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CHAPTER 53

Author: Nancy Grey
last update Last Updated: 2025-10-14 00:52:45

Dahlia’s POV

And then—suddenly—silence.

Everything went still. The only sound left was the faint ticking of the car’s engine cooling and the thudding of my own heartbeat. My hands wouldn’t stop shaking. My body trembled uncontrollably, and I realized I was crying so hard that my whole chest hurt.

Then, I heard it—the soft click of the car door opening.

I froze completely. My mind screamed don’t move. I didn’t know if it was Liam or one of them. I held my breath, my eyes wide, waiting for something—anything. The silence stretched until my lungs burned.

Then a familiar voice broke through it.

“Mrs. Romano.”

It was Liam.

I let out a shaky breath that sounded almost like a sob. He leaned down, his dark hair messy and his shirt torn at the shoulder. Blood stained the fabric. His eyes darted around quickly, checking the area, then came back to me.

“Are you hurt?” he asked, his voice rough but steady.

I shook my head frantically. “N-no. I’m fine,” I stammered, even though my whole body tremb
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  • SUBSTITUTE BRIDE FOR THE MAFIA DON   CHAPTER 174

    Dahlia’s POVLiam bowed the moment he crossed the doorway, his head lowered in deep respect. Dante didn’t bow right away. He stood there for a second, studying my face, like he was trying to measure how much I could take.His expression was calm, controlled, but his eyes were dark. Sharp. This wasn’t the Dante who tried to comfort me or tell me everything would be okay. This was the Dante who handled blood and fire without blinking.“How are you feeling?” he asked.I swallowed. “I’m… better,” I said. “Physically.”It was the answer everyone wanted to hear. My body felt a little stronger, yes. The dizziness had eased. The pain wasn’t as sharp. But inside, I felt hollow. Like a part of me was missing and no one knew how to put it back. Luca was still lying in that bed, not waking up, and until he did, I didn’t think I would ever truly be okay.Dante nodded like he understood what I wasn’t saying. That my body might be healing, but my heart was still breaking every second Luca didn’t wak

  • SUBSTITUTE BRIDE FOR THE MAFIA DON   CHAPTER 173

    Dahlia’s POVI wiped my face quickly, embarrassed by how raw I felt. “Come in.”The door opened, and Mrs. Cruz stepped inside.For a moment, I just stared at her. She didn’t belong here—in this sterile room full of machines and white walls. She belonged in the mansion. Somewhere warm and familiar.She saw me and froze for half a second before crossing the room quickly.“Oh, my poor child,” she said, her voice thick with emotion.She hugged me carefully, like she already knew how fragile I felt. I clung to her without thinking, burying my face against her shoulder. Something about her presence broke the last bit of control I had left, and tears spilled freely.She pulled back slightly, cupping my face with both hands, her eyes shining. “Mr. Romano will be fine,” she said firmly. “He is stubborn. He won’t leave you. Not now.”I wanted to believe her so badly it hurt.She turned and lifted the bag she’d brought, setting it on the small table. “I brought you food. Soup. Fresh. I made it m

  • SUBSTITUTE BRIDE FOR THE MAFIA DON    CHAPTER 172

    Dahlia’s POVI wanted to argue. I wanted to scream that Luca was lying somewhere alone and hurt and that I didn’t care if my legs collapsed beneath me. But the thought of the baby stopped me cold. I swallowed hard and nodded, my throat too tight to speak.A nurse came in with a wheelchair. The soft squeak of its wheels felt too loud in the quiet room. Dante didn’t even ask before lifting me. One moment I was sitting on the bed, the next I was in his arms. I felt small. Lighter than I should have been. He placed me gently into the chair, adjusting the blanket over my legs as if I were fragile porcelain.Andrea followed us as Dante pushed the wheelchair out into the hallway. The hospital smelled like antiseptic and something metallic underneath it, a smell I would forever associate with fear. The lights above us were too bright, too white. They made everything feel unreal, like I was trapped inside a bad dream I couldn’t wake up from.The ride down the corridor felt endless. Every door

  • SUBSTITUTE BRIDE FOR THE MAFIA DON    CHAPTER 171

    Dahlia’s POVA cold feeling slid down my spine.“Tell me what?” I asked.My voice came out weak, but it cut through the room like a knife.They both froze.Andrea turned first, her eyes widening when she saw I was awake. Dante followed slowly, his shoulders stiffening as his gaze met mine. The whispering stopped. The silence that replaced it felt heavy and wrong.Dante stepped toward me. His movements were slow, cautious, like he was approaching something fragile.“How are you feeling?” he asked gently.I swallowed. My throat was dry, raw from crying earlier. “I’m okay,” I said, even though it wasn’t true. I didn’t care about how I felt. Not really. My fingers curled into the blanket. “How is Luca?”Dante stopped beside the bed.He didn’t answer.Instead, he looked at Andrea.That single glance made my chest tighten painfully.“Dante,” I whispered. “Please.”He took a slow breath, like he was bracing himself.“He’s out of the ICU,” he said.For a moment, my mind didn’t understand the

  • SUBSTITUTE BRIDE FOR THE MAFIA DON   CHAPTER 170

    Dahlia’s POVWaking up felt wrong.It felt like I had been dragged out of somewhere warm and safe and dropped into something cold and sharp. My body was heavy, like it didn’t want to move. My head throbbed softly, not enough to scream, just enough to remind me that something terrible had already happened.I kept my eyes closed at first.I prayed.I prayed so hard my chest hurt.Please let this be a dream.Please let me open my eyes and see Luca sitting beside me.Please let everything still be okay.When I finally opened my eyes, the world came into focus slowly.White walls.Bright lights.A steady beeping sound that felt too loud in the quiet room.A hospital.My heart sank so fast it felt like it dropped into my stomach.“No…” I whispered.My throat was dry. My voice sounded small and broken, like it didn’t belong to me. I tried to move, to sit up, but my body refused. Dizziness washed over me, and I groaned softly as pain tugged at my head.“Dahlia.”I turned my head slightly.And

  • SUBSTITUTE BRIDE FOR THE MAFIA DON   CHAPTER 169

    Dante’s POVWhen Dahlia collapsed, it felt like the world tilted off its axis.One second she was standing, shaking, fighting to stay upright with pure will alone—and the next she was falling. Her body crumpled like it had finally given up on holding all that fear and pain inside. I rushed forward and barely caught her before her head hit the ground.“Dahlia,” I said urgently, gripping her shoulders. “Dahlia, look at me.”No response.My chest tightened so hard it hurt to breathe.Around us, the night was chaos. Flames roared from the mansion behind us, licking the sky. Smoke rolled thick and black, stinging my eyes and throat. Men shouted orders, radios crackled, and somewhere in the distance sirens wailed. But all of that faded into the background.Luca was still inside that burning hell.And now his wife—his pregnant wife—was unconscious in my arms.I pressed my fingers to her neck, counting each beat like my life depended on it. Her pulse was weak, but it was there. That small, fr

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