The Devoted Gentleman (EDITING)

Chapter 39

Alessio invited the couple out after the evening dinner was over because he had something they wanted to talk about privately with the two of them. At first she did not know exactly if she was supposed to comply to the request, Valentino was not forcing her either, he told her the decision was all hers and if she wanted it only then would he follow along. Alessio was quite persistent that night so whatever he wanted to say next had to be something quite important.

She was not exactly the most excited either but she guessed if she complied there would be something that might be advantageous to her. Valentino accompanied her the whole time and the three of them went out to a lounge near the restaurant where they ordered a drink and talked. None of the three wanted to waste much of their time, so she just went straight to the point about his motives and what he wanted.

"First of all, I would like to apologize for everything that I have done to you. What I did was wrong and I know it's unforgivable to you. I have been an arse and I should not have played with your emotions like that" Alessio started. She snuffed, if he thought apologizing directly to her like that would earn him forgiveness, he was wrong, despite the fact that soon enough they would technically be family, she still could ot forgive him after what he did because for so long her love for him was so deep therefore the wound he had carved was equally as deep.

"I know you still haven't forgiven me yet but I still want to apologize" she remained silent and her silence was all the answer he needed. She was upset and Valeria was not the kind of woman who would not reply if she was not angry. She was the woman whose silence was more powerful than her words and both Alessio and Valentino knew that. The whole time Valentino was holding her hand firmly to ensure that her rage was not bursting out because he wanted her to maintain her calm image, the moment she snapped would be the moment she lost since they were also in a rather upscale environment in Rome.

"Actually that is not all I want to ask from you today" yes, he eventually revealed his true motive. Valeria had known all along that If he was going to talk about something with her then he definitely had an ulterior motive. Alessio was like that, he was a great businessman but he was not the most genuine individual. On second thought, Valeria was glad she was off the hook with this man.

"I want you to talk to my family and give permissions for us to bring my Rose to the family. Please. She is pregnant with my child. I don't want to be like my father. I don't want my child to live without his or her parents together. I know my family will welcome the child but they would not welcome her because of their guilt toward your family. Only you and you alone can convince them otherwise" he stated. There was truth in his words. The only issue is she was not going to simply comply to his request without getting anything in return. She was not that sort of angel. While most people preach about being kind all the time, there are times when you have to do the right thing, and sometime the right this is not the most agreeable thing you could do. Some people need to be taught a lesson. There should be a price for every actions. Alessio was no exception, just because he and Valeria once had a deep relationship with each other was no excuse for her to baby him and just accept his request. She also knew Valentino would not despise her if she was to refuse. So that was exactly what she did.

"Then, I want to ask something in return" she crossed her leg and placed her hand on the table. A power move to signal she was being serious and in a negotiation mode.

"What is it?"

"I want to purchase ten percent of your company share at my offered amount" both Alessio and Valentino could not believe what they had just heard. Ten percent of the Saverino corporation stock was a high number and they had no idea how much she would offer for them. Both men thought she might have lost her mind.

"I'm offering five million euros for it. Take it or leave it. Your choice" Four million euros was a rather low number. It was definitely incomparable to the actual price of their stocks on the market. That number was practically nothing. Business wise there was no way he would accept that offer. He was a business man, he knew exactly how the game worked. She was definitely making an attempt to either rob him or teach him a very hard lessons. It was awful. He knew he should reject that offer. He was the head of the company and had the power to make such decisions, at the same time his decision would impact his employees as well. If she had 10% of the company shares, that meant she would have a pretty high influence since most of the shares were also divided among the family members and external shareholders but the numbers were usually below 10%.

"That is insane. I can't do that" he stated.

"Well, then the answer is no. Good luck with that" she was about to stand up but he was not going to just let her go like that. No. He needed to make another offer, one that would be equally as satisfactory for her without sacrificing his company.

"Wait, there has to be another way. Let's solve this like civilized people" she raised her eyebrow and took a seat once more.

"Oh, I am being civilized. If I was not, I would have slapped you in front of public and humiliate you in front of everyone, but I don't do that. You have no idea how hard I have been holding myself. Clearly there will be no deal made today and I don't want to let you waste my time any further" she hissed before standing up and walked away. Valentino looked at his brother and to be honest he understood his brother and he disagreed with the offer Valeria had made because no matter what it was still his family's company but he knew she was doing it on purpose.

"You did this to yourself, Alessio. No amount of money could make up for what you did, you know that. Let Valeria be for now. Don't appear before her in a while. You would only add fire to the fuel" he warned. He followed Valeria outside and found her standing in the lobby.

"Are you okay?" he asked her. She turned around and a smile appeared on her face. He was confused because the smile she gave him was genuine, it was none of those sad or forced smile. Sometimes he did not understand her. Valeria was always part mystery; he could never truly understand what was going on in her mind. She told him that she was happy. There was no way she would let what happened between her and Alessio got in the way of their future.

Once they were inside the car, he asked her something he had been wanting to ask since the beginning. He was not sure if she would take the question to heart but he was curious to know.

"Valeria, back then when you made that offer, were you being serious or were you just trying to teach him a lesson? Because you are not that kind of woman, I don't think you were being serious when you offered to buy ten percent of Saverino share for five million euros"

"I was just playing around. You know that. I was not going to talk to your family and try to convince them to take his mistress in as part of the family. If they let that woman in, it would be equal to making enemy with the Valenza, I am sure you and your family would not want that, would you?" she looked straight into his eyes, her gaze was so powerful. He did not know why but for a brief second she looked intense and slightly scary. Like she was someone else, but then a smile re-appeared on her face and the softness he was familiar with returned as she changed the topic into something much lighter and brighter.

Sometimes he thought he did not really know her, but he did not care. They were getting married and that was all he cared about. There was only one thing left to do.

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