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CHAPTER ONE
“My God, Jules, I thought you were dead!” Dr. Alonso Romero uttered to his athletic, carefree brother Jules as he lay on the hospital bed. Alonso’s voice rang with authority as he spoke to his younger sibling. “Do you know how lucky you are to even be breathing? When I saw that video of the ski-a-thon on YouTube, I panicked and called Granddad. Took the first flight in from Haiti.”
“Thanks, bro,” Jules said, grinding his teeth to ease the pain as he clutched the side of his ribs where the incision was. Pain shot through him as he propped himself up on the bed. Even though Alonso and Jules were only two years apart, Alonso was always the protective brother. Jules was glad Alonso flew in to see him considering his medical guru brother was often busy managing operations at one of his international clinics. In fact, Jules was overwhelmed the whole Romero clan stopped by to see him despite their hectic schedules. The room was filled with family members, several of his brothers and his grandfather along with his wife. Just goes to show how really important it was to have family by your side when you’re at your lowest, or heck, when you’re vulnerable.
“I appreciate you being here,” Jules continued, “but, honestly, I don’t feel so lucky to be alive, right now.” And that was the truth. He felt a jolt of agonizing electricity shoot through his bones. That darn morphine was wearing off too fast for his liking. His tolerance for pain was usually high but not in this case. The impact his body took as he collided on the ski slope was damaging in more ways than one.
The hospital room door flung open and Dion, his other brother, bolted through. “Those damn reporters!”
“What’s wrong now?” Jules asked, trying to keep his cool.
“They’re everywhere. They’re like bugs, in your face, annoying the crap out of you!” Dion announced, leaving a Starbucks grande coffee on Jules’s bedside table. “One of the cleaning staff just told me an undercover reporter tried to pay her for some inside information about your progress.”
“That’s disgusting,” Grandpa Toni Romero rebuked. The old man’s lips were pinched into a thin line. He was seated near the window beside his considerably younger wife, Shelly.
Toni then waved his cane in the air. “I bet they’re from one of those darn gossip rags. You can’t trust anyone these days. They’ll sell you out for the right price. Good thing we have twenty-four-seven security outside your door, Jules. We Romeros can’t be too careful, as you know.”
“Grandpa, I don’t need security outside my door,” Jules replied with potency, heat rushing through his blood. The last thing Jules needed was to feel like some helpless cripple. “Please tell ‘em to go away. I can take care of myself!”
“Take care of yourself? You mean, like you did out there on the ski slope?” Toni argued, arching a brow over his round-rimmed glasses. “Don’t tell me you don’t need security, grandson. We don’t need to take any more chances. Why do you and your brothers have to be so stubborn at times? Look what we’ve been through in the past with invasion of our privacy by the press.”
“It’s okay, Gramps, let it rest,” Jules attempted to pacify. He loved his old man to bits and would throw himself under a bus to save his life but sometimes, he could be a bit much. He was beginning to wonder if he should have limited the number of visitors in his room. How the heck was he supposed to recover with all this fussing and commotion?
“Okay? No, it’s not okay, Jules,” Toni continued. “My God! Why does the media have to be up in our business around the clock? Can’t we even get sick in peace?”
Zack, Jules’s brother who owned the Romero Winery and Vineyard, cleared his throat after unsuccessfully suppressing a chuckle. “Oh, Granddad, you’re always the same,” Zack commented. He knew what it was like to be on the receiving end of Granddad’s strongly-worded chastising when a scandalous sex-tape from Zack’s ex threatened to surface and ruin his nomination for a prestigious winery of the year award not so long ago.
Jules glanced out the enormous window viewing the white clouds against the blue sky and scenic garden outside with a breathtaking view of the hills of the town known as Mayberry Hill. His grandfather Toni had donated millions to upgrade the medical facility, especially the flourishing garden to make it enchanting for patients who could do no more than stare out the window while they convalesce in bed.
