Page 75 of The Doctor

His lips pinched into a flat line. “She made him swear to never tell unless he wanted to see her in an early grave.”

“And then he told you.” I tightened my grip on his arm, using it as leverage to jump from the street onto the curb. “Unbelievable.”

He fell silent beside me, letting me guide him down the street, past shops selling crummy souvenirs to tourists, convenience stores, and restaurants selling cheap food that wasn’t fit to eat.

“What do you think of Paulo?” I asked as we rounded a corner onto a less busy street.

“He’s terrifying.”

“What? No!” I pulled him to a stop. “Paulo’s a giant teddy bear.”

“There are two people I’m afraid of in this world: Paulo D’Angelo and Cosimo Provenza.”

“Pshh. You’re afraid of a teddy bear and a big baby.”

“You’re out of your mind.”

Shrugging, I gripped his arm again and pulled him toward my favorite coffee shop. “Maybe I am. But it doesn’t serve me to be afraid of people who can’t hurt me. I—”

I stopped short, though somewhere in the back of my head, something kept working. Something recognized danger before I could even process what I was seeing. I spun Michele around, shoving him behind me, behind the open door to a store selling designer clothes.

My father sat at one of the tables on the coffee shop’s patio. Whether it was the quick movement of Mic spinning away, or my father’s guilty conscience that had him looking around, I couldn’t know. All I knew was that recognition hit the moment his eyes locked on mine.

“Clara?”

As he stood, I gave Mic a shove and told him, “Run!” Then I spun on my heel, chasing after. But not before the man seated at my father’s table turned and looked my way.

“What are we running from?” Mic asked after we’d run for blocks, slowing his pace enough to guide me around a puddle filled with what could have been rainwater or vomit or piss.

I gasped for breath, grabbing his arm and slowing him down, but not before glancing over my shoulder to make sure the coast was clear. “I can’t breathe.”

He looked down at me with worried eyes. “What are we running from, Clara?”

“My father.” I sucked in a sharp breath, then held my hand up to keep him from interrupting. “And Raoul Provenza.”

“Zio Raoul?”

“I had to get you out of there.”

“You don’t think he’d—”

“Did you or your mother tell anyone from your family you were coming home?”

“No.”

“And why is that?”

Mic’s face pinched. “To keep us safe, so they wouldn’t send us back.”

“Raoul isn’t the uncle who supported you, Mic. I couldn’t let him see you so he could go run to his daddy and ruin your lives again. The old man already sent Nadia away twice. I can’t let them do it again. You and your mom and Paulo deserve happiness.”

He gave me that adorable smile again. “You’re a good friend, Clara.”

My throat clenched and my eyes started to burn. “I don’t think anyone’s ever called me that before.”

“It’s the truth. Now, come on.” He grabbed my hand, tugging me down the sidewalk. “Let’s go back to Paulo’s. I’ll just make you an espresso on his machine.”

We weren’t far from the penthouse. I hadn’t realized it after our mad dash to get away from my father and Raoul. When we rounded the corner of Paulo’s street, it felt like history was repeating itself.