Page 118 of Melt For Us, Daddy
“Ivy. He needs you. He’s having a panic attack.”
Letting go of Cordelia’s hand, Ivy stepped forward to place her hand over Jacob’s heart while taking his and placing it over her own. “Breathe with me, honey. In through your nose.” She inhaled deeply and Jacob mimicked her as best he could, his eyes locked on hers like she was a life raft and he was about to drown.
Cordelia knew the feeling well.
“Good boy. Now out through your mouth. Perfect. Just keep doing that, breathe with me. Feel my heartbeat, and focus on matching it. Feel how slow and steady it is? Breathe in, baby, nice and deep. Good boy.”
“She’s good at that,” Holden murmured from his spot beside Cordelia.
“She is. I don’t know what I’d do without her half the time.”
“You feeling okay?”
“Yes.” Not nearly as shaken as she’d expected to be, and wasn’t that a hell of a victory all of its own? “Just worried about my boy.”
“It’s okay if you need a few minutes, too. That was intense.”
“It was, but I’m good.” Turning, she looked up at him so he could see the truth in her eyes. “I’m so fucking good, Holden. You have no idea how amazing it felt, telling her he’s mine. Knowing she’ll take that message back to Harlan, wherever he’s holed up, and that it will kill him to know I’ve gotten to his only son.”
“Good. Hold onto that feeling. You’re going to need it, whether we’re able to ferret Harlan out or not.”
“Daddy.”
At Ivy’s voice, Cordelia turned to find her girl and her boy both watching her. Jacob had some color back in his cheeks and was no longer looking like he might pass out at any second.
“Feeling better, baby boy?” Cordelia asked, leaning down to cup his cheek in her hand.
“Yes, Ma’am. Sorry, I didn’t mean to… I wasn’t expecting to see her here. She never comes to the protests.”
“Yeah, I bet that’s what they were counting on.”
Confusion filled his eyes. “What do you mean?”
“That wasn’t an accident, baby. They sent her, maybe they’ve been sending her, because they were hoping you’d see her. They wanted you to see her and believe you made a huge mistake so you’d come running back home.”
“I wanted to. For a few seconds there, I wanted to go with her.”
Though it felt like her heart might shatter in her chest, she forced herself to ask the question that needed to be asked. “Why didn’t you?”
“You. If you hadn’t been right there, anchoring me the way you did, I don’t know that I would have been strong enough. But you were, so I was.”
“Fuck.” Closing her eyes against the tears that threatened, Cordelia pressed her forehead to hers. “You did so good for me, baby boy. I’m so fucking proud of you.”
“Really?” The question wasn’t suspicious, but rather full of an awe that tugged even harder at her heartstrings.
“Yes, baby. Now, let’s get you upstairs so you can meet the gang.”
Jacob
* * *
He wanted to argue. Wanted to tell them they’d done what they’d come to do and he wanted to go home now.
Humiliated. That was how he was feeling. Right down to his bones, to his very soul, embarrassed that seeing his mother had completely unraveled him in front of the women he loved and a man he looked up to.
Was he really as weak as his father had always said?
But at the mention of going upstairs, everything about Ivy lit up and she bounced excitedly on her toes. “Come on, Jakey! Everyone is dying to meet you!”
