chapter 35

"Alright I'll let him know" Luka said and ended the call.

"Where are you going honey?" His girlfriend, Amara asked walking into the room.

" Nothing just work related. Sorry I'll be back before dinner" he pecked her forehead and left picking up his car keys.

Amara looked at the door confused but then got back to her work.

___

He drove fast to Xavier's office and screamed

"I'm coming inside" before entering his office so that he won't have a heartattack.

"What?" Xavier said frustratedly.

"Santiago is here." his voice dropped an octave.

Xavier just raised his eyebrow, waiting for him to elaborate.

" He is right on the outskirts. I say we go and pay him a visit now otherwise we'll have to travel 3 hours to meet him in his city."

"Hmm call him beforehand. I don't want to turn up when he is in the middle of his naked shit again. Once was enough to scar me permanently" he mumbled the last part.

" Oh sure but that was epic" Luka said giving him a toothy smile.

" Alright." he said and sat on the couch.

Xavier got back to his work. It was end of the year so he have more work piled up on his desk.

"Zaddy when are you free?" he asked in the middle of the call.

"5. Fucker"

" You heard him. 5 fucker. we'll be there."

" Whatcha looking at?" he asked Xavier.

" That was for you. Asshole"

" You give me more affectionate nicknames than my own girlfriend. Sometimes I think that you might even marry me." he said wiping his fake tears.

Xavier threw a paper weight on him but being a skilled fighter himself he caught it and laughed.

"Let's go grab a bite Sugar Mama"

He grumbled but stood up nevertheless.

___

Ailee was on her lunch break and came to a nearby cafe with Emma and Mila when her phone rang and she excused herself.

"Hey Zai"

"Hi darling"

"How are you?" she asked looking back at her sisters who were busy stuffing their mouths with food.

"Great. You?"

"I'm fine" she replied.

"That you are" his words made her blush.

"Umm you coming on the weekend? I mean I'm sorry you don't have to if you're busy"

"I'd like to spend some time with my girl"

"I'd love to spend some time with my man as well" she replied shyly.

"Mhmm all yours but this weekend wouldn't be possible maybe next."

" Oh alright. Are you at work?" she asked.

" I'm heading for work. Just had some lunch with Luka"

"Oh okay I gotta go too. Tata take care"

"Mhmm eat well" he said and hung up.

"Lily you coming or what?" Mila called.

She hurriedly went to them and sat back failing to notice the new addition to their group.

"Hi Ailee" Damien said, smiling.

"Uh Hii Mr Ferraro" she froze for a second but then gulped down her bite.

"Oh please call me Damien" he said and sipped on his coffee.

Ailee just awkwardly nodded.

"So babe we're still up for the date tonight right?" he asked Emma who had her head on his shoulder.

"Yes ofcourse"

She missed Xavier now.

"It's my first time seeing you here around" he said to Ailee.

"Yeah I prefer working from home"

He nodded and made an 'O' face.

After that he kept talking to Emma and they both left a little early than the rest of them.

___

Luka sat in the back seat with Romano and loaded his gun.

"Booty so big Lord have mercy" he sang.

"Cause it's too cooooollllllddddd

For you here

And now, so let me hold

Both your hands in the holes of my sweate-"

"Shut the fuck up" Xavier growled.

"Sorry sis" he zipped his mouth, locked it and threw out the keys..... imaginarily with his fingers.

5 minutes later he started belting the lyrics of Steal My Girl

"I know, I know, I know for sure

Everybody wanna steal my girl

Everybody wanna take her heart away

Couple billion in the whole wide world

Find another one 'cause she belongs to me"

Xavier rolled his eyes and looked out of the window. It would've been perfect if it were his girlfriend singing like that instead of his asshole friend.

"Come on bro my favorite part is here,

Bring a friend, join the crowd

Whoever wanna come along

Word up, talk the talk

Just move like we off the wall

Day or night, the sky's alight

So we dance to the break of dawn

Ladies and gentlemen, I got the medicine

So you should keep ya eyes on the ball"

Xavier put on his air buds and played his own playlist in an attempt to save his hearing abilities.

The weather was perfect. Cloudy but not raining, cool breeze, swaying trees and all that. He leaned on the glass of the window and dozed off.

___

"Les go Les go bro" Luka woke him up thirty five minutes later.

He must be very tired to sleep in a car, he thought and got out running down a hand on his face to brush the sleepiness away.

"Romano and Luka, to what do I owe this honour"

" Let's go inside first" Luka said nodding and walked inside. Both men calculating their surroundings.

