2

Adriana couldn’t forget the encounter with Luca Romano. The days passed, but his presence lingered like a shadow in her mind. She tried to focus on her work, on the patients who filled the halls of St. Vincent’s Hospital, but it was no use. Every time she stitched up a wound or treated a patient, she remembered his calm expression as he sat there with a bullet wound, treating it like a minor inconvenience.

It was late one evening, several days after their first encounter, when the phone in her office rang. She had just finished a particularly grueling shift and was ready to head home for the night. The ringtone echoed in the dimly lit room, and for a moment, Adriana debated ignoring it. But something some instinct made her pick up.

“Dr. Stephen,” she said, stifling a yawn.

There was a pause on the other end of the line, followed by a voice she recognized instantly.

“Evening, Doc.”

Adriana’s heart skipped a beat. "Lucas".

She sat up straighter in her chair, gripping the phone tighter than she intended. “Mr. Romano,” she replied, her voice as steady as she could make it. “What do you want?”

A low chuckle came from the other end of the line. “Straight to the point. I like that about you.”

“I’m not in the mood for games,” Adriana snapped, her irritation bubbling to the surface. “If this is about another injury, I suggest you find someone else.”

There was a beat of silence before Lucas spoke again, his voice soft but laced with a dangerous undertone. “I don’t need a doctor right now, Adriana. I just thought I’d check in. See how you were doing.”

The casual use of her first name sent a shiver down her spine. It was unsettling how easily Lucas slipped past the boundaries she had so carefully constructed. She was a doctor, and he was a criminal. Their worlds weren’t supposed to intersect, yet here he was, acting as though they were old friends.

“I’m fine,” Adriana replied, her tone cold. “And I don’t need your concern.”

“I’m sure you don’t,” Lucas said, his voice dropping lower. “But that doesn’t mean I’m going to stop being interested.”

Adriana felt her pulse quicken. There was something about the way Lucas spoke, the calm confidence in his voice, that made it impossible to dismiss him. He wasn’t just a patient. He was something more something dangerous, unpredictable.

“Look, Mr. Romano,” she began, forcing herself to maintain her composure. “I’m a doctor. My job is to treat people and save lives. Whatever you’re involved in, I don’t want any part of it.”

Lucas’ chuckle was soft, almost amused. “You really believe that, don’t you?”

“I do.”

“Adriana,” he said, the way he said her name sending a strange thrill through her, “this city doesn’t care about your rules. It doesn’t care that you want to stay in your safe little bubble. Sooner or later, you’re going to have to face the fact that you’re already involved.”

Her grip on the phone tightened. “I’m not involved.”

“You are,” Lucas replied, his voice smooth. “You patched me up. You could’ve walked away, but you didn’t. And now here we are.”

Adriana’s mouth went dry. He wasn’t wrong. By treating him, she had crossed a line—one she hadn’t even realized existed until it was too late. But she wasn’t about to let him pull her deeper into his world.

“This is the last time you’ll contact me,” Adriana said, her voice hard. “Do you understand?”

There was a pause, and then Lucas voice came through, quiet but firm. “We’ll see, Doc.”

The line went dead, leaving Adriana staring at the receiver in her hand, her mind racing. She slammed the phone down, cursing under her breath. This was exactly what she had wanted to avoid getting tangled up in Lucas Romano’s life. Yet somehow, despite her best efforts, she had ended up right in the middle of it.

The next few weeks passed in a blur. Adriana threw herself deep into her work, taking extra shifts and volunteering for emergency surgeries just to keep her mind off Lucas. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t shake the feeling that he was watching her. Every time she left the hospital, she found herself glancing over her shoulder, half-expecting to see him lurking in the shadows.

One evening, after another long shift, Adriana stepped out of the hospital and into the cool night air. The streets were quiet, the city bathed in the glow of streetlights. She made her way to the parking lot, her footsteps echoing in the silence.

As she approached her car, a sleek black sedan pulled up beside her. Adriana froze, her heart pounding as the tinted window rolled down.

Lucas Romano sat in the driver’s seat, his dark eyes fixed on her.

“Need a ride, Doc?”

Adriana’s mind raced. She hadn’t seen or heard from Lucas since that phone call, but she had known somehow that he wasn’t done with her. She should’ve been afraid, should’ve turned around and gone back into the hospital. But instead, she found herself stepping closer to the car.

“I told you not to contact me,” she said, her voice tense.

Lucas shrugged, his smirk as infuriating as ever. “And I told you the city doesn’t care about your rules.”

Adriana glared at him. “What do you want?”

“To talk.”

“I don’t have anything to say to you.”

Lucas gaze was intense, his expression serious for the first time. “Get in the car, Adriana.”

For a moment, she considered walking away. She should’ve. But there was something in Lucas' eyes—something that made her hesitate. Against her better judgment, she opened the passenger door and slid into the seat.

The door closed with a soft click, and for a moment, neither of them spoke. The air between them was thick with tension, the weight of unspoken words hanging in the silence.

“What do you really want from me, Lucas?” Adriana finally asked, turning to face him.

Lucas eyes flickered with something unreadable. “I want you to understand.”

“Understand what?”

“Why you can’t walk away.”

Adriana felt a chill run down her spine. “I’m not part of your world, Lucas. I don’t want to be.”

“You already are,” he said quietly. “You just don’t realize it yet.”

The words hung in the air, heavy and ominous. Adriana wanted to argue, to tell him he was wrong, but deep down, she knew he wasn’t. She had crossed a line the moment she had treated him, and now there was no going back.

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