“I love your cousin. We’ve been seeing each other for years.”
He ran a hand across his jaw, glaring at me with pure hatred in his eyes, and for a second, I thought he was going to sucker punch me.
“I wanted to tell you,” I continued. “At first, it was just sex.”
Sonny shook his head, teeth clenched. “Of all the women in Devil’s Creek… the women in the fucking world. You had to go after Rhi.”
“It was an accident. I never meant for it to happen.”
“Tell me everything.”
“You’ll have to be more specific.”
“When did it start?”
“Back in high school. Our senior year,” I confessed.
His nostrils flared. “Are you fucking kidding me? So you’ve been with Rhi for ten fucking years?”
“Not the entire time.”
“Did you have anything to do with why she ran?”
I shook my head.
Rhi didn’t want Sonny to know she was with Cillian Cormac. She was too embarrassed to tell him she had sex with his uncle, and I had to kill him to stop the bastard from raping her. That was a secret both of us would take to our graves. Only Luca and Alex knew about the past, and it would stay that way.
“How did it happen?” Sonny downed the rest of his drink in one gulp. “Did you seek her out?”
“No. She had a crush on me. Didn’t you ever notice how much she tagged along with us? Rhi inserted herself into everything we did.”
He nodded in agreement. “Yeah, but who was the aggressor?”
“Rhi.”
“I don’t believe you.”
Annoyed with his attitude, I threw out my hand. “Go ask her. She’s upstairs.”
“You’ve been keeping her all this time? Her dad is looking for her. He has the Irish Mob out searching for her.”
“I’m protecting her from Sean Donnelly. She begged for my help. Do you think I wanted to get involved with Irish business? No, this was the last thing I wanted to do.”
“Why didn’t you come to me? You could have told me sooner. I could have helped her get out of town.”
I headed toward the entryway. “C’mon. We should have this discussion with Rhi here.”
Sonny was at my side as we walked down the long, tiled hallway. “You love her?”
“I want to marry her, Son.”
“Why?”
I rolled my shoulders. “For the same reason most people get married. And if she’s a married woman, her dad can’t promise her to another man.”
“Is that the only reason you’re doing this?”
“No. I would have married her, eventually. We’re just doing this sooner than planned, so I can keep her safe.”
“You don’t know my uncle. He’s worse than your dad.”
“Don’t speak ill of the dead,” I shot back as we headed upstairs.
“You know what I mean, Cello. Arlo could have scared the Devil.”
He wasn’t wrong about that.
My father was one scary motherfucker.
Even grown men trembled when they heard his name. It still didn’t feel real. Weeks after the funeral, I could feel him in the house, like his ghost was following me around. He wouldn’t have approved of me marrying Rhi. I wanted to ask for his permission before he died, but I chickened out every time. Now, I realized I never needed his approval. But I wanted it. Luca and I had spent most of our lives seeking his validation.
When we reached the fourth floor, I pushed open the double doors at the end of the hall. Rhi laid on the bed on her stomach, eating a handful of popcorn. She’d been eating a lot more lately, and I wondered if she was pregnant. I hadn’t pushed the subject yet. We had to deal with one thing at a time.
Achilles curled up against her arm. When his eyes landed on me, he hopped off the bed and jumped up on my leg, begging me to pet him. A whimper escaped his throat. I lifted him into my arms and scratched behind his little ears.
“Rhiannon Branwen O’Shea,” Sonny said in a harsh tone, like a parent scolding a child. “What do you think you’re doing?”
She sat up, her hand in the bowl on my bed. “Eating popcorn and watching a horror movie with Achilles.”
Her innocent act was cute, but Sonny saw right through it. He approached the bed, hovering over her.
“Are you going to kill me?” Rhi asked between bites.
“No.” He shoved a hand through his short blond hair and sighed. “Marcello says he loves you.”
“He does,” she said without hesitation. “And I love him.”
“Is this what you want, Rhi?” Sonny dropped to one knee in front of her. “You could do anything with your life. You don’t have to marry Marcello to get away from your dad.”
“Hey, asshole,” I interjected. “Don’t talk about me like I’m not here.”
Ignoring me, Sonny held Rhi’s gaze. “Do you want this?”
She nodded. “Yes. I’ve been in love with Marcello since I was a teenager. I want to marry him.”