Maximus

The car didn't stop by the time I opened the door and stepped out in front of the hospital. Our men stepping in front to led me to where my woman and children were.

My heart was threatening to beat out of my chest, but I tried to take calming breaths. I wouldn't be any good to Stella if I came to her in an absolute panic. When Lorenzo told me about the truck crash I threw up and then rushed into the car. No one had talked the entire time, none of us knew what to say.

I was coming down the hall when a group of doctors and a bed was pushed into the hall. If it wasn't for the years of training to handle the unknown and my own fear, my own legs might have buckled when I caught sight of Stella in the bed.

She was pale, almost as white as the hospital bed sheet that she lay on. She wasn't moving, and her breaths were far in between each other.

Coming up beside her bed, the doctors stopped to give me a quick moment. "Stella?"

Her eyes slowly opened, her eyes glazed not allowing me to see their true color and emotions she held in them. "Max?"

I swallowed a lump and kissed her forehead. "It's me my love."

"You came." She mumbled, my hand taking hers.

"I will always come to you, mi amore." I whispered as her eyes fluttered closed.

"I know." She said, her voice barely audible. "You always come for me."

I stared at her pale face, begging for the small glimpse of her eyes again. "I love you Stella."

A ghost of a smile tugged at her lips. "I love you too Max."

The main Doctor stepped forward, the woman giving me a small smile. "I'm sorry sir but we need to get her into surgery."

A hand gripped my shoulder while I looked at Stella needing to see her open her eyes again. The grip tightened. "Let them help her brother." Lorenzo said.

Closing my eyes, I bent down pressing a kiss to her forehead. Straightening, I look at the Doctor, my voice hard when I give her the command. "If it comes down to a choice. You save her."

The Doctor nodded, "We will try to save them all."

I let Lorenzo lead me away, hearing the wheels of the hospital bed bring my Stella away to the OR. Walking into a room I didn't acknowledge anyone, only talking when I felt a presence beside me.

"How was she?" I asked Sebastian, staring out of the window of the room.

Sebastian cleared his throat. "She was scared, but she knew you would come to her."

I nodded and walked away from him, further into the room and away from everyone.

My feet walked from one side of the room to the other not caring about the eyes or voices. I need to move, need to work out the anxiety and fear that festered in me. I thought back to my Father, when he lost our mother he was so grief stricken he forgot about raising and loving his kids. He became a shell of a man, and when Lorenzo became of age to take over the mafia, he took his own life to find our mother in the after world.

Would I be fated to become him?

Walking past a chair I grabbed it and threw it against the wall watching the wooden chair splinter and wall crack.

The room fell silent, all eyes on me and I could feel the unease in the room.

Breathing heavily, I turn to Lorenzo. "If she doesn't survive this, they are yours."

Lorenzo slowly appraised me, his brows furrowed together in his confusion. "What are you talking about?"

I let my face morph into nothing, every emotion I felt wasn't there. "If Stella dies, the kids are yours. I won't be able to raise them."

Lorenzo straightened, his eyes filled with rage. "CLEAR THE ROOM!"

I looked away not being to face Lorenzo's piercing stare. People walked out of the room leaving me with Lorenzo and I started pacing again.

"What is running through your head right now little brother." Lorenzo asked softly.

"I can't be the parent they will need when she dies. Every day I will be reminded of her and I will hate looking at them, I will hate my own children." I cried out, my body shaking at the fact that Stella will be leaving me alone. "I can't turn into Father so I must turn from them."

Lorenzo's eyes flared as he took a step towards me, his hand gripping mine to make me face him. "You love Stella?"

I nodded. "More than my own life."

"Then do you think she deserves for her love to give up on her! To give up on her children!" He shouted at me.

Taking a step back I shook his reasons out from my head. "You don't get it."

Lorenzo took a step forward. "Then explain it to me little brother."

"EVERYONE DIES!" I shouted at him throwing my arms around. "Mom, Father, fuck Alerica. And now it will be Stella, everyone near me fucking dies."

"Since when do you let fear control you?" He said to me, his voice soft to try to get me to calm down.

"I can't lose her." I whispered, staring into my brother's eyes.

