Punishing His Accountant: Caught Stealing (2 page)

“My job consists of brokering agreements,”
Josh said. “I’ve thought of a possible agreement between us that will allow you to avoid embezzlement charges while allowing me to fulfill my duty as CEO of this company. Do you want to hear more?”

“Yes.
” Ella’s voice was barely audible. She already knew she would do whatever he wanted. It was too much to hope for that she would be able to keep her CPA license and find another job, but at least she wouldn’t go to jail.

“You will have to leave your employment at
InterPlus, of course,” he said. “A voluntary resignation would be much preferred. If you agree, then there will be no complaint to the state licensing board for accountants.”

“I agree,”
Ella said. Her heartbeat was returning to normal.

Josh
held up his hand. “Wait, I’m not finished.”

He went behind his desk and sat down.
Ella liked this seating arrangement much better. She no longer felt quite so much like a naughty schoolgirl about to be chastised.

“All of the foreign businessmen I meet with on my trips have personal secretaries,” he said. “And yes, these are all business
men
.”

A hint of a smile played around his mouth, and
Ella noticed, not for the first time, the fullness of his lips. His mouth was lush and yet forbidding, as if he was capable of both cruelty and kindness.

“These secretaries,” he continued. “They ar
e always attractive, as you are…” He stopped speaking and ran his eyes slowly down her body.

Ella’s heart start beating wildly again.
Even as his eyes brushed past her breasts and legs, his gaze was dark and contemplative.

After a very long pause, Josh went on. “I’m sure there is
a middle aged executive assistant in sensible shoes back at corporate headquarters making sure the files are organized and the personal calendar is kept current.” He smiled, flashing a perfect set of white teeth. “This girl – and that is what they’re called – is there to take care of other, more visible duties for her boss. Things like running errands for him, or fixing him a drink, or making sure no one interrupts him during a meeting. Oh, and meeting and greeting his business associates – and looking good while she’s doing it.”

Ella
was shocked. “They sound like courtesans.”

Again
Josh smiled. “That’s very astute. When I first visited China, I learned the courtesan plays an important role in the success of the man she serves. If she’s good, she learns many secrets.”

He leaned back in his chair. “I’ve known for some time that my lack of a personal secretary diminished my stature a bit in the countries where I do business. I’ve procrastinated too long in addressing the problem, but no longer. I have reason to believe that the meeting in Argentina was called at the last minute and then canceled due to a lack of respect on their part – respect for me. Respect is everything in these cultures. Do you understand that?”

Ella nodded, avoiding his gaze. There was something in his eyes that she wasn’t sure she could face.

Throughout her career
, Ella had felt nothing but contempt for the pretty girls who wore short skirts and high heels and earned their livings making coffee for the boss. She’d always believed there was something wrong with them that made them want to serve men like that. Then she thought of the Cook County Jail.

“My proposal is this,”
Josh said. “You will resign from your job, effective three days ago, and immediately become a contractor for InterPlus as my personal secretary. This will allow you to work off the money as a legitimate business expense that the auditors will accept.”

Ella gulped and nodded slowly, trying to make sense of what he was saying.

“It’ll look best if the amount you embezzled is entered as a 50 percent up-front payment,” Josh continued, “since that’s customary for contractors. You’ll need to complete another $99,468 worth of work to satisfy the terms of our contract. Don’t worry,” he said, noting her expression of dismay. “I know it’s a lot of money, but I’ll set an excellent hourly rate for you. I’ll even pay you a $50,000 cash bonus if you perform your duties satisfactorily, and I’ll give you a good reference for your next job.”

He looked directly at her. “What do you think so far,
Ella?”

Ella
’s mind was spinning too fast to weigh the pros and cons, but she wanted to keep her options open. “It sounds, um, intriguing,” she managed to say.

“Very good.
But there’s more you need to know.”

Josh
leaned forward and placed his hands on the desk. “Look at me please, Ella. I know this has been a difficult discussion for you, but it’s important that you go into our agreement with your eyes open.”

Ella
forced herself to meet his eyes.

“Unlike the men I do business with, I prefer that my secretary be smart,” he said. “The problem is that you have no experience as a personal secretary. The chief purpose of the position is to serve. I want you to understand that.” He looked at her for a reaction, then continued. “You’ll need to go through training. Your time spent in training will be applied to the balance you owe InterPlus, of course. Are you willing to undergo training?”

“Of course
.” It’s not like she had a choice, she thought to herself. “What kind of things will you be training me for?”

“
Everything you need to know to do your job. The training will take place at my home, the first session is this evening. I’ll send a car to your place at seven.”

“That soon?”
Ella had hoped for a few days to think things over.

“Yes, that soon.” He scowled at her. “Remember that the embezzled funds are already sitting in your phony business account. The longer they sit there without a contract, the more likely that the auditors will notice.”

Ella’s stomach clenched.

“I think we’re close enough to an agreement that I can go ahead and have my attorney draft the contract in time for your signature this evening,”
Josh said. “What do you think?”

Ella decided to go home and think about it, but it didn’t seem like she’d get a better deal.
“I agree,” she said.

“Excellent.
Just think – if you sign the agreement, you’ll be using your phony business account for a legitimate reason after all.”

He smiled, and
Ella noticed the feral glint in his eyes.

Chapter 3

Ella
rode in silence Josh’s car made its way to a gated community on the lakeshore.

