THE SEEKER AND THE BILLIONAIRE

ho knew him-or thought they did-he was a guarded man, one who rarely let anyone close enough to see beyond the veneer of success. He had it all:

the Century Tower, a building Alexander himself had financed. Crystal chandeliers glittered above as expensive champag

calculating, judging. No one here knew his true story. They only saw the surface: a man who had built an empire out of nothing, who donated milli

oft voice broke through his though

kind of stories others were too scared to touch, the kind that rattled cages in high places. She was beautiful, too, in a way that made it hard to ignore her. Her dark ha

it didn't reach his eyes. "A spectacle, yes

"Not you, though. You don't strike me as

rceptive. "I attend out of necessity.

oment, Alexander felt a strange pull toward her, something he hadn't felt in a long time. Bu

e now. Your foundation does impressive things. But I can't help but wonder

of the truth. But only for a moment. He had learned long ago that the truth was a danger

e said smoothly. "And I believe in

sudden commotion near the entrance of the ballroom drew their attention. A group of men in e

s in the business world, but beneath their clean-cut appearances, they were involved in fa

hange in his demeano

Alexander muttere

der's grip tightened around his glass. He had hoped to avoid any cont

silver-haired figure with a smug smile-ex

and, his smile forced

nsed tension between the two men, but she couldn't quite put her finger on why.

ilia, his smile widening. "A

epped forward, extending her hand. "Emili

t, but it was enough for Emilia to notice

be dealing with, and the last thing Alexander wanted was for her to get caught up in his w

erling. I think we should talk soon-a

tightened. "I'm

"You haven't eve

't nee

simply smiled and gave a slight nod. "Very well.

ed away, leaving Alexander an

r, curiosity burning in her

y to divert her attention before she started digging too

e could sense there was much more to the story,

ot because she was a threat to his business, but because she was getting too close to something he coul

er felt something other than control

too late. Emilia was going to be part