Page 58 of Almost Ours
A breath.
A massive, glorious, gasping breath.
I choked on a sob and lunged forward, grabbing him, cradling him against me, my entire body shaking with relief and fear and love so strong it nearly took me under.
“Oh my God, oh my God,” I cried into his damp hair, rocking him, pressing frantic kisses to his icy forehead. “Baby, I’ve got you. I’ve got you.”
Out of the corner of my eye, Ryan slumped back onto his heels, his head tipping toward the sky, his hands covering his face. His shoulders rose and fell, his entire body trembling.
Behind us, Nina and Liam were both sobbing.
Connor was breathing.
He was breathing.
His lashes fluttered against his pale cheeks, and then, finally, his eyes opened.
Relief crashed over me so hard I almost collapsed.
“Connor,” I choked out, smoothing his wet hair back from his forehead.
His lips parted like he wanted to say something, but his whole body shuddered violently in my arms.
“Shh,” I whispered, tightening my grip on him. “Save your energy, baby.”
Sirens wailed in the distance. Shane was sprinting toward us, arms full of blankets.
I didn’t want to let Connor go–not for a second, not ever–but his clothes were still drenched, his little body trembling so hard it rattled against mine. He needed warmth.
As if reading my mind, Ryan knelt beside us, his hands shaking as he reached for Connor’s soaked clothes.
“Shane’s got blankets,” he murmured. “We need to get these off.”
I opened my mouth to say thank you, my throat tightening, eyes burning. Before I could, Ryan spoke again.
“I–” He stopped abruptly. His jaw clenched. His breath shuddered out of him. Then his head dropped forward, and I saw it–
The tears streaking down his face.
Something inside me broke.
A strangled sob tore from my throat, and suddenly, I was crying too. Crying because Connor was alive. Because Ryan had saved him. Because I had never been more terrified in my entire life.
We stripped the last of Connor’s soaked clothes off and wrapped him tightly in the blankets Shane had brought, cocooning him in warmth.
I tucked him against me, held him close, my lips brushing against his freezing forehead.
For a moment, I wasn’t on the frozen ground with sirens wailing in the distance. I was back in his nursery, rocking him in the middle of the night, his tiny body curled against mine, his breath warm against my neck.
It had been so long since he let me hold him like this.
A shuddering breath left my lips as I squeezed my eyes shut, pressing a lingering kiss to his forehead.
Footsteps crunched on the frozen ground.
The present slammed back into me.
The paramedics arrived with a stretcher, their voices calm but urgent. Behind them, a police officer spoke in hushed tones to Shane and Nina. Liam had finally stopped crying, his small frame pressed into Nina’s side, his arms wrapped around her like she was the only thing keeping him upright.
