Chapter 7
Mia
I want to go home. I’m officially done with this little field trip.
I wake in the morning to the sound of Sebastian’s soft snore. It’s actually sexy, the way his lips move as he breathes.
His body is on display for me. With his shirt off, and his lower body encased in nothing but a pair of black boxer briefs, it’s the perfect opportunity to study what he hides beneath expensive suits. He’s lying completely on his back, hair tousled, and his long legs tangled in a white sheet.
I watch him sleep as the sun rises over Shanghai. Never in a million years did I ever think I’d be in a hotel room in the middle of an unknown country, watching my father’s shirtless business partner sleeping.
When I woke this morning, we were snuggled together. I pried his arm off me, and I want to make sure Mr. Cain knows there won’t be anything of that nature happening between the two of us.
“Get up, Mr. Cain.” Best to keep things professional between us.
He shakes a little before his eyes open. “Mia, are you ok?”
“Mr. Cain, I’d like to make you fully aware that although we had to share a bed, there will be nothing of the sexual nature happening between the two of us.” Oh my God, I think I used every word in the dictionary in that sentence. And it’s like my word vomit can’t stop. “Furthermore, if you’re thinking about laying a hand on me, let me remind you you’re a wanted man,” I ramble on, “and I’m only here because you kidnapped me.”
He finally puts a stop to my chatter by lifting a hand. “Stop.”
One word.
And I stop.
He swings his legs off the bed and plants his feet on the floor. “Coffee,” he grumbles.
“Not a morning person?” I rise and prance around the room, looking for the in-room coffee maker. There isn’t one. “Um, bad news.”
“Is it more ‘nothing of the sexual nature’ shit?”
I turn around, parking a hand on my hip. “Listen, I’m not the one who snuggled up to you last night. I’m just letting you know that can’t happen again.”
Sebastian laughs, and the sound rumbles throughout the room. “That’s exactly what happened.”
“What?”
He stands. “You snuggled up to me last night.”
I… can’t close my mouth. Sebastian stretches right in front of me, sporting wood.
It’s big, if the bulge is anything to go by.
I whirl away, trying to divert my eyes to any other spot in the room.
“I did not. Will you put some clothes on, please?” I ask, in an entirely too-high voice.
He laughs a little, coming into my view. “Are you sure you want me to put clothes on, Mia? You sure like to stare a lot.”
I put a hand over my eyes. “I’m not staring.”
“Do you want the bathroom first? I’m going to head to the lobby to find some coffee.”
“Are you going to put clothes on first?”
Sebastian has this dangerous lift to his lips as he steps closer to me. “Do you want me to?”
I blink up at him. “Well, yeah, if you’re going to the lobby.”
He touches a strand of my hair and brushes it behind my ear. “But, if I were staying in the room with you, you’d want me naked?”
I can’t answer his taunt or I might incriminate myself.
“Go away.” I head to the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind me, breathing hard and fast, angry he affected me.
I need to get home and see my father to figure out a way out of this whole Bishop mess. Instead, I’m here, traipsing around the world with the sexy, infuriatingly handsome Sebastian Cain.
I’m sure he knows just what he does to women.
I bet he’s an arrogant prick who makes women come and then leaves them the next morning.
Well, that woman will never be me.
I’ll never succumb to a man like him.
Here’s the thing, I have dreams of my own. I want to breathe life into an exciting event planning business. The restaurant is a stepping stone, because I’m getting tired of men dictating my life for me.
First, with my father.
Second, with Sebastian and how he’s constantly shooting down my ideas at work.
Lastly, with Bishop. Now I can’t go home because this man is angry with my family, and I have to pay the price.
I take a quick shower, brush my teeth and step out of the bathroom.
Sebastian has his jeans and black tee on, with two cups of coffee in his hands. “Peace offering.” He holds out a Styrofoam cup toward me.
I take it and breathe in the aroma of roasted beans. “Thank you.” I sip the black coffee. “Ew. They didn’t have sugar, cream, nothing?” I set the coffee down on the nightstand.
He shrugs. “Didn’t know how you took it.”
“Yes you do. We’ve worked together for so long.”
He laughs. “Ok, well I figured you should try it this way. It wakes you up. Adding all that frill and sugar, caramel, and whatever else corporate America deems you add in it is what gives you the crash.” He smiles. “Are you awake?”
I lift the cup, trying for another sip. I set it back down. “Nope, can’t do it.”
He laughs. “Yes, you can. Try again. Breathe it in and take a refreshing sip.”
I do as he says and try to work past the bitter taste. “I guess it’s better.”
“It’s an acquired taste. Over time, you’ll come to love it.”
Is Sebastian Cain an acquired taste?
I can’t trust him or his dazzling intense eyes.
“What’s on the agenda today?”
“Jeremy’s almost here. He has our things, some other stuff, and then we’re catching a flight to Italy. I have something to run by you.” He rubs a hand on the back of his neck.
“What’s that?” If he tells me we have to pretend to be lovers, I’m leaving.
I just can’t do it. I’ll get lost in the feeling of it all.
