The Russian's Secret Baby (The Tonov Triplets Series Book 3) (7 page)

Carmine woke up, confused and thirsty. Her chest was sore for some reason, and she felt a pinching in her arm. She blinked and her surroundings slowly came into focus. She looked around at the bland hospital room, confused. When she looked down at the IV in her arm, understanding slowly dawned. 

“Thank god, you’re awake,” an accented voice said. 

She looked over to see Dimitri sitting in an uncomfortable chair. There were dark circles under his eyes and his shirt was wrinkled, which was unusual for him. “What are you doing here?” she asked. “What happened?”

“You had a heart attack,” he answered. “They had to restart your heart.”

“Oh my god.” She covered her face with her hands. She knew there was a risk of that without taking medication but she had been so careful with her diet and exercise, she thought she would be all right. “Where’s James? Is he okay?”

“He’s okay,” Dimitri replied. “He misses you and he’s confused about why he can’t see you, but we’ve been keeping him distracted.” He held his cell phone up. “He’s sleeping right now. Kaleb will text me when he wakes up.”

Carmine nodded, relieved. Then she remembered that he wasn’t supposed to be here in the first place. That she was never supposed to see him again. “What are you doing here?” she asked. “I told you to stay away.”

“I know but I can’t live without you, Carmine, or James. He’s my son, and I…” he swallowed, “I love you.”

She shook her head. “We’ve been over this, Dimitri. I can’t have you around him. And he would lose his place in the program if people knew that you were his father.”

“I can stay in Maine until his treatment is done. I’ll need some time to sell the house anyway.”

Carmine closed her eyes and shook her head. “Wait, Dimitri, what are you talking about? Selling your house and moving down? There’s no way you’ll be able to restart your enterprise in DC after you up and left. Too many people would shut you down as soon as you came in, and I’m a prosecutor. I can’t carry on a relationship with you.”

“I know. But I’m not planning on creating an empire again.”

“Then I don’t”

“I’m done with it, Carmine. All of it. I had come to the hospital to tell you that but you had collapsed. I’ve shut down all of my operations. My house is already on the market. I’m begging you to let me back into your life.”

Carmine swallowed. “You…. you did what?” she whispered. “That was your life.”

“You and James are my life now that is, if you let me be part of yours.”

Carmine blinked, trying to make sense of everything that was going on. “I… can I think about it?”

“Of course,” Dimitri replied. “But please know that I’ll do whatever you want me to.”

She swallowed. She couldn’t match up this desperate, tired, and incredibly sweet man with the cold but charming person she had slept with all those years ago, or the conflicted one she had been spending the last few days with.

“I don’t know what to think,” she said. She rubbed her forehead, feeling a headache coming on. “This is all so much at once. How long was I out? How long have you been here?” She looked at his disheveled appearance. “Have you even slept?”

“You’ve been heavily sedated for the last two days while they’ve been monitoring any damage to your heart,” Dimitri replied. “The stress you’ve been under hasn’t been good for your congenital heart disease.”

“Two days…” and then the rest of what he said registered. “Dimitri”

“I understand why you didn’t tell anyone and it really wasn’t any of my business.”

“I don’t talk about it. Not ever.”

“You have a disease, Carmine. It’s not something to be ashamed of, it’s a part of you, after all. And now you’ll be able to pay for treatment.”

“I can’t take that money from you, Dimitri. Getting it for James is one thing, but for me… it just isn’t right.”

“You can and you will,” Dimitri stated. “I want to do this, Carmine. I want to be there for you in any way I can.”

Her mouth went dry. She knew he was telling the truth and she had no idea what to think. She wasn’t comfortable with the thought of taking money from him. It felt like taking advantage of him, even though he didn’t seem to mind. 

A few moments passed without either of them saying anything until Carmine said, “I’m a little hungry.”

“I’ll call a nurse,” he replied, reaching for a button. “I’m sure they can get you something to eat.”

“I also need to see James and get the discharge papers.”