They all sat down in a hall with a black leather couch enough to room five people. Santiago's guards stationed at every corner while Xavier's stood closer to them, forming a shield around them. Meets like these usually turns bloody.

"What would you like to drink? Tequila, whiskey, vodka, gin, rum I have plenty here you know?"

he asked pouring himself a glass of vodka.

"How about water. Do y'all drink that?" Luka asked.

Santiago gestured his man and immediately a sealed water bottle was placed infront of him.

"Five star for customer service" Luka said, opening the transparent bottle and chugging it down.

"Dino. You know him?" Xavier spoke for the first time since they arrived.

"I know multiple Dinos. Why you ask?"

"Just some unfinished business"

"I see. I'll give you the names of all 3 Dinos- fuck I mean their details not the names, that you already know" he said.

" No, we want to know which one of them is rich enough to buy a Fifty five million dollar land"

" Holy fuck man. None of them. They're practically beggars...... but there is one who apparently works for someone rich."

"That'll do"

" Alright I'll get out his deets and send them over to you but what's in for me?"

" What you want?"

" I would've asked for money but since I already owe you I think I'll go easy. Give me one of your clubs in the city so that I could sell my stuff there on a better scale and my niece a job in your legit business"

" Club is a no. Job is a yes" he replied without hesitating.

" Come on Romano. It won't make any difference in your luxurious collection of assets."

" I know but the task I am giving you, is not worth a million dollar club."

Santiago and Xavier exchanged heated looks before he clenched his jaw and looked away.

" No one can beat you in negotiations, can they?" he said and gulped down his shot of vodka.

" Obviously" Luka answered in his stead.

"Atleast you can give me better access points for the move ins" he tried again with a hard look on his face.

"You'll have that"

" But stay in your limits bebita, we wouldn't want a repeat of last time" Luka said in a humorous tone.

( Babygirl )

Santiago's right hand man aimed his gun at Luka for the disrespect which caused all the guards to pull out their guns on each other as well.

Luka laughed and shook his head while looking down.

" You all are so childish" he said.

Santiago was furious, but he didn't have the upper hand here and tried to cool himself down before it starts raining bullets here and he perishes in vain.

He begrudgingly gestured his men to lower their weapons but his right hand man took extra two minutes to finally obey.

His hand couldn't reach his side of the body when he was shot in the same arm that dared to aim a gun at Luka. The loud sound resonated in the room and everyone turned towards the person who caused it.

Xavier nonchalantly tucked his gun back to its holster and looked Santiago dead in his eyes.

No one could do shit about it.

"You need to train them well" Saying this, he walked out with his guards following closely behind.

" Bro that went smooth like butter."

Luka said catching up to him while he just kept walking. He already knew it will go as he planned because Santiago is an all bark but no bite type of dog.

Xavier was confused when he didn't sit in his car so he called him.

"Aww already missing me? I promise I'm cheating on you" he said as soon as he picked up the call.

"Where are you going?" he asked ignoring his blabbering like always.

"To my real girlfriend. I promised Amara I will be home for dinner or she'll whoop my ass"

Xavier nodded and cut the call even when he knew Luka couldn't see his response.

Suddenly an idea popped in his head and he called someone.

___

Ailee jumped in his arms and he caught her wrapping his arms around her tightly.

"Imissedyou" she said in between her pants from all that running.

"Missed you too baby" he said and gently placed her on the ground.

He opened the door for her where a very excited looking Doodle awaited her.

"Sheeeeshhhhh" she squealed and sat down putting him in her lap and started stroking his fur.

Xavier came around and sat down.

He looked at them and poked his inner cheek.

Was he invisible?

Noticing that they were not moving she tilted her body towards him.

"What is wrong?" she asked.

"Put on your seatbelt" he grumbled after ignoring her for thirty seconds and started driving once she complied.

There they were, on their way to the beach. When he was leaving his office after work he got a call from her, asking if they could go to the beach together. He already decided to leave the puppy behind but she insisted on bringing him here.

All through the ride she just kept playing with him and he was getting frustrated minute after minute. He was waiting to meet her all week and when they finally do, this is what he gets?

She is never quite when it's just the both of them, always rambling about her day and forcing him to speak about his as well but now, she hasn't said anything to him ever since he started driving.

He parked the car and was about to get out when her small and soft hands held his large and calloused ones stopping him midway.

He looked at her confusingly, even more so when she gently put Doodle on the backseat and climbed out of her seat to sit on his lap.

She cupped his face and placed a firm kiss on his lips and connected their foreheads.

"I'm sorry. I just got too excited. It's my first time having a pet" she whispered softly.

