Page 13 of Auctioned to the Billionaire

We walk side by side, our breaths visible in the cold air. Hugh keeps a protective hand on the small of my back, guiding me along the icy sidewalk.

“Thank you for tonight,” I say after a while, glancing up at him.

“You don’t have to thank me,” he replies, his voice soft. “I wanted to do this. I wanted to spend time with you.”

My heart skips, and I bite my lip, unsure of how to respond.

“You mean a lot to me, Letty,” he continues, his gaze steady on mine.

“You mean a lot to me too,” I admit, my voice barely above a whisper.

We stop walking, the snow falling softly around us, and for a moment, it feels like the rest of the world fades away.

Hugh reaches out, brushing a strand of hair from my face, his touch sending a shiver down my spine.

“Letty,” he murmurs, his voice low and rough.

“Yes?”

He hesitates, as if searching for the right words. But before he can say anything, I rise onto my tiptoes and press a soft kiss to his cheek.

“Thank you,” I say again, my cheeks burning.

For a moment, he looks stunned, his dark blue eyes searching mine. Then, slowly, a smile spreads across his face.

“You’re welcome,” he says, his voice warm with promise.

As we head back to the car, my heart feels lighter than it has in months.

Maybe that auction will be the best thing to ever happen to me.

SIX

Hugh

This isn’t real.

I’ve been telling myself that all night. Dinner with Letty was perfect—so much so that it almost felt like a dream. But the truth looms heavy in the back of my mind: this isn’t a real date.

I bought her.

The thought makes my stomach churn. I didn’t plan it like this—not the dinner, not the conversation, and certainly not the kiss I keep imagining. It wasn’t supposed to go this way, but then, Letty has always had a way of turning my plans upside down.

She’s quiet as we drive back to my house, her hands resting in her lap, her pale green eyes gazing out the window. The soft glow of the dashboard lights plays against her features, highlighting the delicate curve of her jaw and the way her blonde hair falls over her shoulders in soft waves.

She’s beautiful. No—she’sbreathtaking.

I grip the steering wheel tighter, trying to focus on the road. But it’s no use. My mind keeps wandering back to the dinner, thesound of her laughter, the way she’d teased me about my high school fight like she’d known me forever.

And then there’s the way she looked at me. She looked at me like I was more than just her boss.

Does she feel it too? The connection between us, the pull that’s been growing since the day she walked into my office? Or am I reading too much into every little glance, every fleeting smile?

I steal a quick glance at her, my chest tightening. I want to ask her to lay it all out on the table, but fear holds me back. What if she doesn’t feel the same way? What if I’ve ruined everything before I ever really had my chance with her?

“It was a good night,” Letty says suddenly, her voice soft but steady.

I glance at her, caught off guard by the simple statement. “Yeah,” I agree. “It was.”

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