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Short filmTranscript
00:00I'm balancing three martinis and a death wish when table 12 walks in.
00:04Not walks. Strides.
00:06Like he owns the place.
00:07Which, knowing Miami's underground economy, he probably does.
00:12Reservation?
00:13I ask smoothing my apron with hands that have carried too many plates today
00:17and not enough tips to justify the blisters forming on my heels.
00:21The hostess Veronica actually giggles.
00:23She never giggles.
00:24She's a 40-year-old divorcee who once told a groping customer
00:28she'd castrate him with a butter knife.
00:30So this?
00:30This is alarming.
00:32Mr. Castellano doesn't need reservations, she says, practically vibrating.
00:37Of course he doesn't.
00:39I glance up.
00:40Big mistake.
00:42And immediately understand why Veronica's acting like a teenager at a boy band concert.
00:46He's unfair.
00:49That's the word.
00:51Unfairly handsome in a way that should be illegal.
00:54Possibly is illegal, given the three men flanking him in suits
00:57that cost more than my nursing school tuition.
01:01Dark hair swept back, sharp jaw, and eyes so intensely brown they look black under Lumine's
01:06crystal chandeliers.
01:09Mid-thirties, maybe.
01:10Old enough to have seen things.
01:12Done things.
01:14Things I don't want to think about while holding a tray of $15 olives.
01:17Your section, Ava, Veronica says, shoving the leather-bound menus into my arms.
01:24Don't screw it up.
01:26Thanks for the vote of confidence.
01:27I approach table 12, corner booth naturally, with a view of every entrance and exit,
01:34and paste on my customer service smile, the one that says I'm delighted to serve you
01:38but really means please tip well because my student loans are murdering me.
01:42Good afternoon, gentlemen.
01:43Can I start you off with...
01:45Scotch.
01:46McAllen 25.
01:47Neat.
01:48His voice cuts through my script like a knife through butter.
01:52Low.
01:52So, controlled, with just enough Miami rolled into the edges to make it interesting.
01:57I don't write it down.
01:59Can't.
02:00Because he's looking directly at me now, and I've suddenly forgotten how pens work.
02:05The McAllen it is.
02:07I manage, recovering.
02:09And for your associates?
02:11The three suits order water.
02:13Water.
02:14At a restaurant where the chicken costs $60.
02:17Nobody orders water here unless they're working.
02:19I retreat to the bar, my heart doing this stupid flutter thing that has nothing to do with
02:24the handsome stranger and everything to do with the fact that I know what he is.
02:29You don't live in Miami without learning to read the signs, the deference from staff,
02:34the tactical seating, the way people three tables over suddenly find their salmon fascinating.
02:40That's Dominic Castellano, Marco the bartender whispers while pouring the scotch.
02:45Don't make eye contact, don't ask questions, and for the love of God, don't spill anything
02:50on him.
02:52Great pep talk, Marco.
02:54Really feeling supported here.
02:56I'm serious, Ava.
02:58His family controls half the port.
03:00The other half is controlled by people who are scared of him.
03:03I deliver the drinks without incident, trying not to notice how Dominic's fingers brush
03:08mine when he takes the glass.
03:10Trying not to notice how he smells.
03:12Something expensive and woodsy that probably costs more per ounce than my rent.
03:17Ready to order?
03:19I ask, channeling every ounce of professionalism I possess.
03:23What do you recommend?
03:25It's a test.
03:26I can feel it.
03:27The branzino is excellent if you like fish, the ribeye if you're a carnivore, the risotto
03:33if you're pretending to be sophisticated but really just want carbs.
03:37One of the suits, bald, built like a truck, coughs to cover a laugh.
03:42Dominic's mouth doesn't move, but something shifts in his eyes.
03:46Amusement, maybe, or annoyance.
03:48Hard to tell with men who've perfected the art of giving nothing away.
03:52Ribeye, rare.
03:53Of course, probably bites the heads off his enemies for breakfast, too.
03:58Great choice, I say sweetly, writing it down.
04:02The chef will barely show it the grill, just like you barely show your enemy's mercy.
