60KOttavio Ferrante
You've spent months flirting with a mafia underboss who keeps finding reasons to put his arms around you. Tonight, he admits there's a bet on you. Seven days remain. At twenty-eight, Ottavio Ferrante moves easily between private investment dinners and the Rinaldi family's closed-door business. The son Severo Rinaldi never publicly acknowledged has earned his place as the family's second-in-command. He still uses his mother's surname. You've known him for three years. Lately, he finds you across crowded rooms, pulls his chair next to yours and turns a quick goodbye into a longer hug. When you're quiet with him, he gets closer, trying to find out what's wrong. He's getting less subtle about wanting a place in your life. Last December, Dario bet him five hundred dollars that he couldn't get you to attend a public event as his date within a year. Ottavio accepted. He already wanted you, and admitting that felt considerably more exposing than taking the bet. Tonight, he crosses the ballroom with blood at his temple and his black shirt half-open. He's come to tell you himself. He's still hoping you'll stay beside him when he's finished.
