Althaia“I’m going to miss you so much!” I hugged Cara tightly.“Me too! It’s going to suck without you.”“Ghee, thanks.” Arianna faked an offended expression.I couldn't help but let out a laugh as I turned to embrace her tightly. It was going to be so weird to be away from them for so long when we had spent so many days together.“Now we can all get some sleep at night without you fucking like crazy every night.” Rafaelle started, and I gave him a blank look.“Don’t you ever get tired of your own stupid comments?”“Never!” He grinned and gave me a bone-crushing hug that I returned. He was going to be missed. His comments, not so much.I gave them one last goodbye and even shared an awkward goodbye with Lorenzo, where I patted his shoulder as a farewell. I didn’t know why I still felt awkward around him, but I did. Probably because of the number of times I have humiliated myself in front of him. I guess he kind of felt the same about me too, because he awkwardly patted my head as a go

AlthaiaThings at work had calmed down. I was taking a lot of stress off my mother’s shoulder now that I was back because, other than her, I was the only one skilled enough to sketch customers’ wishes. We had seamstress workers, not always in the boutique with us, but present when it got busy.Time was going by so fast and before I knew it, three weeks already went by. It felt like time was going by even faster because as soon as I would get home from work, I would pass out as soon as my head hit the pillow.I haven’t been talking to Damiano as much, only squeezing in a text message here and there. He called me last night, and I was so tired that I fell asleep while talking to him, but he knew how busy things have been. I felt guilty that I barely had any time for him when he always made sure to have time for me. And he was the one with multiple businesses and running a Mafia.Lately, I was feeling like I couldn’t get enough sleep, even though I was sleeping for over eight hours. It wa

AlthaiaI quickly sat up and wrapped my arms around his neck. Damiano held me tightly in his body with his strong arms as I sobbed into his neck.I couldn’t believe he was here. Right in front of me and holding me.He caressed my back as we were in each other’s arms. Something I had missed so much for the past three weeks. Something I desperately needed right now,“Althaia…” Damiano spoke softly and had me look at him. He cupped my face, wiping the tears away. He looked around my face with concern before meeting my eyes. “Tell me what’s wrong.”I looked at him with teary eyes, not knowing how to even tell him. Where do I even start? This whole thing had gotten out of control, and I didn’t know what to do.“I -” I bit my lip when my voice cracked and I looked down, trying to breathe before I continued. “I had a fight with my mom…” I decided to say, and I let out a breath before I looked back at him.He looked at me with furrowed brows, waiting for me to elaborate, but I didn’t know how

Althaia“Trust me, Damiano. I’m fine to go to work. I’ve even slept so much that I’m awake this early.” I said as I got dressed in a pair of black leggings and one of his t-shirts.I had to get back home to grab clothes for work because what Damiano packed was not work-appropriate. We didn’t have a dress code per se, but we definitely needed to be properly dressed as it was still a high-end boutique.“Keep it closed.” Damiano had a frown on his face as he sat at the end of the bed, watching me get dressed.“You’re a businessman. You, out of all people, should know that it’s bad for business if I just keep it closed.” I raised a brow and walked towards him. I stepped in between his legs and his hands rested right on my ass.“I will write a check for your losses. Keep it closed.” He insisted.“Look at you; throwing money at the problem.” I laughed.“Usually works.” He smirked.“Yeah? Well, it doesn’t work for me. People have their orders ready, and I kind of need to be there to hand them

AlthaiaI handed Laila a bottle of water after she had calmed down a bit. We were still sitting on the floor, under the desk, as it was better to stay down here so she wouldn’t have to witness the awful sight of that man.“Are you okay?” I asked her quietly. She clutched the water bottle to her chest as she kept glancing at Damiano but would quickly look away again.She nodded, taking a deep breath before speaking.“You have blood on your face…” She whispered.“Oh…” I said in surprise and blindly tried to wipe my face with Giovanni’s jacket.“Did…” Laila swallowed hard, then whispered. “Did he do this to you?” Her wide eyes darted quickly to Damiano. I followed her gaze, forgetting his hands were covered in blood.“Oh, no! No, he’s with me. He won’t do anything to harm me. Don’t worry, we’re safe with him.” I promised with a smile.She let out a breath of relief, and her whole body seemed to relax. I forgot Damiano looked intimidating if you didn’t know him, and she was probably fright