Page 88 of Doc

I nod, raise onto my toes, and press a hard kiss to his mouth. “Thank you.”

“There’s nothing to thank me for, Daddy.”

Taking a step back from him, I try to steady my breathing and racing heart. James follows me out of the clinic, and when we get into the car, I have to close my eyes and force myself to chill out so I can put the seatbelt on without shaking.

James gets us on the road, and I don’t question if he needs the address to my condo. After all, when I took the job, Cristian made sure I got a place in an Amato run building.

He makes a call to Joel, who picks up on the first ring. As he explains the situation, and the need for someone else to come guard Doc, I pull out my phone and check my texts. Nothing new from David, but I send one to my group chat with the trips anyway.

SOREN

What’s going on?

VONNY

Easier to explain in person.

DIMA

I’m going to commit patricide

VONNY

He is not. How far away are you?

SOREN

Just left the clinic. Be there as soon as possible

VONNY

Good. It’s bad, Sory…

SOREN

Does he need a dr?

VONNY

Not that type of bad…

SOREN

Fuck!

DIMA

You can say that again. Just get here

I put my phone away because there’s nothing else to say. The implications of what both David and the trips are saying is our worst nightmare coming to life. Guilt begins to bubble up in me, making my stomach twist.

I should have tried harder to get them to come to the Amatos. We’ve been discussing it more and more after Cristian made his offer, but they haven’t said yes yet. I shouldn’t have given them a choice…

But I didn’t want to be like our parents. I wanted them to do what was best for them, and now we’re all facing the consequences…

“My brother is sending a guard to Doc,” James says, cutting through my self-deprecating thoughts. “I would prefer it be him, but he’s busy with Tennant today. Do I need to call for backup for us?”

I shake my head. “No, it’ll be fine. My building is secure, and Dmitri is a bodyguard in training. Plus, if David’s still there, so is his guard.”

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