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Beep. Beep. Beep.
I hated hospitals. The smell. The noises. The rush of people when catastrophe struck. And the wails of those left to pick up the pieces.
Today was no different, except my mother and sister were the ones crying. I’d heard my mother cry before, but always softly, as if she was trying to hide her sadness. Everything was different today, the woeful sound unlike anything I’d ever heard.
I stood in the same place I’d been since entering the hospital, trying to breathe while a suffocating weight remained on my chest. When I felt a hand on my shoulder, I bristled.
“It’s up to God now.”
I was shocked to hear my father say the words. He’d never acted as if he believed. As I tipped my head, I could see tears in his eyes. “Someone is going to pay for this.”
“Who, son? Mother Nature? There’s no one to blame. Shit happens. It’s how we move on that matters in the end, especially in this family. There must be no weakness shown. Ever. Do you understand me?”
My God. My brother hadn’t taken his last breath and my father was already returning to business. I gritted my teeth, trying my best to keep from saying something I’d regret. Now wasn’t the time to engage in a battle of wills with the harsh man. The single time I’d challenged him just before walking out of his house, he’d broken my nose and injured my pride. I’d sworn to hate him on that day. Up until now, I’d managed. But a broken man was standing in front of me, even if he refused to allow me to see just how weak he’d become.
The four years since I’d left the family fold had taken a toll.
“Listen to our mother. She’s bawling her eyes out. Do you plan on telling her the same shit?” Anger continued to build, the kind of rage that could become uncontrollable. The woman I’d saved was to blame. I had to cool down or this would turn into some kind of family brawl.
Fire burned in his eyes as he stared at me. “Revenge is best served cold, Gabriel. And you know I’m a proponent of making all those responsible for a treacherous act pay for their sins, but in this case, the young woman in the other car isn’t to blame. Besides, you saved her life. That was your choice.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
“Stop it. Just stop it, both of you. Our brother is in surgery and you both act as if you can control the damn world!” Theodora’s exclamation was louder than normal, her usual demure demeanor coming apart. She was shaking, her makeup smeared.
“You don’t understand,” I half whispered.Weakness. Don’t show any weakness.That wasn’t allowed in our family. Not for one second.
“Be a man,” he’d told me at age twelve. Fine. I would be a man.
“Don’t be a fool, Gabe. I love Luciano. He’s my rock, a big brother who looks out for me. You’re never around. You’re too busy sucking up to your wealthy stockholders to give a damn about family any longer. I hate you.”
“Don’t you dare say that,” our mother snapped. “We are family. Period. We will not come apart. Do you hear me?” She looked each one of us in the eyes, finally ending with me, her stare long and cold. “Did anyone contact Maria?”
Our other sister had a modeling gig in Italy. That’s all I knew. “I made contact,” I told her, although I’d been forced to leave a message. I walked away, guilt riding me hard. Theodora was right. I’d done everything I could to avoid family functions, let alone business meetings where I was listed as one of the stockholders. I’d pretended I was far too busy to engage. I’d tried so hard to shove aside my responsibilities that I hardly knew either one of my sisters any longer.
The ache inside was the most painful thing I’d been through that I could remember. I headed toward surgery, uncertain what to do. What I did know is that the weight of the family’s business would fall on my shoulders even if Luciano survived, the recovery time likely long and arduous. I shoved my hands in my pockets after pressing the button for the elevator. Why did I continue to have a feeling there was more to the accident?
My gut was usually right, but in this case, I wasn’t certain my thoughts were based on anything but grief, an emotion I knew far too well. As I leaned against the cold wall, I thought about the last conversation I’d had with Luciano prior to this morning. It had ended in an argument after I refused to quit my job. I’d even hung up on him. Then he’d left a terse message regarding the Morettis and something had clicked inside of me.
Family had to stick together.
Shit.
Too little, too late.
As soon as I stepped off onto the surgery floor, I became nauseous. As I walked down the corridor, a set of double doors flew open, two people walking beside a gurney. My heart raced the second I realized the identity of the patient.
The woman I’d saved, the creature who looked like an angel sent from the heavens.
She was alive.
I’d managed to save her.
As she was wheeled by, she opened her eyes and for a few seconds, I allowed myself to be mesmerized by her beauty. She was without a doubt one of the most attractive women I’d ever seen and all sound was blocked out, time ceasing to exist. A strange set of sensations vibrated through, a roar of desire forcing my cock to twitch. There was a shot of electricity, even though I was being pushed back violently. There were four people surrounding her gurney, one straddling her body, performing CPR. She was likely dying and I was aroused. What the hell was wrong with me? I remained unblinking until I could no longer see or hear the slight creaking of the wheels.
A part of me wanted to possess her.
