Chapter 457

“Markie, I need you to go downstairs,” Ella says, speaking swiftly and softly, her voice calm and cheerful. “Make all of the chefs leave the kitchen, no questions. And then start to pull out everything that’s good.”

Mark nods and jumps up, disappearing out the door on his task.

“What are…we going to do?” Rafe asks, gesturing between the three adults left.

“That depends,” Ella says, shifting her gaze to Jackson now. “On whether or not Jackson wants you to go get Ariel? Or if he would like to take…a little bit of time to adjust to this so that he can get his mind in order before telling his mate about this incredible new development in his life.”

Jackson raises his eyes to Ellas for a moment and then nods, clearing his throat. “Maybe…maybe some time? To get my mind in order?”

Ella nods seriously back to him, giving him a little smile.

“Is that…horrible?” Jackson whispers, looking back down at Marigold. “She – Ariel deserves to know…maybe we should go get her…”

“You can take an hour, Jacks,” Ella says, reaching out to pat him on the knee. “You’ve had a shock. You can take some time. She will understand.”

“She will,” Rafe says, nodding and putting a supportive hand on Jackson’s shoulder.

“So, are we just going to…sit here?” Jackson whispers, still staring at Marigold, who stares back at him from her spot curled up in Ella’s lap. “And let me process this?”

“Oh no,” Ella says, beaming down at the little girl. “We’ve got a hungry child on our hands! That’s my catnip.”

“How do you know she’s hungry?” Jackson asks, leaning closer, studying the girl like there will be some physical sign.

“Because she’s a skinny little muffin, and it’s nighttime, and kids always want to eat. What do you say, little Goldie Girl? Want to get some supper?”

Marigold’s head snaps up at the word and her eyes flash.

Ella laughs. “Does that sound good? Do you want a taco?”

Marigold’s face scrunches in confusion.

“She…won’t know what a taco is,” Jackson murmurs. “Maybe…some apple?” he tries. The little girl’s head spins eagerly to him. “And some cheese?”

Her eyes go wide and she nods, just barely, just once.

“Cheese!” Ella says, laughing and getting to her feet and hoisting the little girl with her, settling her on her hip. “I knew she was a girl with good taste. I love cheese too. Come on, everyone. Let’s go down to the kitchen and get some cheese.”

Heaving a little happy sigh, Ella heads for the door with the little girl bundled in her arms. Baffled but pleased to have someone to lead the way, Rafe and Jackson follow in silence.

Outside the office, Rafe remembers himself and strides down the hall ahead of Jackson and Ella, ensuring that the way is clear, that there are no prying eyes to spread the news throughout the halls. Ella talks quietly to Marigold, explaining all the different parts of the palace they walk through and where they’re going, but Jackson just stares at the little girl, who stares right back at him.

Because he can feel it now that his panic has subsided slightly – the bond between them. He doesn’t remember it making its presence known, or snapping into place, or accepting it. It’s just there – vivid and real, between him and this little girl. God has it…has it always been there?

Was it there the moment she was born, or earlier? And he just never noticed? Or…

He shakes his head, not understanding, as the little girl peers at him.

Jackson forgets to breathe and blink, his feet carrying him alongside Ella without him truly intending them to. Instead, his entire concentration is fixed on this little girl, on Marigold, his little daughter.

Because god – she’s so…she’s so cute –

With that little tiny adorable face, and those big blue eyes -

But she’s also so thin – skinny in the way that Midnight is, in a way that speaks of years of deprivation. And her little torn dress, which he now realizes is just a man’s shirt with the sleeves torn off, a scrap of fabric sinching it together at her waist. Jackson’s eyes dart down and he clenches his teeth at the sight of her shoes, which are covered in holes. The sole of one shoe flaps open at the front, and he can actually see her little toes hanging out.

