Never Ever: Never His Duet, #2

By Talia Ellison

Veronica may have gotten her freedom back, but danger is lurking around every corner and she's not safe.

Still, she refuses to run, even if that means she'll have to get deeper into Aiden's world...

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The second book in the Never His duet.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Talia Ellison
• Release date: Dec 7, 2019
• ISBN: 9781393728900

Talia Ellison

Talia Ellison is the author of Hold Me, Unfold Me, the Loving Your Enemy series, the Your Love Is Dangerous series, Destroying the Billionaire, The Mafia Proposal series, the My Broken Hitman series, the Her Dark Mafia Heart duet, the Owned by the Mafia Queen series, the Never His duet, the Taking Revenge on Her Bully series, the Varano Mafia series, and Arranged: Cassaro Mafia. She loves to read and write all kinds of romance, and she has a thing for broken, tortured heroes and fierce heroines who aren't afraid to take what they want. When she’s not busy with a book, she likes to watch TV shows and listen to music. Never miss a new release! Sign up for Talia’s newsletter: https://taliaellison.weebly.com/newsletter.html

Book preview

Chapter 1

veronica

A KNOCK SOUNDED ON the door, startling me.

Come in, I said, and took a deep breath.

When Sophia poked her dark head inside, her eyes searching for mine, my shoulders relaxed a little. It was just my best friend, and not some assassin who had come here to kill me.

Maybe I shouldn’t have returned to my club or stayed in the city, but I wasn’t sure what else I could’ve done.

I’d been Carter Lawrence’s captive, but then I’d hooked up with his incredibly hot brother, Aiden.

Aiden had let me go, but just as I’d been leaving, something had happened.

Some men had come to Aiden’s house and they’d left a bloodbath behind them. Aiden hadn’t been there, though. I knew it for sure because I’d searched the whole damn house for him.

But aside from the dead bodies, there hadn’t been any clues to help me figure out what had happened or where Aiden might be.

I hadn’t even known if his brother had attacked him himself or sent assassins after him.

I still didn’t know.

So, with the money Aiden had given me, I’d decided to buy myself a new apartment in a safer neighborhood where it would be harder for Carter and his men to find me. If there was one thing I was sure of, it was that he’d be coming after me.

I’d escaped him, and I’d slept with his brother, which was something he was never, ever going to forgive.

If only I knew if he had done something to Aiden...

If Aiden was dead... I didn’t even know what I was going to do.

Something had happened between us. We’d shared so many wonderful moments, even though they’d been short, and I missed him.

I missed him so damn much.

Sometimes I even dreamed about him.

It had taken me a week to buy an apartment through a proxy so that it wouldn’t be in my name, and I’d also hired more guards for my club and bodyguards for myself. The club was once again the only thing that I had.

The only place where I felt more or less safe.

And while there were plenty of guards who wouldn’t let anyone get to me, only a few of my most trusted friends were allowed to come to my office. I was no longer doing rounds around the club or having fun like everyone else.

Although I would prefer if I could make sure everything was okay in person, I knew that I couldn’t take that risk. Carter could always send someone to grab me or hurt me, so it was safer for me just to keep an eye on everything with the help of the cameras that were everywhere.

People still danced and enjoyed themselves without knowing anything about what had happened to me and without worrying about the danger, but some of them must’ve suspected something was off when I’d upped the security measures at the entrance.

Maybe I should’ve gone straight to the cops, but I feared Carter would somehow use that to get to me. They could be on his payroll as well, and I definitely wasn’t ready to go through the process of pressing charges.

Three weeks had gone by in a flash, and really, the only thing that I wanted to know was if Aiden was still alive. If his enemies had come for him and hadn’t killed him immediately like they’d done with his guards, then maybe there was a chance they were keeping him alive somewhere and were trying to get information out of him or use him against his brother.

But if Carter had him and knew the truth about what had happened between Aiden and me, then I didn’t even want to think about it.

Maybe Aiden had managed to run away before anyone could hurt or capture him, but why hadn’t he tried to contact me then? He had to know that I was worried about him.

Maybe he was mad that I hadn’t gone into hiding like he’d wanted me to do, but running somehow hadn’t felt right. Carter had enough resources to find me, and at least here I knew exactly where to go and who to trust.

