Taken

by Mia Ford

  Indeed, the swine did not even give her enough time to get to the front door. No sooner had she stepped out of the car when she heard his jeep door slamming shut and turned to see that he was heading up to the house on foot.

  This was unbearable. She would have to burst into the house and tell her parents, without giving them heart attacks, that her unhinged ex-boyfriend was pursuing her up the drive and needed to be dealt with somehow.

  But then things became even more imminent because her dad then emerged from the front to greet her. No doubt he was curious as to how Earl was doing but, before even being able to get past ‘Hello, Darlene…’ her dad was interrupted by the rudest and most absurd performance that had ever been witnessed about that quiet family home.

  ‘Mr Furse,’ came Jefferson’s whiny voice, though at a volume as if he was addressing an audience, ‘it is my duty to inform you that your daughter is a slut.’

  ‘What’s this?’ Clive Furse asked, a frown on his brow as his ears sought to adjust to the peculiar spectacle being performed across his lawn. Darlene open-mouthed and desperate for the right words to say that might bring this nightmare to an end.

  ‘I said she is a whore,’ Jefferson went on, ‘I declare I have seen her with a man. She is a strumpet; she is a sinner and she brings disgrace upon your family name.’

  Oh, please say this isn’t happening, Darlene thought to herself, having no idea which way to turn for help.

  For a good half an hour, Kurt had been kicking himself for not thinking more firmly on his feet and protecting his girl there and then. He spent far too long delaying his chase because he did not wish to alarm his dad that there was anything serious going on which, potentially, there was. Then, when he finally set out he managed to hit every red light on the way out of town.

  Uncertainty breeds doubt and along the way he found himself asking all kinds of desperate questions as to whether Darlene was in trouble. Perhaps she had been chased off the road already and he had driven on by because, when clarity descended, he felt sure that this fruitcake Jefferson would have found a way to follow her. There is only one main freeway leading from Pacific City to Portland after all, so the guy would not have to be Einstein to relocate the girl he had called a ‘slut’.

  They both had a head start on him, but Kurt was the type to put the pedal to the metal and, providing nothing had forced Darlene into making an alternative plan, he was determined to reach the Furse’s residence.

  Maybe I should have bought a Porsche after all, he caught himself thinking, but fortunately he found that his vehicle served him well.

  It must have been about a mile from the Furse’s house when he caught sight of a familiar looking jeep and – if he wasn’t very much mistaken – a silver Fiesta it appeared to be tailing. Unless it was a very uncanny coincidence, that was his girlfriend’s inherited company car being tailed by a foul-mouthed religious extremist with whom he had a bone to pick.

  Kurt guessed a little what the swine must have been up to and held back a tad in order to assess what was his best move. If possible, he would have liked to ensure the gentle Furse family avoided any unhappy drama. That was not achievable, however, and Kurt arrived on the scene in time to hear Jefferson spouting out his self-righteous insults in the direction of Clive and his daughter.

  A week or so earlier, Kurt had been considering a means by which to sneak up to Darlene’s bedroom window and it was a peculiar twist of fate that such preparation would return to benefit him now. Had he approached via the drive then Jefferson would have seen him and had plenty of room to flee, but seafarer’s legs don’t often make for sprinter’s legs and he did not want that.

  Instead he took advantage of the line of finely pruned fir trees that Clive had been so kind to love and nurture to three times the height of a man. So, it was that he was able to approach a shouting and preaching Jefferson without being seen, until at the last minute when he came out of the shadows and challenged him.

  ‘What’s all this then?’ he asked, giving Jefferson the time to turn around and face him before planting a fist on the side of his temple.

  Jefferson went down like a sack of spuds, immediately trying to get back up, but then falling straight down again as if the brain had taken a few seconds to realize how hard it had been shaken. Kurt had seen boxers knocked out in such a way before; trying to get back up and then falling down again. It was unclear whether Jefferson wanted to get back up to fight him or to run away, though it might just have been the panic at being hit that took him a while to decide to lie still and let the effects wear off.

  Kurt felt slightly sorry for him then, in knowing he was the better built of the two – but not that much. Had he been prone to violence he could have hurt the man a lot worse and probably gotten away with it, considering Jefferson had been pursuing a young lady for over fifty kilometres.

  Understandably then there was something like chaos on the Furse’s front lawn. Beatrice and even one of the neighbors both ran out to find out what was going on and everyone seemed to have a dozen questions each, that were being directed at no one in particular because it was not obvious who might have all the answers.

  Most perturbed was Mr Clive Furse himself (unless you count Jefferson who remained sprawled on the ground), who was trying to take in his daughter’s assurances, deal with questions from Beatrice over what had happened, as well as figuring out why Kurt was there.

  At some point clarity reached Kurt through the cacophony and he realized that this was his moment. If anyone could set matters straight it was him and, as it so happened, the chance was exactly what he had wanted.

