He questioned, and Chloe stood still, gazing at him with her body trembling.
"Is that why you hired that stupid caregiver, even though you could have let me take care of you?" She asked with a painful smile on her face.
Valerio pinched his brows in deep stress and shifted his gaze to her.
"Chloe, this will be my first and last warning to you." He began. "I don't care what stupid thoughts you have in those empty minds of yours, but Everly, I want you to stay as far away from her as possible. If you dare to hurt her, if you lay your hands on her, I will make you suffer; I will show you my dark side. Keep this in mind."
With a deadly expression on his face, he warned.
Chloe, who couldn't believe what just happened, burst into laughter.
"Valerio, you have got to be joking. You just threw away years of friendship and the love I have for you in the trash. You just said this to me because of a fucking measly caretaker. What is she to you? Your new lover? Why are you so protective of her? "Do you love—"
"Alex, get her out of here!" Valerio ordered, the instant he sensed Alex's presence.
Alex, who had just reached the door, blinked his eyes in confusion and glanced at Chloe, who looked so drained in shock.
"Alex!" Valerio glared at him, immediately snapping him back to his senses, and quickly Alex rushed up to Chloe and grabbed her by the hand, but Chloe, however, slapped his hand away with aggravation filling her eyes.
"Don't you dare touch me!" She scowled and took a long, deep breath.
"You hurt me really terribly with your words, Valerio. And why? because of an irrelevant caregiver who contributes nothing to your damned miserable life."
"It's not my fault you got hurt, nor is it my fault that you got fooled and put in this pitiful situation. Nothing was my fault, but it is fine. If one thing was my fault, it was loving you unconditionally."
"I will leave, but I will make sure to pay you back, Valerio, as well as your caregiver. As I said to her, she's on my blacklist."
She declared, and without uttering any more words, she turned around and stormed out of the office.
Valerio let out a soft breath and turned to Alex.
"Let's go home." He ordered.
Alex nodded and walked up to him.
He grabbed his suit jacket as well as his tie, and together they proceeded downstairs.
They boarded the SUV, and carefully, Alex took a turn and drove off onto the road, then sped off.
While driving, he looked through the rearview mirror, unable to deny the fact that he knows Valerio is disturbed by what Chloe had said to him.
"Master-"
"Just drive, Alex. I am not in the mood to talk." Valerio cut him off immediately, and he respectfully nodded.
"Understood."
They arrived back at the mansion, and Valerio strolled into the building.
Alex walked him toward the elevator, which took him to the second floor.
He stepped out once the door opened and ambled towards the door of his room.
He strolled inside, and the first thing he did was plop down on the sofa.
A long, deep sigh fled his nose, and he turned to lie on his side.
Alex, who was dropping his jacket on the sofa, glanced at him, and a slight bit of concern ensued on his face.
"Master-"
"Don't worry, Alex. I am fine." Valerio cut him off immediately, and knowing he should probably leave, Alex nodded and walked out of the room.
He shut the door and made his way to return downstairs, but coming across Everly's room, he halted and gazed at the door.
He stepped towards it and placed two light knocks on it.
Everly, who was inside, pulled the door open, and a surprising look appeared on her face.
"Can I help you?" She asked.
"He…needs you," Alex replied and walked off before she could utter a word.
Everly stared at his disappearing back, and in a bit of confusion, she stepped out of her room.
She strolled towards Valerio's master bedroom and lightly knocked.
With a tired voice, Valerio gave his permission, and she ambled inside.
She shut the door behind her and glanced at the bed to see him lying down on his side.
"Sir Avalanzo…Is everything okay with you?" She asked, feeling that something wasn't right.
Could something have happened? Why does he look so moody?
She wondered and strolled towards the bed after getting no response from him.
"Sir Avalanzo…" She squatted down to the level of the bed and playfully poked the back of his head.
"Don't do that again." Valerio's deep, cold voice flew into her ears, and now very sure that something must have happened, she bit her lower lip in apprehension.
"Do you want me to cook something for you? Something that would cheer you up. You like cookies a lot, right? I could make that for you."
She suggested it, but no response came from Valerio.
A few seconds of silence passed before Valerio slowly turned around with his body facing her.
"Everly." He muttered her name.
"Yes, sir, Avalanzo." Everly half smiled at him as she answered.
"Have you ever been hurt before? By someone you love?" He inquired with a dimmed light in his violet eyes.