Chapter 156: Blood Is Thicker Than Water, but Apparently So Is Stupidity...

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A little while later, I found myself lying on my back, while Nikolai kept my ankles steady, counting my reps like he was a kid who’d never known a hard day in his life.

"Twenty-three."

I lifted my shoulders off the mat, gritting my teeth.

"Twenty-four."

"Twenty-five."

"Snitchy, if I don’t make it through this, you’ve got to tell Lorenzo it was all your fault."

"Twenty-six."

"I want flowers at my funeral too, okay?"

"Twenty-seven."

"And a coffin that doesn’t make me feel like I’m in a tomb. I refuse to spend forever in a tiny box!"

"Twenty-nine."

"Are you even paying attention to me?"

"Thirty. Nice job, Donna."

I collapsed back on the mat, gasping for air.

"Hope your next rut lasts six months."

Nikolai glanced down at me, and the look of disapproval on his face told me it was probably best to keep my mouth shut.

But of course, the universe had other ideas.

The training room door opened, and a guard walked in, saluting Nikolai before turning to me.

"Donna. The Don wants everyone at the main entrance. His brother is here."

I was just about to sit up when those words hit me, and I froze, my shoulders still lifted and my hands behind my head.

"Wait a minute," I said, lowering myself back down. "His brother? As in Dante?"

The guard’s face stayed neutral, but I could’ve sworn I saw the tiniest twitch at the corner of his mouth. "Yes, Donna."

I sat up slowly. "Why is he here?"

Neither the guard nor Nikolai answered right away, and the silence made my earlier humor evaporate.

Nikolai let go of my ankles and stood, his demeanor shifting to something more serious.

"End the session," he said. "You should clean up and join the others."

I glanced at him and then at the door.

Just two days ago, Lorenzo had been holding my hands and speaking to me with a softness I never thought I’d see from him.

I’d caught a glimpse of the boy behind the scars, the scared kid who had grown up into a man determined to protect everyone he loved.

For the first time, I had started to think about a future with him that didn’t revolve entirely around divorce or survival.

Now, his brother was arriving out of the blue, and the mood of the estate shifted dramatically with just one sentence.

The same brother that may have tried to kill Lorenzo.

Why was Lorenzo even letting him walk freely into the estate when he was very dangerous?

Even getting the household to give his elder brother a warm welcome at the entrance as well?

What the hell was Lorenzo planning this time?

I pushed myself up, brushing mat dust off my clothes.

Well, I supposed I had no choice but to trust that Lorenzo knew what he was doing.

"Well," I muttered, "there goes my peaceful morning. I knew it was too good to last."

After a quick shower and a change of clothes, I rushed through the hallway toward the main courtyard, hoping I could get there before Lorenzo decided to do something drastic, like interrogate, arrest, or quietly dispose of someone in the garden.

I was halfway down the hall when a broom closet creaked open, and Leon stumbled out as if he had barely escaped a very aggressive vacuum cleaner.

His glasses were askew, his cheeks flushed, and his hair looked like it had just been messed up in a windstorm.

Matteo followed right behind him, grinning and looking so pleased with himself that I became instantly suspicious.

In fact, I was nearly ready to accuse him of at least three different crimes before anyone even bothered to explain what had happened.

"Leon?" I rushed over, grabbing his shoulders. "Uh...what the fuck is going on between you two?"

"N...nothing!" he squeaked. "I...I was just walking by and he suddenly grabbed me and pulled me in!"

Matteo leaned against the doorframe, grinning. "We were just playing. Isn’t that right, cutie?"

"Playing?" I repeated, slowly turning to face him. "In a broom closet?"

"It was a private conversation."

"Sure it was. And I suppose the fact that you’ve turned Leon into a nervous wreck is totally unrelated?"

Leon made a small, mortified noise.

I quickly pulled him behind me and shot Matteo my fiercest glare, which was quite strong when it came to defending my friends.

"Didn’t I tell you to keep your hands off my Leon? He’s too innocent for your antics!"

Matteo laughed like my outrage was the best thing ever.

"Calm down, In- law. I haven’t done anything to him."

"Then why does he look like he might pass the hell out?"

"Because he’s so adorable when he’s embarrassed."

"That’s not a valid excuse!"

Leon pulled at my shirt sleeve, clearly wishing he could disappear.

"Sir, please, it’s fine. Mr. Castelli... was just teasing me."

I looked at him, not entirely convinced.

