25. Hyacinth #2
“I’ve always liked sunflowers.” Zane glances out over the water. “I have sweet olive shrubs out front. I don’t know if you even noticed the scent, but it’s one of my favorites.”
I didn’t notice, but now I’m going to pay more attention. If it’s currently flowering, maybe there’s some way to extract the scent from the flowers. Chrys will know more about that kind of stuff, I’m sure.
Or she’ll roll her eyes and tell me she has no idea, but she’ll point me to somebody who does know.
“I can plant sunflowers for you,” I say.
I try to imagine a wall of sunflowers along the edge of his property.
“You need other flowers too. In other colors, to complement the sunflowers. If you layer them, it looks pretty.” Then I laugh.
“But I’m getting ahead of myself. I’ll probably kill everything by accident. ”
I’m a lot better at killing than anything else.
“If you do, you do.” Zane looks back at me. “But they’re pretty hardy.” He smiles crookedly. “They have to be, to survive here.”
I give him an unimpressed look. “Are you talking about something other than flowers?”
“I am.” Zane hesitates, but then he leans in and kisses me. It’s light, almost chaste, and he pulls away before it can deepen.
But it’s something.
I part my lips, and it feels wrong to beg for more.
Asking never gets you anything.
“I can think of plenty of fragile people in New Valence,” I say. I lick my lips, chasing his taste. “I should know. I garroted them.”
“Everyone’s allowed moments of weakness.” He gives me a pointed look. “But don’t go having one that gets you killed. I’d hate to have to go on a rampage that gets me locked up.”
I smile and drop my hand onto his thigh. He takes it into his own, twining our fingers.
“How would you murder them?” I ask. “I liked the face-to-heated-stove move you did. Very visceral.”
“That was one of the more creative deaths. But I think the acid bath was my personal favorite.” There’s something dark in his expression when he mentions it, but then he smirks.
“If I find myself lacking ideas, I’ll simply have to ask you for more.
What do you think? I might need to set an example when I find out who put out the hit on me. ”
I squeeze his hand. “Do you want me to kill Forest? I could do it easily. He wouldn’t expect it.”
Zane eyes me. “So your cousin was responsible for the hit?” His lips purse. “I don’t understand why he would risk a war. I hadn’t thought I’d done anything to piss your family off recently.”
“He asked me to. He went behind Dante’s back.” I shrug. “He wouldn’t tell me why. And I’m not supposed to question orders.”
“Do you think you can find out more now? Or is he going to be even more reticent with the details?” Zane asks.
“I haven’t talked to him since… Well, since I snitched on him to Dante. He hasn’t reached out to yell at me, either.” I should feel guilty about betraying the family like this, but it will be harder to keep Zane safe if he doesn’t know the full details.
It’s not like I haven’t already betrayed my family, anyway.
And Zane is more important than Forest.
“Interesting.” Zane mulls that over for a moment. “Well, we’ll find out more. I have Richard looking into it as well.”
Richard Moore, Zane’s right hand man.
The person who had interrupted that amazing evening.
From what I’d gathered, he had once worked with Zane’s father, then had worked for the man who stole the Villani organization until Zane retook his birthright.
He sounds very fickle.
“Richard’s going to have to get used to seeing me,” I say glibly. “Tell him to get over himself.”
Zane snorts. “I don’t think he’s going to do that any time soon.
” It’s his turn to squeeze my hand, a little tighter than I’d squeezed his.
“But he’ll have to get used to the idea of watching my back while I…
” He exhales slowly. “It’s going to be difficult, letting people know I’m also interested in men. In you.”
I bare my teeth. “I can think of one way to take care of anyone who has problems with it. We’ll make a good show of it. The rest will learn to shut up.”
“And if the people making trouble are your own family?” Zane looks down at our joined hands. “I hate this. I hate that I’m—” He cuts himself off, but I can make a few guesses as to what he might be thinking.
Scared, nervous, worried.
I know he’s reluctant to be outed, but he’s willing to do it for me anyway.
I lean in to kiss him, and he meets me halfway. I try to deepen the kiss, but he grabs my jaw and holds me in place. He dictates our pace, and it’s gentle and dominating all at once.
My heart flutters, and I let my eyes slide close.
I focus on Zane’s warmth. The scent of his cologne. His hand on my face, guiding the kiss.
Yes.
I could do anything for him.
Even—
My phone suddenly rings, loud and shrill.
Zane and I pull away, startled by the noise.
“Fuck,” I say.
“Ignore it.” Zane reaches for me again, but I shake my head.
“No. That’s Chrys’s ringtone.” I reach for my phone and get up, turning away from Zane.
She never calls me.
I answer the call. “Chrys?”
Chrys’s voice is high as she says, “Hyacinth. Hyacinth, Forest just kicked me out of the condo. Like… one of his men grabbed me and everything. I don’t… I’m not…” She sounds like she’s been crying, but I can’t tell if she’s scared or pissed off.
Anger makes my vision haze over. “Are you hurt? Where are you?”
Forget killing Forest for Zane.
I’m going to destroy him if he harmed a single hair on Chrys’s head.
“I’m in a hotel,” she says, sniffling. “I mean, I’m fine, but everything is there, and they wouldn’t let me grab it. I was working on an outfit that’s supposed to go to a client tonight, and I just—” She cuts herself off with a sob.
“I’ll get your things for you.” I growl. “Tell me exactly who hurt you.”
“I don’t know his name. Just some stupid thug.” She’s not usually bloodthirsty, but when it comes to her reputation being threatened, she can be downright fierce. “I’ll find out.”
“Okay. I’ll book the first flight home. Stay safe.” I wait for her to say goodbye, then I immediately call Forest.
He picks up after the second ring. “Yes?”
“I’m going to murder you,” I say cheerfully.
I hear a long sigh on the other end. “You betrayed the family. Did you think there would be no consequences? I have every right to evict a freeloader.”
I laugh darkly. “I’ll evict a few people too.”
I hang up on him and stride toward the car.
Only then do I realize that Zane is still there, and I’m caught by a sudden, extreme fear.
He’s going to hate me.
I’m ruining the date again.
“Um. I need to…” I grit my teeth. “I need to return to Calamity. But I’ll be back soon. If that’s all right.”
“Of course it is.” Zane opens the car door for me. “Family comes first. At least, the good part of your family. Stefan, take Hyacinth to—” He pauses, then looks at me. “Which hotel are you at now?”
I shake my head. “The airport. I’ll grab the next flight into Calamity.” I’m already on the website for the airline, booking a ticket.
“All right. To the airport, then.” Zane reaches past me, putting my seatbelt around me and clicking it into place. “I’ll take precautions in case he decides to retaliate by setting up another hit on me.”
I look Zane in the eyes. “I’ll come back,” I promise. “It shouldn’t take me more than a few days.”
“You’d better,” Zane says. “Or else I’ll need to chase you down.”
Those words settle around my neck like a collar, and something eases inside me.
He’ll still be here when I get back.
But I won’t keep him waiting.