04:07The words are out before my brain catches up to my mouth.
04:11The table goes silent.
04:13Every single one of my organs begins drafting resignation letters.
04:18But Dominic?
04:19He smiles.
04:20Actually smiles, and it transforms his entire face from dangerous to devastating.
04:26You have opinions, he observes.
04:29I have rent, I correct.
04:31The opinions are free.
04:33Interesting.
04:35He leans back, studying me like I'm a puzzle he's just decided to solve.
04:39What's your name?
04:41Ava.
04:42Ava.
04:44He tastes it, rolling the syllables around.
04:47You're not scared of me.
04:49Should I be?
04:50Most people are.
04:52Most people don't work double shifts in four-inch heels for $8.50 an hour plus tips, I counter.
04:58You want scared?
04:59Talk to me about my credit score.
05:01Another smile.
05:03Smaller this time, but real.
05:05I collect their menus and escape before I can say something else stupid.
05:09Or something smart that gets me killed.
05:11The lunch rush hits hard after that.
05:14Luminae fills up with the usual crowd.
05:16Real estate moguls, plastic surgeons' wives, influencers filming their truffle fries for Instagram.
05:22I'm juggling eight tables, a kitchen that's backed up, and a growing awareness that table 12 keeps watching me.
05:29Not in a creepy way.
05:31More like a considering way.
05:34The way you'd watch a street performer who might be brilliant or might fall on their face, and you haven't decided which yet.
05:40I'm clearing appetizer plates from table 7 when my phone buzzes.
05:44I ignore it.
05:46House rules.
05:47But it buzzes again.
05:48And again.
05:50During a lull, I check.
05:52Fifteen texts from my brother Tyler.
05:54Avi pick up Ava.
05:56They know I'm sorry I didn't mean to.
05:58My blood goes cold.
06:00Tyler's been clean for six months.
06:02Six months.
06:04After two years of watching him destroy himself with pills, poker, and progressively worse decisions,
06:09he'd finally gotten his life together, got a job at a warehouse, started showing up to family dinners,
06:16started borrowing money he swore he'd pay back.
06:19The last text makes my knees weak.
06:21They're coming to the restaurant I look up, and that's when I see them.
06:25Two men.
06:26Not the suit-and-tie criminal kind like Dominic's crew.
06:29The cheap, desperate kind.
06:31The kind who collect debts with crowbars and don't care about collateral damage.
06:36They're scanning the dining room.
06:38Looking for me.
06:39I duck behind the host stand, my heart trying to punch through my ribcage.
06:44Veronica's on break.
06:46Marco's oblivious at the bar.
06:48And I'm trapped in a five-star restaurant in a cocktail dress with exactly two exits.
06:53The front door where the debt collectors are entering.
06:56And the kitchen where three Michelin-trained chefs will absolutely murder me for disrupting service.
07:02Option three makes itself known when a hand closes around my wrist.
07:05I spin, ready to scream, and find myself looking at Dominic Castellano's expensive tie.
07:11Those men, he says quietly, his voice cutting through my panic with surgical precision.
07:17They're here for you.
07:20It's not a question.
07:22I...
07:22How did you...
07:23The way you looked at your phone.
07:26His grip on my wrist is firm but not painful, grounding me when everything else is spinning.
07:31The way you're looking at them now.
07:33How much?
07:35I don't...
07:36What?
07:36How much does your brother owe?
07:39I gape at him.
07:41How do you know about...
07:43Ava.
07:44My name is a command.
07:46How much?
07:48Thirty thousand.
07:49I whisper.
07:50And it sounds obscene in this temple of wealth and white tablecloths.
07:54Maybe more with interest.
07:56He was gambling.
07:57I thought he stopped.
07:58I thought...
08:00The debt collectors spot me.
08:02They start moving.
08:04Dominic's jaw tightens.
08:05Then he does something I absolutely don't expect.
08:08He slides his arm around my waist, pulls me against his side like we're lovers having
08:13an intimate moment, and says into my ear,
08:16Stay close to me.
08:18Don't say a word.
