Partners (Fire & Lies - One) Read Online Free

right?”
    “ That would
see our profit margin drop considerably. I’m sure the board would
have me removed pretty fast if the investors weren’t able to line
their pockets so thoroughly.”
    “ Fuck the
investors. Do you really think all of this paperwork leads directly
from the deal to the bank? This is all one huge maze, filled with
deals and schemes that break things up and take them away. The
intricacies are beyond my expertise, but I see it happening. I hear
the words ‘shell’ and ‘off-shore’, and I see investments in things
that are guaranteed to lose.”
    Her eyes
dropped as the grip on her pen faltered, and she used both hands to
steady it, then place it down gently. She swallowed. “Are you
calling my father a crook?” she asked in a whisper, glancing up at
him slightly before once again concentrating on her pen.
    Aiden smiled,
tucking his hands into his pockets as he watched her cheeks flame
and felt that this girl had found herself way out of her depth in
her position.
    “ We’re all
crooks here, Chloe. There isn’t a legitimate bone in any of our
bodies. You don’t become as powerful as your father without
brokering some shady business deals. It’s what the team of lawyers
is for.”
    Her head
snapped up and she met Aiden’s eyes with a look of defiance. “Don’t
you think I know that? I’ve been watching him since I was small. I
know exactly what type of man my father is.”
    “ And you’re
fine with becoming just like him? You’re happy looking in the
mirror and seeing him look back at you?”
    Her gaze
faltered and she hesitated in her answer. “Why are you being this
way?”
    “ Because I
think you’re better than this place, Chloe. I think you’re made of
better stuff than your father.”
    “ I thought
you liked my father.”
    “ I do. He’s
been very good to me. But I’m not blind, I see his flaws.”
    “ I’m not
without flaw, Aiden. I assure you,” she laughed, although it was a
hollow sound with very little humour in it at all.
    “ I don’t
see it, Chloe. In my eyes, you’re pretty damn perfect.”
    Suddenly,
everything stilled and her eyes dropped again, a blush making its
way up her neck, heating her cheeks. “You don’t even know me,” she
whispered.
    “ No. But
I’d like to.”
    “ Haven’t
you been warned away like everyone else?” she asked, forcing her
eyes up to his again.
    He nodded
slowly.
    “ Don’t you
care?”
    He shook his
head, keeping his eyes on hers.
    Looking at
him, she pulled at her lip. “You should.”
    When Chloe had
started at the firm, Terry Donovan had been sure to take him aside
and remind him that his daughter was not to be touched by anyone.
He had asked Aiden to keep an eye on her to minimise what he called
‘distractions’, and also made it very clear that anyone who messed
with his daughter would face his wrath and never work in any sector
that he had contacts inside again. Considering he had connections
in almost every sector there was, it meant he’d effectively ruin
their life.
    Aiden could
understand that he was protective of his daughter – she was
beautiful, and he was sure that even a father could see the way men
reacted to her. And as a result both men and women alike were
afraid to have anything to do with her. She’d go to the kitchen to
get a coffee, and the staff would smile politely then quickly
scurry away, as if talking to her could be the end of them.
    Chloe could
see the muscle tick in Aiden’s jaw as he stood in front of her. It
was as if he was searching her face for something, his mind ticking
away as he gazed at her intensely. But slowly, his mouth curved
into his charming smile and his posture relaxed. “Perhaps you’re
right. Perhaps I should care. Perhaps I should ignore you just
because you’re the boss’ daughter, and leave you in here alone,
night after lonely night, with no one to talk to and no one to keep
you safe.”
    “ Safe from
what?”
    His smile
broadened, and his eyes glinted