CLAIMED BY THE BILLIONAIRE CEO MAN

Chapter 5

"Elena?! Elena, baby, please answer me! There’s been a huge mistake!"

Julian’s voice rasped through the smartphone speaker, thick with a pathetic, gasping desperation that Elena had never heard from him before. Gone was the cool, arrogant tone he had used at the Hyatt. In its place was the raw terror of a man watching his gilded life turn to ashes.

Elena stood in the center of her glass-walled corner office, the morning sun casting a warm glow over her tailored power suit. Alec stood right behind her, his large, warm hands resting possessively on her hips, his chest pressed lightly against her back. He raised an eyebrow, silently inviting her to take the lead.

Elena took a slow, deep breath, feeling a wave of icy calm wash over her.

"There's no mistake, Julian," Elena said, her voice dripping with steady, unbothered composure. "You made your choices very clear last night in front of fifty people."

"No, no, you don't understand!" Julian practically screamed into the receiver. Background noise filtered through—Chloe’s faint, high-pitched crying and the frantic clicking of keyboard keys as his staff abandoned ship. "That was just... I was stressed, Elena! The pressure of the launch was getting to me! Chloe—Chloe manipulated me, she was hitting on me for weeks and I wasn't thinking straight! I don't love her, Elena. I love you. You’re the heart of this company!"

Elena let out a short, soft laugh. "I was the brain and the bank account, Julian. Don't confuse those with love."

"Elena, please!" Julian’s voice cracked. "Mercer Enterprises just pulled our line of credit. The banks are seizing my accounts. My clients are canceling! I'm going to lose everything by the end of the week! Just tell Mr. Mercer that there was a mix-up with the pitch deck. Come back to the office, baby. We can fix this together. You can have whatever you want!"

Alec leaned down, his lips brushing the shell of Elena’s ear before he spoke directly toward the phone's microphone. His deep, velvet voice cut through the air like a razor.

"She already has everything she wants, Vance."

The line went dead silent.

Julian’s breath hitched on the other end, realization hitting him like a physical blow. "M-Mr. Mercer?"

"Let me be exceptionally clear," Alec purred, his grip on Elena’s waist tightening just enough to pull her back completely flush against his solid body. "Elena Vance is the Chief Creative Officer of Mercer Enterprises. She answers only to me. Vance Media didn't lose its funding because of a 'mix-up.' You lost your funding because you are a talentless thief who mistook a genius for a stepping stone."

"Mr. Mercer, please—she was my girlfriend! She wrote those pitches for my firm—"

"And now she designs for mine," Alec interrupted coldly. "If you so much as step onto my property, contact my CCO, or breathe in her direction again, I won't just freeze your credit lines, Julian. I will personally ensure you never work in this industry again anywhere on this continent. Do you understand me?"

"Alec, wait—"

Alec didn't wait. He slid his thumb across the screen, ending the call, and tossed the phone onto the marble desk.

Elena stared at the silent screen, a long, heavy breath escaping her lips. The knot of tension that had sat in her chest for three years finally unraveled. She turned around in Alec’s arms, looking up into his piercing blue eyes.

"That felt... terrifyingly good," she admitted, a genuine, radiant smile breaking across her face.

Alec’s eyes softened, his thumb coming up to trace the curve of her lower lip. "That was just the appetizer, my sweet. Tonight is the main course."

"Tonight?"

"The Grand Industry Autumn Gala," Alec murmured, sliding his hand up to cup the back of her neck, tilting her head up. "Every billionaire, investor, and media outlet in the city will be there. Julian scrambled to get on the guest list weeks ago to showcase his new company. He won't pass up the chance to attend—he's too desperate."

Alec leaned down, his lips brushing hers in a slow, intoxicating promise. "And tonight, I'm going to make sure every camera in that room is focused on you."

By 8:00 PM, the grand ballroom of the St. Regis was packed with the city’s absolute elite. Crystal chandeliers threw sparkling light over floors lined with silk, velvet, and gold accents.

Julian stood near the champagne fountain, looking disheveled despite his tuxedo. His eyes were bloodshot, his tie slightly crooked. Beside him, Chloe looked equally miserable. Her cheap gold dress looked out of place among the high-fashion gowns, and her face was pinched with anger.

"Julian, this is embarrassing," Chloe hissed, clutching his arm tightly. "People are staring at us. Why did we even come if your cards were declined at the door?"

