“IM me the link.  Have you heard from Jake?  I thought he was going to come help us with this.”

Jamie checked the time.  “He should be here soon.  He was meeting Meg and Abbey for breakfast this morning.”

Jess made humphing noises, thinking that her elder brother needed to get his priorities straight.  Family came first.

A few minutes later, Jake came in. He was carrying a sleeping Abbey; and Meg followed him, as he carried Abbey to Lane’s bedroom.  He was clearly agitated about something.  Jess and Jamie looked at each other.  Jake came into the kitchen and opened the fridge.  Jess looked at him, one brow raised.

“Meg’s getting Abbey settled in Mom’s room.  But we need to talk.”

Meg had come into the kitchen, and Jake asked her if she wanted a DDP.  She’d grown fond of Diet Dr. Pepper working for Lane.  “Sure with ice and a straw, please.”

She sat at the breakfast bar with Jamie and Jess. Jess looked from Meg to Jake.

“Okay, what’s going on?  Let’s get whatever it is out in the open, so we can get down to the business of finding out who killed Carol Anne.”

“We ran into Meg’s ex.” Jake nearly growled.

“I’m not sure I want talk about this in front of everyone,” Meg said.

All three of the Parker kids looked at one another.  What?  Who was this “everyone” Meg was talking about?

“It’s just us,” Jamie said. “We’re sort of like the three musketeers, you know one for all and all for one.  What one of us knows, the others know.  Just as well tell us what’s going on,” he said, gesturing between Jess and himself.

Meg took a breath and closed her eyes.  She was an only child. She couldn’t begin to imagine having siblings, let alone siblings who were as close as she was discovering the Parker siblings were.

“My ex.  His name is Scott. We dated through college.  He’d always been sort of controlling.  Then one day he back handed me, for being what he called disrespectful.”  She stopped, taking a drink of her soda, oblivious to Jake’s jaw clenching, Jamie’s biceps flexing as each hand formed a fist, or Jess’s raised eye brow. “I moved out of my apartment right after that.  Moved back in with my parents to be safe. Didn’t leave a forwarding address.  Quit my job.  And then I found out I was pregnant with Abbey.  I never told him.”

Jake continued, “But he saw her today at Aunt Em’s before I got there.  I came in and saw some sleaze standing with his hands on the table, leaning over her and Abbey, talking in hushed threatening tones.  So I walked over, kissed Meg on the head and picked up Abbey and said, ‘Sorry I’m late.’  Then he looks up at me and says ‘That’s my kid.’ Then he looked at Meg and told her his lawyer would be in touch, before storming out.”  He reached out and touched Meg’s cheek.  “You didn’t tell me he hit you.”

“It’s not something a girl likes to talk about.  I realize he’d been controlling and verbally abusive.  I’ve read a lot about it since.  The experts say that’s the way it starts; they say little things, nasty things, but it always, always becomes physical eventually.  I’m lucky I got out when I did.  Anyway, his family have money.  They’re influential, and he can afford to hire a really good attorney.  I can’t let him have Abbey.  I can’t even trust him to see her.  What am I going to do?”  Then she started crying.

Jake had her in his arms holding and comforting her, as he looked over her shoulder at his siblings.  Jess nodded.  Jamie flexed his shoulders and tilted his head to the side.

When Meg was calmed, Jamie was the first to speak.  “Meg, we’ve got this.  You don’t have to worry.”

“You guys can’t beat him up, that would only make things worse.” Meg had sat back down and looked at Jamie and Jess.

Jess smiled.  “No one’s going to touch him.  What’s his last name?”

“Coyle.  His name is Scott Coyle.  But I don’t understand what y’all are going to do.”

Jake looked at her.  “Do you trust me, Meg?”

She nodded.

“Then trust that everything is going to be okay.”

“I need to make a call,” Jess said, as she stood.  She stepped away from the kitchen and pulled out her cell phone, dialing Ben’s Uncle Vinnie.  Ben’s uncles owed Jess a favor, and Vinnie’s daughter, Daniella, practiced family law at Luciano and Bellini.