“We’ll see what the doctor says first,” Dimitri answered. “They haven’t told me anything yet, but I got the feeling that they won’t want to discharge you yet.”

***

The hospital had kept James in the children’s wing even though he didn’t need more care while Carmine was in the hospital as there wasn’t anyone else they could contact. Other than the one nurse in the elevator, Dimitri had kept the fact that he was the father under wraps.

Now that Carmine was lucid and to remain in the hospital under observation, they wanted to see if they could continue both hers and James’ treatment. “You haven’t been under a doctor’s care in years,” Doctor Collins scolded, “And you should have. At least allow us to do a full cardiac work up on you to determine if there’s been any damage to your heart. It won’t take more than a few days to run all the tests.”

“I can’t,” Carmine stated. “I can’t afford it at the moment. I’ll take better care of myself but it’s just not an option at the moment.”

“Carmine, you need this,” the doctor said. “If you don’t take care of yourself, how will you take care of your son? You could die.”

Carmine shook her head. “I know the risks but I just can’t.”

“I’ll pay for it,” Dimitri said. 

Carmine glared at him. “No, you won’t.”

“You need it, Carmine, and I want to do it.”

The doctor turned to him. “I’m sorry, but are you her husband, or boyfriend or…”

“I’m her… friend,” Dimitri replied, avoiding Carmine’s eyes. “And I have the means to cover the cost.”

“He’s not my friend,” Carmine stated. She glared at the doctor. “And I don’t consent to treatment. I want to talk about more affordable options later, but right now, I want to see my son.”

“I don’t think she trusts me,” Dimitri told Valov and Nikolay. “What should I do?”

They were in the hospital cafeteria for lunch. Dimitri called them after Carmine had kicked him out of her room. He wanted someone to talk to, but Kaleb was having fun with Ian, and he didn’t want to interrupt the quality time father and son were having. 

“You just have to be there,” Valov said. “She needs to know that she can trust you.” He turned to look at the young girl beside him, who had the contents of her sandwich all over her shirt. “Use your napkin, Victoria, you don’t want to ruin your clothes.”

She scowled at him. “I’m getting there,” she said. “But thank you for lunch, Valov.”

He smiled at her. “Of course.” 

Victoria was one of the atrisk youths that had been part of Valov’s nonprofit program since its beginning. She was now on the
Valov’s Kids
coed football team, in the band and recently started tutoring some of the younger kids after school.

She and her brother came from a low income, dysfunctional family and Valov paid for the majority of the food she ate even though she was already starting to make money from babysitting. “You know, Dimitri,” she said. “I think you shouldn’t push her too far, because I get super mad when someone pressures me into something.”

“That’s true,” said Nikolay. “You don’t want to pressure her.”

“But she’s going to kill herself,” Dimitri said with a sigh. “She needs treatment. I don’t know what to do.”

“You have to give it time,” Nikolay offered. “Even after Courtney and I started seeing each other, she still didn’t completely trust me for a long time. This isn’t something that comes easily to people who have a history of being hurt by others. And I believe you said that she had problems with her father?”

“Yes,” Dimitri said. “He had problems with loan sharks.”

Nikolay nodded. “It’s going to take time.”

“Also, she should never find out about this conversation,” Valov said. “Women hate it when people tell their secrets, even to his brothers.”

“So true,” Victoria said. “That’s why girls don’t gossip about each other.”

“You’re not in middle school yet,” Valov said. “Just wait.”

Victoria made a face at the thought and took a sip of her water. “You also need to be yourself,” she said. “She already knows you and she won’t know what to think if you suddenly swap personalities.”

Nikolay nodded. “True. Listen to Victoria. She knows what she’s talking about.” He bumped fists with the tenyearold who grinned at him. 

“I know you’re frustrated,” Valov told him. “But you can’t rush her. You’re right about her needing the treatment but if you pressure her, then she’ll push back until it is no longer rational. Just like when someone pressures you.”

