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  Second Chance Romance Series Collection

  Complete Series

  By:

  Scott Wylder

  Contents:

  Also By Scott Wylder

  Secret Baby

  The Boss's Mistress

  The Billionaire's Lover

  Copyright © 2019 by Scott Wylder

  All rights reserved.

  http://www.scottwylderauthor.com/

  In no way is it legal to reproduce, duplicate, or transmit any part of this document in either electronic means or in printed format. Recording of this publication is strictly prohibited, and any storage of this document is not allowed unless with written permission from the publisher. All rights reserved.

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  Also By Scott Wylder

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  Good Guy Gone Bad

  Kitchen Heat

  One Day in Vegas

  Temptations

  Alpha Passion BOX SET

  The Bad Boy Biker

  The Black Mountain Bikers Series

  Benefits of Friendship

  Falling for the Dragon

  Trigger Happy

  Hard Miles Ahead

  She Got the Jack

  Color Me Hot

  The Black Mountain Bikers Series Book 1-3

  Sinful Series

  Paolo’s Pride

  Evan’s Envy

  Gavin’s Greed

  Sinful Series BOX SET

  Secret Baby

  By:

  Scott Wylder

  Table of Contents:

  Also By Scott Wylder

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Copyright © 2019 by Scott Wylder

  All rights reserved.

  http://www.scottwylderauthor.com/

  In no way is it legal to reproduce, duplicate, or transmit any part of this document in either electronic means or in printed format. Recording of this publication is strictly prohibited, and any storage of this document is not allowed unless with written permission from the publisher. All rights reserved.

  Join the Scott Wylder’s Readers’ club and receive the exclusive hot short story.

  Chapter 1

  (Anastasia)

  I took the job at Worthington Enterprises because it seemed like lucrative move. I could save up money to open my own catering business and before I turned thirty, I would be a business owner. But I ended up getting oh, so much more. More than I could have ever hoped for, more than I had ever imagined possible.

  My boss, Ross Worthington, owned ten small businesses. He also owned a large retail business. He ran them all from his headquarters in Massachusetts. He was looking for someone creative to head the advertising department, and I just happened to have the right credentials.

  Moving from Kansas as soon as I graduated college, I was new to the area and had been working at a local restaurant for a few months so I wouldn’t dip into my savings account to pay rent and utilities and the like. I liked the job at the restaurant, but minimum wage was not cutting it, I needed better pay, if I ever intended to open my own business. World Cuisine Catering. It has a nice ring to it, I think.

  Anyway, I went through several rounds of meetings and interviews before I met Ross. When I first laid eyes on him, my heart kicked into overdrive. He was the sort of suited, New England sexy that just demands attention wherever he goes. His short-cropped black hair and sapphire blue eyes that seemed to pierce right through me, was enough to garner my lusty desires. Add to that the confident swagger, the five-o’clock shadow, wide shoulders and narrow hips, and you have a volatile mixture.

  I felt like a blathering fool during our first meeting, which he assured me was only a preliminary meeting so that we could just get to know each other a bit.

  For the next interview I sat in his office in my best fancy office skirt and blouse suit, wishing I had worn my low-heeled black shoes instead of my slightly worn burnt-sienna flats that matched the accent colors in my skirt. He would be there any minute to conduct the formal interview. Just him and me. He told me at the informal meeting that the next interview would end with his hiring me, or thanking me for my time and interest, which meant I was not hired.

  I had to impress him. But how do you impress a self-made billionaire? I was so nervous and nearly jumped out of my skin at every little noise.

  Then Ross Worthington opened the door and walked in with a roguish grin on his face and a devilish twinkle in his eyes. My nerves didn’t calm down, they died, right there on the spot. Frozen. That’s how I sat, staring at him for several seconds as he approached me with his hand out, expecting a handshake.

  Timidly, I shook his hand. His grip was firm and warm, the touch of his skin sending little tingles through my body and tightening my stomach. I collected myself and smiled back at him as he sat across the desk from me.

  He was not the first gorgeous man I had ever met, but he was the first that I had thought, I want him, about. In high school, all the boys were immature jerks and I was not interested. I focused on my grades. In college, I had a few flings, but nothing more. I was centered on my future career as owner and operator of World Cuisine Catering. That left no time for boyfriends. It was not something that I ever thought much about—missing out on the dates and the sex never really bothered me.

  Ross finished looking over the papers in his hand and laid them aside, turning that piercing gaze back to me. The interview consisted of only a few questions about my past experience, which was not much. I was honest with him even though I was tempted to embellish. I had taken the full course in advertising as a backup plan, just in case my dreams of the catering business flopped. My grades in those advertising and marketing classes were, as with all my other grades, superior. Many people could label me as many things, but never as a slacker. I had worked with a small company through college that needed help with their advertising and marketing department, and I gave the names and numbers as references on the Worthington Enterprise application.

