Beautiful White Lies Duet

by K L Clare

  His rough whisper swept over my ear. “Are you hurt, baby? Did he hurt you?”

  “I’m okay.” I swallowed against the burn.

  “Never do that to me again, Elle.” He pressed his lips into my skin, allowing his soft kiss to linger at my temple before he lowered me to my feet.

  The shirt unraveled from his hand and fell to the floor. His hand was a mess.

  “Let me wrap it properly, Will.”

  After a brief argument, he let me clean the wounds on his knuckles and wrap his hand with gauze. He’d taken life with those bare hands and didn’t want me to touch them, didn’t want me close to the death he’d caused. But what he’d done couldn’t change how I wanted him.

  And, God, I wanted him.

  “Why is it you’re good at this? You’ve had practice with someone else?” Will snapped. He raised both brows and waited for the answer he wouldn’t get.

  “You’re well acquainted with ice, I suppose.” I applied a cold compress to his hand, harder than necessary.

  “Ow.” He feigned a grimace he couldn’t sustain. “Merciless woman.” His lips twitched until he let them curve, and then he winked.

  I smiled too. “I agree to go with you to England. Our passports need to be picked up from the house in town. I won’t go back there, but I’ll tell you where to find them.”

  I couldn’t see any other path forward. We had no one left in Connecticut. If Lissie were Ethan’s, she had a family there—a father, a grandmother, and three uncles. And I wanted revenge. The yearning took me by surprise. It burned slow somewhere deep within me and continued to rise. In England, I could sort through the mess and find the answers I needed. I could learn to fight. I could plan retribution against those who took my family from me.

  Will gave a clipped nod and checked his watch. “Plane leaves in sixteen hours.”

  * * *

  The next afternoon, Will rushed into my bedroom just as I’d finished packing and pulled me to his side. “Police are headed this way.”

  I ran to the living room and peered out the window. “It’s Josh. He won’t bother coming to the front. I should meet him on the veranda before he gets to the door.”

  “No. You’re not going out there. We don’t know why he’s here.”

  “He won’t hurt me. I’ll convince him to let me leave.”

  Will took my wrists and pulled me close to his chest. “What makes you think he’ll let you go? I sure as hell wouldn’t.”

  “I’m not with him anymore—and no one owns me,” I snapped.

  He opened his fingers, releasing my wrists, and stepped back.

  Ben looked outside. “The two of you need to go out there and explain what’s going on. Unless you plan to kill him, there’s no other way. Good news is he’s alone.”

  I edged into the space of Will’s dark energy. His breath warmed my face. “Ben’s right. We must tell him. Promise me, Will. Promise you won’t hurt him.”

  “For you . . .” He tucked a lock of hair behind my ear and nodded. “But let me be clear. If he is aggressive with you in any way, all bets are off.”

  I nodded, and we stepped out onto the veranda just as Josh was climbing the steps.

  “Why haven’t you answered your goddamned phone?” Josh shouted. “State police are due tomorrow, and you’ve yet to be interviewed. What the fuck is wrong with you? Your family was murdered, Ellie. Still, you’re here shacked up with—”

  Will moved so fast there was no time to stop him. They were toe-to-toe. “Watch your fucking mouth when you speak to her, cop.”

  “Vá se foder.” Go fuck yourself. Josh sometimes slipped into his family’s native Portuguese when he was angry. “I saw the two of you outside Nick’s that night.”

  Will’s chest vibrated.

  “Josh.” My voice was hoarse but confident. “Give me a chance to tell you what’s happened. Please.”

  “Listen to what she has to say,” Will interjected. “Her life’s in danger. She was nearly killed last night, and they’ll come for her again.”

  Josh’s eyes fell to the bruises forming on my neck before meeting mine. His face softened.

  I held Josh’s gaze. “Go inside, Will, please. Let me tell him what he needs to know.”

  Will did as I asked but didn’t go far. As he ordered John and Ben around inside the cottage, the rumble of his low voice passed through the wall that separated us and relaxed me. I was safe, protected.