08:19And when this is over, you and I are going to have a very long conversation about what
08:23you owe me.
08:24Before I can process that threat or promise, he's steering me directly toward table 12,
08:30toward safety, toward a debt I have no idea how to repay.
08:33The debt collectors stop three feet from our table.
08:37Up close, they're exactly what I expected.
08:40Cheap cologne, cheaper suits, and the kind of dead eyes that come from doing bad things
08:44for bad people.
08:46The shorter one has a scar bisecting his left eyebrow.
08:49The tall one won't stop cracking his knuckles.
08:52We're looking for Ava Chen, Scarface says, scanning the dining room like I might be hiding
08:57under a napkin.
08:59I'm currently pressed against Dominic Castellano's very solid, very expensive side, pretending
09:04to examine the dessert menu with the intensity of someone defusing a bomb.
09:08There's no one here by that name, Dominic says, his voice arctic.
09:12The bald suit from earlier, the one who almost laughed at my risotto comment, has somehow
09:17materialized between us and the collectors.
09:19So have the other two bodyguards.
09:22They're not doing anything threatening, just existing.
09:25Very large.
09:26Very still.
09:28Knucklecracker takes a step forward.
09:30We have information she works here.
09:33Hostess named Veronica confirmed.
09:35Veronica's mistaken.
09:37Dominic's arm tightens around my waist.
09:40To anyone watching, it looks protective.
09:43Possessive, even.
09:43But I can feel the warning in it.
09:46Don't move.
09:47Don't breathe.
09:49Don't exist right now.
09:51Listen, man.
09:52We don't want trouble.
09:53Then leave.
09:55Two words.
09:56That's all it takes.
09:57The collectors exchange glances.
09:59Some silent calculation happens behind their eyes, weighing the debt they're collecting
10:03against the very significant possibility that they'll end up in Biscayne Bay wearing concrete
10:09shoes.
10:10Scarface tries one more time.
10:12Our employer.
10:13Will receive a call from me within the hour.
10:15Dominic interrupts, pulling out his phone with his free hand and typing something one-handed.
10:20What's the debt?
10:22$32,000, Knucklecracker admits, plus 15% weekly interest.
10:27$40,000, then.
10:28Consider it paid.
10:30My accountant will wire the funds this afternoon.
10:32He doesn't look up from his phone.
10:34Now get out of my restaurant before you upset the people trying to enjoy their lunch.
10:39His restaurant.
10:40Of course.
10:42The collectors leave so fast they practically teleport.
10:45I don't start breathing again until they're through the front door and climbing into a rust
10:49bucket escalade that's seen better decades.
10:53$40,000.
10:54I say numbly, still clutching the dessert menu.
10:57You just paid $40,000.
11:02I did.
11:03For a stranger.
11:05For a woman who made me laugh.
11:08He finally releases me, but only so he can turn and look me directly in the eye.
11:13And who now owes me considerably more than money.
11:18There it is.
11:19The catch.
11:20The hook buried in the kindness.
11:22I can pay you back.
11:23I say quickly, even though we both know it's a lie.
11:26I'll work extra shifts.
11:28I'll...
11:28Ava.
11:29He says my name like he's explaining basic math to a child.
11:32You make, what, $30,000 a year, before taxes?
11:37$28,000.
11:38I mutter.
11:39So by my calculation, even if you gave me every penny you earned, you'd need approximately
11:45two years to repay me, assuming you don't eat, pay rent, or develop any unfortunate habits
11:50like breathing.
11:52One of the bodyguards, the bald one, makes a sound that might be a suppressed laugh.
11:57I glare at him, then at Dominic.
11:59So what?
12:00I'm just supposed to owe you forever?
12:02Be indebted to a...
12:04I lower my voice, glancing around at the oblivious diners.
12:08To you?
12:09Not forever.
12:11He picks up his scotch, swirling it thoughtfully.
12:14I have a proposition.
12:16Of course he does.
12:17I need someone to organize a charity gala, he continues.
12:20Three weeks from now, 500 guests, venue, catering, entertainment, auction items, everything.
12:28I blink.
12:30A gala.
