The Don's Young Love (The Don's of Italy Saga Book 1) Age Gap Romance

Episode 29: Dominance and Duty

Dominic's POV

The restaurant is empty now, leaving only Rolando and Gabriele standing in front of me. Despite his attempts to appear tough, Rolando knows better than to talk back. He remembers when my father, Don Giovanni, was the boss and how he shouldn't mess with him. My father provided protection for him as long as he stayed within our territory. And now that I have taken over as the boss for the past ten years, he knows I won't tolerate any nonsense or disrespect.

I gesture for Orlando to take a stand behind them. I have additional men stationed outside in case of any trouble. "Well, well, Gabriele," I begin, leaning back in my seat. "Who exactly do you think you are, talking down to my woman like that? Care to explain yourself?" I glance over at Thalia, who is casually sipping on her glass of wine.

Gabriele's spittle flies as he angrily accuses, "She deserved it! How is it that you come into our class talking about the internship, and a few hours later she shows up with you in this very restaurant? Explain that to me."

I scoff at his outburst, the disdain evident in my raised eyebrow. "Well kid, who she speaks to outside of class is none of your concern. And that certainly doesn't give you the right to speak to her like that." My voice turns cold and dangerous. "Furthermore, who she fucks is none of your concern either. She will have to work just as hard as every other student for this internship, including you." I lean in closer, my eyes blazing with fury.

"Thalia is a talented artist, and I imagine you are as well. But in this cutthroat world, son, you can never assume shit about anyone." With a fierce growl, I motion for Luca to bring Gabriele forward. He needs to learn some respect and humility.

As Luca grabs Gabriele's arm roughly and drags him towards me, I can smell the fear emanating off of him. His eyes dart around nervously as I lean in closer. He knows what's coming — I've warned people about stepping out of line before. Without a second thought, I jump up from my chair and throw my cigar into my wine glass.

I angrily stomp towards Luca who has Gabriele in a tight grip. With one swift punch, my knuckles connect with his jaw and a satisfying crack echoes through the room. He staggers backwards, clutching at his face as he crumples to the ground in a heap. Gabriele whimpers from Luca's grip as I tower over him, my anger pulsing hotly through my veins.

I crouch down to Gabriele's level, who is on the ground in agony, holding onto his face still. "Now," I announce firmly, "You have something you'd like to say to my lady?" I stand up and return to my seat, gesturing to Luca. "Pick his bitch ass up."

Luca nods in understanding as he watches me lose my grip and struggles to help Gabriele stand up. He stands before me, tears streaming down his face from the pain, his bottom lip swollen and bleeding. His eyes tremble as he meets mine before looking at Miss Thalia.

Gabriele stumbles towards Thalia, his voice hoarse with remorse. "I apologize, Thalia," he whispers. "It was wrong of me to speak about you that way." Luca helps him up, holding onto his arms tightly. Gabriele is sobbing uncontrollably. It doesn't matter who the person is; no one is allowed to disrespect my woman.

"Why are you crying now, son?" I ask, not showing any sympathy for his tears. I can see Rolando growing angrier at what just happened. Orlando grips his arm tighter, making it clear that if he interferes, he won't survive.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Gabriele sobs. "I should have known better." With a nod of understanding from me, Luca finally sets him loose. I don't want to see any more tears from him. He needs to learn his lesson and move on. Gabriele wipes his face, sniffling. Rolando still has anger written all over his face. Again I don't give a fuck, I am the motherfucking don of this territory.

I grit my teeth and fix Gabriele with a frigid stare. "Don't you ever dare cross me again," I spit, my voice laced with venom. "Now get the hell out of my sight and have the chef prepare a proper meal for my lady and I."

Gabriele scurries out of the room, his back practically against the wall as he hurries away. I turn to Orlando and give a sharp nod to indicate that he should bring Rolando forward. As Orlando ushers him closer, Luca steps up beside me.

"You know the rules, Rolando. Don't mess with me or my territory," I angrily grab another cigar from my jacket pocket and light it up, letting out a low growl as I do so. "I'm the reason you're still standing, the reason your business is thriving. Teach your son some respect before it's too late. If he crosses me again, there'll be consequences. Do you understand?"

My words are dripping with rage and warning, my anger boiling over at the blatant disrespect. My purpose in coming to Italy was twofold: to begin my internship program and to uncover the Montanari family's motives. But above all, I came here to claim the woman who belongs to me - although it appears I must still make it clear that she is mine. Although I didn't want to impede her education, before I depart from here, Thalia Arnold will know without a doubt to whom she belongs.

"I understand, Don Dominic. You can trust that my son won't cause any problems for you again." Rolando says with a sneer.

"Good. Make sure it stays that way." I reply with a low growl, calmly puffing on my cigar without a care in the world.

Dear readers,

Brace yourselves for an electrifying turn in 'Dominance and Duty,' where power plays and passions collide under Dominic's unyielding rule. Witness a showdown that redefines loyalty and tests the limits of control in our most thrilling episode yet. As Dominic asserts his dominance in a world where respect is earned through fear and force, questions about loyalty, love, and leadership loom large.

What will this mean for Thalia, caught in the crossfire of ambition and desire? And as the dust settles, who will stand by Dominic's side? Dive into an episode where every word spoken and silence kept could be the difference between allegiance and war. The stage is set, the players are ready are you?

Happy reading,

Zapphire