Page 98 of Ruin Me, Daddy

God, he could kiss her. If that wouldn’t have put her on the wrong end of his woman’s wrath, that was.

“Thank you. I’m trying to accept that might be the truth,” Silver said. “Now, about those autographs.”

They both signed napkins for her, and Silver sealed hers with a kiss that nearly had Ruby swooning on the spot. Ice added a generous tip to the bill as they scooped up his water and Silver’s wine.

Halfway back to the table, Silver stopped, tilting her head back to smile up at him. “Thank you for always knowing what I need, often even before I do.”

“Just part of the job description.”

Her smile slowly faded as her eyes searched his face in earnest. “If I ask you something, will you be completely honest with me? No bullshit.”

“No bullshit,” he promised, holding up three fingers in a time-honored gesture of sincerity.

“Do you really think I can get it back? What I had before? Not just being a drummer, but being who I was. Being the fucking best.”

“I don’t know.” It killed him to say it, but he’d promised her no bullshit, so that was what he was going to give her. “I want to say I think there’s nothing you can’t do. But I also know it’s not as simple as willing it to be true. What I will say is this.” Cupping the back of her neck, he lowered his forehead to hers. “The Amanda Sterling I know wouldn’t let ‘I don’t know’ stop her. The Amanda Sterling I fell in love with would work and fight with everything in her to get back what she loves. And that’s damn well what you’re going to do. You understand me, little girl?”

Tears slipped from her eyes as her lids shuttered closed. “Yes, Daddy.”

“Good girl. Let’s get back to our friends.”

“Ice, there’s something I need to tell?—”

“There you are!” Rushing up to them, Lottie grabbed the wine glass from Silver’s hand and shoved it at Ice. “Come on, we need to get downstairs.”

“Lottie, wait, I?—”

But Lottie was already hauling Silver toward the steps leading down to the pit.

What the hell was going on?

SILVER

Ice was going to murder her.

And the worst part was, she wasn’t even sure she wanted him to anymore. Part of her just wanted to tell Lottie she’d changed her mind and run back upstairs to her Daddy. To confess all her sins and swear she’d be a good girl forever and ever. Maybe if she called the whole thing off now, they could still have the fun he’d hinted at before they’d left the house.

But as she climbed the steps onto the stage, an old, familiar excitement kicked in. The thrill of knowing she’d done something naughty, and was certainly going to be punished for it.

It was that knowledge, that thrill, keeping her rooted to the stage as the auction began.

Just like the first time, her gaze immediately locked on Ice. But unlike that first time, his face wasn’t a mask of icy fury. If anything it looked like… Was he smiling?

Oh, shit.

Braden went through the same introductions as before, explaining that each participant would be given sixty seconds to introduce themselves before the bidding would start.

One notable difference was that Frankie was not up on the stage this time. She’d been rather adamant in the group chat that she was not taking her chances with Holden buying her again. Whatever he’d done to her that night, it had certainly stuck with her.

As the bidding started, Silver never took her gaze from Ice’s face. Maybe if she had, she would have noticed the remote in his hand before it was too late.

The plug inside her came to life, sending ripples of pleasure racing through her veins. She gasped just as Ivy’s bids opened, drawing the attention of everyone on stage and in the audience toward her.

Heat flooded her face. “Sorry, sorry. I, um, thought I saw… a bug.”

The horror on Braden’s face would have sent her into a fit of giggles if all her attention hadn’t been focused on the thing buzzing in her ass.

In the audience, Ice’s expression had shifted from a hint of a smile to a full-on smirk. Holding up the remote, he gave it a little shake, making sure she was watching as he pressed a button.

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