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No matter how many times they came together, he amazed her with how attentive he was to her body and her needs. He may be a tyrant at work, but he was a fucking God in the bedroom.
There was not one place on her body that Rhys hadn’t touched or kissed. From toes to the top of her head, with special attention paid to her hidden treasure. A giggle came out as she remembered how he made sure he tapped into that resource and lapped at all the honey that flowed from her body. Just the thought of it made her stomach clench and her channel slick with need.
“Hey Hyacinth. What’s so funny?” Missy greeted her as she stood in the front reception area. The restaurant was always busy between the hours of five and eight, so she had suggested to Rhys to have more than one person covering the front. That way, when one was taking care of a customer, the other was available. It showed a more responsive and customer-focused approach. No one patron was more important than the other. It worked like a charm. In the past week, they not only had repeat customers, but reservations increased. While there was no concrete proof that the adjustments she suggested for the business were the reason for the change, Hyacinth felt that it definitely played a part.
Walking over to the young lady, Hyacinth smiled. “Oh, nothing.” Then she changed the subject. “How are you doing? I know you’re ready to move away from being a server. How do you think things are going here at the hostess desk?”
“It’s going great. Being a server pays good money and the tips really help make a difference. But, it’s good to know that I can become something more. I’m glad Mr. Mannetti is giving me a chance to prove myself.”
She looked at the young lady with a smile. Hyacinth remembered when she was fresh out of college. All excited about life and what was in store for her. Because she was the first one in her family to go to college, there was a lot of pressure on her to make it big. Or at least she thought there was. She later found out that her parents had always been proud of her, no matter what she did. They just wanted her to be happy.
Maybe if she’d focused on being happy rather than doing what she thought was expected of her all the time, she would be better off. Not that she wouldn’t have gone to college right out of high school or moved to Santa Barbara. But maybe life was about more than what she’d made it out to be. As she looked at Missy, glowing with happiness at being given a chance to do more for her life and have a solid living, she wondered when she had become so unhappy with her own situation.
Her paychecks were spent on bills. Mainly rent and student loans. Sure, she had a bit of money in savings, but there was always the fear that one day she’d lose everything and have to start over. That was no way to live.
These past few days with Rhys was the first time, in a very long time, she’d done something just for herself. And damn, it was good.
She was enjoying herself and all the things they were doing together. Maybe living in the moment was something she needed to do more of because if it always had her feeling this amazing the next day, it had to be good for the soul.
She glanced over at Missy and noticed she was staring at her, waiting for a response. “Oh, yes. Missy, you’re a hard worker. Someone the other employees depend on. Rh.. Um, Mr. Mannetti notices things like that. Of course, he would give you a chance to prove yourself. Just keep doing what you’re doing.”
“Thanks Hyacinth. That means a lot coming from you. I know Mr. Mannetti values your opinion and if you think I’m doing well, then I believe he does also.” Just then, the door opened to allow more patrons inside, and Missy turned on her smile.
Hyacinth took that moment to step away and walk to the back office, where she knew Rhys would be working. The man never stopped. From the time he arrived around lunchtime until closing, he worked in his office. Crunching numbers. Talking with vendors. Looking for partnerships. It was all about growing his business.
For a moment, Hyacinth wondered where she fit in. They’d taken their relationship to the next level only a few days ago. She needed to slow down and get a grip. He made no promises to her, and she shouldn’t expect thing to change right away. That didn’t mean she wasn’t hoping for something more.
As she approached his door, she heard him on the phone and slowed down so as not to interrupt.
“That’s a questionable move. You can’t start shifting your business to the west coast without talking to the heads of the families running this side of the country. My father can help, but you know he’s been retired for a while. The council doesn’t meet again for another two months.” Rhys paused to listen to the person on the other side.
Hyacinth’s eyes went wide. She wasn’t naïve by any means, but could Rhys really be talking about what she thought? But he was only a restaurant owner. Right? She tuned in as he continued speaking.
“Tristan, you know I got you covered on this side. We’ve been friends for a long time and our business together will always be strong. Have you called Max Bishop to get him on board? If we need to handle things and get some people out of the way, we’re gonna need some power behind us. Max can give us that. He’s not on the west coast, but that motherfucker knows everybody. Plus, his partner Nico… yeah, Nico Mitchell. I see you’ve heard of him. I’m surprised you two haven’t crossed paths before… Well, be glad that you haven’t. I like having you around,” he paused and gave a small laugh. “Plus, you want to make sure that psycho is on your side. He has some family connections over here as well.”
Now Hyacinth was feeling guilty for not showing herself. It wasn’t like her to eavesdrop on private conversations. Now she’d heard a lot more than she wanted to. It made her look guilty, even if Rhys didn’t know she had heard his conversation.
“Hey Hyacinth,” Mateo greeted as he stepped from the employee lounge. You had to pass the lounge to get to Rhys’s office, so his voice was a bit loud. She squeaked, jumping a few inches as she turned to face the young man watching her with a strange look on his face.
“Oh, shit.”
“Are you okay? I didn’t mean to scare you.” He said before looking up over her head.
There was no need to look behind her, because she knew exactly what he was seeing. The only person it could be.
She took a deep breath before responding. “Yes. Yes, thanks Mateo. I’m okay. Was just waiting to have a conversation with the boss,” she said, hooking one thumb over her shoulder. Plastering a large smile on her face, she tried to play it cool. Inside, she was a quivering mess, and not in a good way. As Mateo walked away, she closed her eyes and inhaled deeply.
“Why are you sneaking around, Cin?”
After a moment, she turned to face him. Tilting her head back to look in his face, she couldn’t help but remember their time together last night. His naked form, his large hands, his soft lips, and his big dick. How could he be both scary and mouth-wateringly sexy at the same time?
“I wasn’t sneaking. Carlos just dropped me off and I wanted to come say hello. You know, just check in.”
He stared at her for an extra second before shifting and taking a step back. “Come in. We should talk.”
“Sure,” she said with false cheeriness. Logically, she knew there was nothing to fear. But the irrational part of her thought about all the mob movies she’d seen in the past. Was she about to sleep with the fishes? Would he make her disappear because she overheard his conversation? Maybe he’d force her to marry him so she couldn’t testify about what she’d heard. Then again, marrying him would be a good thing because she’d get to sleep with him every night. But what if he only wanted a marriage in name only. That’s what mob guys did, right? Then they went off and had a mistress on the side. A woman to do all the things they couldn’t do with their wives.
Could she accept that type of life? What was the alternative? Hyacinth glanced at Rhys as he stood behind her, an indecipherable look on his face. Was this it? Had she heard too much? She should have known something was up with him on that first day. And then she’d gone and fell for the fucker. Just her damn luck.
