Mafia's Final Play (Mafia's Obsession #3) - Summer Cooper Page 0,77
Marie only gasped and bit down on her lip. It was a long night that turned into two days before the doctor finally had enough evidence to make a diagnosis. He’d come in periodically to check on Marie, but on that last day, he came in with a rather solemn look on his face.
That look said their entire world was about to change. Again. Fuck. Matteo felt a crushing weight in his chest and took Marie’s hand. He couldn’t imagine how she felt. Her face hid it all as the doctor began to speak.
“Right, there is really no definitive test to diagnose Parkinson’s disease but we found a couple of genetic mutations we expect to find with Parkinson’s, and your brain shows some signs of Parkinson’s. I’m sorry, Marie, but my conclusion is that you do have Parkinson’s. I checked everything else it could be, my dear, and I tried to find another explanation for you, but the scan of your brain with those mutations? Well, it’s fairly clear. I’ll be here every step of the way through, and we’ll give you medication that will control a lot of the symptoms you’re having. It won’t stop it, but the medicine will help.”
He paused to let the news sink and looked at them both in turn. “Any questions?”
They both just shook their heads and tried to process the diagnosis. They’d both suspected it for a long time and Marie had already started to cope with the idea of it, but to know for sure, well, that was different. Matteo watched her, ready to go to her at any sign of tears, but instead, she smiled at the doctor. Smiled. He was stunned.
“I think I know more about what to expect than anyone else might, so no, I don’t have any questions for now. Oh, I do have one. What about my children?”
“It’s hard to tell, Marie. I couldn’t say yes, your children will be fine, or no they won’t be. It’s a crapshoot with genetics. I’m sorry I can’t offer more hope than that.” He patted her hand and turned to leave but looked back. “I’ll release you today, so you can go home and get some rest. I’m going to recommend physical therapy now, the earlier we start it, the better.”
“Thanks, doctor,” Matteo said and looked back at his wife. She was still smiling, despite the news about children. “You amaze me, you know that?”
“Well, it’s those stages of grief, isn’t it? I’ve come to a point where I can accept it. Maybe later I’ll fall back into depression or denial, I don’t know. But for now, I feel good. I know now, and I can cope with that.”
“Can you?” He’d expected tears, screams maybe, for her to run away and never come back out of some kind of sense of being the better person. Or some shit like that. Instead, she beamed at him.
“We know now. We can cope. I know you want me with you now. You ran across the country, into another country, got shot, and almost, well, took care of your aunt for me. You may not have said it, Matteo, but you showed me. You did something nobody else has ever done for me and showed me that you love me. Like I love you.” Her eyes went wide as she said those words, almost as if she was afraid, but he leaned in to look at her.
“You love me?” His eyes were as wide as hers.
“I do, Matteo. I love you more than anything else in this world. More than I thought was possible. I love you so much it would kill me if I wasn’t with you. It’s insane really. I thought I’d end up alone, but here I am, in love with you.”
“I’d follow you to the edges of the universe, Marie. I’d burn the entire world down for you. But I think I’ve proven that by now.”
“You have, Matteo.” She took a deep breath and looked away for a minute, her face tense. “I hated having to marry you to take care of a debt. I hated being coerced into it, but now, well, I still hate it, but I’m glad I did it now. I really am.”
“Good, because I do love you, Marie. More than I could ever show you. If I prove it every day for the rest of my life, I still couldn’t show you how much I love you.”