Page 110 of The Doctor

Nearby were Zoë Shaw and Quinn Radnor, and both came rushing our way the minute they saw us. “Is the baby here?”

There was no way I could keep the smile off my lips. “She’s here!”

Zoë squealed, jumping in her place before snagging me around the waist and forcing me to jump too. “Gah! I’m so happy! Is Queenie okay? Is Mateo okay?”

“Queenie’s fine,” Zee said, laughing quietly. “Mateo might have his work cut out for him.”

Zoë laughed as Zee shook hands with Quinn. “I’d say Mateo deserves whatever she gives him.”

“I might have to agree with you there.”

As they talked, my gaze wandered around the room. There wasn’t a single person here who hadn’t been deeply affected by Paulo D’Angelo. From the Pasternelos to the Davids. From the Medinas to the Vincis.

The Vincis, who’d just walked in the door.

For once, my father’s voice didn’t crowd the space. For once, my mother’s beauty didn’t catch every eye in the place. They came in quietly, offering their coats to Maso, then taking glasses of champagne from the small table set up near the door before walking into the room.

They came to me, their movements full of caution and their faces filled with concern. They were trying. Trying to be the parents I’d never had. Trying to be there, to show their love for me the way they always had to Stephano.

My brother was there, too, just behind them. Though he held none of their concern. He was all swagger.

“Clara?” My mother said my name like she was afraid it wasn’t real, that I wasn’t standing right there, an arms-length away.

“Hi Mom.” The hug she gave me was awkward, as if she weren’t quite sure how it should go. The hug from my father was much the same.

“How are you?”

“I’m alright. Tired.” I gave a small shrug.

Zeno turned from Quinn and Zoë, draping an arm around my shoulder. “She just helped me deliver Queenie’s daughter a little bit ago.”

“You did?” My mother’s hands shot to her mouth, and I swore tears glistened in her eyes. “Oh, Clara!”

“I’m proud of you, kid.” The minute my father said that, Zee’s arm stiffened across my back. I turned a smirk his way, and the man I loved closed his eyes, shook his head, and refused to look at me.

Kid.

I’d forever be that kid to Zee. That kid who changed his life. That made him question what he’d thought he wanted. That had made him realize a lifetime of trauma was too much for one to bear alone.

The kid that made him fall in love.

I curled around him, resting my head upon his shoulder as my brother shook his head, rolled his eyes, and brushed past me as if he couldn’t be bothered. It was only the punch to my arm and his quiet words that told me he was proud of me too.

“Good job, brat.”

We got sucked into the conversations around the room, and even though the day had drained me, I felt full for the first time in so long. I felt right, being here with Zeno by my side. I felt good, being a part of this family.

I felt proud to be here, but never more so than when a tiny cry rang out from down the hall.

Silence fell upon the room as all eyes turned that way. And when two wheelchairs rolled through the doorway, a round of cheers and gasps erupted from every corner of the room.

Queenie, looking way too beautiful for what she’d just gone through, sat in one of them with her baby bundled in her arms.

Her father, Paulo D’Angelo, sat at her side, his black hair more gray and his wrinkles more profound than they had been before. And Nadia, the love of his life, was standing at his side.

“Everybody! Everybody! Attention, please!” Mateo’s voice rang out, quieting the crowd. As if everyone weren’t already staring, he gestured toward the two wheelchairs. “Today was meant to be a celebration of life. A welcome home party for the one and only Paulo D’Angelo. The father of this organization. The man who has given his all so that we could all have better lives. A man who has been there for each of us, through thick and thin, through dark and light. Through sickness and in health—”

Queenie slapped Mateo across the stomach with the back of her hand while her father let out a groan.