Page 28 of Royal Hottie
“Eleven thousand one hundred,” a woman with sleek black hair counters.
I keep my fingers crossed, which means keep going.
“Eleven thousand two hundred from anonymous,” Anna says.
“Twelve thousand,” the woman says.
It keeps going from there, astonishingly high. I keep to my signal, even as the numbers get to teeth-clenching levels.
“Fifty thousand,” Anna says.
Silence.
“Fifty thousand to the anonymous bidder!” Anna exclaims. “Woo! Good work, ladies! And thank you so much, Phillip!”
I incline my head. I’ve just donated fifty thousand of my personal funds to the cause, but you know what? That’s fine. It’s an investment for Villroy. In fact, I’ll donate even more than that. And I got what I wanted—Ruby.
“Okay, everyone, we’re going to clear the chairs and boogie!” Anna hollers.
The music blasts, the spotlight on the stage turns off, and I go backstage. It’s empty. My brothers have already left to mingle. I head into the room to do my part to mingle, and my guards flank me. I scan the room for Ruby, and then she’s right there, heading toward me.
“You made it without causing a riot,” she says, smiling up at me. “Great work.”
I chuckle. “Thank you.”
She gets serious. “So, uh, do you know who the bidder was who won a date with you?”
I give her a slow secret smile. “Anonymous.”
“You don’t know?”
I lean down to her ear. “I bid through Anna. You won me.” I pull back to gauge her reaction. She looks stunned, her green eyes wide, her jaw slack. I tense. Shit. Maybe she doesn’t want to go on a date with me.
I’m about to declare it would be completely platonic, no pressure, when she exclaims, “Phillip, you bid fifty thousand euros! This was supposed to be a fundraiser from outside sources.”
I let out a quiet exhale, all of my muscles relaxing again. She was only worried about the money. “Villroy is my legacy. Of course I want to contribute.”
She rubs the side of her neck and gives me a sideways look. “You must’ve really wanted to go on a date with me. You could’ve just asked, you know.”
I lower my voice. “I was also trying to avoid the man-hungry crowd. These women are nutso wild.” And I needed to keep you away from Adrian, I silently add. I know he didn’t egg her on with the bidding. She stopped at a hundred. What was he doing?
She laughs. “They’re fun. I think Anna let them have too much to drink before feeding them. Woo!” She gestures with her arms spread wide. “Inhibitions out the window!”
“To put it mildly.”
Someone claps me on the back. It’s a grinning Adrian. I knew it had to be family; otherwise, the guards wouldn’t let anyone touch me. I hadn’t used security earlier when my trousers were ripped by grabbing man-hungry hands, and I probably should have.
“You beat them all!” he crows. He won the pool. Nothing thrills him more than winning.
I narrow my eyes at him. “Where did you go? Were you driving up the bidding somehow?”
He winks. “Who, me?”
“Adrian!”
“Relax, it’s all for a good cause.” He probably boosted the woman with the black hair’s bid.
I shove his shoulder. “You should chip in personally, too.”
