DOMINATING HIS FOES

Chapter 4 - Restaurant encounter

Asher stepped out of his mansion and decided to take a ride to one of his favourite restaurants. The soft chimes of the restaurant doorbell rang as Asher stepped in. It’s been a while.

The moment he entered, he was greeted by the gatekeeper with a smile. Asher remembered that most of the staff members got fired after the business suffered a huge loss four years ago.

He spotted his usual table; he was about to go forward when he heard an arrogant voice cut through the air.

“Asher, the famous boy toy, or should I say the live-in son-in-law.”

Asher’s brow arched; he recognised the voice. He turned and met the mocking gaze of Fred, his old coursemate.

The same Fred who had been nothing but an arrogant show-off since their university days in America.

Asher’s jaw tightened, and his expression was mixed.

Seated beside Fred was a blonde woman; a few others sat at various tables around the restaurant.

“I never thought I’d see you here, Asher still got those cheap tastes, huh?”

Asher exhaled softly, suppressing the burning anger inside of him. “Fred,” he called out, not interested in Fred’s childish games.

Fred raised his shoulders higher as he took a few steps towards Asher.

“What are you doing here? I am sorry, man. I heard your marriage to Emily crashed.” He chuckled, shaking his head. “Did your wife throw you out after realising that you were nothing but a freeloader? A pathetic live-in son-in-law who has been living off his wife’s family.”

Fred was getting the attention of the crowd at the restaurant; a few customers smirked, and Fred’s fiancée covered her lips, pretending to stifle a laugh.

Asher curled his fist, as his knuckles turned ghostly white. His gaze was unreadable.

“Come off it, man. I don’t mean to offend you. I just didn’t expect to see you here. Can you even afford a meal, or should I pay for your meal?” Fred taunted.

“How pathetic of him? Why should he be here if he couldn’t afford a meal?” one of the customers said in a low tone.

“Don’t embarrass him too much, the poor guy might still be suffering from his downfall.” Another chimed in.

“Fred, you should be careful how you mock people so it won’t backfire on you,” Asher responded.

“Cut the crap, man. We both know how pathetic you are and can’t even afford a place of your own. I also heard you were unable to secure a job in America and you thought about returning to Italy to find a job.” He mocked.

Fred paused, “Maybe I can help you get a job; I recently got promoted to manager at Venlo Winery. I could get your job to sweep the floors.”

The group burst into laughter.

Asher walked towards his usual table and sat down. Calling on the waiter. But none came to him; Asher remained calm; he let out an evil smile.

“My friend is the manager here; I can inform him to offer you a sweeping job here, so you can get yourself a doughnut.”

Asher reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. “I appreciate your offer, but I think you should know that mockery doesn’t last forever. You might end up taking the position you wished for others.”

Fred’s face flushed in anger,

“Look who’s talking; let’s see how you can afford a meal here. You see from your look, no one had agreed to attend to you because you are nothing but a loser.”

The manager walked forward when he heard the noise from his office. “Fred, what’s going on?”

“Oh, thank goodness you are here. I was about to call you to send someone out of here before he contaminated everyone with his poverty-stinking life.” Fred said with his voice dripping with disgust.

“Who is that?” The manager asked scanning around for the victim. His eyes fell on Asher, and his heart sank deep into his stomach; his mouth dropped, and his eyes were wide open.

The manager knew who Asher was, and seeing him at his restaurant made him excited. He ambled forward, Fred kept a stern face, but what happened next left everyone in shock.

“Mr. Mancini, is that you?” The manager tilted his head respectfully.

The manager recognised him, and Asher nodded. “Welcome, what can I offer you.” The manager asked with a polite tone.

Fred raised his brow and everyone in the restaurant were left in awe and bewilderment. They were expecting The manager to send Asher out of the restaurant.

“Who is that guy? And why did the manager bow for him?” one of the waitresses asked.

“I have no idea, but time will tell.” Another chimed in.

“What are you doing bowing to this lowlife?” Fred spat out.

The manager frowned, “Shut up Fred, don’t tell me you don’t know who he is? You wouldn’t want to get yourself into a serious trouble” the manager said with his voice smooth but firm.

Everyone exchanged glances in confusion, but Fred wasn’t willing to back down.

“I know he is trying to fool you, but I know him better than you. He is trying to put up a show.” Fred smirked. “This man, you see here, got dumped by his wife, Emily Douglas. And he had no money to even afford a meal here. You should send him away, or I will leave and make sure I leave bad reviews about your restaurant. You know what that means.”

The man couldn’t hold his anger as his hands landed on Fred’s cheeks, and the resounding slap echoed through the silent hall. Leaving everyone in shock and surprise.

Fred staggered backwards, as his saliva mixed with blood.

“Did you just hit me? You will regret this.”

“Don’t get me upset, Fred. If there is anyone who needs to leave here it should be you.” He warned.

The manager, Mr. Tony turned his gaze towards Asher. “I am sorry Mr. Mancini. We have a VIP section, and I can take you there myself. You don’t have to worry about making payment, anything you ordered will be on the company’s Account.” the manager knew that annoying Mr. Mancini wouldn't only ruin the restaurant but would bring him down and he is not ready to take that risk.

The staff members who witnessed this were left dumbfounded, seeing their manager acting so calm and polite. This left them wondering who the Asher is and what kind of power he possesses.

“I am fine here, thanks for your offer,” Asher replied before his phone buzzed; he glanced at the name on his phone screen.

“Oh, Mark. I need you to check a clown named Fred claiming to be a manager at the winery. Can you get him demoted to a sweeper?” he ended the call.

Fred let out a laugh, in between his pain. “Nice acting, Asher. Not only have you won the manager, but I can see you are acting bossy. Let’s see how far this goes.”

“I am a man of few words, You should learn to respect people. You don’t go about trying to humiliate people just because you got promoted.”

“The last time I checked, you were living with your father. You recently moved out a few weeks after your promotion. Remember how your dad would always scold you for being a lazy brat.”

“After today, you will learn to respect people.” Asher voiced.

Fred frowned. he was about to lunge forward when his phone buzzed.