Page 1 of Auctioned to the Billionaire

ONE

Letty

What the hellwas I thinking?

I’ve made some dumb decisions in my life. Bleaching my hair when I was sixteen, loaning money to my brother over the years, agreeing to work for Hugh Walter—all of those decisions were terrible, but this has to be hands down my worst idea ever.

I go to wipe my sweaty palms off on my pants and then freeze.

Oh yeah. I’m not wearing any pants.

I shake my hands out, trying to dry them as I pace back and forth in the back room. I can hear the muffled sounds of people talking down the hall, and I move over to the door, pressing my ear there to try to make out what’s being said.

I know that I have to be next, or close to next, anyway. I’ve been here, waiting, for hours. At first, I thought that would give me a chance to calm my nerves, but now I realize that that’s impossible, and I just want to get this over with.

I listen for the sound of the last bid wrapping up, but I can’t make it out. It’s all just raised voices, rowdy laughs and jeers,and the sound of something banging as the auction really heats up.

Please don’t let mine be like that. Please just let mine be over quickly. I just need to be sold to someone kind and generous. I just need to make two hundred and fifty thousand, and then this will all be over with.

I take a deep breath and resume my pacing. I’m wobbly in these high heels. I’ve been trying to practice, but it hasn’t helped much. I’m too nervous, too on edge.

I’m not this girl.

I’m not ready for this. For any of this.

My stomach flips, and I press a hand to my belly, trying to calm the nausea rolling through me.

I should just call this whole thing off. I know that I could leave and they wouldn’t force me to stay, but then, my problem wouldn’t go away either.

What do I do? What’s the right decision here?

I shouldn’t be here, I don’twantto be here, but I didn’t have any other choice. I need the money, and I need it fast. My blood boils as I think about what led to me being in this predicament, and the anger helps to steady my nerves.

My phone buzzes, and I dive for it, looking for any distraction that I can get. Hell, I think that if it was a telemarketer calling right now, I would gladly pick up and let them ramble their spiel at me.

“Hello?” I answer.

“Has it happened yet?” Lilou asks, and I swallow and shake my head before I realize that she can’t see me.

“No, but it should be soon.”

“You could cancel? I have some money saved and you can have it,” she offers and I smile sadly.

“It won’t be enough.”

“There has to be another way,” she says and I sigh.

Lilou is my roommate. I moved in with her when I moved to town a few months ago, and we’ve become great friends. She’s the only one who knows about the debt and why I’m here tonight. She tried to talk me out of it, but no matter how hard we both tried to think of a different solution, we couldn’t. I know that she hates that I have to do this. I do too, but I just can’t see another way out of it.

“Why not ask your boss? We both know that he has the money,” she says, and I groan.

She’s brought up me asking Hugh for a loan a few times, but I just can’t do it.

“I work for him. That just seems so…unprofessional. I can’t afford for him to fire me right now on top of everything else.”

She sighs, and we’re both silent for a moment. I can hear movement outside, and my eyes dart to the door.

“I think that I have to go,” I whisper, and she clears her throat.

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