12:32My mother runs a foundation for children's literacy.
12:35Every year she hosts this event and every year she drives herself and everyone around
12:39her insane with the details.
12:42He takes a sip.
12:43This year I'm hiring help.
12:45I'm a hostess, not an event planner.
12:48You're organized, quick thinking, and you don't fall apart under pressure.
12:52His eyes flick to where the collectors stood.
12:55You also have excellent survival instincts and a smart mouth.
12:58All qualities I value.
13:00This is insane.
13:02This is business.
13:04He sets down his glass with a soft clink.
13:07Pull off the gala and we're even.
13:09Your brother's debt, your debt, erased.
13:13You'll never hear from me again.
13:15The offer hangs in the air between us like a beautiful, terrible trap.
13:20And if I say no?
13:22Then I'll still expect repayment.
13:24Standard terms.
13:2520% interest.
13:27Compounded weekly.
13:29His smile doesn't reach his eyes.
13:31I'm generous, Ava, but I'm not a charity.
13:33Two hours later, I'm sitting in the back of a Mercedes that costs more than my parents' house,
13:40being driven to Dominic's estate in Coral Gables.
13:42This is kidnapping, I inform him.
13:45This is employment, he corrects, scrolling through his phone.
13:48I'm simply showing you the venue.
13:51You didn't let me finish my shift.
13:53I paid Marco $500 to cover your tables.
13:56You're welcome.
13:57I want to argue, but honestly, my feet are screaming in these heels and the Mercedes has
14:03seats that feel like butter had a baby with a cloud.
14:06The estate is… obscene.
14:09That's the only word.
14:10White stone, Spanish tile, palm trees lining a driveway that goes on for approximately 17
14:16miles.
14:17There's a fountain.
14:18Multiple fountains.
14:19And is that a…
14:21You have peacocks, I say flatly.
14:23My mother likes them.
14:25Your mother likes peacocks.
14:27She also likes opera, heirloom roses, and guilt trips.
14:31You'll meet her tomorrow.
14:33He steps out of the car, and one of the bodyguards, bald guy, whose name I've learned is Marcus,
14:39opens my door.
14:40The house is even worse inside.
14:42Marble everything.
14:43Art that looks like it belongs in a museum and probably was stolen from one.
14:47A chandelier the size of my apartment.
14:49The gala will be in the garden, Dominic says, leading me through room after unnecessary room.
14:56Three hundred and fifty guests under tents.
14:58Another hundred and fifty in the ballroom for the auction.
15:01We step out onto a terrace overlooking an actual paradise.
15:05Manicured gardens.
15:07A pool that could host the Olympics.
15:09And beyond that, a private dock where a yacht the size of a small cruise ship sits gleaming
15:14in the afternoon sun.
15:15This is insane, I breathe.
15:19This is Tuesday.
15:21He leans against the terrace railing, the sun turning his dark hair almost bronze at the
15:25edges.
15:26My mother wants swan ice sculptures, a string quartet, and a menu that accommodates seventeen
15:32different dietary restrictions.
15:33I want her happy and off my back about settling down.
15:38She's pressuring you to get married?
15:41She's Italian.
15:42It's what they do.
15:44He shrugs.
15:45Pull this off and you'll be her favorite person.
15:48She might even try to adopt you.
15:50I laugh before I can stop myself.
15:53A Chinese-American girl from a family of accountants and nurses adopted by the mafia?
15:58That's a Netflix series waiting to happen.
16:00You'd be surprised.
16:02She already thinks I should settle down with a nice girl with a good head on her shoulders.
16:07He mimics what must be his mother's accent.
16:10Last month she tried to set me up with her podiatrist's daughter.
16:14How'd that go?
16:16The podiatrist's daughter took one look at me and ran.
16:20Smart woman.
16:22We're quiet for a moment, watching the peacocks strut across the lawn like feathered divas.
16:26Why are you really doing this?
16:28I ask.
16:29The gala thing.
16:30You could hire an actual event planner, someone professional.
16:34I could, he agrees.
16:36But they wouldn't owe me.
16:38They wouldn't have skin in the game.
