The Billionaire's Pet (4 page)

“You’ve been a very naughty girl,” he observed in mildly displeased tones. “I thought I made it clear to you I expected you to get on board with my agenda.”

“And I thought I made it clear to you that I am not going to let you dictate how I do my job,” she replied, speaking through the gap between the door and the doorjamb.

“Are you going to take the chain off the door?”

“No,” Ellie said. “You didn’t ask me to dinner, you ordered me, and that’s not going to work either.”

“You’re not going to be able to hide behind a door at work,” he pointed out.

“I’m not hiding, I’m demonstrating a boundary. I understand how that might be confusing for a man like you. It’s probably been a very long time since you couldn’t get what you wanted when you wanted it.”

“I can be patient, Ellie,” Daniel said in low tones that held more than a hint of warning. “And, contrary to what you may believe, I have no intention of forcing anything on you. You can choose how this will unfold, whether you embrace my ideas for the company, or whether you fight them. And you can choose whether I take you to dinner or not.”

“I choose not,” she said, resenting the illusion being offered. There was no real choice. If she did not play by his rules, he was going to remove her from the sandpit. They both knew it—and it only made shutting the door in his face that much more satisfying.

* * *

His nose inches from the solid wood door, Daniel had no trouble admitting to himself that Ellie Jones was going to be a tough nut to crack. Usually after sex any resistance a woman had to him was melted like snow in summer, but she was still resistant. If anything, more so than she had been before their coupling and Daniel was more intrigued than ever.

Truth be told, he had not intended on spanking her in her office, let alone having sex with her. He’d seen pictures and video of Ellie giving presentations before he met her, but none of them had done the little firebrand any justice at all.

Her biggest secret was hiding in plain sight. She was adorable in a way that most people probably missed because they were too busy focusing on the fact that they were being fiscally eviscerated. Looking past the ice queen blond bob, she had a sweet snub nose dotted liberally with the hint of freckles not quite hidden under foundation, a pouting, eminently kissable lower lip, and more than a hint of mischief in her sparkling hazel green eyes—not to mention a curvy body his palm and every other part of him itched for.

In all the planning for the evening, this he had not anticipated. Daniel was not used to being rejected by women. And Ellie, well, she had even more at stake. Most people in her position all but begged him to keep their jobs, but she was standing up to him in spite of knowing full well he had the power to destroy her career. That bravery impressed him—though it also left him on the wrong side of her front door.

As unexpectedly as it had shut, it opened again. This time she opened it wide, having eschewed the chain. She was wearing a blue silk dress that belied her earlier refusal to let him in. It was not the sort of garment a woman wore at home to relax. It was the sort of tight in all the right places thing worn to get the attention of a man—and Ellie had his attention.

“What are you still doing out there?” She gave him a quizzical look under dark lashes. “You look like a stray. Don’t you have a home to go to?”

“Several,” Daniel said, the line falling on fairly unimpressed ears. “I’ll admit, I hadn’t expected our evening to end so abruptly.”

“You should have asked me out nicely,” she said, her tone cool. “Not everyone rolls over and plays dead just because you own your own island.”

“Clearly,” Daniel agreed.

There was a pregnant moment in which she looked at him with a mixture of annoyance, defensiveness, pity, and something a little more hidden.

“You can come in,” she relented. “For one drink.”

“Very generous,” he smiled as he stepped over the threshold of her apartment, noticing the soft mood lighting, the complete lack of any stray items of clothing, the general absence of any odors of everyday life. The place smelled almost new. Either Ellie was an extreme germophobe, or she’d had her place cleaned from top to bottom in anticipation of his arrival.

It was cute, really, how much effort she was putting into the appearance of rebellion while simultaneously giving herself away in every little detail.

“What would you like to drink?”

“Whatever you’re drinking,” he said, noting that a tumbler of whiskey was already on the sideboard. She had been fortifying her nerves for this moment.

She poured him two fingers of amber liquid neat, no ice and handed it to him with familiar challenge in her pretty eyes.

