Page 34 of Forbidden Billionaire (Titans #7)
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Xavier
My pulse hammers in my throat, a relentless drumbeat drowning out the hum of Houston’s skyline beyond the Sterling Downtown’s ballroom.
The Houston Business Summit swirls around me—suits and sequins, clinking glasses, the low buzz of corporate egos chasing deals.
I’m the keynote speaker, the predator king they’ve come to see, but tonight, I’m not here to conquer. I’m here to beg.
The stage lights sear my skin, exposing every fracture in my carefully crafted armor.
I grip the lectern, the wood biting into my palms, grounding me as I stare into the ocean of faces—industry titans, reporters, Scandalicious paparazzi with their long-range cameras poised to capture my fall.
Let them.
Even though the acquisition was a disaster and I’m hemorrhaging cash, that’s not the nightmare that keeps me awake.
It’s her.
Seraphina.
I fucked up, allowed Walt’s paranoia and Reynolds’s lies to torch the only thing that ever mattered, and now I’m choking on the ashes of my own stupidity.
I clear my throat, the sound amplified, slicing through the room’s chatter. “Three years ago,” I begin, my voice steady despite the tremor in my chest, “I made a mistake that cost an innocent woman her future.”
The crowd stills, their eyes sharp, hungry. “Seraphina Hollis, a brilliant intern at Blackwell Enterprises, uncovered financial discrepancies that could’ve saved my company. I let her take the fall. I let the world brand her a traitor.”
Murmurs ripple through the room, a wave of shock and greed for gossip.
My gut twists, but I push on, the weight of her absence a knife between my ribs.
“For a second time, I’ve failed her. She warned me about the Lockhart acquisition—a deal built on lies, inflated assets, and hidden cash-flow disasters.
She saw what my team missed, what I refused to see.
And I accused her of betrayal.” My voice fractures, exposing the hollow ache that’s been eating me alive since she ran from my office, her silhouette blurring through the glass.
“She was the only one telling me the truth.”
The room is silent now, a tomb of anticipation.
I grip the podium harder, my knuckles white.
“Elliot Reynolds, my former analyst, falsified reports and emails to frame her, to push a deal that’s now bleeding my company dry.
Seraphina Hollis tried to save Blackwell Enterprises, and I repaid her with distrust.”
My chest burns, the memory of her pale face, her trembling lips, a wound I can’t staunch.
“I’m here to set the record straight. She’s a hero.
And to ensure her legacy, I’m funding a scholarship in her name at her alma mater for women in financial analytics.
Because she deserves to be celebrated for her brilliance, not vilified for mistakes that are entirely my own. ”
A gasp ripples through the crowd, cameras flashing, phones raised. Scandalicious will have their headline—PREDATOR KING CONFESSES: HEROIC INTERN VINDICATED—but it’s not enough.
I step back from the lectern, my heart a live wire, and nod to the moderator. The applause is tepid, uncertain, but I don’t linger. I’m not here for their approval. I’m here for her.
I slip through a side door, pulse now roaring, and head for the staff corridors. She’s here, cleaning, her pride stitched into every scrub because of the hell I’ve put her through.
I asked Rafe Sterling to confirm her schedule, not to interfere, just to know where she’d be. He refused to answer any questions.
In my desperation, I turned to Celeste
After ascertaining my intentions and telling me it was about time I’d pulled my big head out of my ass, she gave me a stern warning. If I hurt Seraphina again, she would personally destroy me and burn down everything my family has ever built.
And she has the secrets to do so.
I promised her the only thing I wanted is to apologize and beg for a second chance.
Only then did she agree to help.
Within hours, she was in office with a current dossier.
Seraphina is living with Tasha, making food deliveries again, and she went back to Rafe for a temporary position while she searched for a company that would take her. She’d refused to work at the Uptown, and he honored her request.
But she is here, at this hotel. And I’m going to find her.
My shoes squeak against the floor, the sterile scent of bleach stinging my nose as I navigate the maze of service halls. I’m hoping security doesn’t stop me, especially since Rafe has no doubt warned them to be on guard again my presence.
