Page 5 of Watch Me, Daddy

I renewed the fight even though my muscles were already tired. I kicked and scratched at him, but it didn’t seem to faze him. Instead, he just held me securely over his shoulder as though it was the easiest thing he’d ever done in his life. I’d thrown everything in me into trying to fight him off, but he was more than double my size and I quickly realized I was losing the battle. Finally, I stilled and threw my last defense at him.

“I’ll scream!” I scowled, hitting his back as hard as I dared.

I couldn’t help but notice the firmness of his muscular back beneath the fabric of his shirt. Every movement he made sent subtle ripples of strength and power coursing through his broad frame, and I felt every contour beneath my hands as I clung to him. His muscles tensed and flexed with each step, and I was keenly aware of the strength that lay just beneath the surface. The sensation was electrifying, and I found myself almost transfixed by the physicality of the man holding me, as if the heat of his body was seeping into my own.

“Aidan?”

The man standing by the doorway below spoke and I turned my head to look at him, pausing my struggle for just a moment to study his expression. He looked concerned, glancing down at his phone screen and then back to Aidan.

“What is it, Liam?”

“We’re going to have company in a few minutes.”

Aidan sighed.

“I didn’t want to have to use that,” he murmured.

Use what? What the fuck was he talking about?

“Take her down and get her in the car. Get her to the safe house and we’ll follow you there,” Liam suggested. His voice didn’t carry the same command that Aidan’s did, but it was comforting all the same.

Aidan carried me down the stairwell towards Liam, and I watched as Liam reached in his pocket, pulling out a white cloth and a small bottle. Once he uncorked it and wet the cloth, I started to struggle anew, but Aidan had no difficulty keeping me pinned in place.

“I’m sorry, Irina. We wouldn’t do this unless we had to,” Liam murmured, his soft gaze catching mine. For a moment, I saw real regret hidden within those dark depths. Aidan shifted so that I was facing Liam more directly, and just as I opened my mouth to scream, he forced the white cloth over my mouth.

A very sweet aroma overtook my senses, and the edges of my vision started to go dark. Bright white spots swirled around me, and I tried to hold my breath. I struggled over Aidan’s shoulder, but soon enough, I had to breathe, and then my whole world went dark.

* * *

I woke up in Aidan’s lap.

As I slowly stirred from slumber, I found myself wrapped securely in his strong arms. The warmth and sense of protection enveloping me felt strangely comforting, like a shield against the dangers of the world. It was as if, for a fleeting moment, the chaos around us as we drove down the road had faded away, leaving only the two of us in a cocoon of quiet intimacy.

For a moment, I allowed myself to enjoy that solace, knowing it could only be temporary, and that when the first opportunity presented itself, I needed to escape. I would make it back to the safety of my father. Between the two of us, we’d figure out how to deal with the fallout.

My head still ached slightly, and I felt a bit dizzy, so I kept my eyes closed for a few minutes until it all subsided. When I was finally ready, I opened my eyes and gazed up at his face, still trying to decide if I was furious or relieved to have been taken in the first place.

I decided to be true to myself and be angry.

I scurried out of his lap and moved into the seat next to him, refusing to meet his eyes for fear that I would lose my nerve. I had no idea what it was about this man, but he unsettled me in a way I’d never experienced before. My body pulsed with reluctant desire, and I did everything in my power to ignore it.

Feeling my nipples pebble in my thin crop top, I crossed my arms over my chest, needing to hide the evidence of my arousal in case he could see them in the light of the passing streetlamps. I noticed that the car was moving along the streets of the quieter neighborhoods. Unfortunately, I hadn’t been in Boston long enough to recognize the area in order to have even the slightest clue of where he was taking me.

“What did you say your last name was?” I demanded, squeezing my arms tighter over my chest as my nipples throbbed repeatedly. My desire was only getting worse as he leveled me with a firm glare, although I could have sworn there was a hint of amusement hidden deep in his gaze.

“I didn’t mention it,” he rumbled as the left side of his mouth lifted in a smirk.

I fumed beside him in the seat. I almost huffed in annoyance, but I stopped myself right before I made a sound. For several long minutes, the two of us sat in silence, the tension between us mounting by the second.

“You’re awfully feisty, aren’t you?” he murmured softly.

His voice circled around me like a warm embrace, and I had to keep myself from gasping at the way the sound set my soul on fire.

“Do you know who I am?” I asked him pointedly, unable to stop myself from lifting my chin like a petulant child.

“I do know who you are, Irina Morozov.”

“Then you know that my father will have your head for this.”

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