Total pages in book: 122
Estimated words: 115706 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 579(@200wpm)___ 463(@250wpm)___ 386(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115706 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 579(@200wpm)___ 463(@250wpm)___ 386(@300wpm)
“No further questions,” Paula says, and surprisingly, Ralph’s lawyer decides not to question Amy himself. Probably, he realizes he can’t dim or besmirch the human ray of sunshine sitting on that witness stand, so why even try?
“Our final witness is Caleb Baumgarten himself,” Paula announces.
“Mr. Baumgarten,” the judge says, gesturing for me to take the stand. And so, after inhaling deeply and sharing a pointed “here we go” look with Aubrey, I rise from the table, button, unbutton, and then button again my sport coat, and stride to the witness stand with confident, long strides designed to camouflage the current of anxiety throttling every inch of my body.
So far, all Paula’s questions have been softballs, as expected. The same ones we’ve practiced. So, naturally, I feel like I’m killing it.
“What’s your goal here, Mr. Baumgarten?” Paula asks.
We’ve practiced this. “I want custody of my daughter, so I can be the father she deserves.” It’s all I’m supposed to say in response to that question. But in light of the long list of violent episodes Miranda recounted about me, I feel the need to improvise and add something else. “But even more than that,” I add, much to Paula’s visible surprise, “I want my daughter to be safe, happy, and loved.” I look at the judge. “Your honor, if you decide I’m not a fit father for her, then I beg you to give full custody to Aubrey.” I swallow hard. “To be clear, I very much want full custody for myself. So, so much. But I want what’s best for my daughter, even more than that, and there’s no better person in this entire world than Aubrey Capshaw.”
“Thank you, Mr. Baumgarten,” the judge says.
“I’m done with my questions,” Paula says, before turning toward the table again.
“One more thing,” I say, halting Paula’s movement. “Sorry.” I look at the judge again. “I feel like I need to add something to one of my prior answers. Remember when I said Aubrey is my nanny and friend? That wasn’t the whole truth. Since I’m under oath, I feel like I should admit that . . .” I exhale. “I’m in love with Aubrey. Madly in love with her.” I peek at Aubrey and her mouth is hanging open. Same with Paula’s. “I haven’t told her that yet. I haven’t told anyone. But I feel like you need to know that, your honor, to understand just how highly I think of her. Aubrey’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. The great love of my life. If something happened to me, she’s the only person I’d ever want to take care of my daughter.” I look at my sister in the audience. “Sorry, Miranda.” Miranda smiles. “So, please, if you decide against me having full custody of my daughter, then Aubrey is one hundred percent where my daughter should be placed.”
I peek at Aubrey again, and the look on her face makes my heart explode in my chest. She loves me. That’s what Aubrey’s dark, glistening eyes are confirming in this moment. And, man, it feels fucking incredible.
“Thank you, Mr. Baumgarten,” the judge says softly, forcing me to wrench my eyes off the great love of my life. “Are you finished and ready for cross-examination now?”
“Yes, your honor,” Paula says. “Thank you.”
Ralph’s attorney gets up and clears his throat. “You had zero interest in meeting your child before six weeks ago, correct? In fact, you only stepped up to avoid paying child support to Ralph Beaumont.”
“Not true. I admit I dragged my feet as a father for six months. But then, I emailed Claudia and expressed extreme regret for my prior lack of involvement in my child’s life. I begged Claudia to let me meet my baby, but Claudia refused.”
Ralph’s attorney looks flabbergasted. Thoroughly shocked. “There’s . . . zero evidence of any of that,” he stammers out.
“I’ve got the email exchange on my phone to prove it, if you want to see it.”
“Yes, please,” the judge interjects, as Ralph’s attorney chokes on his words.
I bring up the emails and hand over my phone to the judge, who studies the messages with great interest. Once she’s done reading, she hands my phone to a bailiff and asks him to show it to all attorneys and parties, which he does. And, finally, when the phone comes back to me on the witness stand, the judge instructs me to read the whole email exchange, word for word, out loud, for the court reporter to take down.
I do as I’m told, and when I’m done reading, I address the judge. “I found out recently Claudia didn’t write that reply to me, even though it came from her account. In fact, it turns out Claudia never even saw my email.”
Ralph’s attorney is beet-red. “And you base that conclusion on what, exactly?”