Thank you to my amazing daughter, Ruby, for always managing to snap me back into the real world with a smile, a laugh … or a good old toddler whinge. When you visit me in the office for a hug and a chat it really does make my heart swell and remind me why I do what I do.
To my parents, my in-laws, my brother and everyone in my family — thank you so much for supporting me. For understanding when I lock myself away for days on end, when I don’t show up at family gatherings, and for always encouraging me to go for what I want.
Thank you, Mum and Dad, for always reminding me growing up that I could be anything I wanted to be. That single belief has made all of this possible. Looking at the seemingly insurmountable, with those words in the back of my mind, has made all the difference to my writing career and indeed, to everything in my life.
To Anna and Gem. Thank you for picking up Seven Sons, reading it and ‘getting’ what I was trying to do. For understanding my style of storytelling, and for not running the other way when you began to read of Dornan and the Gypsy Brothers. You’ve helped me bring to life an entire backstory that began as a throwaway comment and which, when finished, will span sixteen years.
To Kathy, Anna and Deonie, my editing dream team at HarperCollins: Thank you for your exhaustive, detailed edits on Cartel. Thank you for pushing me to make this my best work yet. Thank you for forcing me out of my comfort zone. My writing is so much stronger because of you all.
Chris Burgess, thank you for tirelessly championing my work and telling people that I don’t suck. My life is completely different now for having met you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for taking a chance on me.
To Lisa. Thank you for always telling me my writing was something, especially when I believed it was crap (and let’s face it, when we first started these shenanigans almost twenty years ago, it definitely WAS crap!)
To my beloved Misfits. Frankie Rose/Callie Hart, CJ Duggan and Lilliana Anderson. Thank you for raising me up when I’m in the depths of writerly despair, and for cheering with me when I’m cruising a writer high! Frankie, thank you so much for our endless phone chats that can last an entire day. #HartSaintGermain for life. CJ, thank you for always having a cracking joke to make me laugh and calming words to make me see reason. And Lilliana, thank you for being the wise soul who always manages to make me feel better when I’m having a freak out. Without you three, for so many reasons, this book would not exist. Special mention also to my dear friends Tina Gephart and Rachel Brookes for always being on the other end of the phone or computer to talk and send me inappropriate photos for ‘inspiration’.
To my girls, Nessa and Manda, THANK YOU for keeping the business side of things running so I can focus on the writing, and for keeping me sane with your support and love!
A special thank you to the amazing Kylie Scott for assisting me behind the scenes with the logistics of publishing deals, for chatting to me on the phone despite your own hectic schedule and for introducing me to your nearest and dearest! I’ll always appreciate everything you’ve done for me. Thank you Kylie AND Jo Wylde for talking me off a ledge more than once…
Special mention to Alex Adsett and Amy Tannenbaum for all of your help with publishing contracts and general advice!
To Hang Le — thank you for letting me have a bit of your brilliance, by designing me such stunning teasers, covers and logos. You are an amazing artist and a beautiful person, and I still can’t believe I get to work with you!
A special mention must go to my beloved team of editors and readers who help me keep everything straight and making sense in my writing. Chelcie, Stephanie, Kim, Marion, Anita, Fiona and my beta girls. I would truly be lost without you. Thank you all for your undying love for my characters (even the ones you’re supposed to hate!). Tammie, thank you for creating such beautiful Gypsy Brothers jewellery and goodies for me to share with my readers.
To every single person who reads the stories I write — thank you, a million times, thank you. Without you, I’d be lost.
And last but not least, thank you to Jeffrey Dean Morgan for inspiring the most kick-ass, diabolical, frightening and awesome character I have ever created. You have no idea what you’ve inspired here (and maybe that’s not a bad thing).
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Lili St. Germain is a phenomenon. The first of her seven serialised dark romance novellas, Seven Sons, came out in early 2014, with the following books in the series released in quick succession and selling over half a million copies worldwide. The bestselling Gypsy Brothers series focuses on a morally bankrupt biker gang and the girl who seeks her vengeance upon them. The Cartel series is a prequel trilogy of full-length novels that explores the beginnings of the club.
Lili quit corporate life to focus on writing and is loving every minute of it. Her other loves in life include her gorgeous husband and beautiful daughter, good coffee and Tarantino movies. She loves to read almost as much as she loves to write. Find out more about the author at lilisaintgermain.com
COPYRIGHT
HarperCollinsPublishers
First published in Australia in 2015
This edition published in 2015
by HarperCollinsPublishers Australia Pty Limited
ABN 36 009 913 517
harpercollins.com.au
Copyright © Lili St. Germain 2015
The right of Lili St. Germain to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright Amendment (Moral Rights) Act 2000.
This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced, copied, scanned, stored in a retrieval system, recorded, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
HarperCollinsPublishers
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National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication data:
Saint Germain, Lili, author.
Cartel / Lili St Germain.
978 1 4607 5004 9 (pbk)
978 1 4607 0428 8 (epub)
Series:Saint Germain, Lili, Gypsy brothers.
Erotic stories.
Love stories.
813.6
Cover design by HarperCollins Design Studio
Cover images by shutterstock.com. Original concept for Gypsy Brothers logo by Frankie Rose.
Author photo by Kate Drennan
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