She’d had time to think about what Josh was offering, and it still didn’t make much sense. For a few terrible hours, she had almost died of nervousness and fright, but now Josh was offering her a way out. She decided it would be wise for her to take it, no matter what the details of the job were.

Still, she didn’t want to give Josh any wrong ideas, so she had dressed conservatively for their evening meeting, opting for a business-like pant-suit, and flat shoes.

The driver waved a passkey at the sensor. The metal gates opened in front of the car, then closed behind it.

Ella thought of the Cook County Jail and almost laughed out loud from sheer relief.

The house was large and impressive, even for the
expensive neighborhood. Impassively, the driver let her out of the car, led her to the front door, and opened it with a key from his key ring. He made no attempt to be friendly to her as he showed her to a small office off the main hallway, motioned to a chair for her, and left. Ella wasn’t even sure he spoke English.

She sat down and waited. The office was similar to the one
Josh kept at work. The desk was uncluttered except for some art objects from his foreign trips and a teakwood pen and pencil set. A manila folder sat in the center of the desk, which Ella assumed contained their contract.

A few minutes later,
Josh entered and nodded a greeting.

“I’m glad you decided to come,
” he said. “Before we can begin your training, we need to talk about the terms of our agreement.”

He reached into the folder and handed
Ella a single-page document, then picked up his own copy. “This first contract is a standard voluntary resignation agreement for your position at InterPlus. You’ll notice it’s backdated to the day before you embezzled the funds.”

He reached into the folder again and handed her a second document. “This contract provides for you to be my personal secretary and consultant at an hourly rate of $150. It’s backdated to the same date that you embezzled the funds and provides for a 50 percent prepayment of $99,468 to be direct deposited into your business account.” He shot her a knowing look. “I believe this part of our bargain has already been fulfilled.”

Ella nodded. She noticed that Josh was wearing a white dress shirt with the top two buttons undone, dress pants, and tasseled loafers. She suddenly realized it was the first time she had seen him wearing anything other than a suit.

“The same amount will be paid upon satisfactory completion of the contract, within a period not to exceed one year. The contract also provides for a bonus of $50,000 to be paid at my discretion,”
Josh continued. “Now, as for your duties under our agreement.”

He turned the page, so
Ella did too, although she was only pretending to read. She had already made up her mind.

“Ms.
Wilder agrees to do whatever Mr. McGould asks her to do for the period of time the contract is in force,” Josh read out loud. He looked up at Ella.

“That’s it?”

“That’s it, Ella. It leave a lot of possibilities open, doesn’t it?

“Yes it does,” she agreed. “Where do I sign?”

He shook his head slowly. “Wait a minute. You don’t seem to understand the contract – you will do
whatever
I ask you to do. I think it’s only fair for me to point out, that this includes sexual acts.”

Ella
could feel his gaze boring into her, waiting for her reaction, but she didn’t know what to say.

She’d tried to convince herself that this was just another job, but deep down she’d suspected that Josh would want something like this. And if that’s what he wanted, she’d go along. She’d fantasized about him often enough – he was handsome and devastating masculine. It might even be fun – her last lover had been more than a year ago, and she was ready for an adventure.

“I think you should take a few days to think it over,” Josh was saying. “Although the role of personal secretary probably sounds trivial to you, you have my word that it’s extremely serious to me. If I call you at two o’clock in the afternoon and tell you to meet me at O’Hare Airport to fly to Beijing that evening, I will expect you to be there. If I signal you in the middle of a meeting that I need a glass of water, you will drop what you’re doing and fetch me one. If I give you something to wear, then I expect you to wear it. And I meant what I just said about performing sexual acts. In addition, you need to know that I will have to punish you for embezzling funds from my company. Do you understand what that means?”

Ella
looked up from the document and met his gaze. His eyes were so dark that they appeared almost black, and they seemed to see through her. She felt a surge of desire well up between her thighs.

“I understand, Mr.
McGould,” she said.

“Good. I’m quite serious about the punishment, you know. Who knows?” he added. “You might even come to enjoy it.” He smiled.

Ella wasn’t sure what she had just heard, but she wanted to finish their business. “I’m ready to sign now,” she said.

Josh
nodded, pulled the pen from its holder, and handed it to her.

After she had signed, he countersigned and gathered the documents into the folder with a look of satisfaction on his face.

“Your training will begin immediately.” He motioned to a garment bag hanging on the coat rack by the door. “For this job, you won’t need that suit. Change into those clothes. There’s a dressing room across the hall. After that, meet me in the dining room.”

Josh
nodded to indicate that their business meeting was over, and Ella grabbed the garment bag.

She
was pleased to find that the dressing room included a vanity, sink, toilet, shower, and full length mirror. She undressed, reached into the garment bag, and found a peach colored push-up bra with matching lace panties, a garter belt, and sheer stockings. Over this she was to wear a white silk blouse with a low cut v-neck and a tight black sawed-off skirt. Black pumps with four-inch heels completed the picture.

The clothes were of excellent
quality and were very revealing without looking trashy.

Feeling strangely excited,
Ella put them on. As she fastened the stockings into the garter belt, she remembered what Josh had said about punishing her for the embezzlement and wondered what he meant by that. Maybe he would make her clean out his office for him, or some other trivial chore, but somehow she didn’t think that was what he meant.