Penalty Clause
Risqué Contracts 1
Fiona Davenport
Copyright
© 2016 Fiona Davenport
All rights reserved.
Edited by Monica Black
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing. For permission requests, please send your email request to
[email protected].
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used factiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons or living or dead, events or locales are entirely coincidental.
The author acknowledges the trademark status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/ Use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owner.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Penalty Clause
Dedication
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Epilogue
Contingency Plan
About the Author
Penalty Clause
Risque Contracts 1
Caleb Sterling has found the woman for him. He'll do whatever it takes to make her his... even if it means forcing her to spend time with him. He didn’t become a billionaire without learning how to leverage a contract to his advantage. Now that he’s gotten her to sign on the dotted line, he almost has Madeleine Connelly right where he wants her—in his bed and pregnant with his baby.
Madeleine seriously underestimated Caleb’s desire for her. She thought the notorious playboy would move onto his next conquest after he’d gotten what he wanted from her. When she accepted a business deal with his company, she didn’t realize it meant spending so much time with him. Now she has to decide if she wants to trigger the penalty clause in their contract so she can get away from him or succumb to the temptation that is Caleb Sterling.
Warning: This book has an obsessive alpha billionaire who falls hard and fast. It's a quick and dirty read, but don't worry, it'll leave you satisfied.
**This is the first novella in the Risque Contracts series, but each story can be read as a standalone and features a different couple.
Dedication
“It takes millions of people to complete the world, but it only takes you to complete mine."
- Anonymous
Chapter 1
Caleb
Leaning back in my plush leather chair, I sipped at the scotch I held in one hand while staring at the picture of a gorgeous brunette clenched in the other. She was of average height, with glossy, dark hair and incredible green eyes. Even though her body was toned, her curves were the stuff of wet dreams. Since I first saw Madeleine Connelly, she had dominated my thoughts. When she crossed my path into the ballroom of a charity event six months ago, I knew I had to have her. She was going to be mine, and not just for a night—I would own her forever.
I never walked into a situation without knowing all the facts and having confidence in the way it would play out. I didn’t approach her that night. Instead, I spent the evening keeping her in my sights, observing and protecting what was mine. After finding out her name, I hired a private investigator to find out everything I could about her—favorites, dislikes, family history, childhood, friends, habits, and most importantly, if she was single. I’d never been one to poach another man’s territory. It wasn’t worth the bother when there were so many other available women out there, but with Madeleine, I wasn’t sure the presence of another man in her life would have stopped me. Methodically, I set a plan in motion, leaving her no choice but to submit to me or risk losing everything.
In the photo, her face was pinched with stress, her body coiled tight, and the “fuck off” vibe she carried like a shield translated clearly through the camera. I couldn’t wait to fuck the tension out of her and paint a look of bliss on her features. Just thinking about all the ways I would take her had me shifting uncomfortably in the chair, my dick already begging to sink into her pussy.
Putting the picture down and forcing myself to concentrate on anything other than ache between my legs, I began reading over the contract I had drawn up, even though I knew practically every word.
Madeleine was exceptionally intelligent, and had graduated from Harvard business school at twenty-one, a little over a year ago. Not long after, her father had a heart attack, thrusting her into the role of CEO of her family’s publishing company. Somehow, he’d been able to keep the fact that the business was almost bankrupt from everybody, including the board. When the truth was revealed, Madeleine struggled to bring their heads above water again.
I was a self-made billionaire, having built the biggest publishing house in the country, quite often by taking over companies like Madeleine’s. When I wanted something, I took it—both in business and my private life. With her, it was more complicated. I didn’t want to fuck her and leave. I wanted to tie her to me, and my ability to rescue her company gave me the perfect opportunity.
Or, at least, it was perfect now that I had discreetly, preemptively closed every path to a possible solution, except the one leading straight to me. With the wall she always kept up, I made the decision not to go to her with a proposal right away, eliminating the possibility for rejection. Instead, I exerted my influence through coercion and threats, convincing every other company to decline her offers. I even persuaded the banks to turn down any loan attempts.
When they were holding on by their very last thread, I swooped in and met with the board, offering them the lifeline the company so desperately sought. They were so relieved, they didn’t even blink at the unorthodox stipulations I laid out for their CEO in the contract. They barely read it before signing on the dotted line and setting up a meeting with Madeleine to finalize the deal, though she didn’t have much of a choice.
