The motherhood mandate, p.26
The Motherhood Mandate, page 26
Rylee covered her eyes with one hand. Why was Nana telling her this?
“My point is that he shouldn’t be holding you to a standard he couldn’t keep himself,” Nana told her. “My best guess is that he’s also in a tizzy about Sam, too. He doesn’t come from money. Take away his phone and he doesn’t seem to know a thing about socializing. He’s not even going to an Ivy League school.”
Rylee dropped her hand and glared across the room. “Wellesley isn’t an Ivy League school, either,” she reminded Nana.
Nana stopped pacing and smiled at Rylee. “No, it’s not. And that’s okay.”
Rylee groaned. “I don’t understand, Nana!”
“I know,” Nana replied, slowly walking back to Rylee. “Men can be difficult to figure out, even when they’re honest.” She arched an eyebrow at her, then laid Allison back in her arms before sitting down again. “The Lord works in mysterious ways,” she told Rylee. “There is a reason that He gave you Allison so early in your life. It’s not our place to question His wisdom.”
“I know, Nana,” Rylee told her with a sigh. “I just don’t know how I’m going to take care of Allison by myself.”
“You’re not alone,” Nana reminded her. “You have family to help.”
“I will be alone when I move out east,” Rylee told her. “Sam doesn’t want to change schools. Am I supposed to put my life on hold until he graduates?”
Nana shook her head. “Sweetie, don’t wait for him.”
“I can’t do this by myself!”
“You’re a Williams girl,” she told her. “We don’t wait for the prince to save us. We can slay our own damn dragon!”
“Nana!” Rylee blinked. She’d never heard Nana swear, ever!
“I’m serious, Rylee,” Nana said, leaning her head back against the recliner. “Don’t wait for Sam to step up. You are strong. Intelligent. Fearless. I’ve seen you accomplish great things in your young life, and I know you can do anything you put your mind to.”
Rylee took a deep breath. “But we're still disinherited,” she told Nana. “How am I going to explain this to Allison when she's older?”
Nana grimaced. “I don't know,” she admitted. “But, until then, you need to focus on what’s important: getting your education so you can move on to the next phase of your life.” She slowly stood up. “Let me put Allison back in the bassinet,” she told Rylee. “For the next few months, you’re going to need to sleep when the baby sleeps.”
Rylee gave the baby to Nana and laid back against the pillow. Was she the type of princess that could slay her own dragon?
Something was tingling against her wrist, pulling Rylee from a deep sleep. She fumbled against the tangled covers for a moment. What time is it? she thought.
She slowly opened her eyes. Time to get up. She reluctantly pulled her hands out from under the covers and tapped the ‘stop’ button on her watch. Then, she pulled the covers up over her head for a moment.
Six hours of sleep. That’s it. Just six hours of sleep.
She pushed the covers back and sat up, feet firmly planted on the cool hardwood floor. Time to get up, she told herself. Sam had probably been up all night again with Madam Fussy.
She grabbed some clothes and made her way to the bathroom to get ready for the morning. Then, she padded down the stairs.
It was quiet. She paused at the foot of the stairs, savoring the sight of Sam giving Allison her bottle. He looked tired, his two-day-old beard making him look a bit scruffy this morning. But he held Allison with a confident hand and that meant so much to her.
“There she is,” Rylee breathed, content. “Coffee?”
Sam nodded. “I started some as her bottle was warming up,” he said.
Rylee walked to the kitchen. This had become a part of their morning routine since their very first morning as parents. Sometimes Sam got it started. Other times, he was so busy with Allison that she made the coffee. It gave them just a bit of time to start their day together.
She grabbed their mugs out of the strainer and carefully filled them from the drip coffee maker. Cream for her. A dusting of sugar for him. Then, she made her way back into the living room and placed both mugs on the coffee table before settling down on the rocking chair next to the windows.
She leaned forward to grab her mug. “How’d she sleep?” she asked, blowing on her coffee before taking a careful sip.
