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Jennifer gave an introduction and gestured toward me, and I sighed deeply. It was showtime.
I walked onto the stage and there was discreet clapping, hooting, and hollering. Some of the organizers that helped at the center were behind it, trying to make me feel better, no doubt.
Jennifer detailed my accomplishments and explained that I was a student who had, thus far, been unlucky in love and mostly spent my time volunteering with underprivileged youth. Then she opened the bidding.
I tried to not take myself seriously, so I gave her a little curtsy and did a little twirl. The girls over at the bar hooted and hollered again. And then to my horror, or my relief, I wasn't sure which, Connor Lohman/Phelps bid on me.
I gave him a wan smile and tried to push down my shudder of revulsion because… gross.
But then I saw someone else with a paddle in the air. I turned and my gaze locked on moss green eyes. I did a quick scan of the bloke's face too. It was… holy shit. There was an aura of intensity about him. Even though his smile was flirty, there was something about him that screamedI am a deadly predator.
He was a smorgasbord for the eyes. I couldn't figure out what part of him to look at first. The body, the hair, the eyes. All broad shouldered like a swimmer with an insane wingspan.
He was handsome in that way that was striking, where you were sort of compelled to look at his face and you couldn't look away. His jaw was stubbled, and heat flooded my veins as I wondered all the places that stubble could abrade the skin.
What? No. Oh, hell no. I didn’t date. I didn’t do relationships. And the one or two hookups I’d ever had were lackluster at best. Awkward and embarrassing or worse. Why was I having sudden horny feelings for someone I didn't even know?
He was very pretty. A carved jawline that made him look sexy and roguish. A sharp Roman nose that looked like perhaps it had been broken once before but expertly put back together by a very good plastic surgeon. He looked young. Under thirty definitely.
His hair was slightly longer on top, expertly styled with gel to look slightly haphazard but not too much. In a word, he was gorgeous.
And he knew it.
But worse, it was as if my pussy had called out to me, wanting to finally be put into action.
Oh God. Not on the stage. I resolutely snapped my gaze away from him. And when the hooting and hollering began again when Connor upped his bid, I laughed and shook my head.
Apparently, the laugh worked because suddenly more hands went up, and I flushed.This was horrible and embarrassing.
All the while, Jennifer was going on and on about how amazing I was. How athletic, my history of martial arts, and I wanted to be ill.
Had I really put all of that on the auction form? It had asked for hobbies.
Then she said that I read, and she highlighted my favorite romance novels. That got several hands up.Bloody hell.
When the price went up past five thousand quid, I laughed nervously. What in the world?
Finally, the bloke with the green eyes and jaw that looked like it had been chiseled called out, "Ten thousand pounds."
My gaze snapped back to him, and he grinned, his smirk melting that whole core of ice somewhere deep inside me, making me throb.
No, no, no. Which was the worst bet? Connor or this guy?
This guy, definitely. You need Connor.
I did need Connor.
My decision made for me, I sent Connor a pleading look.
He smirked at me and then the other bloke, as he called out, "Fifteen thousand pounds."
My jaw dropped. I thought he'd bid by a few quid only. I mean, what was a few bob? But five thousand? Jesus, this was getting out of hand. I mean exactly what did they think I was going to do on this date?
I certainly was not going to fuck Connor.
But you will be locked in a room with him. So there's that.
Fuck.
