“If not the whole truth,” he said softly.
“If not the whole truth,” she echoed in a whisper. “Plain and simple, I broke the rules. Even if no one else ever knew about what happened between us, I would.”
Their gazes held for several seconds, then he turned away from her and went over to the bookcase wall. Placing his hands on the edge of a shelf above his head, he braced himself against it, his head dropping forward between his shoulders. He remained like that for a full minute. She supposed he was trying to absorb everything that this development signified.
Finally, addressing the floor, he said, “Temporary restraining order. In other words, I’m an imminent threat.”
“You should be talking to William Moore about it.”
He looked at her over his shoulder. “I’m talking to you.”
With reluctance, she nodded. “The TRO goes into effect immediately when you’re served.”
“And then I have to go to court and defend myself against Joe’s crock of shit.”
He did, or the full restraining order went into effect automatically, and it could remain in effect for years. Of course, he knew that, so she refrained from saying anything.
“How long before the hearing for the full restraining order? It usually takes, what? Two, three weeks?”
“Sometimes sooner, sometimes longer.”
“And Prentiss County is currently short one courtroom,” he said wryly. “Between now and the hearing, whenever it is, the TRO remains in place.”
“We don’t know for certain that another judge granted it.”
“Best odds?”
“Not in your favor, I’m afraid. Even though there’s been no physical abuse, your father-in-law is alleging harassment and threats of violence. With a child’s safety and welfare at stake…”
“The judge will sign.” Turning to face her, he added, “And they’ll waste no time serving me.”
“Honestly, I thought you might already have been served, so by telling you, I’m not going that far out on a limb.” She took a step toward him. “Crawford, you know that you must abide by the order. I beg you to. If you violate it, the consequences will be severe.”
“I know the consequences. I could go to jail. Hell, I’ve slammed people in jail for violating a TRO.”
“Beyond that, a ruling in favor of the Gilroys would be practically guaranteed at the hearing. As an offender, you could be kept away from Georgia for years. So please, promise me that you’ll comply with the terms.”
“How bad are they?”
“Until the hearing, you can’t get within one hundred yards of Georgia, the Gilroys, or their property. No contact whatsoever. Not even by phone. Any attempted contact will be considered a violation.”
“Jesus.”
“I’m sorry. I know it’s difficult to hear this, to hear yourself spoken of in terms of an ‘offender’ but—”
“Screw all that,” he snapped. “Joe, the court, can call me any damn thing they please. What about Georgia? What’s she gonna think when I suddenly disappear from her life? She’ll think her daddy abandoned her.”
His chest rose and fell with emotion. “Whether or not you believe it, whether or not my in-laws like it, my little girl loves me. The last thing we talked about was the surprise I have waiting on her at my house. Now? Christ!” He made an angry swipe through the air with his fist. “I’ll never forgive Joe for this.” Stepping around her, he headed for the door. “I gotta go.”
“Where are you going? What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know. Get drunk maybe.”
Panicked, she grabbed his sleeve and held on even as he tried to shake her off.
“I won’t let you leave when you’re in this frame of mind.”
“You’d do well to let me go, Holly. When I’m in this kind of mood, I tend to act out.”
“If you act out, you’ll lose Georgia forever.”
He threw off her grasp. “That’s funny coming from you,” he sneered. “I’d have Georgia now if you had given her to me instead of wasting time enumerating my past transgressions. ‘Here’s your daughter, Mr. Hunt. Go in peace.’ Bang the gavel. We’re outta there. But, no, you had your judgmental points to make.”
She shrank away from him. She knew the harsh words were spoken in anger and supreme frustration, but that didn’t make them any less hurtful. Or any less true. They hovered there between them, widening the chasm that circumstances had already created.
He was the first to move. His motions abrupt, he gave the heavy doorknob a vicious turn, yanked the door open, and strode out.
“They were together tonight. Alone.”
“Who?”