Ruthless_A Billionaire Secret Baby Romance Read online

  “And I should take that as a compliment, I presume?” he said dryly.

  Penny giggled. “Yes, definitely! It’s a good thing. I wasn’t sure back at the club when we first met, but I’m glad I got to know you like this. Just us two.”

  Chase squeezed her hand again. “Me too.” He smiled down at her, and before he knew it, he was kissing her, his hand caressing her cheek.

  Penny melted into him, so close that she was almost on his lap. She moaned softly as he slipped his tongue in her mouth. God, she felt so fucking good. He trailed kisses down her neck, turned on beyond belief by her small gasps, before capturing her lips once more.

  “Fuck,” he muttered as they felt a jolt and Penny let out a small squeak. The carriage had slowed to a stop and the ride was over all too soon.

  They pulled back, breathing heavily with flushed faces and identical smiles. Knowing they were done playing games, they decided to head back. The drive back to her place was quiet but strangely familiar, and as he silently followed her up to her apartment where he would ravage her all night, he had just one thought.

  He was definitely going to get that second date.

  Chapter 14

  “I swear to God, if you fuck this up, I’m going to have your job by the end of the night!” Doug snapped as Penny got ready for the evening. It was the first time Chase had been in with his group of friends since the night the prince was in town—nearly two weeks.

  “I understand, sir. I told you what happened that night, and—” she began, but he cut her off.

  “I don’t give a fuck what happened that night. I told you to make them happy, and you cleared out this whole goddamn nightclub,” Doug growled.

  Penny sighed. There was no making him happy at times, and she was just going to have to deal with it. At the same time, she had a secret that he didn’t know about, one that would change the course of the night without a doubt.

  “I’ll do my best, I promise,” she said softly. He gave her another nasty look as she grabbed a pitcher of beer and headed out toward the table. She knew how to get this group started, and they all cheered as she walked up with the beers in her hands.

  “Good evening, miss! Didn’t much like the idea of becoming a princess, did you?” one of the men asked with a laugh. She gave him a look but smiled. It wasn’t something she wanted to talk about, but she would put up with the teasing since Chase was there.

  “Alright, alright, alright, we aren’t going to be talking about that. We already discussed it!” Chase said. He winked at Penny, who blushed.

  He had told her the day before that he had finally gotten the formal apology from the king for how his son had behaved, and he wanted to put the entire thing behind him. He never did get in trouble with the club for what happened, but that didn’t change the fact that it was still something that no one really wanted to keep talking about.

  “I heard about the apology the king made,” one of the men said to the other, and Chase put his hands up once more.

  “What did I just say? We aren’t talking about this! Now, you can drop it and let the lovely lady do her job, or you can keep yapping about it and get kicked out of the group.” Chase spoke with a laugh, but there was something in his tone that told everyone at the table he was very serious about what he said.

  The man gave him a look, then turned back to his own drink. He said nothing as he sipped it, and Penny brought out another round.

  For the past two weeks, she and Chase had been seeing each other. After that first date at the carnival, they had gone on four more dates, and had talked throughout the two weeks. Not to mention, they had had many wonderful nights together. She knew that Chase hadn’t told the men about any of this, and he had told her that he didn’t want her saying anything in front of them that would clue them in that they were.

  Of course, she thought this rather odd, but at the same time, with her being a waitress with a dream of having her own clothing store and him being one of the top salesmen in the world, she could imagine that it would be a topic of conversation for them if they were to know.

  The last thing she wanted was for any of them to think that she was with Chase for any reason but the fact they were in love. At least, they were falling in love. Sure, he had far more money than she ever thought she would have, but she wasn’t going to let him think for even a second that she was staying with him for his money.

  She didn’t need his money to make her dreams come true. That was something she was going to do on her own. She might not have had her big break yet, but she was going to get it one of these days, and until that happened, she was going to keep working hard and dreaming.

  Chase rose from the table suddenly, giving her a sly look and nodding toward the back of the room. She knew what was back there, and after a few more minutes of checking on the men at the table, she slipped away in that direction. She glanced behind her several times to get to the back, making sure none of the men knew what she was doing.

  It was obvious to those who knew what was going on that they were going to get down and dirty in the bathroom, but if she managed to keep out of sight, she knew she could get away with it without any of them catching on. Besides, this was clearly Chase’s idea, and she wasn’t going to turn him down for sex of any kind, on shift or not.

  “I thought you weren’t coming,” he said when she stepped into the bathroom.

  “I couldn’t miss this. I missed you too much,” she said with a flirtatious grin. She got down on her knees, already seeing that he was ready for her. Unbuttoning his pants, she pulled out his cock and massaged it in her hands, watching with great satisfaction as he leaned back against the sink.

  She then leaned forward and took him in her mouth, sucking and licking him, taking him as deeply into her throat as she could. He put his hands over her head, running them through her hair. It didn’t take long for him to grow tight in her lips, and within a few seconds, he came in her mouth.

  “Oh, my God, baby,” he groaned.

  “We should get back out there,” she said, turning to go after giving him a warm smile. He shook his head, grabbing her by the waist and putting her up on the sink.

