Page 96 of Auctioned to the Billionaire Stalker

“Y’all need to quit,” I whispered. “I think you’re making him self-conscious.” We were stretched out on a quilt under abig oak tree on campus. We were studying and having an impromptu picnic. It was a warm day, even though it was November, and we were all wearing shorts. Every now and then I’d look up and catch Byron glancing at Nia.

I smirked. If there was someone who could turn his head, it was her. Not that Jelly wasn’t beautiful, too, but Nia was just… extra gorgeous.

Byron came over closer to us, when I gestured for him. “Aren’t you hungry?” I asked when he got there. “You could join us.”

He gave me his beautiful smile, the one that made Jelly and Nia swoon, and shook his head. “Can’t. Working. I have to keep you beautiful women safe.”

“Won’t you at least take a drink?” I asked, handing him a Coke.

“Sure,” he said gratefully. He had to be hot in his suit, though he always looked cool, calm, and collected. He stood near us and drank it, talking to us casually, though I saw his eyes moving, constantly scanning the area for any hint of danger.

“Are you going to stay in this area after Reynolds quits being mayor?” Nia asked.

“Do you know something I don’t know?” Byron joked. “No, Reynolds plans to be mayor as long as the people of West Bay keep re-electing him. But if he ever changes his mind, I have a plan that would allow me to stay in town rather than going to the DC area.”

Byron’s father owned a high-profile security detail team in DC. Though he’d grown up in Virginia, he’d attended private school with Reynolds and Nico. The three had been close friends ever since.

Nia nodded, her unusual eyes, a swirl of blue and green, seeming to captivate Byron momentarily. “I’d like that,” she said, giving him her flirtiest smile.

Bryon’s face went a little slack as he stared at her. I’d seen this look on several men’s faces after they came into contact with Nia, so I wasn’t exactlysurprised.

Jelly and I exchanged a look, and I tried to hide my smile.

Jelly cocked her head. Never one to sugarcoat things she asked, “What’s the deal with you and Carmen? Are y’all together or not?”

He almost spit his Coke out at her bluntness. “Uh… that’s um…” his voice trailed off, and he looked around for one of us to rescue him, but we were just as curious as Jelly was. “I don’t know,” he finally said, staring up at the sky for a moment. “It doesn’t seem so,” he said quietly. He stood back up and started to walk away.

I kicked Jelly’s foot.

“Ow! What the hell, Daze?”

“What are you doing? You made him sad, and it wasn’t any of your business, anyway.”

She frowned. “You think I made him sad?”

“Definitely,” Nia agreed with me, looking at him thoughtfully.

Jelly sighed and rolled up to a sitting, then a standing position. “Shit. I’ll go fix it.”

She walked over to him, talking quietly enough that we couldn’t hear what they were saying.

“You like him,” I said, watching Nia stare at their interaction.

“He’s amazing,” she said. “He just seems… too mature or something for me. Like he only wants to be with older women. Women in their thirties, I mean.”

“He thinks you’re gorgeous,” I said.

Her eyes shot to mine. “You think so?”

I nodded.

“I don’t stand a chance against someone like Carmen Salazar. If that’s his type of woman, I’m screwed.”

I scrunched up my nose. “Why?”

“She’s beautiful, smart, has a killer body, is a lawyer, owns successful businesses, has self-confidence oozing from her pores… do I need to go on?”

I waved a hand in the air. “Details. If you’re into him, go forit.”