And I'm keeping her.
She tears her gaze away, finishes her turn. Faces forward.
But I can see the pulse racing in her throat from here.
Can see the way her hands shake before she clasps them together.
She felt it too.
Whatever this is.
"Starting bid: one hundred thousand dollars," the auctioneer announces.
Silence.
A moment of silence that feels like an eternity.
Then some fool in the front row raises his paddle. "One hundred thousand."
No.
She's not going to some aging banker who'll keep her in a penthouse and show her off at parties.
Another voice. "One hundred and fifty thousand."
I should wait. Should let the bidding establish a baseline before I enter.
That's how you negotiate. That's how you win.
But I don't want to negotiate.
I want her off that stage and away from these men who think they can own her.
Only I can own her.
I hold, and wait, and keep waiting until I can’t wait any longer.
"Two million dollars."
My voice cuts through the room.
Clear. Final.
Every head turns toward me.
I don't care.
I'm watching Eden.
She's frozen on stage.
Staring out into the audience like she's trying to find me again.
The auctioneer recovers quickly. "Two million dollars from bidder twenty-seven. Do I hear?—"
Silence.
No one is stupid enough to bid against me now.