“Pretty good,” Sam told her as he yawned. “She woke up a few times but quickly settled down, so I was able to get a few naps in.”
Rylee nodded, a tired smile playing on her lips. “Still think that having a nanny is a bad idea?” she asked. The only thing standing between them and some well-timed assistance was Sam’s stubbornness.
He looked down at Allison as if considering it, then sighed. “Look, I know that this is hard, Rylee, really I do,” he slowly said. “But handing our daughter off to some stranger—”
“A carefully vetted stranger,” Rylee interjected.
Sam rolled his eyes at that. “Fine,” he responded. “A ‘carefully vetted stranger’ brings a whole set of worries that I’m just not comfortable with.”
Interesting. Was this something she could work with? she thought as she took another sip of coffee. “Tell me,” she said in a quiet voice. “All of this would be so much easier if we could get some help around here.”
Sam repositioned Allison across his lap, one hand cupping the back of her head. “We can’t afford a nanny,” he told her, a thread of bitterness tinging his voice. “Yes, I know that you have access to money from your trust fund and this wouldn’t make a dent in what your parents gave you.”
Rylee took another sip of coffee, closing her eyes to hide her frustration. If only you knew, she thought.
“It doesn’t matter how much money you have,” he reminded her. “We have to split our finances evenly. And, every single receipt, every deposit, everything that we spend every month has to be reported to the guardian ad litem until Allison is six months old.”
He looked down at the baby. “They know how many hours I work and how much I’m able to provide. We’re barely making ends meet now, Rylee, because I can’t pull more hours, help with Allison, and get my homework done. Can you imagine what could happen if the Court found out you were paying for a nanny?”
Allison pushed away the bottle with her fists, fussing at him. Rylee put her mug on the coffee table and stood up to stretch. “Here, let me take her,” she told him quietly. “She might be a bit gassy now.”
She carefully settled Allison against her left shoulder. Allison gave a bit of a wiggle, her wet lips settling against Rylee’s neck. She reached up and gently rubbed the baby’s back with her other hand and slowly walked across the room.
It may have been the lack of sleep, but now might be a good time to talk this out. “My mom and dad have offered to pay for the nanny,” she finally told him.
“What?” Sam’s mouth dropped open. “That can’t be legal, Rylee!” he complained.
She turned around and walked back across the room. She could feel Allison starting to relax into a light drowse. “There’s nothing in the current law that prevents it,” she told him in a quiet voice. “The money wouldn’t go to us. It would directly go to the nanny as their employee.”
Sam frowned. “What about the whole ‘grandparents can’t raise their grandkids’ thing?” he asked sarcastically.
Allison interrupted her with a well-timed burp, and Rylee laughed. “Good girl,” she crooned as she swayed her hips from side to side. Time to open negotiations. “Technically, it would still be us raising our daughter. Just with some well-timed assistance. Think about it, Sam. Most daycares accept six-week-old newborns. What is the difference between dropping her off at a center or having someone come here to take care of her during the day?”
“We can’t afford that, either,” Sam groused.
Rylee shook her head, then sat down in the rocker. She moved Allison to her lap, facing Sam. Allison’s tiny fists closed around her fingers and she gently bounced them up and down for a bit of sensory play. Diana had recommended it during her last lactation visit as a comforting way to encourage two-week-old Allison without overwhelming her.
She looked at Sam intently. “At our current income, the state provides a subsidy allowance for daycare, Sam,” she reminded him. “We could afford a few hours per week and have a nanny take care of her the rest of the time.”
Sam stood and glared down at Rylee. “No nanny. Period.”
“Why not?” she demanded. What the hell was wrong with him? “This is a very simple solution. Allison gets a bit of social interaction, and we can get on with our lives!”
Sam grabbed the baby bottle and his mug. “It always comes back to that, doesn’t it, Rylee?” he growled before he walked to the kitchen. “Allison is not just a speed bump on your way to Wellesley. She’s our daughter!”