" It's your first time having a boyfriend too" he said and looked away.

" True but I can't talk to Doodle on call like my boyfriend "

She said sheepishly but he didn't look at her still.

"I. am. sorry. I. will. make. it. up. to you. I. promise. " she said in between the kisses she was placing all over his face. He wrapped his one arm around her waist and rubbed her back with the other.

"How will you make it up?" he asked.

"I don't know you tell me" she said and rested her face in the crook of his neck. Her slow breaths teasing his skin and her body pressed against him tightly, he could feel her every curve making him clench his jaw.

He took a deep breath and adjusted himself in a more comfortable position before saying

"Go on a date with me"

Her head shot up hitting his chin hard in the process. They both groaned but Ailee got tears in her eyes because of the pain.

He wiped her tears and softly rubbed her head where she hit herself.

"Sorry I hurt you too" she whispered with a wobbly voice. Her physical pain tolerance is as good as zero.

"No worries it was like a pinch compared to what I have felt before during battles" he assured and kissed the crown of her head. His pretence of being mad at her long forgotten.

"You fight often?" she asked looking him in the eyes, her favourite type of grey which looked so distant now.

"No sometimes" he said and hoped she would just change the topic.

"You know I have a little part of mafia as well right?" he asked, hesitating for the first time.

"I do" she replied.

"Still you choose to be with me." he said gently twirling her tendrils around his fingers.

"Because I also know that it was forced on you and you are a good person, don't go around harming others for fun, always making sure I'm comfortable and safe and well fed and try to change yourself so that I don't feel like I'm the only one trying and ofcourse because you give me lots of chocolates and there are many more reasons. You're just perfect" she said very calmly and slowly so that he could absorb every word and kept caressing his cheek from one hand while her other hand combed through his hair.

"Fuck. I haven't heard even a single word from that para from someone else's mouth"

" Well get used to it now" she said smiling brightly.

" Be ready by 6 tomorrow" he said kissing her collar bone and got out holding her in his arms.

She shrieked and jumped down and opened the door for Doodle to come out.

He barked and wagged his tail and ran to Xavier biting his trousers. He bent down and picked him up knowing that's what he wants.

Ailee smiled and followed them to the beach.

"You're dad talked about you"

"He did? What did he say?" she asked giving him her full attention.

"That you're a premature baby and how much he loves you"

"Hmm we used to be joined at the hip" she said looking at the ocean in the front.

"Mhmm are you cold?" he asked when he noticed the goosebumps on the little exposed skin of her arms.

"A little" she said and on the cue sneezed twice.

He shook his head in disapproval and made her wear his warm black leather jacket, drowning her in it.

"What were you making that day in the sand?"

"I was building a sand castle but he won't let me" she said pouting and crossing her arms across her chest.

"Come" he beckoned her.

Though confused, she still obeyed.

He held Doodle in his arms and let Ailee make a small sand castle which looked nothing like how one is supposed to look like and continued to play around.

___

"Xavier I think I might introduce you to my parents as my boyfriend very soon" she said on their way back.

"Mhmm?"

" Mhmm " she replied happily looking outside.

"And where will you be taking me tomorrow?" she asked turning to him completely.

"It's for me to know and for you to find out"

he said and smirked.

" But you always say that" she whined.

" And you always see for yourself"

"What should I wear? Are we going to another beach? star gazing? arcade?" she bounced excitedly in her seat.

"You look beautiful in anything" he said holding her hand and kissing it making her blush all shades of red.

"Y-yeah? but I won't know if a dress would be more appropriate or jeans or maybe a gown or something..... or maybe my swimsuit?"

She gasped putting a hand on her mouth.

" We're going for swimming. Shall I wear my swimsuit underneath?"

He smiled and shook his head.

"Just wear anything you're comfortable in. We're going to be alone and I won't judge you."

" Yeeeeee my first date Xavier I'm so happy" she squealed and squished Doodle who was patiently looking outside but started barking trying to get himself free from the torture.

He stopped the car a few feet away from her door and made his way out.

"I'll see you later Coco" he said, hugging her tightly.

She sighed in contentment not wanting to let go.

"Can't we cuddle for sometime. Everyone would be asleep by now." she suggested.

His heart melted. As much as he wanted to, he could not, he had business to take care of.

"I would fucking love that but I have to clear my desk for our date to go peacefully tomorrow."

She pouted but nodded nevertheless.

"Okay but don't overwork yourself. Promise?"

He nodded and placed a firm kiss on her lips and ushered her inside. When she reached her room she came to the balcony and waved at him. He waved back and finally left.

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