  “Miss Penland, it seems to me that you are right for the position here at Worthington Enterprises. You do understand that as head of the department, you will be working long hours and you will be the overseer for all adverts and marketing mock-ups for all my companies, correct?” Ross gave me a smile and nod.

  Clearing my throat, wanting to jump up and squeal because he had more or less just hired me, I took a deep breath. My smile was uncontrollable. “Yes, sir. Long hours and a heavy workload never hurt me before. I would welcome the opportunity to work here, sir.”

  He laughed. “Okay, okay. You can stop being so formal and stop responding like an applicant. You can call me Ross, everybody does, except my mother but she doesn’t work here, so we won’t get into that.” He chuckled again and shook my hand. “You, Anastasia Penland, are now, officially, the head of my main advertising and marketing department.”

  I stood, my knees trembled. “Thank you, sir, uhm, I mean, Ross.” His name rolled off my tongue nicely. I liked the name Ross; strong, simple, sexy.

  He opened the door and ushered me out first. “You do realize that if something goes wrong in any of the departments, it’s your head on the chop-block.”

  That unnerved me. “I understand but what if it’s something someone else screws up, not me? Will I still be held accountable?” I had never been a boss before, never had people working under my supervision, and
I knew nothing of these new people I had yet to meet.

  “Well, that’s a different matter. If you’re not the one who makes the mistake, then no.” He touched my arm to stop me in mid-stride and opened a door on his right. “Here’s your department. Let’s meet your staff.” He moved aside, holding the door and I brushed by him, feeling the warmth of his body so close to mine. “I would still hold you responsible for fixing the problem, though.”

  Nodding, I stepped into the room, electricity buzzing down my right side from his closeness.

  “Here’s your staff.” He motioned to include all six cubicles in the large room. “There are six wonderful, creative, talented, and very argumentative people here.”

  “Only six?” I couldn’t stop the question. I just blurted it out, shocked that there were only six people in charge of all marketing for eleven companies.

  “Only six. I like to keep things simple, Miss Penland. Each of them will report directly to you, and you will report directly to me. See? Simple.” He led me through the center of the room to another glass-fronted office and opened that door, also. “This is your office. Take today to set it up however you want it. Make a list of any equipment and furniture you will need, and I’ll have it delivered in a few days.”

  Stepping into the office, my office, I felt like I had just made it. It was perfect. It was also very large, in my opinion. “You mean, I’m on the clock as of right now?”

  Winking, he offered, “Unless you have more pressing appointments to see to, yes.”

  “Oh, no. Right now is fine. I just wasn’t prepared for…” I waved my hand around the office and chuckled nervously.

  “What? To get the job?” He wagged a finger back and forth, clucking his tongue. “Now, that’s not a winning attitude, Miss Penland. Confidence is key in this world. Always be confident.” He let his eyes slide over my body and I could feel it moving along, like hands caressing me.

  “Yes, sir. Confidence.” I nodded curtly, hoping my face wasn’t red.

  “Ross. Always Ross.” He backed out of the office and shut the door.

  Chapter 2

  (Ross)

  From our first meeting, I knew Anastasia Penland was going to be the new head of marketing here at Worthington Enterprises. With her jet-black hair, grey-green eyes, full lips, and perfectly curvy figure, how could I pass her up? She had the right credentials. She was young and full of life, full of ideas. She was exactly the type of person I needed in that position.

  And she was exactly the person I wanted to get into other positions, too. Positions that had nothing to do with Worthington Enterprises.

  I’m stuck in a loveless relationship with a woman I’ve been married to for ten years. There was no prenuptial agreement because I wasn’t worth as much back then as I am now. She doesn’t live with me. We haven’t lived together in over six years. Most people think I’m single. Neither of us wears our rings and we have no mutual friends. She lives in her own house over an hour away and we don’t speak. She lives her life and I live mine. Of course, she lives on my money.

  She has her beaus, and I take on lovers. We have separate lives, except for the money. If I divorce her, she gets half of everything. She’s heartless, ruthless, and has hated me for quite some time. I’ve often thought about divorcing her and giving her half but somehow, I just can’t do that. It would be as if she were winning. That would make me the loser.

  I don’t like to lose. That’s not how I became a self-made billionaire. Losing is not in my vocabulary. So, I’ll remain a married man on paper, but I won’t let her rule my life.

  When I see something I want, I don’t stop until I get it.

  I want Anastasia. And I won’t stop until I have her.

  Making her head of marketing was only the first step.

  I’ll be spending loads of time alone with her in the office. She’s going to be a very busy girl. She won’t have time to think about having a relationship, but maybe she will be up for an office fling with the boss. I’ll work my many charms and whittle away at her until she can’t resist anymore. Then I’ll show her the time of her young life, at my side and in my bed.

