Abducted By My Father's Best Friend (Taken)

I’ll compensate her after clearing my name.

The idea of rewarding her goes straight to my dick.

“Sit under the hood,” the Captain instructs us. “There’s a room down there.”

The junk isn’t that big, just thirty-six feet long. Not that I care about the size, we just need a fast and safe way to get the hell out of here. Another man takes us to a tiny room full of boxes with a mini window and a wooden bench on the far side of it.

“If something happens, hide here,” he says, opening a thing that looks like a coffin. “I’ll let you know when it’s safe to come out.”

While I pace around the claustrophobic space left free between the boxes, Mia occupies herself by looking out the small window.

“We are about to sail,” she says. “I always dreamed my first boat ride would be a Caribbean cruise, maybe across the Mediterranean. I never thought I’d end up in the South China sea with you.”

Not even in my wildest dreams could I have conjured a fucked-up situation like this.

“I’m not that bad,” I whisper, closing the distance between us.

“Says the man who abducted me,” she retorts. And I have to swallow the impulse to put that sassy mouth to good use.

The sun sets over the horizon the moment we set sail, it’s breathtaking, bright oranges and violets, reflecting on the water, and I wish we could enjoy it under different circumstances.

We move at a fast pace and Mia gets greener by the second. I need to get her out of here to breathe some fresh air.

“You can’t be here,” the Captain shouts with his heavy accent when we climb out of the small space he had us hide in.

“She’s about to get really sick, so I hope you don’t care about the goods you’re moving.”

That makes him change his demeanor immediately.

I take Mia to the deck, and we stand beside the wood railing. I give her the space to get some fresh air, but I also support her with my body.

She fits between my arms like a perfect puzzle piece. Her body commands my attention.

My dick’s attention, to be specific.

“Look at the horizon,” I say close to her ear, and I swear I feel her shiver. “Breathe, Mia. I got you.”

She does and melts into my arms. A weird feeling washes over me, and I almost feel proud to be the one making her feel a bit better.

It takes two days to arrive in Shanghai. It’s late by the time Mia and I get off the boat. We’re exhausted and in urgent need of a shower.

“I just want to sleep,” Mia tells me.

I pay cash for a hotel room and we head inside to find only one bed. “We’ll have to share, sorry.” I grabbed the first room I saw, trying to stay under the radar.

The room is small but clean. Nothing special, white walls, cheap curtains, simple headboard, and a television mounted on the wall.

“I don’t even care.” Mia falls to the full-sized bed, not even bothering to change her clothes.

Not that there’s anything to change into since we didn’t even have time to pack. It’s fine, though. Jeremy will meet us soon with our things. Until then, we have the outfits we wore today.

I head to the bathroom, taking the quickest shower, before I sit in the chair next to the window to regroup and get a plan together. I’ve never been to Shanghai, and I’m not sure of my next step to take. I need to find a few people, but I’m sure Nate has already alerted everyone to my whereabouts.

Time to lay low for a few days.

With Mia.

At least she’s safe, and no one knows where she is right now.

I need to figure out who’s framing me, but I can’t very well traipse Mia DeWinter around the world with me while I try to find out who’s really stealing from the Four Families. These men won’t meet with me alone, though. Not with all the shit talk being said about me right now.

So, like it or not, there are things I need from Mia.

I glance at her supple body on the bed, thinking about my needs. I’m a man, and yes, there are certain things I need from a woman, but not Mia.

I’ve known her for a long time. Worked side by side with her at the restaurant.

Sure, I’ve always loved her smile and beautiful eyes, but I can’t let myself go there.

But as I watch her chest rise and fall with each breath, my mind goes there anyway.

I picture myself with her, kissing her, touching her. What it would be like to have her. Like truly have her.

She moans in her sleep, and my dick instantly hardens. I can’t think about her like this. It isn’t right.

To stop the images of her in my brain, I stand, swaying just a bit from exhaustion. I haven’t slept in ages.