Nikolas plopped down in the living room of his suite in the penthouse, legs crossed with his head thrown back against the sofa.
"What did you find?"
The young man who'd walked in bowed deeply. "It is true, sir. Mr. Di-grassi did purchase the apartment on the ninetieth floor in his name."
"I see." Nikolas stared at the floor-length wide glass window. "How long has she been living in Maison de Vesta?"
"Five months, sir."
"Five months?" And he never saw her even once? "Is there anything else?"
The man shook his head. "No, this is all. I—"
Someone else walked in, making a turn to bow slightly. "Sir, Mr. Romano is here to see you."
"Let him in."
The beep of the door sounded as it was opened, and a young man in an ash-colored three-piece suit made his way in. His dark brown hair was slicked back, and his chocolate eyes were bright as he bowed deeply to Nikolas.
"Boss."
"Is something wrong, Elio?"
The man, Elio Romano, shook his head. He was the proxy Nikolas had chosen to cover him. The Nikolas Bastiani the entire world knew. "No, sir. But an email came in."
Nikolas looked him up. "An email from who?"
"Amadeo Di-grassi."
His expression hardened. "Amadeo Di-grassi?"
"Yes. He's the man who owns Vizera Luxe–"
"I know who Amadeo is, Elio. I'm married to his daughter. Tell me, what email did he send?"
Elio didn't hesitate, explaining, "It is concerning that deal he wants to make with Bratva. With you, boss. The last time I gave his presentation to you, you rejected it."
"And he's still persisting?" Nikolas asked.
"Yes, sir." Elio nodded. "What should I do? Should I bring it to you for approval? Vizera Luxe is a big company, and this is Amadeo Di-grassi we're talking about."
"And who the fuck is Amadeo Di-grassi again?"
"Huh?" 'Your… father-in-law?' Elio felt lost. "Sir, he owns Vizera Luxe. He ranks second after you in the influential list of the Valestra continent. I just thought it would be good for Bratva. The profit—"
"No."
"Heh?" Elio blanked out. "I'm confused. Why…? He seems really interested in working with you."
"Well, he pisses me off." Nikolas chuckled, his tone void of any emotion. He sounded flat and disinterested. "Why should I say yes to him?"
Now, Elio was beyond perplexed.
While he was the proxy, Nikolas was still the one who took care of whatever concerned the company. Every single one of them. And that included brand deals, partnership offers, project developments, presentations, management, ideas, all of it. Even the signatures that landed on every contract paper were his.
Personally, he didn't even know much about Bratva, as Nikolas didn't tell him much. He was merely an employee at the company and just like every other employee in Bratva, he was under a contract that restricted them from ever letting out the secret of him being the real Nikolas Bastiani.
His only job was to be a proxy in the face of investors and whatnot. Why the man had refused to reveal himself as the real Nikolas Bastiani, he was unsure.
And he couldn't ask.
Was he protecting himself? But from what?
Now, even as he didn't know much, he knew very well that Nikolas was the last person to ever mix work with feelings. It was shocking how he could loathe Amadeo Di-grassi all of a sudden. A man whose daughter he was married to. It almost seemed personal.
"Let me see the presentation." Nikolas extended a hand.
Elio was quick to hand the documents over.
Nikolas skimmed through them lazily. Facial expression blank, he stood up and walked over to the shredder in his office, gradually dumping the papers inside of it.
Elio swallowed.
"Don't say no to him," Nikolas said.
"Huh?"
"Let him keep sending his presentations over and over again. I want him to keep trying his best, to put in more effort. And each time…" He turned toward Elio with a cruel quiet laugh. "I'm going to shred it to pieces."
The fine hairs on the back of Elio's neck rose as he gulped thickly. He wasn't sure what it was about Nikolas Bastiani, but there was something so terrifying about his presence, even when he didn't seem threatening. Like a beast, asleep in hiding.
"W-what if he gives up on it?" he asked.
"Amadeo Di-grassi?" Nikolas scoffed with a slow blink. "No, he's an egoistic man. He wouldn't give up on me that easily. Amadeo is the type of man that wants something and gets it no matter what it costs him. And he can't afford to give up on me. Not yet. The thing, though, is, I'm simply someone he can't have in the palms of his hands, not unless I allow it."
He grinned in a way that made Elio feel himself shudder.
"And I don't plan to."
————
Viviana stood outside the large company, staring with her head cocked up.
They really did strip her to nothing. But that wasn't going to change a thing. Divorcing Nikolas was simply out of the question.
Just because her status had been brought down to this didn't mean she was ready to dance to his tunes. Never again.
Working like this wasn't that big of a deal. She could do it. After all, she'd done it once before, eventually rising to the spot of a CEO.
And she will get her spot back. Again.
Still, the idea kept her in a horrible mood. It had gone really dark, and maybe having a tea party with that little girl would fix things.
Viviana walked to the parking lot to get into her car, but someone grabbed her wrist too suddenly, spinning her around before she could even react.
She snapped her gaze up, freezing at the sight of Fernando Stolov.
"You!"
Her face twisted.
"What are you doing here? And take your hands off me!" She tried to shove his grip off.
Fernando, however, tightened his hold, saying, "We need to talk."