Submitting to My Best Friend's Dad by Scarlett Rossi
Chapter 297 -

*Giovani*

The minute I left, I heard the clattering of one of the stools hitting the floor. If I had three guesses as to who it was, all of them would've been the same name.

I heard his footsteps following me, and he didn't even bother to hide it with how loud his stomps were coming up the stairs. I entered my room and glanced down the hallway. Alessandro was following me, just as I suspected. I didn't even bother closing my door, letting it swing open as I entered.

"Close the door behind you," I called out to him as I dropped into one of the chairs by my bed. No doubt this was going to take a while.

Alessandro did as I asked, and I heard the door shut much quieter than I thought he would. It was expensive wood, so I would've beaten his ass if he'd scratched it up.

"What do you need?" I cut straight to the point, not in the mood for any of his nonsense.

Alessandro didn't look at me. He slowly moved across the floor, the boards creaking underneath his shoes as he paced around. There was a blank look on his face like he hadn't been the one to follow me into my own room. I sighed, waiting patiently as I tapped my fingers along the armrests in the chair. Alessandro took his sweet time as he looked around my room like it was more interesting than it was.

Olivia had called it orderly and put together, but in my eyes, it was just basic-what I needed and nothing more.

It felt empty in a way.

Before Olivia, every time I'd come home, my room was just a place to sleep. Having been spoiled with her in my bed, it felt wide and lonely without her. Alessandro turned to me finally, a firm look in his eyes as he finally got to what he wanted to say.

"I think I'm going to stay a while," he said casually. "I want to be a part of this life, so I want to ask for a position in the organization here."

I clenched my jaw, having already expected this. It wasn't like I didn't want him around, but he had a real attitude lately and it was getting on my nerves.

So long as he could follow orders, I had no problem with it, but I couldn't imagine him backing down and respecting me as the authority in the organization.

I narrowed my eyes at him, feeling like there was something else he wasn't saying, but he only stood strong, completely open, and honest.

This felt too much like a show, but there was nothing else I could do.

"Of course," I smiled politely. "We'd love to have you. Let me just reach out to James to confirm that he thinks it's okay."

His mask broke and he glared at me, revealing the resentment in his eyes. I smirked to myself as he stepped forward, trying to be intimidating.

It felt more like a puppy trying to snap its jaws at me.

"I'm an adult," Alessandro snapped. "I don't need his permission. I can make decisions for myself."

I raised an eyebrow at the demand. There was something fishy going on here. I pondered for a moment about what I should do.

If I accepted Alessandro without contacting James, I had no doubt James would not be happy with me or him. This was the boy he had raised as his own son, after all... Taliana's son. Becca had fought tooth and nail to make sure they got out of this life, but now Alessandro was begging to get back in.

But Alessandro was also right. He was an adult and he could make his own decisions without talking to Mommy and Daddy about it. Plus, I didn't need him to distrust me any more than he already did.

If he was really going to stay, I had to trust him to do his job. Could I really do that?

Eventually, I tilted my head, finally nodding as I backed off of the open wound he was trying so hard to protect. It was better not to push him now.

"Okay," I told him, calmly. "We'll talk once we're back from the hospital. I'll have you set up with Gabriele."

Alessandro straightened, a victorious smile on his face as he nodded in agreement. I could see his smugness from miles away. He could be on a billboard sign and they'd see it from the moon.

He turned to leave, thinking he had won without a fight, but I wasn't about to let this go so easily.

"Alessandro," I called out.

He paused in his steps, turning slightly to face me.

"If you stay here and work with us," I warned him, darkly, "you need to cut out this attitude. I don't need you to be a liability."

He clenched his jaw, the anger burning in his eyes from my threat, but he swallowed it down and only nodded, bowing his head respectfully. I watched his back as he left, his muscles completely tense before the door shut behind him. I breathed a sigh of relief once he was gone.

When I was first named the Don, Alessandro was still young, so he didn't really know what it meant. But as he kept getting older, he started asking questions about his birth parents, the family business, and the Russians and what had happened when he was still only a baby and toddler.

James and Becca preferred honesty with him. And once he heard that he had been next in line to become the Don before me, there was a bit of him that began to resent me for it. It was clear then and even now still that he believed he had deserved the spot as the Don, not me.

But the way he lashed out like a child who wasn't getting their way just proved that he didn't deserve the title. It was more than just power and control. Being the Don meant having the power of life and death in your hands. A single decision made by me could kill a dozen of my men in an instant, but there was also no room for indecision. You had to be quick, efficient, and ruthless.

Even if it meant washing your hands with blood.

I did what I had to, even if it didn't seem like the moral high ground. Sitting on a throne meant you had the best view, but there was no room for anyone to sit beside you. It was the loneliest achievement of them all. James never wanted that life for Alessandro, but that stupid brat couldn't appreciate everything his parents had done for him or the lengths they had taken to keep him away from this pressure.

I got to my feet, shedding my clothes and letting them drop to the floor as I headed straight for my bathroom. I worked through the motions, my mind blank as I turned on the heated shower. The steam was quick to fill up the room, fogging up the mirror as I stood in front of it.

I'd never wanted to become the Don. It wasn't something I had sought to achieve. The stupid kid I was never would've imagined the life I was living now. But even I had to admit I was the perfect choice for a replacement.

I wasn't like James, I didn't have any attachments-no woman on my arm who worried when I would come home, no children to tuck into bed or read stories to. I had no family to fear for their safety. Even my parents were as distant to me as strangers.

I stared deeply at my reflection, even as it disappeared behind the fog. I reached my hand forward, wiping away the fog on the mirror until my eyes stared back at me.

Sometimes, I hated it... the way I could be so cold to everyone around me, to always keep them at a distance.

But Olivia hadn't been like that.

From the first moment I saw her, I felt something different. She came crashing through the walls I had built around me, and she didn't even notice. It wasn't just attraction or simple infatuation. She treated me like I was human too, not as an authority, but as a man with his own insecurities and problems. I wasn't standing on a pedestal with her, She reached out her hand and pulled me to the ground.

Her sweet smile echoed in my mind, a sanctuary among the harsh, cruel realities of the world. She was kind and beautiful, a Garden of Eden untouched by war or greed.

I wanted to stay there with her, in the place of rest and safety she gave to me. I bowed my head, clenching my fists against the counter.

Even though I knew I shouldn't, I wanted to keep her.

I pulled away from the mirror, stepping into the shower. The water fell like rain upon my skin, washing away the grime and dirt that had accumulated. I shut my eyes, lifting my head to the showerhead as I let the water fall over me. Alessandro was going to be a problem. I was sure of it.

I didn't want to have any issues with Alessandro, but it didn't seem like he was giving me a choice. His anger was infectious like a parasite worming its way into his heart. The more he let it fester, the more his fury would grow... until one day, he wouldn't be able to contain it.

He was a ticking time bomb, and I feared the day he exploded. With the Zaytsevs still poking around, I didn't need another problem added to my list.

But there was an old saying that did me well in the years I'd been the Don: Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.

There was no other choice. It was better to keep Alessandro by my side where I could watch him than let him run wild out there. Who knows what kind of trouble he'd get into... or what he'd try to do to me and the organization?

I'd make a call to James and tell him what was going on. Alessandro didn't need to know the details, and James could help keep an eye on him once they arrived to care for Dahlia. In the meantime, there was plenty of lightweight work to handle.

I was sure the others would be more than happy to lend him their small-time duties for the time being. I figured it would keep him busy for now and out of my hair.

I sighed deeply, wondering just how much trouble this was actually going to cause me in the end.

I suppose only God knew at this point.