Free Billionaire's Contract (The Billionaire's Contract Series) by Angelina Jenoire Hamilton Page B

Blake's neck had the thick corded look of a lumberjack's and his face, all angular lines arranged in a most pleasing manner, held two intense grey eyes that regarded Kirsty with a look of a predator. If the elevator had rung the dinner bell here was the man who was going to eat her. She felt a pleasurable tingle between her legs at that thought.
    He shook hands with them and his grip was like tempered steel. Gesturing to the seats opposite his at the desk with a flick of his wrist, he sat to face them across the dark glass. 'I'm sure you're wondering why you're here,' he said in a voice like rich crushed silk.
    Kirsty remained quiet. She usually let Jane speak for her in these kinds of meetings and at the moment, she wasn't sure she would be able to talk properly anyway.
    'Well we hope you're going to tell us how much you like Highlander's Harlot,' Jane said. 'And Ruth mentioned something about a new line.'
    He laced his fingers together and Kirsty noticed his wristwatch. It looked liked it probably cost more than she would ever make in her lifetime. She read the maker's name on the gold face, expecting to see Rolex or Tag Heuer, but the name Vacheron Constantin was unfamiliar to her. She also noticed he wasn't wearing a wedding band. Doesn't mean he's not married, she told herself. Some married men don't wear them. What was she thinking? She tried to bring herself back to reality.
    'Ah, yes...the new imprint,' he said. He looked at Kirsty and she felt uncomfortable under his gaze. She felt like he was mentally undressing her and thinking about doing wicked things to her but that, of course, was ridiculous. A man like this could have any woman he wanted; he wouldn't be interested in a plus-sized Romance novelist. Anyway, he was a million miles away from the type of man Kirsty usually ended up with. Her boyfriend, Simon, wasn’t dashing or rich, or even adventurous But he was reliable. Comfortable and reliable. She had to realise that all she was to a man like Tyler Blake was an overweight author in his stable who contributed a to the business. She was a commodity.
    'Kirsty, I read Highlander's Harlot and we will be releasing it on your usual contractual terms.' Kirsty felt an airy sense of relief. 'However,' he continued and she felt her earlier wariness return like a heavy weight in her stomach. 'I want you to focus your efforts on our new line. We're offering you more than the normal terms because we have high hopes for this line. We need authors who can write quickly and deliver the goods. Judging by your past performance and some of the scenes in Highlander's Harlot, I'm sure you are right for our Red Rose Bound imprint.'
    'Red Rose Bound?' Jane asked, leaning forward.
    Blake nodded and pointed to the screen on the wall, typing on a small silver and white keyboard on his desk to bring up a sales chart. Kirsty looked for her own titles on the chart, as she always did when she saw book stats, but the books on the screen weren't any of Inception Publishing's titles.
    'You can see the trend here from the past few months,' Blake said. 'We are being outsold by other publishers because they are releasing titles in new ranges containing more sex, particularly BDSM. The face of the Romance  market is changing. Who knows how long it will last? But for now, we need to get on board this trend and ride it as long as it makes money.'
    'Are you saying you want Kirsty to switch to writing erotica?'
    He nodded. 'In particular, BDSM.'
    Jane pursed her lips. 'It's not like Inception Publishing to go chasing the latest trends.'
    He stood up and looked out over the stormy London skyline. 'True. But when I bought the company, it was already failing. The recent changes in the industry have hit everyone hard, Inception included. I didn't purchase this company expecting  it to fail. But until we can get back on our feet, we need to produce some books which will speak to the readers who are buying the latest trends and keeping that market