Page 22 of Baby Surprise for my Brother's Best Friend

His smirk doesn’t budge. Bastard enjoys this.

“That was the point. Message. Delivered.”

I punch him. Hard.

His head snaps back, hitting the wall behind him.

But he doesn’t crumble. Just straightens his suit like he’s brushing off lint.

“Temper, temper.” He spits blood onto the floor.

Security barrels in, two guys yelling, hands already on radios.

I step back, raise my hands.

The enforcer smooths a wrinkle from his lapel and shoots me a final glance. “You should listen better, Marchetti. Some people don’t get to hear the final warning.”

Then he turns and walks out like we’re done here.

We’re not.

Not by a fucking long shot.

I storm back into the apartment, slamming the door behind me so hard the frame shudders.

Sophie’s pacing the kitchen, arms crossed so tightly across her chest she might crack a rib.

The second she sees me, fist bruised, knuckles tinged in blood, fire flashes in her eyes.

“You hit him? Are you insane? That was the Bratva, Alessio!”

I shrug off my jacket and toss it on the counter. “He showed up at your door. What was I supposed to do, invite him in for espresso?”

“They called up from the lobby. You punched a Bratva enforcer in front of building security!”

“Yeah, well, I didn’t see anyone else doing anything about it.”

She throws her hands in the air. “Well, congratulations. You’ve just made my job impossible. Again. Now I'll have to do more damage control.”

She gets on her phone, fingers swiping, then typing frantically. "We're lucky. Security says there were no outside pictures or videos taken at the time of the incident."

My jaw clenches. “You’re welcome, by the way.”

She huffs, spins on her heel, then whips back around with a glare sharp enough to slice through steel.

“Do you even think before you act? This isn’t just your mess anymore.I’min it.We’rein it. You dragging the Bratva into this apartment puts us both in danger.”

She stomps toward me, face to face and close enough for me to feel the warmth of her breath.

My fists clench at my sides, tension vibrating through every muscle like I’m one second away from exploding. “You think I don’t know that? You think I haven’t seen what they do when they feel disrespected?”

She blinks.

“I’ve seen what happens when they want to make a point, Sophie. Blood. Warnings. Families wiped off the map.”

The realization hits me full force.

Fuck. I really am an idiot.

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