Takeover: Takeover Duet Book 0 Read online

  TAKEOVER

  a sneak preview of the Takeover Duet

  Chelle Bliss

  Contents

  Preface

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  “An out of this world enemies to lovers story.” – Jezabell Girl & Friends

  “As dramatic as it is sexy.” - The Fairest of All Book Reviews

  He's the hottest man she's ever seen–and her worst enemy.

  Ambitious, high-powered CEO Lauren Bradley is one press release away from catapulting her corporation to new heights.

  Rival CEO Antonio Forte is arrogant, controlling, and sexy as hell. He'll stop at nothing to get control of Lauren's company. The only problem? He's also the one-night stand she can't forget.

  This is a sneak peek at the highly-rated Acquisition, Takeover Duet #1, by USA Today bestselling author Chelle Bliss. It is a sneak-preview, plus BONUS content, including two chapters not found anywhere else!

  “An edgy, sexy read.” – Reading is our Satisfaction

  Chapter One

  Antonio

  In a short time, I’d taken Cozza to the top and made them the industry leader without looking back or feeling remorse for how we got there. But in the last few years, Interstellar, which is headed by Lauren Bradley, a tenacious and driven female CEO, has been chomping at our heels, trying to top us.

  Until recently, I paid them no attention, but that changed when rumors started to spread about their new cutting-edge technology that would slingshot them right past Cozza and place them firmly in the number one spot.

  That doesn’t sit well with me either. I didn’t spend a large portion of my life building Cozza to have everything destroyed in the blink of an eye. I will do anything to stop Interstellar in their tracks, including using the inside information I received.

  “Are you sure you want to do this?” Jim Alesci, my chief legal counsel at Cozza, asks, tapping his pen against the orders sitting before him, and he looks tenser than normal. “You’re opening a huge can of worms.”

  “I’ve never wanted anything more.”

  “There’s going to be a lot of questions about why you chose this very moment to start to move on Interstellar.”

  Carlino, the VP of Cozza, asked my permission to find a mole inside Interstellar. Although I said no and was completely against it, he did it anyway, and his findings set this entire thing into motion. Through his efforts, we were able to ascertain that Interstellar had done the unthinkable. Their research team has developed an engine that doesn’t use any jet fuel. To say I was gobsmacked would be an understatement. An invention such as this will be like the Holy Grail in an industry where we’re always striving for the best fuel economy and pushing the limits of human space travel.

  “I’ll deal with the questions and blowback once the ball is rolling.”

  “From what I know about Ms. Bradley, she’s not going to just roll over and hand you her company.”

  “I’d expect nothing less. We have the element of surprise as well as money on our side, Jim.”

  I have always lived by the tactics in Sun Tzu’s Art of War. Even though he lived 2,500 years ago, his strategies and methods are still used today and still hold true. The biggest thing I have on my side is the unexpected.

  Sun Tzu said, “Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt.”

  That’s exactly what I plan to do. Interstellar won’t know what hit them. Right now, we have the upper hand, and as they start to unveil their new engine and move through the testing phase, the power will shift. Therefore, now is the only time to take action.

  “I’ll be in Chicago by tomorrow afternoon.” I lean back in the chair, staring out over the city of Milan, steeped in all its beauty and history. Lives were crushed, companies were ruined, and dreams were killed to build the city that sits just outside my window.

  Cozza is no different.

  I will crush Interstellar, and Ms. Bradley will just be a causality in order to keep my company at the top.

  “Do me a favor, Antonio.” Jim taps the small stack of papers against the mahogany table, looking more nervous than usual. “Don’t attract attention. Stay in your hotel until the cards are dealt and the team meets you there. We have to be very careful how we handle this.”

  “Jim, really. I don’t plan on marching into Ms. Bradley’s office and making my intentions known. I’ll wait until you start the takeover bid before I do anything. I will take no chances on this deal getting derailed. Plus, you know I don’t like media attention. No one will know I’m in town.”

  Jim rubs the bridge of his nose with his fingers and lets out a loud sigh. “I’m not looking forward to this.”

  “When have you ever shied away from a good fight?”

  “Interstellar and Ms. Bradley aren’t to be underestimated, Antonio. She’s fierce. Don’t let her gender fool you. She’s exactly like you in every way, and she protects her company at all costs.”

  I wave his words away. There’s no opponent that gives me pause, especially not an American woman who has sat firmly in the number two spot for five years. She may be worthy, but I have no doubt that I’ll topple her and her company.

  “I’ve never met an opponent I can’t beat, Jim. You handle the legal end, and I’ll do the rest. I didn’t get this far without risking everything, including my reputation.”

  Jim stands and slaps the stack of papers against the edge of the table with a hungry look in his eyes. “It’ll be done today. By tomorrow morning, Interstellar won’t know what hit them.”

  “Thank you.” I smile, ready to conquer the American princess and make their new invention my own.

