Page 5 of Auctioned to the Titan

“Five hundred thousand dollars.”

It’s an amount not nearly enough to deserve this woman. I just need to get her off stage then I would offerher,not this filthy organization or Kirk, what I really think she deserves.

Which is the whole fucking world.

The room falls silent.

I can feel every eye on me, but I don’t care. I meet the auctioneer’s stunned gaze, daring him to question me, to challenge my authority. He won’t.

The hammer falls, sealing the deal, and I release a breath I didn’t know I was holding.

They lead her off stage, and I’m already moving to follow. Kirk intercepts me, leading me to a private room a few minutes later, and as angry as I am at the man, he’s not even a thought in mind as my heart pounds for reasons I can’t quite explain. Even when making major deals and meeting powerful figures around the world, I didn’t feel this nervous.

It feels like I’ve been drugged.

Kirk opens the door, ogling the woman within, and it takes everything within me not to slam him against the door and tell him to never again look at what’s mine. Instead, I focus on her, standing in the center of the room, looking even smaller and more fragile than she did on the stage. Her hands are clenched at her sides, and she looks up at me with those wide, hazel eyes.

I shut the door behind me, leaving the space between us awkward and silent. Her shoulders are tense and unlike on stage, she can barely meet my eyes.

Of course. I technically just bought her.

“Damon.”

“What?”

“My name. It’s Damon.”

I don’t know what I expected, but the way her eyes widen in fear at my name makes my heart ache. All my life, I’ve had people look at me that way and it’s never been a problem. But havingherlook at me like that is something I can’t stand.

I want her to trust me, not fear me. I’m going to do anything it takes to change that look on her face, no matter what.

I watch her carefully, standing just a few feet away, trying to get a sense of what’s running through her beautiful head. She’s still shaking.

I clear my throat, softening my voice as I take a step closer. “What’s your name?”

For a second, she hesitates, her fingers nervously twisting the fabric of her dress. Then, in a voice so quiet I barely hear it, she says, “Alice.”

Alice.

Alice Blackwell.

Why the fuck I just added my surname to her name, I can’t explain, but it suits her somehow. And that only strengthens the knot tightening in my chest.

I heard whispers of what happens in this room, what other buyers do in order to ‘check’ that their purchase is intact. It’s dehumanizing, immoral, and I hate it. But I also know Kirk will cause issues if we leave immediately.

That’s okay, I’ll play his game for now until I can take Alice away from here and then burn this fucking place to the ground.

The fact that I want to do things to her after I just purchased her makes me hate myself for a second. But then I realize that as much as I want to have this woman - in every fucking way - I would rather cut off my hands than touch her without her consent.

I watch her closely as she shifts on her feet, her eyes darting to the corners of the room, avoiding mine. She knows why we’re here.

“You… I have to strip, don’t I?” Her voice is shaky.

I clench my fists and take a small step closer to her. “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.”

Her gaze snaps to mine, and this time she doesn’t look away. She’s searching my face, like she’s trying to figure out if I’m lying or not.

I take another step, slowly, giving her space, but getting closer. “You’llneverhave to do anything you don’t want to do again, Alice. I promise you.”

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