The Billornaire's Secret

The Life unvield

Liv’s fingers flew across her phone’s keyboard as she texted Sophia:

**Liv** "Hey, I got your number from the gala. Can I get Alexander’s address? I want to surprise him with cookies."

**Sophia* "Haha, sneaky! Okay, here it is: 1234 Wellington Manor. But, Liv… just be ready. It’s… something."

Liv raised an eyebrow at the response. Wellington Manor? The name sounded familiar—too familiar. The kind of place her friends joked about in hushed tones, the one no one could afford even in their wildest dreams. She pushed aside the uneasy feeling and started her car.

When she finally arrived, her breath caught in her throat. This wasn’t just a house—it was a mansion, no, an estate. Imposing wrought-iron gates and towering trees framed a driveway that stretched on endlessly toward a sprawling marble structure. She double-checked the address on her GPS.

“This can’t be right..." she murmured, glancing nervously between her phone and the intimidating estate. But the numbers matched.

Heart pounding, she stepped out of the car, clutching the box of cookies as if they’d somehow shield her from the absurd reality. She rang the bell, and after what felt like an eternity, the grand door swung open.

Alexander stood there, his eyes widening in genuine surprise for a moment before he composed himself, a familiar smirk playing at his lips. “Liv? What are you doing here?”

“I… uh…” She blinked, struggling to form a coherent thought. “Surprise! I, um, brought cookies,” she stammered, holding up the box as if it explained everything.

His smirk softened into a chuckle. “Cookies, huh? Well, that’s definitely a first.” He stepped aside, gesturing for her to enter. “Come in, you’re just in time.”

The foyer was as breathtaking as the outside—crystal chandeliers, marble floors that gleamed under soft lighting, and artwork that looked straight out of a museum. Liv’s mind reeled.

“This is... incredible,” she breathed, turning slowly to take it all in. “You live here?”

“Guilty as charged,” Alexander said with a teasing smile. But something flickered in his eyes—hesitation, maybe?

Liv was still in disbelief. **This place... it’s beyond incredible.** The walls stretched so high, the décor so rich, she couldn’t wrap her mind around it. She swallowed hard. “Alexander, this place is... beyond incredible. What do you even do? And why didn’t you tell me about this?”

Alexander chuckled, but the sound wasn’t quite as carefree as usual. “You never asked,” he replied lightly, though Liv sensed something more beneath his nonchalant exterior.

Her frustration grew. **"That’s not an answer,"** she thought, a knot forming in her stomach. She frowned, not satisfied with his evasiveness. “Come on, seriously. You don’t just... casually live in a mansion like this without a story behind it. I mean, this place looks like something out of a royal family’s estate!”

Alexander’s grin faltered, just for a second, before he quickly masked it. “Let’s just say my family has made some good decisions.”

Liv’s heart was pounding, and she wasn’t sure if it was from the grandeur of his home or the growing distance she suddenly felt between them. **He’s hiding something.** Her hands tightened on the box of cookies. **Why won’t he just tell me?**

“That’s not an answer. What are you hiding, Alexander?”

His eyes darkened, but he kept his tone casual, deflecting with a playful smirk. “I’m not hiding anything. You know me, Liv.”

“I don’t know you!” she blurted, her voice rising. “Not if you can keep something like this from me.” Her hands gestured toward the grand foyer.

Alexander didn’t respond right away. Instead, his gaze dropped to the floor for a second, his jaw clenching. Finally, he sighed, running a hand through his hair. **"This isn’t what I wanted,"** he thought, as he looked at her, the weight of his secret pressing down on him. “Liv... I didn’t mean for you to find out this way.”

“Find out what?” Liv pressed, her voice quieter now but firm. “Who are you, Alexander?”

Alexander ran a hand through his hair, the tension between them growing thicker with every passing second. His lips parted as if to say something, but then he closed them again, struggling with words. Finally, his eyes found hers, and she could see the conflict there—the part of him that didn’t want to tell her, and the part that knew he had no choice.

“I’m... part of the Grey family.”

The words hung in the air like a weight Liv hadn’t expected to carry. Her mind raced, pieces falling into place. **The Grey family.** The business empire, the philanthropy, the power that came with that name.

“The Grey family,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “As in, the conglomerate? The business empire that owns half the city?”

Alexander nodded, not meeting her eyes. “Yeah. That Grey family.”

Her heart pounded in her chest, disbelief and a flood of emotions crashing over her. **This can’t be real.** “Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked, her voice tinged with hurt.

He met her gaze finally, his eyes filled with something raw, something vulnerable. “Because it’s not something I’m proud of. I didn’t want this to be part of us. I didn’t want it to define how you saw me.”

Liv shook her head, still struggling to process everything. “But you let me walk in here, completely clueless, thinking you were just... normal.”

Alexander smiled faintly, the weight of his secret finally visible in the way his shoulders slumped. “I wanted you to see me. Not the Grey name, not the money. Just... me.”

Liv glanced down at the box of cookies in her hands, suddenly feeling foolish. Her simple attempt at surprising him with something homemade felt so... small, compared to the overwhelming reality of his life. This place, this secret... it was all so much bigger than she had imagined.

“I wanted to surprise you,” she whispered, her voice soft, uncertain. “But I think I’m the one who’s surprised.”