  Chapter Two

  Antonio

  Catarina, my oldest sister, stares at me over her glass of wine, trying to make me feel guilty. “Do you need to leave today? Marcus and Pappa will be home tomorrow for a few days. They’ve been gone so long, and I can’t believe you’re going to miss them.”

  “I must, Cat. If I wait even a day, the deal could be lost.”

  She places the glass on the table, turning the stem between her fingertips as she judges me silently. “Are you ever going to stop working?”

  “When you stop, I’ll stop.” I smile softly before taking a sip of the sweetest red wine I’ve ever tasted. It’s a product of the family vineyard that Stefano, my brother, acquired five years ago as part of his olive grove.

  Catarina is just as much of a workaholic as I am. Even with two little girls running around the house, wanting her attention all the time, she still trots off to work each day. “You know I love my work.”

  “As do I.”

  “You’ll never understand the pleasure of restoring something that was once beautiful and bringing it back from the edge of obscurity, making it new again.”

  She makes her job as a restoration artist seem like she’s rebuilding the Colosseum instead of cleaning and patching old artwork around Italy that has started to lose its luster due to time and abandonment. “Cozza gives me the same pleasure.”

  “I don’t know how engines and rockets could bring pleasure, but I’ll take your word for it, brother.” She twists her lips and glances toward the ceiling. “Someday you need to settle down.”

  I almost spit my mouthful of wine back into the glass as I start to choke on her words. The subject of marriage is something Cat gave up lecturing me about years ago. “You know I’m married to my work. I create things instead of kids.”

  “Kids are more fun, though. You love your nieces. Imagine if they were your own.” She s
miles softly, peering at her two girls, Guila and Amalia, outside the window.

  “I love those girls. I’d even kill for them. I can spoil them rotten without the repercussions because, at the end of the day, I return them to you.” I smirk, trying to fight back the small laugh.

  “You’re an asshole, Antonio.” She lifts the bottle, filling my glass as well as her own, and sighs. “Where are you off to now?”

  “Chicago. Here’s the information for the W Hotel where I’m staying in case of an emergency. I’ll be gone for a week or so, depending on how the takeover proceeds.”

  “Which company are you toppling now?”

  Amalia bursts through the back door and into the kitchen, covered in dirt and hiding something cupped in her tiny little hands. “Zio Ant.” She pauses, trying to catch her breath as she pushes her hands toward my face. “Zio Ant.”

  Guila, her older sister, almost slams into Amalia’s back as she tries to stop but slips on the travertine tile, narrowly missing her. “Don’t do it, Zio. Don’t look.” Guila pulls at Amalia’s arm in a tug-of-war.

  I glance at Catarina, but she only raises an eyebrow and shrugs. The girls are a mess, but that’s nothing new. They’re covered in mud and grass and all things nature. They love to be outside in the garden or near the lake, exploring their surroundings and typically causing a lot of trouble.

  I pull Amalia into my lap, positioning her so her cupped hands aren’t in my face. “Is it a present for me, Mali?”

  God, I love these little girls. I would never admit it to my sister, but spending time with them does give me pause. I love my work and everything I’ve built, but sometimes I feel like I’ve missed out on something so far. Like there is a giant void that I haven’t been able to fill…not yet, at least.

  Maybe after the deal with Interstellar, after all competition has been taken care of, I’ll be able to step back from the business and concentrate on my personal life. Looking at my two nieces, listening to their excitement and feeling their love, makes me want more than what I have.

  “Si, Zio.” Amalia rests her head against my chest, staring up at me with her giant eyes and a spot of dirt on the tip of her nose.

  “It’s a spider, Zio Ant,” Guila says as Amalia lifts her hands closer to my face, killing all of Amalia’s excitement.

  Cat is on her feet, around the table, and pulling Amalia into her arms before I even have a chance to respond. It’s like she has some superhuman speed that I’ve never witnessed before.

  “Mamma,” Amalia begs as Cat carries her toward the back door, holding her with one arm and keeping Amalia’s hands sealed tight with the other.

  “Absolutely not. What have I told you about bringing bugs into the house?”

  My smile widens as Amalia stares at me over Cat’s shoulder with a look so calculating and innocent that I want to bottle up her goodness and keep her this size forever.

  Guila steps in front of me and positions herself between my legs before wrapping her arms around my waist. “Will you take us on the lake tomorrow, Zio?” She blinks up at me, playing up her female abilities—something her mother has taught her—to try to get her way.

  I run my fingers through her long, soft hair and kiss the top of her head. “I can’t, darling. I have to go to America tomorrow.”

  Her eyes widen. “Take me with you,” she says as she places her hands on my cheeks and gets right in my face. “Please, Zio Ant.”

  “I can’t, Guila. Next time. I promise.”

  She pouts and averts her eyes. “Why can’t you? I’ll be good.”

  I pull her into my lap, feeling guilty that I haven’t spent enough time with my nieces lately and missing them like crazy. “I have business to take care of there, and you wouldn’t have any fun. It’s grown-up things.”

  She pauses for a moment and pulls at her downturned bottom lip. “Are you meeting a woman?”