“So how long are we going to dance around this?”

“Dance around what?”

“Around what’s between us.”

“Nothing is between us. I let you seduce me,” Ellie said, every word out of her mouth a bigger lie than the one before it. “It was fun, but it didn’t mean anything.”

“Oh, it didn’t?”

“No, Mr. Ego, it didn’t.”

“Mm-hmm,” he nodded. “And when I spanked your butt red, you think that also meant nothing?”

“I think that means you’re a heavy-handed ape,” she replied, sinking down into a very soft-looking couch. She tucked her feet up under her, elegant and yet also protective of her rear.

Daniel took a seat opposite her, not wanting to stay standing and loom over her. She was defensive enough as it was.

She sat curled up like a smug little kitten, looking at him under lowered lashes, almost as if she were waiting for something.

“It meant something to me.” He spoke the words plainly, not seeing the point in being coy or playing whatever game it was Ellie seemed to think would help her.

A look of shock passed over her face briefly before being hidden behind a mask of composure. He realized then that she really had thought that everything—the spanking, the sex—was all part of some business plan, some attempt to manipulate her. It hadn’t occurred to her on any level that he might actually like, well,
her
.

The realization gave him a pang in his chest. Looking at the beautiful woman in her upscale apartment, he no longer saw any hint of the icy bitch who had looked down her nose at him and sneered glib responses at him. He got another glimpse of the vulnerable young woman who had turned being a spoiled brat into high art. Ellie was able to make the decisions she made not because she didn’t worry about what people thought about her, but because she had already decided that they didn’t like her.

“Sure,” she said, taking a long sip of whiskey. “I’m sure you just fell in love with me at first sight.”

The cynicism in her tone was something to behold. It dripped from every word and poisoned the possibility of anything good. Daniel knew well enough that telling her he cared wouldn’t do anything, and yes, he had fallen for her at first sight, but she would no doubt mock his feelings while burying her own.

Ellie Jones needed more than a spanking or two. She needed to be taken completely out of the role she had fashioned for herself, the armor of the businesswoman, and shown that she could be both vulnerable and cared for. Maybe then she’d have some chance of actually noticing the good around her.

“You look like you’re trying to make a decision,” she observed, doing her best not to squirm under his gaze. The motion of her hips under blue silk belied the excitement she was experiencing, as did the two hard little nubs of her nipples. She was excited and horny, no doubt about that. He could damn near scent her arousal.

“Oh, I’ve made my decision,” he drawled. “You’re going to be my pet.”

Chapter Three

“Pet!?” Ellie spat the word with laughter. “Oh, my god, Daniel, you’re even more out of your mind than I thought you were. What are you talking about, pet?”

He didn’t so much as crack a smile. “I’m saying if you want to keep your position, you’re going to have to do more than change a few light bulbs. You’re going to have to change your whole attitude, kitten.”

“There is no way I’m going to be your pet,” she stated flatly, hardly believing that she was having to make such a statement. Reality certainly did seem to warp around Daniel Treville as he redefined it according to his will and convenience.

“Then tomorrow you may as well clean out your office. I have the board on my side already. Terminating your contract will be a formality.”

She looked at him in shock. “You… what? Daniel. This is insane. You can’t possibly think you’ll get away with this.”

His long finger pointed at the floor in front of him, a spot between his long legs. “Come here, pet.”

Her jaw dropped as she tried to fathom what was happening. Through sheer force of will he was somehow trying to compel her into even more depraved depths.

“No.” She shook her head firmly. “I am not going to sit at your feet and… owww!”

He had reached through the space between them, taken hold of a thick chunk of her hair, and was drawing her down from the sofa to the floor. His other hand plucked the drink out of hers before she could spill it, then aided in pulling her into position. The sudden physicality momentarily stalled her brain. Whimpering softly, Ellie looked up at the man who now seemed thoroughly capable of anything. Daniel still had her hair in his hand, a large enough handful that his grip did not hurt so much as make it impossible for her to move without his physical permission.

