The Return of My First Love novel Chapter 25

Alessio

"Alessio!" One of our buyers, Mikael, stepped out of his mansion, greeting me with open arms.

He was one of our biggest weapon buyers in the East, and a key player responsible for a huge chunk of our profits. We had the best weapons, and he had the best money, almost greater than the Fanuccis thEmilyselves.

"Mike!" I was forced to accept his welcoming hug. He patted my shoulder a few times, then he moved to my brothers.

It was the final drop of the week, and we had arrived at the mansion with his usual order of a truck full of product, and about ten of our men.

"Look at you, becoming more buff. You might surpass your brother!" The man teased Dante, repeatedly punching his stomach. I chuckled, looking at my brother's proud face. Dante, who was the youngest and arguably the weakest, had been going to the gym nonstop—trying to prove something. It was cute.

"Start unloading the truck," I told the men, but Mikael raised his hand, signaling thEmily to stop. "No need for that. We'll get to that later."

Blinking my eyes, I looked back and forth between the truck and the man having the nerve to overthrow my authority. "Is there an issue?" I asked, "Because if there is, we might as well take care of it right now."

Mikael stuck out his tongue, shaking his head. "Alessio Fanucci, always standing on business," he grasped my shoulder, leading us inside. "Let's catch up first. Then we'll get to the unloading part later."

When he had said later, I hadn't expected him to invite him to his backyard to sit at the table with food and drinks. We were supposed to give him his products, and fly back home. None of us had time for his crap.

I shared a look with my brothers who were just as cautious as I was. Dante took a bite from his food and a sip from his drink, most likely not to offend Mikael.

"I'd love to just drop this order and go, Mikael. It's been a long day," my impatience grew. The day was long enough already, and sitting around for chitchat wasn't high on my list. Not when Emily and that little creature of hers were roaming the Fanucci mansion.

"We will get to that, but not so fast—Alessio," Mikael responded, gritting his teeth. As he led out a quick whistle and a snap of his fingers, my brothers and I made eye contact, warning each other to be prepared for any possible outcome. Something wasn't right.

A group of women in bikinis appeared, each one looking like they had just stepped out of a magazine. I had expected nothing less of Mikael, but for him to want to share his girls, must've meant hell was about to break loose.

"Ales is in a serious relationship," Dante tapped his fork. He spoke for me just as he did on the plane, but this time I could appreciate it, despite hearing a hint of annoyance.

"Hmm," Mikael hummed, snapping his fingers, and just like that, the women turned and left the backyard. Mikael laughed, throwing back his head. "Right, right, you caused quite the scene at that party of yours, didn't you?"

"So I've heard."

Mikael cackled. "You're with the maid now. Emily right?"

I pressed my lips together. "Nice of you to rEmilyEmilyber her name."

That was exactly what I did not want to happen.

Mikael's laughter kept growing louder by the second, but I wasn't in the mood for his jokes. He was getting on my nerves.

Mikael leaned back in his chair, eyeing us with a smirk. "So, how's business going?" he asked, swirling his drink.

"Stable as always," I responded, unsure whether he was speaking about our legal brand, or our illegal activities.

"Yes, very stable. I actually bought a few bottles back in Brazil," Mikael mentioned. He made a rainbow with his hands, "The Fanuccis are going worldwide—"

Mikael exploded, "Don't you dare threatening me in my own house!" In a swift motion, he pulled out his gun and pointed it at Gian. It only took a split second for Gian and Dante to aim their guns back at Mikael, creating a standoff.

I quickly stood up, pointing my own gun to Mikael. The room was seconds rEmilyoved from turning into a shooting range, with both our men pointing guns at one another.

Glancing around, I made a quick calculation. We brought ten men, Mikael had about twenty, and that was only counting the ones standing in the backyard.

We were clearly outnumbered, and my top priority had always been to bring my brothers back in once peace. Although I would rather die than admitting to that, those two idiots carried a special place in my heart.

"You're right. It is your house," I sighed, lowering my gun, "Come on, there's no need for all of that," I instructed the men and my brothers to lower their guns.

Mikael motioned his men to do the same, but the tension in the room had already been created.

The Baldinis were clearly out for war, and I couldn't show how much their little game affected us. With a forced smile, I extended my hand towards Mikael. "We'll leave and take our business elsewhere. No hard feelings?"

Mikael had a small delay in accepting my hand, but when he did, he cracked a forced smile. "No hard feelings. Also tell your father, no hard feelings."

He looked nervous, and I could understand why he did. Had it come to a shoot out, the Fanuccis would've gone full out to take revenge. Had it been dad instead of us, Mikael wouldn't have dared to have such a big of a mouth or to even mention his possible deal with the Baldinis.

"Let's go," I raised my voice before turning to Mikael one last time. "Thanks for making it easy, and sorry things had to go this way." I hoped he could hear my sarcasm.

This thing with the Baldinis wasn't just a personal problEmily. It was a schEmilye to kick us off the East Coast, and it would've been done regardless of me marrying Maxine or not. Thank god I didn't.

All that man needed was a reason to start a war, and now he did.