16:40He turns to face me fully and the afternoon light makes his eyes almost golden.
16:45You're desperate.
16:46Desperate people work harder.
16:48They're creative.
16:49They don't quit.
16:51That's pretty cynical.
16:52That's pretty accurate.
16:54But there's something softer in his expression now.
16:57Something almost human.
16:58Also, you made me laugh.
17:01That doesn't happen often.
17:03What?
17:04Mobsters don't have a sense of humor?
17:06Mobsters have excellent senses of humor.
17:09It's just usually about creative ways to dispose of bodies.
17:12I can't tell if he's joking.
17:15He pushes off the railing, gesturing back toward the house.
17:19Come on, I'll show you the event files.
17:21My mother's been planning this thing for six months, so there's approximately 300 binders of information you'll need to memorize.
17:26Three hundred?
17:28I'm rounding down.
17:30We walk back inside, and I'm acutely aware of how close he is.
17:34How he smells like expensive decisions and dangerous promises.
17:38How every woman in that restaurant probably wanted to be exactly where I am right now.
17:43Except they don't know the price of admission.
17:44One more thing, Dominic says as we reach what appears to be a library that could house a small college.
17:52Your brother.
17:53My stomach drops.
17:55What about him?
17:57He's under my protection now.
17:59No one touches him.
18:00No one threatens him.
18:01No one so much as looks at him wrong.
18:04His voice goes hard.
18:05But if he gambles again, if he borrows from the wrong people again, if he does anything remotely stupid, I won't save him a second time.
18:13Understood?
18:15Understood, I whisper.
18:18Good.
18:19He opens the library door, revealing a table covered in binders, spreadsheets, and what appears to be a three-dimensional model of the garden.
18:27Welcome to hell, Ava Chen.
18:29You have three weeks.
18:30I look at the mountain of work, at the impossible task, at the man who just bought my loyalty with $40,000 and a threat wrapped in protection.
18:40And I think, three weeks.
18:43I can survive three weeks.
18:44I have no idea how wrong I am.
18:48Day 19, and I'm standing in Dominic's garden at 11 a.m., watching two grown men argue about swans.
18:54Ice sculptures don't melt in Miami heat, the caterer insists, gesturing wildly with his clipboard.
19:01They weep.
19:02They become tragic puddles of failure.
19:06Mrs. Castellano wants swans, the ice sculptor counters, his Hungarian accent thick with artistic offense.
19:13I create swans.
19:14Beautiful swans.
19:16Swans that will last four, maybe five hours if we keep them in shade.
19:20The cocktail hour is six hours long.
19:23Then I make two swans.
19:24I close my eyes and count to ten in three languages—English, Mandarin, and Italian—which Dominic's mother has been teaching me between her detailed critiques of my posture, my career choices, and my regrettable lack of a husband.
19:38Gentlemen, I say, channeling every ounce of authority I've developed over the past three weeks.
19:44We'll have ice swans for the first two hours, then transition to floral swan arrangements for the remainder.
19:50Problem solved.
19:51Next crisis.
19:52They both stare at me like I've just discovered penicillin.
19:57You're brilliant, the caterer breathes.
20:00I'm exhausted, I correct.
20:02But I'm smiling.
20:04Three weeks ago, I was a hostess who could barely pay rent.
20:07Now I'm coordinating a 500-person charity gala with a budget that could fund a small country.
20:12And somehow, somehow, I haven't completely screwed it up.
20:16The tent company confirmed yesterday.
20:19The string quartet is flying in from Vienna.
20:22The auction items include a Picasso sketch, a week at someone's Tuscan villa, and a vintage Ferrari that Dominic casually mentioned he had lying around.
20:31I've also spent nearly every day with Dominic Castellano, which is doing extremely inconvenient things to my cardiovascular system.
20:39Ava, his mother's voice carries across the garden like a soprano hitting a high note.
20:45Come, come.
20:47The roses are wrong.
20:48I shoot the caterer and sculptor a look that says we're not done here, and head toward the rose garden, where Isabella Castellano stands in a cream linen dress, looking like she walked out of a Fellini film.
