Page 73 of Inked Persuasion

Dad rolled his eyes, even as tears welled up. I cleared my throat and patted the couch next to me.

“You know, I offered to get up and cook myself,” I said.

“And I said if you stepped foot in that kitchen and put any weight on your hip or leg, I’d beat you. So, here we are.”

“You two are so sweet to each other,” Mom said from beside me, and I just looked over at her and smiled.

We were having lunch as a family, albeit not the same as it had once been. My parents had sounded so scared when they heard about the shooting. They’d made their way to the hospital despite my protests, but they had been there. Sat with the Montgomerys as they waited to hear about Annabelle’s concussion and the cuts on her hands and arms that she needed stitches for. I hadn’t seen her. It seemed everybody else in the world had seen Annabelle, but I hadn’t.

I was trying not to be bitter about that.

“The soup tastes great,” I said after a moment and looked up at my parents.

My mom was crying again, and I set down the bowl on the tray in front of me so I could reach over and hold her hand. I ignored the twinge in my side as I moved, and my mom quit crying immediately to scowl at me.

“Don’t you dare hurt yourself trying to comfort me.”

I smiled softly, even as my dad pulled me away so I could straighten. “I’m going to do everything I can to comfort you and to take care of you. Both of you. Just sidelined for a minute right now. I’ll be fine.”

“You scared us,” Mom said, tears falling again. “I can’t lose another son. Do you understand that, Jacob? I can’t lose anyone else.”

This time, tears pricked the backs of my eyes, and my dad gripped my shoulder, squeezing tightly.

“We can’t lose you, Jacob. You’re our son,” Dad whispered. “We love you. We’re not ready to lose you.”

“I’m still here. I’m not going anywhere.”

“But we almost lost you,” Mom said.

“I couldn’t let Annabelle get hurt,” I said simply, although nothing about this was simple.

Tears fell harder, and my mom nodded as my dad stood up to help her wipe her face when she couldn’t.

“And we’re so grateful you did. Because she’s our daughter. We love her so much.”

I let out a breath, “I love her, too,” I whispered.

“We know,” my mom said as Dad gripped her hand softly.

“We know.”

“I don’t know what’s going to happen. We didn’t end things on good terms before Hotch took her.”

“This will probably change things,” Mom said softly. “Hopefully, for the better. Because you two would be so good for each other.”

“Even though she was Jonah’s first?” I asked, not sure what I wanted her to say.

“She was Jonah’s friend, confidante, and helper. But she’s your fate. I believe that,” my mom said, her voice steady.

I looked at my hands, the soup now cold. “I don’t know what’s going to happen next, but I’m going to fix it. Somehow.”

“Of course, you are,” Mom said before Dad and her met gaze.

“I hear Susan took a plea deal,” my dad said carefully, and I closed my eyes and groaned.

“Yes, and I’m glad that it’s not going to be any worse for her than it needs to be. Though I’m not sure what I’m supposed to think. My ex…I loved her. I would never have guessed that she could do something like this. What kind of man does that make me?”

“You do not get to put her decisions on your shoulders,” Dad warned. “She made her choices, even while you were married. And that’s why you two are no longer together. The fact that she went after our Annabelle, well, I don’t even want to think about it. But, she did it, and now she’s paying the price.”

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