Never His: Never His Duet, #1

By Talia Ellison

The dangerous gang co-leader, Aiden Lawrence, only cares about two things: his business and his brother. Once Veronica Tyler crosses his path, he can't get her out of his head, but he knows he has to stay away to keep her safe.

As a successful nightclub owner, Veronica doesn't want any trouble, especially not the kind that Aiden would bring into her life—no matter how incredibly hot he is and how much she'd like to tie him up and have her way with him.

But when his aggressive, self-absorbed brother, Carter, sets his eyes on her and won't take no for an answer, she winds up as his prisoner.

As the sizzling attraction between Aiden and her threatens to combust, she has to find a way to get Aiden to give in.

If she fails, she'll die.

But if she succeeds, their feelings for each other just might end up destroying them both.

.

.

This is the first installment in the Never His duet. It may contain potentially triggering situations, violence, strong language, mature content, and a cliffhanger.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Talia Ellison
• Release date: Dec 7, 2019
• ISBN: 9781386577249

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

VERONICA! MY BEST friend’s voice pierced the air, and I spun around.

Sophia waved a colorful piece of paper as she made her way toward me, her long black hair carefully braided on each side of her head, her dark kohl-rimmed eyes focused on me.

More ads? I asked as she handed me the paper, and she nodded.

My nightclub was doing well, but since a new club was opening just down the street soon, I wanted to focus a bit more on promotion, and Sophia, as my employee, was helping me with that too, just as she was doing with overseeing the club.

I really like this one, she said. The girl in the ad looks like you.

My eyebrows shot up. Huh. The girl had long dark brown hair and light blue eyes, just like me, but that was it. I wasn’t sure how much the image had been retouched. She’s skinnier than me.

Yeah, but she’s sexy enough.

I studied the image. Okay. Get more of these and hand them out. We want to make sure that no one even thinks about going to that other club. I winked.

My club had three floors, each with a different style of music, and there was also a special VIP area with private shows and live music.

Perfect! She snatched the ad from me. Oh, there’s one tiny problem.

What kind of a problem? I furrowed my brow. Judging by the hesitant look on Sophia’s face, I assumed it was something about the club.

The Lawrence brothers, she said. We kind of... um, had to let them into the VIP area. I wanted to talk to you about that first, but there was no time, and no one wanted to risk it, so...

My shoulders tensed. The Lawrence brothers weren’t just any men. They were the leaders of the Lawrence gang.

What do they want? I asked cautiously.

Their gang usually didn’t operate in this area, so if they planned to spread their influence here, we were going to have a problem, because I wasn’t willing to have to pay for their protection.

I don’t know. It looks like they just want to have fun. Sophia shrugged. If you don’t want them here, I can tell the bouncers to kick them out, but I’m not sure that would be a good idea.

You’re right. There’s no reason for us to kick them out. For now. But we have to keep an eye on them. I’ll be there in a few.

I had to oversee the situation myself to make sure no one had snuck in a weapon—yeah, we were one of those clubs that didn’t allow any weapons, but sometimes people got creative to avoid our checks—and that the Lawrences weren’t here to bother anyone.

I so wasn’t going to let them turn my club into their meeting spot or allow them to do anything that would send the rest of the people running and never coming back.

Okay. Sophia offered me a relieved smile.

I hurried to get dressed in more suitable clothes. My office was small, but at least there was enough space for a closet with all the outfits that I might need.

It didn’t take me long to find exactly what I wanted.

I slipped out of my comfy blue sweater and jeans, and tugged on a pair of tight leather pants and a black and red lace corset. As I slid on my high-heeled spiked boots, I was briefly transported back to the time before I owned this club.

Back when I was just an exotic dancer who was hoping she’d earn enough money so she wouldn’t end up on the street. Again.

I blinked at my reflection in the mirror that was in the corner of the room. Would my parents be proud of what I’d achieved if they could see me now?

I had no idea, because I’d never met them. They’d died in a car crash when I was just a toddler, and I’d been sent from one foster home to another until I’d had enough.

I’d been so desperate that living on the streets was more attractive than spending another minute of threats and abuse from the people who never even cared about me.

After grabbing my makeup kit from my desk, I refreshed my red lipstick and smacked my lips together. Whatever the Lawrence brothers intended to do, I wasn’t going to let them try to take over my club.

When, five years ago, one of the girls who’d danced with me suggested that we saved our earnings and opened our own club called Villainess—she’d already had the perfect location for it because she’d inherited her grandfather’s building with an old bar—I’d told her she was crazy, but luckily for me, she’d persisted and convinced me to take a risk.

