Partners (Fire & Lies - One) (23 page)

WE DRIVE away
from the scene. I want the car to go faster. I want Aiden to plant
his foot and get as far away as fast as we can. But that’s not the
plan. We need to drive at the speed limit. We can’t draw unwanted
attention.

Finally, we’re
out of the city, and I get a call from Jared. “Congratulations.
Everything is still quiet. You did a perfect job.”

I thank him,
and he disconnects. My heart is still beating so hard that I feel
almost sick from it. Laying my head against the back of the seat, I
take a deep inhale and run through everything that just happened in
my mind. Finally, I calm down and turn to Aiden, a massive grin
creeping over my face.

“Oh my fucking
god! We did it!” I squeal. “We fucking did it!”

“Yes we did.
You were perfect in there,” he grins, reaching over and grabbing
the back of my neck, planting a quick kiss on my mouth before
concentrating on driving again.

I squeal
again, the kiss feeling strange with my stage makeup and facial
hair on. “You just kissed a boy!” I laugh.

“You’re a
fucking sexy boy. I’d switch teams for you, sugar. Especially after
watching you handle our hostage in there. Perfection, babe. You did
everything right.”

“
I
was
perfect? Oh my god, Aiden.
You
were
amazing
. So in
command. So in control. There is no way I would have gotten this
done without you. No way in hell.”

He reaches
over and grabs my hand, bringing it to his lips to kiss my
fingertips. “
We
did it. Now we just have to hope those
papers you need are in there and we can get that Goldsmith for the
scum he really is.”

“Oh, they’re
in there. I’m sure of it.”

I look ahead,
thinking about what has to happen next in this process of doing
wrong to make right. We drive in silence, Aiden holding my hand,
his thumb stroking over my hand soothingly as he watches the
road.

“I really do
love you, you know,” I say suddenly. “I didn’t just say it before
because I was scared.”

“I know,” he
says, his thumb still rubbing gentle circles on my skin. It doesn’t
bother me that he doesn’t say it. I’m not expecting it back. I just
want him to know. It’s important that he’s sure of it. But
suddenly, he takes his eyes off the road to look at me. “I do too,
sugar,” he says, his voice a little quieter than normal. “Love you,
I mean.”

Nodding my
head, I place my other hand on top of his and give it a squeeze,
suddenly fighting the urge to burst into tears. He wasn’t supposed
to say it back.

CHLOE HAS
fallen quiet by the time we hit the car park where we’re to switch
out cars. She’s just been holding my hand between hers and
breathing slowly like she’s trying to calm down. She claims that
she’s ok but I think she might be in a bit of shock from the spike
of adrenaline the job would have given her. She’ll calm down once
we’re home and I’ve got her safe in my bed.

“Level three,
right?” I say, winding my way through rows of parked cars and up
the connecting ramps. While the floors are full with parked cars,
there isn’t anyone around, which is why we chose this place. It’s a
park and ride – a place where commuters can drive to and then catch
buses the rest of the way into the city to keep from paying the
exorbitant parking fees that the city charges. It’s perfect.

“Yeah. Level
three. It’s quieter up there.”

Making sure
that no one is watching, I pull up next to our change over car and
Chloe and I get out and transfer the bags into the trunk. She then
leans into the getaway car and wipes a rag over every surface,
making sure we’ve left nothing behind. Then with a quick check of
our surroundings, we grab a bottle of spray bleach and coat the
tires and the interior to completely ruin any sort of samples they
could get from us.

“I think
that’s it,” I say, scrunching my nose up at the strong smell. “It
stinks like a hospital now.”

She nods and
once again, I ask her if she’s ok. “Chloe?”

She doesn’t
respond, and the squeaking of car tyres catches both of our
attention. I turn and look over my shoulder, frowning when I
recognise the car. “What the fuck? Is that Leah?” I ask, turning my
head back to her briefly as I wonder what the hell he’s doing here.
“He was supposed to dump that car and meet us back at the
warehouse.

The car pulls
to a stop beside us and Leah leans out. “Hurry up,” he commands
Chloe, completely ignoring me.

Anger flares
within my stomach. This wasn’t part of the plan. I realise I’ve
been played–but why? None of this benefited me. It was all for her.
All for Chloe. What is this?

“Don’t,” I
growl, giving Leah a look of warning as I slide my hand behind me,
reaching for my gun. I grope around, finding nothing. I spin
around, looking to Chloe for some sort of explanation, but all I
find is her standing there, tears streaming from her eyes as she
holds both her gun and mine in front of her, aiming at me.

“Don’t do
this,” I half command, half plead.

“I’m sorry,”
she sniffs. “I have to.” She cocks my gun, the click echoing off
the walls in the massive concrete structure and I hold up my
hands.

“What are you
doing?”

“It’s the only
way,” she whispers, a tear sliding down her cheek as she squeezes
the trigger and a blinding pain hits my chest.

“Chloe,” I
groan, as I drop to the ground, clutching at my chest, my mind
reeling as I try to work out what the fuck just happened. She went
from promising me that she loves me to shooting me in the chest.
What did I miss? What did I…

“Hurry the
fuck up!” Leah calls to her.

“I’m sorry,”
she cries again, her voice beginning to sound muffled as my vision
blurs and the world begins to fade away.

“Chloe.”

JUNE,
3 years before

“
WHAT ARE
you doing?” he asked, his brow furrowing as he discovered her
pressed in the corner next to the emergency stairwell.

