“Nothing to thank me for. Good luck.”
“Thanks for that.” She’d take every scrap of luck she could get. “Bye, Cole.”
“Bye.”
She pressed the end button and set down the phone.
Destiny spoke. “We’re going to take thirty seconds of our valuable time here, and you’re going to tell me what’s going on with Cole. Then I’m putting it completely out of my mind until after the hearing.” She glanced at her watch. “Go.”
“I like him. He likes me. We went skating last night, then we drank killer hot chocolate. We went back to my place, slept together, which was pretty killer, too. Then he stayed over, went out for bagels and then all hell broke loose. He wanted to see me again tonight, but...” She spread her arms.
“Holy cow,” said Destiny in obvious awe. “We are definitely going to talk more about this. But right now we’ve got a whole lot of work to do.”
Seven
Cole and Luca slipped into the back of the courtroom. Word had obviously gotten out about the hearing, because the room was packed with reporters and onlookers. He couldn’t help but feel bad for Amber. It was stressful enough to have Zachary’s custody on the line without an audience of one hundred.
Predictably, Roth’s side attacked Coco. They started by disparaging her motivations in marrying an older, wealthy man, then they called witness after witness, painting an unflattering picture of her intellect. Cole knew from conversations with Amber that Coco was emotional and sometimes erratic, but the witnesses made her sound unstable, unprincipled, even dishonest.
Luca tipped his head closer to Cole. “How much do you think is true?”
“She did marry a billionaire nearly three times her age. And I don’t think she was a rocket scientist.”
Cole imagined a lot of what was being said about Coco’s temper and her behavior at parties was accurate. Then again, if she’d been at a frat party like most nineteen-year-olds, instead of at a posh charity function or the opening of an art museum, nobody would have raised an eyebrow.
“Doesn’t mean she wasn’t a good mother,” said Luca.
“And it doesn’t mean her wishes shouldn’t be respected.” Nothing Cole had heard so far would indicate mental incompetence on the part of Coco.
Roth took the stand, and the gallery’s attention seemed to heighten. Cole guessed most people here knew the pivotal players in the drama.
Roth’s own lawyer questioned him first.
“Did you and Samuel Henderson ever discuss his future plans for Coast Eagle Airlines?” the lawyer asked.
“Extensively and on many occasions,” Roth answered.
“Did he ask your advice?”
“Yes, he did.”
“To your knowledge, did he ever ask his wife, Coco Henderson’s, advice on Coast Eagle Airlines?”
Roth smirked. “Never.”
“You’re certain?”