Chapter 42 The Crazy Rich Family
Elijah suppressed the glint in his eyes, tightening his embrace around Elena's slender waist once more, inhaling the scent of the woman's neck with increasingly demanding possessiveness.
"You're still trembling, Ángel," Elijah whispered in his baritone voice, now sounding very calm, deliberately diverting Elena's attention from her anxiety. "I told you, don't think about that Blackwood woman. I've arranged it through one of my big clients who has influence in their inner circle. Tomorrow's meeting will never happen."
Elena looked up from Elijah's broad chest, staring into those sapphire blue eyes with a gaze full of hesitation and guilt.
"Are you sure, Elijah? I don't want you to be hunted by the Blackwood people because of protecting me. You're just... you're just an ordinary man, Elijah. They could destroy your life without even blinking."
Hearing the sincere concern from the woman in his arms, Elijah could only laugh softly to himself. Elena's guilt became the best binding agent for his plan. The more Elena felt she had to protect Elijah from the elite world, the tighter the woman locked herself inside the golden cage Elijah had prepared.
"If they want to destroy me, they'll have to get in line behind your bastard husband, Elena," Elijah teased in his annoying, silly tone, bending down slightly to steal a quick peck on Elena's full lips, which instantly made the woman's face flush red.
"Now, stop thinking about that boring afternoon tea. Don't you need to continue your jewelry sketches for the competition? Remember, you have to win so you can pay my 'allowance' for the week, Boss."
Elena snorted in annoyance, pushing against Elijah's chest with the last shred of her dignity, even though her heart was still pounding from the sudden kiss. "You materialistic gigolo! Get your face away from me. I'm going to shower and calm my mind."
Elijah laughed heartily, stepping back to let Elena walk toward the bathroom with much lighter steps than before. However, as soon as the bathroom door was tightly closed and the sound of splashing water could be heard, the friendly smile on Elijah's face vanished instantly.
His handsome face turned as cold as ice, his blue eyes radiating the intense aura of a ruler. He walked to a corner of the living room, took out his titanium-layered private phone, and dialed a secret number directly connected to Alaric Blackwood's office at the headquarters.
"Alaric," Elijah said without preamble as soon as the call connected, his voice filled with the absolute authority of an untouchable CEO.
"Control your wife. If Victoria still insists on sending an invitation or stepping near Elena tomorrow afternoon, I won't just freeze her personal assets. I will sign the dissolution documents for all combined shares of the Blackwood branch families tonight itself. Let Uncle Silas take over one-third of the commissioners, and let's see how you withstand their attack without me in the CEO chair."
On the other end, Alaric Blackwood, who was holding the intercom phone, immediately gasped in frustration, his face reddening like a boiled tomato upon hearing his only son's crazy threat.
"Elijah! You ungrateful brat! You're threatening to destroy the stability of the board of commissioners just for the sake of—"
Click!
Elijah disconnected the call, ignoring his father's angry shouts. He put his phone back in his pocket, leaning his sturdy body against the marble wall while staring at the still-closed bathroom door.
Three years was a long time in New York, and Elijah would ensure that every second of those three years would operate under the laws he made himself. No Alaric, no Victoria, and certainly no Morgan Valdez's name would be allowed to touch his dominion over Elena Vance.
....
Across Manhattan, inside his spacious office, Alaric Blackwood slammed the telephone handset onto its cradle, producing a loud crashing sound. His breath came heavy, thinking about how the son he had groomed to be the heir of the Blackwood dynasty had just hung up on him as if he were a second-rate subordinate.
"That boy, he's really holding the entire stability of the board of commissioners hostage against me!" Alaric bellowed, his face flushed crimson as he spun around in his grand chair.
He knew Elijah never bluffed. If Elijah recklessly launched a stock war by liquidating the branch family's assets tonight, Silas and his henchmen would immediately have an opening to destabilize Blackwood Industries' absolute ownership. And Alaric, at his current age, was not willing to waste his energy fending off an internal coup just because of his son's love life.
With large, irritated strides, Alaric grabbed his coat.
"Robert! Prepare the car. I have to go home to the Hamptons right now. If I don't restrain Victoria, that little devil will really burn down Wall Street tomorrow morning!"
Meanwhile, inside The Azure apartment unit, the sound of water splashing from the bathroom slowly stopped.
The glass door opened, revealing Elena stepping out wrapped in a white silk bathrobe smelling of fresh vanilla soap. Her wet hair was bundled in a towel, leaving traces of warm steam around her.
As she stepped into the living room, Elena found Elijah standing near the large window overlooking the Manhattan skyline. The man looked so calm, as if the tension in the car earlier had never happened. However, Elena's gaze accidentally fell on the coffee table in the middle of the room.
The metallic gold invitation card from Victoria Blackwood was no longer there. In its place now lay a small jewelry box made of dark blue velvet with the Valora Gems logo—the company where Elena worked.
Elena walked closer, her forehead furrowed in confusion. "Elijah? Where is the invitation letter? And… what is this?"
Elijah turned around, his lazy, sideways smile perfectly fixed on his handsome face again. The cold, dominating aura that had radiated from him when he called Alaric had evaporated without a trace.
"I threw that trash letter into the outside disposal, Ángel. I told you, you don't need to think about it anymore."
Elijah stepped closer, shortening the distance between them until Elena could smell the strong scent of sandalwood from the man's body. He picked up the blue velvet box and opened it in front of Elena's face.
Inside, a fairly large, dark blue sapphire glittered with a highly precise, pure cushion cut. The apartment's light bounced off its surface, creating an extraordinarily beautiful silvery shimmer.
Elena reflexively covered her mouth with her hand. As a lead jewelry designer, she knew very well the value of the precious stone before her. "Oh my God… Elijah, where did you get a sapphire this pure? This… this is a natural, untreated Kashmir sapphire! It could be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars at auction!"