  “Not so fast. You aren’t going to get out of here that easy,” he said with a devious grin. She smiled as he ran his hands over her panties, looking deeply into her eyes as he did so. He thrust his fingers inside her, causing her to moan and lean back. Then, he fell to his knees and licked between her lips.

  He slid her panties to the side, moving around her clit expertly. It was only a few minutes until she, too, came hard in his mouth. Chase pressed his lips to her sweet pussy, sucking up her juices and licking her clean.

  “Delicious,” he said as he rose from the floor. She gave him another smile, and the two of them slipped back out to the dining room. Penny glanced around. They had been gone less than ten minutes, but she felt they had been gone far too long.

  The men at the table, however, hardly seemed to notice that they were missing, and when she got back, she quickly brought back another round of drinks.

  “Are you sure they need it?” Chase asked as he looked at how tipsy several of the men were around the table.

  “Of course we need it—you missed most of the last round!” one of the men said with a laugh. Chase gave him a look as he took his seat at the head of the table.

  “Yes, excuse me, I was a little caught up,” he said.

  “With the waitress?” the man continued with a laugh, clapping Chase on the back. Several of the other men chuckled, and Penny looked from one to the other with wide eyes. She had been so careful not to be seen when she slipped into the bathroom, and she hadn’t thought that any of them had. But they clearly knew what they had been doing.

  “What are you talking about?” Chase asked absentmindedly. It was clear he was playing it off, but the man didn’t back down.

  “You remember the bet we made? One hundred thousand dollars to take that lovely girl to bed? Did you win the money yet?” He laugh
ed, and Penny felt her heart tie into knots. At once, her stomach dropped and she felt she was going to be sick.

  A bet? A hundred thousand dollars? She stood frozen in place, her mind going a mile a minute. She didn’t want to believe that it was so, but at the same time, she didn’t know what to think. That was the exact kind of shit the men who came into this club were known for doing, and she couldn’t help but feel the black seeds of doubt and disbelief from spreading.

  Chase glanced around the table, and there was no doubt in her mind that he was giving them a warning look. The table became very quiet, and she gathered up the mugs.

  “I’ll bring out that other round,” she said, her voice eerily calm. They thanked her, but there was a tension in the air. Penny didn’t want to think about what had just happened. It had been one of her fantasies to have oral sex in the bathroom, and she had been pleased with herself for finally living it out with the hottest guy alive.

  Now, she didn’t know what to feel. Her mind was spinning, and she was shocked. She wanted to think that it was all a lie, but she didn’t know what to think about it. Chase hadn’t denied it. He behaved exactly how a guilty man would react. Had Chase been using her? What did his friend mean by the comment? What was this bet?

  She didn’t want to think about any of it, but she couldn’t get it out of her mind.

  Chapter 15

  Chase walked back and forth in his penthouse. He didn’t want to think about what would happen the next time he saw Penny, but he could imagine that it wasn’t going to go over well. It was clear she had been more than offended by the comment made at the nightclub, and he knew he was going to have to explain it to her.

  The issue was, how would he explain it in a way to make her stay with him? He didn’t want to fight her, and he didn’t want her to think that she was nothing more than a bet or a trophy. Right now, he got the impression she felt like both.

  He had left the club earlier that evening, telling her that he was going to take the bastards he referred to as friends home before heading home himself. Of course, he told her that he wanted her to come over to his penthouse as soon as she was free, and she flatly agreed that she would. He didn’t want to think that they were on the brink of an argument, but he knew that it wasn’t going to be easy to explain to her what was going on.

  The two of them came from two different worlds. There was no denying that, and he didn’t want to push that on her. But it was the truth. He came from a place where men would make those bets. He wasn’t proud of it, but that was what he was used to. He wished he could take it all back and not make the stupid bet. He needed her to know that everything that happened between them was real, and the bet was something he made before he knew her or even saw her.

  Chase took the time to really think about what he wanted to tell her, so by the time she knocked on his door, he felt he was ready. He took a deep breath, walking to the door and hesitating for a moment before opening it. Then, he put on a smile as he pulled it open and saw her beautiful…angry face.

  “I’m here,” she said flatly, her arms crossed.

  “I can see that,” he replied with an unwavering grin. He had to maintain the positive vibe or everything would go to shit. “I’m glad you came.”

  “You’re glad? Why, did you have another bet you were trying to win tonight?” she snapped as she stepped into his penthouse.

  Chase gave her a look, telling her with his eyes he wasn’t going to play that kind of game. She could talk about it with him like an adult, or they weren’t going to talk about it at all.

  “You know it’s not like that,” he said calmly.

  “What is this, then? What do you want to call it? Am I your girlfriend or am I just some conquest that you wanted to take home for the night?” she shot back. He gave her another look and shook his head.

  “Unbelievable. Are you going to tell me that you think I did this for a dumb bet when it’s been two weeks? Two whole weeks of being together?” he asked. She crossed her arms again and gave him a look.

  “I don’t know, you tell me. It sounds to me like you put an awful lot of money down on it,” she spat. He laughed, which was clearly the wrong thing to do, as she gave him a withering stare. He sighed, rubbing his face with his hand.

