The Baby Battle Read Online Free

close to understanding how ridiculous you sound, standing there demanding to hold my baby boy.”
    “Everything all right?” a uniformed police officer asked.
    “Could you please escort this man off my property?” Olivia asked, never breaking her lock with his eyes. “I deem him a threat to my child.”
    “How so, ma’am? What harm has he done, and are you prepared to press charges?”
    “This is crazy,” Tag said, conking the heel of his hand to his forehead. “Look, sir, with all due respect, this entire situation could’ve been avoided had the lady just cooperated. If you’ll let me, there are some documents on the entry-hall table that will put all of this into perspective.” Tag started that way, but the officer pulled his gun.
    “Stay right where you are,” he ordered. “You,” he said, nodding toward the blonde. “See if you can find the papers he’s talking about.”
    She hurried off.
    “Please,” Tag said, “all I want to do is hold our son. Is that really so much to ask?”
    “Yes,” Olivia said. Her single cold word hit him like an ice cube right between his eyes.
    “Here you go, sir.” The blonde handed over Tag’s proof.
    After holstering his weapon, the policeman scanned the papers, pausing every so often to look at Olivia, then Tag. Finally he let out a low whistle, folded the papers and handed them to Tag. “Looks like you two have one dilly of a mess.”
    “No kidding,” Tag said, relieved that finally someone had recognized he was the victim. “So would you kindly tell her she has to at least let me hold our son?”
    In response, all three women talked at once, forcing the officer to whistle to make them hush.
    “Sir,” he said to Tag, “I feel for you. Wholeheartedly. I’m a daddy to five little girls, and don’t know what I’d do without them, but this is one of those cases where possession is nine-tenths of the law. Without a court order I can’t let you take this boy from his mother—even for a quick hug.”
    Olivia lifted her chin higher, holding on to the baby for all she was worth. “Officer, I already explained that his continued presence makes me uncomfortable. However, I will be happy to speak with him through my attorney.”
    “This is B.S.,” Tag said, tired of playing nice.
    “Language,” the officer scolded. “Leave peaceably with me, and I’ll get you names of good attorneys.”
    “I’ve already got one,” Tag said, shooting Olivia a dark look. “A very good one.”
    “Suit yourself.” The policeman gestured for Tag to lead the way out the front door. “After you…”
     
    “W OW ,” S TEPHANIE BLURTED once the roar of Tag O’Malley’s car had receded. “That was intense.”
    Olivia, still holding Flynn for dear life, collapsed onto the nearest chair. Though the three of them were right back where they’d started around her patio table, she felt as if a year had passed. “Why is this happening?”
    “Next week we’ll be laughing about this,” Gabby assured her, holding Jack tighter.
    “All of the documents look legit,” Olivia said, staring straight ahead, wishing she’d never even heard of Tag O’Malley. “I’ll need to spend all weekend researching case law. Clearly, we’re both victims of the lab’s screwup, but legally I don’t have a clue where Flynn and I stand. At the very least, we’re talking negligence and medical malpractice charges needing to be filed. That’s in conjunction with custody issues. I’ll need to research whether something like this has even happened before.” Kissing the crown of Flynn’s head, she added, “I vaguely remember a woman in New York suing because her deceased husband was white, and her child conceived by artificial insemination turned out to be black. But I don’t recall whether or not the donor father was even factored into the case.”
    Cupping her hand around Olivia’s forearm, Gabby asked, “Want us to leave so that you can get to work?”
    Olivia nodded. “Would you all