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“Nothing, just be careful. I don’t want you to get hurt.”
Her eyes soften and she steps toward me, and I wrap her in my arms, relishing the sweet feel of her pressed against me. If I close my eyes, I can pretend for just a second she’s mine in a way I’ve dreamed of for so long. I drop my lips to her head and inhale her feminine scent that never fails to affect me.
We pull away but I can’t let her go completely just yet.
“You have to trust me. I know what I’m doing, Beck.”
I want to argue with her, to tell her that she doesn’t know who Xander is, but that’s hypocritical when I’m hiding my true self from her too. Xander isn’t a bad guy from what I know. He’s sexy as hell, but he’s fighting his own demons and I don’t want to see him drag her down into the pits of hell with him. “I do trust you.”
She pats my chest. “Good. Now Audrey is flapping at me like a demented duck, so I need to go.” She reaches up to kiss my cheek. “Don’t let some geriatric perv win this bid or we’re gonna have words, mister.”
I watch her walk over and step onto the stage and curse myself for being such a coward.
“You ever going to tell her?”
I glance behind me at Ryker, who’s dressed as Prince Eric because, of course, he’s the hero. “Midas.”
He frowns at the nickname we gave him when, at twenty-one, he sold his first company and became the richest man under thirty in history. He doesn’t take much seriously except business. He’s a joker, but if you fuck with his company he’s like a fucking demon. His blond hair is slightly longer than it should be, and his blue eyes always twinkle as if he has a secret and he does, but that’s not mine to tell.
“So, are we ignoring the tension between you and Amelia?”
“There is no tension.”
“So, we’re ignoring it.”
I shake my head. “Fuck you.”
“Pass, but thanks for offering, buddy. I’m flattered.”
I can’t help the smile that twitches my lips. It’s hard to be mad around this guy, and it’s why he’s so integral to our little friend group. He lightens up the level of asshole amongst us. Ryker is one hundred percent into women only, but none of my friends give a shit that I’m bi-sexual, which is how it should be in this world. “I can’t lose her.”
The admission sobers me and I’m not sure what prompts it, except seeing her up there makes my gut clench with longing.
“Love is always a risk, my friend.”
“I know, but she’s my person. I can’t remember a world without her in it and if it doesn’t work, we’ll never get back to what we had.”
Ryker nods slowly taking a sip of the bourbon he favors. “It’s a tough one, but I guess you have to make a choice because one thing I do know, is that time waits for no man.”
He gestures to the stage, and I see Audrey lifting the microphone.
“Okay, we have a last-minute treat for you all. Our lovely Amelia Stone has a physics master’s degree and a head for finance. So, brains and beauty for your buck. Can I have a starting bid of twenty-five thousand dollars?”
Henrik Freddie, playboy and major asshole, bids, and my lip curls. No way am I letting that asshole on a date with my Tink.
“Fifty.” I raise my hand and Amelia grins at me, and my chest feels like it’s caving every time she looks at me that way.
The feeling is fleeting as Xander raises his hand. “Sixty.”
I twist to see him standing with Norrie and Harrison a few feet away. He’s looking at the stage and the bastard winks at her and I clench my fist when she giggles. Amelia never fucking giggles, but he made her, and it infuriates me. He turns to me and raises his brow and I don’t know whether I want to punch him or force the fucker to his knees so I can make him swallow my cock. The image makes my dick hard, but my dominant nature won’t let this slide.
“One hundred thousand.”
Audrey is loving this, and Amelia laughs and shakes her head.
“Two hundred.” Xander grins at me.
“Three hundred.” I can’t take my eyes off him or the arrogant way he grins.
