“If that’s what you think then why did you even come here?”
“Because I thought that you’d at least have a better story than, ‘Daddy was a smart guy–it makes no sense’. I thought you’d have some sort of evidence that would at least have made the time I wasted coming here worth it. But you’ve got nothing, do you?”
Narrowing her eyes, she quickly stands, giving me a pretty sweet view of her arse as she spins around and storms out of the room without adjusting the back of her oversized sleep shirt. I get a nice look at her little black panties that ride high on her right arse cheek.
I avert my gaze though, as I feel a renewed stirring down below, reminding myself that I’m here out of curiosity. Chloe needs to stay firmly in that ‘don’t be an idiot’ box where she belonged all along.
When she stomps back, she’s pulled on a pair of jeans and a fitted black singlet. She still isn’t wearing a bra, but I can’t actually see anything anymore, which is a little disappointing.
In her hands, she carries one of those brown archive boxes that’s so full of paper that the lid won’t close.
“You wanted evidence. I have a fuckload of evidence,” she says, as she drops the heavy box on the coffee table between us. “In this box is all of the evidence my father and I had been collecting to try and clear his name. This was all a set up, Aiden. It was orchestrated by Michael Goldsmith the day he approached my father with the idea of the merger.”
I pick up some of the papers and glance fleetingly at the list of dates, phone numbers and appointments in my hands.
“Ok, let’s say this is true,” I say, putting the papers on the coffee table. “How did a man who had his own company just as big and protected as your father’s to run, manage to falsify all of that evidence and gain access to the company funds?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” she asks, looking at me like I have two heads. “With someone on the inside.”
“Someone on the inside? No, Chloe. No. I personally screened every person who entered that company–well, with the exception of you of course which means that the inside person could only be you…”
“Thank god you have a military background, Aiden. Because if you used to be a cop, I’d seriously worry about the safety of the normal person.”
“Avoiding an answer isn’t giving one, Chloe.”
“There’s no answer to give! I was NOT the man on the inside–or the woman. It wasn’t me, ok?”
“Then who? Like I said, I screened them all–thoroughly. And I don’t fuck up, Chloe.”
“Then you should have screened a little more thoroughly, because even model employees can be blinded by an offer of great wealth to sell out their employer.”
As she talks, she reaches into the box and pulls out a few folders and stacks of paper before finding what she’s after.
“See this house?”
I look at the photo she’s placed in front of me. It’s of a massive white house with a circular driveway and a columned entrance. “That’s not a house. That’s a mansion.”
“Do you know whose mansion this is?”
“Should I?”
“Who is the one person who worked with my father every day and had access to all of his appointments and files.”
“That’s not my house, Chloe.”
“Not you. Jesus… who is the other person who had access?”
Frowning slightly, I look from the house in the photo to Chloe and then back again as if that photo was going to come to life and reveal the answer for me. In a way, it kind of did, because suddenly, a face popped into my mind.
“Audrey?”
“Yes, Audrey Sargent, my father’s very own personal assistant.”
“Holy shit. But how? Why?” I ask, beginning to dig through the box, pulling out all of the paperwork and surveillance photos that Chloe has obviously been gathering over the course of the last two years.
“Because she was having an affair with Michael Goldsmith. With his tutelage, she knew exactly what to do. My father and I were duped into thinking we were creating the biggest corporate finance company in the world by agreeing to join forces with them. But all we did was offer them the keys to the kingdom and my father’s head on a platter.”
She watches me as I pour over the information she’d gathered. “How the hell do you know Goldsmith is behind all of this? This all just points to Audrey. And it’s circumstantial at best. Without solid evidence to prove either of their involvement, no one will believe you.”
“That’s why I need you, Aiden. Audrey’s scared. She visited my father in prison and admitted that she helped Goldsmith. She said she feared for her life and told my father that she’d hidden some information as a way to protect herself and that if anything happened to her, he would ‘know where to find it’. Dad didn’t have a clue what she was talking about, so I went to her to ask her what it meant, hoping she’d talk to me like she did to my father. But she acted like I was crazy and wouldn’t tell me a thing–practically pushed me out the door. Goldsmith must have been watching her, because the next day, we received the call from the prison saying that dad tried to end things. He’s been in a coma ever since.”
“And what about Audrey?”
“She’s in that house and doesn’t leave without an escort. But I’ve been watching her. She goes to beauty appointments, clothing boutiques and wherever Goldsmith requests her. It’s nothing out of the ordinary for a kept woman, but she keeps all of her jewellery in a safe deposit box and the bank she uses is the same one my mother used for her jewellery. I think that’s where she’s hidden her proof. So, I know where it is. I just can’t get to it.”
“So you want to go in there with your mother’s key and break into Audrey’s box while you’re there? That won’t work. I know that bank and once you collect your box, they escort you into a private room.”
“That’s not even an option. My mother sold all her jewellery. We have to find another way.”
“Sugar, I have skills but I’m no magician. We’d have to rob the bank.”
“Not you, Aiden. Me.” A smile creeps across her lips and a glint shines in her eye. “And that’s exactly what I’m planning to do.”