“What is that supposed to mean?” Rylee demanded. Her sharp tone startled poor Allison, and she began to wail. “See what you’ve done?” She glared at Sam as she pulled Allison up onto her left shoulder again. “It’s going to be okay, baby. Momma’s got you . . . ” she crooned as she began to slowly rock in the chair.
She watched Sam load his mug into the dishwasher, then carefully clean out Allison’s bottle and place it in the drying rack.
Sam turned to look at them. “I’m transferring to Marquette in the fall,” he told her. “You’re still planning to go to Wellesley. I can’t imagine that your parents will pay for a nanny when you’re not here.”
“What are you saying?” she demanded, her voice soft. “The nanny will stay with Allison, no matter where we live.” Wasn’t that obvious? She glared at him, slowly rubbing Allison’s back as she calmed down. It might be time to put her down for a nap.
Sam walked back into the living room, grimacing as he stood against the wall. “Do you really want to have Allison move every month so that she can have equal time with both of us when you move out east?” he asked quietly.
“No—”
He cut her off. “If you push for the nanny, I’ll insist that Allison come home every other month so that I keep joint placement.”
“You wouldn’t!” Rylee softly snarled. She brushed by him as she stalked into the kitchen. She carefully placed Allison in the baby bouncer on the floor near the table, pausing only long enough to strap her in before turning to glare at him.
Sam walked back into the kitchen and sat down at the table. He looked down at Allison, who was happily munching on her fist, then looked up intently. “There has to be a way for both of us to get what we want, Rylee,” he told her. “And it starts with not having a nanny in our future.”
Rylee walked over to the coffeemaker and poured herself a fresh cup. She hid a smile as she carefully stirred in some cream. If she didn’t know any better, she’d say that he’d picked up a bit of the Williams negotiation tactics. Nice assertive opening salvo, but he’d left himself with very little strategic leverage for the inevitable compromise.
Let’s do this, she thought as she carefully set her spoon down in the sink. She moved to the kitchen table and sat down, cuddling her hot coffee mug in both hands. “Fine,” she said before taking a careful sip of coffee. “Let’s talk.”
Epilogue
Rylee took one more look in the mirror, then clicked on the link to join the video call. No pressure, she thought as she waited for the connection to be made. Her legal team had hammered out the best deal they could. All that was left was judicial theater.
Truth be told, she was just the tiniest bit nervous. The outcome of this call would determine the next four years of her life. Yes, the arbitrator had recommended that Rylee be allowed to move to campus before the probationary period was over. But that could just as easily be taken away if Sam balked at the last minute.
Once the picture came up, she quickly looked around the room to see if she could spot Allison. Attorneys, guardian ad litem, arbitrator, mentors. Ah, Sam sat on one side of the oval table, the carrier on the floor next to him. She frowned in disappointment. She could only see a small sliver of her baby’s black hair.
Rylee stared at Allison for a moment, then pulled out her phone to double-check her afternoon schedule. Her phone had become essential to managing her life when she hit campus. The irony was not lost on her.
A door opened and Judge Olson entered the room, closely followed by the stenographer. The conversation quieted as the judge sat down at the head of the table.
Rylee glanced at the small window that showed her image on video and smoothed her braid over one shoulder. She set the phone down on her desk to give the judge her full attention.
The judge looked around the room, nodding at Rylee, before she opened the folder she’d brought with her. “Mr. Mueller,” she said in a quiet voice. “The settlement we have before us is quite unusual. Are you certain that you are in agreement with it?”
Rylee turned up the volume on her computer as she strained to hear the conversation.
“Yes, Your Honor,” he replied. “I believe this is in my client’s best interests.”
The judge turned to the arbitrator, who sat on her left. “Ms. Rodriquez, as the arbitrator assigned to the case, can you walk us through the agreement at a high level?”
“Of course, Your Honor,” the woman replied with a smile. “This case was unusual in that, while both parties are enrolled in universities, one of them has been accepted out-of-state. This complicated the usual placement rotation.”
