What are you thinking?

Alex’s pov

I clenched my fists as I watched the man with Genevieve rise to his feet. He ignored her attempt to hold him back and grabbed the stranger by the collar of his shirt, his jaw tight with anger. He looked like he wanted to strangle the guy right then and there, completely ignoring the people watching.

"Get the hell away from me!" he growled through gritted teeth. Clearly, he didn’t want to make a scene, but his anger was getting the best of him.

The stranger didn’t back down. "You seem to have no manners, and I think you need to learn some. If the mother offended you, then go after her, not the innocent child."

His words hit me harder than I expected.

"Let me burst your bubble. That little girl is nothing but amazing. Anyone who doesn’t know her is missing out."

"We’ve had enough of you. Get out!" the man with Genevieve snapped.

Before Genevieve could say anything, I saw two large men approaching. Even though I didn’t know them, I had a good idea of who they might be.

"We’ll take it from here, sir. Please let go of him," one of them said firmly, looking straight at the man with Genevieve.

He glared at the stranger before reluctantly releasing his shirt.

"Who the hell are you?" he demanded, turning his glare on the two men. From the way they dressed, I could tell they were bodyguards—I had seen enough of them back home to recognize their type.

"You need to leave now, or we will make you leave," one of them warned.

"Do you even know who I am?"

I scoffed at the scene unfolding before me. The past few days had been absolutely insane. I wasn’t even supposed to be in Italy, but an emergency had brought me here. For the first time in my life, I had traveled without my assistant or bodyguards, leaving me vulnerable to idiots like this.

"We don’t care," one of the men said flatly. "Leave, or we will throw you out."

"And don’t ever come near her again," the other added.

I shot them all one last nasty glare before storming out of the restaurant, heading straight to the parking lounge. I got into my car, started the engine, and grabbed my phone.

The call rang twice before my assistant finally picked up.

"Why the hell did it take you so long to answer? Aren’t you supposed to be awake by now?" I snapped. I knew it was early morning in New York, but I didn’t care.

"I’m awake, sir. Sorry, I was in the bathroom," she stammered, her voice shaky.

"Whatever," I muttered. "I need you to find out everything about Alice Incorporation. Are they in debt? Can we buy them out? Do they need investors or partners? I want every damn detail, and I want it in two hours."

"I’ll get right on it, sir."

I ended the call and immediately dialed Greg.

"What’s up, bro?" Greg’s voice came through the phone.

"She’s driving me crazy."

"Who?" he asked, confused.

"Who else?"

"Genevieve? Come on, man, I thought we already talked about this. You need to give her time. You can’t expect her to just fall into your arms after everything that happened."

"You don’t understand."

"Then make me understand."

I ran a hand through my hair, still fuming. "I just saw her on a date. At the restaurant."

"So?"

"Come on, Greg. What do you mean, 'so'?"

"God, Alex, please tell me you didn’t do anything stupid."

"Why would you even ask that? Whose side are you on?"

"You know I’m always on your side, but if you act impulsively, you’ll ruin everything."

I gritted my teeth. "You don’t get it, Greg. I saw her earlier today with some guy at a cafe, and now she’s with another one. And the dress she’s wearing—it’s too damn seductive. Every guy in that restaurant was staring at her. And the guy she was with? He kept looking at her like she was his next meal. It was obvious what he wanted. He’s only after her for sex. He’ll use her and dump her, and then she’ll be hurt all over again."

I could hear Greg smirking on the other end of the line. "Wait… are you jealous?"

"Of course not," I snapped. "I’m just stating the obvious. You should see her now, Greg. She’s changed so much. She looks… incredible. Her body, her face—she’s even more gorgeous than before. I don’t know, maybe having a child did something to her. She’s glowing, and I can tell a lot of men are after her."

"She still denied knowing me when I approached her, but I could tell she knew I had more information on her than I should. And she didn’t even seem bothered about it."

I slammed my fist on the steering wheel. "I don’t get it, Greg. I’ve been miserable all these years, and she’s out here, living her life like none of it ever happened. It’s so unfair."

Greg sighed. "I get it, man, and I’m sorry you feel this way. But maybe you should be patient. You’ve dealt with a lot of emotions over the years, and I’m sure Genevieve has, too—maybe even worse."

"She won’t even let me talk to her. She keeps throwing brutal words at me and treating me like I’m dirt. At this point, I might have to kidnap her."

"Alex, don’t be stupid," Greg groaned. "You’re desperate, but you need to think this through. There are better ways to handle this."

I shook my head. "No. Genevieve is acting like nothing ever happened between us. Like she’s erased me from her life completely. And now she’s going on dates? Where the hell is her son?"

Greg chuckled. "Okay, buddy, you’re definitely jealous. And now you’re overreacting."

"I’m not. I just need to step up my game."

"Alex," Greg groaned. "Please don’t do anything reckless."

"I won’t. I’ve tried handling Genevieve with patience, but clearly, she’s taking my kindness for granted. It’s time I take another approach."

"What are you thinking?" Greg asked cautiously.

I smirked. "Anything to make her mine again."