Beautiful Bastard Novel Chapters
List of most recent chapters published for the Beautiful Bastard novel. A total of 108 chapters have been translated and the release date of the last chapter is Apr 02, 2024
Latest Release: Chapter 1 :
One
My father always said the way to learn the job you want is to spend every second wa
One
My father always said the way to learn the job you want is to spend every second watching someone do it.
“To get the job at the top, you’ve got to start at the bottom,” he told me. “Become the person the CEO can’t live without. Be their right-hand ma
- 1 One My father always said the way to learn the job you want is to spend every second watching someone do it. “To get the job at the top, you’ve got to start at the bottom,” he told me. “Become the person the CEO can’t live without. Be their right-hand ma
- 3 I cleared my throat and began my presentation. As I moved through the different aspects of the proposal, he stayed silent, staring directly at his copy. Why was he so calm? His temper tantrums I could handle. But the eerie silence? It was unnerving. I was
- 4 I couldn’t even be horrified by the loud moan I let out—he felt better than anything. “What’s that?” he hissed through clenched teeth, his hips slapping against my thighs, driving him deep inside. “Never been f**ked like this before, have you? You wouldn’
- 5 I couldn’t even let myself think about what happened until I was out of there. I’d let him f**k me, give me the most amazing o.r.g.a.s.m of my life, and then I’d left him with his pants around his ankles in the company conference room with the worst case
- 6 Not conducive, Bennett. I flipped open my laptop to check my schedule for the day. My schedule . . . s.h.i.+t. The b.i.t.c.h had the most up-to-date version in her computer. Hopefully I wasn’t missing any meetings this morning, because I was not calling I
- 7 “It’s too bad you’re such a horrible lay,” she replied calmly. She turned to continue down the stairs but stopped abruptly, spinning back to meet my eye. “And it’s a good thing I’m on the pill. Thanks for asking, a.s.s**le.” I watched her disappear out of
- 8 “Is there a good reason it’s taking you forever to take the contract drafts to legal? Does daydreaming about farm boys take up all your time?” h.e.l.l, actually, this would be easier than I thought. Feeling a new sense of determination, I straightened my
- 9 I decided that it would be a bad idea to talk to the girls about what was going on. I mean, Sara worked for Henry Ryan and saw Bennett around the building all the time. There was no way I could ask her to keep that kind of secret. Julia on the other hand
- 10 Stop it, body. Engage now, brain. Glancing around the sun-filled room, I set the files and laptop on the large conference table and helped the catering staff set up the breakfast spread along the back wall. Twenty minutes later the proposals were set out,
- 11 Throughout the meeting we cast glances at each other, mine fueled with anger and his with increasing uncertainty. I looked down at the spreadsheets in front of me as much as possible to avoid looking at him. As soon as it was all over, I gathered my thing
- 12 “Maybe.” “You’re such a filthy f**king girl.” I yelped out in surprise as I felt his hand smack hard where his teeth had just been, and my only response was a moan of pleasure. I breathed in another sharp gasp as his hands clasped the delicate ribbons of
- 13 “I’m not exactly thrilled with the—” “Bennett,” my dad said, walking briskly into my office. “Great job in there. Henry and I just spoke with Dorothy and Troy and they were—” He stopped and stared at where Miss Mills stood, white-knuckling the edge of her
- 14 “Actually, Bennett, you’re right,” she answered with a rare edge in her voice. “She came here for college, graduated summa c.u.m laude, worked with your father for a few years before moving to your department and being the best employee you’ve ever had—al
- 15 “No, thank you,” I answered, suddenly feeling ridiculous for even being here. “I’m just looking.” “Well, if you change your mind, let me know,” she said with a wink, before turning and making her way back to the sales counter. I watched her walk away and
- 16 “d.a.m.n,” I growled. Looking up I could see her perfect body reflected back at me in the full-length mirror. I had fantasized about her undressed more times than I could probably admit, but reality, in daylight, was better. So much better. She was wearin
