Page 7 of Auctioned To Be Mine

When I returned to the table, Chantilly had been served a new cocktail that looked like it belonged in a museum. It was a pale gold color with actual flakes of gold floating in it. That just tripled the bill and we hadn’t even ordered main courses.

“Oh my God, you have to try this,” she said, pushing the glass toward me. “It’s the signature cocktail. It has real gold in it.”

“I can see that.”

“Isn’t it gorgeous?” She pulled out her phone and filmed herself taking a sip. Her face immediately twisted into a grimace. “Ugh, it tastes like pennies. Like I’m sucking on loose change. Who in the hell would make something so pretty only to have it taste like hot garbage?”

Then why did you order it?

“That’s unfortunate,” I said.

She pushed the glass away and flagged down our server, who appeared with the patience of a saint.

“This tastes like metal,” she said. “I can’t drink this.”

“I apologize,” the server said. “Would you like something else?”

“No, I want this one. I just wanted you to know it’s not good.” She waved him away and then turned her attention back to the menu. “Oh, they have caviar. I’m getting caviar.”

Of course she was.

“With the gluten-free crackers,” she added. “No blinis. Blinis are basically pancakes and I don’t do carbs after three.”

It was seven-thirty.

The server took her order and disappeared again. I poured myself another glass of wine and drank half of it in one swallow. The vein near my temple was throbbing. I could feel it pulsing with every beat of my heart. If Drew didn’t come through soon, I was going to have an aneurysm right here at the table.

I checked my watch. Four minutes since I’d texted him.

Chantilly was back on her phone, scrolling through comments on one of her videos. She laughed at something, then frowned, then typed out a response with furious speed.

I stole another glance at the other table. The woman was still talking. Montana was still on his phone. She looked frustrated. I didn’t blame her.

Chantilly’s caviar arrived. She filmed herself examining it, narrating the whole thing like she was hosting a show.

“So they brought me Kaluga caviar, which is fine, but it’s not Beluga. Beluga is obviously superior, but whatever. They probably wouldn’t even serve it right.”

I finished my wine and set the glass down. My phone was on the table. I was ready. The second that alarm went off, I was out the door.

“Do you want a bite?” she asked me.

I wanted to jab that spoon into my eye.

“No thank you,” I said.

Any time now, Drew.

Chantilly was eating her caviar, making little sounds of approval between bites. She filmed each cracker before she ate it. It was a performance I had no interest in watching or being a part of.

I waited. And waited.

Shit, what if my brother got caught? What if he was in handcuffs? If I got stuck sitting through an entire meal with this woman, I would be scarred for life. If he wasn’t in cuffs and I had to get through this, I was going to murder him as soon as I escaped.

4

VICTORIA

The sommelier had refilled my glass twice. The wine was excellent. The company was not. But I felt like I was finally getting somewhere.