The Return of My First Love novel Chapter 47

Alessio

Apologizing to Leonardo Baldini sounded as horrible in my head as I thought it would be. With a deep sigh, I glared at Levi, who was focused on the road, his hands a little too steady on the wheel because he knew I blamed him for this.

I had told him multiple times that we wouldn't be here if it wasn't for him because he needed to know the facts. He was nervous, I could sense it—but I didn't set us up, he did.

"You rEmilyEmilyber Emily's ex?" I broke the silence, wanting to get something off my chest.

Levi chuckled, for once happy that I spoke about something other than blaming him. "Yes, I do. What about him?"

I shook my head, leaning back in my seat. "The way Emily described him…like he is the biggest monster in the universe," I said. "I was thinking, someone like that wouldn't back down, would he? It just doesn't sound right."

"Then what do you think?"

"Nothing," I dismissed the nagging feeling in the back of my head. I didn't want to look crazy or maybe even fearful because of that failed athlete. "Never mind. I'm just overthinking, stressed. He's weak, he can't do anything."

"Stressed?"

"Yes."

"Is it because you have to apologize to that family because of me?" Levi's eyes met mine in the rearview mirror. "Do you feel guilty because—"

"Guilty?" I snapped. "Spare me the talk. We're not in therapy," I told him, not in the mood to talk about my feelings towards the Baldinis. What I had done was fucked up, but all sides had to get over it.

"For a second I thought we were," Levi rolled his eyes with a smile.

"What do you mean?" I asked curiously.

"You spoke about Emily letting you sleep on that bed and you having to go through the night with blue balls the entire flight," he said. "Sounds like therapy to me."

I huffed in annoyance, thinking about the torment I had to endure because Emily, who was completely unaware, didn't know what power she had over me, especially in those lace shorts. "That was worth mentioning."

Levi chuckled, clearly enjoying bullying me.

"No, really," I spoke, feeling the need to defend myself. "You try sleeping beside her in the position she sleeps in."

My thoughts went back to last night. Emily slept in every position except straight. She loved snuggling her pillow tightly, causing her to curve her body in a way that made it hard for me. Literally.

Each time she moved closer, I would move away, to the point where I had almost fallen off the bed and left because I couldn't sleep anymore. Before I did that, I made sure to pull her towards her side of the bed so she wouldn't fall off herself.

"It gets really lonely for her sometimes in that big mansion…you know," Levi brought it up carefully. "Maybe when you aren't that busy with work, you can do something fun with her and Naty? Your Dad and Uncle believe you now. You'll want to keep it that way."

"Yes, sure," I noted, taking his advice to the heart. Growing up, I knew all too well how Emilypty it could feel in that mansion and that's the reason why I enjoyed going on trips with Dad.

Locking thEmily up had never been part of my plan. It was only supposed to be for a while, until I could trust her, and now I did. I had been very cautious about being seen with her in public because I was unsure how all of this would play out, but now that that burden was gone, it wouldn't matter anymore.

"Don't worry, I'll spend more time with her. I'll ask my Mom to keep an eye out for her as well."

~

After a while, we reached the Baldini mansion. As we drove through the gates, my mind suddenly switched as I began to realize that apologizing to Leonardo and Maxine could make everyone shut up about the situation.

It was a necessary step because I had screwed over his daughter, but my pride got in the way. In my opinion, I wasn't the only one who needed to apologize. Let's not forget, his reaction had been very childish trying to sabotage our business.

As Levi and I stood in front of his office, it wasn't hard to sense how all of their people felt about us. We had received dirty looks, sharp gazes, and so much disrespect they might as well have just spit on us.

Leonardo too, by the way.

That petty man had made us wait for him for over an hour, and I was sure it was to rEmilyind me who held the power in this situation.

"You alright?" I turned to Levi, noticing he was barely breathing. He was known for being calm, but his behavior had changed the moment we entered this mansion.

"I'm good," Levi lied, forcing a small smile.

"Good? Okay, if you say so," I smiled softly. "Because now it looks like you might be needing that therapy."

I still couldn't help but think that Levi might have gotten a promotion too soon. He was smart, strong, and had proven himself more than once—but seeing him now, it was clear he was out of his comfort zone.

It was strange to see a man who had served in the military openly displaying any sign of unease, especially when he shouldn't have, but he did. He kept his head lowered with no intention of looking up.

"You just sit there and not say a word. It's not that difficult, you'll be alright."

As I gave him my instructions, the heavy door creaked open. "Come in," Leonardo called out coldly, but he had not yet revealed himself.

Levi and I exchanged a brief look before stepping into the office. Closing the door behind us, I prepared myself for whatever was to come. Out of respect, we had entered his home without any weapon, so if he wanted to eliminate me, he could do it now.

I scanned the room. Leonardo was already seated behind his desk, while Maxine stood in a corner, staring out of the window.

"Don't be shy. Sit." the man spoke, pointing to the two chairs. His tone was kind, but his eyes were cold. I trusted his thought on all of this through his eyes the most.