“Listen to me,” he drawled in those dangerously soft tones. “I am not asking you, Ellie. I am telling you. Your talent and nerve has taken you this far, but if you don’t learn some softness, you’re not going to get any further. Not in any company I own. I want you. I want you as CEO. I want your tight little cunt wrapped around me, and I want you to wear my collar.”

She did not reply, she only made a small whimpering sound yet again, overwhelmed by the sudden events.

“If you agree to this, I will take you as my pet. I will spank you when I see fit. I will fuck you when I want to, you will answer to me in everything. But, you still have a choice. Maybe the last choice. Here and now. If you tell me no, I’ll make sure you have a generous termination package and referees for your next position. You’ll move on to another company and probably do just as well there as you have where you are now. If you tell me yes, your world will change forever. You’ll be my pet, my little fuck slave, my sweet toy. And in return, I’ll take you from where you are now and teach you to be even better. It’s up to you, Ellie. What do you want?”

The sane answer was no, of course, no. She should have been screaming it at him at the top of her lungs. But instead she was looking into his eyes and nodding slowly. She could not quite form the word yes, but that was the answer she wanted to give.

It was madness to say yes. She should have been panicking, threatening to call the police. He had handled her in a way that truly was more appropriate for some kind of animal than another human being. But she did not feel unsafe. She felt as though he were speaking to a part of her nobody had ever seen, much less acknowledged. There was something new to be found with Daniel. He was a powerful, very rich man, but more than that, he was free in a way she had never been—and he was offering her what amounted to an incredibly intimate apprenticeship. If she said no now, she would be forever locking a door she very much wanted to see behind. Curiosity alone would not allow her to turn down the deal he was offering.

She slowly completed the nod, giving him permission for unfathomable acts.

“I need to hear your answer,” he growled.

“…yes.”

She said the word in a whisper, but that whisper was enough. He bent down and pressed a hard kiss to her lips, his mouth crushing hers as his tongue invaded her mouth with his trademark blend of possessiveness and passion.

“You have no idea how happy you’ve just made me,” he said as he broke the kiss, leaving her breathless.

To her surprise, he looked pleased, almost proud, and not just with himself as so many rich men tended to do, but with her.

“I know this won’t be easy for you,” he continued. “And I’m not always going to make it easy for you either. You thrive on a challenge, and you’re going to be challenged.”

“Do any of the challenges allow me to have my head back?” She asked the question while flicking her eyes toward his hand.

Daniel smiled and released his grip on her hair. She was still kneeling at his feet, a position that made him look all the larger and more dominant, but she found herself content there for the moment.

“The first challenge is going to be you accepting discipline for not letting me in when I arrived this evening.”

“But that was before our arrangement,” she pointed out. “You can’t retroactively punish me.”

A thick brow rose at her, pale eyes holding amusement and something a little darker. “Pet, I can discipline you as I see fit.” He tapped his left thigh. “Come here. I want you over my knee.”

Oh, god. It was starting already. Ellie was glad for the two glasses of whiskey she’d imbibed before Daniel’s arrival.

Fortunately for her rebellious self, Daniel did not wait for her to obey. He reached down and pulled her up and over his lap. Ellie was hyper-aware of how easily he could lift her, his strength much more considerable than hers. As she settled over his long, powerful thighs, she had a sense of being small and at his mercy. It was not altogether an unpleasant feeling.

He pulled the hem of her dress up, revealing her bare bottom to his heated gaze.

“Naughty girl,” he purred, swatting her bottom lightly. “I tell you I am going to take you to dinner and you decide to put on a silk sheath with no underwear and tell me no? Did you plan on teasing me and sending me away unsated, brat?”

Ellie blushed as his palm swatted her rear none too gently. He was right, of course. If she’d not wanted to see him she could easily have locked her door and not opened it. Or she could have worn sweatpants and told him to go away. They both knew that she had prepared for his arrival in ways small and large, but she was glad to not have to verbally admit that part of her was hoping for another session of the kind that had taken place in her office.