The Romeros might be known to be enterprising jet-setters from the real estate arena to the corporate boardrooms of Fortune 500 companies but when it came to their own blood and supporting one another, family was first. Each and every time. They were tight as an intricately woven rope and never forgot where they came from in their youth when they had nothing but literally the clothes on their backs and hope in their hearts.
Good thing Jules’s private hospital room was massive in space. Seated around his bedside were Shelly and Toni, his grandfather and patriarch of the Romero dynasty, and his brothers Dion and Carl, the recently elected—and youngest—mayor of Mayberry Hill who stopped by from City Hall to see how Jules was doing today. Lucas, his other brother and founder of the renowned Healthy Start software, had showed up earlier that morning.
The surgeon, Dr. Adeem, suspended the two-visitors-only policy for a day since Jules was improving. He was already three days post-op.
The fresh pine scent of hospital disinfectant filled the air. The soft beeping of Jules’s monitor could be heard faintly since the overhead pagers were going crazy outside the room as doctors were being summoned.
“I don’t know what I would have done with myself, Jules, if we’d lost you,” Toni softened his tone slightly. “If you ever pull that stunt again, I’ll make sure you live to regret it.”
Jules grinned. “If I ever pull that stunt again, Gramps, I won’t live to regret it. I’d probably be dead!”
Toni smiled but his eyes were misty and filled with pain. Jules knew his old man had been through so much tragedy and heartache in his life as it was. He knew his grandfather wanted nothing more than the best for his grandsons whom he’d help raise when he learned about their existence in their teens.
The brothers often took part in the annual ski-a-thon to raise tons of dough for underprivileged kids so they could go to school and be able to afford not only supplies, but the basics like food and shelter for their families. The event was sponsored by one of many of Jules’s privately-owned companies, R.M. Fitness Centers. But something had gone terribly wrong when Jules lost his balance—something that had never happened before. Long story short, Jules crashed hard and the rest was a blur. He’d blacked out and woke up post-op. But that wasn’t all there was to it.
Dr. Adeem also delivered some awful news to him. Jules couldn’t bring himself to tell his family just yet. He didn’t want to hurt them any further.
At least his family—as much as he wanted to be alone right now—was taking his mind off his real problem. His own private hell.
Zack glanced at his buzzing cell phone and answered it.
“Now aren’t you supposed to have that thing switched off?” Toni rebuked Zack. “I don’t want anything messing with the equipment in here.”
Jules tried to resist the urge to chuckle. Besides, he would have to “guard” his rib cage if he did. “Granddad, it’s fine for cell phones to be turned on in here. It’s a medical surgical inpatient floor so it’s okay.”
Toni growled. “Very well, then. I just wish you boys would leave business alone for a change. It’s family time now. You’ll raise your blood pressure working around the clock.”
Zack dramatically placed his hand over his heart, feigning a crushed heart.
“And speaking of family…” Toni continued.
“Oh, boy, here we go again.” Dion rolled his eyes and shook his head.
“I’ve said it before and I will say it again. Family is so vital. Jules, you almost lost your life out there and just to think, if anything had happened to you and you didn’t have us here, what would you do? Who would take care of you or visit you and comfort you?”
Jules thought about it for a moment. “But I’ve got you, Gramps.”
“Very funny, Jules. You keep putting off settling down, and look. Look what almost happened to you. Heaven forbid, but you would have no companion to leave behind to mourn your passing or no little ones to carry on your legacy.”
Jules felt his breath halt. Heaviness centered on his chest and it had nothing to do with the morphine that had just worn off. His gut clenched so hard he felt his muscle pull.
Loneliness hurt like hell.
Having crushed bones was painful, but nothing compared to the pain of feeling lonely.
His grandfather was right, wasn’t he? As much as Jules hated to admit it. He looked around the room and saw the content looks on his brothers’ faces. Though his brothers and he vowed they would never marry—at least not until they were well into middle age, he saw how happy Lucas was with Maxine and Zack, oh, Zack the lady’s man, finally settled down with a loving wife, Blue. And Carl was now happily wed to Venus. Jules was beginning to feel left out.
