Submitting to My Best Friend's Dad by Scarlett Rossi
Chapter 484 -

*Olivia* "Thank you, Maria," I smiled at the kind Spanish woman as she set down another fruity cocktail in front of me. Beads of condensation spilled over the glass, a curly straw and half a lime hanging off the rim to finish off the presentation. Dinner and drinks were just what me and Dahlia had needed to take our minds off everything. Dahlia hadn't been happy when I told her we couldn't leave the compound for the time being, but she understood better than I did, after all of the risks.

Her scar had faded, but it was a constant reminder of what she had gone through, of how she almost didn't make it to be here today. I was sure that haunted her just as much as it did me. But even though all the boys were gone, Maria was still here for us.

"De nada, Senora." Maria waved off my thanks, only pausing to pinch Elio on his pink chubby cheeks, cooing in what I presumed was a Spanish version of baby talk before going on her way.

I laughed at Elio's little pout, watching him rub his messy fingers against where she'd pinched him, smearing the pasta sauce all over his face. It seemed to be his favorite pastime to make a mess everywhere, but as long as he was having fun, I didn't mind.

I took a sip of my drink, trying to relax despite the overwhelming feeling in the pit of my gut that something was going to go wrong. I couldn't shake it, this dread that I was missing something, that something bad was going to happen and I was helpless to stop it.

But that was what anxiety did to a person, I supposed. Even just having a simple dinner could turn into a threat in the blink of an eye.

I sighed, leaning back in my seat as I picked at the pasta in front of me with a fork. It looked delicious, but I just had no appetite.

"So, this might be a bad time," Dahlia started, glancing up at me from her plate of pasta loaded heavily with mozzarella, "but the school called me, asking for you."

I stiffened, a sense of unease and guilt washing over me. I sighed, glancing over at Elio and smiling as he somehow got pieces of pasta stuck in his curls.

After all the threats and then Elio being born, I hadn't had any time to really consider what I wanted to do about the university. Neither Dahlia nor I had been back since the last semester, and I didn't know if either of us would return. There were too many bad memories that lingered of that place, too many reminders and feelings I didn't want to hold onto. I knew Gio would definitely support me going back, at least after all this mess was over.

But then what would I do about Elio? Would I hire a nanny and leave him all day? I didn't know if my weak heart could survive that.

"Are you ever going to go back?" Dahlia asked curiously, sipping on her alcoholic drink. "I mean, I know you've got Elio now, but there are ways to do both if you really want to go."

"I don't know, Dolly," I told her. "I just... maybe it just wasn't the right fit for me, you know? I love art but-"

"I'm not forcing you," Dahlia said hurriedly, laying her hand on top of mine for some comfort. She gave me a small understanding smile. "I just know how much you love doing your art, and you should. You're so talented at it. I just don't want you to give that up completely. You deserve to do what you want once everything calms down."

"I guess," I said unsurely, glancing at Elio. "But with everything that goes on in this family, it feels like that'll never come. You said it yourself. Gio is always going to be a target and since I'm married to him, so will Elio and I. I feel like I should start taking that seriously. And that means avoiding public places like school."

I sighed.

"Besides," I continued, "I can always just take private lessons. I don't have to go to school to do art. I never really wanted to make it into a career. It's just something that I enjoy doing. If I make a little money along the way, then all the better." "As long as it's what you want to do, Olive," Dahlia said firmly, then she smiled. "I'm happy as long as you are, even if we can't go to school together like we planned."

Like a gut punch to the stomach, there was nothing else I could say.

I couldn't meet her eyes, knowing I would see the sadness there. It was tough. We'd been dreaming of going to school in Italy together since we were kids. Giving it all up, even though I knew it was the right thing to do with how my life had gone, it still felt like I was abandoning her.

But I should've known by now that Dahlia would've never seen it like that.

"Honestly, though..." she said, shrugging and finishing off her last bite of pasta. I glanced at her, startled at her nonchalant attitude. "I'm thinking I may not go back either."

"You're not?" I asked, surprise coloring my voice. This was the first I had heard of it.

"Probably not," Dahlia confirmed, rather calm despite having just declared she was giving up her childhood dream. "I might go back to the States to go to school. I'm honestly tired of the constant threats here. With Mom and Dad, we had threats and everything, but not like this. I'm going to grow gray hairs if I stay here much longer."

A deep sense of loss washed over me seeing the relieved look in her eyes. She was right. I knew she was, so why did it feel so terrible to think about? Just the thought of her getting on a plane, being so far away in a whole other country, without me, left me feeling sad.

"But what about-" I blurted it out but then shut my mouth before the last word could come out, a horrible feeling of shame welling up in my gut as I realized what I had almost said.

Me.

Selfish had never been a word I had ascribed to myself but now, I had to rethink that.

"What about what?" Dahlia asked, tilting her curiously.

I swallowed the large lump in my throat, though I doubted it was willing to go away anytime soon. I glanced at Dahlia, remembering her pale, stricken face in the hospital, the scar that lined her lower abdomen, and the blood on Gio's clothes when he came home that night.

She had been the first to stay, to power through what had happened to her and go to school anyway. But she also had suffered from nightmares more than once. I'd caught her in the kitchen after a bad one every so often, multiple mugs of cocoa mixed with alcohol in the sink.