- 17 The voices around us continued, completely unaware of what was going on in this tiny room. If I didn’t do something, our little secret would not be kept for long. As her movements became more frenzied and her hands gripped my hair tighter and tighter, I p
- 18 Because, apparently, I’m an idiot. “And then,” I said, giggling and holding onto my sides, “she says, ‘f.u.c.k, I had to take a f**king order off a guy I blew after junior prom once.’ And then he says, ‘Yeah, I’ve waited on your brother too.’” Another bou
- 19 “Are you ready to begin?” “Yes, sir.” He nodded once and turned back to his office. Okay, so that’s how this was going to play out. Fine by me. I wasn’t sure what I’d been expecting but was somewhat relieved that things weren’t different. Things between u
- 20 Heat bloomed between my legs and I reached for the hem of my skirt, sliding the fabric up my thighs, exposing my skin to the cool air in his office, and to the hungry eyes across the desk from me. “Yes, I see,” he said, but his voice was deeper even still
- 21 A sense of déjà vu and dread filled me as we made our way through the semideserted building and toward the elevator. The second those gold doors closed I wished I were anywhere but standing next to him. Was there suddenly less oxygen in here? As I glanced
- 22 “You may be my boss, but you do not get to decide how this works.” The silence stretched before us, the sounds of the traffic and the outside world barely registering in my consciousness. “You know,” he began with a dark stare, taking a single step towar
- 23 “Bite me,” I whispered. He bit down, hard, making me cry out and pull harder on his hair. My body was so in tune with his, it reacted to his every look and touch and sound. I both hated and loved how he made me feel. I’d never been one to lose control, bu
- 24 He rolled his eyes. “Chloe.” I felt my stomach tighten at the sound of her name and focused my attention back on the treadmill. “What makes you think this has anything to do with her?” “Because I’m not a f**king idiot.” “Nothing’s bothering me. And even
- 25 Thursday she had on a perfectly ordinary V-neck blouse, but twice when she bent over to pick up my pen I got a good look down her s.h.i.+rt. Only one of those times was on purpose. By Friday I thought I would explode. I hadn’t jacked off once all week and
- 26 So here were the facts: I felt possessive of her. Not in a romantic sort of way, but in a “hit her over the head, drag her off by the hair, and f**k her” way. Like she was my toy and I was keeping the other boys in the sandbox from playing with her. How s
- 27 “You do know that not even I can keep Sofia from tearing this stuff off the table, though, don’t you?” I popped a grape into my mouth. “Oh, she’s with Mina’s parents tonight. And just as well,” she said. “If Sofia were here all the attention would be on h
- 28 She turned back to look at me. “Flowers? Did I have flowers delivered?” I shrugged and shook my head. “I left early, remember?” I walked by on my way outside to make myself a Belvedere vodka gimlet. As the evening wore on, I couldn’t help but keep track o
- 29 I’d only been in this bathroom a few times since my mother had remodeled it. It was a beautiful, modern room with a custom-built marble counter and a wide mirror covering one wall. Above the vanity table was a small window that overlooked the patio and gr
- 30 More laughter came from outside. Joel was down there. Joel, who was basically a good guy, but who wanted to take her away from me. The image was enough to make me push into her more forcefully. Her strangled sounds made me smile, and I rewarded her with a
- 31 “How long, Bennett? Chloe?” she said, looking between us. “I—we just—” I started, but just what? How could I explain any of this? “We—” “We made a mistake. It was a mistake.” His voice cut through my thoughts and I looked over to him in shock. Why did it
- 32 When I looked up to meet her gaze, I winced; she looked like she’d just watched a car wreck. “Okay, let me make sure I’ve got this straight.” I nodded waiting for her to continue. “You’re sleeping with your boss.” I cringed slightly. “Well, technically no
- 33 “What a p.r.i.c.k,” I hissed. “After his behavior last night? He has got to be kidding me.” Just as she was about to respond, Julia’s phone rang and she reached for it in her purse. The “Hey baby!” greeting told me it was her fiancé, and this would take a
