Mom, Don't Cry! Here comes a new Daddy! novel Chapter 67

Chapter 47

(Dustin’s POV)

The courthouse doors slam behind me with a finality that makes my jaw clench so hard my teeth ache.

I can’t breathe. Can’t think past the roaring in my ears that sounds like my entire world/collapsing:

This wasn’t supposed to happen.

“Dustin, wait!” Jessica’s heels click frantically against the concrete steps as she chases after me “Dustin, slow down!”

I don’t slow down. I can’t. If I stop moving, I’ll explode. I’ll turn around and march back into that

courthouse and tell that judge exactly what I think of her biased, one-sided ruling.

Full custody to Sabrina. No visitation rights for me. The house. The car. Everything gone in the span of thirty minutes.

Who does she think she is to ruin my life?

“Dustin!” Jessica grabs my arm, forcing me to stop. “We need to talk about this. We need a plan-”

“A plan?” I laugh, but it comes out wrong. Manic. “What kind of plan, Jessica? The judge already

made her ruling. I lost. Everything I own goes to Sabrina.”

“You didn’t lose everything.” Her voice drops to a whisper, her eyes darting around the parking lot like she’s afraid someone might hear. “You still have me. You still have your job-”

“My job?” I yank my arm free. “How long do you think I’ll have that once word gets out about this?

Once clients hear that Dustin Reed is an unfit father who got stripped of custody rights?”

“That’s not what the ruling said-”

“That’s exactly what it said!” My voice echoes off the surrounding buildings. Several people turn to stare, but I don’t care anymore. “The judge basically called me a bastard man who chose his mistress over his son. Do you have any idea what that’ll do to my reputation?”

Jessica’s face pales. “Don’t call me that.”

“Call you what?”

“Your mistress. I’m not-we were in love before Sabrina ever came into the picture. She was the

other woman, not me.”

I stare at her, at this woman I threw away my marriage for, and feel nothing but cold disdain.

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“Does it matter anymore?” I ask flatly. “The judge didn’t care about our history. She only cared about the fact that I cheated on my wife with my boss and then used that connection to get

Sabrina fired. That’s all anyone’s going to remember.”

“So what are you saying?” Jessica’s voice turns sharp. “That this is my fault? That you regret choosing me?”

Yes. The word sits on the tip of my tongue, desperate to escape.

Because looking at her now, with her perfectly styled hair and designer suit and that entitled expression that says she’s never been denied anything in her life, I can’t remember why I wanted her so badly in the first place. What did I see in her that made throwing away seven years of

marriage seem worth it?

But I don’t say it. Because admitting that means admitting I made a mistake. And I won’t accept

that. Ever.

“I’m saying this isn’t how things were supposed to go,” I say instead. “We had a plan. Present me as the stable parent. Paint Sabrina as the one who destroyed our marriage with her unstable behavior and inappropriate relationships. Get custody of Jake and use that to show everyone that I’m the

victim here.”

“I know the plan-”

“Then why did it fail?” The question comes out as a shout. “I had everything. The evidence of her kissing that stranger on the cruise. The social media posts showing she let Jake film inappropriate content. Her joblessness. Her living in a hotel. Everything pointed to me being the better choice.”

“The judge was biased-”

“The judge was brainwashed by my son!” The admission tastes like poison. “That’s what makes this so much worse. She looked at all the evidence, listened to all the testimony, but it wasn’t until

Jake came up on the screen that she decided I wasn’t worthy of raising my own son.”

Jessica opens her mouth, then closes it. For once, she has nothing to say.

“Jake.” My voice cracks despite my best efforts to keep it steady. “My boy. Did you hear what he

said? He called me ‘bad dad.’ My own son thinks I’m the villain in this story.”

“He’s five years old. Sabrina obviously coached him-”

“No.” I shake my head. “You heard the judge. She said his testimony was genuine. That the love he showed for Sabrina couldn’t be faked or coached.” I lean against my car, suddenly exhausted. “Jake meant every word. He really does think I’m a bad father.”

And maybe he’s right.

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The thought comes unbidden, unwelcome. I shove it away violently.

No. Jake’s just confused. Influenced by Sabrina and that poisonous friend of hers, Sophia. Once he’s older, he’ll understand. He’ll see that I was trying to give him a better life. A stable home with

two parents who actually love each other, not a broken mother who can barely keep herself

together.

“What do we do now?” Jessica asks quietly. “The company’s going to hear about this. My father’s. already asking questions about why we needed emergency custody in the first place. If this affects

Sterling & Co.’s reputation-”

“That’s what you’re worried about?” I push off the car, getting in her face. “Your father’s company?

Not the fact that I just lost my son?”

“Don’t twist my words-”

“I’m not twisting anything. You’ve been complaining since we left that courthouse about how this affects the company. About how we were supposed to use this victory to go public with our

relationship. You haven’t said one word about Jake.”

Jessica’s eyes narrow. “That’s not fair. I care about Jake-”

“No, you don’t.” The words come out cold. Final. “You care about yourself. About your image. About making sure no one thinks poorly of you for stealing another woman’s husband.”

“I didn’t steal anything! You came to me, remember? You’re the one who said you never stopped

loving me. You’re the one who wanted to get back together.”

She’s right. But admitting that means taking responsibility, and I’m not ready to do that yet.

“I need to go,” I say, unlocking my car. “I can’t do this right now.”

“Are you serious? Now you can’t even have a conversation about our future with me?”

“We don’t have a future!” The words explode out of me. “Don’t you get it? The judge didn’t just take

away my custody rights. She took away my house. My car. Everything Sabrina and I built together. That pre-nuptial agreement she conveniently ‘forgot’ to void means I’m walking away from seven

years of marriage with nothing.”

“That’s not-”

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