Jackson inhales sharply, pressing his eyes shut against the guilt and the sadness that runs through him because…

He should have been there. He should have known about her – he should have been there to help her, to take care of her –

Jackson nearly trips over his own feet when he feels it.

“Are you all right?” Ella asks, pausing in her steps to turn and look up at Jackson, frowning slightly.

He just goes still, ignoring Ella, staring at the little girl because…

Was that…a question? He felt? Down…down the bond?

The little girl shrinks away from him, her mouth pulling into a thin line, and he groans a little – realizing that he’s frightening her, just staring at her with the ferocity and intensity of a lion. Jackson immediately turns to the bond, very carefully passing assurance and calm down it, hoping that it’s…right. That it’s okay. That she can feel it and it’s…normal to do that.

The little girl goes still for a second and then perks up, smiling at her father.

Smiling.

Jackson groans aloud, his heart breaking at the sight of his little girl smiling at him for the first time. He reaches out a hand and strokes it over her dark hair, marveling at the silky softness of it.

His little girl. His. Absolutely his.

And she smiles.

Jackson reaches for Marigold as she reaches for him, and suddenly she’s up in his arms, clasped tight against his chest, and he closes his eyes, tucking his head down next to hers.

“There,” Ella says with a happy sigh. “That’s better. That’s nice, isn’t it?”

Jackson opens his eyes a little to peek at Ella, a tiny smile on his lips.

Ella beams at him, her hands clasped beneath her chin. “Daughters are amazing,” she whispers.

Jackson nods once and then starts forward again, eager to keep going, to get Marigold something to eat. Because he can feel it now, down the bond, the gnawing hunger that is perhaps so ever-constant that she doesn’t know any different.

Jackson sends a mental image of cheese down the bond and feels her respond with eager happiness. His face bursts into a smile.

Ella laughs and hurries to keep up. When they reach the kitchen Rafe smiles at the three of them and pushes open the door. “Supper awaits!”

They step inside and Rafe laughs a bit to see that Mark did his job – that the big industrial kitchen is empty of people, and that the simple wood table in the corner is absolutely covered in food.

“Um, I got everything I thought was good,” Mark says, gesturing towards it and anxiously running a hand through his hair as he stands at the stove with an apron tied around his waist. “And I’m making macaroni and cheese. Do you think it will be enough?”

Ella laughs as she looks over at Marigold, who stares wide-eyed at the incredible amount of food on the table.

“Oh, I think it will be enough, Markie,” Ella says, laughing and going to a closet, pulling out a booster seat for Marigold. “You did good!”

Things come together almost simply then, the entire group falling into the familiar routines of mealtime. Jackson settles Marigold onto the chair and ensures that she’s comfortable as Mark and Rafe begin sorting through all the food, wondering quietly about what Marigold might like. Ella finds some cheese and begins to slice it along with an apple, murmuring to Mark that he might want to check on his steaming pot of pasta. Mark gasps and rushes over to it.

Jackson watches, fascinated, as Ella slides the plate of apple and cheese before Marigold, who looks at it in shock like she’s never been offered so much food in her life. She stares at it, and then looks around in wonder.

“Go ahead, Goldie,” Ella says, smiling at her and cutting herself a piece of cheese. “That’s all for you. And you can have more if you want it, or something else. Whatever you’d like, baby.”

Marigold’s face bursts into a smile as she grabs at the food with both hands, starting eagerly to eat.

Jackson’s heart breaks again, for about the thousandth time in the past hour, as he realizes that she…probably never has had a plate like this, all to herself. He sits back hard in his chair, just…watching his daughter eat. Fascinated and devastated all at once.

“So, what are you going to do now, Jackie?” Ella asks quietly, nibbling on a piece of cheese.

Rafe opens a pack of crackers and sets a stack on Marigold’s plate, quietly pretending that he’s not paying rapt attention.

“What do you mean?” Jackson asks, turning to Ella in surprise.

“Well, are you keeping her?”

Jackson stiffens at the question. “What?”