Our club had been small at first, but it had quickly become popular through word-of-mouth, and we’d reinvested most of the money we’d earned to keep it growing.

Once she’d fallen in love and formed a family on her own away from here, she’d sold her half of the club to me, and now, it was my responsibility to protect it no matter what.

Maybe Sophia was right and the Lawrence brothers just wanted a taste of the best entertainment in town and nothing else.

I took a deep breath and stormed out of the office.

Sophia was by my side as soon as I entered the dimness of the club. At first glance, everything seemed as usual.

A few people were dancing on the dance floor that glowed with a soft dark blue light, while the others were busy drinking or watching the young brunette with an amazing voice who was singing on the stage. A couple was kissing in the darkest spot.

It was just like any other night.

But then my gaze fell on the man in the far corner of the room who was surrounded by a group of girls and spreading his arms in the air as if he owned the place.

One of the Lawrence brothers, I guess? I leaned in to yell into Sophia’s ear so she’d hear me over the upbeat music. Although I’d heard a lot about them—mostly the rumors about their criminal activities—I hadn’t exactly seen them in person before.

Yep, that’s Carter Lawrence.

Ah, so that was the older brother—the one who had formed the gang when he was only seventeen years old. Now, ten years later, his gang was stronger than ever and sowing fear through our city.

They were ruthless and dabbled in all kinds of things, from drugs to weapons and even assassinations—pretty much anything that they found profitable.

If only I knew what they were after and why they were here. It wasn’t like they didn’t have their own clubs or places for entertainment.

Where’s the other one? I asked.

It wouldn’t be hard to keep an eye on Carter since it seemed that he liked being the center of attention, but I needed to know where his brother was too.

Over there somewhere. Sophia bobbed her head toward the tables. I can’t see him from here.

Then let’s go closer. I strolled across the room, glancing from time to time at Carter, who seemed to be enjoying himself.

Maybe I’d panicked over nothing.

Maybe they were just curious about the club.

Suddenly, I felt someone’s gaze on my back, and I turned around.

A pair of piercing dark eyes was staring back at me, and a jolt of desire surged through me because they belonged to one of the handsomest men I’d ever seen.

Full, completely kissable lips.

Short, dark, messy hair that begged to be tugged on.

A white dress shirt, with the first two buttons open, that wanted to be ripped open.

Raised sleeves that offered a glimpse of strong, muscled arms.

Dark blue jeans and black boots.

Oh, he was perfect.

And even better, he was alone.

Take him.

I bit down on my lip because my mind was already forming delicious images of what I would like to do to him. And the way his gaze clung to me assured me that he wouldn’t mind at all.

That’s him. Sophia’s voice in my ear was like a cold shower. Aiden Lawrence.

My gaze snapped to hers. "Really? That’s him?"

Of course. What else could I have expected?

She nodded, and I let out a groan. It was just my luck.

Why did the Lawrence brothers have to be so damn good-looking? Okay, Carter was okayish, with a completely annoying personality, but Aiden...

I still wanted to do bad things to him.

How much for a night with you, gorgeous? someone shouted from behind me, his arm wrapping around my waist.

I willed myself to stay still so I wouldn’t elbow him in the face, which was my usual reaction when someone grabbed me from behind, but we weren’t on the streets.

When I turned around to face the guy, I nearly had a heart attack.

Carter Lawrence was grinning at me like a moron, his blue eyes glassy, and he reeked of alcohol.

Sorry, I said, pushing his arm off me. If you’re looking for sex, you’re in the wrong place.

Are you sure about that? His gaze lingered on my chest. I guarantee you my cock will make you moan and scream like never before.

I raised an eyebrow at him.

Wow, so fucking charming.

How could I ever say no to such a generous offer?

I’m sure there are plenty of girls who would like to give you the best night of your life. My lips spread into a fake, pleasant smile. So why don’t you go find them instead?

I want you. He reached for my arm, and I took a step back. You work here, right? Do I have to talk to your boss first to get you?

Ugh, someone kill me.

No, wait, kill him!

This is a nightclub, not a brothel. And I’m the boss, so my answer to your offer is no.

His face became serious, and he titled his head at me as if he was having a hard time processing what I’d just said. He couldn’t be shocked that a woman owned this club, could he? Or that we weren’t selling sex here?

Ha ha! You’re so naive, Veronica.

Right.

