Page 7 of The Marriage Auction 2: Part 2

I gritted my teeth and chomped down on the roll, my mind instantly going to what could be currently happening in that home behind closed doors, or worse, at night. I clutched the roll in my fist, forcing myself to chew what was in my mouth, even though it now tasted like sawdust.

Derrick could already be harming our half-sister irreparably like he did to me. Maisie was close to turning twelve. I was eleven, he fourteen, when my stepbrother started coming into my room. But maybe because he’s so much older now, and Maisie is technically biologically related to him, versus me, who is just a stepsister by marriage, he wouldn’t think to harm her. Yet, in the back of my mind, I knew nothing would stop Derrick’s sick and twisted desires.

Without warning, time slowed, and my vision darkened.

“Be quiet, Maia! Shut the fuck up! Don’t make another sound or I’ll tell your mom you begged me for it. Dad will believe me too. And your stupid mother will fall into line just like she always does. You want Dad to give her another black eye?” He hissed against my ear.

I shook my head, tears pouring down my face as he held a hand over my mouth to keep me quiet.

“Then open your legs and stop your whimpering. No one is going to save you.”

I trembled as the door suddenly opened, smacking against the closet opposite it. Rhodes rushed inside and fell to his knees by the bed as his hands grasped my shoulders.

“What’s the matter? I heard you whimpering through the door, and you wouldn’t open it. I knocked and knocked.” He cupped my cheek, his gaze darting from my face, down and over my body, as though checking for an injury. “Are you hurt?”

I shook my head, the flashback so real my stomach clenched painfully, a sour taste flooding the back of my tongue. I pushed Rhodes out of the way as I raced to the bathroom and vomited up the little I’d eaten this morning.

Rhodes was right behind me, wetting a cloth and handing it to me as he rubbed my back. “You’re sick?” he surmised.

Sick of the flashbacks? Yes.

Sick of worrying about my sister’s safety? Absolutely.

Sick of knowing my mother was being beaten regularly with no one to save her? Yeah.

Sick of not knowing if my stepfather was laying hands on my little brother? Definitely.

“Not in the traditional sense,” I answered noncommittally.

“What happened?” Rhodes flushed the toilet as I got up and went to the sink, rinsed out my mouth, and loaded up my toothbrush with paste.

“It was nothing. This uh…happens sometimes when I’m really hungry and I haven’t eaten,” I lied.

“Then what was with the bread roll I saw mangled and left on the bed?” he asked. “Is that what you hid in the napkin last night after dinner? Food?”

I shrugged and set about cleaning the nasty from my mouth and mind.

“If you needed to eat earlier, I would have picked you up sooner. I chose ten o’clock so you’d have some time to gather your thoughts after all that occurred last night,” he said gently. “You don’t need to steal food. Those days of not having enough are over for you.”

“You mean for three years,” I corrected around a mouth full of foam.

“No, I meanforever. Even if we separate, I’m still going to ensure that you’re taken care of. I’d never leave my wife high and dry.”

I spit out the paste and rinsed. “Well, I’ve been promised a lot of things by a lot of people. Most never come through.” I changed the subject. “Where are we going to eat?” I didn’t want to talk about what he saw when he entered. I didn’t even know how he got into my room in the first place.

“Are you sure you’re okay? You looked like you’d seen a ghost or were out of your mind with fear.” He swallowed and rubbed at the back of his neck, his expression one of genuine concern.

“I’m fine. Just ready to get the day going. What’s on the agenda?”

He blinked silently, probably trying to gauge whether or not I was telling him the truth. I certainly wasn’t. I’d been quaking in my boots, terrified, as I was every time a flashback hit, but he didn’t need to know that. At least not now. I’d keep that skeleton in the closet for as long as humanly possible, lest he think he’d scored a headcase for a bride, not just someone who was down on their luck.

Rhodes inhaled deeply and then let his breath out slowly, something I was beginning to notice he did rather often. Maybe that was his way of pulling his thoughts together.

“Uh, well, I was going to suggest breakfast be your choice. Then I thought it would be a good idea to go to your place and start packing your things. Talk. Learn more about one another.The things that normally take place before one gets engaged.” His lips lifted up on one side, gifting me that sexy, endearing boyish grin.

“Fine.” I agreed. I also needed to tell Sam I’d be leaving indefinitely and say goodbye.

Goodbyes were not my thing. Ever. Usually, I didn’t connect with anyone long enough to actually feel anything about leaving abruptly, but Sam was my best friend and a super overprotective brother type. He knew more about me than anyone. He’d also understand what I had to do but hate that I’d finally succumbed to the auction. He’d been proud of me for lasting so many years without accepting Alana’s offer to join. I hoped he wouldn’t be ashamed, but I couldn’t wait any longer to help my family. I wasn’t making enough money as a maid, and definitely not as a pickpocket, which could also land my ass in jail if I got caught.

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