- 34 “I still shouldn’t have said it.” He brushed my ponytail over my shoulder and his soft lips moved across my back. “Turn around.” Two words. How was it possible that two simple words could make me question everything? It was one thing for him to press me a
- 35 “Well?” I met her eyes and let out a deep sigh. There was absolutely no way I could explain myself and not sound like I’d lost my mind. “Okay, yes, I signed for them.” She stared at me, her chest heaving and her fists balled so tightly that her knuckles w
- 36 She was also warm and wet and tasted just as f**king sweet as she looked. “I could f**king consume you,” I whispered, pulling back enough to glance up at her expression. Kissing her hip, I murmured, “This would be so much better if I could spread you out
- 37 My eyes widened and flashed to his face. He had talked to Miss Mills about my professional conduct? “Yes, I’m aware that it’s not just you,” he said, leading us into an empty elevator. “She’s a.s.sured me that she gives every bit as good as she gets. Why
- 38 “I mean close the door, but stay.” Oh. Oh. I turned, walking across the plush carpet in complete silence. His office door closed with a heavy click. “Lock it.” I turned the lock and felt him move closer until his breath fanned warm across the back of my n
- 39 We continued to stare at each other for a few moments, and I was almost positive that our thoughts were the same: San Diego would be a colossal test. The atmosphere in the room began to s.h.i.+ft slowly, the silence saying more than words ever could. I cl
- 40 Great. You? How is your dad? I laughed as I pushed send; this situation kept getting stranger. Less than a minute later I received another one. He’s doing fine. I’ve missed him but am excited to come home. Home. I noted her word choice and swallowed; my c
- 41 I nodded. “Benign. Thanks for asking.” “Of course.” Minutes pa.s.sed in uncomfortable silence and I was more than a bit relieved when I saw his luggage slide down the conveyor belt. We both reached for it at the same time and our hands touched briefly on
- 42 His head blocked her face from my view, and my eyes narrowed when I noticed her hand reach up and grip his forearm. She laughed at something he’d said and he pulled away slightly, allowing me a better look. She was beautiful, with shoulder-length, straigh
- 43 But she cut me off. “I’ve never done anything close to this and I don’t know how to navigate it anymore,” she said, her voice getting louder with each word. “But when I’m with you, it’s like nothing else matters. This . . . this thing,” she continued, ges
- 44 I traced along her ribs with my knuckles before sliding to the clasp of her bra, releasing it and practically ripping it off her body. Pulling her closer, I groaned into her mouth as her hard ni**les grazed my chest. The tips of her wet hair tickled my ha
- 45 She m.u.f.fled her screams against my neck as I felt her let go, clenching wildly beneath me—nothing in the world felt as good as this, letting the rush build inside and crash over us, together—and I let go too. Afterward, I moved my face close to hers, o
- 46 Fourteen Consciousness fluttered on the edge of my sleep-filled mind, and I tried to force it away. I didn’t want to wake up. I was warm and comfortable and content. Vague visions of my dream pa.s.sed behind my closed eyes as I snuggled into the warmest,
- 47 Finally, I looked up. He nodded and slipped his fingers beneath the unders.h.i.+rt, running his hands slowly from my hips to my waist. “Why?” I asked. He closed his eyes, shook his head once. “I haven’t wanted anyone else.” I wasn’t sure how to interpret
- 48 Bennett shook his head, leaning over me and propping himself up on his hands. Mercifully, he started moving, hips s.h.i.+fting forward and up, pus.h.i.+ng deep into me. My eyes rolled closed. He hit the perfect spot again and again and again. “Look at me,
- 49 I paused as I realized that I wanted to. Would he want me to? It struck me that I was stalling and I continued searching through his clothes before finally settling on a charcoal Helmut Lang suit, white dress s.h.i.+rt, black silk tie, boxers, socks, and
- 50 I waited, toying with a cuff link, but she apparently wasn’t going to address the latter part of what I’d said. “My dad doesn’t know what he’s talking about.” She laughed, appropriately. Dad had been on every top-twenty-five list of CEOs practically since