  I sat on the top step of the veranda, and Josh lowered himself down next to me. He watched the cottonlike clouds drift lazily over the Atlantic and listened as I shared my story—a story that even I hadn’t fully grasped. It was surreal. I’d fallen down a rabbit hole.

  I told him everything.

  “Jesus, you’ve had me so worried. Thought you were dead. Lissie’s unharmed?”

  “Physically, yes. I’m sorry. Sorry to put you in this position. Especially when—”

  “Don’t say it, Ellie. I know I’ve lost you. You don’t need to say it.”

  “I won’t survive without him. If I stay here, authorities won’t believe me, and the Order will win. They’ll take my life, just as they took Isobel’s.”

  He closed his eyes. “Go, then. No one will stop you. I give you my word.”

  “Don’t sacrifice your career, Josh. Do whatever you have to when I’m gone.”

  “Go tonight. I’ll make my report in the morning. I can’t offer more time than that. My superiors will try to force you back once you’ve been located. There’s nothing I can do to stop them.”

  “But the government needs an indictment to extradite, right?”

  “Yeah, but Connecticut could ask the State Department to revoke your passport during the investigation, potentially provoking deportation.”

  There was nothing more to be said, nothing that would provide comfort for either of us. We sat still and quiet for some time, his arm around me, my head resting against his. He hushed me each time I tried to speak and eventually stood and walked away without another word.

  Will closed in on me as soon as I stepped inside, pushing his gaze into mine as if he were inspecting my soul.

  “It’s done, Will. He’s gone. We’re free to leave.”

  Satisfied, he said, “Let’s go now, before you change your mind.”

  “I’m guessing you wouldn’t handle that well. I’ll get Lissie.”

  10

  Lissie was on the airplane—the private jet Will hired—exploring with John. Will and I stood on the tarmac while Ben sorted through customs documentation with the pilots.

  “Ready?” Will asked. His hand covered the small of my back.

  “I’m ready.” I bit my lip and avoided his eyes. Flying was a nightmare for me, and I’d failed to tell him how sick I might become if the meds didn’t knock me out. I’d seen several doctors for it, and they’d concurred. It was all in my head, a phobia. Knowing my parents died in a plane crash was the root cause.

  “What is it? Are you okay?”

  I glanced at the plane again. “Fine.” Anxiety slashed at my empty stomach.

  After following my nervous glance, he stepped close in front of me and sheltered me within his space. “Why didn’t you tell me? How bad is it?”

  “I’ve taken something. With any luck, I’ll sleep until we land. We should go. I need to check on Lissie, and they’re waiting.” I flashed an uneasy smile and eyed the pilots where they stood near the foot of the steps.

  “And they’ll continue to wait. What can I do to make it easier for you?”

  “I don’t know that anything can be done.”

  “Just say the word—we don’t leave until you have what you need.” The back of his fingers brushed my cheek.

  “There’s nothing, but thank you.”

  His fingers slowly moved to my battered throat, his fingertips and his eyes resting there.

  “Will?”

  “Yeah?”

  You’re what I need.

  “Elle?”

 
“I’m sorry for the way I behaved.”

  “Don’t be. You never have to apologize, not to me. You’ve lost so much and you’re grieving. You’ve been brutally attacked. Anger is to be expected.” His hand slipped around to the back of my head. He pulled me close and lowered his mouth to mine. . . .

  And he kissed me.

  When he released my lips, my soul mourned the loss. We stood motionless, like we had turned to stone, each of us locked in the other’s gaze. Will’s eyes pleaded for forgiveness before he took my lips between his again. I touched his face and nodded, forgiving him for the way he’d refused me.

  He threaded his fingers into my hair and slanted his mouth over mine, pushing past my lips with his tongue. The intense, unyielding way he kissed me made his intent clear—he was driven by his desire for me and nothing else. And he was taking what he wanted. Something in him had shifted after I was attacked on the beach and again after Josh showed up.

