Page 18 of Her Dream Mafia Daddy

“You listen to me, Daphne Erin Stone, and you listen very closely.” His sharp voice startled her, and she sat up straight. “Are you listening to me?”

“Yes, Damian, I’m listening.” Her voice was quiet and subdued.

“Eamon is there to keep you safe. You will listen to him or you will deal with me. You have never given me a reason to blister your ass, but trust me, if I find out you have been anything but a model guest, I will absolutely take my meanest paddle to your bottom. Do I make myself crystal clear?”

“Clear as glass, big bro,” she sassed.

“Daphne. I’ve about had it with your attitude. What is wrong with you?” he demanded.

“I don’t know! I feel like something is happening that I can’t control and I don’t like it. I don’t like being told that I’m not allowed to leave the estate under any circumstances, and I don’t like Eamon. He’s a bossy butt and I don’t want to stay here.” She sounded petulant, but she didn’t care.

“Your other option is to come here and stay with me.”

“That’s not an option and you know it. I’ll stay here and I’ll be good, I promise.” She sighed. “Well, I promise to mostly behave.”

Chuckling at her, he said, “I think that’s about as good as it’s gonna get, huh?”

“Yup!” She grinned, her mood shifting for the better.

“Call me anytime, squirt. And please be good and listen to Liam and Eamon. They really are looking out for you.”

“Fineeeeee. But I’m not happy about it.”

They talked for a few more minutes before she hung up. She was keeping him slightly at a distance. If he knew what had happened to her, he would lose his shit, and she needed him to not go to jail. She got dressed and grabbed a book from her bookshelf, and crawled into bed. She was exhausted and just wanted to read until she fell asleep.

Chapter 9

Eamon

It pissed him off that he couldn’t find that scumbag, Callum. They had been searching for a few weeks now, and he was growing antsy. He wanted Daphne safe, and the more he discovered about his workings, the more pissed he became.

He was a known abuser, but because of his connections, nothing ever stuck. They found a man willing to switch sides who told them everything. This man had young daughters and didn’t believe in the trafficking of women and children and wanted to do anything to combat it. He told them when the girls were going to be moved into the area and the route they planned to take. After getting his family to safety in another country with new identities, they put a plan in motion to save these women and children.

“Callum needs to be found. Where the fuck is he?” He was pacing, his jaw was tight, his eyes focused.

“We are using every resource we have, boss, but he seems to have disappeared. We aren’t giving up.” Finnean was just as pissed as he was and knew they were doing all they could.

“Fuck, I know. I just need him found.” He slid a tired hand over his face. “We have a plan to intercept the women, at least. We have safe houses set up and plans to get them back to their families. Dr. Dan has staff at each of the safe houses to offer medical care, and we have a translator on standby in case we need one. We don’t know where these girls are coming from, but we will help them all.”

“We got this, boss. We’ll get them all to safety and end Callum.” Rory was confident in the plan and they all felt like they had it under control.

“How are the girls doing with being under house arrest?” Kellan asked.

“Kiera is fine. She gets to play and bake cookies with Auntie Freya almost every day.” They all chuckled. “Daphne is…well, I’m not really sure, honestly. She is cooperative, but it seems forced. She spends as much time as allowed at the barn, but hates having to have a guard with her and hates that she can’t ride anywhere but in the arena. She is distant.”

“She needs to get used to the guards. When she’s yours, I know she’ll have a whole ass team of them.” Rory laughed at his glare. “You know I’m right. I know you want her, but she wants absolutely nothing to do with you. What’s your plan to win her over?”

His fingers were steepled in front of his face, elbows on the arms of his chair. “I’ll win her over or I’ll just kidnap her and make her mine.”

Rory snorted. “Yeah, ok. I’m sure Damian will be thrilled with that plan.”

He was about to respond when a soft knock hit his ears.

“Come in,” he yelled.

His eyes widened, and he sat straight in his chair as Daphne took tentative steps into his office.

“Hello, Daphne. To what do I owe the pleasure of your presence?” Her eye roll made his hands twitch, but he ignored it.