Risqué Business (Club Risqué #8)

Chapter 7

CHAPTER 7

“ T his was you, wasn’t it?”

Luanna held up a local newspaper from her hometown, which her parents had sent to her.

‘Local mogul loses control of company.’

The headline wasn’t important enough to have been reported anywhere other than in the local area, where the community was still reeling from the announcement that Fulfords had been systematically bought out by an anonymous buyer.

Logan quirked an eyebrow at her. “What makes you think that?”

Luanna tipped her head to one side and stared at him. “Really? You think I don’t know you well enough to see when something has your fingerprints all over it?”

His mouth drew up on one side, giving him away.

“I asked you not to do anything that would endanger the jobs of anyone in my hometown…”

Logan rose to his feet and strode over to her, pulling her close… well, as close as possible with her baby belly in the way. Just another couple of weeks, she told herself as her back twinged slightly.

Not that Luanna was complaining. She’d enjoyed every moment of this pregnancy. Made a point of doing so, in fact. Revelling in it in a way that had never been possible with Danny.

“You did,” Logan agreed, nuzzling at her neck and threatening to divert her train of thought. “And I was careful to do exactly what you asked.”

Heat zinged along her skin at his closeness and the feeling of his obvious erection pressing into her. She was so damn horny these days.

But first, she wanted answers.

“So, what did you do?” she asked with narrowed eyes.

That smile again… but this time there was a look of unholy glee in his eyes. He shrugged. “I simply utilised the same trick as Joel’s ex-fiancée, Anita Howard, initially tried to pull on Universal Holdings.”

Luanna paused for a moment to think. She’d been new to the company back then, but there was always talk. Her brow furrowed, and she leaned back to look at him. “You bought up shares in the company?”

Logan’s grin widened. “Indeed, I did. And like the greedy fool he is, Fulford Senior believed he was untouchable. He floated too much of his market share, thinking no one would ever control more than his own twenty percent and the seven percent Danny’s father owns, which he convinced himself would always be an extension of his own shareholding.”

“Well, he’s probably right about that, but still… how?”

A wicked chuckle left Logan’s sensual lips and had Luanna focusing on them yet again, her mind wandering to all manner of guilty pleasures. “Let’s just say I made a lot of people an offer they couldn’t refuse.”

His fingers stroked her skin, lighting little fires wherever they touched. But as much as Luanna wanted to give in to the hedonistic demands of her body, she needed to get to the bottom of this. “So, what happens now?” she asked, her mind only partly on what he was saying, the rest of it focussed squarely on where those clever fingers had crept under her sweater and started to play with her sensitive, straining nipples.

“Are you trying to distract me?” she accused, at the same time as she thrust out her chest to meet his questing fingers.

“Not at all. What else do you want to know?” He asked the question, but he didn’t stop his ministrations, and Luanna’s breath hitched as he plucked at one of her swollen, sensitive buds through the fabric of her clothing.

“Umm…” she struggled to scrape together her scattered thoughts. “So, what happens now?” she finally managed to ask.

“Well, that depends entirely on your son. Fifty-three percent of the shares are now in Danny’s name. No matter what percentage of the shareholders Fulford gets onside, he can never be outvoted.”

That did bring clarity back to her in a rush. “What? But he’s…”

“He’s over sixteen, which means he’s perfectly eligible to be a company CEO. True, he may need help entering into contracts, but I don’t see that being a huge issue, since he’s eighteen soon.”

“I…” she shook her head. “Why?”

Logan brought up his hand and cupped her cheek, stroking her face. “Because, whatever the circumstances, that company is his heritage. His birthright. And Danny has his own ideas. He may state he doesn’t want any involvement in the company, but he’s always looking out for his sisters. The oldest might only be twelve, but she has a keen interest in business… probably because her grandfather is constantly telling her she can’t be a part of it because she’s a girl,” He gave a sarcastic laugh and shook his head. “That man is oblivious! And so stuck on the notion of primogeniture. it’s not even funny.”

“Hence why we’re in this situation,” Luanna muttered darkly.

She bit her lip, her mind a whirlwind of questions. She hadn’t expected this development, certainly not on an otherwise normal Saturday morning. “But Danny… how did you...?”

“Convince him to accept the shares?” Logan finished for her, his thumb gently rubbing against her cheekbone as he watched her. “I promised him, for now at least, to put it into a secure trust which I control on his behalf, so neither you, nor he, need to worry about him being coerced in any way. And it can stay that way for as long as he likes. They won’t even know it’s him. And I may have reminded him that it gives him control over the future role his sisters could play, as well."

Luanna's heart clenched at the thought of her son assuming such a heavy responsibility. It didn’t seem right for someone his age. But then again, she had to admit Danny was capable, perhaps even more so than she ever gave him credit for. But at least he had options.

“And if he wants out?” she asked, needing reassurance.

“That’s entirely up to him,” Logan said with a shrug. “He can always sell his shares if that’s what he wants. But I think he might prefer to right some of his granddad’s wrongs."

Their conversation was interrupted by the baby's sudden kick, which had Luanna wincing slightly, but brought a warm smile to Logan's face.

“Seems our little one approves," he joked, his hand moving to her distended stomach.

“Mmmm…” Luanna hummed her agreement as Logan found her lips again.

“And how do you think our little one would feel about me tying her mother up one last time before she’s born?” he asked huskily.

“You - you want to tie me up like this?” she stammered. Logan never made her feel anything less than sexy and desired, but Luanna had to admit, she didn’t always feel that way herself, with her stretch marks and swollen ankles.

“Absolutely, I do,” he purred into her ear. “And I want to take a few photos, too…”

“Logan…” She started to object.

“Just for me,” he reassured, stepping away so he could retrieve something from his desk. “But you could add them to this, if you wanted.”

Luanna sucked in a breath. “Is that…?” She reached out tentative fingers but stopped short of touching the gilt and leather-bound album.

Logan stroked his fingers over the cover. “I should have given this to you a long time ago. I never really apologised for…”

Luanna reached up and settled her finger over his lips, shaking her head. “I don’t want to rake up the past,” she told him. “But I will take this.”

Taking the album from his hands, she flicked through the pages, sighing at the beauty of each shot.

“So… what do you say to adding a few more photographs to it,” he asked, when they came to the pages he’d deliberately left blank. “After all, you never did get that punishment I promised you for not telling me what happened with James.”

He nibbled on her ear, taking the album from her and putting it aside before he started undressing her with deft fingers. “So, we could call it… compensation.”

Luanna shivered. Logan - her Master Baku - was an expert with his ropes. He would have read up and checked with Doctor Xavier about every aspect of binding her during her pregnancy, so Luanna had zero doubts it was safe.

“Just something simple,” he cajoled. “Right here at home. No suspension. No undue strain.”

And really? How could she deny him when the ties that bound her heart to his were as strong and durable as the ropes he used?

“Okay,” Luanna whispered. Then she shrieked as Logan let out a loud whoop, scooped her up into his arms, and practically ran towards their bedroom.

Damn, she was in for a good time.