  As the sun’s last ray dove below the horizon, Will and I tasted each other for the first time in a stormy but deliberate tangle. We didn’t stop until we shared the same sustaining breath.

  His fist tightened in my hair as he pulled back and stared beyond my shoulder. Those fiery eyes returned to mine before he placed one more lingering kiss on my mouth.

  “Someone’s here to see you off,” he said, letting go, stepping back. Although Will’s eyes were still locked on me, the next words he spoke were meant for Ben. “Handle this for me.”

  He walked away.

  * * *

  The pain on Josh’s face was unmistakable as he stood before me. It twisted my gut and tore at my conscience, though it had no impact on my heart. Hurting him was never my intention, but there it was—amplified by my intense, passionate moment with Will that he’d just witnessed.

  “I couldn’t leave it the way we did. I shouldn’t have walked away earlier.”

  “I’ll never forget all you’ve done for me, Josh.”

  “Don’t go. Please don’t go. Get in the car. I believe everything you’ve said. I’ll convince the chief and protect you—I promise.”

  Ben’s thick arm held the car door shut as Josh tried to open it. “Don’t do it, cop. Say your fucking goodbye so we can get her to safety.”

  “I’m going, Josh,” I said. “Lissie deserves a better life than what I can give her here. My staying would only turn Stonington into a war zone.”

  His aggrieved brown eyes pleaded. “I don’t know how to live without you here.”

  “You do.” I put my arms around him. “Take care of Jess for me. I can’t communicate with her right now.”

  “I’m begging you.” He pulled me closely against his body. “Don’t go.”

  “Ellie,” Ben said in warning. I didn’t need an explanation to understand why his warning was serious. Will’s refusal to witness my interaction with Josh spoke volumes.

  I pressed my lips to Josh’s cheek one last time.

  In the next moment, as I was about to step away from Josh, we were ripped apart. Will pinned me against a metal building and held me there with his body while his hands possessed the long layers of my hair. He’d flown across the tarmac with unbelievable speed and force.

  “Do you want him?” he asked in a low, menacing tone close to my ear as he pushed his growing arousal into my stomach. “Do you?” His nostrils flared with each breath. Muscles along his jawline contracted.

  I explored the possessiveness that consumed his eyes. His scent messed with my head, causing my brain to interpret his fierce nature as therapy for my restless spirit. I was distantly aware of the other two men arguing behind us.

  “He’s not hurting her,” Ben said as he shoved Josh against the hood of his car. “That will never happen.”

  Will purred as he nipped at my earlobe. “I’ll kill him.”

  Panting, also aroused, I gripped his neck with my nails. “You won’t. I want you.”

  11

  Will backed away from me and offered his hand. When I took it without hesitation, he guided me across the tarmac, and as soon as we reached the jet, he let go and busied himself with luggage and the pilots. I couldn’t take my eyes off of him. Sensing my stare, he stilled for a moment and then reconnected, his expression revealing penance. “Go in and get settled,” he said softly, tilting his head toward the plane’s entrance.

  I watched Will pat down the pilots through a window.

  “You’re getting used to his way.” John winked like a miniature version of his brother. A tight smirk similar to Will’s tugged at his mouth. I couldn’t help but wonder if the girls at school fawned over him.

  “Is there another way?” I tasted my lips. The rich flavor of Will’s declarative kisses still lingered there and on my tongue. The jealous fury and the subsequent remorse I’d seen in his eyes filled my mind.

  Lissie raced up and down the aisle wearing a backpack filled with her favorite stuffed animals, her activity dragging me out of my head. It was getting late, and she’d soon slow down.

  “Come here, girlie. Let’s make up your bed so it’s ready when you’re sleepy.”

  The plane had a full galley and two separate areas with luxurious white leather seating and glossy walnut paneling. John helped me fold down one of the four reclining seats in front for Lissie. I hoped she’d sleep for the duration of the flight and then some, though it would be noon in England when we arrived.

  Ben came in and conducted a sweep of the rear cabin, and when he positioned himself in the cockpit, he looked as if he belonged there.