I wasn’t all on my own either.

Are you okay? Sophia asked, and I blinked at her.

Yeah, I just... I closed the file that was on my desk. My office might be the safest place for me right now, but being stuck here all the time was starting to drive me crazy. Any news?

Since I didn’t exactly have any connections to any gangs, I didn’t know how to find out what had happened to Aiden or who to ask.

I wasn’t about to visit some gang members or hang out in dangerous neighborhoods in hopes I might overhear something, so the only thing I could do was check if some of my friends had a friend who might know a gang member—even if it wasn’t one of the Lawrences’ guys—and who just might be willing to share what he knew.

Someone had to be aware of what had happened or at least must’ve heard some rumors. The Lawrences were an infamous gang, so there was no way no one would know if anything happened to them.

And while I was glad Carter hadn’t been seen nearby and hadn’t paid me a visit either, I wasn’t sure if that was a good or a bad thing.

"Actually, there is something. Sophia’s lips spread into a smile. I’ve been talking to some guys, and I noticed one of our bouncers has a peculiar tattoo."

I leaned forward, clinging to her every word. What kind of a tattoo?

Had I hired one of the Lawrences without knowing it? Had they been spying on me for longer than I’d thought? Ugh, I so didn’t want to think about that.

A gang tattoo. Not the Lawrences’, of course. It’s a bit faded, so we didn’t notice it before, I guess, but I asked him about it. Apparently, he used to be a gang member, but he got out.

My eyebrows shot up. Now that was something that didn’t really happen often. Getting out of a gang was never easy. Really?

Well, he’s the boss’ cousin, so they let him go because they know he won’t rat on them and they always know where to find him. But he sometimes still does stuff with them when they need help, and he knows things. And it turns out he’s heard about the Lawrences.

I waited for her to continue, wondering what I was going to do if Aiden was fine and well and hadn’t even deigned to send me a message or something to let me know.

They’re out of town, but their men are still watching over their part of the city, which means there haven’t been any shifts in leadership. They have some new recruits too, so it looks like whatever they’re doing... they need more men for it.

Is that all?

What did that even mean? Why would both Aiden and Carter leave the city for so long? Carter should’ve returned right after Aiden let me go, but it looked like he hadn’t, or maybe he’d been here briefly and left again.

Does that mean Aiden’s still alive?

Is he just avoiding me?

Has he forgotten about me?

Yeah, that’s all I got. He can’t really ask more questions or they’ll be suspicious. But I think your boyfriend’s alive. She gave me a small smile.

He’s not my boyfriend. Especially if he no longer wanted to have anything to do with me.

Maybe he’d realized that what we’d done was a mistake.

Maybe he regretted letting me go.

If his brother didn’t know about us, then Aiden could just pretend nothing had happened at all.

I’d told Sophia everything that had happened to me, and she’d been so mad that she hadn’t suspected something might’ve happened to me and that Carter had managed to fool her with fake messages about my newfound relative.

He wouldn’t have let you go if he didn’t like you, and he definitely wouldn’t have given you all that money.

But it’s not like he said he loved me or anything either.

Aiden and I hadn’t had the time to even consider what would happen after I was free again, and he’d always been so damn determined to keep me safe that maybe now he didn’t dare send someone so that Carter wouldn’t find out.

But Carter had to know that I was here. Maybe he just had more pressing issues to deal with.

Don’t be so pessimistic. Maybe Aiden’s just busy or he has to deal with his brother first. Didn’t he tell you something like that? She tilted her head at me.

Yeah, but it’s been three weeks and I just.... I want to know for sure that he’s alive. Carter could be pretending that Aiden was okay to fool me or his enemies, or for whatever reason.

Not knowing was driving me crazy.

I know, but at least there’s hope, right?

I nodded, although I wasn’t sure how I should feel anymore.

If Aiden was fine and free, then why hadn’t he come? Even if Carter didn’t know the truth, and Aiden hadn’t told him yet, Aiden could’ve still sent me a message, so why hadn’t he? There were ways to do it securely and discreetly.

I was sure of it.

What if the only person who was in love here was me?

Chapter 2

aiden

ARE YOU SURE ABOUT that? he asked, gripping the phone.

