Episode 16

He arrives at the nightclub and heads straight for the exclusive VIP area, where only he and his invitees or the dancers can enter. He sits down and takes a sip of whiskey, attempting to gather his thoughts, when three dancers who always "played" with Otavio approach. They are topless, wearing only thong panties, one begins a pole-dance routine, and the other two dance sensually against each other, casting lascivious glances full of desire and envy at Otavio.

Strikingly, Otavio doesn't feel attraction or desire for any of them. The one he truly longs for isn't there, so he asks the dancers to leave. Reluctantly they do, disappointed since Otavio had never turned them away before, always having satisfied all three with great pleasure and desire.

Yet despite his denials, Otavio's once ice-cold heart has thawed for Bianca. One thing he is sure of: if it's Bianca's heart that she wants conquered, then conquered it will be.

Thus, Otavio stood up and made his way home without delay, eager not to waste any more time.

Meanwhile, Bianca had remained thoughtful in her room for a long while. She felt perhaps she’d been overly harsh with Otavio, only wanting him to understand her perspective and how much she would suffer if he failed to keep the promises he'd made to her. Tears flowed down her cheeks, mixing with a longing for her parents and anger at her sister for betraying the family in such a manner.

After some time had passed without seeing either Ellen or Otavio, she rose, washed her face, and decided to explore the house. Gathering her courage and feeling quite hungry, she walked slowly down the corridor, her hand tracing along the wall carefully to avoid stumbling into anything. Upon reaching the end of the wall and finding a banister, she started descending the stairs. Yet, five steps from the bottom, she tripped over the strap of a broken sandal and tumbled forward.

However, she didn’t hit the ground; instead, she felt Otavio's strong, muscular arms catch her, bringing relief.

"Girl, if I hadn't returned, do you realize how badly you could've been hurt?!"

"And you care?"

"If I didn’t, you can be sure I would’ve been the one to push you down these stairs."

Otavio said this while still firmly holding her.

"You can let go of me, Otavio."

"I will never let you go, Bianca. I'll always be here for you. I will be the man you want, I just ask for a chance – that's all I need. And as for love... we can discover it together."

"Otavi..."

Before she could continue, he kissed her passionately but tenderly. Bianca didn’t resist and reciprocated the kiss, their hearts racing until they had to part for air.

"Little one, don’t say anything, let time speak for us. Like I said, I’m not good at being nice, but I will do everything to learn about love with you, if only you'd stop being so stubborn, like a mule."

Bianca- "Are you seriously calling me a mu..."

Just as Otavio realized he was about to spoil it all, he kissed her again to calm the storm. After a while, they were interrupted by Ellen, who wore a cheerful grin upon seeing her son kissing Bianca.

"Shall we have dinner, my darlings?"

Bianca was utterly embarrassed and blushed, then Otavio took her hand, leading her to the dinner table.

He gently helped Bianca with her meal, explaining the options and serving her plate, which surprised both Ellen and Bianca with his unexpected kindness.