Fated Series. Book #2
"Be possessive of me, own me, keep me, because if you do then nothing and no one else can." - Maddox.
My name is Maddox Vallero, and I'm dead.
Well, that's not quite true. I'm alive in the breathing, walking, talking sense-but...
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Chapter 10 Mutual Agreements Sophia
"Jax, please." I begged, my voice rasping and tearing with the agony of watching him cry, "You can't sleep in my bed every night." I repeated, but he reached over his crib with hot tears streaming down his face, making his cheeks an angry, flushed red. He'd been crying for the past half-hour, and each heart-wrenching sob felt like it was physically pulling me apart. He was exhausted, way past his bedtime, but he wouldn't sleep—at least, not unless he was in my arms or curled up in my bed. And I knew I couldn't let this become a habit. It wasn't healthy. It would only teach him that he could make me cave whenever he wanted.
But right now? I was caving. I was caving hard, because with every passing second of his wailing, every tear-soaked look he gave me, I broke a little more. With every choked breath, I thought about all the times he'd probably stood just like this, clinging to the crib bars, crying himself out and begging for someone to just hold him. To make him feel safe. To love him. To care.
How many times had he cried until he was too exhausted to go on, realizing no one was coming? And I... I couldn't be that person. I couldn't be just another person who left him alone in the dark, no matter what the books said about teaching independence.
So I gave in. Rushing toward him, I scooped him up, setting him on my hip as he buried his face in my shoulder, his tiny hands clutching onto my shirt. "Okay, okay," I whispered, wiping away his tears. "You win."
He clung to me, hiccuping from all the crying, his face still red and damp. Those big, misty eyes looked up at me with a vulnerability that cut straight through me. "One more night, Jax," I told him, though I wasn't sure if I was trying to convince him or myself. Deep down, I knew it wouldn't just be one more night. Yet, knowing that, I still walked him to my room and set him down on my bed.
He curled up into my pillow, sniffling, his teddy bear clutched tight against his chest. He watched me, still afraid, like at any second I might tell him this was a mistake and send him back to the crib.
I sat down beside him, pulling my laptop from the nightstand and opening it, pretending like this was normal, like he could trust that I wasn't going anywhere. "Okay, sleep. I'm going to be right here, okay?"
He sniffled. "Sofi stay?"
I nodded, pulling the blanket up to tuck him in. "I'm staying right here, Jax. I promise."
He scooted closer to me, his little body pressing against my side as the last of his hiccups quieted. In twenty minutes, he was sound asleep, his face buried in his bear, breathing soft and steady.
I couldn't stop staring at him. He looked so peaceful now, so small and innocent, and yet... already so hurt by the world. The hatred I felt toward my mother surged up, fresh and raw, as I looked at this little boy. I'd thought I'd come to terms with everything she'd done to me, but knowing she'd done it to him, too? That she'd left him to cry alone in the dark, unloved, uncared for? It was unforgivable.