Lorenzo's hand landed on my shoulder. "You are not our father. You will not abandon your kids, you are just scared. Stella is not going to die and even if she did you would love your kids with your whole heart and raise them on the memory of Stella." His hand's grip got tighter to tell me the seriousness of his words. "No matter how terrified and scared you are, you stand fast."

I blew out a breath. "I know I won't be our Father, I know that I would never leave my children. I just... I don't know what to do."

"Who says you have to?" Lorenzo asked softly.

I sighed. "I never thought I could love someone so much, never knew a relationship could be like this. I just want to live with her in peace, peace that she deserves."

He grumbled and dropped his hand. "Alright stop. You and Stella are perfect for each other. Your downfall is the fact that you wait for the other shoe to drop. You have spent most of your life looking after others, you can let Stella fully in."

"I have let her in." I mumbled. "And I won't give up on her."

Lorenzo leaned against the wall in front of me. "You two love each other and you haven't known each other for a year, but you have been through more than most people go through in their entire life. Things will get calmer and Stella will survive this."

I cracked my neck, trying to focus on something else. "I guess her having the babies early means I get my woman back, instead of the hormonal mess she has been. Angry, sad, self-conscious then a dictator."

Lorenzo chuckled. "I'll remember you told me that in case I ever need to blackmail you."

Shaking my head, I flipped him off. "Oh, she is aware of how crazy the hormones made her. She will straight up say, 'I don't know why I said that' or 'I know you love me but I wanna stab you'. Holy fuck, I am about to be dad... am I ready for that?"

"Listen to me." He ordered. "You and Stella are in this together. Maybe you don't have the perfect relationship but who does? Especially when you were raised in this life and she is adjusting. But what makes it perfect, real, is that both of you love each other whole heartily, you try and communicate. You guys don't have stable conditions how can the relationship be like that when you guys got pregnant very early. When the dust settles, you both will have each other and when Stella is in this life longer, when she knows this life, then your relationship together will be even stronger. There is no need to panic."

My heart warmed up at his words. Stella was my other half, there is no denying it. And I know these past few months haven't been easy for her. She has had trauma after trauma, yet she doesn't let it break her and every night we talk. Sometimes about what's going on in our lives and how she is adjusting. And other nights we will talk about nothing in particular or she will rant about some book she is reading.

We will survive this.

"You guys have something many people search for." Lorenzo said. "You have a great partner to help you be a dad. As for yourself, you will love those kids and support them through everything; you'll be a fantastic dad."

I took a long look at my older brother, in most cases I would have made a mental note about the tone he used to say that. But right now, I needed to keep my mind busy and off the fact of Stella in the OR.

"You sound almost wistful about searching for someone." I said carefully to Lorenzo.

He looked away from me. "Doesn't everyone hope for the person who fits into the broken parts of themselves?"

Before I could respond, Romano and Tate stepped into the room, the sight of them preventing me from asking more to Lorenzo. Tate looked around the room and based on his face he was wondering if he should leave us brothers to ourselves.

But I needed to keep conversation going. "You dating Vincent?"

Tate stumbled, looking visibly confused at that question with everything going on. "Uh, I wouldn't say we are dating. More like night-calling."

I snorted. "Night calling? That what we call 'fuck-buddies' now? I remember Stella and I were that for a few months."

"Well, I don't have the worry about accidently being pregnant or impregnating someone." Tate said with a chuckle.

I nodded. "True and now I am getting two great kids. Accidental or not. How is Vincent?"

Romano looked around at us. "Is that what we are doing right now? Talking about relationships?"

Lorenzo smirked at Romano. "Is that what you want to do? Because if you do, then I will tell you to get off your ass and ask Anastasia out before she meets someone more attractive."

Tate gasped at Lorenzo. "More attractive? Romano has got the looks, the body and most importantly, the hair."

"Seriously." Romano grumbled, pushing away from Tate when he tried to brush his hand through Romano's hair. "This is what we are talking about?

I shrugged at Romano. "I had a massive freak out, threw a chair, Lorenzo talked me down and now I would like to be distracted as to why I am here. So yes, somehow this is the conversation we are having."

Romano scowled than shrugged sitting down and faced Tate. "So, Vincent?"

Tate growled and threw back Anastasia's name, the two began bickering and time started to go by.