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“Wait! The Leones won the deal?” Liv asked, looking between the two men. I knew she took more interest in the family business and was often Gio’s sounding board. She was good at keeping him calm and making him see the bigger picture in things but even she looked annoyed too.
“They don’t have that kind of money or influence. Which means someone helped them secure that deal,” Gio growled, his eyes flashing with chaos and violence. I gulped as I sat quietly at the island, trying to fade into the background. I knew I should probably care or be as outraged as my family about this. It obviously was a big deal, but it’s hard to care about something I didn’t really understand.
Max suddenly stopped his pacing, his green eyes widening as he grabbed Gio’s shoulder. “The Barbieris. It must be.”
My heart somersaulted in my chest because it clearly still hadn’t gotten the memo that the ‘Barbieri’ name was forbidden to our emotions. I sipped my coffee, but my interest was sparked.
“They wouldn’t. That would mean they have broken the treaty. Why the fuck would they get involved in a Leone deal which would result in breaking eleven years of peace between the North and the South? That makes no sense,” Gio argued and Liv stepped back from him, sensing his anger. She started to bite her nails as she looked over at me with concern.
“What treaty?” I asked before I could stop myself.
Max walked over to the island and took a seat as Gio now started pacing the room.
“Eleven years ago, the Barbieris came to the North and met with your papi and Salvatore. The North and South had been at war for years and it was no good for either of our businesses. So, they created a treaty. They split the country in half, and agreed the Buccini name could dominate the North and the Barbieri would keep to the South. We could both thrive in our own cities without bloodshed. Within that treaty, it was promised that they would never step foot in the North and we would never travel to the South. That included our business investments. If the Barbieris have really backed the Leones in this then…”
“They have declared war against us,” Gio stated grimly, rubbing his forehead.
My heart was now thundering in my chest. Memories of that night eleven years ago came flooding back. Alessio Barbieri. He had invaded my mind for months, even years after that night. I would fantasise about him turning up in my den again or standing outside my bedroom window. That kiss lingered on my lips longer than I would have liked. I stupidly felt disappointed that I never saw him again. And now I knew why that would have never been possible. The rivalry between our two families ran so deep that we had to split the country just to keep from a war?
“But why would they do that?” Liv asked. Her face had paled a few shades since Max had explained what this meant and I couldn’t blame her. This was terrifying. Gio would be the first in the firing line against our enemies.
Neither of them spoke as they considered the question themselves.
“We knew they had to be planning something when they married Diego’s daughter to Lorenzo two years ago but then everything went quiet. Nothing changed. But now this… it can’t be a coincidence,” Max said, looking over at Gio.
“Fuck!” He suddenly shouted. “But Veril didn’t say anything about the Barbieris. He said the deal was with the Leones.”
“Maybe he doesn’t know?” Max shrugged.
“Which means they are silent investors. They are trying to hide their involvement and let the Leones take all the glory.”
“I have heard Alessio is a fucking ruthless negotiator. Even more unpredictable than his old man. This has him written all over it,” Max leaned back, scraping his hair back from his face, “I need a strong drink.”
He directed his gaze straight at me, but I was staring into space, hung up on hearing the name Alessio out loud again since that night.
“Elle?”
“Hmm?”
“You looked miles away then.”
“Oh um, yeah. Sorry, so what does this mean exactly? What do we do now?” I asked.
“We?” Gio scoffed loudly. “Since when have you wanted to help with the family business?”
“Since you just told me we could be at war with another family!”
“We are always at war with some family. We have been at war with the Leones for years. But it is the South we do not want a war with,” he snapped back and I huffed. I hated it when he treated me like an idiot. “We have two options. We go to the commission with this information but no proof that the Barbieris are involved and prepare for a war against the South. We may even be able to get the Leones in hot fucking water with the commission for this, if it is true.”
“Or?” Liv asked.
“Or we pretend we don’t know. The Barbieris are trying to keep us in the dark for a reason. We retaliate against the Leones because they cannot fucking screw us like they have without consequences. But we act oblivious to the Barbieris’ involvement, keeping the treaty intact and hope they don’t do anything else to fuck with us, buying us time to deal with this shit.”
“That sounds like a better plan,” Liv said, walking over to Gio and wrapping her arms around his waist. “Maybe you should try to arrange a meeting with Alessio. Create a new treaty between new bosses? A lot has changed over the years.”
“That’s not a bad idea,” Max agreed and my heart picked up speed once more. The thought of Alessio Barbieri being invited here, into my family home once again, of potentially being face to face with a much older and I bet even hotter looking man than the boy I had met then, was giving me the early stages of a heart attack.
“No. They have a marriage alliance with the Leones. I guess the treaty became void the moment they gave Isabelle over to the North. I should have seen this fucking coming,” Gio growled.
