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I sighed. For a moment in my life, I thought I had it all. The most beautiful and innocent wife, a healthy baby girl, money and power … until that fateful day when Marinka was shot.
He went over a few things with me, telling me how I was supposed to talk to her, and with every word, pieces of me broke off and drifted away. She’d need to stay in hospital for a while, at least until they got her up walking again.
And from there … everything would be a crapshoot.
I followed him through the hospital corridor, encountering a few nurses who indulged me with encouraging smiles. I fucking hated it—being the subject of pity. I felt like a ticking time bomb. We were getting closer to her room, yet the distance seemed to get bigger, tougher, more treacherous.
Then I remembered the moment I met Stephens, when Marinka had almost died.
“She’s pregnant, Mr. Dimitrei, about seven weeks in. It’s very difficult to say what will happen in the future. There have been cases in the world where a woman managed to give birth to a healthy baby while in a coma and so far, everything looks good—”
“Save them both, doctor,” I’d said, cutting him off. Earlier on, Stephens’ team had kept her alive, and I had faith she was going to be all right. But when he told me about the coma, it was a wrench thrown in that I could not fathom how to remove. None of this was in my hands.
I lost my temper then, started shouting at him because it was what I did when things were out of control, so he left me alone in his office until I cooled off. A few of my men and a nurse managed to calm me down, and thinking back, he had every right to throw out of the building if he wanted back then.
At the time, I could hardly believe Marinka was pregnant. Stephens had assured me her vitals were fine and she was strong enough to carry it through, with careful monitoring. Of course, there would be challenges.
That was Marinka—fragile yet strong. The strongest person I’d ever met. As much as she wasn’t past hurting herself, she survived things that would have made other people fold up and crumble.
She was a miracle. The baby was a miracle. Our miracle.
I was going to be a father, damn it. I’d never even considered it. She was so young and yet, there we were.
“Mr. Dimitrei … Mr. Dimitrei,” Dr. Stephen’s voice brought me back to reality and then I realised that we were already in Marinka’s room.
I’d known him so long, I figured we should be on first name basis right now, but we never even went there. If we became too familiar, too comfortable, I would have to accept the inevitability of my situation … the possibility that things wouldn’t change. I had to keep my walls up, for my sanity.
I blinked a few times, focusing my eyes on the slight feminine bundle under the sheets and soon, I was staring into her sparkling blue eyes. She was awake, sitting up on the bed, but it was obvious from the way she was looking at me, she had no idea who I was.
This was fucking scary because for the first time in my life, I had no clue what to do or what to say.
CHAPTER2
Marinka
I didn’t knowwhat was going on when Dr. Stephens brought the handsome, dark-haired man with him. He seemed a little … frightening. He stared at me with such intensity, I felt myself squirm on the mattress. The little attempt at movement had me wince in pain. I’d been beside myself for almost four years, and I couldn’t find my bearings. One of the nurses, Tammi, had told me I’d been shot, and that was why I’d ended up here.
Why were my parents not here? Were they alive? I wanted to see my dad. My mother, not so much. Maybe Dad was away on business, as he often was.
Why had I been shot? How did it happen?
And now, who was this man? Why would he want to see me? Clearly, he wasn’t a doctor.
My hands were shaking and my muscles were stiff. I could barely move my arms.
“Hello, Marinka, I wished to hold off on visitors but … Mr. …” He looked at the man, “Mr. Dimitrei here wanted to see you right away.” Dr. Stephens offered a kind smile.
“Sebastian,” the man said. “My name is Sebastian.” Pain flashed in his eyes, and he visibly flinched.
I powered through the fog in my brain, telling myself I had to pay attention. This conversation, this man—I had a feeling it was important.
“Marinka,” the man called Sebastian said, and then, he went quiet again. There was so much hurt in his voice, especially when it broke on the second syllable. Something about it sounded eerily familiar. I just couldn’t put a finger on it.
“I know everything must be very confusing for you and a lot of time had passed,” the doctor continued.
“Who are you?” I asked, then instantly regretted it because that man looked even more wounded.
Dr. Stephens sighed. “Might as well get on with it.” He looked again at the other man, who nodded. “This is your husband, Marinka. I know this sounds strange to you right now, but perhaps with time, everything will fall into place,” he explained.