Double then. A wide smile popped up on his face. I’ll pay you double.

Oh, for the love of...

I said no. If only I could tell him where he could shove his proposition... But I didn’t want my club destroyed, and he gave me the impression of a man who wasn’t strong enough to handle a rejection.

A woman in a glittery purple cocktail dress approached him, placing her hand on his arm and giving him a seductive smile. Instead of focusing on her, he pushed her away. Confusion crossed her face, and then she strode away.

You’re playing hard to get. I like that. Carter leaned toward me.

I’m not playing anything.

No means no, you moron.

How about a million dollars? You can’t say no to that.

How about you take a seat and enjoy the music? Someone will bring you another drink and... And in the meantime, I was going to disappear, because I was so done being nice to a guy who didn’t deserve it and who was probably going to call me a bitch the moment he realized I wasn’t going to change my mind. Besides, people were already glancing our way and the last thing I needed was for Carter to make a scene.

But you...

Carter! Aiden stepped in between us, placing his hand against his brother’s chest. Come on. We should go.

I used the opportunity to get away from there and from Carter.

Unfortunately, that included Aiden too. But no matter how hot he was, it was better that nothing happened between us, especially with his crazy brother lusting after me.

Hopefully, once Carter sobered up, he’d forget all about me. Saying no to a man who was probably used to getting whatever he wanted and who couldn’t handle rejection was always risky, especially when he was a gang leader who could do a lot of damage not just to my club but to me too.

The alternative was unacceptable, though.

Rumor had it that a girl who’d been seen with him had ended up dead in some dark alley, but no one had been able to connect her murder to him.

Are you okay? Sophia asked when she caught up with me. I’m sorry I didn’t do anything to help, but he scares me and I...

It’s fine. You don’t have to apologize for that. I’m glad he didn’t set his eyes on you too. He’s a jerk.

My friend Sue thinks he’s hot, but he wasn’t interested in her.

Let’s hope the Lawrences leave and never come back.

Even if that meant I’d never see Aiden again.

Chapter 2

aiden

WHERE DID SHE GO? Carter looked left and right, but the woman was gone.

Aiden breathed a sigh of relief. The sole thought of his brother touching her made his skin crawl and his jaw clench. He could understand why Carter had set his eyes on her, though.

She was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen, and his brother wasn’t blind. The way she held herself...

Her luscious curves.

Her tight pants hugging her ass—he wanted to hold onto it as he buried his face between her long legs.

And her eyes...

The eyes of a she-wolf.

His cock twitched just at the thought of her.

But he was used to wanting things that he couldn’t have, and she was one of them. He’d never put an innocent woman’s life in danger because he liked her.

He was a Lawrence, and even if he just had sex with her, it could turn her into a target for his enemies, and he wasn’t going to let that happen. Ever.

Even if it meant he’d spend the rest of his life alone. His business always came first for him, and he didn’t believe in love, so he didn’t think he was missing out on anything.

His brother should’ve known better than to come here. This place wasn’t for men like them.

Come on. Let’s go. He placed his hand on Carter’s shoulder, but his brother refused to budge.

No! I’m not going anywhere until I find her. She’ll be mine.

Aiden pressed his lips into a tight line. Those were exactly the words he was hoping he wouldn’t hear coming out of his brother’s mouth.

Remember the last time.

No. He didn’t want to remember what had happened the last time Carter had shown special interest in a woman.

She’s probably already sucking someone else’s cock. Hopefully, that would put Carter off whatever he had in mind.

His brother’s brow furrowed and then he pulled out his phone, tapping the screen. She said she’s the boss. A few moments later, a wide smile popped up on his lips. Her name’s Veronica Tyler.

Aiden inwardly cursed.

The last thing his brother needed right now was to find out more about his new obsession, and Aiden was sure Veronica was going to turn into one very soon, even though he wished with everything he had that she wouldn’t.

Veronica.

Her name was Veronica.

He liked the sound of it.

Let’s go. You don’t want Veronica to call the cops, do you? He pushed his brother toward the exit.

Why would she do that?

I’m just saying we shouldn’t take any unnecessary risks, especially now that we’re on the right path. He looked straight into his brother’s blue eyes. Leave her alone. She’s unimportant.

Oh, come on! You need to loosen up, little brother. Life isn’t just about business. Carter grinned. And she’ll be mine. I can already picture her on her knees and her pretty little mouth around my...

Aiden’s fingers curled into fists, his body tensing. He wanted to punch his brother