I didn't want her to leave, but I couldn't force her to stay. No matter how much I wanted to. It was entirely selfish to even ask. She had her own life to live. I wanted her to be happy, even if it meant losing her.

I put on a smile, feeling plastic in the way it curled on my lips, but I powered through it.

"Just... the gelato. You'd probably miss the gelato." I faked a laugh, hoping she didn't see through me. She raised an eyebrow, sending me a suspicious look like she didn't quite believe me but luckily for me, she let it go. "Oh, I will. But it's not like I won't be coming to visit ever again." She rolled her eyes then grinned at me. "I'd miss you and this munchkin too much."

She ruffled Elio's curly hair and he just blinked at her, his eyes half-closed with his mouth wide open. She laughed at his sleepy look.

"Time for bed, huh, kiddo?" She grinned as his head fell into his chest, too heavy to keep up anymore, and his curls went straight into the plate of pasta he'd been munching on.

"I'll get him ready," I laughed, getting to my feet. I covered my uneaten pasta and put it in the fridge. As I put things away, Dahlia began talking to me, handing me the dirty dishes on the table as she did so, which I put into the sink. "Plus I kinda miss the States a bit," Dahlia admitted with a grin. "Though the guys and the food are definitely better here, I miss telling people to fuck off and having them respond with a, 'Fuck you,' back. They don't do that here." "You miss that?" I laughed, giving her an exasperated look.

"Of course!" She sniffed, raising her chin. "It's proper etiquette."

I cleaned up Elio, and Dahlia followed me to his room. He was so tuckered he didn't even need a story as I gently laid him down in his crib, tucking his sharkie next to him and covering his lower half.

He snored as soon as he hit the sheets and we tip-toed out, covering our mouths to keep from giggling and waking him up. With the baby monitor in one hand, we headed back to the living room to relax before bed. That was when Dahlia sprung on me her next shock of the night.

"Since you're staying here," Dahlia said, hesitantly, "have you ever thought about asking Gio to retire?"

"Retire?" I repeated, staring at her cluelessly. The word went round and round in my head, not registering what it meant. "From the... mafia?"

"Well, yeah." She shrugged. "He could retire like my Dad did. Gio's done enough, don't you think? Alessandro or Tallon could easily take over, and we both knew Alessandro is gunning for that position anyway. If Gio's not the head anymore, you and Elio will be in less danger."

"I... I never thought about that before," I blinked rapidly, imagining the scenario in my head.

It had never occurred to me that people could simply retire from the Mafia. I always thought it was an 'until death' club, but now that she'd mentioned it, James did used to be the head.

He'd retired.

Logically, Gio also could.

It sounded nice, handing over the dangerous business to Tallon or Alessandro while Gio and I focused on raising our son, no threats or constant worries over our safety, no endless hours doing illegal business I wasn't even allowed to know.... It was nice. But did I even have the right to ask that of him? Gio could never abandon them. He loved this organization too much.

But maybe it was worth just bringing it up, to see what he thought about it. The worst he could say was no.

"It was just a thought, Olive. But there's nothing wrong with at least asking. Gio loves you and he adores Elio, too. Maybe it's time for a new head to take over." Her words were blunt, as they always were, and I nodded slowly, absorbing what she said.

"I'll think about it," I said, bidding her goodnight as I traveled back to my room.

I pushed the thoughts to the back of my mind, wanting to check on Elio before I went to bed. I stopped in the doorway of his room, peeking inside, and smiled at the lump I could see in the shadowy room.

But a sense of dread washed over me as I spotted the window wide open, the curtains fluttering in the wind.

I hadn't left them open.

I swallowed, gripping the monitor in one hand tightly as I stepped in and headed for the window. Nervously I glanced outside, checking for anything unusual before gently closing it. I went to latch it, but I stilled as I noticed the metal clasp broken in two.

Like someone had tried to pry open the window.

Panic shot through me and I whirled around to the crib, rushing in.

"Elio, baby?" Hysteria crept through my voice as I dug my hands into the crib but the lump I thought had been my sleeping baby was just a shark plushie hidden under the blankets.

"Elio!" I screamed, throwing away the plush and searching every corner of the crib. I rushed over to the light, flipping it on, my eyes scanning every nook and cranny for my missing baby. The nursery part for the baby monitor, the one I had set up on the table by the crib, was thrown onto the floor, the batteries missing from the back.

My heart thudded violently in my chest, tears welling up in my eyes as the panic and loss mixed together.

There was no way. This wasn't happening. I tore into his closet, not knowing what else to do as I searched his toys and plushes for any sign of my baby, but I already knew he wasn't there.

I fell to my knees, holding the shark plush as tears poured like a broken faucet. I wailed, screaming as I clutched to the plush like it could bring my baby back if I only hugged it hard enough. "Olive? What's wrong?" Dahlia burst into the room, her eyes scanning the mess, but I was too far gone.

Trembling, I did the only thing I could think of. I grabbed my phone, clumsily hitting the speed dial, and put it to my ear.

I sobbed into the phone, lost and emotionally wrecked. The pain beat down on me like a drum, intensifying gravity until I couldn't breathe and all I wanted was my sweet baby in my arms again, to hear his little laugh.

"Hello?" Gio answered, and all I could respond with was a loud unintelligible wail as I broke down. "Olivia? What's going on? Are you at home? Are you hurt? Talk to me!"

I took a staggering breath, trying to push through the sobs as I wailed out into the phone.

"He's gone!"