“Well,” he breathes in deep, “your father and I created a fake entity. Under the name of Donovan Sabatini. We launder money through this name.”
“Ok?”
“We gave him a little identity, nothing big, but the Grotto family knows Sabatini.”
“But he doesn’t really exist?”
“Right, but they don’t know that.”
“So, you’re going to pretend to be him?”
Sebastian nods. “It’s more than that.”
I cross my arms over my chest, waiting for the ball to drop. “Do we need to pretend to be married?” I laugh a little.
Sebastian does not laugh. “No, worse.”
“Worse?” My stomach drops.
“Your father told the family that Sabatini had a daughter. A daughter who ran the show with him, and she traveled with him everywhere.”
What?
Wait.
Father and daughter. Sure, Sebastian is a lot older than me, but in a sexy way. I’ve had fantasies about this man. I could never picture him as my father.
“Do we have to pretend to be father and daughter?” My eyes nearly bulge out of my head at this thought.
He stares at me through incredibly long lashes. He really is such a stunning man to look at. “Yeah, is that going to be a problem?”
We’re interrupted by a knock on the door, and Sebastian pulls a gun from the waistband of his pants.
My eyes go wide. “Has that been on you this whole time?”
He points the silver and blue gun up, finger on the trigger. “What, my Colt 45? I never leave home without it.”
After sticking one eye to the peephole, he slides the gun back into his waistband and opens the door. “Jeremy, finally. Come in.”
Jeremy strides over the threshold with two giant black suitcases in his hands. “I got your tickets, passports, and new identities all settled for you, Boss.” He hands a manilla envelope over to Sebastian.
I step closer, worried no one will ever buy that Sebastian and I are father and daughter. I mean, are you supposed to be attracted to your own father?
I push that thought away, permanently.
Sebastian swings the door shut and takes one suitcase from Jeremy. “I’d like you to take the jet back stateside and lie low until this is all over.”
“Sure thing.” They shake hands and then Jeremy leaves.
“I’m scared,” I tell Sebastian.
For the first time since we’ve started this journey, I fear the risks involved. He will die if his plan fails.
They’re saying he stole from the families. This will not be brushed under any proverbial rug, no, they’ll kill him without a single thought as to if he’s guilty or not.
If Sebastian is caught in Italy, not one person will care that I'm a DeWinter and they could possibly kill me right alongside him.
Sebastian stares at me with concern in his blue eyes. “I promise I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“How can you be so sure?” I stare into his blue eyes, wishing for him to tell me everything will be ok.
He wraps an arm around me. “Mia, I’ll protect you, no matter what. We’re in this together now, and I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
I hug him back, needing the support before I shatter into a million tiny pieces. “I trust you.” And I do trust him, right here, right now, completely. Don’t ask me why, but I do.
We spend the next few hours getting ready. Sebastian goes over our plans for when we get to Italy. How we’ll have to infiltrate the Grotto family as Donovan Sabatini and his daughter, and find Oliver Grotto.
Sebastian hands me my new passport and ID.
Gianna Sabatini.
Sebastian is my father, Mr. Donovan Sabatini.
“It’s just for a few days that we’ll have to pretend.” He watches me as I read over the passport.
“What if we can’t pull it off?”
He cracks a grin. “No one will pay close attention to us.”
I nod, chewing on my bottom lip. “Ok.”
I can do this. It will be simple. My mother, when I was a little girl, would always tell me I had honest eyes. Eyes that could tell the world what I was thinking. Eyes that would give me away. Eyes that, when stared into, could tell you everything going on inside my head. My mother always said it’s what made me innocent. That I looked at the world with honest eyes and trusted deeply.
Right now, I need to shutter my honest eyes and pretend to be the daughter of Donovan Sabatini.
I’m not sure I can pull this off because the more I’m around him, the more I wonder about him.
And not in an innocent way.
And wondering is bad.
Wondering leads to doing.
Doing is not a possibility.
Sebastian calls a taxi when we’re packed and ready to go.
As we sit in the back of the cab, I glance at Sebastian’s big hands resting on his knees. My thoughts turn x-rated in an instant. I picture them lifting me off my feet and bringing me down on a bed, where he kisses me passionately, his hands roaming over my naked skin.
Sebastian is older, and his experience versus mine is an aphrodisiac. He leads an elegant lifestyle, but a dangerous one. One filled with crime and power. It makes me wonder what he likes in the bedroom.
Would he like it rough? Would he talk dirty?
The naughtiest thing I’ve ever done in the bedroom is let a man spank me. It was just ok. But, as I picture Sebastian spanking me, something dark inside of me comes alive.
A fire, burning.
A tidal wave, crashing.
Inevitable disaster.
How am I going to live this father/daughter thing when I’m having these naughty thoughts about this man?
I clench my thighs together, trying to quell the ache there.
Sebastian notices, and I cough to pretend I wasn’t thinking anything wrong.
But he knows.
I can tell by the way he glances my way.
I can tell by the glimmer in his eyes.
I can tell by the slight smile pulling up on his lips.
He knows.