The Return of my 47

? Views, Released on March 20, 2025

Chapter 47

Alessio

Apologizing to Leonardo Baldini sounded as horrible in my head as I thought it would be With a deep sigh, I glared at Levi, who was focused on the road, his hands a little too steady on the wheel because he knew I blamed him for this.

I had told him multiple times that we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him because he needed to know the facts. He was nervous, I could sense it–but I didn’t set us up, he did.

“You rEmilyEmilyber Emily’s ex?” I broke the silence, wanting to get something off my chest.

Levi chuckled, for once happy that I spoke about something other than blaming him. “Yes, I do. What about him?”

I shook my head, leaning back in my seat. “The way Emily described him like he is the biggest monster in the universe,” I said. “I was thinking, someone like that wouldn’t back down, would he? It just doesn’t sound right.”

“Then what do you think?”

“Nothing,” I dismissed the nagging feeling in the back of my head. I didn’t want to look crazy or maybe even fearful because of that failed athlete. “Never mind. I’m just overthinking, stressed. He’s weak, he can’t do anything.”

“Stressed?”

“Yes.”

“Is it because you have to apologize to that family because of me?” Levi’s eyes met mine in the rearview mirror. “Do you feel guilty because-”

“Guilty?” I snapped. “Spare me the talk. We’re not in therapy,” I told him, not in the mood to talk about my feelings towards the Baldinis. What I had done was fucked up, but all sides had to get over it.

“For a second I thought we were,” Levi rolled his eyes with a smile.

“What do you mean?” I asked curiously.

“You spoke about Emily letting you sleep on that bed and you having to go through the night with blue balls the entire flight,” he said. “Sounds like therapy to me.”

I huffed in annoyance, thinking about the torment I had to endure because Emily, who was completely

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The Return of My First Love

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unaware, didn’t know what power she had over me, especially in those lace shorts. “That was worth mentioning”

Levi chuckled, clearly enjoying bullying me.

“No, really,” I spoke, feeling the need to defend myself. “You try sleeping beside her in the position the sleeps in.”

My thoughts went back to last night. Emily slept in every position except straight. She loved muggling her pillow tightly, causing her to curve her body in a way that made it hard for me. Literally.

Each time she moved closer, I would move away, to the point where I had almost fallen off the bed and left because I couldn’t sleep anymore. Before I did that, I made sure to pull her towards her side of the bed so she wouldn’t fall off herself.

“It gets really lonely for her sometimes in that big mansion..you know, Levi brought it up carefully. “Maybe when you aren’t that busy with work, you can do something fun with her and Naty? Your Dad and Uncle believe you now. You’ll want to keep it that way.”

“Yes, sure,” I noted, taking his advice to the heart. Growing up, I knew all too well how Emilypty it could feel in that mansion and that’s the reason why I enjoyed going on trips with Dad.

Locking thEmily up had never been part of my plan. It was only supposed to be for a while, until I could trust her, and now I did. I had been very cautious about being seen with her in public because I was unsure how all of this would play out, but now that that burden was gone, it wouldn’t matter anymore.

“Don’t worry, I’ll spend more time with her. I’ll ask my Mom to keep an eye out for her as well”

After a while, we reached the Baldini mansion. As we drove through the gates, my mind suddenly switched as I began to realize that apologizing to Leonardo and Maxine could make everyone shut up about the situation.

It was a necessary step because I had screwed over his daughter, but my pride got in the way. In my opinion, I wasn’t the only one who needed to apologize. Let’s not forget, his reaction had been very childish trying to sabotage our business.

As Levi and I stood in front of his office, it wasn’t hard to sense how all of their people felt about us. We had received dirty looks, sharp gazes, and so much disrespect they might as well have just spit on us.

Leonardo too, by the way.

That petty man had made us wait for him for over an hour, and I was sure it was to rEmilyind me who held the power in this situation.

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“You alright?” I turned to Levi, noticing he was barely breathing. He was known for being calm, but his behavior had changed the moment we entered this mansion.

“I’m good,” Levi lied, forcing a small smile.

“Good? Okay, if you say so,” I smiled softly. “Because now it looks like you might be needing that therapy.”

I still couldn’t help but think that Levi might have gotten a promotion too soon. He was smart, strong, and had proven himself more than once–but seeing him now, it was clear he was out of his comfort zone.

It was strange to see a man who had served in the military openly displaying any sign of unease, especially when he shouldn’t have, but he did. He kept his head lowered with no intention of looking up.

“You just sit there and not say a word. It’s not that difficult, you’ll be alright.”

As I gave him my instructions, the heavy door creaked open. “Come in,” Leonardo called out coldly, but he had not yet revealed himself.

Levi and I exchanged a brief look before stepping into the office. Closing the door behind us, I prepared myself for whatever was to come. Out of respect, we had entered his home without any weapon, so if he wanted to eliminate me, he could do it now.

I scanned the room. Leonardo was already seated behind his desk, while Maxine stood in a corner, staring out of the window.

