"Three hundred," someone calls.
Then a voice I recognize. Cecilia's ex-boyfriend, Tyler. An asshole who thinks women are collectibles.
"Five hundred."
The room goes quiet for a moment. That's higher than anyone else has gone tonight.
Isla's face drains of color.
Tyler is smirking, looking at his friends. This isn't about charity, this is about humiliation. About winning a scholarship student like a prize.
Something hot and protective surges through me.
No.
Absolutely not.
I raise my paddle before I can think better of it.
"One thousand dollars."
The room erupts. Gasps, whispers, heads turning to find the bidder.
Isla's eyes find mine across the ballroom.
For a moment, everything stops. I see the shock. The betrayal. The absolute fury in her expression.
Good. At least she's feeling something.
"One thousand from paddle forty-two," Vivienne says, her voice carefully neutral even though she knows exactly what I'm doing. "Do I hear eleven hundred?"
Tyler's hand starts to rise, but his friend grabs it. They have a whispered argument. He's considering it, I can see the wheels turning, but one thousand is already absurd for a college charity auction. Going higher would be obvious desperation.
"Going once," Vivienne continues. "Twice." She pauses, letting the tension build. "Sold to paddle forty-two for one thousand dollars."
Applause fills the ballroom, but Isla doesn't move. She's still staring at me with an expression that promises murder.
Perfect.
Chapter 3
Isla
I'm goingto kill him.
Not metaphorically. Not hypothetically. I am actually going to murder Sebastian Thornhill and dump his body in the lake behind the library where no one will find it until spring.
One thousand dollars.
He bid one thousand dollars on me like I'm a prize at a carnival. Like I'm something he can buy.
Which, technically, he just did.
Vivienne is saying something about date package details and social media requirements, but I can't hear her over the roaring in my ears. I need to get off this stage. I need to breathe. I need to…
"Isla?" Vivienne touches my arm gently. "You can go backstage now."
Right. Because there are more participants. More people to be auctioned off while rich students throw money around like it's nothing.
