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Taken by the Mafia King Up in the Air
TommasoI dropped into my seat next to Paige and breathed a sigh of relief. We’d made it through the airport. They’d checked my M9, but Marshal Evans wouldn’t complain, so I didn’t either. Now that Paige was sitting next to me, I knew I wouldn’t need it anyway. It was all part of the ruse, and they’d believed it.We couldn’t get first-class seats, but even here in business, Paige and I had the row to ourselves. I stretched my legs out as much as I could—never enough room on these damn things—and I glanced at her. The early morning sun cupped her profile. She’d tied her long hair back in a ponytail, allowing the rays to shine over her jagged cheekbones and the dark circles under her eyes. She might have had a few damaged petals, but this delicate flower was still stunning. Even ignoring me or seconds away from biting my head off, I enjoyed being around her.“Do you need help setting up a movie or something?” I asked.She shook her head and stared out the window. Right. I could take a h
Taken by the Mafia King Homecoming
Paige“Stop crying,” the bastard snapped. “Or I’ll give you something to really cry about.”A whip cracked through the freezing air, and just before it was about to land on my naked skin, I woke up.The world of the dream melted away even with my eyes still closed. A soft blanket was wrapped over my legs, and a pillow was warm and soft under my cheek. I would probably have to be up for work in a few minutes, but first, I had to figure out where that wonderful smell of cinnamon was coming from.Wait. Cinnamon?I opened my eyes, and everything came rushing back to me. I didn’t have a job anymore. I’d spent the last five months in captivity. That dream had been a memory. And I’d fallen asleep on the shoulder of the bastard who’d most recently bought me.I shot up and rubbed my cheek. The bumpy weave of his polo indented my skin, a sure sign I’d been asleep for a while. Hopefully, that would cover the heat rising to my cheeks. Shame was a four-letter word to me now, but I still felt stupi
Taken by the Mafia King New Normal
Paige“Paige!” My mom leapt out of the wide front door of Tommaso’s house, tears dragging mascara streaks down her face.“Mom!” How could she be here? I didn’t care. I took a step to run toward her, and the cuff still around my wrist held me back.“Shit. One moment.” Tommaso pulled the key out of his pocket, unlocked my cuff, and waved me forward.I took one step up the stairs, and Mom hit me like a linebacker. Her warm arms wrapped around my waist, thin but strong. I stumbled back down, thankful that she was even shorter than me. The air filled with the same floral perfume she’d been wearing for as long as I could remember.I sobbed.“I’m so sorry, partridge,” she whispered. “I’ve been looking for you all this time, trying to get you back. I missed you so much.”The nickname made me cry even harder. It wasn’t just a childhood nickname. It was Dad’s nickname for me.He started using it after a preschool teacher reported that I sang so much in class that it distracted the other student
Taken by the Mafia King Thank You Cards for the Mafia Princess
PaigeSera Bianchi was all grown up. Her brown hair was just as long as I remembered it from when we were kids. She used to brag that she could sit on hers when no one else could, but now it flowed down her back in a complex lattice of braids. Her day dress—God, how long had it been since I knew anyone who wore anything as ridiculous as a day dress?—shimmered in the light pouring in through the windows in the living room, highlighting her skin.Then, I realized she had her arm through Killian Ricci’s. Of fucking course. From one totally lethal mafia don to the next. Whatever would keep her in the lap of luxury.On the rare occasions I came over to the Bianchi mansion to play, she was exactly the same. She had a whole playroom, painted soft pink and covered in windows, but as a kid, I only cared about the fact that she had every toy I’d ever even heard about. No matter the toy, the line of dolls, or the board game, Sera shared freely until it got to the very best stuff, or the stuff sh
Taken by the Mafia King Long Road Ahead
TommasoI paced back and forth in the main sitting room in the guest wing, trying to enjoy the sweeping Byzantine arches I’d requested instead of worrying about what was going on the bedroom down the hall. Dr. Martinez had told me on the way in that she thought a private area would be important for the check-up, but that she didn’t think it should be the bedroom Paige would be sleeping in long-term so as not to form immediate bad memories. I’d sent her all the way down the hall, as far from the guestroom with the kitchenette as I could manage, had Olivia show Natalia the kitchen so they could talk through Paige’s favorite foods, and immediately posted up here with my scotch. It sat, untouched, on a mosaic coffee table. I couldn’t risk letting my guard down with Paige in my house for the very first time.I wanted to be excited to be home, wanted to run around seeing how all my designs turned out, but my every thought bent toward her and what nightmares Dr. Martinez might be uncovering.
