Partners (Fire & Lies - One) (19 page)

I shrug as
well. “I don’t need the money either.”

“What about
Jared?”

“I mean, he’d
take it. But whether he needs it… I’m going to go with a no. He’s
pretty prolific in his work. What about your friend Leah?”

“Leah’s goal
doesn’t require money. Leah’s all about revenge.”

“You’re going
to have to tell me his story at some point.”

“It’s not mine
to tell. You’re going to have to ask him.”

“How do you
think he’s going to react to how things are progressing? Will he be
fine with bringing me and Jared in?”

“He’ll see the
necessity. As long as his goal is met, he’ll be fine. But I’ll talk
to him about it tonight and bring him to meet Jared tomorrow.”

“I think
that’s a good idea. That way, we can work through all the tiny
details and split up any prep work.”

I reach into
the centre console and pull out a small remote as I approach the
electric gate to an industrial compound. Inside is a large garage,
workshop and training range. It’s where all of my vehicles and
recovery supplies are housed. It’s also where I hold any ‘team
training’ as it’s out of the way, and we can fire weapons without
causing any sort of disturbance which would occur if we were closer
to the city.

“Is this your
secret base?” Chloe asks, as she watches the large roller door open
up and reveal the large warehouse I own. “The special Aiden Price
version of the Bat Cave?”

I chuckle
lightly and stop the car, switching off the engine before I turn to
her. “It’s something like that,” I say. I get out of the car,
walking around to meet her on her side as she gets out along with
me and looks around.

“Quite the
collector, aren’t you?” she notes, her gaze wandering around the
complex and taking in the twenty-odd vehicles that are lined up on
either side.

“They all have
their purpose,” I say, reaching out and taking her hand before
leading her toward another door.

“And what’s
through here?” she asks.

I unlock the
door with a pin code and push it open. “It’s my weapons cache.”

“Bullshit,”
she laughs. But as I hit the lights, her laugh quiets and is
replaced with a low whistle as she looks around the room. “What the
hell are you planning for? The zombie apocalypse?”

“They all have
their purpose,” I say again, watching her as she slowly walks
around the room. “Pick your weapon. I’ll take you to the range.
You’re going to need to be confident with it before we do
this.”

She runs her
hand down the barrel of an M-16, a standard military rifle, and
looks up at me. “Do you actually think we’ll need these? I mean, I
don’t really want to hurt anyone.”

I step toward
her. “If we do this right, no one will get hurt at all. But we need
to be prepared. Sometimes, plans don’t work out and that’s when
your fire power will come in handy.”

She nods and
moves to a table that holds various hand guns. “Could I just use
one of these?”

“You can,” I
say, moving up behind her as she lifts one up and tests its weight
in her hand. “Are they loaded?”

I take the
pistol from her hand and place it back on the table, selecting a
Smith & Wesson Bodyguard that has less recoil and will fit
better in her small hands. “Try this,” I tell her, placing the gun
in her hand. “Does that feel more comfortable to hold?”

She shifts it
from palm to palm, inspecting it timidly before replacing it on the
table and picking up a Browning high powered pistol. “I think I
like this better,” she says, as she checks its sight and opens it
up, checking it over like a fucking pro. She’s obviously done this
before. She clicks it back together and places it back on the
table.

“Why am I not
surprised that you know how to do that?” I ask, reaching out and
pulling her up against me.

“A girl needs
to be prepared,” she whispers, her eyes dropping to my mouth and
her sexy pink tongue snakes out and licks her lips in
anticipation.

“So, you know
guns. But can you shoot?”

She rises up
on her toes, brushing her lips against mine in a tease. “You might
have to teach me,” she whispers, looking up at me through lowered
lashes.

“Somehow, I
doubt that,” I say with a chuckle before grabbing my Colt and some
ammo, then walk up to the back of the warehouse where we’ve set up
the gun range.

It’s much like
any other indoor shooting range, sound proof with different targets
that we attach to an electric track. Outside, I have an area for
clay pigeons and shit, but this is about knowing Chloe can handle
herself if things go south.

