He Bought His Mistress A Penthouse In The Building I Own

The oversized Tom Ford sunglasses shielded my eyes from the glaring halogen lights. I sat perfectly still behind the massive acrylic scale model of the Côte d'Azur tower.

Fifty meters away, the glass walls of the VIP suite offered an unobstructed view.

I raised my phone. The camera lens zoomed in on the leather sofa inside the room.

Julian sat right in the center. His arm rested firmly around Chloe's waist.

"Mr. Voss, the system is showing a slight delay on the deed generation," Marcus's voice crackled through the wireless earpiece tucked into my right ear. He had left his lapel microphone open, just as I instructed.

"Refresh it, Marcus," Julian demanded. His tone carried that familiar, arrogant edge. "I have contractors meeting us here in an hour."

"I am trying, sir. The server seems unresponsive."

Chloe leaned her head against Julian's shoulder. "Don't stress him out, baby. Julian works so hard, Marcus. Give the system a minute."

"I just want the paperwork finalized," Julian muttered. "I already wired the four million."

"Actually, my fiancé wired the four million," Julian amended, a smirk playing on his lips. "But what is hers is mine. We sign the marriage certificate next week."

"She is so lucky to have a man who handles the investments," Chloe cooed.

I adjusted the angle of my phone. The screen captured Julian's thumb stroking the curve of Chloe's hip.

"Sera is too busy playing CEO to understand real estate," Julian said. "She thinks leaving money in a mutual fund is a strategy. I am securing our future."

"Our future," Chloe repeated. She traced a circle on his chest. "Are you sure she won't check the accounts until tomorrow?"

"Sera is buried in board meetings. She never looks at the joint ledger on Thursdays."

I tapped the secondary line on my smartwatch.

"Elias," I whispered.

"I hear them," my wealth manager replied instantly. "Marcus patched the audio feed to my office."

"Are you logging this?"

"The audio file is secure. It is entirely admissible in court."

"What about his personal accounts?" I asked, keeping my eyes fixed on the glowing screen of my phone.

"Empty. He moved everything he had into a shell company last week."

"He was planning to leave me with the mortgage on this penthouse."

"And the tax burden," Elias added. "He forged your digital signature on the Vanguard liability waiver."

"That carries a federal sentence."

"He should have thought of that before buying a love nest on your dime. Do you want me to call the authorities?"

"Not yet. I want to watch him panic first."

I disconnected the call with Elias and focused back on the VIP room.

Donovan, my top Sales Director, entered the glass suite carrying a leather folio. He laid the documents out on the glass coffee table.

"Everything is in order, Mr. Voss," Donovan said. "We just need your physical signature on the transfer agreement while the digital deed generates."

"Finally," Julian sighed. He grabbed the gold-plated pen.

"Tell the contractors to rip out the kitchen island tomorrow," Julian told Chloe as he signed the first page.

"But it is imported quartz," Chloe protested lightly.

"I don't care. It is too cold. I want warmer tones. Sera's taste is entirely too sterile."

"She is a bit rigid, isn't she?" Chloe giggled.

"She is a machine. All she cares about is the Vanguard stock price."

"Well, we should thank her. She is funding our dream."

Julian flipped to the last page. He scrawled his name across the bottom line.

"Done," Julian declared. He handed the contract back to Donovan. "The penthouse is ours."

Chloe tilted her head up. Julian leaned down.

Their lips locked.

A violent, cramping pull yanked at my core. I clamped my teeth down on my lower lip until the fragile skin gave way under the pressure.

A sharp metallic tang flooded my tongue. Blood.

I swallowed the bitter taste and kept the camera steady. The recording captured every second of their embrace.

"Perfect," Julian murmured against Chloe's mouth. "Our new home."

"I can already picture the nursery," Chloe whispered, her hands tangling in his collar.

The word echoed in my earpiece. Nursery.

My fingers gripped the edges of the phone case. The plastic dug into my palms.

"Where is that deed, Donovan?" Julian asked, pulling back from Chloe. "I want the physical keys."

Donovan frowned at his tablet. He tapped the screen twice.

"Mr. Voss, I am getting an override error. Code 99."

"What does that mean?" Julian snapped.

"It means the funds are frozen."

"Frozen? I wired four million dollars an hour ago!"

"The escrow account is locked," Donovan explained, his voice tight with sudden stress. "The entire Côte d'Azur grid just went offline."

"Fix it!" Julian shouted. He stood up, towering over the coffee table. "Call the IT department. Call the bank. Do whatever you have to do."

"I cannot fix this, sir."

"Why not?"

"Code 99 is a direct executive override."

Julian crossed his arms. "So? Call the executive."

"The only person who can issue a Code 99 is the CEO of Vanguard Real Estate."

Chloe shifted on the sofa. "Julian, what is he talking about?"

"Nothing. It is a glitch," Julian insisted. He glared at Donovan. "Sera is at home sleeping. She doesn't even know I am here."

"I assure you, Mr. Voss, this is not a glitch."

"Then bypass it!"

"Any attempt to bypass a Code 99 triggers an automatic lockdown of the building's security systems."

"I am the CEO's fiancé! Give me the keys to my penthouse!"

"It is not your penthouse," a new voice interrupted.

Marcus stepped into the room, holding his own tablet. "The transaction has been voided."

"Excuse me?" Julian stepped toward Marcus. "Who authorized a void?"

"The true owner of the funds," Marcus replied calmly.

"I am the owner of those funds!" Julian roared.

"No, sir. You are an authorized user on a supplementary card. A card that was just reported stolen."

Chloe gasped. She grabbed Julian's arm. "Stolen? Julian, what did you do?"

"Shut up, Chloe. I didn't steal anything." Julian pulled his phone from his pocket. "I will call Sera right now. She will clear this up."

He dialed my number.

My phone vibrated silently in my hand. I watched the screen flash with his incoming call.

I hit decline.

Julian stared at his phone in disbelief. "She sent me to voicemail."

"Perhaps she is busy," Marcus suggested.

"Call her again," Chloe urged, her voice trembling. "If the police think we stole four million dollars—"

"We didn't steal it!" Julian dialed again.

I declined it again.

"Damn it, Sera," Julian hissed. He shoved the phone back into his pocket. "Donovan, give me the contract I just signed. I am taking it to my lawyers."

"I cannot do that, sir," Donovan said. He slid the leather folio off the table and held it against his chest.

"It has my signature on it!"

"It is Vanguard property now."

Julian lunged forward. "Give me the damn paper!"

Donovan stepped back quickly. He exited the glass enclosure, putting distance between himself and Julian's sudden rage.

"Security is on their way up, Mr. Voss," Marcus warned.

"I am not leaving without that contract!" Julian yelled.

Donovan ignored him. He looked up from the tablet in his hands.

His gaze swept the massive sales floor. He looked past the reception desk. He scanned past the towering marble pillars.

He turned his head toward the acrylic scale model.

His eyes locked directly onto mine.