“
Hiding,”
she grinned. “But I guess you found me.”

A smile curled
the edge of Aiden’s lips as he stepped toward her. “Are you playing
games with me, Miss Donovan?”

She lowered
her lashes, looking up at him through them, her voice low and soft
when she spoke. “That depends. Are you enjoying it?”

“
Immensely.”

“
Then I’ll
keep playing. It’s a game of temptation.”

He stepped
closer. “I find you very tempting.”

“
And do you
know where we are?” she whispered as he closed in.

“
We’re in a
blind spot,” he answered, lowering his head toward hers.

She tilted her
head up, bringing her mouth just a breath away from Aiden’s.
“Imagine all the things one could do in this…blind spot,” she
murmured suggestively, and his cock hardened as she pressed herself
against him. She then took a hold of his tie and pulled on it,
lightly running her hand down the silk as she stepped out from the
confines of one of the very few camera free zones in the entire
Donovan building, leaving him feeling more than a little
tempted.

Aiden
chuckled, leaning against the wall as he felt the need to adjust
his pants.

“
You’re
going to be the death of me, Chloe Donovan.”

She gave him a
wink. “What a sweet way to die.”

The Fire &
Lies Series continues with Played, releasing December 30. Preorder
now, or continue reading for your exclusive sneak peek inside.

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PLAYED
Fire & Lies, Book
Two
by Lilliana Anderson

SYNOPSIS

Be careful
whom you trust…

It’s something
I thought I knew but with Chloe Donovan, all of my reasons seems to
fly out the window the moment I’m around her.

Blinded by
lust, persuaded by love. I hedged my bets on our forever. Twice.
And both times, I lost. She’s gone. And once again, she’s ruined my
life.

Stuck helping
a federal agent by the name of Drake Jefferson, I’m biding my time
until I can find where she is.

I won’t be
giving up my partner in crime to the authorities. I’ll be dealing
out my own brand of justice, and when I’m done, I don’t care if I
rot in prison for it.

Chloe Donovan
had better start sleeping with one eye open. Because I’m coming for
her.

She played
me.

I let her in,
and she played me. If she sees me. She’d better run.

I won’t be
trusting her a third time.

***

EXCERPT

“Holy shit,
Aiden,” Chloe gasps as she flicks the lounge room light on and
finds me sitting on her couch. “You shouldn’t have come here.”

Slowly, my
eyes travel over her body, taking in every part of her that I’ve
loved with such intensity, that I still have the urge to go to her
and reclaim her as mine. But I stay where I am–the wound in my
chest seems to ache at the sight of her. It’s as if it’s reminding
me of who she is and what she’s capable of.

Staying
silent, I watch her place her handbag and keys on the side table as
she reaches down to take off her heels and pushes them against the
wall with her stockinged feet.

“Can I get you
a drink before you head off?” she asks, as if me breaking into her
house and waiting for her in a darkened room is something that
happens between us every day.

As if seeing
the man who wants an explanation as to why she double-crossed him
is something that happens every day.

Studying her
as she heads to the kitchen and takes two beers out of the
refrigerator, I have to wonder if she’s some sort of sociopath. She
shows little emotion at the sight of me, which is shit, because I’m
feeling a whole range of emotions at the sight of her…

She stands in
front of me and holds a beer out, and I set my jaw, looking up at
her but refusing to take it. Pressing her lips together, she
withdraws the bottle and leans to the side to place it on the
chrome and glass lamp table beside me.

“You’re angry
with me,” she states, taking a seat across from me as she crosses
her legs and smooths out the length of her skirt.

“More than
angry, Chloe. There isn’t even a word for how I’m feeling toward
you.”

She nods and
places her bottle on the table next to her, keeping her eyes on
mine. Watching me. Gauging what I’m about to do. Why is she so damn
calm? She should be scared as fuck at the sight of me after what
she did.

“Is my life in
danger?”

“That
depends.”

“On what?”

“On what your
answers are.”

“Ok.”

“You shot me
in the chest.”

“I did.”

“I know how
good a shot you are.”

She nods,
waiting for me to continue, although I’m sure she knows exactly
what my question is.

“Why didn’t
you kill me?”

The Confidante
Trilogy

Confidante:
The Brothel

Confidante:
The Escort

Beautiful
Series

Too Close

A Beautiful
Struggle

Phoenix

A Beautiful
Forever

Commitment

A Beautiful
Melody

A Beautiful
Rock

Devotion

Entwined
Series

Our Hearts
Entwined

Our Lives
Entwined

Drawn
Series

Drawn

Drawn 2 –
Obsession

Drawn 2 -
Redemption

 For
information on upcoming releases visit

www.lillianaanderson.com

Bestselling
Author of the A Beautiful Series, Alter and the Confidante Trilogy,
Lilliana has always loved to read and write, considering it the
best form of escapism that the world has to offer.

Australian
born and bred, she writes New Adult Romance revolving around her
authentically Aussie characters as well as a biographical trilogy
based on an ex-Sydney sex worker, named Angelien.

Lilliana feels
that the world should see Australia for more than just it's outback
and tries to show characters in more of a city setting.

When she isn't
writing, she wears the hat of 'wife and mother' to her husband and
four children.

Before
Lilliana turned to writing, she worked in a variety of industries
and studied humanities and communications before transferring to
commerce/law at university.

Originally
from Sydney's Western suburbs, she currently lives a fairly quiet
life in suburban Melbourne.

Visit my
website at
www.lillianaanderson.com

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me
:

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