The term of the contract was one year, during which, if our agreement was in good standing, her company would come under the umbrella of my corporation, and she would have access to my resources and protection. As the majority stockholder, she would retain her position as CEO; however, she was obligated to work alongside me, not only looping me in on all her business decisions, but also setting her up as...an intern of sorts. She would be required to shadow me, learn from my business techniques. Even better, this meant accompanying me on any trips I might need to take. My mind wandered to the hotel rooms we would visit and how she would look spread out on white, silk sheets. Her pale, creamy skin standing out from the flush of arousal visible everywhere on her lush, naked body. Her hair splayed across the pillow while she writhed beneath me, pleas for me to fuck her falling from her pink lips.
Damn it! I was severely irritated at my loss of control, the feeling being entirely foreign to me. I pulled out my gold Patek Caliber 89 pocket watch and checked the time, like I’d been doing obsessively all day. My meeting started in less than an hour, which gave me time to look over the penalty cause once more.
I didn’t want to come at her so strongly that I sent her running in the opposite direction. I gave her an out, with conditions, of course. At any time, she could use the pen
alty clause to end our association. However, to do so, she was given two options: forfeit her company to me or spend one night in bed with me, capitulating to my demands and giving me her complete surrender. My lawyers assured me they were able to word it in such a way that I would not be open to a lawsuit. How they did it, I didn’t know. Frankly, I didn’t give a fuck. Madeleine was going to end up in my bed one way or another. And once I had her, I wasn’t going to let her go.
A knock on my door pulled me from my thoughts, and, let’s be honest, rescued me from drowning in a rapidly thickening haze of lust.
“Come in,” I called. My executive assistant, Julie, opened the door and approached my desk with a handful of papers.
“These require your signature.”
Accepting the stack, I quickly scrawled my name on each one and handed them back. I looked up to find her standing directly beside my chair, a hip propped on the desk. Julie was a beautiful woman; model thin with long, blonde hair and ice blue eyes. She was exactly the kind of woman I usually preferred. In fact, I’d been toying with the idea of a night with her before I met Madeleine. Julie had subtly let me know she would be open to spending time with me in bed, but she never pushed it. If I hadn’t met Madeleine, I probably would have gone there, but one look at my girl was all it took for my cock to go limp around every other woman. It had been a long, dry, six months.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to stay until your last appointment leaves?” She cocked her head and smiled, a clear invitation in her posture and tone.
“I’m all prepped. You can go on home.” The last thing I needed was the woman who wanted to sleep with me greeting Madeleine at my first meeting with her. I didn’t want her to pick up on my assistant’s flirtations until I had her firmly installed in my bed, and my life. Then, if it became a problem, I’d handle it accordingly.
Julie took the dismissal gracefully, leaving with the sheaf of papers and a nod. Checking the time again, I saw it was five minutes to eight. My wait was about to be over. I breathed a sigh of relief, finally. Rising from my chair, I walked to the sideboard on the left wall of my large office and poured another tumbler of scotch. I set the two crystal glasses on the coffee table situated in the middle of a relaxed conversation area made up of three couches. Then, my phone rang and I swiftly walked back over to my desk.
“Sterling,” I answered gruffly.
“There is a Madeleine Connelly here for you, sir,” said the night security manager for the building.
“Send her up, Peter.” Anticipation rolled through me and I fought to keep myself calm, when all I wanted was to haul her into my office and fuck her. Show her who held the power in our relationship, who she belonged to.
Knowing she would not have my secretary to escort her in, I walked to the door. Opening it, I watched her exit the elevator. When she looked up and her jade eyes met mine, I was unable to keep the predatory smile off my face.
Chapter 2
Madeleine
The chemistry sizzling between Caleb Sterling and I was powerful. I’d never actually met him, but it had been like this from the first moment I laid eyes on him during a charity event several months ago, and I’d been resisting his pull anytime I’d seen him since. Straightening my spine, I dug deep in an effort to wrap myself in my ice princess persona. It had been my defense against guys ever since I’d suddenly developed boobs back in my freshman year of high school. It was like a second skin to me after all these years, but staying cool around Caleb wasn’t easy.
He fit his playboy billionaire image perfectly, with his starkly good looks and forceful personality. I was sure there weren’t many women who wouldn’t want to be on his arm and end up in his bed by the end of the night. I wanted to be one of the unaffected, but my fingers twitched with the desire to tousle his light brown hair. I wanted to see his crystal blue eyes lit with passion for me, with or without the glasses, which only made him look sexier. I dreamed of pressing my body against his muscular frame, to feel his arms wrapped around me. And his lips, they were so damn sensuous, I wanted to nip at the bottom one to punish him for making me lose my calm the way only he managed.
Thinking about how he would taste, I licked my lips as I exited the elevator and walked toward his office. He was waiting for me, standing in the doorway. My gaze drifted to his mouth and stalled at the confident smirk I found there. It took all the strength I had to follow him further into the room instead of running from him like my instincts were shouting for me to do. He had the look of a hunter tonight, and I was starting to feel like his prey.