"Are you sure? Because I have some very unpleasant ideas about how to deal with him using a mop."

Matteo put a hand over his heart, feigning shock. "I’m wounded! Here I am, trying to be friendly, and you threaten me with cleaning supplies."

"I can always switch to a broom if you’d prefer."

"How nice."

"Keep talking, and I’ll show you just how nice I can be."

Matteo chuckled again, but I took Leon’s hand and began pulling him away before the situation could spiral into something requiring a formal report.

"Stay away from him!" I called out as we walked away.

Matteo chuckled as he watched us go...

Watched Leon go, to be specific.

Once we were out of Matteo’s reach, I leaned in closer to Leon and dropped my voice.

"So, what the hell is happening? Does he like you or something?"

Leon nearly tripped over himself.

"W-what? No! Of course not, sir! I mean, I don’t... don’t know. He just likes making fun of me and making me flustered with his jokes whenever we cross paths...and I know he doesn’t mean anything by it."

I narrowed my eyes at him.

"That sounds suspiciously like something a person says when they’ve been totally played by a charming idiot."

"Alex!"

"What? I’m being supportive here."

"You’re being terrifying."

"Those two aren’t mutually exclusive, you know."

Leon adjusted his glasses, his cheeks still bright and gave me a helpless grin.

"Honestly, Matteo can be annoying, but he’s not been cruel to me. He just... likes to get a reaction out of me, I think."

I thought about that for a moment, still not fully convinced.

After all, Matteo was Lorenzo’s younger brother, which could mean he might have inherited the family’s troubling habit of playing with other people’s feelings like they were toys sometimes.

But then I remembered that little boy who was kidnapped along side his older brother and mother.

And losing his mother as well.

And how instead of ending up like his brothers, he decided the best way to move forward was to do so by having fun.

He was harmless...

I think...

I mean, I still wasn’t sure if an Alpha could ever be genuinely interested in a Beta anyway.

Maybe Matteo was only playing around.

"Fine," I finally said. "But if he makes you uncomfortable, you tell me. I don’t care if he’s a Castelli; I’ll personally beat him up."

Leon laughed softly, and I could see some of the tension leave his shoulders.

"I promise."

We continued toward the main courtyard, but as we got closer to the entrance, I started to understand why Nikolai had looked so serious when the guard delivered his message.

The household had gathered in neat lines, staff positioned along the edges of the courtyard, and armed guards standing near the gates.

A few black cars were parked along the driveway, and the men closest to the entrance spoke in low tones, keeping their eyes on the road beyond the estate.

The atmosphere felt so formal that I instinctively straightened my outfit, suddenly regretting that I hadn’t worn something less casual.

But if Dante expected me to dress up for his arrival, he was welcome to request it in writing from the department responsible for my wardrobe, a collection that mostly consisted of whatever I could grab without upsetting Lorenzo’s pickiness.

I caught sight of Lorenzo at the front of the reception line.

He stood with his hands in his pockets, clad in a dark suit that fit him perfectly almost annoyingly so...with his long, pale hair falling neatly around his shoulders.

Damn, I thought. So fucking hot...

How could a man look this hot even as they were welcoming an attempted murderer (AKA brother) into their home?

His expression was blank, his green eyes fixed on the gates. The softness I had seen in him just two mornings ago seemed to vanish behind the familiar, stoic facade of the Castelli Don.

It was still him, but not quite the same version.

When Lorenzo looked at me in private, there were moments when he allowed his hard edges to soften, when he accepted comfort without pretending that he was invulnerable.

But now, in front of his household, he was a closed book, leaving behind only the cold, calculating man whose presence could silence a room.

I moved closer and settled slightly behind his shoulder next to Leon, wondering what thoughts were racing through his mind as he waited for the brother who had spent years blaming him for their mother’s death.

The sound of engines came first.

Three black cars appeared beyond the gates, moving slowly along the driveway before stopping in front of the gathered household.

Their windows were tinted, their bodies gleaming, and the men inside remained hidden until the first car’s engine fell silent.

Lorenzo didn’t budge.

Neither did anyone else.

I glanced at him, catching the subtle tightening of his jaw, and felt a knot forming in my stomach.

Whatever reason Dante had for coming here, I had a sinking feeling it wasn’t just for a friendly family visit, especially considering the timing and how Lorenzo’s entire household had been assembled to greet him.

The first car door opened.

And out stepped Dante Castelli.