22. Cord

Chapter 22

Cord

I freeze mid-step outside of the kitchen and listen. Mom and Macy are talking and I can hear the fear and sadness in Macy's voice.

"He could have any woman in the world. What makes me special enough to be able to call him mine?"

Oh, baby, why can't you see yourself the way I see you?

"Macy," Mom whispers. I hear her move around the counter and I peek around the corner to see her hugging my girl. "Sweetheart, I know exactly how you feel. I went through the same thing with Owen. He had so much to give. He was smart, successful, and the most handsome man I had ever seen."

"He is pretty hot." Macy chuckles as she swipes at her eyes.

"Don't tell him that. That man doesn't need a bigger ego. My point is, I saw the women he dated or hooked up with in the past and they were gorgeous. So much prettier than I could ever dream of being. I knew I couldn't measure up and I didn't see a point in trying. But do you know what I never took into consideration? "

"What?"

"I was looking at myself through my own eyes. Owen was looking at me from his perspective. We're our own worst judges, Macy. I thought Owen was perfect, yet he viewed himself as broken and unworthy of my love. You need to stop judging yourself and try to view yourself through Cord's eyes because I guarantee you're a hell of a lot different in his eyes than you are to yourself."

I push off the wall and step into the kitchen. I'm done with this. I'm not going to let her keep examining herself when she doesn't see her true worth.

"In Cord's eyes she's fucking perfect and no other woman would ever compete with her, which is why she doesn't need to worry about some cleat chaser," I growl as I wrap my arms around her waist from behind and rest my chin on the top of her head.

"You weren't supposed to be listening to us." Mom scowls and swats at me with a towel.

"I know, but I'm glad I decided to come check on Macy when I did." I place my fingers under her chin and raise it until she's staring up at me. "You're everything to me, Mace. In my eyes, you're my sunshine."

I use the nickname Dad's had for Mom since before they started dating. Macy understands how much Dad worships her and maybe if I compare her to Mom, she'll begin to believe how I view her.

Her eyes fill with tears almost immediately and I can tell she's finally understanding the depths of my feelings for her. I release her chin and spin her around to face me. Then, I duck down until we're eye level.

"I love you, baby. It doesn't matter what women might want me, because I only want you." I slip my hand around to the nape of her neck and plant a firm kiss on her lips.

"Do you mind if we stop at my apartment on the way home? I want to grab something I need for work tomorrow. I forgot to grab it when I was packing at hyper speed." Macy grins at me as I slip my fingers through hers and rests our joined hands on my thigh as I drive out of my parent's driveway.

"No problem."

When I pull up in front of her apartment, I put my car in park and hurry around to her side to help her out. If nothing else, my mama raised a gentleman.

I snake my arm around her waist and press a chaste kiss to her lips. I swear I haven't been able to keep my hands to myself since I overheard her conversation with Mom. I feel like we're finally on the same page and it feels magnificent .

We turn to climb the stairs to her apartment and I spot a guy leaning against the railing. He's older, probably in his fifties or sixties, but he looks harmless.

Macy's body goes rigid as she stares at him like she just saw a ghost. I've never seen her like this before and it's honestly scaring me a little bit.

"Baby, what's wrong? Who is that?"

She opens and closes her mouth several times, but nothing comes out. I don't know what to do. I'm seconds away from tossing her over my shoulder and placing her back in my car, but I have one more idea before I try that.

I squat down low enough for me to be eye level with Macy, and hold onto her shoulders. She blinks at me and slowly seems to come out of whatever haze she was in.

"Who is that, Mace? You're scaring me."

"Micheal Hayes. That's my father," she whimpers.

Taking her hand in mine, I spin around to face Mr. Hayes, carefully guiding Macy so she's standing behind me. I don't want this man to see her again until I know what he's doing here.

"What are you doing here?" I keep my voice dark and menacing. I won't hesitate to do whatever I have to do to protect my girl.

Mr. Hayes takes slow steps towards us. I can tell he's being cautious. He doesn't know who I am and he isn't sure how I'm going to respond. He keeps his hands in the air, showing he's not a threat.

"I just wanted to talk to my daughter," he says softly.

"Phone calls are a good way to do that."

"I'd love to call her, but I don't have her phone number. She hasn't spoken to me in almost twenty years."

I swallow hard. Macy's never talked about her parents much, but I didn't realize she cut off contact completely with them. I guess I shouldn't be surprised though.