- 51 I saw her s.h.i.+ft in my peripheral vision and instinctively I looked across the table at her. When our eyes met, every other sound blended together, floating around me but never breaking into my consciousness. Without thinking, I leaned toward her, she
- 52 I watched her walk past the reception desk and directly toward where I sat near the bank of elevators. She stopped when she saw me, bleary-eyed, in my rumpled suit. I was sure my hair was a f**king joke because I’d been worried sick. I suddenly had no id
- 53 “Details?” I twisted a strand of his hair around my finger, hoping I wasn’t pus.h.i.+ng him too much. But to my surprise, he answered without hesitation. “Her name was Sylvie. She was an attorney at a small firm in Paris. We were together for three years
- 54 “Why?” I managed, an exhale carrying the sound barely past my lips. Faster, my body screamed. More. “Would it have changed how big an a.s.s**le you were?” He unwrapped my legs from around him, flipped me over and up onto my knees. “I don’t know. I just wi
- 55 “I could have done something. You don’t have to be such a man.” “Don’t be such a woman. What could you have done? Food poisoning is a pretty lonely business.” “So what should I tell Gugliotti?” He groaned, rubbing his hands over his face. “s.h.i.+t. What
- 56 “My, you’re wordy.” “I think it went well,” I said, stepping closer. Put your arms around me again. But he didn’t. He leaned back and gave me a stiff smile, the detached Beautiful b.a.s.t.a.r.d kind. “You were great, Chloe. I’m not at all surprised.” I wa
- 57 We fell into silence again as we continued to watch the movie, laughing in the same places and slowly s.h.i.+fting until I was practically lying on top of him. Out of the corner of my eye I glanced at the clock on the wall and mentally calculated the hour
- 58 The early morning sun filtered in and washed her pale skin a gray-blue light. She was curled on her side, facing me, her hair a dark tangle across the pillow behind her. Most of her face was now cuddled into my pillow. I could understand her hesitance to
- 59 “Chloe?” “Don’t stop,” she said, hiccupping, leaning to suck at my neck. Hiding. With one hand, she tried to dig between us and reach for me. It was a weird kind of desperation. We knew frenzied f**king, and we knew covert quickies, but this was something
- 60 I felt my face flame with anger and I stumbled back into the hotel lobby, suddenly feeling like there wasn’t enough oxygen, anywhere. Seasoning? I did fine? He’d been my mentor? In what universe? I stared at the shoes of people moving in front of me as th
- 61 She closed her eyes, and leaned her head back against her seat. “You called me ‘kid.’” “I did?” I searched my memory and realized she was right. “I guess I just didn’t want him to see you as this bombsh.e.l.l businesswoman he could hire away and try to f*
- 62 My father nodded, his face completely unreadable. It was his superpower, all my life: in the moments when he felt the most, he showed the least. “This is why we have the office fraternization policy, Ben,” he said, softening his tone with my nickname. “I
- 63 “She’s only a master’s student, Mr. Ryan. Of course it’s a tiny account. Only someone in love with her would let her work on a million-dollar, ten-year marketing contract.” Without looking back at me, she turned and left my office. Chloe didn’t answer her
- 64 I missed my project. I missed my coworkers. I missed Bennett’s ruthless, exacting standards. But mostly, I missed the man he’d become to me. I hated that I’d felt the need to choose one Bennett over the other, and ended up with neither. An a.s.sistant kno
- 65 It was humiliating having him throw that back in my face, and I took a few steps closer. “d.a.m.n you, Bennett. I worked my a.s.s off for you, and I worked my a.s.s off for Julian. I will work my a.s.s off wherever I go next—whether it’s selling pet food
- 66 I stammered out a few syllables, completely unprepared for his question. “She’s efficient,” Bennett said, walking around me and taking a seat at the table. “When she wrapped up the Papadakis account, we suggested she take a short interns.h.i.+p elsewhere
- 67 There was also a tiny part of me that suspected I’d complicated his thoughts further by telling him about Paul. I was being truthful when I said I still thought about what happened from time to time, but what I gathered most from those moments was a sense
