Darkest Shadows

13) Princess

"Oh, I was calling you princess."--Ambrose

♡

His head is killing him, like someone is drilling into his skull but that all freezes when he hears the sweetest thing. "Hey Amby, I brought a visitor."

Ambrose gently tries to open his eyes, but they fly open when he hears a tiny cry. Jax looks so beautiful standing there with a baby in his arms dressed in a cute orange onesie with a little pink pacifier in her mouth. "Whose baby is she?"

"Ours."

"What?" he mutters, disbelief traveling his spine. "What do you mean?"

Jax shifts the baby in his arms to hold her up against his chest, her little feet kicking out at Ambrose. "Amby, meet our daughter Ambrosia, Ambrosia meet your papa Ambrose."

"Our daughter? How? When?" he asks dumbfounded, scooting over he gives Jax room to sit next to him on the hospital bed.

"The past two weeks I've been at an adoption clinic early in the morning trying to sign for her adoption, she was only born last week but I wanted to get ahead of everyone else, so I went in at five when they opened and was there for about three hours. I had to set up a doctor for her and had to get her medical records right, after she was born they wanted me to go through testing and stuff since I was the primary adopter; I wanted it to be a surprise for you. That's where I was these last two weeks, I was never with another guy or in someone's bed. I would sleep in the waiting room or my car while stuff was being processed. I'm sorry that you felt that way and that I didn't tell you, I really wanted to surprise you. I know you've been wanting a kid and I wanted to wait until the right time, but you seemed really sad after Lio came so I just decided it was time. Can I ask you something?"

Ambrose nods as his daughter's eyes blink at him and her little hand slips from Jax's chest and close enough for her to grab onto his finger. "Did you start taking the drug because I was gone?"

"Not really. I got hurt about a decade ago and they gave me opioids for the pain, but I didn't take them because I didn't want to be inebriated. Lately, it's been so hard to try to be happy and be okay when I'm really not, I tried suppressing it so it wouldn't get anyone else down, I found those and was contemplating taking them. I took the first the night before you started leaving, I thought I was going to stop but after you kept leaving it made me more and more upset, so I took them to numb the pain. You didn't make me start taking them, but you did make me realize that I need help, that maybe therapy isn't cutting it anymore. Rhea did some asking around and she found a good halfway house that would take me, and I think I should go," he admits.

"Wouldn't you live there though?"

"I might still be able to live at home, but it depends on how bad my condition is. If I have to live there it can be anywhere from three months to a year."

"What about Sia? She just came into our lives, and I can't parent without you," Jax whispers, tears filling his eyes.

"Rhea will try and see if I can stay here if I'm under her and Demi's watch since she's a psychologist and he's a medic. I don't want you to parent alone either. I want to be here for every second of her life, but Jax, you have to understand, this is worse than any of us thought and if I don't get the help now, it's going to destroy everything. I was in withdrawal, and I nearly choked Rhea, I had my hand wrapped around her throat and only Tarver snapped me out of it. It was an eye-opener for sure. I could have killed this woman who makes my best friend so happy, I could have killed her with her baby boy outside that door. I'm not in control of myself anymore Jax and I don't want to hurt anyone else, and now that we have a daughter it's more important than ever that I get that help. I know this is going to be hard on you, on us, but I am dedicated to getting better."