Judge Olson gestured with one hand, a silent command to continue.
Rodriquez cleared her throat. “Both parties have agreed that Ms. Williams Maxwell, aka Allison, will live with Mr. Maxwell until Ms. Williams has completed her undergraduate program at Wellesley University,” she said. “During this time, Ms. Williams will pay 100 percent of their child’s financial expenses. This includes half of Mr. Maxwell’s housing expenses, reasonable child care expenses, and all of Allison’s food, clothing, medical, and educational allowance.”
The judge cocked her head to one side. “Educational allowance?” she asked.
The arbitrator looked down at her notes. “Educational books and toys, Your Honor,” the arbitrator read. “Both parents have expressed an interest in Ms. Williams Maxwell learning a foreign language.”
“Ah. Continue.”
Rodriguez cleared her throat again. “During this time, Ms. Williams will have to return home during school breaks to assume custody,” she said. “Once Ms. Williams has completed her undergraduate program, Allison will move to her mother’s residence until she’s ready to attend elementary school. This will allow Mr. Maxwell to travel, if he chooses, or pursue employment outside of the country. He will, however, be responsible for 50 percent of their child’s reasonable expenses during this time.”
“Interesting,” Judge Olson said, tapping her pen against the folder almost impatiently. “Why is Mr. Maxwell responsible for only 50 percent?”
“Because Mr. Maxwell has agreed to remain in the state so that Ms. Williams Maxwell is able to regularly visit with her grandparents and extended family,” Rodriquez advised.
“Anything else?”
Rodriquez nodded, her finger pointing out a specific paragraph in the agreement. “Both parties have agreed to a weekly video call so that Ms. Williams Maxwell is comfortable with both parents and annual reviews with the guardian ad litem, in person, to ensure that they remain in good standing with the program,” she said.
The judge turned to a man wearing a plain, white t-shirt. “Mr. Petropoulous, any concerns?”
Rylee studied him closely. That had to be Sam’s mentor. He smiled, giving Rylee a sly but relaxed grin as he looked up at her. “Is there a no-nanny clause, Ms. Rodriquez?”
Oh, my God! Rylee thought, her cheeks burning with embarrassment. What had Sam told that man?
Judge Olson glanced up at Rylee, then back to Petropoulous. “Is there something I should know, Mr. Petropoulous?” she asked, one eyebrow arched in amusement.
Sam brought his hand up in front of his mouth so she couldn’t see what his expression was, but both Sam and his mentor shook their heads in denial. “No, ma’am,” he finally said. “Sorry. Just a private joke, Your Honor.”
The judge laughed. “Someday, someone’s going to let me in on the joke, right?”
“Absolutely, Your Honor,” Petropoulous said.
Then, the judge turned to Erin, Rylee’s mentor. “Any concerns, Mrs. Meyer?”
Rylee’s mentor glanced up to look at her, then shook her head. “None, Your Honor.”
The judge turned to Sam. “Mr. Maxwell, do you have any thoughts that you’d like to share with this Court before I make a final judgment?”
It was difficult to tell from this angle, but it looked like Sam pursed his lips for a moment. This was it. The make-or-break moment where she either stayed on campus and worked her ass off to build her future or lost everything.
“Your Honor, this has been a wild ride,” Sam told the judge. “In all honesty, I never expected to become a dad this early in my life and I never expected that I would fall so completely in love.” He looked down at Allison as if to prove his point.
“Children will do that to you,” the judge replied with a satisfied smile. She glanced at Rylee. “Okay, Ms. Williams, do you have anything that you’d like to add?”
Rylee found herself sitting up straighter, smiling anxiously as she tugged at her long French braid. “I’m just glad that we were able to come to a reasonable accommodation, Your Honor,” she said. “I agree that Allison’s placement and the financial support are exactly what our little family needs to have in place to ensure her future.”
The judge nodded, then took one last look around the room. “Does anyone have any other information that needs to be taken into account before I issue my final ruling?”