21:00Mrs. Castellano!
21:01The roses are perfect.
21:03They're pink.
21:04I ordered blush.
21:06I squint at the approximately 7,000 roses covering every available surface.
21:11These... are blush.
21:13These are pink masquerading as blush.
21:16There's a difference.
21:18She sighs dramatically.
21:20But you wouldn't know because you're not Italian.
21:23We have a gift for these things.
21:25A gift for making event planners cry?
21:28She laughs, swatting my arm.
21:31I like you, Ava.
21:32You have spine.
21:34Not like those other girls Dominic brings around, all scared and boring, like little mice.
21:40I'm not...
21:41We're not...
21:42I stumble over the words.
21:44I work for him.
21:46That's all.
21:47Mmm.
21:48She gives me a look that suggests she knows exactly how many times I've caught myself staring at her son when he's reviewing contracts, sleeves rolled up, jaw tight with concentration.
21:59You know he smiles now.
22:01Before you, he was like stone.
22:04Granite.
22:05Very handsome granite, but still stone.
22:08He smiles at you.
22:10That's different.
22:11I'm his mother.
22:12He has to smile or I pinch him.
22:15She links her arm through mine, leading me toward the terrace.
22:19But you?
22:21You make him laugh.
22:22Really laugh.
22:23I haven't heard that since before his father died.
22:25The weight of that statement settles over me.
22:29I've learned things about Dominic these past three weeks.
22:33Small things.
22:34How he takes his coffee.
22:36Black.
22:37One sugar.
22:38But only when he thinks no one's watching.
22:40How he runs his hand through his hair when he's stressed.
22:43How he speaks Italian to his mother, but Spanish to Marcus and switches between them so fluidly it sounds like music.
22:50I've learned he visits a children's hospital every Thursday morning and never lets anyone photograph it.
22:55That he actually reads the books in his library.
22:59That he once spent four hours helping me fold 500 programs because the printing company delivered them unfolded, and I had a minor breakdown.
23:07I've also learned that the way he looks at me has changed.
23:10It's not just observation anymore.
23:12It's heat.
23:15Question.
23:16Something unspoken that charges the air between us every time we're alone.
23:20My son, Isabella continues, thinks he can control everything.
23:23His business, his family, his heart.
23:26She pats my hand.
23:28You're the first thing I've seen that he can't control.
23:30This is good.
23:31Men need humility.
23:33Before I can respond, my phone buzzes.
23:36Tyler.
23:37Have I messed up?
23:39My blood turns to ice.
23:41I'm at the warehouse.
23:42Some guys are here.
23:44They know about Dominic.
23:45They're asking questions.
23:46I have to go, I tell Isabella, already moving.
23:50What's wrong?
23:52My brother.
23:53I'm running now, heels in hand, racing through the house.
23:56I nearly collide with Dominic in the foyer.
23:59He's in a meeting with three men in suits, blueprints spread across the marble console table.
24:04But one look at my face and he's in motion.
24:07What happened?
24:09Tyler.
24:10Someone's at his work asking about you, about me.
24:14The words tumble out.
24:16The debt.
24:17We paid it off, right?
24:18This shouldn't be happening.
24:20His expression goes dark.
24:22Dangerous.
24:23Marcus.
24:24The bodyguard appears from nowhere.
24:27Get the car.
24:28Now.
24:29Dominic's already reaching for his phone, dialing.
24:33Which warehouse?
24:34I give him the address, my hands shaking.
24:37The drive to Wynwood takes 12 minutes, but it feels like hours.
24:41Dominic makes four phone calls in rapid Italian, his voice cold and controlled, but his hand
24:46finds mine halfway there and doesn't let go.
24:48If they hurt him, I start.
24:51They won't.
24:52It's not a promise.
24:53It's a fact.
24:54I made it very clear three weeks ago that your brother was under my protection.
25:00Then why?
25:01Because someone's testing boundaries.
25:04His jaw tightens.
25:05Seeing what I'll tolerate, they picked the wrong day.
25:09We pull up to the warehouse, a massive concrete building where Tyler's been working inventory
25:14management, and I immediately spot the problem.
