Page 35 of Secret Pucking Unicorn

“Finish up, guys, and get backstage. The auction is about to start.”

We separate from the players, and Daphne shows me where to get a paddle to enable me to bid. Logan is taking pictures, and we choose seats at a table bordering the dance floor. The plan is for everyone to be on stage and the player up for bids will come down off the stage and join their winner for the rest of the auction. Once everyone has been claimed, then they will go do their thing. Teagan will act as auctioneer while Coach and Jake, the third owner of the team and its General Manager, will be the bid spotters. Mallory and Kendall join me and Daphne at our table with paddles.

“Who are you bidding on?” I ask Mallory. I assume Kennie is going to bid on Bedard.

Mallory sighs and rolls her eyes. “My brother. He made me promise he goes for at least as much as Stone.”

Shaking my head, I chuckle. Carter is such a goof, but he’s cute and charming in his own way. I’m sure there will be a bidding war.

Teagan starts the auction and Colby Alvarez is the first up for bid. He’s a skilled player, but not a star. He gets a few bids, and his highest bidder is a lady in a server uniform at the dessert station. The other players all get bids. Stone ends up being bought by a group of ladies for four thousand dollars.

Bedard is next and Kennie immediately raises her paddle and yells out, “Ten thousand dollars!”

The room is silent except for Alvarez’s “Damn, girl,” said in his Texas drawl. At that, the room erupts in laughter and applause. Bedard comes off the stage and sweeps Kennie into his arms and gives her a thorough kiss that leaves her breathless and quite a few folks in the audience whistling.

It’s Carter’s turn, and he struts the stage, engaging the crowd and urging them to bid. It’s going great until the bidding stalls at four thousand dollars. Apparently, tying with Stone isn’t good enough, he has to earn more.

“Mallory,” he shouts from the stage. She rolls her eyes and heaves a sigh as she raises her paddle. “Four thousand and one.”

Teagan points at her, laughing. “We have four thousand and one dollars. From his sister. Any other bids?”

Stone calls out, “That’s lame. My sister didn’t have to bid on me.”

Brick responds, “Because your sister was raising more money than you.”

The group of couples she’s sitting with sends up a cheer. Combined, they bid five thousand to win her.

“Going once…going twice…”

“Four thousand and two,” comes from the back corner and Mallory sags in relief.

Trevor goes to join the male couple and I grin when I realize they were teammates of ours on the cheer team at Wickham. Neil and Byron started dating as students there and I’m happy to see they are still together. Trevor points to me and the guys wave excitedly. I wave back. I’ll have to catch up with them. But first I need to win Declan.

I checked the app for my credit card, and I have an available balance of almost two thousand dollars. Dec is worth more than that, but I pray everyone else has spent their money. No way I’m using the card he gave me.

“Our last player up for bid is Declan Mackenzie, left wing. Let’s start the bidding at one hundred dollars.”

Dec’s blue eyes dart around the room, following the flurry of bids. In seconds, the bid is fifteen hundred dollars, and I want to be sick. There’s no way I can do this. He looks at me beseechingly and I bid the exact amount I have available to me. I shrug and mouth. “That’s all I have.”

“Two thousand dollars,” comes from the table next to mine. An older woman in a leopard print gown and heavily teased black hair is waving her paddle hard enough to kick up a breeze.

Everyone’s staring and my face burns as tears sting my eyes.

“Aren’t you going to bid?” Daph asks.

I shake my head. “I’m tapped out.”

“I saw him give you his credit card,” she murmurs.

“I can’t spend his money.”

“I can!” She grabs my paddle. “Three thousand dollars!”

“I don’t have that kind of money,” I whisper hiss.

“Don’t worry, he does,” she assures me.

“Four,” comes from the woman I now call Spot.

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