I hook the
paper target up onto the track and hit the button to take it to the
back wall. “Now, if for some reason, we don’t get away clean,
you’re going to have to use your weapon. It would be better if we
didn’t kill any cops, but if you have to, you have to. But a hit to
the shoulder or in the side will do enough damage to make the guy
pause or to stop him all together.”

“What about
shooting them in the thigh?”

“Sugar, that
stuff’s for movies. You shoot a cop in the thigh and you’re likely
to hit the femoral artery and they’ll bleed out, making you both a
bank robber
and
a cop killer–you don’t want that if you can
avoid it.”

“Ok, so I’ll
shoot anywhere there isn’t a major organ or artery. Gotcha.”

“You’re very
confident.”

She gives me a
wink. “I’m an excellent shot.”

Picking up the
safety glasses and headgear, she sets herself up, checking that
I’ve done the same, before she releases the safety and opens fire,
rapidly shooting until her clip is exhausted. Calmly, she places
the gun on the ledge in front of her and removes the earmuffs.

“Was that good
enough for you?” she asks. I hit the button, bringing the target
back in so I can inspect her aim.

I let out a
slow whistle. “Nice work,” I tell her, noting that not one bullet
has hit any critical zones.

Dropping my
glasses on the ledge, I reach out and remove hers as well before
pulling her up against me. “That, is fucking hot. When did you
learn how to shoot?”

Her arms slide
up around my neck. “I’ve picked up a thing or two over the
years.”

“I was worried
about taking you into the bank. But you’ve been training for this,
haven’t you?”

She leans in
and whispers, “Every single day.”

Smiling, I
pull away and grab another target, hooking it up and sending it
back down the line. “Now,” I say near her ear, as she replaces her
cartridge, “shoot to kill.”

With our
safely gear back on, I stand to the side of her as she lands bullet
after bullet in both the head and the chest. Taking our headgear
and glasses off yet again, she turns to me with a triumphant
smile.

“How was
that?” she asks, her cheeks flushes as she looks up at me, looking
like a slice of death-wielding innocence.

My hand slides
up her back and I grab a fistful of her hair, pulling her head back
and exposing her neck. I lean down, dragging my teeth over her soft
skin. “Is it wrong that watching you massacre that target made me
so hard I can’t think straight?” I murmur, growing even harder as a
light moan escapes her lips. She presses her breasts against my
chest and slides her hands downward, pulling up my shirt.

“Then fuck
me,” she purrs, her fingers working the button and zip of my pants
and sliding in, wrapping her hand around my shaft.

I grind myself
into her grip, fucking her hand as I reach down and squeeze her
arse. Hard. “Are you getting sore yet, or are you ready for
more?”

“More,” she
whispers. “I like the way you make me hurt.”

Her whispered
words cause my cock to throb and my fingers to clench, tighter
against her flesh. I release her hair, digging into her skin
because I want to own her. Body and mind. Heart and soul. I want to
own this woman.

As she
continues to stroke me, my hands trade positions. One reaches down
to her arse as the other slides up her back. Diving into her hair,
curling my fingers around the soft tendrils and pulling again, I
run the tip of my tongue along her pulse line, feeling the excited
thump of her heart, telling me how much I thrill her. My mouth
moves up to her jaw, tasting, kissing, biting and finally, to her
open and waiting mouth.

I tease her
lips, biting before releasing, causing her to shake and whimper,
wanting more. “Aiden,” she breathes, her voice a soft whisper. I
look into her eyes and release the grip I have on her arse,
slipping my other hand underneath her dress and between her thighs,
feeling almost drunk when my fingertips glide through her
arousal.

I moan her
name and take her mouth in mine, my tongue exploring every surface
as my fingers slide inside her, pulling out to find her nub and
tease her hot heat. She gasps and shudders, her internal muscles
squeezing with a vice-like grip around my fingers as I fuck her
with my hand.

Breaking the
kiss, I pull out of her grip and spin her around, guiding her up
against the wall as my mouth slides along her jaw. I bite at her
earlobe while I pull up her dress and get my cock ready, stroking
back and forth over it as I reach around to her front and slide my
fingers between her folds to tease her clit.

