“Be safe, Hy. I’m not sure what happened here, but I’m not coming back until they catch whoever did this.” She paused before looking at Rhys from head to toe. “Are you sure you’re good? I’m sure my parents would let you stay with us until you decide what you want to do.”
“She’s good,” Rhys snapped.
“I’m okay,” Hyacinth said at the same time. Her eyes narrowed at Rhys. She understood his need to take control, but she could speak for herself. While she appreciated that he wanted her to stay with him, he needed to slow the fuck down. One hand reached out to grab Brie’s. “I promise. Staying here in the city keeps me close to work. Trust me, I’m not coming back here either. Not until we’re sure the person has been caught.” Or killed. Whichever came first. Of course, she wasn’t going to say that to Brie. “Go on. I’m sure your parents are worried. Text me when you get there. I want to know that you’re safe.”
“Just be careful, Hy.” Her eyes cut over to Rhys before coming back to Hyacinth. Leaning in for a hug, Brie whispered. “He’s a bit intense. If you need me, just call me.”
Once they broke and said goodbye, Hyacinth turned to Rhys. “What the hell was that?”
His gaze slid to face. Lips clenched tight, he walked beside her, steering her towards his car. Opening the door, he motioned for Hyacinth to climb inside. For a moment, she considered refusing. One glance at his face told her she’d have a battle on her hands if she tried. With all the cops around, she decided maybe that wasn’t the best thing.
“Get your ass in the car, Cin.”
Ready to go toe-to-toe with Rhys, she looked at him with a smirk on her face. “You don’t want to go down this road. I work for you…”
“No. You belong to me.”
Well, damn. That was unexpected. “What did you say?”
He lifted one hand and rubbed it down his face. “Just… please, get in the car, Cin. Let me take you back to my place so we can talk this out.” They stared at each other for a few moments before she sat down in the car. He closed the door and moved to the driver’s side before climbing in.
Since this was an emergency and they had to get here so quickly, Carlos had not driven them. Today was his day off so he could spend it with his family. There was no way in hell Rhys would have called him away to bring them here.
As he drove them home, his mind swirled with the possibilities. Who could it be? Why had they targeted Hyacinth? What would have happened if she’d been at home? The only solution he could come up with was that he needed to protect her. It had been a moment of weakness telling her she belonged to him. What he’d said was true, but he knew being with him placed her in danger.
They hadn’t been together for any time at all, unless the time she’d worked for him counted. He knew it didn’t. Then again, Hyacinth didn’t know how much he thought about her. How her laugh made him smile. How he goes crazy whenever he thinks about her walking to her car all alone at night. Or when she doesn’t show up when expected. Maybe he was irrational about his need to be with her, but it couldn’t be helped.
She had been under his skin from day one. Looking back, he knew he didn’t treat her as good as he could have. He was sure she felt second best at times. That was never his intention. Hyacinth was always on his mind and slowly becoming one of the most important people in his life. Before this weekend, it had been important not to show favoritism, but he knew that he had failed at that. If she gave him just one chance, he knew he could keep her happy and satisfied, but he needed to play his cards right.
After spending this time with her, his plan was to show her they were more than just a temporary thing. She meant more to him than just a weekend of fun. Hyacinth was the real deal for him. Hisnonno, or grandfather, had once told him and his brothers, when the day came for them to find theiramina gemella, their soulmate, that nothing would get in the way of them being together. From the time he was a bambino on his grandfather's knee, he knew the story of how his grandparents met. As soon as hisnonnoset eyes on hisnonna, their connection to each other was unbreakable. Through wars, separation, and moving to the United States with little to nothing to their name. Never had their love and dedication wavered.
Rhys knew that’s what he wanted with Hyacinth. By today’s standards, instant love wasn’t real. That type of immediate connection was considered outdated. But Rhys knew that’s what he found with Hyacinth. She belonged with him. And he would do everything in his power to protect her, even if she tried to fight him every step of the way.
“Rhys? Don’t you think we need to talk about what you said back there?”
He sighed at her words, but nodded in return. “We do, but I’d rather have that conversation once we’re back at my home. But let me say this one thing and then you can sit over there and stew and overthink everything for the next thirty minutes.”
“I don’t overthink,” Hyacinth grumbled.
Rhys glanced over at her and smiled before turning his head back to the road. “But you do, and that makes you who you are. I meant what I said earlier. I know you feel the connection between us. We tried to fight it, but it only got stronger. And this weekend, when I was balls deep inside you, I know that tether between us tightened. We’ll talk more about who could have done this to you, but I need to tell you a little more about my past before I do that.”
Hyacinth’s eyes were open wide as she stared at him. He had been right about her overthinking his words, because she was doing that right now. There were so many questions she wanted to ask, but held off. If he was about to share some deep family secret, there was no way she was going to interrupt. Plus, she was nosey as hell, so she was ready for him to spill the tea. When he said nothing for a few moments, she wondered if he had changed his mind.
“Are you hungry?”
Hell no, she wasn’t hungry. What was he even talking about? They had just eaten before Brie called with the news about their apartment. “No, I’m fine.”
Another moment of silence. “Had you ever heard of the Mannetti’s before you met me?”
Now he wanted to play twenty damn questions. If Hyacinth wasn’t so eager to know what he had to say, she would tell him to speed the fuck up. “No, I hadn’t. Should I have known the name?” That last part came out on its own, but she couldn’t help it.
His lips curled in a devastating smile. As they sped along the freeway, he weaved in between cars, his hand in full control of the steering wheel. “Not necessarily. It’s an old name from Cremona, Italy. Some of my family hails from Venice, Italy. But members I’m going to discuss came to America from Sicily in the 1920’s before settling in Massachusetts.”
Unable to resist, Hyacinth shifted in her seat. Her ears were open, and she was all in.
“Now, these particular family members had nothing when they came over to the US. The clothes on their back, a small bag of important items from their home country, and each other. They wanted a new life for themselves. It was important for them to create a legacy for their children, and their children’s children.”
He stopped talking for a moment to focus on shifting lanes when they came up against a traffic snarl. Hyacinth was almost bouncing in her seat.