Page 48 of Devilish Prince

My eyes turn to Lorenzo whose face is still drawn in a scowl. I stand and move to him quickly, draping my arms around his shoulders and squeezing him. He remains stoic, with his hands clasped in front of his body between us, but I sob into his chest.

“You did this…” I mutter, sniffling and letting the tears out. My brother can sit up on his own. He can turn his head. The trial was hopeful that these results would happen over months oftreatment, but it’s been two weeks. This is beyond what the trial could do.

I look up at Lorenzo’s stern face and he says. “I keep my word, Sofia.”

“But you did this…”

“Dr. Kaneko is the best in the world. He did this. I merely supplied the encouragement and means for Dr. Kline to entertain bringing him here.”

I lavish kisses on him, smearing my tears across his cheeks and lips in a fervent display of love and gratitude. I fully intended to keep him at his word that he would give the money he promised—or that his father promised rather—but I never expected such miraculous results. In fact, they would never have happened without Dr. Kaneko, and he would never have come without Lorenzo’s generous donation.

He grips my hips and holds me back, and for a moment I see a twinkle of mirth in his eyes before he scowls again. “If you’re quite finished we can get on with things. We have to stop by your flat to pick up your essentials before we head home.

“Home?” I ask, wiping my eyes.

“Yes, our home. And Calvin will join us next week where I’ve prepared an entire wing of the home for his care.” He nods at Dr. Kaneko. “The good doctor will have his own room as well. And when Cal is ready, we can supply him with the means to get reestablished in the workforce.”

“He may never regain use of his legs, but I am hopeful he will regain full motility from the waist upward.” Dr. Kaneko bows and It brings another wash of emotion across me.

I cling to Lorenzo filled with gratitude and admiration for this man. He kept his word and he did so in a way that excelled my expectations. Love flooded me and I kissed him again, but this time his lips met mine in a crash of affection.

“Thank you,” I whispered, placing my forehead against his.

“Now, shall we consummate our union?” he growled, so low only I could hear it.

“Yes, sir… I am yours, remember?”

32

EPILOGUE

LORENZO

Dad and I stand near the back wall of the large lecture hall watching Sofia in her element. It's been three months since we returned to New York, and after reluctantly accepting the surgical chair position at Bellevue, Sofia is flourishing. Things have really turned around for me, and her brother has full use of his arms again, though he is working on gaining strength now.

"She's really something," Dad says, leaning closer so he doesn't disrupt her lecture on hospital safety policies.

"Yes, she is," I reply, my eyes fixed on her as she moves confidently across the stage. Her voice is clear and concise, and she commands the attention of everyone in the room. The respect her for her talent and passion, not for my name, though that does have its caveats. I've had to assign her a protection detail for real this time. She's become somewhat of a celebrity and with it has come a target on her back from my enemies.

"And she's settled in just fine." His chin dips as he nods at her. She fields some questions and expounds on policy and procedure.

The new programs they've opened up within the hospital for patient anonymity in treatment—all by my instruction—aren't quite within her realm of authority as surgical chair but with Kline under my thumb, Sofia practically runs this place anyway. What I say goes, and she carries out my orders as good as any soldier I've ever trained.

"You're certain our comrades will be anonymous here. We can't have a slip up. We've hinged our entire dynasty on this, Lorenzo. If we take heat over this, we'll lose everything."

"Yes," I reply. "It's a safe program. We have tight security protocols in place to make sure no one can access the patient information without proper clearance." And only Sofia and I have that clearance, other than the trained soldiers I have implanted in the hospital staff to ensure our information isn't leaked or hacked. I take a deep breath and explain further, "The program is designed for both the safety of the patients and the staff. It ensures confidentiality while also providing an extra layer of protection against any potential threats."

Dad nods, satisfied with my explanation. He smiles at me before turning back to Sofia, watching her. I'm watching her too, the way her skirt brushes over her knees. The way her blouse dips in front low enough to see a hint of what I get to see every night now. Her body is a masterpiece, but her mind is the real treasure.

When she finally got in line with our plan—which ultimately stemmed from our first encounter, where she demanded cleaner safer conditions for stitching me up—we started making things happen. Now, no mobster in the city will have to go to some dark alley for surgery again. Not even our enemies. And since I hold the reins, we get to decide who lives and who dies—at least those who use the program.

Sofia refuses to work in our systems and insists that we keep things legal—in as much as pertains to her and her line of work—which is why we came up with the idea for the program. Everythings stays above board; she stays happy, and my influence continues to grow. It's a mutually beneficial arrangement she seems happy enough to go along with, besides the fact that the sex is incredible and she's growing on me.

The lecture wraps up, but Dad and I remain at the back of the room as we wait for all the doctors and department heads to filter out. Sofia collects her things from the podium behind which she stood part of the time, then gathers her lab coat and tablet, and looks up to see us. It's our cue that she's ready to speak with me.

We descend the steps and I greet her with a kiss to the cheek and grab her ass for good measure. She snickers and swats at me, then accepts a kiss on each cheek from my father.

"Hello, Mr. Gatti, it's nice to see you." Her smile never fades now. Following that ordeal where she laid in bed for two weeks straight and the shock of seeing her brother even slightly mobile, Sofia has fully rebounded. And Dad followed up on his end of the bargain too. Another massive donation was given to the hospital in her name directly out of his bank account in the Cayman Islands.

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