SHE LOST HER JOB TO PROTECT A TERRIFIED CHILD—SO THE UNDERWORLD KING BOUGHT THE STORE JUST TO RUIN HER BOSS
PART 2: THE BILLIONAIRE BUYS THE BOUTIQUE JUST TO RUIN HER
Lorenzo Rossi held his daughter as if the rest of the world had ceased to exist. He smoothed her blonde hair, his large, dangerous hands moving with a heartbreaking gentleness.
"I'm okay, Papa," Mia whispered into his expensive suit collar. She pointed a small, shaking finger toward Karen. "She made it dark. She gave me the heavy blanket. The mean lady yelled at her."
The temperature in Maison Delacour seemed to drop by ten degrees.
Lorenzo slowly stood up, keeping Mia tucked safely against his side. The vulnerability that had flashed across his face seconds ago vanished, replaced by a cold, suffocating darkness. He didn't yell. He didn't have to. The sheer weight of his presence made the security guard take another step back.
His dark eyes slowly panned the room, taking in the harsh lighting, the wealthy onlookers who had done nothing, and finally, Brenda.
Brenda’s immaculate posture was crumbling. Her face was chalk-white. She had recognized him the moment he walked in, but the realization that the "disruptive" child belonged to the most dangerous man in New York was just now short-circuiting her brain.
"Mr... Mr. Rossi," Brenda stammered, her voice trembling so violently she could barely form the words. "I had absolutely no idea she was your daughter. We thought she was... lost. I was just trying to maintain the atmosphere of the boutique for our clients—"
"By throwing my terrified daughter out onto the street?" Lorenzo’s voice was dangerously quiet. It didn't boom; it sliced.
"No! No, of course not," Brenda backpedaled frantically, her eyes darting to Karen in a desperate bid to shift the blame. "It was just a misunderstanding! This associate, Karen, she was mishandling the situation. She ruined a three-thousand-dollar scarf! I was simply disciplining my staff—"
"She protected my child when the rest of you stood around like vultures," Lorenzo interrupted. He didn't raise his voice, but Brenda snapped her mouth shut as if she'd been struck.
Lorenzo snapped his fingers. One of the massive men in dark suits stepped forward instantly. "Yes, Boss."
"Matteo. Find out who owns this boutique. Not the manager. The owner of the brand," Lorenzo ordered, his eyes never leaving Brenda’s terrified face. "Buy it. Offer whatever ridiculous number it takes to close the deal in the next five minutes. And when the ink is dry..."
He paused, a cruel, satisfied smirk touching the corner of his lips.
"...terminate her. Ensure she never works in retail on the Eastern Seaboard again."
Brenda let out a choked gasp, her knees giving out just enough that she had to catch herself on a glass display case. "Please, Mr. Rossi! I've worked here for ten years!"
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"You should have learned how to be a human being in that time," Lorenzo replied coldly. He turned his back on her, dismissing her entire existence.
His dark, piercing gaze finally settled on Karen.