His spy, Jo, was on the other end of the line, and she’d just confirmed that Veronica was still at her club and it didn’t look like she was about to leave anytime soon.

Yeah, boss. I’m sure. She’s not going anywhere.

Okay. Keep me posted if anything changes. He ended the call and ran his hand through his dark brown hair.

What the hell was Veronica thinking? He’d given her enough money to run away far away from here, and yet, she was back at home.

Okay, so she wasn’t exactly at her apartment, and not even Jo had figured out yet where she lived, but sooner or later, someone was going to find out, and he didn’t want his brother to be the first one to do that.

But what could he do? He was in another city with Carter, and he still hadn’t had the opportunity to talk to him about Veronica. He didn’t even know if his brother was aware of the truth.

The attack had completely changed everything, and now there wasn’t even time to think about Veronica. Hopefully, that meant Carter wouldn’t have time for her either, but what would happen once they returned home?

Was Veronica really thinking that hiring a few more guards and staying hidden somewhere inside the club was going to help?

She could’ve been on the other end of the world by now, and yeah, one tiny part of him was glad that she wasn’t and that he knew exactly where she was and that she was safe, but he didn’t like that her life was at risk.

You need to finish this thing with your brother. Things can’t go on like this.

He knew that, but if his brother truly didn’t suspect that anything had happened between Veronica and him, then he couldn’t just surprise him with that piece of info.

No, he had to be very careful, because there was still a chance his brother was going to understand.

Surely Aiden could have both.

Veronica and his brother.

You’re delusional. As always.

He was just about to slip his phone into his pocket when the door swung open. Annoyance surged through him as Carter stepped inside without knocking or asking if it was okay.

He and Carter had been together ever since the attack and they were still plotting a revenge plan. Aiden was even more pissed off about that because it had been Carter who’d created a new enemy out of the people who were supposed to be their allies.

But that was just his brother. Always wanting too much and messing up everything.

What? Aiden snapped, and Carter’s eyebrows shot up, his blue eyes meeting Aiden’s.

What’s gotten into you, little brother?

"What’s gotten into me? Seriously? After everything you’ve done."

Relax. Carter clapped him on the shoulder. I know you’re upset that the deal fell through.

It didn’t fall through. You ruined it. You always do that. You ruin things.

It had been Carter who’d decided to fake signing the deal so he could steal from the Rito gang, who were supposed to be their new allies. Once the Ritos had found out about it, they’d gone after Carter.

Carter had escaped, but they’d gotten their hands on the info about Aiden’s house, and they’d gone straight there.

Aiden had lost many good men, and if his brother hadn’t called him just a few minutes before the Ritos showed up, he might’ve ended up dead too. He’d managed to get away at the last moment and reunite with his brother.

Oh, come on. Don’t be mad at me. We don’t need a deal with those people. Those diamonds I took from them are worth so much more. You’ll see that. After we’re done with the Ritos, you’ll be thanking me.

Three weeks. It’s been three weeks, in case you didn’t notice, and we still don’t know where they are. We’re spreading ourselves thin. If we stay here, who’s going to watch our city, huh? Do you think none of our enemies will dare to make their move against us?

Carter pressed his lips together. It is taking longer than usual, but we’ll go home soon, and we’ll be stronger than ever.

If you say so.

Look, I’m sorry about your men. If I’d known earlier what the Ritos were about to do, I would’ve called you. But you’re not the only one who lost something. My pet was taken too, and she’s roaming around freely.

Aiden’s fingers clenched into fists. Are you seriously still thinking about that woman? Now? When everything could go to hell? This is the Ritos’ territory, and they could surprise us.

Aiden wondered if maybe his brother actually knew about everything and had sent the Ritos after him to make him pay because he’d had sex with Veronica—something his brother had warned him not to do—but had changed his mind at the last moment.

The Ritos had been avoiding their attacks somehow, and they were never in the places where they usually hung out, so either they were that good or they were working with his brother.

But why would Carter wait to confront him about it? It just wasn’t like his brother to do that.

Maybe he has a soul after all.

Maybe you can still get through to him.

Yeah, right. Carter was never going to forgive him, but Aiden was going to try. He just had to make sure Veronica’s life wasn’t at risk first.

Maybe he should just tell his brother right now, but he was sure that all Carter would see was the fact that Aiden had taken his property,