Chapter 5 - The Tiny Hand
The scent of untouched pasta and fresh white roses hung in the air.
Dante stops a few feet away.
Maya braces herself. She looked up at the towering, devastatingly handsome billionaire, her naturally pink lips parted in fear, waiting for the harsh reprimand that would surely cost her the job she so desperately needed.
Suddenly Sophia reaches out and GRABS MAYA'S HAND before Maya can leave.
Maya gasped softly.
Macro close-up: Sophia's tiny fingers wrap tightly around Maya's hand. The contrast was beautiful and heartbreaking—the little girl in the dreamy royal-blue velvet princess dress gripping the exhausted waitress's hand as if Maya was the only safe harbor in a terrifying storm.
Dante looks down. He watched his traumatized daughter cling to a total stranger.
Then slowly raises his pale-gray eyes toward Maya.
His suspicion transforms into stunned disbelief. The hard, ruthless exterior of the mafia kingpin completely shattered. He looked at Maya’s porcelain-fair skin, her messy auburn-chestnut bun, and the deep, profound compassion radiating from her soul.
DANTE, low and shaken: "What did you do?"
Maya has no answer. She shook her head slightly, realistic tears pricking the corners of her enormous hazel eyes. She didn't know what magic she had accidentally invoked.
Sophia refuses to release her hand. The child stepped closer, hiding her rosy cheeks behind Maya’s emerald apron.
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The entire restaurant waits.
👉 The billionaire demanded answers, but the corrupt manager was about to violently interrupt to protect his own deadly secret.