Chapter Eleven
Chloe
FOR HOURS, I poured over the contents of the archive box with Aiden, explaining to him what I knew, and how I planned to get the extra information I needed. He had questions–he had a lot of questions–but essentially, he just listened as I presented the jigsaw puzzle of deceit that took down my father and gave my mother a nervous breakdown.
When we’ve finally finished talking, I start reorganising all of my notes in their correct files before I put them back in the archive box. As I’m working, Leah returns home from work. The moment he opens the door I wrinkle my nose as I can smell his job on him. It’s the scent of hard work mixed with motor oil.
He throws his keys at me, and I reach out instinctively to snatch them from the air. “Hey, girlie, I’m going to hit the shower and then we’ve got to talk. I’ve been thinking about our issue all day and maybe we can do it without…holy shit,” he blurts in surprise, as Aiden steps out of the kitchen and leans against the doorway, drinking a coffee that he went and poured himself. The way he acts, you’d think he visited our small flat every day.
“Leah, this is Aiden. Aiden, this is…”
“I’m pretty sure we met last night. You were the jerk who beats up girls right?”
Leah reaches up a tattooed arm and scratches the back of his head sheepishly. “Well, kinda. This crazy woman wanted me to hit her for real, but I wasn’t fucking having any of that. No way. No how.”
“Well, nice act. It had me fooled–until I saw her eyes.”
“I told you, you should have worn contacts,” Leah says to me. I roll my eyes, knowing that it wouldn’t have made a difference with Aiden. He would have seen through any disguise.
He steps toward Aiden with a touch of caution and extends his hand. “I hope there’s no hard feelings,
bro. I’m just trying to help Chloe correct some wrongs.”
Aiden towers over Leah’s five foot nine and looks down at his hand for a moment. I will him to reach out and take it. I really need these two to get along or we’re never going to pull this off.
Slowly, Aiden reaches out and takes his hand, shaking it once before letting go. “So tell me–what’s your interest in clearing Chloe’s family name?”
Leah just shrugs. “I have my own reasons.” I see the discomfort in his eyes as he steps back and clears his throat. He hates talking about his own involvement with the Goldsmiths. “Excuse me. I’m gonna go shower before Chloe bitches me out for stinking up the place.”
Giving me a wink, he turns and heads for the shower, and we hear the sound of the hot water pipes banging in the walls when he turns them on.
“What’s the deal between you two? Another man brought to his knees by the Chloe Donovan spell?”
“Would it bother you if he was?” I ask.
He looks at me for a moment; his coffee cup paused just before his lips as he thinks over his answer. “Yes, actually. It would.” He takes a sip from the mug.
I drop my eyes and pick up another folder, sliding it back into the box. “No. There’s nothing between us. He’s just a friend.”
“Well, for a friend, it seems like you have that guy wrapped around your little finger. Do you always use your power over men for evil?”
“Only when it suits me,” I smile, lightening the mood as I place the last of the paperwork back into the box. I look up at Aiden, at where he’s still leaning against the doorframe between the kitchen and the living area, and take a moment to absorb the fact that he’s here.
Having him standing casually in front of me the way he is, is something I’ve dreamed about so many times over the last few years. There were times when I’d sit and imagine what my life would be like if I’d kept my promise to him and turned my back on my father and my career to pursue my own happiness. From where I’m sitting now, losing our jobs wouldn’t have been so bad. I would have had some of my own money to fall back on, and he had his family’s nightclub. We would have been ok, and we would have had each other. On top of that, my father would still have his company and his life.
But hindsight is twenty-twenty. It astounds me that by doing what I thought was the right thing, I set in motion events that caused irreparable damage to those around me. If I had a time machine, I’d go back in time and tell myself to be selfish–to answer all of Aiden’s calls, and to run to him every chance I got. I’d spend every moment in his arms and figure out whether everything I’ve ever felt for him was real, or if it was just the fancy of a girl who felt like she couldn’t have what she wanted. But it didn’t matter. I chose to put my family promises and the business first.
And I failed.
When I realise I’ve been staring for a while, I drop my eyes, realising that Aiden has been staring at me too. I can’t go there. I can’t keep thinking over this. Our time has passed us by. Now, all we can do is try to make some of the wrongs right. Even though, at the end of it, it’s quite possible that I’ll be a wanted criminal myself. They say that two wrongs don’t make a right. But I tried doing it the right way. All I have left is the wrong…
“So,” I start, clearing my throat before I look back up at Aiden. “Do you think you’ll be able to teach me how to do this?”
He lets out a sigh and looks at me with what looks like sadness in his eyes. “Are you sure you want to do it this way, Chloe? I know you want to clear your dad’s name, but your intentions won’t matter if you get caught. And you understand what will happen if you get caught, right?”
“Of course, I do. But what they did took everything – from me, from you, from everyone. The right people need to be behind bars.”
“And what have the cops had to say about this? Have you at least gone to them?”
“Of course I have. But they thought the same that you did. It’s all speculative and circumstantial. Without the hard proof, I won’t be able to do anything.”
