Share
The Journey of a Thousand Miles
Related chapters
Taken by the Mafia King Therapist Barbie
PaigeI blinked then rubbed my eyes like that would change what I was seeing. All the therapists I’d imagined were graying old men, rubbing their beards and trying to stare down my shirt in leather-shrouded offices. Instead, Dr. McMillan—Dr. Lauren McMillan—stood in front of a rounded teal chair with one of the longest manes of flowing blonde hair I’d ever seen in my life. She wore a deep green blazer over a cream button-down, and pants that matched her jacket, but that seemed more like a concession to her position than something that actually suited her. She pulled out a steno pad and a handful of different colored pens then smiled at me like some kind of sorority girl.“Paige, right?” she asked.“Uh, yeah.” I nodded my head. “How do we…do this?”“You can sit wherever you’d like.” She swept her arm over an assortment of matching teal furniture, other chairs and a couch, all of which looked weird against the utilitarian gray of her walls and carpet. “If it’s easier for someone else to
Taken by the Mafia King Regular Order
TommasoMy heart pounded as I followed her to the elevator and out of the office building. Paige looked just about as pissed as when I’d walked her in, but I couldn’t forget the feeling of her hand in mine. For a split second, she’d trusted me outside the four walls of our home. But after whatever happened in Dr. McMillan’s office, she’d turned back into the woman who’d been ghosting around my house for almost a week, irritable and hungry.When we reached the car, I directed Patrick back to that restaurant we’d stopped at on the way from the airport. It might’ve been the first cheesesteak place she saw, but with the way her eyes lit up, I doubted it. It seemed special to her.Should I ask how it went? No, of course not. I might not have ever been to therapy myself, but I knew most people went for months, if not years. I just wished I could do more than buy her a cheesesteak. I wished I could figure out how I kept pissing her off.We arrived at the restaurant.“Fried onions on top,” sh
Taken by the Mafia King Good Mobsters, Good Monsters
PaigeI climbed the stairs back up to my second-floor room feeling completely full for the first time since—maybe since I’d been kidnapped. Two muffins, a cheesesteak, and an order of onion rings. That was what it took now.Well, most of an order of onion rings. That foreign smile crawled back across my face, stretching unused muscles back into shape. As much as I could hit him sometimes, as furious as I was that he’d woken me up like he did, having Tom steal an onion ring felt so dizzyingly normal I couldn’t help but smile. He was obviously a multimillionaire. Another serving of cheesesteak and onion rings couldn’t possibly put him in the red. But he hadn’t gotten his own, and he’d refused when I’d first offered to share. So then he’d resorted to stealing. It was almost funny, like something that would happen in a high school lunchroom rather than the back of a mobster’s SUV.I turned into my room and shut the door behind me. Standing up long enough for another shower sounded exhaus
Taken by the Mafia King Warmth
TommasoI’d been back at my desk downstairs when the shouting started. Even with the extra soundproofing I’d had put in when I was built, it wasn’t a hundred percent, especially if a door was open. I couldn’t make out the voices, but I knew someone was upset. I’d picked my way up the stairs slowly. Paige needed me. Or, she needed someone. She needed not to be in the middle of a screaming match after her first therapy session. I had to go to her, but I didn’t want to scare her.It seemed I’d succeed. She stood in front of me, tiny in one of the sweaters Sera had picked out, with her arms open for a hug. From me. My feet started crossing the room before my mind caught up, and I made myself slow down. I wanted to sweep her up in a bear hug, crush her to my chest, and finally convince my mind she was real, but I couldn’t scare her any more. I wrapped my arms around her waist, and she did the same.A tiny part of my brain whispered that she would fit perfectly in my arms once she gained th
Taken by the Mafia King Moving Out
PaigeThe next morning, I sat at the high countertop in the kitchen across from Mom, picking at the final few pieces of bacon she’d insisted Olivia put on my plate that remained of my breakfast—well, brunch, because I’d slept in again. Olivia puttered around behind us, training a new girl who’d introduced herself earlier as Miranda. The new girl seemed to be keeping up with Olivia decently well, but every time Mom or I made a noise, she whipped around like she was expecting an army of men with guns to come crashing through the door.“So, I’ve got news.” Mom bit her lip, an old habit from when she knew I wouldn’t like what came next.Normally, my stomach would drop, and I’d start worrying about what else could go wrong. Now, my chest lightened. Had Tom already talked to her about moving out? Did he maybe even make it seem like it was his idea, or something about the house, or anything that wouldn’t tell her for certain I couldn’t have her around while I figured out who the hell Now-Pai
Taken by the Mafia King New Kid on the Block
TommasoI took a deep breath, smoothed my hands down my dark suit pants, and tried to focus. Not only did Paige just seek me out, on purpose, but she walked back out with a smile on her face even bigger than the tiny one I’d gotten for my onion ring theft yesterday. My heart pounded against my ribcage, wild and out of tune.Adrian cleared his throat. I glanced up at him and suddenly remembered the four new recruits in the room, all of whom I’d been walking through initial procedures. Adrian was only here to train Lyle, a reedy guy who’d moved to Philly from somewhere in west PA when I’d called him to offer him a position as my new tech guy.“Right.” I cracked my knuckles. “We were talking about the warehouses.” I nodded at Stan, my new right-hand man, whom Killian had convinced to come out of retirement.The older man nodded back at me. “There are three main warehouses that see the most traffic. It’s important we keep everything in check, but if we miss anything there, we’re in deep s
Taken by the Mafia King Meeting the Staff
PaigeI drifted back and forth behind Adrian as he set up a really nice laptop and a second massive monitor behind it on a desk that had been brought into my room a few minutes after I made it up the stairs. Adrian seemed nice enough, but I didn’t intend to leave him alone in my room, even if he was just setting up a laptop.“Alrighty,” he drawled. “I think that might be just about all you need. Unless there are any programs you want downloaded?”I shook my head. I knew enough to do that, at least. “I don’t know if this is weird, but how’d you end up here with an accent like that?”He laughed a little self-consciously and stood up. “I’m from Texas, originally, but Killian tracked me down for my IT skills a while back.”I raised an eyebrow. I didn’t know what seemed weirder, this giant of a man being stuck behind a computer in Texas somewhere, or an IT professional being recruited by the mafia.“I know, I know.” He laughed again. “I never exactly pictured my résumé ending me up in a li
Taken by the Mafia King New Old Job
PaigeHiya, Paige!The Henley and Stephenson team has been missing you! We got a couple projects in over the last few months that really could’ve benefited from that Bruno touch, and I’m thrilled to hear you’re starting to get back up to snuff. We would love to have you back on the team as soon as possible. When would you be able to start? And are there any accommodations you’d need to make this as easy as possible?Best,Chris HenleyCo-Owner, Henley and Stephenson.I read Chris’s email, then read it again to make completely sure I hadn’t missed a line at the end that told me he was joking and would see me when hell froze over. Slowly, a legitimate, wide smile grew on my face. I had my job back! I emailed him back right away—no need to play hard to get when he thought I was just sitting at home, severely ill—and said I’d be happy to jump into design meetings as needed, but I didn’t have a laptop with audio/visual capabilities, so I’d just be listening and typing in the chat for now.
Latest chapter
Taken by the Mafia King Epilogue
Taken by the Mafia King Old Time's Sake
Taken by the Mafia King Big News
Taken by the Mafia King Checking Up
Taken by the Mafia King Humdrum Excitement
Taken by the Mafia King Perfect Fit
Taken by the Mafia King Beginning of Forever
Taken by the Mafia King The Only Ones
Taken by the Mafia King Peace Time
