Straight Man Richard Russo Novels & Stories

We all sat down at a table and when damn old Russo arrived, things got a little tense in the air, when he saw my brothers, he squinted and smiled as if he had gotten some test subjects for his torture experiments. Old bastard. "I didn't think Basciano would bring his other offspring to this evening," he said mockingly. "Well, I didn't think dying old men so much, but here we are, right?" Enzo's audacity made Giulia and Diana tremble, I looked at him wondering if he wanted to die, Russo just took it with humor. He knew how to provoke; he was a disgusting person. So, when Diana took me by the hand to get up and walk behind her grandfather to make the toast, it took me a world to do so.

But just as the thought crossed my mind, a man who Logan had been talking to before made his way over. “Oh god,” Logan said under his breath. “That’s Richard, and he’s drunk. He gets talkative when he’s drunk, and he’s already talked to me for—” “Hello again,” Richard, a middle-aged man with a beer belly said as he approached, his face red from the alcohol. “Logan, I wanted to—oh, hello there.” He paused, eyeing me up and down. “Hello,” I said stiffly, leaning into Logan just a little bit more.

He gave him a warning look. Russo chuckled. It was both fascinating and horrible to watch him. My inside yelled at me to run away from this man. I got the same vibes from Niko and Alessio too, but there was one thing that they would never hurt me the way Russo could hurt. He ran his gaze on me, reading me. His gaze glinted as they deterred, staring at my ring. "I can't believe Old Bianchi picked a dog for his daughter." He chuckled, insulting André. My hands fisted in my lap. "What's your problem with him?" I almost snapped.

"Hello, brother," the man beside me said in a dark voice. My head whirled to face him and then I stared between the two men, noting the slight resemblance between them. I couldn't believe I hadn't seen it earlier. "I asked you what you're doing here, Russo." Russo shrugged, a playful smirk pulling at his mouth, "I came to congratulate your pretty wife. How come you always get the best things? I'm envious." His words might have been a joke, but I had a feeling the sentiment behind it was very real.

I said to my reflection in the mirror. "But then, why? Why had I imagined him out of every other guy in the whole world?!" I asked myself another question. Maybe... Maybe that was because he was the hottest guy I had ever known. That was just a fact. Russo was extremely hot especially the version I had seen... Imagined of him last night. His dark hair held in a handsome haircut and that body of his, so masculine. Russo should be about 6'4 at height and his entire upper body was covered in tattoos, most of which showed off his powerful position in the family business (what I loved calling the mafia).

Our usual set up was, I would introduce myself to his business associates if they needed anything from me, a coffee maybe, a pen or whatever they needed. ‘’You’re hiding a gem in your office, Devin” the old man named Mr. Ruso spoke, his eyes taking over my body from head to toe and licked his lips disgracefully. “Can I have a dance with you, Ms. Green.” He looks like a dirty old man and my hand around Devin’s biceps tightened, but Devin pressed my hands gently, again.

“I’ll call the doctor.” As the nurse walked away, she turned back to the man. He hadn’t moved, hadn’t shifted his gaze. Something about him unsettled her. He wasn’t like the doctors or the nurses. He didn’t belong here. “You still haven’t told me who you are.” He tilted his head slightly, as if considering her. Then— “Adrian Wolfe.” Her breath caught. The name was familiar. Too familiar. Adrian Wolfe. CEO of Wolfe Enterprises. Ruthless businessman. The man who had once tried to buy Carter Industries before her father’s death.

I didn’t know how long our talk lasted but I could tell he noticed I was a bit distracted and that was when he let me go but what I didn’t expect was seeing Tessa with the same man I never wanted to see her with Richard is a cunning and a fucking bastard his father was second in command to the last leader of the Russian mafias but he was born in the United states the only resons he keeps answering his English name and she’s like one even though he had ancient Russian blood running through his veins. If there was one thing I knew about him over the years. We have learnt to stay off each other's businesses and tried our best to cooperate in ways but seeing him with Tessa raced my heart in ways

Paul said sloppily. ‘Heck, if these guys were going in for disciplinary action that would leave me alone. I always wanted to do this, and I have a reputation to live by, Heh! I am the acknowledged irascible person with a short fuse’ Richard thought as a wicked smile flashed on his face, he calmly picked the jug and splashed it over the few people that were causing trouble “It’s fun to learn together”

It gave me a chance to see if Russo would be stupid enough to show his face. He was. I spotted him across the ballroom the moment we arrived, standing near the bar, surrounded by admirers and flatterers. Victor Russo, in person, was exactly what I had expected from the research I'd done. He was in his mid-thirties. tall and well-built. He was a poacher. He would buy huge companies, then turn all their assets into cash, making himself richer. It would seem his only aim was to have a lot of money.