shake my head.
After that, everything becomes frantic. Our hands, our mouths, our eyes. Mine work on her pants as hers work my mouth. Then she’s unbuttoning my pants, while I’m pushing up her shirt.
I take her nipple in my mouth too roughly, but I love the sharp intake of breath. She retaliates by gripping my cock just a little too hard. But that’s how it is between us—a wicked fight that leaves us both with more pleasure than we deserve.
At the same time, I grab her hips as she slides down on my cock.
“God, I’ve missed you.”
“You had me less than five hours ago, and you can have me—”
“Langston?” Phoenix says.
Liesel freezes in my arms, trying to hide, run, anything to not be here right now. Meanwhile, my cock, and even a sliver of my heart, can’t let her go.
I don’t look at Phoenix. I look at Liesel. Phoenix I know how to deal with, but Liesel I have no idea.
“Give us a minute, Dunn,” I say to Phoenix before realizing my mistake—Dunn is also Liesel’s last name.
Liesel rips herself off of me, and I’ve never felt so bare.
She throws open the door and takes off before I even have my pants up.
I jump out of the helicopter after her, not sure what to do. When I hear Phoenix shouting after me, I don’t stop.
I have to talk to Liesel.
But then I hear laughter that makes me stop—my kids.
28
Liesel
I run, not because I’m afraid of Phoenix. Not because I care what she has to say, but because of what Langston will say or do. I can’t be here to witness him choosing her over me. I’m a strong woman, but I can’t handle that.
I’ll have to go back eventually and talk to him, but I won’t until after he’s greeted his wife.
His wife.
How could I be so stupid?
I sit down on the sand, staring out at the ocean. My flannel shirt and sweatpants are going to be too warm to sit out here in the sun too long, but I just need a little time to let my heart settle.
I hear Langston approaching a second later.
My heart spurs to life, happy that he is choosing me over her. But maybe it’s just to let me down first before he leaves me and grovels to her?
“It’s okay. You can go talk to her. Things can go back to how they were before. We will stop the fighting, stop trying to rip each other apart. We’ll just find the treasure and stop people from coming after us. I’ll go stay at Siren and Zeke’s. I need to thank them for going along with my scheme and see if they were involved with Enzo and Kai’s plan.”
He sits down next to me as I ramble.
I guess we are doing this now.
“Tell me how you feel, Liesel. The truth.”
“We don’t have to keep telling the truth to each other. That was before; things are different now. I can lie to you.”
“You won’t.”
“How do you know?”
“I just do.”
I can’t tell him how I feel because I don’t even know. But I can offer him a bit of truth that has been eating at me—another problem we have to solve.
“I don’t know how I feel or what you and I should do next. Date? Keep fucking? Become your mistress?”
He winces at the last one. “I would never ask you to be my mistress. Phoenix means nothing to me, not like Waylon meant to you.”
My eyes meet his gaze. “Waylon didn’t mean what you think he meant to me.”
He frowns. “I saw you mourn his death. You fell apart. You cried for the first time in years. You arranged to fake my best friend’s death to hurt me back. Don’t tell me that Waylon meant nothing to you.”
“Waylon was blackmailing me.”
He tilts his head, and his eyes plead for that to be true, revealing a hint of his true feelings. Langston wants me for himself. He doesn’t want me to have been taken by another man, even a dead man.
“He was blackmailing me—forcing me to play the part of his fiancée and eventually wife in order to find the whereabouts of my son. After Kai returned him to his adopted parents when I refused to see him, thinking he was better off with his adoptive parents, I changed my mind. I wanted to check up on him, but when I went to the adoptive parents’ address, they were gone. I searched, but I couldn’t find any sign of them.
“And then I met Waylon. He had the information I needed. Once we were properly married, he’d tell me what happened to my son.”
“You didn’t love Waylon?”
“No, I didn’t love him. I thought he was a horrible man, but he was the only person who could tell me what happened to my son.”
We hear the kids playing in the sand, then Phoenix’s voice telling them not to go near the water.
“It seems you and I were always destined to be with others. You made a good choice in Phoenix. She seems like a loyal person and loving mother. I’m happy for you. Last night was nice, but it’s time to go back to reality. You belong with Phoenix, and I belong—”
“We are fated to be together. That’s how I’ve always felt, and you’ve always fought it. I don’t know if we are still destined to be together, but I do know something that might change your mind.”
“Honestly, Langston, I don’t think I can be with any man right now. I need to focus on finding my son.” Besides, I already know my fate is to be alone.
“I can help in that department.”
“What do you mean?” my heart skips.
“I can help you find your son.”
I shake my head. “I’ve already had everyone’s help. No one could find him.”
“That’s because I didn’t want them to know. I didn’t want him found until I was ready to tell you.”
“Langston, do you know where my son is?”
“Yes.” He tilts his head toward his two kids playing in front of us. “He’s right in front of you.”
Thank you so much for reading Fated Lies! Langston & Liesel’s story continues in Cruel Lies!
My life is cruel, but so far, I’ve survived it. Survived the pain of giving up a child. But for how much longer…
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Also by Ella Miles
LIES SERIES:
Lies We Share: A Prologue
Vicious Lies
Desperate Lies
Fated Lies
Cruel Lies
Dangerous Lies
Endless Lies
SINFUL TRUTHS:
Sinful Truth #1
Twisted Vow #2
Reckless Fall #3
Tangled Promise #4
Fallen Love #5
Broken Anchor #6
TRUTH OR LIES:
Taken by Lies #1
Betrayed by Truths #2
Trapped by Lies #3
Stolen by Truths #4
Possessed by Lies #5
Consumed by Truths #6
DIRTY SERIES:
Dirty Obsession
Dirty Addiction
Dirty Revenge
Dirty: The Complete Series
ALIGNED SERIES:
Aligned: Volume 1 (Free Series Starter)
Aligned: Volume 2
Aligned: Volume 3
Aligned: Volume 4
Aligned: The Complete Series Boxset
UNFORGIVABLE SERIES:
Heart of a Thief
Heart of a Liar
Heart of a Prick
Unforgivable: The Complete Series Boxset
MAYBE, DEFINITELY SERIES:
Maybe Yes
Maybe Never
Maybe Always
Definitely Yes
Definitely No
Definitely Forever
STANDALONES:
Pretend I’m Yours
Pretend We’re Over
Finding Perfect
Savage Love
Too Much
Not Sorry
Hate Me or Love Me: An Enemies to Lovers Romance Collection
About the Author
Ella Miles writes steamy romance, including everything from dark suspense romance that will leave you on the edge of your seat to contemporary romance that will leave you laughing out loud or crying. Most importantly, she wants you to feel everything her characters feel as you read.
Ella is currently living her own happily ever after near the Rocky Mountains with her high school sweetheart husband. Her heart is also taken by her goofy five year old black lab who is scared of everything, including her own shadow.
Ella is a USA Today Bestselling Author & Top 50 Bestselling Author.
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