Page 26 of Auctioned for Her Blood
Shana laughs uncomfortably. “Of course not.”
“Ah well,” he says. “A fellow can dream.” He turns to me. “Are you ready?”
“Ready for what?” My body buzzes under his attention.
“For me to win you on the auction block.” He grins, cocking his head slightly.
“What?” I take a step back. “No.” I shake my head so vigorously it makes me dizzy, and I stagger on my heels.
Ryker gently touches my back to support me.
“The emcee’s about to call you,” he says. “I’d be thrilled to have the opportunity to make another donation to the charity. Even more if it’s for an evening with you.” Closing his eyes, he leans a little closer and inhales, as if in some kind of ecstasy, and it thrills me way more than it should.
“The bidding, you know it’s just for adate—just dinner,” I blurt.
“But of course.” He raises a hand to his chest. “A gentleman would never expect anything more than your delightful company.”
“Thank you.” I like Ryker and won’t take the warnings from a jealous man as gospel.
“Glad it’s settled.” Hand lightly on my back, Ryker steers me toward the stairs leading up to the stage, and his lips move close to my ear. “Of course, a man can always hope for more.”
“More what?” I smile at him, chuckling in spite of the nerves going off inside me. Even without Zuben’s warning, I know exactly what Ryker means bymore, but while it could be the champagne talking, my body is throbbing at the idea of a dinner date with Ryker turning intomore.
Zuben’s warning suddenly feels like a dare. A dare that makes me want to test the waters with a man like Ryker. Although I had plenty of daytime flirtations and dates during college, I’ve never gone formore. I’m twenty-five. It’s time.
It’s time to come out of the shell I’ve been hiding inside—a mental shell my mother molded around me with her irrational fears. Plus, if Sanctuary House can benefit from my going on my first date, all the better.
The emcee calls me on stage, and as I draw a long breath, bracing myself to go up the stairs. Ryker’s hand brushes softly up and down my spine, a gesture that I expect is supposed to be comforting, but instead excites every nerve in my body.
“I will win you,” he says close to my ear. “And I cannotwaitto have you for dinner.”
Stirred by his innuendo, I quiver as I walk up the stairs, but when I reach the stage Zuben’s danger warning flashes again, and I glance back at Ryker. His smile is charming, encouraging, supportive—not a hint of menace or predation.
Well, maybe a little predation. In spite of my undeniable connection to both men, I’m puzzled by Zuben, but Ryker I get. I know exactly what he wants.
Stepping to the center of the stage, I’m struck by the heat and glare, feeling exposed, almost naked under the spotlight’s scrutiny.
“Ember Cross is the accountant for Sanctuary House,” the emcee says to the crowd. She flips the card she’s holding. “Other than that, I don’t have much information about this lovely young woman, or the date that’s planned, but ladies and gentlemen, I’m sure she’ll be wonderful company for an evening out.”
If I felt naked before, now the full heat of the lights and the gaze of the crowd are penetrating the thin fabric of my dress and licking my skin. I press my hand to my belly to verify the dress is still there and then force a smile as I hear the first bid—one hundred dollars.
I can’t see the bidder, the lights shining on me are too bright, but whoever it was, they’re quickly outbid, and then again, as the price for a date with me rises quickly to a thousand.
“Do I hear, eleven hundred?” the emcee calls out. “Come on ladies and gentlemen. This is the last lot of the evening, let’s make it the highest.”
“Five thousand,” calls a voice.
Shading my eyes, I step to the side. Zuben is standing near the front of the crowd, looking at me intently. He holds the highest bid.
Chapter Eight
Zuben
The crowd murmurs,reacting to my dramatic jump in the bid, but the thump of Ember’s heart underscores the crowd’s sounds—a strong, rapidly increasing drumbeat that calls to me with the enticing promise of her blood.
I will win her. I must. That despicable pirate may have been the one to coax her onto the stage, but in the end, she will be mine.
Mine?