“Mr. Sterling.” My greeting held none of the graciousness my parents had instilled in me.
“Madeleine.”
I should have found his reply mocking, but his tone held too much heat. Then, I was too distracted by him shutting and locking the door behind me to worry about anything other than being utterly alone with him. When he ushered me toward one of the couches, I moved forward blindly. My neck tingled when I felt his breath on my skin, just below my ear. “My name is Caleb, Madeleine,” he purred in a deep voice. As soon as I was seated, he pressed a glass of amber liquid into my hand and urged me to lift it to my lips. I swallowed a mouthful and coughed at the burn as it went down.
“Scotch?” I wheezed. “You could have warned me. I don’t usually drink anything so strong.”
“You’re going to need it for the conversation we’re about to have.”
The hint of threat in his voice sent shivers along my spine. “Why would I need scotch to handle a simple business meeting with you?”
I couldn’t stop myself from watching his ass as he walked over to the desk and grabbed a stack of papers. He tossed them onto the coffee table before sitting next to me so close, I could feel the heat radiating from his thigh. “Your board held an emergency meeting today.”
“Without me?” I gasped. “But I’m the CEO.”
“Desperate times call for desperate measures, Madeleine. And we both know your company is well past the point of desperation. Something the board is also well aware of. It’s why they accepted my offer and agreed to let me be the one to get your signature on the dotted line.”
My hand trembled as I reached for the papers. I’d done my best to avoid meeting him. Now, it appeared the mess my dad left me to clean up had put me in a position where I couldn’t evade him any longer—not if we were going to work together to save my company. The contract seemed straightforward enough, until I hit the language pertaining to the amount of interaction I would have with Caleb.
“This basically puts me at your beck and call.”
“That’s a fair assessment, but I’m offering you an opportunity most up-and-coming executives would jump at. Not only am I sinking a lot of my own money into this project, but you’ll have the chance to learn how I run my company on a daily basis.” He paused and his blue eyes seemed to burn right through me. “There are many things you can learn from me.”
We were talking about business, but he’d managed to make that last sentence sound dirty. I struggled to keep my focus on the contract as I read the last page. When I reached the final clause, my pulse jumped as my heart beat faster. I reread it several times, expecting the words to change, thinking I must have read it wrong, but they remained the same each time.
“What the hell?” I managed to keep my voice level, though I was shrieking on the inside. “There’s no way this contract is enforceable in a court of law,” I argued. “Not if it requires me to sleep with you.”
“Do you really want to gamble everything to find out when you damn well know I’ve got the best lawyers in the country on retainer?” he asked.
I sucked in a quick breath, enraged at being cornered and knowing I was out of options.
“It looks like you’ve given me three impossible choices from which to choose.”
“Only if you want to see it that way. Personally, I think two of them are damn good options for you.”
I knew he wasn’t referring to the one that req
uired me to walk away from the company I’d been fighting hard to save. His arrogance was astounding. “Spending a night in your bed, under your complete control, isn’t an option I’m willing to consider.”
“What if it was more nights and we took turns being in control?” He trailed his finger along my thigh and I jumped from the couch, storming toward the door.
“Unlock it now.” I’d meant for it to sound like a command, but my voice trailed off as Caleb came up behind me and pressed me against the cool surface, his dick hot and hard against my back. And so damn big. I’d heard the rumors about him, circulated amongst all the socialites, but I’d assumed they were all hype. “I’m not doing this with you.”
“Why won’t you admit the truth?” he asked, pressing his hand between me and the door to cup my pussy. “Even through your clothes, I can feel how hot and wet you are for me.”
Shocked by his behavior, I started to pull away, but he wouldn’t let me move. “Caleb, no,” I whimpered as he shoved his hand down my skirt and inside my panties. His finger grazed my clit before sliding lower, and I shuddered. There was no hiding how wet I was for him.
“Shhh, baby,” he soothed. “It’s okay. I’ve wanted to fuck you since the moment I saw you from across the room. I’ve dreamed about your tight little pussy more times than I can count. Plotted and planned so I could have you under me.”
I forced myself to think about every single reason I needed to tell him to stop. Focused on what would happen after he got what he wanted from me and walked away. On what it would feel like to be part of the revolving door that was his sex life. Picturing all the women who came before me, and the ones who were sure to come after, was enough to cool my desire. Gripping his wrist, I dragged his hand from my skirt and smoothed the fabric down.
He reached around me and unlocked the door. “I’ve made a more than fair offer of assistance. As much as I’d love to have you under my control for a night, I want more from you. I’m hoping you decide to work with me over the next year.”
Penalty Clause (Risqué Contracts Book 1) Page 1