“Uncle Vinnie, it’s Jess Parker. It’s time to collect on that favor.”  She explained the situation and asked for Daniella’s home number.

“I’ll make the call, Bella.  She’ll meet you at your mother’s house within the hour, and she won’t be alone.”

Daniella and her father arrived at the Parkers’ house within the hour, as promised. Meg had met Vincenzo Luciano at Lane’s birthday brunch a few weeks earlier.  He looked at Meg and then to his daughter.  “I think the first thing is to order a DNA test, don’t you?”

Daniella nodded.  “If it shows Coyle is Abbey’s father, we’ll file to have all parental rights terminated.”

Meg looked at them in confusion.  “It can’t be anyone else.”  She blushed as she looked at Jake. “I’ve only been with Scott.”

Vinnie smiled.  “You’d be surprised what a DNA test might show.” Then he opened his brief case and pulled out a swab.  “Jake, open your mouth.”  Vinnie swabbed the inside of Jake’s cheek.  He smiled and looked at Meg.  “Now the Bambina.  Where is she?”

Meg went to Lane’s bedroom and gently woke her daughter. Vinnie handed the swab to Meg and instructed her, as she swabbed the inside of Abbey’s cheek.  He handed the two swabs to Daniella.  “Call Pauli.  We need these done right away.”

But Jess, who’d gotten Pauli’s digits the night before, was way ahead of them.  As soon as the DNA swabs came out, she’d called Dr. Bellini.  And now, she was escorting him into the great room.  She introduced him to Meg.

Uncle Vinnie held the swabs out to Pauli.  “Qualcuno si sta insinuando la famiglia,” he said, “Abbiamo bisogno di un test di paternità di Jake è il padre della ragazza.”

Pauli took the swabs and nodded.  “Sì, zio. Mi pare di capire. Sarà fatto oggi.”  He looked at the Parkers and Meg.  “I’ll drop these at the lab today.  We should have results tomorrow.”

Jess smiled.  She knew what had been said in Italian. Pauli had just agreed to fix the results, and she knew it.  Everyone in this room knew Jake Parker wasn’t Abbey’s father, couldn’t be Abbey’s father; but Scott Coyle wouldn’t be a problem, and no one was going to lay a finger on him as long as he let things go with the Luciano DNA test results. She didn’t object, she only regretted that she’d had to call in a favor that the Luciano brothers had owed her since her mother’s birthday.  But she’d done a favor for both brothers.  She smiled.  It was the same favor, but to her way of thinking that meant they each owed her a favor, so she still had one favor coming.

Daniella smiled at Meg.  “Do you have Mr. Coyle’s contact information?  I can call him in the morning.  I’ll draft a Cease and Desist letter this afternoon and get it into the mail today. That’s usually enough.  If not, we’ll go from there.”  She handed Meg her card.  “Don’t worry. He won’t bother you anymore.”

Meg was dumbfounded.  She wasn’t sure what had just happened.  But if it got Scott Coyle to leave her and Abbey alone, that was all that mattered. She thanked both of the Lucianos, and Jess walked them and Pauli to the front door.  “Thanks, Uncle Vinnie.  Daniella it was nice to meet you, and thank you for your help too.”

Vinnie took her by both arms, and kissed each of her cheeks.  “You’re family, Bambina.”

Daniella smiled. “Yes, and above all, we protect our family.”

Jess may not be Italian, but she understood that sentiment.  Above all, the Parkers protected their own too.

Chapter 13

The Proposal

Ben parked the Jag, put on his sport coat and walked around to open Lane’s door.  He held her hand as she got out of the car. He hooked her hand in the crook of his elbow and walked her to the door.  He nodded to his father as they walked through the restaurant.  As they walked past the Board Room, Lane looked around.  Where the heck were they going?  The Bellinis always ate in the private dining room called the Board Room.  Ben approached a set of carved wooden doors that Lane had never noticed before.  He considered having her close her eyes, but that would alert her to the surprise that awaited on the other side of the doors.  He was sure that his father and the staff had created a gazebo with blush and cream tulle and chiffon, and that the florist had found nine dozen roses and the rose petals, and that they had all been delivered and were waiting on the other side of these doors.