The Mafia’s Forbidden Desire

ROSALINDA “He’s a fighter. He survived it. Luckily, the bullet narrowly missed his heart. He’ll recover soon enough.” These words from the doctor were the best news I had ever heard in my entire life. I couldn’t even imagine what would have happened to me and to my son if I had lost Antonio. My entire existence would have been wounded, and I would have never recovered from it. I was glad about the information the doctor passed, but I was still insanely worried and wanted to see him awake and talk to him before I could break free from the anxiety twisting my insides. It’s been thirty-two hours since the bullet extraction surgery, since the doctor assured us that his vital signs were okay and that he would wake up soon enough, but he still hadn’t. I was sitting by his bedside, silently praying, hoping, and wishing for him to wake up. I was mentally and physically exhausted, and everyone had asked me to go home and rest because of my condition, but knowing that he was in that situation because of me, I couldn’t even bring myself to leave his side. I needed to be here when he woke up. “He’s on the line.” Vito said, cutting through my thoughts as he handed me his phone. I quickly took it, placing the phone over my ear. I had requested that he call someone who was home with Carlo and hand the phone to him. I needed to speak with my son and make sure he was okay. I would have preferred seeing him, but I didn’t want him to see his parents in their present condition. Antonio was unconscious, and I shattered. “Mommy.” He called from the other end of the line, and that tiny voice of his eased my aching heart-briefly. “My baby. How are you?” I quickly asked. “Mommy, where are you? Where is Daddy? Come home.” The hurt he felt was palpable in his voice, and that shattered my heart even more. “We’ll come home soon, baby. Be a good boy until we do. Okay?” I said, trying my best to control the tears that were threatening to burst through my eyes. “Please come home. I miss you.” He said. “I miss you too, baby. I’ll call again soon. Bye. I love you.” I quickly said and ended the call as I couldn’t contain the tears anymore. Tears streamed down my face afterwards, and I held Antonio’s hand as I cried. “Please wake up. For me. For your son. He needs you. We both need you. Please wake up.” “It was all your fault.” Marco groaned from one corner of the room, and that intensified my tears. I hated that he was right. It was all my fault. He was only trying to save me from that psychopath. “If you hadn’t-” He tried to continue, but Camilla cautioned him. “Marco!” The thought of Liam and his father filled every bit of my veins with so much hatred and bitterness as I flicked my burning eyes towards Vito. “Have those bastards been found?” They had ran away after the incident, and Antonio’s men had been working tirelessly to look for them. “It’s all your-” Marco started, but Vito quickly interjected. “We are still working on it. Nikkolai Petrov heard about it, and he offered to help. We are working with him to find them. I promise you, we will find them and make them pay for what they did.” I couldn’t wait to hear the news of their demise. That was how much I hated them. The tears stinging my eyes came rushing all over again. I was scared, terribly terrified. It’s been hours now, and Antonio still hadn’t woken up. What if he never did? I suddenly felt a hand on my shoulder, and I hoisted my head to see Camilla standing beside me. “He would be fine. We would get him back.” She assured me. She looked devastated herself, visibly scared of losing her only brother. “I hope so.” I mumbled. I held Antonio’s hand as I muttered. “Fight through this. Please. For me. For your son. For your unborn daughter. For everyone you love. Please…” The more I spoke, the fainter and less audible my voice sounded, as my exhaustion weighed heavily on me. I began to feel my body weaken even more, and I could barely sit upright anymore. I leaned in and rested my head on the bed for support. My head felt light, and oxygen seemed to abandon me as I could hardly breathe anymore. I felt myself losing consciousness. I was too weak to even stand up and seek help. Everything was happening too fast.

What was happening to me? ***

The next time I opened my eyes, I was in a hospital bed. I looked around to see my family hanging around the room. The moment they noticed that my eyes were open, they jumped at alert, worries saturating their features as they took turns to ask if I was okay. “I’ll get the doctor.” Matteo offered as he sprinted out of the room. I wondered what happened to me and how long I had been unconscious.Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.