  “He flies, doesn’t he?” I asked.

  “Royal Air Force pilot. He’s conducting a preflight check and looking for anything suspicious,” John said.

  The precautions Will had undertaken were serious—alarming—and exposed the enormity of what we faced.

  I corralled Lissie and sat her on my lap, and John positioned himself in front of us as the two pilots boarded, his protective stance obvious.

  Will entered the cabin last, with the large black duffel that held their weapons thrown over his shoulder, and ducked beneath the six-inches-too-short ceiling. As he headed for the rear seating area, he grabbed my hand and pulled me with him.

  Lissie slid out of my lap and followed, leaping between us as soon as we sat on the plush pullout sofa. She was already at ease with him. She’d found her very own superhero. He pushed a wild lock of hair out of her face and gave her his undivided attention. “When you wake, we’ll be across the sea. Your castle awaits, princess.”

  One beat of my heart was forever lost.

  “Are we going to see a real castle?” Her eyes and mouth were wide with excitement.

  “Something like that. You’ll enjoy Eastridge, but first you must sleep.”

  “Get ready for bed, Lissie.” I pointed to the lavatory that she’d already surveyed twice. “Your toothbrush is there.”

  Will leaned against the sofa and took me with him, tucking me snugly beneath his arm. Tenderness overrode the now-gone jealousy and anger. “We’ll take off once you’re both settled. You sleep here.”

  Nestling into his body felt as natural as being home. I sensed it was that way for him too. Awkward moments didn’t exist for Will and me. We were equally attracted to each other. Equally comfortable touching the other. I burrowed deeper into his warmth and teased, “Good—keep me close to the lavatory.”

  The muscles in his shoulders and arms tensed. “How bad, Elle?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve never flown on anything like this. Are there any stops?”

  “No stops. We’ll be in the air for seven hours.” He released a heavy breath and then captured my hand and kissed it.

  But that wasn’t enough. It would never be enough. I couldn’t wait for him to kiss me again, to feel his lips on mine. It was challenging to think of anything else.

  * * *

  Lissie was out sooner than expected. She’d curled up between us and lost her battle with sleep. Will carried her to the front, and I tucked her into a
mountain of blankets and stuffed animals. We’d then closed the dividing panel for privacy and settled on the pulled-out sofa with our legs stretched over the length of it—Will with his Scotch, and me under his big arm, with ginger ale. I was preparing for the worst.

  The pilots received authorization from the control tower and fired the engines. They waited only for Will’s word.

  “Ready to do this, Elle?”

  “As ready as I can be.” I’d hoped to be sleeping, but being near Will, recalling his kiss, and wondering where we stood had kept my mind too busy.

  He pushed an illuminated button on the wall, and we taxied down the runway within seconds.

  “Maybe you just need a distraction,” Will said with a raised brow and crooked smile. He stared at my mouth.

  I hooked my eyes on his. “Maybe.”

  “Let’s give it a whirl, shall we?” He set our glasses aside and laced our fingers. “You’re okay with the way I kissed you earlier?”

  “Yes.” I couldn’t curb the disobedient smile. “Do you plan to do it again?”

  He rolled onto his side and slid an arm beneath me, using it to pull me close. His lips hovered above mine. “You have no idea.”

  My stomach flipped. Butterflies, not nausea.

  Will slowly dragged his fingers down my leg until he reached my toes. He hesitated for a moment before he closed his hand around my foot and dragged it up, bending my knee and spreading my legs. His hand slid to my thigh. He rotated his wrist until his long fingers extended beneath the back hem of my white denim shorts.

  “You really should wear more clothing when you’re near me.” His voice grew deeper with each word, the timbre more distinct.

  I grabbed his face and drew his mouth to mine, breathing my words onto his lips. “I’m fully clothed.”

  “I have your bare arse in my hand, so it’s not enough.” Then he sucked on my lips until he felt like slipping his tongue into my mouth to explore mine. His kiss was like velvet—smooth and self-indulgent. It was luxurious and addictive. He was attentive and generous.