It was surprising how many of the guests she recognized. Art-world elites from the profiles she’d studied in recent weeks. Trophy wives draped in gold and gemstones clung to the arms of their older, filthy-rich husbands. Politicians and celebrities whose scandals she’d heard joked about on late-night TV. A tech mogul wealthy enough to purchase the entire coastline.
She had to wonder how many were like their host. The kind of man who smiled, who blended in, who bought and sold people.
The women’s postures varied, but the message didn’t. Heads angled toward the men as if hanging on every word but rarely speaking. Smiles measured, behavior practiced—like hers.
Her hand rose to the choker at her neck. Glittering, delicate, beautiful, it matched so many of the other women, but was a collar, nonetheless. A mark of ownership. A brand. Rhys hadn’t chosen it for aesthetics. He’d chosen it because he understood exactly how these men thought. These women weren’t kneeling, but they were owned all the same.
As they moved through the room, eyes slid over her. Not seeingher,but what she signified. An accessory of the man beside her, like his cuff links, to be admired but nothing more.
Gaby kept close as Rhys played his part flawlessly. He networked, discussed art values, and exchanged business cards. He touched her when it suited him: a guiding pressure at her hip, his thumb brushing her knuckles, a slow stroke through her hair, petting her like a cherished cat when a guest complimented him on her beauty.
Everything was proceeding exactly as planned.That didn’t make any of it easier to stomach.
Then fragments of a conversation snagged her attention.
“Private gallery in Madrid—”
“Three pieces smuggled out before—”
Her instincts ignited, and her gaze lifted. Not high, just enough to scan faces, hands, posture, searching for any sign, any hint of Natalie’s trail.
Then she made a mistake. Two, actually. She’d drifted too far from Rhys and met a man’s eyes in the crowd. It was for no more than an instant, but recognition flared. The kind that marked her as prey.
Gaby’s breath stalled when he began walking toward her.
The man arrived smiling, as if entitled to the interaction. “Well, hello, lovely. I saw your interest from across the room.”
Before she could correct him, Rhys’s voice cut in with deadly calm. “Camille. I warned you not to wander off. Come here, now.”
The reprimand slid down her spine. His rescue more than welcome. She moved beside him immediately, hands clasped, head down, the picture of chastened obedience.
The man persisted. “I couldn’t help noticing your stunning companion.”
Rhys turned his head just enough to acknowledge the man. “Is that so?” His voice was silk over drawn steel.
Either oblivious or too reckless to take heed of the warning, the man chuckled. “Well, when something that lovely looks my way—”
Rhys placed his body cleanly between them, using his size to intimidate. “Tell me,” he murmured, his tone even but lethal, “are you in the habit of taking things that don’t belong to you?”
The man blinked, his smile faltering. “I… Excuse me?”
Rhys’s expression never changed, but his posture radiated warning. “Should I expect you to pick my pocket next?”
Gaby swallowed hard as the man went pale and took a step back.
“No. Of course not,” he sputtered. “I meant no offense.”
“You should go before I grow angry,” Rhys said softly, every inch the predator Álvarez expected him to be.
This time, the man backed up two steps, muttered another apology, then turned, heading briskly straight for their host.
Gaby’s stomach dipped. It had been a setup. A deliberate testing of Blackwood’s mettle.
At the man’s murmured explanation, Álvarez’s gaze slid across the terrace. When it connected with Rhys, a slow, satisfied smile spread across his face. The kind that opened doors to the darker layers of his world.
Rhys leaned in a fraction, his voice low. “We’ve accomplished what we set out to do. Let’s thank the bloody bastard and call it a night.”
They approached Álvarez, who placed a hand on Rhys’s shoulder as if greeting an old friend. “Leaving so soon?”
