Jilted Heiress: Claimed By The Ruthless Billionaire

ulian was the undisputed center of gravity. A circle of Wall Street's most powerful men orbited h

e one originally commissioned for her-Serena Pruitt tried to breach that circle. She glided towa

ve glance, colder than the ice in his drink, but it was enough. It stopped her dead in her t

l isn't here. I hope she's okay." Liana, watching from near the doorway, caught the slight, sharp upward c

side door c

n a large, ill-fitting blazer borrowed from a sympathetic doorman-who hadn't dared bar a Pruitt, even one covered in mud-s

voice low but clear enough to cut through

eryone nearby to hear. "Were you driving too fast again? You know how father worries." She rushed forward,

away as if she'd be

voice dangerously calm. "I'm the victim here." She stared directly i

ry. "Keep your voice down," he hissed, grabbin

" Liana shot back, refusing to be silenced. "Y

ight with disapproval. "You'll be lucky if we don't

itt family for a single cent." She lifted her chin, her gaze sweeping over their

r her breath, loud enough only for her friend to hear: "Some ill-mannered brute in a Rolls-Royce. The kind of arr

arlisle's hand, the one holding his whiskey glass, paused mid-air. He

stopped listening. She shrugged off the borrowed blazer, handing it

or a shred of support. She found him near the bar, laughing with a pair of vapid models, his back tur

ack straight, her head held high. She could feel the stares of the

na's fingers around her champagne flute, knuckles whitening against the crystal before she

able eyes were follow

gies and barely concealed rage. Julian Carlisle remained perfectly st

oor to the marble-and-gold lo

eflection staring back at her

out a small, silver tool. A pair

n, she gathered the muddy, r

n

he silent room. She didn't falter. She cut a clean, deliberate line just above the sta

lined with a golden bag, not a flicker of regret on her face. To her, a

a new, dramatic silhouette. The dress was no longer a victim of circumstance. It was a statement. A creati

eyeliner. She opened her lipstick-a bold, defiant cr

ror. The frightened girl was go

cold, sharp

o back to

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