Page 178 of Sins of the Orchid

I reached out to Santi, placing my hand on his thigh and squeezing it gently. “Thank you,” I murmured. He was a good man.

He dialed the number, ringing coming through the phone. The next second, I heard my father’s voice answer.

“Santino here. Amore is safe.”

A loud exhale. “Jesus fucking Christ. I was worried sick.” Silence followed, and I was sure my father thought back to the way we parted. “Thank you, Russo.”

My dad might be a lot of things, a criminal, a hardass, and who knows what else, but he had a good heart. And he knew when he owed someone. I loved him despite not knowing him for the first thirteen years of my life. George was a fraud. It had never been more evident than now when I could clearly see all that my dad had done for my safety.

“No problem,” Santi answered. “I’m not taking her to my city house. I’ll keep her safe.”

I expected my father to protest, but he surprised me when I heard his answer.

“Good,” he agreed. “Keep her safe, Russo. Don’t make me regret letting her go with you.”

Santi growled, but I gently squeezed his thigh again, leaned over and pressed my mouth on the stubble of his cheek.

“She will be,” was all Santi ended up saying.

“I want to talk to my daughter.”

Santi handed me the phone and continued driving, speeding as far away from the city as possible.

“Hey, Dad,” I greeted him. I could hear him clear his throat, but no words came over the phone, so I continued, “Don’t worry about me. I’m sorry to stress you out.”

“Don’t worry about that.” Dad’s voice sounded strained. “Be safe. I just want you safe.”

“We are.” I cleared my throat, uncomfortable with the next words. “I’m sorry about what happened earlier tonight,” I continued in a soft voice. “I don’t want you to think—”

“Amore, no matter what you did or do, I am still proud of you.” I swallowed hard. Those words meant so much. “I love you.” My dad rarely spoke words of affection and emotion was thick in his voice. “Even though sometimes it seems I’m too controlling, I want you to be happy. Your safety is my priority.”

“I love you too,” I said softly. “Santi will keep me safe.”

“He better if he wants to live,” Dad grunted, and I couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle. “But I know he will. After all, he went through a lot of trouble to make sure you marry him. And as long as you want that too, I’ll support it. But if he makes you cry, I’ll kill him.”

“Don’t worry, Dad,” I retorted jokingly. “If he makes me cry, I’ll make him cry too.”

Dad’s deep chuckle sounded through the phone, making me swell with happiness.

“Okay, my little warrior, give the phone to Russo,” he said, a trace of laughter still in his voice.

I handed the phone back to Santi with a wide grin. Maybe I could have it all. The two men exchanged words. I didn’t follow, my head practically in the clouds.

Santi hung up, then took my hand into his, brushing his lips against my knuckles. “My Amore,” he drawled, his lips curved in amusement. “Seems I’m getting a father-in-law that will kill me unless his daughter is smiling every time he sees you.”

“I’ll be sure to smile.” I grinned. “Unless I want to get rid of you,” I teased.

He grimaced. “When did my fiancée become so bloodthirsty?”

“Since she fell in love,” I shot back.

He let out a breath of amusement. I loved how relaxed the air between us felt. A simple evening and everything has changed. To distract myself, I checked on his right arm to make sure it hadn’t started bleeding again. Satisfied I only saw dried blood, I leaned my head back against the seat.

Silence fell in the car. Pulling his jacket tighter over me, I inhaled deeply. His scent lingered around me and comforted me.

I suspected Santi kept quiet because he wanted me to get some rest. I tried to remain awake, but it didn’t take long for my eyelids to grow heavier with each mile behind us. The freeway was empty, and Santi drove smoothly and steadily, the sound of the engine soothing me to sleep.

“Get some sleep,” Santi recommended in a low voice.