- 68 I smiled into the darkness, realizing what a leap this was for him. “I was thinking about how confusing this must be for you. And how I’ve probably got you turned upside down with mixed messages about our physical relations.h.i.+p.” He paused and took my
- 69 We fell into a rather easy routine of work and meals, and at night an unspoken ritual of pillow talk in between kisses until we were nothing but mumbles and nonsense and her soft sweet skin curled around me as we fell asleep. It was a flash of a fantasy l
- 70 Upstairs, a balcony lined the sides and back of the room, looking down on the action, and had begun to fill with a few people holding c.o.c.ktails. Already the floor had started to fill, and the humid air created by over a hundred bodies tripped my claust
- 71 I swallowed thickly, staring down at her slightly parted lips. They were s.h.i.+ny from her drink and from her habit of licking them often, and I was immediately reminded of the way they looked around my c.o.c.k the only time she’d done that, swollen and
- 72 As the opening band—an absurd group of screeching men calling themselves Sheriff Goodnature—wrapped up, people started to gather at the bar again, refres.h.i.+ng their drinks before the main act appeared. Ruby swayed a little in front of me, putting her h
- 73 And f.u.c.k, she knew exactly what she was doing to me. I could see it in the mischievous twinkle in her eye. Her smile was a sly thing, sliding in from the side, pus.h.i.+ng her lips out into a flirty smirk and I listened to her chatter on about the show
- 74 “I love this,” she whispered between kisses, repeating my words to her the other night, our first intimate night in her hotel room. “Love to taste myself on your tongue.” I felt her goose b.u.mps beneath my palms and closed my eyes, let myself enjoy the s
- 75 I hadn’t, either. Ruby shook in my arms, weak and overwhelmed, and I carefully lowered her into the shower, s.h.i.+elding her body from the pounding spray as I followed after her and lathered every inch of her skin. She braced her hands on my waist, watch
- 76 The sentiment hung in the s.p.a.ce around us and it was hard not to feel even the smallest flash of irritation. My wild adoration, his almost constant wariness—I wasn’t sure which was worse. My silent admission was as good as graffiti across my chest, and
- 77 “What would you do?” he asked. “Nothing,” I said blissfully. “We’d just lie around in the sand all day, play volleyball or read or talk, listen to music. When we got hot we’d jump into the water, maybe take turns on someone’s paddleboard, when we got hung
- 78 Nearly three days later we stepped onto the curb at Heathrow, bags rolling to a stop behind us. The sky was a dingy gray, the air cool and smelling of damp stone and exhaust, but it felt like home. Niall had held my hand throughout most of the flight, gro
- 79 “Something is different,” he mused, pointing a finger at me. “You have a grin in your eyes just here.” He motioned to his own brow. “A twinkle. A little spot of suns.h.i.+ne over your head, I think.” “Do I?” “You get k.n.o.bbed in a New York City t.i.tty
- 80 “Um . . . Mr. Stella?” she asked, eyes widening meaningfully as she tilted her head toward my hand . . . which was still wrapped around the handle to the refrigerator door I’d pulled open. Cold air filtered into the room, against my warm chest. “Ah,” I sa
- 81 “No,” he agreed, “she reports to me.” Tony stared, his jaw tight, to where Ruby had left the room and closed the door behind her. “I guess I didn’t realize it would be so difficult for her to maintain professional boundaries.” My eyes widened as it struck
- 82 I didn’t know what to call my feelings, but I knew they were expanding, and profound, and frightening—after all, losing Portia had felt like being unchained, but the idea of losing Ruby felt so hideous it turned something over inside me. And what it took
- 83 Niall Oh, G.o.d I won’t It’s so She was getting off, using my body, and began to rise more each time, push harder onto me in her return. Her fingers slid higher and gripped my hair, her hot mouth sucked and sc.r.a.ped at my neck. The smell and taste of he
- 84 Beneath me, Ruby fell immediately still. “b.l.o.o.d.y h.e.l.l . . . Ruby. That was a terrible thing to say and at the most inopportune moment. I am an imbecile.” She ran her hands up the back of my neck, lifting to kiss, possibly in an attempt to shut me
