Stefano stepped directly in front of him, close, so they were eye to eye. “Understand me, Ricco. I won’t lose you. I’ll do anything to save you. Anything. Give anything, including my life. I’ll use every weapon in my arsenal to protect you from yourself and any enemy that comes your way. You do something about this, whatever it takes, and that includes counseling. But there aren’t going to be any more accidents. You get me, brother? There will be no more accidents.”

Ricco nodded his head. What else could he do? When Stefano laid down the law he meant every word he said. It wasn’t often Stefano spoke like this to them, but no one would ever defy him, including Ricco. He loved his brother. His family. He’d sacrificed most of his life for them gladly, but Stefano was more than a brother. He was mom, dad, big brother, protector, all of it rolled into one.

It had been Stefano who had always been there for him. His own mother and father hadn’t even come to the hospital to visit him after the accident, but Stefano had barely left even to eat. He looked haggard and worn. Every time the pain had awakened Ricco from his semiconscious state, Stefano and his brothers and Emmanuelle had been right there with him. That solidarity only reinforced Ricco’s decision to keep them safe. They were everything to him.

“I get you,” he assured softly.

“It’s done then. When the doctor okays it, you resume training, but you don’t train any more than the regular hours. You sleep even if you have to take something to get you to sleep. You stop drinking so fucking much, and you talk to me if you are having trouble doing those things.”

Ricco’s heart was pounding overtime now. He couldn’t promise Stefano that he would stop with his extra training hours. He had to make certain he was in top form at all times, that he didn’t – couldn’t – ever make a mistake. That was part of him as well. But how did he explain that to his brother when he couldn’t explain why? He just nodded, remaining silent so no one could hear his lie.

He drank sometimes to put himself to sleep, but he could stop with no problem, he just wouldn’t be able to sleep. He wasn’t about to say anything more to Stefano. It was impossible to lie to him and he didn’t want his brother to worry any more than he already did.

Staring into the mirror as he finished buttoning his dove-gray shirt, he looked at the vicious bruises and the swelling, the side of his head that had nearly been caved in. Beneath the shirt his muscles rippled with every movement, a testimony to his strength – and he was unbelievably strong. It had been his superb physical condition that had saved him from certain death – at least that was what the surgeon said, his strength and a miracle. His frame was deceptive in that his roped muscles weren’t so obvious, the way his cousins’ were, but they were there beneath the skin of his wide shoulders and powerful arms.

He reached for his suit jacket. The Ferraro family of riders always wore pin-striped suits. Always. It was their signature. Even Emmanuelle wore the suit, fitted and making her look like a million bucks, but then she could wear anything and look beautiful. He sent his sister a reassuring smile because she looked as if she might cry. He knew he looked rough. He felt worse than rough, but his sister didn’t have to know that.

“I’m fine, Emme,” he reassured softly. He wasn’t, but then he hadn’t been for a long, long time.

“Of course you are,” she said briskly, but she looked strained. “Walking away from a crash like that is easy for a Ferraro.”

He hadn’t exactly walked away from it, but he was standing now. He forced himself not to wince as he donned his jacket. Once the material settled over his arms and shoulders, he looked the way his brothers looked, a fit male, intimidating, imposing even.

There was a rustle at the door. His brothers Giovanni and Taviano moved aside to allow the doctor and nurse to enter. The doctor glared at all of them. The nurse kept her eyes on the floor. He noted her hands were shaking. She didn’t want to confront the Ferraros, but had no choice when the surgeon insisted on saying his piece.

“You shouldn’t be up, Mr. Ferraro,” Dr. Townsend said.

“I’m fine,” Ricco assured. “And very grateful to you.” That had to be said whether it was a lie or not – and he honestly didn’t know if it was.

“I refuse to release you. You could have blood clots, an aneurism, any number of complications,” the doctor continued.

“I won’t.” Ricco gave them the look every Ferraro had perfected before their tenth birthday. His eyes were cold and flat and hard. Both the doctor and nurse immediately moved back. That, at least, was satisfying. He took another step toward them and they parted to allow him through. He might look like hell, and feel worse, but he was still formidable.

“I want the boxes of cards, but you can distribute the flowers to other hospital patients,” Ricco continued, ignoring Stefano’s frown. He knew what that meant. Stefano would want to talk to his doctor. A shadow rider could hear lies and compel truth – even from someone in the medical field. He kept walking, knowing his brother would never let him walk out to face the reporters alone.

“You’re leaving against medical advice,” the doctor reiterated.

Ricco didn’t slow down. Immediately, his brothers and Emmanuelle fell into step around him. Surrounding him. Shoulder to shoulder. Solidarity. The moment he was outside his hospital room, his cousins Emilio and Enzo Gallo moved in front of them. Tomas and Cosimo Abatangelo, also first cousins, dropped in behind. The cousins always acted as bodyguards for the Ferraros, and Ricco knew he needed them. He might say he was ready to leave the hospital, but he wasn’t. His body needed rest desperately as well as time to heal. He just couldn’t do it there.

The press had been all over the accident, trying to sneak into the hospital and get photographs of him covered in bandages. One nurse had been suspended while they investigated the fact that she’d taken numerous pictures of Ricco unconscious and sold them to the tabloids. There had been several other attempts by orderlies and a janitor. Anyone getting a picture of playboy billionaire Ricco Ferraro after he’d crashed his race car in a fiery display stood to make hundreds of thousands of dollars.

“Did Eloisa come to visit you?” Stefano asked, walking in perfect step with him.

Ricco glanced at him, one eyebrow raised. “I crashed, Stefano. Not perfect. Why would you think our mother would ever come to visit me when I showed the world I was less than perfect?” Stefano had raised them, not Eloisa.

Stefano glanced at Francesca. “I thought she was attempting to turn over a new leaf. Guess I was wrong.”

Ricco didn’t answer. He knew Francesca had been trying to make peace with Eloisa, but his mother didn’t have one maternal instinct in her body. He couldn’t care less. They’d had Stefano growing up, and he’d watched out for them – just as he was doing now. His oldest brother might be annoying, but Stefano loved his siblings. A. Lot. And he looked after them. It was something they all counted on.