Page 39 of Into the Woods

So I put my head down and get to work confirming attendees for the auction’s accelerated timeline. Validating the bidding system and wire transfer portal. Touching base with security.

Out of all the tasks I have to get through, that’s the one that gives me heartburn. That’s the one I need Teague for and he’s off with little Miss Anxiety playing house or maybe he got her settled far from this shit show and is fucking her into a boneless, tantric, Zen, whatever the fuck state.

When he pushes into my office a couple hours later, looking rough and thoroughly fucked, my low level pissed off ramps up to fully irate.

“Nice,” I grumble, tossing him a glare that would stop most men in their tracks. “Your idea of a quick out and back is far different from mine.” I push back from my desk and stand. Everything tightened up while I sat at my desk doing shit I much prefer to hand off to others.

Teague sinks into the corner of the sofa on the far side of the room. He looks like absolute dogshit.

He meets my glare with one of his own. “Yeah, there was nothing quick or easy about that.”

“But you have her tucked away. Safe at one of your properties?” I pour myself a whiskey and offer one to my friend. “Think you’ve got it in you to get some actual work done or do you need to recover from yourliaison, youraventure?”

Teague’s glare relaxes into an eye roll that any teenage girl would be proud of. “I wish.”

I huff a laugh. “If you weren’t getting your dick wet, what the fuck took you so long? The plan was to drop her off and get your ass back here, not to take a fucking personal day to?—”

“Again, I fucking wish.” He reaches for his laptop on the side table, pulling it to his knees before popping the lid open. He taps at the keys, his eyes darting across the screen until he seems satisfied with what he sees.

My brows push together as the glass of whiskey stalls on its way to my mouth.

“I took her to the safe house. Arranged for it to be fully stocked, everything Truie could possibly need was there, waiting for her. I had her inside, gave her the tour and had her settled. But when I moved to leave, she fucking fell apart.”

“Jesus, you’ve gotten soft,” I say.

Teague scowls and shakes his head. “The hell I have, she fought me like her life depended on it. Lashing out, hitting me, arms flailing, the whole nine yards. I assure you, Tru did not hold back, not that she inflicted much damage,” he adds quickly before continuing. “The closest she got to taking me out was when she grazed my balls trying to knee me in the junk.”

I can’t help but laugh at the mental image of that tiny, trembly woman getting the jump on Teague.

“Go ahead and laugh, asshole. I wasted an entire day and ended up right back where we started it.”

“We?”

Teague sighs, dropping his head back against the cushion of the sofa. “Yeah, we. I ended up having to bring her back here, tuck her away in my room.”

Sometimes saying nothing, not asking a single question, is the best way to get straight to the information I want. And I’m sick of wasting time today. We still have a lot of shit to cover before tomorrow, and Teague’s escapades have cost us valuable time.

“It was the only place she would calm down enough for me to leave her.”

“So you have a woman tucked between your sheets. Good enough motivation to get this done.” I drop down into my chair and drain my glass, wishing I had the same.

Chapter 18

Dominoes

Winnie

Two days.

Two days that I’ve been held captive in this…this luxury prison.

Two days of pampering and panicking, fighting to flee and failing miserably.

Two days of playing mental reels of the worst-case scenario for what I’m going to have to face at the auction.

And then what?

Christophe is cold, hard—in so many ways—and acts like he doesn’t care, but I felt something after that dinner when he held me tight against him.

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