  Hopefully, I can keep my hands off her until she’s ready. I wanted to lock my office door and ravage her during the formal interview. If she knew of the thoughts going through my head, would she have taken the job? I’m not sure. I’ll lock her into the job with a salary way above what a newbie should be making and then I’ll see to it that she simply cannot spurn my advances.

  I might be many things, but I know how people think. I know what drives them. Money is a grand manipulator for most people. I suspect that, being young and hoping to one day own her own business, it is also one of Anastasia’s motivators in life.

  Chapter 3

  (Anastasia)

  The salary Ross offered me was much more than I ever anticipated. With that salary, I could have my catering business up and running within a couple of years, still have my personal savings, plenty of money for daily expenses and bills, and a cushion for the business. As long as I kept my head on straight. I couldn’t go wild and be frivolous with the money, but if I was careful, I would be set.

  Three weeks into the new job, I had seen little of Ross. It was disappointing but made each of his visits all the more special. I worked hard to impress him. But that first month, I admit, was overwhelming. More often than not, I found myself still in my office at the dinner hour. The staff was great. And, just as Ross had bragged, they were very talented. They were work-oriented, too. And argumentative. That was fine with me. It kept the long days interesting. Besides, most artistic people are given to arguing—especially if they think you are insulting their work, or you want something major changed.

  During my fifth week, I began to relax. I did not feel as much like the new employee anymore and was on friendly terms with all my staff. The rough edges were wearing off and we all began to get along much better. It was becoming an easy routine. I was accustomed to the long hours in the office and no longer felt drained all the time.

  It was in that week that Ross called me into his office and made a pass at me. What would become one of many, many passes at me.

  “Anastasia, we need to work a bit more on this ad for the Mangrove’s Retail and Food store.” He tapped a mock-up on the easel, stepped behind me, and pushed his office door shut.

  “All right. What more did you have in mind for it?” I was confused. It seemed perfect to me.

  “I was thinking, maybe a little more late-night, not so much mid-morning when all the mothers are watching kids shows mindlessly with their little ones. Does that make sense?” He cocked his head and looked me up and down.

  My heart fluttered and stuttered under his unapologetic gaze. “I think so.” Not really, but I did not want to just come out and say so. I wanted him to give an example, of his own volition.

  He moved to stand directly in front of me, I had to look up to meet his eyes. He caressed my arm from shoulder to wrist seductively, staring into my eyes with hot passion. My thighs tensed, my nipples hardened, and I bit my lip to keep from moaning.

  “More late night, when couples are lying naked in their warm and rumpled beds, encompassed in the afterglow of their lovemaking. You know, after they’ve shed their clothes, most likely in a hurry, leaving them on the floor, and worked up an appetite, gotten sweaty and dirty.” He traced a finger from my earlobe to my collarbone.

  I did moan a little that time. Couldn’t stop it. No one had touched me like that in over a year. Trying to nod, I asked breathlessly, “What does all that have to do with Mangrove’s?”

  “Think about it. Couples in that state are soon going to be thinking about something to eat, there’s the food department and the in-house, twenty-four-hour deli. They’ll be wanting to shower, there’s a plug spot for our personal health and beauty, the pharmacy, shampoo, you name it. Then these couples, always, always, will be thinking about how to dress, what will make them more appealing to their partner, what w
ill be comfortable, affordable and still do all these? Our clothes, of course.” He leaned close to my ear and said, “You gotta think outside the box, Anastasia.” His deep voice rumbled sexily against my ear, tickling the hair that hung over it.

  The sensation was out of this world alluring. I wanted to press my body to his right there but thought better of it. He was just making a point. Right? Then his hands slid from my shoulders all the way to my hips as he pulled back, no smile on his face, only sexual heat in his eyes. A wanton lust so powerful that I nearly swooned upon seeing it.

  “Outside the box. Right. I’ll get right on it, Ross.” My voice was breathless, and the air suddenly seemed too hot in his office. I moved shakily toward the door, hoping he had not noticed his closeness had affected me.

  He put his hand on the door, over my head, his body lightly touching me from shoulder to hip. “You don’t have to start on it right away, Anastasia. We could…talk for a few minutes, go over some ideas first that way you have a better understanding of what I want from you.” His voice held a lusty tone that, if we’d been in a bedroom, would have bent me to his every desire.

  I didn’t respond right away; I was unable to respond. Fighting the urge to press back against him, to feel more of him against me, I closed my eyes and stood still. Then his lips lightly touched my neck just between my shoulder and earlobe.

  I gasped. My instinct was to move forward, away from the unexpected touch, but the door blocked my getaway. I had to step backward to allow room for the door to open, but he was there, so close, kissing my neck so lightly, his breath as uneven as my own.

  Shrinking to the side, I encountered his arm. His hand was still firmly planted on the door, my escape.