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Desert Air
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2024-10-29 19:42:56Related chapters
Taken by the Mafia King Hotel Team
PaigeI jostled into the man on my left, then the one on my right, and back again. Fucking shitty SUV. Fucking desert. I could’ve lived the rest of my life without feeling the particular cold of a desert at night again.“All set back there?” Sam called from the driver’s seat.“More like game, set, match,” I grumbled as another dune sent me rattling.He chuckled. “We’re almost to the city, I swear. Tom said there’s a better vehicle there, too.”I grimaced and focused on keeping from banging my nose on the seat in front of me.The car Sam promised was indeed better than the shitty SUV in that it actually gave me a chance to look at the men I’d spent an hour driving through the desert with under some kind of light. And I got to sit in the passenger’s seat. Sam was new to me, which set me on edge, but I’d seen the other three around the house, I thought. The one named Harry had a tendency to ghost around the place not really saying anything. The second was named Rico. I only recognized hi
Taken by the Mafia King Headquarters
TommasoKillian and I hefted the last box of—fuck, I didn’t even know anymore—but we hefted it into the trunk of the last truck. I wiped freezing sweat off my forehead and looked at the sky starting to lighten. Mostafa said he thought we’d be able to strike tomorrow night, but I could’ve done with another week just to sleep through. Plane naps really didn’t do it.Without a word, Killian and I got into the car. Old habits put me in the passenger’s seat and him driving. I switched on the music, changed the station a few times, and ultimately shut it off again. The incipient sunrise tortured me. I’d told Paige I’d be there soon. We had one more trip, but I didn’t know if I’d make it back before the desert night turned to day.She seemed to be getting along with Sam okay, but I couldn’t imagine she was happy alone with so many men. Not for the first time, I considered swapping out one of her security team for Lyle. At the very least, she knew his face. But Lyle wasn’t just a tech guy, he
Taken by the Mafia King Reclamation
PaigeI stared at Tom for a moment. With the air conditioner working at full blast and the faint scent of diesel hanging in the air, my mind spun back through time, to a different hotel room on the other side of the city. I’d tried all night to run from him then, and when he finally captured me to the point I couldn’t run anymore, I sat on the bed just like this until he put me on a plane and took me home. I’d regarded him with the worst suspicion and fear.When he walked in the door now, I flung myself out of bed at him. He caught me with a small grunt. My breath raced. The diesel smell clung to his clothes, and I began pulling them off him before I could think twice.“Paige?” he said. “What are you—”“Help me,” I said.As always when I said that, Tom listened. He worked the tiny buttons on his shirt while I grappled with his belt. Clothes scattered in every direction, and soon, he was naked before me.“Do you want to go to bed now?” he asked.I considered the question as I carted my
Taken by the Mafia King Scope
TommasoI woke up earlier than I’d expected to, while the sun was still below the apex of the sky, and stared at Paige for a long moment. Her hair splayed brightly over the pillows, curling around the curve of her full cheek. She’d never told me directly about her issues with mirrors, but I’d guessed. Watching her last night had been like a miracle. But now, in the morning light, my chest squeezed. She was brave. I knew that, had seen it a million times. But I wanted her to be able to keep getting braver, not get the wind knocked out of her by some bastard who wasn’t worth the time of day. I sighed and climbed out of bed to start my day.In the common room, Harry and Eddie sat blearily on couches.“I’m ordering breakfast,” I said.That brought them around. In a few minutes, I’d placed a massive room-service order with food for all six of us. When it arrived, I woke Paige, and she stumbled out of the room a few minutes later. The guys descended on the food, then returned to their posit
Taken by the Mafia King Final Call
PaigeI slumped on the couch in the common area and picked at my nails. Tom had been gone for an hour already, but the fight wasn’t until tonight. When I’d be with him. Maybe.God, why did he have to say that? I didn’t care what Killian thought of me, and as much as I loved Sera now, I knew I would never want to be her, so her opinions of my decisions didn’t matter much to me. But Tom? Looking at me with love overflowing in his eyes and telling me he wanted me safe? It was un-fucking-fair, if I was being honest. My thumb started bleeding, and I stuck it in my mouth.Sam sat down next to me. “Amalia’s younger sister picks her nails when she gets bored.”“Neat,” I said around my bleeding thumb.He chuckled. “All right, direct questions only. Do you want to do something?”I looked around the state-of-the-art hotel room. Beautiful furniture everywhere, and absolutely nothing to do.“You’ll learn.” He reached into his pocket. “Any time you’re going somewhere upscale like this, bring your o
Taken by the Mafia King Layer Cake
TommasoThe taxi stopped at a street corner a few blocks away from Zahur’s palace, and Killian paid the man. We got out together and looked around for a moment. The island neighborhood in the middle of the city reeked of diesel like everywhere else, but I could see parks, and there were occasional breaks in the constant stream of traffic. By comparison, it was almost peaceful.“It’s almost Manhattan.” Killian grimaced.I shook my head with a smile. “I think Manhattan might smell better.”He laughed sarcastically. “Now I know why people say you’re funny.”“Dickhead.”Killian looked around at the total lack of cover. “I’ve got an idea.”He walked confidently into a several-story bank. The powerful air conditioner shocked my system, but I followed his lead. He marched up to the counter.“Hello, I’m an international investor, and I need to see your roof.”The woman frowned, then called in Arabic to another teller. The man hurried over.“American?” he asked.Killian nodded. “Yes, I’m in ta
Taken by the Mafia King Promise
PaigeAs the sun started to dip toward the horizon, and I still hadn’t heard from Tom, I wandered into the third bedroom off the common area, the one where he’d sent all the items we’d hidden in a secret compartment in a cargo-hold before all the mercenaries arrived. The supplies to take care of the women we rescued. After talking to Sam, I realized I’d been spending too much time thinking about myself. This final bastard had kept me, tortured me, left me with permanent scars, but I wasn’t his only victim.I opened the bulging suitcase and looked over the spare sets of clothes, a couple dozen in every size. We had no idea how many women the bastard would have. Despite our free rein, McKenna and I had always suspected the little pod we lived in might be one of several throughout the palace, each holding another five or six women.McKenna. God, I hadn’t thought about her in a while. That visit had been just short of disastrous, but maybe I could reach out to her again. Tom gave her pare
Taken by the Mafia King Forever
PaigeI stared up into Tom’s green eyes, suffused with love and iron certainty. He would always find his way back to me. In any life, in any way he could. Even if I went back to Philadelphia alone, I’d carry him with me.Silently, I stood and moved the suitcase of supplies off the bed. Then, I straddled Tom’s lap and kissed him. He moved with me, soft and hard like the look in his eyes. Like I knew him to be. The love of my life and the monster who’d saved me, the mafioso and the Robin Hood. He ran his hands up and down my sides slowly, his fingers grazing the sides of my breasts but never settling on them. I cupped his jaw in silent agreement. We would go slow. We would make the most of the time we had before he had to leave.He leaned back, keeping me balanced on top of him, and ran his hands through my long, loose hair. When he released it, the strands fell around us like a curtain. I rubbed circles in the five o’clock shadow on his jaw, a sure sign he’d been busy all day. His tong
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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
