Page 73 of Scandalous Contract

“I’ve already handled that,” I told him.

“Look at you. I guess I truly don’t have anything to worry about with the company in your hands.”

“I’m still learning from you, Dad,” I told him.

“Nonsense. You’re ready. I trust you and your decisions. You’re level-headed when needed and ruthless when forced to be. And you have a code. That’s the most important thing. But son, there is one thing that bothers me about all of this,” he said. “Did Louis say it was Aaron Senior or Junior who hired him?”

Shit.“He didn’t say. Just said it was Aaron Clark.”

“Hmmm. We need to be careful now that we’ve set things in motion,” he told me. “I’ll have to let the don know, too. But I’m sure the consigliere has already informed him. He’s obligated to do that.”

“Let the don know that I’m handling it. I don’t need him to send help.”

When the don sent help, bodies piled up, unnecessary deaths. I only killed when it was absolutely necessary. I didn’t do it for sport. I didn’t want to end up likethem.

“I’ll let him know. Be careful, son. Handle this quickly and cleanly. No loose ends.”

“Yes, sir.”

“I’ll let Aubrey’s guard know what’s going on so he can make sure she doesn’t run off alone anywhere,” he said. “That girl is always dodging him. It’s driving me insane.”

I smiled. “I’ll call her and tell her this is serious.”

“Do that. She listens to you.” There was a pause. Then his tone shifted. “Until this blows over, do you want to come stay at the house for a few days? Be with family? Your mother sure as hell misses you. She’s been making your favorite dishes for the past week now, hoping you’d stop by.”

An ache started in my chest, and for a second, I couldn’t speak.

“Julian?”

“I’ll be okay on my own,” I told him. “Tell mom... tell mom I love her.”

“Are you avoiding home?” he asked.

My grip tightened on the steering wheel.

“Is it because I pushed you to go on blind dates? Son, I just want to see you settled down with a family. You keep insisting you don’t want kids. But how could you not want someone to continue your legacy?”

Was the Cattaneo legacy really worth continuing? I loved my family, don’t get me wrong. But we were all raised to follow in the footsteps of our fathers. Why would I do that to a child?

Why would I bring a child into this world and not allow them to live their life the way they wanted? I wasn’t doing that. My cousins could have all the kids they wanted. So could my sister, if she wanted. I’d be the fun uncle. But I didn’t want to be a father.

“Son, I won’t keep pushing you to go on blind dates with the daughters of my business acquaintances. Your mom has already chewed me out for that and told me to let you choose your own happiness. I’ll let it go for now. So you should let go of your anger and come home from time to time.”

The blind dates weren’t the reason I was avoiding home.

“Son, I...”

“Dad, I’ll update you on the Clark situation when I have more info. Love you. Bye.” I ended the call before he could ask anything else.

I pulled into the office lot, parked, and got out. Once inside, I went straight to my office, sat at my desk, and stared at the wall. My phone was still in my hand. I didn’t move. I just sat there. Thinking. Mentally planning.

My sister and mother would be protected if there was a fallout from this. That was a given. It was Stefanie and her daughter I was worried about. I’d have to put a guard on India, too, to keep an eye on her.

I’d make sure my sister understood the seriousness of this so she wouldn’t try to evade her guard. As for Stefanie.... I sighed and dragged my hand down my face. I couldn’t go to her yet. Not until I cleaned this mess up.

My father was right. The Clarks were acting reckless, desperate, and that made them dangerous. And if one of their lapdogs followed me to her, if even one of them showed up near her house or job, I’d lose my fucking mind.

And if they hurt her, I’d never forgive myself. Fuck! I no longer had to worry about her pushing me away. It was now my own bullshit keeping her out of reach. That’s what pissed me off the most about all of this.