"That seems like a pretty strong indication she doesn't want to speak to you."

He nods his head, seemingly lost in thought. I examine him as he stares down at the sidewalk. Macy has his dark hair and olive skin. His striking honey eyes are almost an exact match to Liam's and Macy's. There's no denying they're related. They have the same chin and dimples.

"I deserve that."

"Did you really think it was a good idea to wait on the steps of her apartment in the dark to surprise her?"

"No. I knew it was stupid, but Liam wouldn't give me her number. I only figured out where she lived because he slipped up and mentioned the apartment complex. But I've been fighting to figure out which building."

Macy's hand is shaking in mine and I hear a soft sniffle. I have to get her out of here, but she needs to get her stuff for work tomorrow .

"Macy, go into your apartment and get your stuff while I talk to your dad," I speak loud enough for her to hear, but don't take my eyes off of Mr. Hayes. I'm not trusting anyone with my girl.

A sob tears through her as she darts towards the door and disappears inside. My chest aches for her. I can only imagine how much pain she's in right now. I know she's always been afraid of him showing up. But he's kept his distance for this long, why is he here now?

"What do you want from her?" I scrub a hand down my face and stare him down.

"I don't want anything. I just wanted to talk to her."

"Do you need money? I'll write you a check right now if you never come back here."

I'm not joking. I'd give him almost any amount to get him away from her before he breaks her all over again.

"I don't need your damn money," he growls.

"Then I'm a little lost on why you're here." I fold my arms over my chest. I'm not afraid of him and he knows it. I'm standing between him and his daughter, but I'm not moving unless Macy asks me to.

"It's been a long time since I've seen her. Liam moved them away while I was in prison." His lips press into a thin line. "I'm not proud of my past, but I want to make up for what I did."

"How do you plan on doing that? Showing up here unannounced probably set you back a few steps. "

"I don't know! Fuck! I knew it would be hard, but I didn't think it would be this hard." He runs his hands through his hair and tugs on the ends.

Grabbing a business card out of my wallet, I hold it out to Mr. Hayes. Macy's going to be back soon, and I want him gone before she gets here.

"Take this. You can call me sometime tomorrow and we can discuss things. I'll see if I can convince Macy to talk to you, but I make no promises. She was just starting to get her life back together. I don't think she can handle this right now."

"What do you mean? What happened to her?" He takes a step closer and carefully pulls the card from between my fingers. He stares down at it like it's the most precious thing in the world.

"Yeah, I'm not giving you any information on her unless she's ok with it." Gripping the back of my neck, I rub at the tense muscles. Charlie's going to yell at me tomorrow when she does my weekly massage.

"You're Cord Powell?" Mr. Hayes blinks at my card before staring at me in surprise and maybe a little bit of awe.

"Yeah, but I don't know what that matters." I scowl.

"You can take care of her and give her the life she deserves."

"I'd love to."

"You love her, don't you?"

"With all my heart, but I'm not sure it's enough."

"What do you mean?"

"Thanks to you and your wife, she doesn't trust people and doesn't believe she can be loved. I've been fighting that battle for years. I just hope one day I win it and can prove to her how amazing she is."

His gaze flickers to the apartment building before he turns his attention back to me. He nods his head and takes a step back.

"I'm going, but I'll be calling you tomorrow. Please, help me get my daughter back. I just found out I'm a grandpa and my grandkids know nothing about me." The sadness in his gaze reminds me so much of his daughter. "I don't want to miss Macy getting married and starting a family of her own. I want to be a dad to her. I know it's too late, but isn't late better than nothing?"

"I'm not sure it is, but I'll do whatever is best for Mace. She's all that matters to me."

"You seem like a good man, Cord. I hope my daughter gives you a chance to give her a good life. The life I failed to give her."

"You can't come back here. Not unless she gives you permission to. I understand you want your family back, but you can't demand that on your terms, you need to give her time."

He nods his head slowly, letting my words sink in. I don't miss the devastation in his expression, but I can't help him more than I already am. He spins on his heels and starts walking in the other direction. I watch him go until I hear the apartment door open and slam shut. I turn to find Macy slowly descending the stairs with her arms wrapped tightly around her waist. She's hurting so much and I don't know how to help her.

"C'mon, baby. Let's go home." I hold my arms open and breathe in her familiar scent as she throws herself into my arms and lets out another sob.

I'll hold her for as long as she wants. I'll do whatever I have to do to help her through this. Whatever she needs.