- 85 Oh. I was with Niall, in his bed, naked, with his heavy arm slung over my hip. A glance at the clock told me it was one minute before seven, and in the time it took for the numbers to turn over, I remembered: Niall Stella f.u.c.ked my brains out last nigh
- 86 “I forgot something,” I said. It was a lie, and I could tell by the way his face fell slightly that we both knew it. “I need to run home before work.” “Now?” He sat up at the side of the bed, his hair an adorable mess and miles and miles of bare leg stret
- 87 Pippa nodded and took the chair opposite me. 鈥淓verything going okay?鈥?/p> I nodded as I slipped out of my coat. 鈥淵eah everything鈥檚 fine.鈥?I looked up to see the message indicator light blinking on my phone. Picking it up, I punched in my pin and then c
- 88 I could feel my face heat with angry tears. Young girls cry; I didn’t want him to feel justified in his insult. I blinked several times, determined that no matter what happened, I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing what this was doing to me. “Ca
- 89 I blinked, several times. “She what?” “She wants to reunite,” he repeated, sighing heavily. “I’m just as surprised as you are, believe me. She said she’s had a lot of revelations and wants to talk to me.” “And . . . ?” I started, feeling like my stomach w
- 90 I nearly laughed at the absurdity of it, of “doing lunch” almost like one would with a client. I’d essentially forfeited my job so I could stay with him, and he was going to have dinner with his ex-wife to discuss reconciliation. Was this really happening
- 91 I felt for my phone in my pocket, now desperately wis.h.i.+ng I’d called Ruby before coming here. We sat. Portia pa.s.sed me the pepper and then set her napkin in her lap. Davey curled up on the floor, resting his head on my feet. Outside, cars drove by,
- 92 I bent, putting my head in my hand. “It wasn’t sadness I felt at leaving our marriage, Portia, but I did feel something. I simply don’t know what to call it, or how to express it. Failure, maybe. Or regret.” I looked up at her, admitting, “Also relief.” “
- 93 “Well, I’m not sure if we’re a thing anymore, but it is what it is.” She leaned forward, tilting her head as she asked, “Tell me what happened?” And like this, with my head in my hands and pulse thudding anxiously in my throat, I confessed the entire aff
- 94 Tony held up his hands. “It’s my group policy, Niall. Per the rules I set forth verbally when Ruby started in my group, I can’t allow fraternization.” “Since when?” I nodded to the door. “Was this rule set forth before or after you hired that one there?”
- 95 I wanted her to blame me, to rail. I wanted her to tell me all the ways in which I’d disappointed her. Her silence was terrifying because it was so unlike her. I would rather have a million angry words than a single moment of her reserve. Her opinion and
- 96 I missed her. I missed her with a kind of clawing ache that seemed to dig deep scars inside my chest, in a place I couldn’t reach, pus.h.i.+ng aside things I required for breathing, heart beating, for moving about the world in a way that had once been ref
- 97 “We did,” I told her. “We do.” I stepped closer, put my hands on her hips. To my profound relief she didn’t pull away, and I bent, kissing her neck. “Ruby, I’m so sorry.” She nodded, her arms limp at her sides. “You hurt me.” “I was an idiot.” Pulling awa
- 98 I knocked on her open door, relieved when she looked up at me and smiled widely. “Niall!” She stood, making her way around her desk to give me a firm hug. Maggie had never been a hand-shaker, but with determination had trained me over the years to give in
- 99 I closed my eyes, laughing. “Touché.” “If I may drop the professionalism entirely for a moment?” “Of course,” I said, feeling oddly hungry for her wisdom in a way I hadn’t expected. “Please.” “You have known me as an instructor, and then quasi-mentor, and
- 100 This was a knife to my gut and I pulled back, pained. And even though her lip trembled and her hands shook at her sides, even though I still saw every ounce of the emotion in her eyes that she had only a week ago, she didn’t take her sharp reprimand back,
- 101 Even when he’d found me in the office, packing up, and begged me to forgive him. Even when he’d come to my flat and told me he loved me. I was an idiot for sending him away. I knew it at the time. But more than that I knew that if I let him in that day, t