  You see, something unusual had been happening to Kurt over the last few weeks that, probably because he was unused to the notion, caused him a while to clue on to. For sure he was aware that Darlene was something special among his list of bedroom conquests, in that she was different and physically speaking the most desirable of anyone he had ever met. In a short time, he had grown attached to her to the point of not even asking himself the question of how long should this last. Usually he was in the habit of deciding that this or that girl should last for a night, a week or a month. That he had not come to address the question about Darlene had been explained away because it was such an enticing mission of discovery. There was so much more to accomplish and so why cut it short? Although it turned out there was a lot more to his feelings from which there was now no escaping.

  When peril had turned up outside his parents’ place, Kurt had first recalled his mermaid analogy. In doing so he had been tempted to kick himself for not considering that a man’s ultimate image of desire – the mythical mermaid – only appeared in order to lure a man into danger. Why had he overlooked such a fundamental aspect of that whole scenario?

  But then the realization hit.

  As Darlene disappeared into the distance and the haze of a weary day dissipated, fear helped Kurt to locate a piece of inner knowledge that had completely eluded him.

  First it struck him that he could not bear the thought of anything bad happening to Darlene. Why had he let her leave like that at such a time? Then he understood why he should feel so protective and afraid for her well-being? Because he was falling in love with her; that’s why.

  Heck, he almost certainly was in love with her, if all he had heard about it was true. That sick feeling in the stomach; that yearning to see her reaction all the time; the desire to share every aspect of his lifestyle with her as if in her company it all made so much more sense.

  OK, so he had been directing most of his efforts into organizing a seascape of sexual exploits. He was a horny young male and such an approach was true to his character, but he accepted in that moment that there was more to this girl. They made sense together; amazingly they had a similar spirit of adventure. It had just taken a bit longer to coax it out of Darlene.

  The wait was worth it though. Finally, he came to understand what that niggling feeling that something was missing from his life had come to represent. He
did have a yearning for companionship after all; that was what was missing. Kurt wanted to settle down and share his life with a long-term partner who he loved and cherished.

  It was all so soppy and romantic. So much so that, if he wasn’t completely love struck he would have lurched and vomited at the idea.

  That didn’t happen, however.

  What did happen instead was a springing into action that only concluded when he walloped that dick Jefferson around the head – and now, with no sign of caution or inner conflict whatsoever, he was prepared to go one step further.

  ‘Mr Furse, I can explain everything,’ Kurt announced and everyone turned his way to listen to his words, Darlene clearly the most apprehensive right then in hoping that he had found a convenient excuse for them both.

  ‘The truth is that this… Jefferson guy, did see me with your daughter and get the wrong impression.’

  ‘That’s right he got the wrong impression,’ Darlene butted in.

  ‘Yes, you see, I think he jumped to the conclusion that I’m something of a chancer who was trying to sweet-talk someone he once had eyes on – if you’ll forgive the terminology.’

  ‘Oh, I’m aware of how… of how young people talk,’ Clive responded, though looking like he was about to join his company’s co-owner with a visit to the emergency ward.

  ‘The truth is Mr Furse, that I have been dating your daughter.’

  ‘What?’ Darlene exclaimed, as Clive stared back blankly.

  ‘Yes, I have been dating her, but not for some wicked reason as this idiot is suggesting. No, I am in love with your daughter.’

  There was a pregnant pause as Darlene’s second attempt to interrupt then caught in her throat.

  ‘Yes, I am in love with Darlene,’ he then went on, ‘and, if you have no objection, I would like to ask for her hand in marriage?’

  Then it was over to Clive and, before replying, he had to look around at everyone present to see that this was really happening. Clearly the information was taking a while to sink in and, by that point, even the half comatose Jefferson was sitting up and listening to proceedings.

  ‘In… in love with her you say,’ Clive replied at last, uncertainty hanging in the air. ‘Well, I don’t possibly see how we can stand in the way of such a thing and so sincerely delivered.’

  Clive turned around to look at his wife, checking that there was nothing like disapproval on her face, before turning back and saying, ‘Kurt, I’ve known you since you were a delightful young boy and, though we still think of you like that in some ways, it’s clear you have since grown into a man. Please be assured that we have no objection.’

  Kurt managed a smile in hearing such favorable words, but he knew that the request was completely out of the blue and that was only the half of it.

  Turning around to look at Darlene then, Kurt saw that she was still in a state of shock. At best perhaps thinking this was some ploy to outwit Jefferson; at worse she was completely mortified that he was taking such a drastic step.

  ‘Darlene, I’m sorry this is unprepared and that I have no engagement ring as yet,’ he told her, ‘but, as your father says, I am sincere. I am in love with you and wish to ask for your hand in marriage.’

  The wait, between asking for Clive’s blessing and speaking to Darlene had made Kurt nervous. After he had gotten the words out he took a big gasp of air and then realized how scared he was in case it was all too weird and she said ‘no’.

  There was a wait… an insufferable wait, during which Kurt sensed Beatrice bristling and dying to cry out to her daughter to say something. Had he put her in an unworkable situation or was the penny just taking so long to drop that he actually meant it?

  It happened. The penny dropped.

  Darlene’s face softened into a smile and he could read on her features that she knew he meant it.

