The Miami Billionaire Playboy's Bride

Emily smiled as she stepped into Gabrielle's ward room. She was still asleep. She pushed back the pang of anxiety that lurched in her chest as she watched how peaceful her sister looked in her sleep.

Gabrielle would be clocking twelve in about two months, and Emily earnestly hoped she could get better before then.

Ever since she had been born, she had been diagnosed with congenital heart disease (CHD) and had constantly been admitted to the hospital on several occasions.

Although they had been advised by the doctor to schedule her for a transplant, her parents had stuck to the alternative of maintaining her health with medications.

The medications she used, although very expensive, were still more affordable than signing her up for heart surgery.

Gabrielle had carried on through the years, depending on the drugs, but her body had eventually weakened.

Her parents had stalled the unavoidable for as long as it could last due to their financial incapability to fund her surgery, but now her condition had deteriorated, and Emily had to bear the brunt of it all alone.

For up to a year, Gabrielle had been placed on an array of support measures tailored to sustain her health while she awaited a heart transplant.

It had been torture over the years for Emily to foot the bills, but the hope that she could save her younger sister, as she had been unable to save their parents, had kept her pushing through the years for the brighter days to come.

She wouldn't think of all the misfortune three years ago had wrecked upon her family. It had robbed her parents of their lives, her of her dream of working for a renowned organization eventually as an industrial designer, and her sister of her vigor.

Gabrielle had held out on her health commendably.

Tears pooled again at Emily's eyes, and she swept them off with the back of her finger, patting Gabrielle's clasped hands over her belly.

"You are holding out well, Gabrielle. Good girl." She sucked in the air harshly, her chest heaving. "You will survive this. I will make sure you do."

Gabrielle was a strong girl. It pained Emily to think of how much distress Gabrielle's condition had imposed on her.

"Does it still hurt? Do you feel discomfort in any way?"

Several questions always plagued her mind every time she visited the hospital, but she couldn't dare voice them out, her anguish chugging the words down her throat.

Of course, why wouldn't it hurt?

Her condition had denied her an eventful childhood as she truly would have loved to have, having always been conscious of her health and placed on medications.

"Em."

Emily opened her eyes as she heard her sister call her name softly.

She plastered a smile on her face immediately and beamed down at her.

"Good morning, Gabrielle? How's your health faring?"

Gabrielle nodded over the pillow. "It's stable."

Emily nodded in return, lacing her fingers with her little ones, her smile deepening. "I'm glad it is."

"You're here early. Won't you be late to work?"

Emily shook her head. "I got here early to spend more time with you. I brought you breakfast too."

She raised the lunch bag she had brought with her, flashing a smile at her, and dropped it in the drawer by her bed.

"It's your favorite," she told her.

Gabrielle smiled in return, nodding subtly in acknowledgement. "Thank you, Em."

"So you should get better quickly so that I can cook more of the dishes you love for you. Alright?"

Gabrielle nodded. "Yes, Em. You're the best sister ever."

"It's boring in here, isn't it? There's hardly anyone around your age to make friends with."

"I told you the nurses take me out for walks occasionally. I admire the scenery. It's enough to keep me entertained. And we talk too. The nurse said I'm a delightful child. I have fun chatting with her every time she comes."

Emily exhaled softly, clucking her tongue at the back of her throat. "Alright, then."

She laced her fingers with her sister's and cocooned them between her palms, patting them tenderly. "I can't wait for things to get better, and you should be out of here early."

"Me neither," Gabrielle agreed.

The door slid open, and the two of them looked towards it as the doctor walked in.

The doctor was a young and handsome bespectacled woman who looked to be in her early thirties. She had a slim figure, waist-length wavy black hair, and a sophisticated aura around her.

However, Emily had known her for a long time. Her personality was a contrast to the arrogance her physique and outlook exuded; she was polite and soft-spoken.

"Good morning," she greeted them first as she entered. "Gabrielle. Emily."

"Morning, Doctor Sanchez." Both Emily and Gabrielle returned.

Doctor Sanchez immediately attended to Gabrielle, checking her vital signs and adjusting the medications that helped keep her heart stable.

She took brief notes in her notepad while she checked on her health and tucked her pen back in her chest pocket.

She smiled briefly at Gabrielle. "Good," she murmured a comment through her breath.

Gabrielle beamed back at her, delighted to hear that. "Does that mean I will be out of here anytime soon?"

Doctor Sanchez held a breath before she answered, "Let's see." She dramatically tapped her finger against her chin. "Hopefully." She nodded. "You're that eager to leave us here? I thought Nurse Philips was your best buddy ever," she teased, a smile cupping the corners of her mouth.

"She is, but I want to get better early. I don't like staying cooped up in bed every morning until I'm taken out for a walk by the nurses."

Doctor Sanchez nodded empathically. "I understand how you feel, Gabrielle. You will get better, alright?"

Gabrielle flashed a brilliant smile at the doctor with a happy twinkle in her eyes, and she nodded enthusiastically. "Yes, Doctor Sanchez. Thank you."

"You're welcome, darling." Doctor Sanchez smiled warmly at Gabrielle.

She turned to face Emily then. "May I have a word with you in my office, Emily?"