  “Look, I clearly don’t need the money. You should know that from how well I’ve been tipping you all this time,” he said dryly. Her eyes opened wide and her mouth dropped open.

  “Don’t you dare tell me that you were doing that for any reason than because of my service! I didn’t need your damn pity money, and I certainly don’t want it! Don’t you know that I can get my own tips without your meager offerings?” She laughed derisively, and he shook his head, clearly angry now.

  “Are you really going to tell me that those tips were meager? I hope you’re just saying that because you’re just pissed at me. Any waitress would be thrilled to be able to have that much just handed to her when she didn’t do anything but pour a few drinks!” He spat the words, knowing he was digging his own grave, but his anger was getting the best of him. He had pride, dammit, and he wouldn’t let a woman—even a woman he cared for—laugh at his dignity and hard work.

  “Well, if all you wanted was to have a few drinks poured, then why didn’t you do it yourself?” she asked. “Why request my service out of everyone else’s each time you came to the club?”

  Chase sighed, anger deflating from his chest. “I come from a different world than you do, Penny, you know that. I am going to do things differently, and I’m going to look at things differently. I’m sorry that you got caught up in a bad joke, but it had nothing to do with you, and I don’t want you to feel like what I am doing has anything to do with that.” Chase put his hands in the air, trying to calm her down. He knew that this wasn’t going well, and he could see in her eyes things were getting worse for him by the second.

  She stared at him, eyes cold as ice. “I know what you said, but you have underestimated me. If you didn’t notice, I am the girl who told a prince to fuck off when he got too close to me. What makes you think that I’m not going to do the same thing to you?” she asked.

  “I’m treating you with respect, for one. I’m not making you do anything that you don’t want to do, and I never would. I am here to help you, Penny, not hurt you,” Chase tried again. He didn’t know how else to say what he was trying to express, but he could see in her eyes that she still wasn’t happy with how the night had gone.

  “Look, I would love to do something that will make this up to you. I know that that was a shitty thing for you to have to hear, but I don’t want you to give it another thought, okay? I’ll take you out to do anything you want, anything at all. We can forget all about those bastards I was with and just focus on us.” Chase smiled once more. He hoped that by distracting her from the events of the night she would be happy to go out with him.

  But he also knew Penny was stubborn, and there was little doubt in his mind she was going to turn him down. But he didn’t expect her to tell him what she said next.

  “You know, Chase, you’re right. You come from an entirely different world than I do, and I can’t compare with it. I’m just some waitress working at a nightclub, in need of the tips that are thrown my way by men like you. I don’t know what I would do without you, and I’m grateful for the times that you tipped me that well. I really do appreciate it, I do.” She spoke with a hurt sarcasm in her voice, and Chase shook his head once again.

  For as much as she could see through his salesman tone, he could see through her tone when she tried to manipulate him. And he wasn’t going to put up with it any more than she would put up with his tone.

  “Look, Penny, I want to put this whole thing behind us. It was stupid, but it’s over now, and neither of us are going to have to worry about it any longer, okay? You’re not going to forget the past two weeks together, are you? Can’t we just forget about what happened and move on with our lives?” He threw his hands down to his side, but Penny merely shook
her head.

  “You don’t get it. I am moving on with my life, but I’m not doing it with you. I’m not going to be in a relationship with someone who just wanted to win a bet for a night. Someone who just uses women for their fun and games. You can think of me as your trophy during the time we had together, and you can collect your money, but I’m not going to be with you anymore.” She didn’t give him a chance to respond, turning on her heel and heading out the door before he could argue further.

  “Penny! Penny!” Chase called after her. But when he got to the door of his penthouse, he could see she was running the hall to the elevator, wiping her eyes. He shook his head, stepping inside and slamming the door behind him. He wasn’t going to go chasing after her. If that was what she wanted, then that was her decision to make. A small part of him knew he was in denial, but her words made him so frustrated and angry.

  He reasoned that he’d done what he could to fix it, and he didn’t have the time to deal with the drama from women like that. Sure, it was going to be hard for him to let go of her, but he wasn’t going to chase after her, and he certainly wasn’t going to beg. Chase Ellis never begged. Who was she to make him feel that way?

  If she wanted to walk out on him, that was her choice.

  She was free to make it.

  Chapter 16

  Penny set the book down with a sigh and looked around the room. She was finding it difficult to concentrate, and she didn’t know how to occupy her mind. She wanted to focus on the book as she always had done on her days off, but it was getting harder and harder for her to do anything without thoughts of Chase creeping up on her.

  She hadn’t spoken to him since the day she had told him that she didn’t want to be with him anymore. Though she was still hurt about everything that had happened, there was a part of her that wondered if she had overreacted to the situation. He treated her so well throughout the two weeks, and she knew it couldn’t have all been a lie. There was no way he could fake his interest in her like that. He was Chase Fucking Ellis—he didn’t have to fake anything to get a girl. If a girl didn’t like him, he’d move on to the next one. And he stuck with her, Penny Connor, a simple waitress at a nightclub. Or was she putting herself down too much? Was she right to break up with him because of that bet?