods. “Yes, and the courts have frozen all of them—offshore and otherwise. I’m keeping an eye on it, but Lynley will be compensated for the hell Christopher put her through.” He exhales slowly. “I know you want to see him punished, but his name is still connected to Mase and Ginny. If you expose Christopher to the media, you make the kids vulnerable. As much as I wish we could, we can’t just erase the Delcourt name from their family tree.”
It’s what I expected, but I still curse. I am still fuming over the way they came after Lynley in the middle of Sterling Creek—a town she has made her home.We were damn lucky the kids weren’t with us that day, but what about nexttime? I need to find a way of making sure that Christopher—and his parents—won’t dare come after Lynley again.
“There is another option.” Knox’s voice cuts through my frustration. “Christopher has severed all legal ties to Lynley and to the children. While their names might still be connected in a familial sense, legally, he’s got no connection to them.”
I arch a brow. “Go on.”
“Money is what the Delcourts live and breathe. Even after Christopher pays Lynley out, he’ll be okay financially. The Delcourt estate is enough to sustain him, alongside his parents, for the rest of his life without him ever having to work.”
Realization is a slow-burning flame in my chest. “So, if we cut off the estate, we cut off their money flow.”
“We already know Christopher has zero work ethic, and that he has an expectation that everything will be handed to him. We take that away?—”
“He’ll be fucked,” I laugh.
He pins me with a hard look. “There is your niece to be considered,” he reminds me. “And the possible pregnancy.”
I rub my fingers over my jaw, considering. “I’ll never condemn an innocent child, but this might be the life lesson that Angelica needs. I’ll step in if I have to, but plenty of people out there raise children while working for everything they have.”
“And Thatcher?”
