Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 83216 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83216 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
Laiken doesn’t bother looking up as he answers, “Anyone with a few brain cells to rub together.”
Jax smirks and claps him on the back with a little too much force. “Cheer up, Holloway. That woman who bid on you? She’s hot. You could do a lot worse.”
“That was Gigi, my fiancée,” Zane mutters, red creeping up his neck.
“Even better!” Jax fires back, swinging his grin toward me. “Damn, Van Doren. Plot twist of the night. I really thought Rina had you locked down.” His voice dips, turning just a bit taunting. “Guess you’ll be wining and dining Gabby instead. I’m sure you’ll have a blast shutting down her advances.”
I drag a hand down my face, but it does nothing to dull the storm gathering inside me. “Yeah. A blast.”
Unfortunately, I don’t see a way out of this mess. Gabby’s the last person I want to spend my time with. And she knows it.
As if summoned by my thoughts, she appears from behind the curtain.
She’s tall and polished. Airbrushed perfection wrapped in a glittering gown that probably cost more than my first car. There’s an ease to her movements, a silent expectation that people’s heads will turn in her direction.
Irritation sparks through me.
I didn’t grow up with money. For a lot of years, my family barely scraped by. Everything I own was earned through hard work and determination. And now this rich woman has bought me like I’m a luxury item she can show off to her friends.
It just rubs me the wrong way.
Her smile sharpens as she zeroes in on me. “Guess there’s no way to avoid me now,” she purrs, sliding her manicured hand down my arm like we’re old friends. Her perfume is too sweet as it clogs my nostrils.
My shoulders lock.
When I shift back, trying to put a little bit of distance between us, she leans in closer. From somewhere off to the side, a camera flashes in our direction, and I realize she’s angling her body toward it. Gabby knows she’s being watched, and loves every second of it.
I’m sure the press will gobble this up.
Pictures of the Big O with his blonde bombshell will be plastered all over that damn gossip website by morning.
My jaw flexes hard enough to ache.
Of course the one person I don’t want to see chooses this exact moment to show up.
Rina freezes in the doorway.
For just a split second, her expression is unguarded. A mix of hurt, disbelief, and something raw that cuts straight through me crosses her face before her mask snaps back into place. In a heartbeat, she’s the Railers’ untouchable, perfectly composed PR manager again.
“Congratulations,” she says coolly, as if she’s thanking someone for a corporate donation instead of watching another woman buy the man she’s been sleeping with. “Your bid was very generous. I hope you two have a wonderful time on your date.”
Rina swings away before I can wrap my tongue around a response. Her spine is straight as she walks away without looking back.
“Rina!” Her name tears out of me.
Half the room turns in our direction. Cameras swivel as flashbulbs go off. The sound of shutters fills the space as they catch Gabby’s hand on my arm. For just a second, the racket around me fades as the light burns white-hot. All I see is the woman I want walking away from me.
My throat tightens and my fists clench. I want to go after her, to shove through every person in this goddamn room until I reach her, but I don’t.
How can I do that when the press is everywhere?
One wrong move, and the story will write itself.
So I do the only thing I can, and stand there frozen while my name gets tossed around like a punchline.
A hollow ache settles deep beneath my sternum, followed by something that burns hotter.
Anger.
Frustration.
And there’s no outlet for either.
I’m pissed at Gabby for acting like she owns me.
At the auction for turning people into prizes.
And at Rina for pretending I mean nothing to her, when we both know she feels this just as much as I do.
13
Rina
Even after Oliver calls my name, I don’t slow down. My heels strike the ballroom floor, each step a deliberate cut meant to sever the invisible tether that keeps pulling me back to him. I move faster, as if speed alone can outrun the emotions clawing at me.
The room is enough to give me sensory overload. There are sequins, laughter, and the metallic snap of shutters. Crystal chandeliers scatter light across glossy marble, but all that shimmer feels more like a spotlight I’m trying to escape from. The scent of champagne and perfume hangs heavy, sweet enough to turn cloying.
What I should be doing is networking and checking on donors. In other words, my job. Instead, I’m dodging questions and trying not to fall apart in the middle of a crowd that thrives on spectacle and gossip.