Never Judge

"So you were sick?" Cassandra asked Emilio from across the table.

"I was, but I'm better now. Did you miss me?" He teased as Cassandra glared at him for suggesting that she felt any kind of longing for him.

Seeing that his words got her to react so violently, he laughed and shook his head.

"Relax, I was only teasing." He pointed out.

"When you two fight it's as if we vanish from the room." One of their teammates complained. "This happens all the time, why don't you two just date?"

"Excuse me?" Cassandra asked, sounding extremely offended by the question. "First of all, he isn't my type, second, he is beneath me."

"Calm down with the insults, Cassandra." Their boss, Victor, scolded her. "Emilio might not come from a rich or influential family, but he has shown all of us how capable he is, or have you forgotten that he is the youngest senior manager in the company?"

Cassandra glared at Emilio but chose to say nothing else.

"That should change soon." Emilio's male teammates said as he looked towards the Reyes family that was seated in front. "The younger generation will start working in the company, plus the Reyes Heir should be old enough to work now. Do you think they will let them start at the bottom?"

"Who knows, the CEO started from the bottom." Cassandra pointed out.

Emilio resisted the urge to laugh at their conversation, because he indeed started at the bottom of the food chain as a part time employee in the warehouse.

"The CEO loves his children too much, according to rumors the current heir didn't even live away from his family like the CEO." Victor said, joining in on the gossip.

"If I stay the youngest senior manager in the next year, will you go on a date with me, Cassandra?" Emilio teased.

Cassandra rolled her eyes.

"Are you afraid to lose?" Emilio challenged her knowing that she wouldn't back down when taunted. 𝑓𝒓𝚎e𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯𝘰𝐯𝒆𝑙.c𝚘m

"Fine, deal." Cassandra said, unwilling to be seen as a coward for not accepting the bet.

"Perfect, I'll take you on a date, make you fall for me, then dump you." Emilio chuckled.

He had no plan on dumping her, not really, he actually liked Cassandra and thought she was his ideal woman. She just didn't see him in a romantic way.

Cassandra ignored him as she turned to talk to the girl seated next to her.

Emilio noticed that both Hendrick and Aldrich were taking way too long, he excused himself to look for the two men.

He found Aldrich glaring at Hendrick as the older man laughed at the fifteen year old boy.

"Do you really have to bully my cousin, Hendrick?" Emilio asked as he glared at his friend.

Hendrick might have been one of his closest friends outside of their family's circle, but he wasn't going to let the man bully his cousin.

"I'm not bullying him, just warning him." Hendrick calmly answered. "He's gonna get himself into a mission he might regret. I'm just warning him."

Hendrick had been Aldrich's trainer in the mafia, that's how he and Emilio became friends prior to working together at the Reyes group.

Emilio had actually been the one to encourage Hendrick to seek out a more legal source of income.

Of course the man knew that if there was any place for a mafia member to be safe, it was the Reyes group. Those in the Dean Family Mafia were aware of Ian's involvement with the Dean Family Mafia and how they had also helped the Reyeses in the past.

"I should leave you two to talk, see you inside, Emilio, Al." Hendrick said with a nod as he walked away, calling Aldrich by the name most people knew him as.

"What's going on, Aldrich?" Emilio asked his cousin as he crossed his arms and looked at the younger man.

Aldrich frowned, shook his head, and made a move to leave, but Emilio stopped him by grabbing his arm and holding him back.

"Aldrich." Emilio said in a low and intimidating voice.

Aldrich sighed knowing there was no way his cousin was going to let him off the hook.

"The Dean family gave me a mission." Aldrich confessed.

"They gave Aldrich Lawrence or Al Reyes a mission?" Emilio questioned knowing the name Aldrich went by when he wasn't with his family.

"Idiot. Of course Al Reyes." Aldrich scoffed. "They wouldn't dare give my father's son a mission, he's only fifteen." Aldrich chuckled thinking about how stupid his cousin was acting.

"Exactly! You're only fifteen!" Emilio scolded his cousin. "How do you think uncle Ray is going to react when he finds out you joined the mafia before he gave his permission? You were supposed to join at eighteen."

"You will not tell my dad or my mom!" Aldrich shouted, sounding a little bit like a spoiled child.

"And why not, Aldrich?" Emilio questioned. "I've never told them about your secrets, but this one might actually get you hurt or worse, killed."

"It's not a dangerous mission. I just need to become friends with a girl my age and keep an eye on her." Aldrich explained.

"Why did you have to join the underworld so young, cousin?" Emilio questioned. He himself had joined the Rocci Family Mafia at twenty, but only because his aunt, Francesca Rocci promised not to allow him to join dangerous missions.

Joining the Rocci Family Mafia was just a way to improve his connections for when he became the next CEO.

It would also help if he could properly defend himself, something all Mafia families taught their members.

"Because dad and uncle Alexi joined at eighteen, I need to be better than them Emilio. You know what it's like, people will be judging us based on how soon we achieved things that our fathers did. They don't expect us to, but we know people will be watching." Aldrich shouted, angry at his cousin for even asking.

"I know what you mean, Aldrich, but your dad will worry too. What if something happens? What if his enemies find out that Al Reyes is Aldrich Lawrence?" Emilio questioned.

""Emilio, what can happen to me for hanging out with a girl? Seriously?" Aldrich said as he walked away from his cousin, furious about Emilio meddling in his affairs.