The Godfather’s Forsaken Rose Chapter 03
When I woke again, I was in St. Mary’s Private Hospital.
A nurse was adjusting the IV in the back of my hand. When she saw my eyes open, she said, “Miss Moretti, you’re finally awake. Your injuries are serious, and we’ll need to keep you here for observation. We also need to contact your family about the medical bill…”
I stared blankly at the ceiling and gave no response.
The nurse tried again. “Miss Moretti?”
“I’ve paid the bill.”
The low, familiar male voice came from the doorway and made my heart seize.
I turned my head sharply and saw Dominic standing there in a black suit, tall and immaculate.
The nurse read the room and left.
Dominic walked in. His eyes swept over my bandaged wounds. Then he reached out, as if to touch my forehead.
I turned away.
“Mr. Morello must be very busy. Why waste your time visiting a stranger?”
His hand paused.
“If I hadn’t come, would anyone else have?”
The words landed exactly where I hurt most.
Who did I have?
My mother was dead. My father favored another family. My stepmother was a hypocrite. That house had stopped being my home a long time ago.
All I had was my pride and my defiance. I wore them like armor and pretended I needed no one.
For three years, Dominic had appeared every time I needed someone. He taught me to depend on him. He made me believe I had found safe harbor.
And now he was the one who had shoved me back into the abyss.
My heart hurt until it went numb.
“Even if no one else comes, I don’t need you,” I said. “You said it yourself. We’re done. Mr. Morello, I’m not that pathetic. You don’t get to say you don’t like me and then expect me to keep clinging to you.”
I forced myself to hold on to the last scrap of pride I had.
“Don’t tell me you actually believed me when I said I fell for you. I said it in the heat of the moment. You treated me like a bed partner, and I treated you like a convenient toy. That’s all. And honestly? You weren’t even that impressive. Once I’m better, I’ll find someone younger, hotter, and better in bed.”
Dominic’s brows tightened almost imperceptibly as he looked at my fierce expression and reddened eyes.
Just then, a nurse hurried in.
“Mr. Morello, Miss Sophia’s exam is finished. She’s been asking for you.”
I snapped at once, “Then go keep your precious old flame company. I don’t need you here.”
Dominic looked at me in silence for several seconds.
At last he said, distant and controlled, “I’m here because Vivian asked me to look after you.”
I laughed.
I laughed until my wounds pulled and pain shot through me, but it was nothing compared to the ache in my chest.
“Don’t worry, Dominic.” I lifted my tear-streaked face. My eyes felt cold and broken. “I won’t flatter myself.”
Something flickered in Dominic’s eyes, too faint and too fast to catch.
It was the first time he had seen me cry.
Even when he had pushed me too far in bed, my eyes had only gone red. I would bite my lip and refuse to let a tear fall.
Now, seeing the tears on my face, he frowned harder. His throat moved as if he wanted to speak.
In the end, he said nothing.
He turned and followed the nurse out.
The moment his back disappeared through the door, I lost the last of my strength and collapsed against the hospital bed. Silent tears soaked into the pillow.
I thought I would cry for a long time.
Strangely, the tears ran out quickly.
After that, only a dead coldness remained.
For the next few days, I stayed in St. Mary’s alone and took care of myself.
Changing dressings hurt enough to leave me sweating. Food tasted like cardboard.
Sometimes I heard the nurses whispering in the hallway about Miss Sophia in the VIP room next door, about how lucky she was, how Mr. Morello fed her himself, brought her water, stayed overnight, and treated her as if she might break in his hands.
Once, I passed that room.
Through the crack in the door, I saw Dominic sitting by Sophia’s bed, peeling an apple, while she leaned against his shoulder and smiled softly.
The sight drove through my eyes like a red-hot nail. For a moment, pain squeezed my chest so hard my vision went dark.
But I did not cry.
My greatest strength had always been this: I could love, and I could let go.
From now on, I would not shed another tear for Dominic Morello.
After I was discharged, the first thing I did was arrange my passport and departure papers.
I did not want to stay in that city another second.