Thoughts of a worst-case scenario coursed through my mind, and anxiety kicked in. “My baby.” I whispered, promptly placing my hand on my bulging stomach. “She’s fine.” Mama assured. “What of Antonio?” My troubled self quickly asked. “Is he awake? For how long have I been unconscious?” “Approximately five hours,” Sofia replied. “Is Antonio awake?” I asked again, worried, as I tried to sit up, but Papa held me down. “Can you just worry about yourself first?” He sighed. “Is Antonio awake?” I persisted. “He woke up two hours ago and wouldn’t stop asking of you.” Sofia finally answered my question. A sense of relief washed over me as I shut my eyes and breathed. “Thank Goodness.” The door swung open, and a doctor and a nurse walked into the room.

He examined me and asked me a few questions. After making sure I was fine, he recommended an absolute and extensive rest before walking out of the room with the nurse. Immediately they exited the room, the door was pushed open again, and the person that came into view, in a wheelchair, made my heart skip a beat. “Antonio.” I whispered, tears welling up in my eyes as Camilla wheeled him down to me. He curled his lips into a smile. “Never do that to yourself again. You stubborn damsel.” “I was scared of losing you.” I cried. “Did you think I was going to leave you all by yourself? I would never!” He looked and sounded frail, but I was glad he was awake at least. A smile crept up my lips. “How are you?” “How are you?” He asked instead. I nodded. “I have never felt finer now that you are awake.” I sighed, swallowing a lump in my throat as the thought of what happened came rushing in. “I am so sorry. It was all my fault, and-” “Don’t you ever say that again.” He cut me in, a frown masking his features. “But-” “Shhh…” He cut me off again. “Don’t.” I sighed, then smiled. “I am glad you are awake. I wanted to be there when you woke up.” “It’s fine, baby.” He held my hand in his, looking directly into my eyes as he muttered. “I love you.” A kaleidoscope of butterflies churned in my stomach at those three words. The effect he had on me and would always have on me was strong and unbreakable. I loved him too. So much. “More than you could ever imagine.” He added, amplifying that sweet butterfly effect. “And I love you, Antonio.” I said, an overwhelming warmth filling my heart. Marco walked in, and Antonio turned to look at him. “Did you bring it?” He nodded, handing him a small velvet box. My eyes widened, and my mouth fell agape at the realisation of what was inside that box. I never saw this coming. “I got this a while ago,” he said, staring at the little box. “And this was not how I wanted it to go. You deserve a better proposal, but…” He cast his gaze to the ground, sighing, before looking back at me. “We never know what tomorrow holds, and I don’t want to waste any more time.” “Antonio…” I whispered, tears trickling from my eyes. “Remember, I promised to keep you out of harm’s way, but I failed to keep that promise, and I am deeply sorry for that. But then, that made me realise that as long as we still belong to this dark, ruthless, and unforgiving world, harm will always come our way. So, I’ll rephrase that promise.” He squeezed my hand lightly. “I promise to protect you and everyone, everything you care about when harm comes. I’ll make whoever crosses you pay. I failed you once, baby, and I am promising you now that I will never fail you again. I love you more than life itself, and I would love you, Carlo, and our unborn daughter forever and ever.” My heart swelled with so much joy and affection. My eyes spilled out tears that represented those feelings. “I promise you that you will never regret loving me. You’ve changed me in ways I couldn’t even fathom. You are the best thing that ever happened to me.” He opened the small velvet box, revealing a diamond ring that shone beautifully. Despite the pain that he was in, he forced himself to go on one knee for his woman, holding the ring between his fingers. “Rosalinda Moretti, would you do me the honour of becoming a Russo? Please, marry me.” My heart thundered, and heat rushed to the pit of my stomach. “Yes.” I nodded excitedly, stretching my hand forward. I could never say no. He was also the best thing that happened to me. He slipped the ring in and kissed it on my finger. Claps echoed in the room as everyone cheered us on. I didn’t just love this man; I was in love with him. He sat back in the wheelchair with the help of Camilla. His smile shone through his eyes, never leaving his face. Holding my hand in his, he muttered. “Let’s have the wedding in Italy. I heard Lake Como is a very nice place to get married.” I nodded in agreement, tears streaming down my eyes. He took his thumb to my face, gently wiping my tears with it. “I love you. In sickness and in health.” “In sickness and in health.” I repeated with my whole heart.