Page 91 of Dangerous Contract: Part 2

"Thirty-Nine," Julian revealed.

Ten years older!Rome chuckled at the revelation while Cas merely shook his head in disbelief. Raz took a deep breath, attempting to hide his own surprise. He wasn't in the mood to deal with this nonsense.

He could only imagine how Julian's mom would react if she found out her twenty-nine-year-old son was involved with a woman who was old enough to be his mother. Well, maybe that was taking it a little too far. Still, she was too old for Julian.

"How old is your mother?" Raz asked Julian.

"What does my mother have to do with this?" Julian frowned. "This is between me and Stefanie. No other opinions are needed."

"How did you meet Stefanie?" Raz asked.

Julian's eyes lit up as he recalled his first encounter with Stefanie. "I met her when I stopped by to pick up my little sister from college last summer break. Stefanie was having trouble finding a building, so I helped her find it."

"Ah," Raz nodded. "So, Stefanie is a student, too?"

Julian shifted nervously, suddenly seeming less confident. "No. She was there picking up her daughter."

"She has a college-age daughter?" Raz growled. "Give it up. Your parents will never let you be with her."

"You all are just as judgmental as my parents. I bet you're going to shit a brick when I tell you she's a black woman, right?" Julian challenged.

Raz shook his head. "Race doesn't matter. But she's far too old for you. And she has a daughter who is closer in age to you than she is."

"Fuck you, Raz," Julian seethed. "Worry about your own shit, and I'll worry about mine."

"You were just happy to see me," Raz joked, wondering if his brothers had told Julian about his situation with Monique.

"Yeah, well, I'm not happy to see your ass now," Julian stated, causing Raz's brothers and Leo to laugh.

After the laughter died down, Raz asked Julian, "Does she know who you really are and what you do for a living?"

“I’m a businessman. Self-employed.”

“Yeah, but does she know what you do on nights like tonight?”

Shoving his hands into his pockets, Julian stared off into the distance. Raz took that as a no. Julian was young, handsome, and rich. He could have any woman he wanted. But what he wanted didn't matter. Not when it came to love. Not for the Cattaneo men.

"Leave her alone, Julian. She has a family to worry about. Don't bring our family's dangers to her doorstep. I know you care for her. I can see it in your eyes when you talk about her. But your love for her could be detrimental to her and her family. Trust me. I'm speaking from experience."

Julian met Raz’s gaze. "She makes me happy, Raz," Julian told him. "I've never felt like this before. Even now, I wish I was with her instead of here. I’m going straight to her as soon as I leave here.”

“I thought Cas said she didn’t want you. Are you stalking the woman?” Raz asked.

“If she didn’t want me, she never should’ve let me into her life, into her world. Letting her go, that’s not something I can do."

Damn, Julian. Raz knew the feeling. And he hated that his cousin had found true love. True love wasn't a luxury the Cattaneos could afford.

"Is your happiness worth her life?" Raz asked Julian a question he asked himself every time he felt the burning urge to go to Monique.

Julian blinked rapidly before sighing deeply. His young cousin started to say something, but Julian's father, Guiliano, called out to Raz.

“Orazio, over here,” Guiliano called.

Julian shot them a warning look as they made their way to the others. "Don't say anything to him about Stefanie."

Raz nodded before moving over to his cousin Guiliano Cattaneo. The scene ahead was lit up like a stage, and the drama was about to unfold. The star of the show was already in place. Guiliano shook Raz's hand when Raz reached him.

"Glad you're here. We can get started now," Guiliano told him. "Our set up crew is ready."

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