Taken by the Mafia King No Place Like... Home?
PaigeI sat on the end of a queen-sized bed in a room I was told was mine. The lingering scent of fresh paint in the air reminded me this room was new like the rest of the house. Instead of one big window, it had a lot of tall, thin windows with arched tops separated by pieces of metal that looked almost like the columns outside. A mural of the sky at different times of the day covered the ceiling, and the light slanted in right on the afternoon section, like the ceiling itself was some kind of clock. The sheets under my fingers were softer than I’d felt in months, maybe ever, and clean. I changed into a long-sleeved T-shirt and jeans from a duffel bag Mom had brought from home, though I had to belt the jeans, and the shirt hung loose. And still, I couldn’t stop looking at those thin windows and wondering if I could wriggle out of them.I stood up and walked over to the windows. From here, I had a spectacular view of the huge, meticulously landscaped yard. It even looked like Tommaso
Taken by the Mafia King Just Like Mom Made
PaigeThe kitchen, like every other room in Tommaso’s house, looked nothing like anything I’d seen before. High, light-wood ceilings with exposed beams loomed over a terracotta floor and butcherblock countertops of the same wood as the ceiling. Glass French doors showed a terracotta porch. I sucked in a deep breath and got a lungful of rich, buttery caramel and chocolate.Memories washed over me, but for the first time in a long time, they were happy ones. Saturday mornings, making my favorite caramel-chocolate chip cookies with my mom to the tune of Dad’s old Rat Pack records. She would croon along with Sinatra over the whirring of the hand mixer, and I would try to hit the lowest notes I could hear until both of us collapsed in giggles. Dad would always take advantage of our distraction to steal a spoonful of dough or a cookie from the cooling rack, so hot he puffed little dragon-breaths to keep from burning himself while Mom and I only laughed harder.I sagged against the wall, tea
Taken by the Mafia King Tallying Up
TommasoI blinked and walked around the bench to sit on the other end. I’d debated the pond for a long time, thinking it might be hard to maintain, but the breeze and the wildlife made Paige’s question feel a little less lonely in the quiet.“What do you mean, why?” I asked.She threw her hands up then pulled the coat close again. “I mean, you’re in the mafia. A new crime lord, or Killian’s new crime lord, or what the hell ever.”“Yeah.” I frowned at her. “So?”“So flying halfway around the world to”—she glanced away—“find a girl you’ve never met isn’t exactly traditional setting-up-shop behavior.”I stared out over the water. I’d taken the Polaroid I’d carried for so long out of my pocket before I went to her room, too scared of what she’d think if she found it on me, but I could still picture it. Her bright hair, her fiery eyes. I’d looked at it a million times. I’d never forget the look on her face.“I mean, what about the other girls?” She crossed her arms. “There were five of us
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Taken by the Mafia King Epilogue
PaigeI stood in the vestibule outside of the chapel, clutching my flowers, my heart hammering in my chest. Organ music belted through the doors, and I was just waiting for my cue.We all were. My two bridesmaids, in simple maroon dresses, stood ahead of me. Like she could feel my eyes, Lauren turned back and winked. I smiled. The dress looked spectacular on her, and I’d promised up and down that Tom would invite enough handsome men for her to go home with a date. This, of course, had been complicated by Tom choosing Killian and Stan as his two groomsmen. While I liked the older man, and he kept Lauren laughing, I didn’t exactly see the two of them as a couple.Mom stepped up next to me with a smile. Her mother-of-the-bride dress, a deep burgundy gown with gold accents, caught the light and sent it dancing. “Are you excited?”I inhaled sharply. “I kind of can’t stop thinking about the seating chart for the reception. Who have I become?”She laughed. “Your father.”Tears beaded in my e
