AllFreeNovel
Share Us
My phone buzzed.If we don’t listen to her, how are we any better than Lorien, making her choices for her? We’ve been clear about this being temporary, so if she’s okay with that, why ignore what she wants?
“Because she’s a kid,” I said with a sigh. “And after what I did with her, that’s a pretty terrible thing to say, huh?” I rubbed my hand over my face, unable to square the two facts.
Fact one—she was young and innocent and naïve, and I wanted to protect her from the big bad world.
Fact two—she was a sexy and sensual woman, and I wanted to treat her like one.
They opposed each other but were both still true.
“Did you ever think that we could be a good memory?” Char asked, his voice having lost the joking tone from before. The way he could switch gears so fast amazed me as ever. “I mean, we know what our future holds no matter what. We went into this with our eyes open, know what’s waiting for us at the end, so we know whatherfuture holds, too. If we keep rejecting her, how does that help her at all? We’re gone and she ends up living not only with that but with the doubt because we turned her down. Maybe giving her some good memories is better than nothing at all?”
I swung one of my legs as it hung over the tailgate, unsure how to accept his words. Was that a real thing, or was it just a way to lie to ourselves, to get what we wanted while taking the blame off our own shoulders?
I peered to the side, toward the house, and stared up toward where her room sat. She laid in bed up there, sleeping soundly with no idea that we were out here, discussing her, talking about her future.
“Okay,” I said softly.
“You agreed? I didn’t expect that at all,” Vance said. “I figured we’d have to work way harder to talk you into it.”
I shrugged, dangling my beer from the neck between two fingers. “I know when I’m beat, and resisting hasn’t done anything. In fact, maybe we were doing more harm than good by turning her down. I mean, she’s sleeping soundly, she’s been laughing more, seemed happier. I’m not the type to keep hitting my head against a wall if I’m not making progress, so if that wasn’t doing any good for her, it’s time to try something else.”
“Does this mean it’s open season?” Char asked.
“I don’t like that phrasing,” I admitted, “but if you mean we’re not going to worry about telling her no for her own good? Yeah, I guess you’re right.”
Vance snorted softly, humor in the sound. “Trust me, I’m not going to stay in last place anymore. I have a reputation to uphold, after all.”
I shook my head and pinched the bridge of my nose. Hopefully Kenz slept for a long time, because I had a feeling that girl was in for a mess when she woke up.
And yet, excitement grew inside me at the prospect, because I was pretty sure Kenz might be the only woman capable of handling four men like us.
* * * *
Kenz
I shifted in my chair, surprisingly nervous. It wasn’t as though this was the first time I’d been in such a luxurious private room at a five-star restaurant before, but I didn’t usually meet up with the people who ran the auction I was sold at, either.A moment of that horror washed over me once again, taking me back to when I’d woken in a cage. I recalled the helplessness, the fear, the way I’d felt less than human as the lights had poured over me and the auctioneer had started the bidding. It had brought me here, but I couldn’t look back on it with anything but terror.
A warmth on my thigh made me jump, but a gentle squeeze reassured me. Hayden always did that, seemed able to tell when I started to lose my nerve and could pull me back just before I spiraled.
I’m not alone.Sure, I would see the man who had helped changed my entire life, would sit across from him, but I wasn’t doing it on my own.
The men were here with me, and I knew they’d do anything they could to ensure this went well.
And to me, well only meant I left with Tor, Hayden, Vance and Char. My standards were exceedingly low, after all.
Finally, the door to the room opened, and Bradley walked in.
It wasn’t the first time I’d seen him, but somehow my fear hadn’t lessened at all. He was tall, dressed impeccably in a suit that made my father’s expensive clothing look like thrift store cast-offs. A silver chain went from a button of his vest and disappeared into a pocket, telling me a watch rested at the end of it. He had no jacket on, but this was the sort of place that often took coats so the patrons were comfortable.He looked every bit the sort of man who would run black market auctions where a person could buy anything—including people.
“You’re late,” Vance said with a smirk.
Bradley pulled the silver chain and looked down at his watch. “Actually, I’m not.” He turned the face of the watch just as the second hand hit the top and the hour hand moved to the six, showing he was exactly on time, right to the second.
And didn’t that explain him to a T?
Bradley came to the table, pulled out a chair, then took a seat in a way that was amazingly graceful. How was it that everything he did could appear so smooth? He didn’t pick up a menu, didn’t even reach for one. Instead, when a server came in a moment later, he rattled off a quick order for a drink—sparkling water with two lime wedges—without glancing the server’s way.
The rest of us ordered similarly, no one choosing an alcoholic drink.