He walks toward me and pauses right in front of me. I hold my breath, not knowing what the hell he’s doing but I keep my eyes on his, keeping myself as strong as I can. I don’t want him to think there’s any weakness in me. After the disaster that was last night, I need to stand my ground and show him that I can handle my emotions.
“This plan of yours…it’s…complicated,” he states.
“I know,” I whisper, tilting my head up to look at him.
His eyes move between mine as if he’s searching for something inside me. “And you’re positive the documents are where you think they are.”
“One hundred percent.”
He assesses me for a moment before taking a step back and chuckling, his hand wiping over his face like it’s become stiff. “Jesus, sugar, I never would have pegged you with the guts to do something like this. And your friend in there, he’s even more insane than you are.”
“That part is our business. We know what we’re doing and we both have our reasons. All we need is your know–how to tell us how to get in and out the best way possible.”
“I always hated Goldsmith,” he states.
“I’m not surprised.”
“And what about his fuckwit of a son–was he involved too?”
The question feels like a slap in the face. I knew the topic would come up. But I’d hoped we could avoid any talk of Sebastian Goldsmith for now.
It takes me a moment to answer. “In a way.”
He nods in reply, his brow furrowing as his eyes drop from my face for a moment. A discomfort settles between us, and I feel like I should explain but I doubt he’d understand. His priorities have always been different to mine.
“Listen, I’m not saying that I’m going to help you. But I will seriously consider it. But this is going to cost you big, Chloe, and from what I can tell, you can’t afford what you were promising.”
“Help with the job and the contents of those boxes is all yours. I just want the documents. I don’t give a damn about the rest of it.”
“Maybe I don’t want money anymore.”
“Then what do you want?”
That half grin of his that I always loved, curves up the side of his face and my fingers itch to reach out and touch the scar that runs down his cheek.
“I’ll do anything to make this work, Aiden. Name your price and I’ll pay it gladly.”
“I’ll remember that,” he says with a nod as he heads toward the door. “I’ll check out my schedule and call you with my definitive answer in a few days. Can you wait that long?”
“Of course,” I say, as I watch him open the door and leave. The moment the front door clicks shut, Leah reappears at the bathroom door. I’m sure he’s been listening in.
“So how did you get him interested? You obviously didn’t go around there and fuck him last night. He’s still looking at you like a man starved.”
“I didn’t need to,” I reply, reaching down to put the lid back on the archive box before I lift it up. “The facts speak for themselves.”
He narrows his eyes at me. “You cried in front of him, didn’t you? Fuck you’re good, Chloe.”
Shaking my head, I roll my eyes and return the box to my cupboard for safekeeping and Leah follows behind me. “I didn’t cry and I didn’t fuck. He agreed to listen and I told him what he needs to know.”
“If you say so,” he says like he doesn’t believe me. “He’s in love with you, you know.”
I push my cupboard doors closed as a heaviness lands in my chest and I turn to face him. I love him too. “I know.”
“Just be careful, girlie. Love can just as easily become hate. I doubt Aiden is the kind of guy you want gunning for you. You know where we’re headed with this.”
“I know!” I snap, immediately regretting my tone and softening my voice. “I know. Nothing changes. I know what I’m doing, ok?”
He nods once and leaves my room, pulling my door closed behin
d him. The moment I’m alone, I lean against my cupboard and slide down to the floor, burying my face in my hands as I allow myself to sob quietly, hating that my life has never been mine. Hating that I was groomed for a destiny I didn’t want. Hating that all of my work and all of my sacrifices ended up being for nothing.
But most of all, I hate myself for not being strong enough to go my own way.
Chapter Twelve
JULY, three years ago
STRONG BUT gentle fingers slide up the length of Chloe’s back, sending chills through her body as the fingers pause at her shoulders and make their way back down, sliding over the curve of her backside and then all the way back up again. It was soothing and exciting at the same time.
“Are you feeling tired yet?” Aiden asked, lying beside her, gloriously naked and propped on his side as he continued the gentle movement over her skin. She pressed herself against his body, feeling sated and sore, a gentle throbbing between her legs from their night of passion. Aiden was an aggressive lover, and she’d revelled in his strength, and possessiveness, and the ache of her flesh from where he’d gripped her with his need to consume her. And she felt thoroughly consumed.
“Yes. But I don’t want to sleep. I want to stay right here and never move.”
He kissed her forehead, his hand coming to rest on her arse as he pulled her just that little bit closer.
“That could definitely be arranged. I don’t want you in any bed other than mine.”
She lifted her head, brushing her lips over the rough stubble of his chin as he moved his head down a touch and kissed her softly, sleepily.
“I want to fall asleep inside you. I want to wake up, still fucking you. And I want to do that, over and over, and over again,” he growled between his kisses. His hand slid along her thigh, lifting it over his hip as he slid himself inside her warm, wet core. They’d dispensed with condoms after they’d gone through them all. Chloe was on the pill, and it was the first time Aiden had ever forgone protection so they knew they were safe, and could please each other over and over again without pause.
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