25:17Two black SUVs.
25:19Six men.
25:20And Tyler, backed against a loading dock looking terrified.
25:24I'm out of the car before it fully stops.
25:26Ava, no!
25:28Dominic shouts, but I'm already running.
25:30One of the men, older, silver-haired, expensive suit, turns as I approach.
25:34His smile is all teeth and no warmth.
25:37Ah!
25:37The sister.
25:39His accent is East Coast.
25:41New York, maybe.
25:42We were just having a conversation with young Tyler here about his relationship with Dominic
25:47Castellano.
25:48Leave him alone, I demand, positioning myself between them and my brother.
25:53Whatever you want, he doesn't have it.
25:56What I want, the man says, stepping closer, is to send a message to Castellano.
26:01He's been expanding into territories that don't belong to him.
26:05Making moves without proper... consultation.
26:08Take it up with him, then.
26:10Don't drag my brother into your mob politics.
26:14I don't see the gun until it's pointing at Tyler's head.
26:18Everything slows down.
26:20The afternoon sun glinting off the barrel.
26:23Tyler's face going white.
26:24The way my heart stops beating entirely.
26:28The message, silver-haired continues calmly, needs to be memorable.
26:33Then Dominic is there, moving faster than I've ever seen anyone move, and suddenly there
26:37are more guns.
26:39Marcus and the other bodyguards appearing like shadows, forming a wall between us and
26:43them.
26:44But Dominic doesn't pull a weapon.
26:46He just stands there, hands loose at his sides, and says,
26:50Lower the gun, Vincent.
26:51We're in broad daylight in an industrial district.
26:54You're smarter than this.
26:56Vincent, apparently that silver hair's name, actually laughs.
27:01Brought your girl to a gunfight, Castellano?
27:03That's not smart either.
27:05She ran.
27:06I followed.
27:08Dominic's voice is terrifyingly calm.
27:10And you're about to make the last mistake of your professional life if you don't put that
27:14weapon away in the next five seconds.
27:17You threatening me?
27:18I'm educating you.
27:21Dominic takes a step forward.
27:23Just one.
27:25You want to discuss territory?
27:27Fine.
27:27We'll sit down.
27:29We'll negotiate like civilized people.
27:31But you point a gun at someone under my protection?
27:34His voice drops to something sub-zero.
27:37That's not business.
27:38That's personal.
27:40And I handle personal very differently.
27:42The standoff lasts an eternity.
27:44Then Vincent lowers the gun.
27:47This isn't over, he says, backing toward his SUV.
27:51No, Dominic agrees.
27:53But it will be.
27:55Soon.
27:56They leave in a screech of tires and bruised ego.
27:59The moment they're gone, I turn to Tyler and slap him across the face.
28:03What were you thinking?
28:05I didn't.
28:06I swear I didn't gamble.
28:07Then why are mobsters showing up at your job?
28:11I'm shaking, fury and fear mixing into something volcanic.
28:14Do you have any idea what almost just happened?
28:18Ava!
28:19Dominic's hand on my shoulder.
28:20No!
28:21I spin on him.
28:23And you!
28:24You can't just throw yourself in front of guns.
28:26You could have been killed.
28:28So could you, he says quietly.
28:31When you ran toward armed men without thinking.
28:34That's my brother!
28:36And you're...
28:38He stops.
28:39Swallows whatever he was going to say.
28:42You're reckless.
28:43I'm protective.
28:45There's a difference.
28:45We glare at each other.
28:48The adrenaline still singing through my veins.
28:50The afternoon sun beating down on us like a spotlight.
28:54Tyler clears his throat.
28:56Should I...
28:57Go?
28:59Yes.
29:00We say simultaneously.
29:03Marcus escorts Tyler to a separate car.
29:05The other bodyguards fade back.
29:08And suddenly it's just Dominic and me in an empty parking lot.
29:11Breathing hard.
29:12Alive.
29:13The gala's tomorrow.
29:15I say finally.
29:16I know.
29:18I should finish the final preparations.
29:21You should.