Taken by the Mafia King Old Time's Sake
KillianI sat behind my desk and looked out over my men. Tommaso took his usual seat. Adrian hovered in the corner like he wasn’t quite sure what to do with himself yet, just like he had at the beginning. Patrick was still laughing about spilling his wine. Just like old times. I stood and started pouring everyone drinks.“So,” I said, “do you have an update on the warehouses, Adrian?”He started toward my desk, then paused. An odd moment passed. It wasn’t really my desk anymore. I’d left the hunk of wood behind because I had no need for it on the island, and he’d loaded it down with computers in my absence. Despite that, I’d never seen anyone sit behind it but my father besides me.I offered Adrian a drink. “Sit.”He nodded. “Didn’t want to step on your toes. The situation is pretty simple, all told, but I can tell there’s a certain amount of grace I’m supposed to be handling this foreman with, and I don’t—”Tommaso joined me at the bar to pour. “Do you remember that foreman in the so
Taken by the Mafia King Big News
PaigeI tucked my arm through Tom’s and straightened my long, floral romper. He kissed me on the cheek, then knocked on the door. Joyce swung it open.“Hello!” She welcomed us both in with hugs. “Mr. and Mrs. Ricci are in the drawing room. Please, come in.”We let ourselves be bustled through the door, the wine we’d brought carried off to the kitchen, and our coats taken to some closet somewhere in the mansion. Adrian used it as a base of operations when Killian and Sera weren’t home, so I’d been here a few times since the wedding, but I’d never felt comfortable here. Finally, we were led to the closed doors of the drawing room, and Tom opened them with a smile.Inside, we found not only “Mr. and Mrs. Ricci,” but also Olivia and Patrick, Adrian and Penny—who still wouldn’t even talk about their dance at the wedding—and Sera’s mother and brother, as well as Lauren. Sera leapt up to greet us, and Killian followed a few paces behind. I threw myself into the hug just as much as Sera did—I
Taken by the Mafia King Checking Up
SeraI folded a T-shirt and put it into Killian’s suitcase. “Are you sure we need to leave so soon?”He chuckled and took the T-shirt back out, then replaced it with a suit shirt. “Very, unfortunately. Adrian is in the middle of a difficult situation with one of the warehouses, and he needs a steady hand to guide him through.”My stomach churned at the thought of leaving the villa. We’d only been here for a couple of months, and we’d promised everyone we’d return, but dammit, I wasn’t ready yet. Lazing around the villa and having sex whenever the mood took us was way too fun to stop after only a few months.“But we’ll be back soon, right?” I asked like I didn’t already know.“Cara mia.” Killian took my hands. “What is happening in that head of yours?”I sighed. “I don’t know. The thought of leaving just make me kind of sick. We just got away from all that. I don’t want to be scared again.”He studied me for a long moment. “You do look a little pale. How sick is this making you exactly
Taken by the Mafia King Humdrum Excitement
PaigeI squeezed Tom’s hand in the car on the way to the airport.“Sad to be leaving?” he asked.I smiled. “Always. It’s so magical here.”He laughed. “Not just saying that because we’ve spent most of the vacation in bed?”I ran my free hand up his leg. “No, we have weekends for that at home.”“Fair enough.” He kissed the back of my hand. “I do like going on these little vacations, though. It’s a nice escape for a few days.”I nodded. I really was going to miss Paris, but I wouldn’t have wanted to stay much longer anyway. Lauren had been texting me updates about the shelter, especially the new one as women settled in. I kept thinking about how much I was missing, how much they needed me there. And I knew Tom was feeling the same. Apparently, Lyle had his sights set on someone new, and Tom was itching to pull the trigger. Anybody else would probably think we were freaks, desperate to leave a luxury vacation to get back to our grueling jobs. But those people didn’t realize just how much
