Chapter Twenty-Six
Molly
–Brenda: It’s all set now. Thank you! You’re an angel!
I smile at Brenda’s text, then take a deep breath and pretend my palms aren’t slick with sweat. I can’t believe I agreed to auction myself off tonight. But when Brenda reached out during my chat with Nicholas’s dad and begged me…
Just the thought of Cooper, Sam, Cutie Penny and the rest of the animals whose perfect forever families are somewhere out there, and any resistance to drawing attention to myself crumbled.
Plus, I refuse to let Dana deprive the shelter of the funds it’s been counting on. She was going to allocate her proceeds to the shelter, but changed her mind earlier this morning. When Brenda told me Dana is going to direct the money toward a food bank, I knew exactly why she turned her back on the animal shelter.
Owen.
The local food bank is his pet charity. He donates there regularly and constantly posts about it on his social media accounts. Says it boosts his likability.
It’s a worthy cause, but it’s wrong for him to yank the funding Furry Haven was promised by using his relationship with Dana.
I look up and see a man in his late thirties bid half a million for a date with a gorgeous brunette on the stage. Nobody outbids him, and she steps down from the stage with a huge smile and hugs the man.
I lean over and whisper to Nicholas, “That’s the biggest amount so far, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
“Wow.” I start to lick my lips, then stop, remembering I’m wearing makeup. I fidget and have another champagne instead.
“What are you nervous about? Furry Haven’s going to get the funding it needs.”
“Hopefully.” I smile again. The thing is, I don’t know who’s going to bid on me. Nobody here really knows me. And I’m not even that pretty compared to the women who have already been on stage.
Maybe I should tell Brenda I can’t do it. I can probably just give the shelter my savings and it’ll be greater than what I can get from auctioning off an evening.
“Are you okay?” Nicholas says.
“Yeah.”Breathe, Molly, breathe. “I’m fine.”
The emcee announces the next bachelorette’s love of feeding the hungry, and the crowd applauds to show its enthusiasm. But the cheers die abruptly when Dana stands up.
Um… What’s that about?
Dana looks around, then shrugs with the smile of a woman who knows she’s desirable. But then, she’s been the most popular girl all her life. Ted might’ve cut her down a bit, but it wouldn’t counteract a lifetime of male interest.
She gracefully mounts the stage as the emcee lists her accomplishments. Oh…crap. I didn’t give the organizers any information about myself.
Is it too late to jot something down? Should I text Brenda and ask if she provided my bio?
Dana sounds impressive. All those followers on Instagram. Her brand sponsorship deals. She poses well, too, just like she does at Get Jacked. And her makeup is perfect, bringing out her eyes and highlighting her cheekbones. Her lips are pink and bee-stung, and the skintight golden dress shows off her perfect body. For all I know, her friends could be here, taking photos for her account.
But nobody makes an opening bid.
What’s going on? I look around. The attendees didn’t become suddenly shy. They didn’t hold back earlier.
Dana’s smile falters. The emcee leans into her mike. “All right, people, let’sget it going! What am I bid for this lovely young woman?”
Whispers ripple through the crowd. A few men look around. Nicholas’s dad chats animatedly with his date, who smirks. He bid two hundred thousand for her and won half an hour ago.
Nicholas looks bored with the silence. When he notices me scanning the crowd, he smiles. “More champagne?”
“No, thanks.” I can just see myself stumbling up the stairs to the stage.
