Page 52 of The Mafia's Surprise Gift

Rocco’s face finally softened as he lifted one brow. “No, Mae. We’re here for you.”

“What?”

“I don’t know anything about what happened tonight, but I swear to you, I will find out. When I get my hands on whoever did this to you, I swear I will—” Rocco cut himself off and swallowed audibly.

My heart skipped a beat. Were they really here for me? Regardless of whether this was Mafia-related or not, they came all this way at the drop of a hat for me?

Fuck, they made it impossible to resist them.

“I’ve been struggling with my crumbling willpower to stay away from everything Mafia-related, to keep my son and me safe, and then it just smashed into me anyway.” I laughed dryly, then groaned as a dull ache flared across my ribs.

“I… If this is… I’m sorry,” Rocco said tightly. He leaned over me and pressed his lips to my forehead, then he lingered there for a few long seconds. “I’m so, so sorry.”

The door to my room opened once more, and two police officers strolled in with tight, grim expressions. Rocco’s thigh underneath my hand tensed immediately, and I was struck with a moment of curiosity. If Rocco was in the Mafia, what was his relationship with the police like?”

“Miss Murphy?” The taller police officer moved to my bedside, just a foot away from Rocco, while the other remained near the door.

“Yes?”

“My name is Kane. I was the first on the scene of your accident.”

“Uh… nice to meet you?”

“Do you know who did this?” Rocco cut in. In just a few seconds, he had tensed so completely that one wrong move and he would surely snap apart.

“Yes, we have the driver in custody. He survived the crash, and his blood alcohol level was… let’s just say it was insane.”

“What?” My stomach clenched.

“You were hit by a drunk driver, Miss Murphy. When you’re well enough, we will require a statement from you, but I just wanted to let you know that he’s been arrested, and once he’s cleared, he’ll be taken to the station.”

“That’s… thank you, Officer.”

Kane smiled at me, then he dipped his head at Rocco and left the room. His companion followed.

A drunk driver.

“Asshole,” Rocco spat out bitterly. “I ought to go see?—”

“No.” I moved my hand from his thigh to his forearm. “Don’t you dare. I don’t know how you deal with things in your world, but it sounds like the police have it under control.”

“He could have killed you,” Rocco snarled, and he rose sharply, like a rod snapping free of restraint.

Despite his angry stature and clear fury, I couldn’t stop the bubbles of tired laughter that crept up as the reality of the situation hit me.

“Mae?” Rocco turned to face me, and his anger was briefly replaced by open confusion.

Once I’d started laughing, I couldn’t stop. “It’s just… I’m sorry, it’s just so funny, don’t you think?”

“What do you mean?” Rocco frowned. “Should I get the doctor?”

“Well… I spent all this time trying to stay away from you because your world and your life are dangerous, and I—” I giggled harder. “And I nearly get killed by a drunk driver because the world is fucking dangerous anyway!”

Was this a punishment or a wake-up call? I couldn’t decide, and that only made the entire thing even funnier. It had to be shock, right? After a few long seconds of giggling, Rocco finally cracked a smile and returned to my side. He kissed my forehead and caressed one hand slowly through my hair.

“Being in my world does bring its own strain of unique dangers,” Rocco said carefully. “But you’re right. The entire world is dangerous.”

“Fuck.” I calmed down after a few minutes and sank back into my pillow. As silence fell, my thoughts turned back to Jian and what condition he was in. His side of the car had definitely taken the brunt of the impact, and the longer Dino was away, the more worried I grew.

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