Page 23 of Hayes
Again.
And it affected her.
Did she want me to bid? Is this one of the moments where she says she doesn’t want me to save her, but I’m supposed to anyway?
“I’m not going to pay to watch Harvey strip her naked. I’d rather play another round of poker,” Reuben mutters beside me. Some of the men chuckle in agreement.
A few pay Peter to watch.
“Hayes? You paying or playing?” Reuben asks.
I feel Lilith’s stare on me and hear Gage’s words in my head.
“Deal me in,” I say, sitting down at one of the poker tables. I notice Lilith out of the corner of my eye, and I swear her lips fall in disappointment. Maybe that’s my imagination, or maybe it’s just Lilith. She doesn’t smile often, preferring to grimace and glare at everyone.
Whether Lilith wants me to save her or not, she’ll be mostly safe this round. Removing her clothing is nothing, even though I’m dying to see her naked. I need to prove to myself and to Gage that I have restraint.
I still put our brotherhood above everything else. What Lennox, Gage, and I have been through is the thing I care most about. It’s not love; it’s just lust. It’s just my dick talking and the horny situation of this auction.
But I can’t keep my eyes off the bedroom door as I play poker with a few of the guys. I can’t keep thinking I made a huge mistake. I should have thrown her over my shoulder and ran. Or I should have told Titus I couldn’t be his second any longer and let her survive her own fate.
That’s what I should do—tell Titus I resign and to find someone else to do his dirty work. I don’t need the Retribution King leader on my side to complete my mission, even if it would help me.
A loud bang comes from the bedroom, drawing everyone’s attention. The game stops, and our heads snap to the door.
What the hell?
Screams rip through the air, and fear seers through my body as more gunfire erupts inside the room.
I jump up and run, knocking my chair back. I’m the first one to the door, but it’s locked.
Motherfucker. I pull my gun out and fire at the handle, before kicking the door in.
The room is dark. There are no lights. Men are scurrying around, weapons drawn, but I can’t see an immediate threat.
“Lilith?” I yell through the darkness. My eyes scan, and I move toward the center of the room, where I’m guessing she’s tied up.
My legs hit the side of a bed, and my hands come down on a bedsheet, feeling for her body. Eventually, warm flesh hits my fingertips. Warm, not cold—she’s not dead.
“Lilith!” I grab onto her and begin to pull her into my arms before realizing she’s tied to the bed when her body barely budges.
“Undo your arms,” I command her, while I tend to her ankles.
I don’t know if she’s listening to me or not, but a second later, when I yank her body up, she’s completely free. I run out of the room with Lilith’s naked body in my arms. I don’t know where I’m going, but I don’t stop. I’m not sure I ever will.
Chapter 12
Lilith
Hayes cradles me in his arms as he runs—and runs and runs. My body should be bouncing up and down from how fast he’s moving, but he’s holding me so close and tightly that I feel like I’m being gently rocked to sleep.
I can’t make sense of what’s happening or even how I ended up in his arms exactly. The world is going by in a whirl of lights and darkness. All I know is he’s taking me away. It’s probably for the best. I shouldn’t stay here; I’ll end up dead if I do.
I close my eyes as my head snuggles into his suit jacket. A minute later, they open to the pop of a hotel room door. Hayes carries me inside before closing the door gently behind him.
“Sorry I woke you,” he says as he stares down at me still in his arms.
I frown. He’s apologizing to me. He’s such a strange man, and I can’t make sense of him. All I know is that I don’t trust him.
