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I jump onto the stage and stare down the crowd. They better get the hint that bidding is over—because nothing is taking my girl from me. If I need to, I’ll rush her from the stage and set the place on fire behind me. There are men there that could buy and sell me twice over and I brace myself for violence, but there are no more bids. The crowd recedes with a mass grumble, already waiting for the next participant to come out so they can try again.
I won. April is mine.
Now that it’s over, she hugs her arms around herself, swaying on her feet as she stares at me in shock. I take a step forward so she can see my face better.
“April,” I yell, holding out my hand to her.
She blinks at me; her face a pale mask of confusion. When she catches my eye, her lush mouth rounds in shock.
“My angel,” she sighs. Then she topples forward, passing out in my arms.
Chapter 5
April
I wake up to find myself in the front seat of a car. I’m still wearing the lacy lingerie, so the auction must have really happened. That part wasn’t just a bad dream. But now I’m also wrapped in a thick, warm sweatshirt that’s miles too big for me and zipped up to my chin with the hood tucked up over my hair. I’m strapped into the seatbelt and have a moment of panic as I try to tug the sweatshirt further down my bare legs.
“Easy there,” a deep, soothing voice says. “You fainted. Give yourself a second to breathe.”
I don’t. With a gasp, I jerk my head to the left to see a big man with his hands firmly on the steering wheel while the world whizzes past the window beside him. City lights, street signs, people. This must be the man who won me, even though I could swear I saw…
He turns to face me with a reassuring smile on his beautiful face. It’s him. The angel I saw in the crowd before everything went black from exhaustion, terror, and lack of food over the last few days because of my nerves.
“You don’t have anything to fear,” he says. His eyes are such a clear, dark blue they shine even in the dim light of the car, and his voice washes over me like a comforting caress.
“You bid on me?” I ask, sitting up a little straighter.
“That’s right,” he says. His hand lifts from the steering wheel like he wants to reach for me, but he places it back where it was and faces forward.
Am I disappointed he didn’t touch me? I belong to him now, after all. I know I’m disappointed not to fully see his handsome face anymore, but he’s driving. I concentrate on the strong line of his jaw, where a muscle works under the slight stubble as he grips the steering wheel.
“Where are you taking me?” I ask, a fresh wave of dizziness rushes over me and makes me close my eyes again.
“Home,” he tells me.
I force my eyes open, the fear of turning up at the apartment too early and facing Uncle Harris’s wrath making me gasp. “I can’t—he’ll—”
My angel shakes his head. “My home, April. Like I said, you don’t have anything to fear. Close your eyes and rest if you want to, little one.”
I do as he says, letting the motion of the car racing through the night lull me back to sleep. Maybe I never woke up, and this is a dream where the angel rescues me. If it is, I don’t ever want it to end.
“Are you really an angel?” I murmur, drifting away from my hunger and fear.
I’m out again before I hear his answer, but I think I hear a very nice, warm laugh as I let myself sink back into my dream.
Chapter 6
Michael
I had the best intentions, really I did. But when I see more faded bruises than just the one on her ribs, I know I won’t be taking her back to her uncle’s apartment. As I carry her backstage and wrap her in a sweatshirt from my locker, I ignore the seething look on my boss’s face. Antonov doesn’t need to tell me I’m fired and once my bank transfer goes through, there’s nothing he can do to stop me from carrying April out of here.
He could have tried, but he would have failed.
As soon as he accepts I’ve won her fair and square, I carry her out to my car and head home. I’m slightly worried about her, but at the same time, I can’t keep my eyes off the creamy expanse of bare legs only a few inches away and begging to be touched. Halfway to my apartment, she wakes up long enough to mumble a few almost incoherent words to me, asking if I’m an angel of all things.
I can’t help but laugh at her sweet innocence, not a single regret for giving up my life savings and the dream that had been sustaining me since I left the Army. There’s no way she could have gone to anyone else in that club tonight.
At my place, I carefully lift her out of the car, not wanting to disturb her. She makes a soft noise and nestles close to mychest, reaching for my shoulders without opening her eyes as I carry her through the parking garage and toward the elevator. On the ride up to my floor, I glance down at the mass of dark hair and breathe in her vanilla and honey scent. With her soft body so close to mine, and knowing what’s under my giant sweatshirt, I don’t think I’m going to be able to behave like the angel she’s mistaken me for. She belongs to me now, after all.
