Page 15 of Sins and Secrets

“Back of the line,” he says, his voice gruff.

“I have an invitation,” I say, reaching into my purse and pulling out the little black envelope.

The bouncer takes it and inspects the invitation before nodding to the man who stands just inside the doorway. The man nods to me and turns, disappearing through the first door that leads into the club.

I smile at the bouncer before following the other man into the club. There is one door that leads into the main club, the music pounding and strobe lights flashing. The man leads me to a small hallway on the right.

We descend a dark staircase lit only with warm red lights that glow along the roof. The man stops at the bottom of the staircase and pulls out a key, inserting it into a lock that I can’t see on the black wall. Another door pops open and softer music escapes.

“In here,” the man says, looking back at me.

I nod and follow him, the door closing behind me with a loud thud.

As we walk through this new part of the club, I try to take in all of my surroundings. Black suede booths surround the perimeter of the club, glossy black tables spread through the middle. Men and women in expensive suits and dresses are talking to each other.

Masks made of lace and leather conceal their identities as they move about the room and mingle. I glance at a few of the people, trying to figure out why they seem so familiar.

“Mr. Marino, she’s here for the auction,” the man says as we reach the other side of the room.

My breath hitches as I look at Paolo Marino. Though I knew he was the one running the auction, I didn’t think that I would see him here. I was hoping that he would be nowhere near me if I’m being honest.

He is the one person who might be able to blow my cover. He’s known me for my entire life, and once upon a time, he was close friends with my father and Alessio.

I tip my chin upward, trying to look more confident than I feel. “Hello.”

“And who are you?” Paolo asks, smirking and crossing his arms. “I can’t say that I remember sending you an invite.”

“Emilia Bugia.” I put on my best sultry smile and hold out my hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. Thank you so much for inviting me to this event. It means the world to me.”

It takes everything in me to bite my tongue and keep my smile in place as I face the man I suspect is behind my father’s beating. I need to get into this auction and Paolo is what stands between me and my chance at freedom.

“Pleasure to meet you, Emilia,” he says, drawing out the name. “I trust that you know the rules of my auction?”

“I’ve heard of them but I could use a refresher.”

“Excellent,” he says, holding out his arm for me to take. “Let’s go into the room to get ready and we can discuss the rules while we’re in there.”

I loop my arm through his, feeling like I’m going to throw up. He leads me through another door to a room with a dozen other women wearing nothing but lingerie and heels.

“You’re going to have to get changed. We have a wardrobe over there if you didn’t bring something of your own.” Paolo nods to a clothing rack in the corner. “House takes a fifteen percent cut of whatever money you bring in tonight. You’ll get the rest of the money in weekly payments until the end of your contract.”

“And the contract is only for two months, right?” I ask as I drop his arm and rummage around in my purse for the lingerie I bought just for tonight.

“Just for two months, although if you wish to make any arrangements outside of that, it’s between you and whoever buys you tonight.” Paolo leans against one of the couches in the dressing room, his gaze roaming up and down my body.

The look he gives me is almost predatory.

Oh god, I hope he doesn’t bid on me because if he is the one that buys me, I’m not sure that I’ll be alive when the two months are up.

As if being at the auction in his club wasn’t already bad enough.

If anyone from the Marchetti mafia finds out that I’m in Marino territory, I’m dead. Or at the very least, tortured for information. Hell, I’m sure that Alessio would be the one to do it.

I can picture it now, him towering above me as he pulls out my fingernails and demands insider information.

I take a deep breath, trying to calm my racing heart. I need to make it out of this night alive and with as few problems as possible. That means that I need to get out of my head and into the mind space of the woman who is willing to do whatever it takes to save her family.

“Get ready,” Paolo says, standing up and hooking one of the thin straps of my dress with a finger. He pushes the strap down my shoulder, making my skin crawl. “You’re going to have to sign several contracts before you go on stage and then there will be a final one once you are bought, outlining what you will be used for.”

---