Unwanted

Sofia's POV

When we got back to my place, Bri had barely shut the door behind her when my phone started buzzing again. I glanced at the screen. Leandro.

I hesitated for a second before picking up.

“Hey,” I answered, my voice soft and slightly drained from the long day.

“Come to Ros’Notte,” he said, skipping pleasantries as always. “I want to see you.”

He didn’t say why. He never really did. And part of me wanted to tell him I wasn’t in the mood—that I’d had enough drama for one day and the only thing I wanted was sleep and silence.

But we weren’t strangers anymore. Not after everything. We weren’t just boss and employee either.

And I didn’t want him to think I was pulling away.

“I’ll be there soon,” I said.

When I turned around, Bri was already watching me from the couch, legs tucked under her as she sipped the juice she’d stolen from my fridge. “You’re going out again?”

“Leandro wants me to come to Ros’Notte,” I said, slipping my phone into my back pocket.

She raised a brow. “Seriously? It’s almost ten.”

I gave a half-hearted shrug. “He didn’t say why. But I can’t exactly say no, not now.”

“Well then,” she said, standing and tossing her empty cup into the bin, “I’m coming with you.”

“You don’t have to—”

“I know. But I want to. If I leave you alone with him again, who knows what kind of half-naked chaos I’ll walk in on next time?”

I rolled my eyes, but a smile pulled at my lips. “Fine. Just don’t steal his wine again.”

She grinned. “No promises.”

\---

Ros’Notte was already alive when we arrived.

Lights low, music pulsing like a heartbeat through the walls. The bouncers let us in without question, and we made our way upstairs—where things were always quieter, more private.

Leandro had said he’d meet us soon, so we slipped into one of the plush velvet lounge booths to wait.

“Do you think he brought us here just to talk?” Bri asked, crossing her legs and sipping water from the glass the server brought us.

I gave a slight shrug. “With Leandro? Could be anything.”

Minutes passed. The music below us thumped like a pulse, and I could feel the weight of the day trying to settle on my shoulders again. Just as I leaned back, letting out a slow exhale—

The door creaked open.

And he walked in.

Aurelio.

Same smug grin. Same irritating strut like the world owed him admiration. He looked at us like he expected applause.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Bri muttered under her breath.

“What, are you following us now?” I asked, instantly annoyed.

He chuckled, hands sliding into his pockets as he sauntered closer. “Fancy seeing you two again. But nah, I’m actually here for my brother.”

I stiffened. “Your what?”

“My brother,” he repeated with a smirk, his eyes gleaming with mischief. “He works here.”

Bri narrowed her eyes. “And your brother just so happens to need you right now, right after you got turned down by the same two people sitting here?”

Aurelio shrugged. “Timing is a funny thing, isn’t it?”

He flopped down on the seat across from us like he belonged there, and I immediately leaned away, resisting the urge to throw my drink in his face. I didn’t have time to respond before the door opened again.

Leandro stepped in.

And everything shifted.

The air grew cold.

He stopped the second he saw Aurelio, his jaw tightening, shoulders squaring like he’d just walked into a war zone.

“Aurelio,” he said, voice low and lethal. “Why the fuck are you here?”

Aurelio smirked wider. “Ah, there he is. The money-making machine himself.”

Leandro didn’t move. Didn’t blink. He was glaring at Aurelio like he was two seconds away from tearing his throat out.

Aurelio leaned back, still looking far too relaxed. “I was just telling your girls here,” he gestured lazily between me and Bri, “how gorgeous this one is—” his gaze flicked to me again, “especially this one. I didn’t know your strip club hired girls with such distinct features. I mean, look at her—those eyes, those lips. She's art.”

My fists clenched under the table.

“And she must be making you good money too, huh?” he added with a wink. “Bet the VIPs are paying extra just to get a glimpse.”

Leandro’s hand slammed down on the table so hard the glass rattled.

“Say one more word, Aurelio. Just one.”

Aurelio laughed and stood up slowly, clearly enjoying every second of the chaos he was causing.

Bri shot up too. “You’re disgusting. You don’t even know her.”

“Oh, but I’d like to,” he said, giving me one last lingering look. “But I know when I’m not wanted. Later, brother.”

Bri looked between us. “I’ll head downstairs. Give you all a minute.”

Just as Aurelio also turned toward the door, still smirking like the devil himself, Leandro’s voice cut through the room, sharp and furious.

“Security,” he growled.

Two large guards appeared almost instantly at the entrance, as if they’d been waiting on standby.

“Don’t let him leave.”

Aurelio stopped in his tracks, hands raised half-mockingly, that infuriating grin never leaving his face. “Now, now, brother,” he said with a faux laugh. “Is this how we treat family?”

Leandro stood, eyes dark and dangerous, a storm barely held together. “You’re not family to me. Not after what you just said.”

The tension in the room tripled.

“You think you can walk in here, insult her, and walk out like it’s nothing?” Leandro snarled, stepping closer. “You think this is a game?”

“Isn’t it?” Aurelio replied coolly, glancing between me and the guards. “You’ve always been so easy to set off. It's... entertaining.”

The guards moved in, but before anything else could escalate, I stepped between them.

“Leandro,” I said firmly, placing a hand on his chest. His heartbeat was wild under my palm. “Don’t. It’s not worth it.”

He didn’t take his eyes off Aurelio. His body was tense, practically vibrating with rage.

“He disrespected you,” he ground out. “I won’t let that slide.”

“I know,” I whispered. “And it means something to me that you care. But look at him…”

We both turned to Aurelio, who was leaning casually against the wall like he hadn’t just ignited a fire in the middle of Ros’Notte.

“This is what he wants,” I said. “The reaction. The drama. Don’t give it to him.”

Leandro clenched his jaw, eyes still locked on his brother. But after a long, taut silence, he gave a sharp nod to the guards.

“Get him out of here. Next time he steps a foot in here, break something.”

Aurelio let out a low whistle as the guards grabbed his arms. “Oof. Guess someone’s a little possessive,” he said, smirking at me as they dragged him toward the exit. “Good job, princesa. You’ve got him wrapped.”

I turned my face away from him, refusing to let him get the last word.

When the door slammed shut behind him, the silence left in his wake was suffocating.

Leandro rubbed a hand down his face, muttering a curse under his breath.

“Fucking bastard.”

Then he turned to me, eyes softening in contrast to the fire they held moments ago. “Are you okay?”

I nodded, even though my chest was tight.

“So he really is your brother?”

“Half-brother,” Leandro corrected. “Same father. That’s all we have in common.”

I leaned back, rubbing my temples. “What a mess.”

“If he ever shows up near you again,” Leandro said, stepping closer, voice low and seething, “I’ll kill him. I swear to God, Sofia. I’ll fucking kill him.”

His words weren’t just empty promises. I could feel the weight of them. The raw protectiveness beneath the anger.

“I believe you,” I said softly. “But I hope it doesn’t come to that.”

He sighed and looked down at me, searching my face. “I’m sorry you had to hear any of that.”

“I’m fine,” I said, but even as I said it, my temples throbbed, the stress of the day crashing down on me again.

Leandro noticed. “You look pale. Sit down.”

"I think I’ve got a headache,” I said quietly. “I just… want to go home and rest.”

His expression softened, but he didn’t try to stop me.

“Alright,” he said. “Let me know if you need anything. I’ll be around.”

I nodded, brushing past him as I left the room, feeling his eyes on me until the door shut behind me.