Her hand
reaches up and grabs at my hair, pulling as she cranes her neck to
pull my mouth to hers. I slide my cock between her thighs, groaning
when I’m soaked by her juices.

“Holy fuck,” I
moan into her mouth as I squat down and position my tip, forcing
myself upward and into her tight hole. I moan again as her muscles
grip the fuck out of my cock, and I struggle to keep control. I
don’t think I’ve ever come as much as I have over the last couple
of days in my entire life. But she makes me so fucking hot that I’m
in a constant state of agony from wanting her so badly.

Pushing
through my thighs, I drive myself in and out of her sweet cunt
while keeping my finger working on her nub. She cries out with each
thrust, her volume increasing with every pump.

I’m going to
blow. I can’t fucking stop myself. “Aiden!” she yells, pulling at
my hair as she shudders around me, and I unload inside her.

“Fuck, you
make me so hard, sugar,” I growl next to her ear as I slide my
fingers around her juices, rubbing around the base of my cock.
“It’s agony and I don’t think it’s going to stop anytime soon.” I
grip my base, sliding out and milking the last of my juices as I
cup my hand between her legs, rubbing her lightly as I catch our
combined orgasm. “You’re still on the pill, right?”

“Of course, I
wouldn’t keep doing this if there was a risk.”

“Good. You’re
still the only one I’ve ever gone uncovered with.”

She turns
around and pulls her dress down–much to my disappointment. “Good,”
she says, reaching out and tucking me back inside my pants. “Now,
let’s go get cleaned up. We’ve got some work to do right? We can do
this again later.”

“I’ll hold you
to that.”

AFTER
REALISING that I don’t need shooting lessons, Aiden chooses a very
unassuming looking white Volkswagen sedan from his stash, and we
make our way to the bank. We then drive around the area, checking
for our best escape and alternate routes. It takes the good part of
the day, but by the end of it, we both have a very clear idea of
all the roads as well as having chosen a parking garage to switch
cars in.

“So how many
of these recovery missions have you gone on in the last couple of
years?” I ask, as Aiden drives us back to the warehouse and we
switch out the car.

“Enough,” he
states simply, although I should have known he wouldn’t answer any
more than that.

“Sworn to
secrecy, huh?”

He gives me a
raised brow look and I laugh as we both get back into his car and I
marvel at how easy it is for us to fall back into being around each
other. And I catch myself wondering what life would be like for us
now if I had chosen him all along. Would we have burned bright and
fizzled out–becoming nothing more than a pleasant memory? Or would
we have stayed strong and passionate and loved each other fiercely
from every day since?

A small voice
and a feeling deep within me tells me it would be the latter. The
feelings between us have lasted for three years without each other,
despite all the reasons for him to hate me. But here we are,
together again, unable to be around each other for long without
touching. It’s everything I ever wanted.

Too bad we’re
doomed…

Seemingly
oblivious to my thoughts, Aiden pulls his phone from his pocket and
reads over his messages while simultaneously starting the car, a
look of concentration set upon his face.

“Jared’s got
some stuff to show us back at the office,” he states, putting the
car into gear and heading out.

“Ok, well
would you mind dropping me back at my car? I’m going to have to go
and talk to Leah about all this. He’s been messaging me and
wondering where I am.”

“Sure,” he
says, keeping his face and his gaze directly ahead on the road.
Something about the way he said the word sounded like he left
something out, as if there were words unspoken that should have
followed it.

“What?” I ask,
sensing some sort of annoyance coming off him.

“Nothing. I’ll
take you back. It’s no problem.”

I reach over
and touch his knee. “I’m not going to take off on you if that’s
what you’re worried about.”

He glances at
me briefly, before he shifts the gears and turns a corner. “I’m not
worried. I won’t be giving you the chance,” he states.

“What’s that
supposed to mean?”

“Exactly that.
I’m not sending you back to some guy fucking panty-less. It’s not
going to happen.”