29:22Neither of us moves.
29:24Ava.
29:25My name sounds different in his mouth now.
29:28Rougher.
29:29Real.
29:30When I saw that gun pointed at you.
29:32It wasn't pointed at me.
29:34It was pointed at Tyler.
29:36You were in the way.
29:37That's the same thing.
29:39His hands flex at his sides like he's stopping himself from reaching for me.
29:44I can't have you in danger.
29:45I can't...
29:47He breaks off, frustrated.
29:50Your debt is paid.
29:51After tomorrow, you're free.
29:52You never have to see me again.
29:54What if I don't want that?
29:57The words escape before I can stop them.
30:00Dominic goes very still.
30:02What?
30:04These past three weeks?
30:06They've been insane.
30:08Terrifying.
30:09Your mother critiques everything I do.
30:11I've learned way too much about Italian table settings.
30:14And I'm pretty sure Marcus thinks I'm a disaster waiting to happen.
30:18I take a breath.
30:20But I've also never felt more alive.
30:22Or more...
30:24Seen.
30:26Ava.
30:27I know what you are.
30:28I'm not stupid.
30:30And I know this, whatever this is,
30:32is probably the worst idea in the history of bad ideas.
30:36I step closer.
30:37But I'm tired of safe.
30:39I'm tired of small.
30:41I want...
30:43More.
30:44More, he repeats.
30:45And his voice has gone rough.
30:48Yeah.
30:49More swan arguments and more of your mother's guilt trips
30:52and more of you looking at me like I'm something precious and dangerous at the same time.
30:57You are dangerous, he murmurs, closing the distance between us.
31:01You make me want impossible things.
31:05Like what?
31:06Like keeping you.
31:08His hand comes up, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.
31:11Like building something that isn't just business or protection or obligation.
31:16Like...
31:17I kiss him.
31:19Just reach up and press my mouth to his and he makes this sound.
31:22Surprise and hunger and relief all mixed together.
31:25Before kissing me back with an intensity that steals my breath.
31:29When we finally break apart, we're both grinning like idiots.
31:33Tomorrow, he says.
31:35Pull off this gala, impress my mother one more time,
31:38and then we'll figure out what comes next.
31:41What if I mess it up?
31:43Then we'll figure it out anyway.
31:45He kisses my forehead.
31:48You ran toward guns for your brother, Ava.
31:51I think you can handle some Italian socialites and overpriced champagne.
31:55The gala is perfect.
31:56The swans don't melt.
31:59The quartet is sublime.
32:01Isabella cries happy tears during the auction.
32:05And when Dominic gives his speech about childhood literacy and his mother's dedication,
32:09he looks directly at me and says,
32:11This event wouldn't have been possible without someone who taught me that the best partnerships
32:15are built on trust, challenge, and the occasional argument about ice sculptures.
32:20Everyone laughs.
32:22I'm standing at the edge of the tent,
32:24watching 500 people celebrate under strings of lights when Dominic finds me.
32:29You did it, he says.
32:30We did it.
32:32No.
32:33He takes my hand.
32:35You did.
32:36I just provided the venue and the intimidating presence.
32:38Your mother's going to want me to plan next year's gala.
32:42Probably.
32:44He pulls me closer.
32:45Is that a problem?
32:47I look up at him.
32:49This dangerous, complicated, surprisingly tender man.
32:53And smile.
32:54Only if you don't pay me better than $8.50 an hour.
32:57He laughs, really laughs, and kisses me in front of everyone.
33:02Somewhere, Isabella is definitely planning our wedding.
33:05And honestly, I'm not even mad about it.
33:08Did you fall for Dominic and Ava's story?
33:10If you loved watching a struggling hostess turn into a mafia don's most dangerous weakness,
33:15smash that like button.
33:17Drop a comment below telling me,
33:19what was your favorite moment?
33:21The swan argument?
33:22The warehouse standoff?
33:23That kiss?
33:25Should I write more mafia romance stories?
33:27Which U.S. city should the next story be set in?
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33:47brave women, and love worth fighting for.
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34:10A rival family member's romance?
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