I race us to the hospital. Warm tears cascade down my face. This is the longest journey of my life. How I haven’t crashed his precious baby, I don’t know.
My heart has been in my throat the entire time.
Grayson’s holding the table cloth I ripped off the table over his wound, but blood still seeps out across his abs.
“Grayson, Baby, stay with me.”
He hums in response.
“Don’t you dare fucking die on me. You just offered me forever. Don’t take that away from us.”
“I fucking love you, Sunshine,” he croaks out, and I barely recognize his voice.
“No, don’t do this. Please.”
I sob, squeezing his thigh.
“Stay with me, please. I’m begging you.”
“Grayson!” the panic in my voice is evident.
His breathing is heavy, but he doesn’t respond.
“Grayson!”
Nothing.
I pull up outside the hospital, slamming the breaks on and flying out of the car.
“Somebody help me, my boyfriend’s been shot!”
Three men run over to me, one stubbing out a cigarette.
“He’s in the car.”
I let out a shaky breath as another brings over a stretcher. They drag his lifeless body onto the stretcher and rush him toward the entrance.
I run over and shut the door behind them, but not before reaching over to the center console and grabbing his phone and that black ring box I picked up off the restaurant floor. I follow behind through the glass doors.
“Miss, we are going to need you to wait here. They are taking him straight in the ICU.”
I spot a bathroom just at the end of the waiting room. I run to it, slamming the door shut behind me. I put the phone and box on the tiled floor and lift the toilet lid up and empty the contents of my stomach. Once I finish, I flush and sit on the floor.
He’s going to be okay.
His phone starts ringing on the floor next to me, and Luca’s name flashes on the screen.
“Did you do it?” Luca’s voice booms down the phone.
Perhaps, he’s talking about the engagement.
“L-Luca, he’s been shot.”
He curses before asking, “Where are you, Maddie?”
“St. Lukes-Roosevelt Hospital.”
“Maddie, I need you to listen to me very carefully now.”
“Okay.”
“I will be there in fifteen minutes. In the meantime, do not let Grayson out of your sight.”
“He’s in the surgery, Luca. I’ve locked myself in the bathroom.”
“Fuck!”
“Okay, Maddie. I’m on my way now. Just stay where you are. We have to keep you safe. Keep the door locked and I will knock for you when I’m there.”
“Luca, what if he dies?”
I try to suck in a breath, but it’s no use.
“Maddie, it’s going to be okay. Grayson won’t go down without a fight. He will do anything to make his way back to you both. I’ll see you soon.”
I hang up and put the phone back on the floor next to me. And wait.
A knock on the bathroom door startles me.
“Maddie, it’s me.” For some reason, it calms me. Knowing Luca’s here to look out for us both.
I bring myself to my feet, not forgetting the box and the phone, and unlock the door, peering through to see his bloodshot green eyes staring back at me.
I push open the door and throw myself into his chest, wrapping my arms around him. His body goes stiff, then I feel him relax, returning the hug. Grayson isn’t here to kick his ass for touching me right now. And I need a fucking hug. I tighten my grip around his muscular frame and squeeze my eyes shut.
“Shhh, it’s going to be okay, Mads,” he murmurs.
His heart is racing, despite his calm tone.
“They are taking us to his room. He’s not going to be out of surgery for a while but we can wait there for him.”
I nod against his chest, not wanting to let go.
“Frankie, go grab us a couple of coffees, please.”
Luca whispers, “Frankie won’t hurt you. He’s one of us.”
I nod against his chest, but something inside me is screaming not to trust him.
“Come on, let’s go.”
He grabs me by the shoulders, taking a step back.
“You ready?” he asks.
I nod, and he takes my hand and kicks open the double doors.
He leads us down the gray corridor, and that horrid clinical smell burns my nostrils. In room 14, there are two leather chairs, a white table and some monitors. The only noise is the clock ticking.
I take a seat and Luca sits beside me. Frankie arrives shortly with two steaming cups of coffee. He barely looks at me as he hands it to me. Weird.
“I’m so sorry, Maddie,” Luca blurts out the second Frankie leaves the room, positioning himself outside the door. I completely forgot we’re now basically in the middle of a mafia warzone.
“It’s not your fault, Luca. You didn’t shoot him.”
I know Grayson loves working for Luca. It might be wrong, but it’s him.
“I should have known they were going to retaliate.” He sighs and sips his coffee.
“Retaliate?”
“We kidnapped Marco’s youngest daughter. The brat is currently living in my house, causing me all kinds of shit.”
I don’t know what to say.
“But they killed Nico, right?”
A sadness washes over his face. He runs his hand through his dark hair and leans back in his chair.
“I need to get a fucking grip of this organization. I’m a fucking failure.”
“Hey, stop it.” I reach over and grab his hand.
“Grayson respects you; he wouldn’t work for you if he didn’t. Not everything can go perfectly as per plan all the time. Tonight was bad luck. Maybe, if Grayson wasn’t so wrapped up in me, this never would have happened.”
Luca’s eyes flick down to my hand.
“Where’s the ring?”
Tears well in my eyes, and I shake my head.
“I said no, Luca. That could be his last memory of me.” I tear my hand away from his and cover my face.
“Maddie, listen to me. Grayson loves you; he’s loved you from the moment he laid eyes on you. Never fucking forget that.”
“Why did you say no? I thought you always dreamed of marriage?” He crosses his leg, staring at me intently.
“I did. I mean, I do. I just didn’t want Grayson to feel forced into marrying me because of, you know…” I dart my eyes down to my stomach.
“He wanted nothing more than to marry you, Maddie. He wasn’t doing it because he thought you wanted it. He was doing it because he did too.”
My heart breaks at his words. How did I get this so wrong?
“I fucked up.”
Luca stands and picks the black box up from the side table and places it in my hands.
“Do you want to marry him?”
“Y-yes.”
“Then put the ring on. When he wakes up and sees you wearing that, he might forget about all the pain.”
I open the box and stare at the gorgeous ring glistening in the box.
It’s perfect. I mean, it’s a statement and a half, but that’s Grayson.
I slide it over my ring finger. I hold my hand up to the lights and admire how it shimmers.
“You never know, he might have forgotten you said no.” Luca chuckles, giving me a wink.
Time ticks by as I sip my coffee, not being able to take my eyes of my ring. Luca is busy tapping away on his phone next to me. I glance at the clock—11pm. He’s been in surgery for two hours already now.
“Hey, Maddie. I just need to pop out. I have a shipment coming in, and I need to make sure it goes smoothly. I’ll leave Frankie here with you. If you need anything, you just ask him. I’ll be back in a couple of hours. Let me know if there are any updates.”
I nod, and he walks over, slipping his phone in his pocket. He drops a kiss to the top of my head.
“Call me if you need anything.”
“Thank you, Luca.”