My suit feels like a lie, too polished for the person I am now—a tattered, desperate man with a broken heart.
I find her in a storage room, surrounded by mops and cleaning supplies, her maid’s uniform clinging to her curves, her dark hair spilling from a messy bun. She’s wiping down a cart, her movements mechanical, her face shadowed with exhaustion.
And she’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.
I pause at the threshold, my breath catching. The old Xavier would barge in, demand her attention, control the moment. I’m not him anymore. I knock softly, my knuckles grazing the doorframe. “Seraphina?”
Her head snaps up, her cornflower eyes wide, flashing with shock, then fury. The rag drops from her hand, landing with a soft thud. “What the are you doing here?” Her voice is sharp and unwelcoming, hanging in the air between us.
“I’d like to talk to you.” My words are quiet, stripped of the arrogance I once wore like armor. “Please.”
She crosses her arms, her jaw tight, her gaze a mixture of hurt and defiance. “There’s nothing you could say that I want to hear.” She turns back to the cart, dismissing me, but her shoulders tremble, betraying the wound I’ve carved into her.
I step closer, careful, my hands open, no threat, no demands.
“I was wrong.” The words burn, a confession I’ve never made to anyone.
“You were right, and I should’ve listened.
” My voice cracks, and I hate how exposed I feel, how my chest aches with the weight of losing her.
“You warned me about Lockhart. You tried to save my company, and I threw you away.”
Her fingers tighten on the cart, her knuckles white, but she doesn’t look at me. “You believed I’d betray you.” Each word is a shard of glass. “You looked at me like I was nothing.”
“You’re everything.” The truth spills out, desperate, unfiltered.
“I don’t care about Blackwell, Lockhart, any of it.
Nothing matters except losing you. I can’t sleep, can’t think, without seeing your face, hearing your voice.
I’m hollow without you, Seraphina.” My throat tightens, and I swallow hard, fighting the burn behind my eyes.
“I love you. And I’ll spend the rest of my life proving it, if you’ll let me. ”
She freezes, her breath hitching, and for a moment, I think she’ll bolt. But she turns, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears, her lips parted. “You don’t get to say that.” Her voice cracks. “Not after what happened.”
“I know.” I pull my cellphone from my jacket and open the file I’d saved.
“This isn’t a demand. It’s a choice.” My heart pounds, a frantic rhythm, as she stares at the device like it’s a livewire.
“It’s a contract. A new real-estate investment division at Blackwell Enterprises.
You’d be cofounder, equal partner, lead analyst. Full control.
But if you want to walk away, I’ll respect that.
I just want you to have what you deserve. ”
Her gaze flicks to the screen, then back to me, searching, wary. “Why?” Her voice is barely audible, a thread of hope tangled with fear.
“Because you’re not my assistant. You’re my equal.
My truth.” I step closer, my breath catching as her vanilla scent wraps around me, a saving grace and a torment.
“And because I can’t live without you.” I pull out a letter, handwritten, my soul poured onto the page, and offer it to her.
“This is for you. No strings. Just me, begging for a chance to make it right.”
Her fingers tremble as she takes the letter, her eyes scanning the words.
I watch her face, every flicker of emotion—shock, pain, a spark of something softer—cutting me deeper than any boardroom loss.
My empire, my pride, my life—they’re nothing without her.
I’ve built kingdoms, but she’s the only one I want to rule with.
She looks up, her eyes glistening, her lips trembling. “You hurt me, Xavier.” Her voice is a devastated whisper, crushing my heart. “I gave you everything, and you turned your back on me when I needed your trust the most.”
“I know.” My voice breaks, and I drop to one knee, not caring how it looks, how vulnerable I am. “I’ll never forgive myself. But I’ll fight for you, Seraphina. For us. If you’ll have me.” My chest is a ruin, my heart hers to shatter or claim. “Please.”
The silence stretches like an eternity of darkness, and I wait, my entire life hanging on her next breath.