46. Dante
Chapter 46
Dante
“ S o, from looking at your previous medical records, I can ascertain that you have no permanent damage to your frontal lobe. The physician that attended to your injuries believes that you may have a form of retrograde amnesia.” Dr. Baddour states as his eyes rove over the file in his hands.
“Wait, how did you get ahold of my file? My doctor in Las Vegas was on Vincenzo’s payroll and he would not have authorized it, surely,” I ask, frowning.
Dr. Baddour glances up at me before his gaze shifts to Nico who is sitting like a king behind his desk. Following his line of sight, I snort a laugh, shaking my head. “I should have known.”
Nico smirks. “I had Gregorio hack the good doctor’s medical system.”
Soft warm hands clasp mine, drawing my attention to Allegra. She chews her bottom lip, her leg bouncing.
“What does this all mean?” Her question is aimed at the specialist.
Sighing, he places my file on Nico’s desk, giving us his full attention. “It means that there is every chance Dante could regain his memories.” Allegra squeezes my hand tighter, happiness radiating from her. “But there is also a possibility the damage could be permanent.” The words make my girl deflate like a balloon. “From what you have told me, you have had flickers of memories. You informed me that though you don’t remember calling Allegra by a pet name, since she came back in your life, you have used it, without prompting from anyone else. This leads me to believe that you might also have dissociative amnesia caused from stress and trauma, which would align with what happened to you. I can diagnose you properly once I have done a thorough investigation. If this is the case, there are a handful of treatments and therapy we can try.” He smiles. “Considering what I have been told so far, and having read your file, I think your memories are in there somewhere, they are just suppressed, and you just need a little help with releasing them. My team will be arriving shortly, and once they have signed the NDA Mr. Marchetti has insisted on, we can get to work. That is, if you are happy with my assessment and feel comfortable working with me.” His gaze narrows. “I will warn you, that it is going to be a long, arduous, sometimes frustrating road ahead, but I am confident with our help we can get some, if not all, of your memories back.”
Staring at him in disbelief, I mull over his words. I want to believe what he is saying, but I also don’t want to get my hopes up.
“Did you hear that, Dante? Dr. Baddour is confident that you have every chance of recovering,” Allegra breathes.
Glancing over at her, I find her watery, hopeful eyes on me. My chest tightens at the look on her face and the pressure mounts inside me, an itch under my skin. Not only do I have to do this for myself but also for my principessa . She deserves to have me whole. The man she fell in love with.
Clearing my throat, I look from Nico to the doctor, nodding curtly.
“No time like the present. Let’s get started,” I grumble.
Doctor Baddour smiles, giving me a nod. “As I said, once all of the necessary paperwork is signed, we can begin. Mr. Marchetti has been kind enough to accommodate us in one of the guest houses, and has compensated us very well, so you will have access to me and my team twenty-four seven if you wish. That being said, I have been informed you are not allowed to leave the main property so we will be setting up one of the bedrooms as a makeshift clinic, if you will.” He chuckles, though I don’t see the amusement in what he is saying.
Nodding, I rise from my seat. “Well, if we are done, I am going to use the gym until everything is properly in place.”
“Dante,” Allegra hisses, no doubt at my turn in attitude.
“It's fine. Working out might help.” Dr. Baddour waves her off, grabbing my file and rising from his chair. “I am going to get settled in and wait for my team.” He smiles, looking at Nico.
Nico grabs his cell phone, swiping his finger across the screen before pressing down and bringing it to his ear. “Alessio, please escort Dr. Baddour to the guest house and let me know when his team arrives.”
Within a minute there is a knock at the door and Alessio enters the room, escorting the good doctor out and leaving me alone with the Marchetti siblings.
“You didn’t have to be rude,” Allegra accuses, shooting me a glare.
“That wasn’t rude, angel. I just didn’t see the point in sitting here waiting around. It could take another hour or two before his team arrives. Then they have a ton of paperwork to sign before we can even get to work.” I shrug.
Allegra sighs, rubbing at her temples in frustration.
Welcome to my world. I’m forever fucking frustrated.
But that’s not the point right now. Something is up.
Searching her expression, I take in the dark circles under her eyes, and the tired look on her face. I must have been so caught up in the doctor’s prognosis, I missed it before.
Dropping to my haunches, I take one of her hands in mine, gripping her chin with the other and tugging gently until her blue orbs meet mine.
“You look tired, baby. Why don’t you go take a nap?” I suggest. Her bottom lip trembles, eyes filling with tears. I frown, concerned. “Hey, what’s wrong?”
Allegra bursts into tears.
I’m up, dragging her into my arms in an instant.
Striding to the couch, I drop down, holding her close to my chest. Nico ambles over, taking a seat on the other end of the couch, watching us with an almost cold, detached look on his face. But I don’t miss the hint of trepidation creasing his brows.
“ Principessa ?” I prompt.
Pulling out of my chest, she looks up at me, wiping away the errant tears under her eyes. “I’m sorry. I’m being silly.” She sniffs. “It’s just… well, all I want is for you to have a full recovery. I want you to remember our life before all this happened. I want it so badly that it overwhelms me sometimes. I’m trying to be strong for you, me, our whole family, and when I see you being so nonchalant… well, I suppose all the pent up stress just boiled over.” She laughs.
Smiling, I press a kiss to her head. “You are the strongest woman I know, angel. But you don’t have to be strong all the time. You are allowed to break, it’s normal. But please understand that I am taking this seriously. I want my memories back just as much, if not more than you do. It's just…” I trail off, my eyes meeting Nic’s when I feel the heat of his stare on me. He studies me for a long beat, understanding crossing his features. Looking back at Allegra, I run my thumb across her bottom lip, wishing more than anything her brother was not watching us, so I could ravish her. “Well, I don’t want to disappoint you. And I don’t want to get my hopes up, just in case we don’t get the results that we are hoping for.”
Allegra reaches up, cupping my face.
With a soft smile curving her lips, she whispers, “We will Dante. I know we will.”
Watching the determination on her face, ignites mine and in this moment, I know I will do anything to recover my memories.
Because as I said before.
My angel deserves me whole.