Page 127 of The Keeper

He hesitated, a rare hint of vulnerability flashing through his eyes. “Thank you for coming with me. I know this isn’t your fight, so I appreciate it.”

I shook my head, the ache in my heart deepening. “This is about you and Evie. Of course it’s my fight.”

Noah’s face softened. Instead of replying, he leaned over to kiss me, and I tasted everything he couldn’t express in words—hope, gratitude, apprehension, and something else I didn’t dare name.

I had no idea how this meeting would go, but whatever happened, we’d face it together.

We got out of the car and walked to the entrance. Oswald and Elizabeth’s primary residence was in Greenwich, but they also owned a sprawling mansion in one of London’s poshest neighborhoods. It was painted a pristine white with classical columns and a grand circular driveway. It was beautiful but sterile, like a showroom designed to display wealth rather than a place where people actually lived.

Noah rang the doorbell. I heard the clack of heels against marble, and Elizabeth opened the door a moment later. She was dressed to the nines even at home, but I was surprised to see her eyes were slightly red, like she hadn’t slept well or she’d been crying. However, her tone was cool as she gave me a once-over. “I see you brought a guest. How unexpected.”

“Almost as unexpected as you and Oswald showing up on my doorstep in April.” Noah smiled. It didn’t reach his eyes.

Elizabeth pursed her mouth. The silence pulsed with disapproval, and for a second, I thought she would turn us away and slam the door in our faces. However, she eventually relented and stepped aside, inviting us in.

We followed her into the grand parlor, where Oswald awaited with a newspaper in hand. He set it aside when we entered and acknowledged my presence with a disdainful curl of his mouth.

Noah glared at him while I held back a sigh.

This was going to be a very long morning.

NOAH

Carina and I sat side by side on one couch while the Andersons occupied the identical couch opposite ours. It was reminiscent of my first-ever meeting with Oswald and Elizabeth at my house, except the tension was sharper, heavier.

“This tea is delicious,” Carina said, breaking the silence. She took another sip and set the delicate porcelain cup down. “What is it? I don’t think I’ve tasted it before.”

“It’s a custom blend from China,” Elizabeth said.

“Oh. Well, it’s really, um, nice.”

The conversation stalled, and no one rushed to fill the silence.

I hadn’t prepared an agenda or rehearsed what I was going to say. A structured approach hadn’t worked for our previous meetings anyway, so I cut to the chase and asked the question that’d been eating away at me since my mother put it in my head. “Why?”

The Andersons exchanged a quick look.

“Why, what?” Oswald asked.

“Why are you doing this?” I asked. “Why go to all this trouble knowing the odds are stacked against you? Recent events haven’t helped my case, but I’m still her father. I’ve raised her for eleven years—quite well, I might add.”

The older man bristled with impatience. “We told you. She’s our granddaughter, and⁠—”

“You want what’s best for her. Yes, I’ve heard it a thousand times, but there’s more to it than that.” I hadn’t come to hear the same old spiel they’d parroted for the past three months. I wanted the truth. “You’ve spent time with her. You’ve seen how happy she is. If you truly wanted what’s best for her, you’d ask her what she wants instead of trying to impose what you think is best for her. Some of your concerns are valid, but do you think making me more absent in her life would help? You’re both smart people, and I assume you know the answer to that. So, given all that, I’m asking why you’re insisting on your chosen course of action when you know your desired outcome would devastate her.”

The resulting silence was deafening. Oswald’s face reddened while Elizabeth shifted, her hands clenched in her lap.

“Evie is a child,” Oswald snapped. “She doesn’t know what she wants. Of course she wants to stay with you. You’re all she’s ever known. She has no idea there’s a better option available to her.”

Flames of anger licked at my stomach. I tamped them down and forced an even tone. “She’s eleven going on twelve. She’s perfectly capable of making an educated, well-informed decision. Hell, she’s smarter than some adults I know, and if you can’t see that, you have no business getting custody of her.” I should’ve left it at that, but Oswald had a way of bringing out the worst in me. The filter between my mouth and brain buckled, and a cheap shot escaped before I could rein it in. “If this was your attitude with Sarah, it’s no wonder she went no contact.”

Carina sucked in an audible breath while Oswald sprang to his feet, his already-red face turning purple. “How dare you!” he snarled. “How dare you bring her into this? You know nothing about what happened or what our relationship was like!”

I rose, matching his aggressive stance. I was trying to have a reasonable conversation, but I also wasn’t going to let him intimidate me.

His nostrils flared. I was a good five inches taller than Oswald, and it was deeply satisfying to see him have to crane his neck in order to look at me.

“That came out harsher than intended, and for that, I apologize,” I said. “But Sarah is Evie’s mother. She’s part of the equation even if she’s not physically here. I don’t know exactly what happened, but she must’ve had her reasons for keeping Evie from you. Given the circumstances, I think it’s fair of me to ask for details if you want custody of my daughter. What did you do that was so horrible you alienated your own daughter?”