  “Why would you think that?” I tighten my hold on her, hugging her a little closer because the little girl makes me happier than anything and anyone in the world.

  “Because you said grown-up things. I know when Mamma says it’s grown-up time, we’re not allowed to go into their bedroom.”

  I start to laugh, unable to hold it back. “Darling,” I say as I kiss her head, waiting for my laughter to break before I answer her question. “I’ll be there on business.”

  She leans back, intertwining her fingers with mine. “You need a wife, Zio.”

  I stare down at her tiny hands next to mine and realize how quickly she’s grown. It feels like only a few days have passed since the day she was born and I held her in my arms and promised her the world. “Who told you that?”

  “I hear Mamma and Nonna saying it all the time.”

  I hang my head, burying my face in her hair and wishing she still had that baby smell. As for my mother and sister, they need to worry about other things and not so much about my love life.

  “They say you’re a playboy. I don’t know what that is, but I do like to play, Zio.”

  “Ah, love. I wish I had time to play today, but I promise soon I’ll take you and your sister away for a weekend.”

  “To the beach?” she asks, quickly forgetting about the word playboy. I didn’t want to have to explain that to my niece, and shame on my sister and mother for not realizing the girls were listening and memorizing every word they were saying.

  “Anywhere you want, Guila.”

  She bounces in my lap with excitement as Catarina walks through the back door with a teary-eyed Amalia in her arms. “Sorry about that.”

  “It’s fine. I have to leave anyway and catch my flight.”

  Amalia wiggles free from Cat’s arms and runs toward me. “You can’t go,” she says as she leaps into my lap with Guila, almost squishing her.

  “I have to, baby.”

  “No.” She clings to me like her sister. “Stay.”

  God, I can’t imagine being Marcus, their father, and having to say goodbye to them for long periods of time. It would gut me completely to see their tears and sadness every time I had to leave.

  “I’ll bring you presents from America,” I say because I’m a sucker, and buying them gifts is the only thing I know how to do to placate them.

  “Nice,” Catarina groans as she wipes away the dirt that Amalia’s little escapade has left behind. “You spoil them too much.”

  “No such thing.” I kiss Amalia’s and Guila’s cheeks before easing them to stand on the floor between my legs. “My nieces deserve everything.”

  “I hope you have girls someday, so you see the error of your ways.”

  “But, Mamma, you said he’s a playboy and won’t have children,” Guila says with innocence.

  Catarina peers over at me with an apologetic look, but I shrug it off because my sister has always thought of me as nothing more than a misogynistic male whore. “Don’t pay any attention to your mamma. She’s not always right.”

  My little nieces make me a better version of myself. In the business world, I’m cut throat and feared. But when I’m around my family, especially Guila and Amalia, that part of me seems to melt away.

  The man behind the counter at the hotel registration greets me with a kind smile. “May I have your ID and the credit card used for your reservation, sir?”

  I hand him the ID and credit cards I use when traveling, none of them in my name to keep the media and paparazzi away from me.

  “It’s wonderful to have you.” The man looks down at the passport and reads my name before bringing his eyes back to mine. “Mr. Louis Roma.”

  I almost roll my eyes at the stupidity of the name. Jim arranged it, along with a host of other names to keep my travel and life private. Each one was more hideous than the next, too.

  “First trip to Chicago?” he asks as he types on the computer.

  “No. I’ve been here before, as well as to the W.”

  The man bobs his head, still looking at the screen in front of him and not paying any attention to m
y response at all.

  “Wonderful. You’re booked in the penthouse for your entire stay. You’ll have a personal butler if you need anything. Will you be requiring Wi-Fi?”

  “Not while I’m here. Thank you.”

  When I travel, especially on secret trips like this, I avoid bringing my laptop, and I even switch my phone to privacy mode so that there is no chance of my location leaking. In a cutthroat industry such as mine, I take no chances.

  “The bar is open until one a.m., and the restaurant is open until ten. If you’re in need of anything else, room service is twenty-four hours.”

  “Thank you.” I’m exhausted after the long trip, wanting nothing more than a bed and warmth. I slide the keycard off the counter as soon as the gentleman sets it in front of me. “I appreciate your help.”

  He gives me a quick nod and smile as he hands me my credit card and ID back across the counter. “Feel free to call if you need anything else.”

  “Will do.”

  I walk past the hotel bar, tempted to walk inside and have a drink, but I know there will be time tomorrow to celebrate the victory at hand and the impending demise of Interstellar.

  Chapter Three

  Lauren

  Not many people can say that they’re living their dream. I started on this path when I was only knee-high, but I never let anything stop me from achieving everything my father had planned for me.

  When I was a little girl, my father and I would lie in the field behind our house for hours and stare at the night sky. He’d hold me close and point to the stars, twinkling like diamonds against black silk above us.

  He dreamed of touching the heavens and visiting the vast reaches of space. He spent years studying to be an astronaut and almost achieved his goal. Tragically, within weeks of finishing training, a horrific car accident killed my mother and left him in a back brace for a year.