“Come on, caterpillar; it’s been an hour. I wish you could tell me what to do to make you feel better.”
Braxton couldn’t take it anymore. He’d tried everything, and nothing was working. Not the bottle, not the clean diaper. Not even swaddling her helped.
“Fuck!” he barked out he was the worst father ever. What was he going to do?
Chapter 18
Paisley’s phone began to vibrate on her desk beside her cup of coffee. BRAXTON flashed across the screen. Her thumb slid the bar right before she raised it to her ear. “Hey, Brax. What’s up?” Immediately, she heard Emmersyn screaming in the background, and the beat of her heart increased one hundred times faster. “What’s wrong with Emmersyn, Braxton?”
Braxton was out of breath when he spoke. “She won’t stop crying, Paisley.” There was clear frustration in his voice.
“Have you tried—”
“I’ve tried everything. I’ve changed her diaper, rocked her, given her a bottle, burped her and even turned out the lights. I put on that stupid heartbeat sound and nothing is working. I can’t do this, Paisley—I can’t.”
“Listen to me, Brax. You can do this, but you need to calm down because she can sense your frustration and she’s going to feed off that. You know the swing we bought you?”
“Yes.”
“Place Emmersyn in the swing and turn it on, and then put the phone on speaker and stand by her. And for Christ’s sake, calm the hell down please.”
Braxton tried to soothe his crying child as he situated her in the swing.
“You’re on speaker, Paisley. Now what?”
Maybe her idea wasn’t as ingenious as she’d thought it would be. All of a sudden, she began to feel stupid. She drew in a deep breath. What the hell. Time to get the show on the road. “Hush, little baby, don’t say a word. Aunt Paisley’s gonna buy you a mockingbird. If that mockingbird don’t sing, Uncle Paxton’s gonna buy you a diamond ring.”
By the time she’d finished the whole song, the crying had stopped.
“Oh, my God, Paisley. You’re a miracle worker. She’s asleep,” Braxton whispered as he raised the phone to his ear.
Paisley sat a little straighter in her chair beaming with pride. Her idea wasn’t so stupid after all. “Glad to hear it, Brax.” A soft knock sounded on the door to her office, letting her know it was time for her meeting. “I gotta go now, but I’ll talk to you later.” And Brax…you got this.”
Paxton stood in her doorway. “Did you just sing a lullaby?” Paxton raised his left brow.
“Yes. Emmersyn wouldn’t stop crying, and Brax didn’t know what to do.”
“And you thought singing would solve his problems?”
“Well, it did.”
Paxton sauntered across the room before taking the seat in front of her desk. “Look at you; you’ve got a career as a baby whisperer if our business ever fails.”
She rolled her eyes and rested her forehead on her desk. “You can be such an ass sometimes.”
Paxton slumped slightly in the chair. “All joking aside, P, have you told him about the call yet?”
Paisley raised her head; her body stiffened as she stared directly at Paxton. “I haven’t had the heart. That’s why I wanted to meet with you, so we can figure out the best way to approach this.”
“There isn’t any way to approach this other than head on. You’ve got to tell him.” Paxton’s eyes met his sister’s, and there was sadness in them that mirrored his.
She was frustrated when she spoke. “Me? Why just me? We need to do this as a team, Paxton.”
Paxton sat up and slid to the front of his chair, pretending to hold a knife and push it straight into his heart. “Hey, buddy. Stand still while I stab you in the heart and rip it out so you’re prepared for what Paisley is going to tell you. That’s when you get to say Alissa’s family is having her body transported to New York to be buried. And, oh, by the way, they’re going to sue you for custody of Emmersyn because they don’t believe you’re fit to be a parent.”
Hearing it out loud, Paisley sunk in her chair. Her blonde hair flowed over the headrest as she laid her head back to look up at the ceiling. “Why do you have to be so melodramatic?”
Paxton stood, placing his hands in his pocket. “Did you find someone to represent our boy?”
With a smug look on her face, Paisley moved herself from her slumped position. Her shoulders were squared as she reached one hand over to pat herself on the back. “Of course.” She smiled like she’d won the ten-million-dollar lottery and spoke matter-of-factly. “Samuel Travis agreed to take the case.”
Paxton’s eyebrows lifted into his hairline. “The Samuel Travis? The one who represented Leonard Woods the golfer?”
“Yes, that Samuel Travis. He said, and I quote”—she made air quotes— “your firm represents some of my clients, so I’m sure in the future I’ll be needing something from you.”
“Which translates to: I’m going to fuck one of your clients one day, and you’re going to be my ace in the hole.” Paxton shook his head as he exhaled.
“Right. So, dear brother, when are we going to tell him?”
Paxton walked toward the door before stopping. “I guess there’s no time like the present. I told him I’d call him later to check-in, so I’ll let him know we’re bringing dinner and we’ll be there by six.”
Chapter 19
Braxton bounced his little girl in his arms as he wore a path in the carpet from his incessant pacing. He’d hoped that the movement would settle her enough to end her crying. He glanced at his watch and with each passing minute, his nerves began to fray just a bit more.
“Come on, Emmy girl, stop crying. Tell Daddy what’s wrong, girl. It’s been