  ‘Kurt, I’d love to, you incurable romantic,’ she said and relief washed over him like tidal waters over the driest desert.

  There were cheers, hugs and congratulations all round. Clive must have shaken his hand a dozen times and all they could say was how beautiful it was that the two families had yet another reason to feel such close bonds.

  There was some comment about the fact that Earl and Brenda were not present, but they all agreed that, on the morrow, they would head to Pacific City and bring some joyous news to the poorly father and worried wife.

  At some point during the merriment (which the unintroduced neighbor insisted on hanging around for as if a part of) Kurt saw that Jefferson had risen and was skulking off back to his jeep. His walk had the air of a dejected person who had given up on something. If so that was best for him and everyone and, if not, he would be by Darlene’s side through whatever problems she faced.

  Before they went inside for refreshments his fiancée linked arms with him and whispered, ‘That was incredible; I had no idea you were in love, I just thought you wanted to sleep with me.’

  ‘Now what on earth gave you that impression?’ he asked.

  So, it was a happy end for the seaman who had found his mermaid after all. Although, as superstitious folk might say, the sea is a cruel mistress.

  There are more bonus stories ahead…..just look what you want to read next via the Table of Contents (TOC)

  Office Romance Collection

  BOOK 1: OFFICE ROMANCE

  Blurb

  Belle Freedman is a wide-eyed enthusiastic small-town girl, who has just landed an internship at the biggest ad agency on the East Coast. Her new boyfriend, Jesse, has followed her to New York so that they can chase their dreams together…to make it big in the Big Apple. Belle believes she has it all, a kind boyfriend and a brand new job.

  When she has a chance encounter with a stranger on the elevator, things begin to start changing in her world. Devon Rymer is not only one of the partners at the ad agency, but he is also well into his forties, single and the hottest man Belle has ever laid eyes on. Suddenly, the world she thought was perfect, doesn’t seem so perfect any more.

  Belle wants Devon. He is irresistibly handsome and strong, but she has a boyfriend, and a job to keep.

  Belle

  Belle stood staring at herself in the full length mirror at the corner of their studio apartment. She had spent hours laboring over the right look. First day at the new job. She had butterflies in her stomach and she drew in a deep breath to steady herself. Behind her, Jesse, her boyfriend, was flipping pancakes in the section of the apartment that they called the “kitchen”.

  Through the reflection in the mirror, Belle could see Jesse at the stove. His longish blond hair was ruffled and he was still in his boxer shorts with no shirt on. Belle watched him in silence for a few moments. His slender pale frame, the concave shape of his stomach…she had always thought he was the “cutest” boy ever since she’d known him. And now he was her boyfriend!

  “How do I look?” Bell asked, flipping around to face him. Jesse looked up and fixed his eyes on her with a bored expression. He was always grumpy in the mornings, that was something that Belle recently discovered about him, ever since they started living together.

  “You look great. Stop fretting,” he said and started stacking the pancakes on two plates. Belle tried to be in a cheerful mood, even though the nervousness was wrecking her on the inside. She didn’t want Jesse to feel worse than he already did about his own situation.

  She had been offered a position, even if that was as an intern, but it was a job nonetheless. Jesse was yet to find a job or internship of any kind. They had already been in New York for over three months and it was going to get harder and harder to pay the bills if he didn’t find some kind of employment soon. Belle’s meager internship stipend wouldn’t even cover the rent they were paying.

  She walked over to the small table beside the stove where Jesse had started setting their breakfast. Belle took a chair and he took the one across from her. She could see that he hadn’t shaved in days, and she had lost track of how many times she had tried
to politely suggest that he take a shower.

  “What are you going to do with your day?” she asked, digging a fork into the pancakes. She heard Jesse take in a deep breath and looked up at him. He looked offended that she had asked him that.

  “If you’re trying to subtly hint that I should go out there and look for a job, I’m going to do that any way. You don’t have to mother me,” he snapped at her and she fell silent.

  “I was just making conversation. You don’t have to do anything,” she mumbled, already kicking herself that she had even bothered to ask.

  Jesse’s mood swings were unpredictable. Some mornings he woke up feeling energetic and excited about going hunting for jobs, and on other days he was grumpy and touchy about it. Belle was hoping that he would feel inspired today so that he could uplift her mood too for her first day.

  They ate their pancakes in relative silence for a few more minutes.

  “Well, have a great first day,” Jesse said suddenly and stood up. Taking his half finished pancakes, he shoved the remains into the bin beside the stove.

  “What’s wrong?” Belle asked, stopping her chewing.

  “Nothing. I’m going back to bed for a few hours. It’s only eight,” Jesse said distractedly. Belle gulped, trying to control her heart from racing out of her chest. She wished she could do something to ease his frustration. She watched as Jesse crossed the room and fell on to the mattress on the floor and rolled over to his side.

  He hadn’t even offered her a kiss goodbye or a hug. She finished her food in silence, throwing nervous glances at the man she had a crush on for so long. She wasn’t sure if she had done something to upset him, or what she could do to make him feel better. For now, she was getting late for work so she stood up from the chair.