“Don’t be shy. Sit.” the man spoke, pointing to the two chairs. His tone was kind, but his eyes were cold. I trusted his thought on all of this through his eyes the most.

Levi and I sat down, and then I looked right back into his eyes. This man was twice my age, he thought he could walk over me–and I was desperate to show him he couldn’t.

“Are you not going to greet my daughter?” he asked, almost making it sound like another accusation. ‘You’re ignoring your ex fiancee on purpose?‘

“Can’t greet without a face,” I shrugged. It was a risky move, but I didn’t come all the way here to submissive.

a

Maxine grunted and revealed her face in response, then stepped closer. I looked down at her feet, expecting to hear another set of high heels that were always around her feet, but now they were flip–flops.

She must’ve been really going through it.

Maxine positioned herself next to her father, and now I could see her even more clearly.

The ‘always perfect‘ Maxine I knew had been replaced by someone who looked like they had been through hell. Her eyes were red, hopefully from crying and not from any weed, the dark circles exposed

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she hadn’t had much sleep, and her hair looked neglected as if she didn’t even bother using a brush today.

“Now you can see my face,” she gave a nonchalant wave of her hands and shoulders, presenting herself.

“You look a little…you haven’t been skipping any meals, right?” I couldn’t help but express my concern.

She looked thinner,

IrEmilyEmilybered how Maxine used to binge on food during her low moments, usually until her mom stepped in and forced her to diet to maintain a certain image, failing to see her daughter needed some serious help.

Maxine’s response was cold. “What I do is none of your business anymore,” she shook her head.

I raised my hands. “You’re right.”

I wasn’t going to get into it with her, especially not when she clearly wasn’t looking for my sympathy. After all, in those people’s eyes, I was the one who had done this to her.

Levi and I exchanged a glance, and I knew we shared the same thoughts. We needed to get it over with and get the fuck out of here.

Leonardo cleared his throat. “You said you came here to apologize, so do it,” he commanded with a slight

chuckle.

Just as I was about to apologize, Maxine cut me off. “Wait, before you do, I want to ask you something,” her tone sounded desperate.

Fearing whatever would leave her mouth, I took a small breath. Her eyes welled up with tears as she

looked at me.

“Can we really not try again?” She pleaded. “I’ll fix whatever you didn’t like about me. You want me to get more fillers? I will. You want me to lose more weight? I will,” her voice broke.

Her words hit hard, and I was met with an unexpected feeling of guilt. I could never give her the same love in return because I didn’t love her, I couldn’t love her. It was as simple as that.

“There’s nothing wrong with your face, Maxine.” I tried not to sound too nice as I didn’t want to give her any hope.

“Then what is it?” her teary eyes searching mine for an answer.

It was the way she treated others poorly, the way she looked down on people below her, how she couldn’t be humble and appreciative of the life she had been born into.

That was the ultimate dealbreaker.

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I wasn’t a hypocrite. I knew the apple didn’t fall far from the tree and I was far from perfect, but I didn’t need someone who would drag me down even further.

“We’re just not compatible, never were, never will be,” I stated, beating around the bush.

Maxine stuttered, not knowing how to react. All her eyes could express was sadness.

“I should’ve been honest with you from the beginning. I should’ve never led you on, used you, or Emilybarrassed you in front of all those people,” I admitted my mistake. “I didn’t know this would affect you so much, but I am sorry, from the bottom of my heart, I’m truly sorry.”

“If you’re sorry, then please give me another chance.”

“I can’t do that.”

“But you can’t marry the maid either!” Maxine argued, her eyes widening.

“And why is that?” I asked, curious about her reasons.

“Because-”

“Maxine!” Leonardo stopped her before she could respond. His tone nearly made me flinch, and I glanced at the man who was nothing more than a father trying to protect what little dignity his daughter had left.

“He’s made up his mind, and now you have to live with it,” Leonardo said, softening his tone.

“I’m sorry for hurting your daughter, for wasting your time, and now that I’ve apologized, I hope you’ll stop going after our business partners.” I decided to address the elephant in the room while we were at it.

Forget the damn apology, this was more important. He was playing dirty, and starting today, he was going to stop.

Leonardo sighed, not bothering to deny my accusation. “I accept your apology, I’ll leave your people alone–all is forgiven, no hard feelings. Let’s not look backward but forward,” he spoke, his tone too easy, too accepting for someone known for his hot tEmilyper.

It felt sketchy, too smooth and quick. A man like Leonardo wouldn’t just accept an apology without making me kiss the floor. I looked at Maxine, who bit her lip as if she wanted to say something but couldn’t. During our short time together, that was one of the things I had noticed she would do.

“Now if you don’t mind,” Leonardo beckoned towards the door. “I have a lot of things to do today,” he dismissed us, his tone making it clear the meeting was over.

“Sure,” I said, standing up with Levi and preparing to leave. Neither one of us wanted to stay here anyway. “Then we’re all good.” I gave him one final nod and walked out.