Taken by the Mafia King Perfect Fit
TommasoWhen I told Paige I’d set everything up for another two days in Paris, she’d immediately insisted we spend a day shopping. I put up a cursory front of complaints, but in truth, I was perfectly happy following her from store to store and carrying her bags. Even better, she loved it when I made jokes about some of the worst, frilliest, most French things we came across. She laughed and joined in. For years, I’d heard men complaining about shopping with their girlfriends—fiancées—saying it was the most boring thing in the world, but even if we weren’t laughing up a storm as we paid our way through the most expensive boutiques in Paris, I still would’ve been having a ball. The sun was shining, she kept looking at the ring I’d put on her finger with a soft wonderment I’d never seen in her eyes anymore, and my face hurt from smiling. Paige and I could’ve made a hell of an afternoon out of reading the phone book.“Stop!” she said.I froze, my free hand twitching toward the gun I’d hi
Taken by the Mafia King Beginning of Forever
PaigeI didn’t know how long Tom and I lay there, listening to the fireworks and seeing the very top of their arcs through the sliver of windows accessible from the floor. I pillowed my head on his chest and enjoyed the steady beat of his heart. Engaged. The last time I was here, I’d been on the cusp of recovery, just starting to make strides toward the person I was today. Now, I wasn’t done—I didn’t know if there was a done for traumatized people or people in general—but I was so much better, stronger, happier than I had been.The last time Tom and I were in Paris, I’d thrown myself at him and chickened out. As much as I could stay at a private view of the Eiffel Tower, I wanted to show him just how much had changed. Just how much I meant the “yes” that had fallen so easily from my lips. I rolled on top of him.“What do you say we take this back to that hotel room you picked out?”Tom grinned and pulled me down for a kiss. I pressed myself against him, feeling every line of his body.
Taken by the Mafia King The Only Ones
PaigeI sat across from Tom in an empty, stunning restaurant in the middle of the Eiffel Tower with my head spinning like the three sips of wine I’d had with the appetizer were enough to make me drunk. He’d really rented out the Eiffel Tower. And not one floor, the whole thing. We’d ridden an empty elevator, the two-Michelin-star chef kept coming out to tell us why he’d selected particular dishes based on the information Tom had given him about our preferences, and I couldn’t hear anything but the soft classical music over the speakers. It felt like a dream.Tom took my hand. “So?”“So what?” I asked.“Was the surprise worth it?” He grinned.I looked over his suit, a forest green that brought out his eyes, worn without a tie. His dark curls tumbled into his face. I’d never seen him look so perfectly put together and so casual. He looked…well, he looked exactly like the man I’d fallen in love with. Nothing like the one who’d scared me so badly all those months ago in Cairo.“I get the
Taken by the Mafia King Peace Time
TommasoDespite how much I wanted Paige to keep that little black dress on, we had a few hours before the Tower officially emptied out for our use. I talked her into putting on something a little more walkable and keeping the lingerie on. As if to punish me for my restraint, she picked a pair of tiny, wide-legged shorts that showed the tops of the garters attached to her stockings every time she moved and a fitted blouse. I changed and somehow convinced myself to leave the hotel room instead of stripping everything off her and spending the hours in bed.She took my hand as we stepped into the lobby. “I should’ve known. When you plan a surprise, it’s never just one thing. Where are we off to first?”“So nosy.” I smiled.“You’re right, I’ll stop asking.” She slid the room key out of her pocket and fiddled with it for a second, then dropped it. With a small smile, she bent at the waist to pick it up, exposing those garter straps again.I grabbed her waist and hurried her the final few st