Dimitri nodded. He hated being pressured. “But if I back off too much she might think I’m indifferent. How can I convince her before she’s gone for good?”

“Be there for James and for her. But don’t tell her what to do. It will be okay. Really,” Nikolay added.

“I don’t know what to do,” Carmine said with frustration. “He’s seemed changed. I mean, he gave up his business for us, but I’ve seen him work and I know he doesn’t forget favors.”

“No,” said Rae. “He hasn’t in the past but I have seen him and he does want to change. It’ll take some work to help him get past something that ingrained in him, though.” 

“Do you think it’s worth it?” Courtney asked. “Dimitri doesn’t fake anything. That’s why he’s an asshole but I don’t know if the change he’s attempting has fully sunk in yet. He might get moody later on and bored.”

Carmine looked down at James, who was constructing a city out of Legos. For some reason the thought of going back to DC so soon made her stomach churn so she agreed to have James continue his treatment as an inpatient at Eastern Maine even though she discharged herself as soon as the doctors reluctantly agreed to it.

For the last two days, she had been sleeping in the visitor’s chair in his room and she was starting to feel the strain from it but she wasn’t about to ask Dimitri if she could spend a night in his guest room. And he hadn’t offered it, which she was relieved about. “It’s been four days,” she said. “And it doesn’t seem like he’s been getting restless.”

“That’s a good sign,” Rae said. “He’s a ridiculous workaholic, so four days of rest is probably the biggest hiatus he’s taken.”

“It is,” Courtney said. “Nik told me that the former record was two days and three hours before calling off his vacation.” 

“I don’t doubt it,” Carmine said. “He barely made time to sleep with me three years ago.” But he had been more than reluctant to part with her to deal with one problem or another. She sighed. “I just don’t know what to do. I mean, he seems serious. He’s been here with James for the better part of the last two days and they work so well together. James already loves him but I’m just not sure if I can trust him. It’s really hard to change who you are.”

“Yes,” Rae said. “But does he need to change so drastically for him to be a good father and partner? He has always been loyal to Val and Nik, even after they got out of the business. I don’t even think he counts favors with them. If he really loves you, then he will be completely devoted to you, even if he does start craving a life of crime again.”

“He has never physically hurt me, and I don’t think he ever will. But it’s his criminal activities that I’m worried about.”

***

That evening, after James was asleep, Dimitri put on his jacket and got ready to leave. Carmine curled up in the chair, her eyelids so heavy that it took a considerable amount of effort to keep them open.

Her neck felt cramped and try as she might, she couldn’t get comfortable. Dimitri frowned when he looked at her, and paused in the doorway. “You know,” he said. “You are always welcome at my house. I know you want to stay with James, but if you ever want to have a bed and a shower for a night, then I can get you back here before he even wakes up.”

Carmine hesitated. It wouldn’t be the first time she had left James in the hospital overnight by himself, but she still wasn’t sure about Dimitri. “I’m not sure if that’s a good idea,” she said hesitantly. 

“It’s up to you,” Dimitri said quickly. “But just know the offer is there.”

“Thank you.” 

He inclined his head. “Have a good night.” 

“You too.” 

He walked out the door and Carmine made one last attempt at getting comfortable before looking at her son, fast asleep. A bed and a shower really did sound good. She stood up, grabbed her bag with her clothes and her jacket before running out as quietly as she could. Dimitri was just reaching the elevators when she caught up with him. “I changed my mind,” she said. “A shower and a bed do sound nice.”

He smiled at her. “Excellent.” 

“But I’m not sleeping with you. I still haven’t made up my mind on anything yet.”

“Completely understandable,” Dimitri said, smiling. “My offer was never a ruse to get you into bed with me. In fact it hardly crossed my mind.”

“Oh,” Carmine said, her cheeks heating up. “Well, that works out well.”

He smirked as the elevator doors opened and the two of them got in. “I said ‘hardly’,” he said. “Not ‘never’.”