"Shut up, Chloe," Julian muttered through gritted teeth, scanning the room frantically. "If I can just talk to one investor... if I can get two minutes with Alec Mercer before he publicly announces Elena’s contract, I can save us. I just need to explain that Elena stole my files—"

"The doors! They're arriving!" someone shouted near the red carpet entrance.

The hum of chatter in the ballroom died down instantly. Flashbulbs began to explode like lightning strikes, blinding and continuous.

Julian pushed his way through the crowd toward the front, eager to catch a glimpse of the city's most powerful man. But the moment his eyes landed on the entrance, his breath caught in his throat, and his heart plummeted straight to his shoes.

Walking down the grand marble staircase was Alexander Mercer—and beside him was a goddess.

Elena wore a custom, emerald-green silk gown that clung to every single curve of her voluptuous body like liquid glass. The deep V-neckline showcased her soft, flawless skin, while the corseted waist flared out over her full, gorgeous hips. Her dark hair fell in glamorous, old-Hollywood waves over one shoulder, and a million-dollar diamond necklace rested against her collarbone.

She wasn't hiding. She wasn't shrinking. She walked with her head held high, radiating pure, undeniable power, beauty, and s*x appeal.

Beside her, Alec looked utterly besotted. His hand was resting firmly on the small of her back, his eyes scanning the crowd with protective authority, ignoring the flashes of a hundred cameras just to whisper something in her ear that made her laugh softly.

"Is that... Elena?" Chloe gasped beside Julian, her voice squeaking in sheer disbelief. "No way... how does she look like that?!"

Julian couldn't speak. His mouth was dry, his mind racing. The girl he had mocked, the girl he had called too big, too plain, too heavy... was currently the most breathtaking woman in a room filled with supermodels and heiresses. Every powerful man in the building was staring at her with raw admiration.

And Alec Mercer was holding her like she was the rarest jewel in the world.

"Look at her," a nearby tech CEO whispered to his associate. "That's Elena Vance. Mercer just appointed her CCO. They're saying she's the real genius behind Vance Media’s sudden rise."

"Vance must be the biggest i***t in history," the associate replied with a scoff. "Traded a brilliant, gorgeous queen for a cheap side-chick. Look at his firm now—completely bankrupt."

Julian’s ears burned as the insults washed over him. The sting of public embarrassment was nothing compared to the sickening wall of regret crashing over him. He had thrown her away. He had pushed her straight into the arms of a billionaire who actually recognized what she was worth.

Overwhelmed by a desperate, toxic mix of jealousy and panic, Julian snapped.

"Elena!" he yelled, breaking away from Chloe’s grip and shoving past two security guards toward the bottom of the staircase. "Elena, look at me!"

The entire ballroom went silent. Alec stopped at the base of the stairs, turning slowly to face Julian, his expression hardening into terrifying ice. Elena stayed at his side, looking down at her ex with cool, pitying detachment.

"Elena, please!" Julian pleaded, stepping into the open space, ignoring the murmurs of the elite crowd around them. "You don't belong with him! He's just using you to hurt my business! Come back to me, baby—I made a mistake, I know I did! You're the only woman I want!"

Chloe let out a loud, shocked scream from the crowd. "Julian! What are you doing?!"

Julian ignored her, taking a desperate step closer to Elena, his hands shaking as he reached out. "Look at you... you're gorgeous, Elena. I was stupid. I was blind! Give me one more chance!"

Alec took a single step forward, towering over Julian like an apex predator. The sheer danger radiating from the billionaire made Julian instinctively freeze in his tracks.

"You have five seconds to turn around and leave this building, Vance," Alec said, his voice quiet, low, and terrifyingly calm. "Before I have security throw you into the street like the trash you are."

"I'm talking to my woman!" Julian yelled, losing his mind entirely.

Elena stepped out from behind Alec, her heels clicking softly against the marble floor. She looked Julian dead in the eye, her green dress shining under the chandeliers.

"I was never your woman, Julian," Elena said, her voice carrying clearly across the silent ballroom. "I was just your safety net. But as you can see..." She reached out, her hand sliding into Alec’s warm, powerful grip, interlocking their fingers. "...I’ve found someone who actually knows how to handle a real woman."

Alec smiled, pulling her hand to his lips and pressing a firm, lingering kiss against her knuckles, never breaking eye contact with Julian.

Julian stood frozen, completely shattered, as the room erupted into hushed giggles and cameras flashed, capturing his ultimate humiliation from every angle.