Chapter 3
THREE
Sienna
I stare at the grumpy, brooding man with stormy eyes and try to think of something to say. I don’t know his name, but I know who he is. He just moved to Wolf Valley, and while I’ve never interacted with him at my job at the school, I’ve heard from others that he’s cold and aloof.
I twist the hem of my lingerie tighter around my finger and stare at him, hoping he’ll break the silence. The man who showed him to my room clears his throat, and I glance at him. Heath growls, and when my eyes snap back to him, he seems to relax.
What the hell is happening here?
“Heath,” he says.
“Sienna,” I say softly.
“Is that your real name?”
I nod.
“Since your prize is a virgin, we do require that you confirm her virginity before we collect the money,” the attendant says.
I blush as I push to my feet, opening my mouth to object.
Heath’s cold gray eyes snap to the man. “That won’t be happening.”
Huh? I drop the lingerie and stare at Heath, panic clawing up my throat. “You regret bidding on me?”
“Fuck, no,” Heath says. “But I’m not fucking you in a room with a bunch of strangers outside.”
“Oh.”
“Sir, we do insist,” the attendant says.
Heath shakes his head. “I trust her. Checking won’t be necessary.”
“Sir—”
“Let’s do the payment. Now,” Heath says firmly.
The attendant nods reluctantly, frowning as he turns and leaves the room.
“Get your things together,” Heath tells me. “I’ll be back. Then we need to talk.”
With those words, he turns and disappears down the hallway.
My stomach is in knots as I gather up my clothes. Am I supposed to change into them? He didn’t say. But he was adamant that he wasn’t going to fuck me here, with everyone around. That must mean he’s taking me home to do it there.
I’ve spent the last few days wondering about the man who would win me. I hoped it would be someone pleasant and gentle, who would try to make it good for me. I’m not sure I’ve gotten that in Heath. He’s hard to get a read on.
My body warms as I think about the way he looked at me, and I bite my bottom lip. At least I’m attracted to him, I think as I stuff my clothes into my backpack and sit on the bed to wait for him.
I’ve never paid much attention to boys. Jem and I were too engrossed in reading or arts and crafts to care about going on dates. All the guys in our class were immature and boring. Heath, though… he makes me feel things no one else ever has.
The door opens, and I sit up straight, my face heating at my dirty thoughts.
“Are you ready?” Heath asks.
I nod wordlessly, hopping off the bed and making my way shakily to his side.
He glares down at my heels, and I wonder why he seems upset by them.
“Here,” he says, shrugging out of his jacket and wrapping it around me.
He zips the zipper up all the way to my chin and pulls the hood up, buttoning that in place, too. The coat is way too big for me, and I have to push the sleeves up to grab my backpack.
“Give me that.”
Before I can protest, Heath takes my bag in one hand and swoops me up with the other.
“Wait!” I gasp. I’m perched on his hip, my legs dangling. I love the way he handles me. He makes me feel light and dainty, even though I’m not. “I’m too heavy. You’ll hurt yourself.”
Heath doesn’t bother answering, just leaves the room and walks out the front door.
“Did you drive here?” he asks after a minute.
“No, they sent a car for me.”
He nods, and we head over to a fancy-looking SUV. Opening the back door, he sets my backpack inside, then opens the passenger door and gently lowers me onto the seat.
“I could have walked,” I tell him.
“Not in those shoes.”
I groan. “Was it that obvious?”
He looks up at me. “It’s icy, and those shoes aren’t meant to be worn outside.”
“They’re shoes to be fucked in.”
My face flames. I don’t know where those words came from.
Heath stares at me, his gray eyes turning to dark steel. He leans closer. “What do you know about that?”
“N-nothing,” I stammer. “I just… some of the girls were making comments backstage. I’m a virgin. I swear!”
“I don’t care if you are or not.” I blink. “Okay, I do. The thought of another man touching you…”
I wait for him to continue, but he doesn’t.
“You said that we needed to talk?” I remind him.
He straightens. “Right. Let’s go home.”
He closes the door before I can say anything, and I shift in my seat as I watch him climb behind the wheel. He’s so big and rugged. He reminds me of a sexy lumberjack. A super-rich one.
“How… how much did you bid on me?” I ask, shocked that I hadn’t thought about the amount of money before.
“Ten million, but we’re going to talk about that,” he says as we pull out of the driveway and head down the mountain.
“Ten million?” I wheeze.
He gives me a funny look. “Did you need more? Why were you at that fucking auction in the first place?”
“I… TEN MILLION?” I shout, staring at him like he’s crazy.
“Sienna,” he says when I start to hyperventilate.
“Oh, my god. What are you planning to do to me? I mean, for that amount of money, it has to be really fucked up. I shouldn’t have gotten in your car. I shouldn’t have done any of this. I—”
“Sienna!” Heath slams on the brakes and pulls onto the side of the road.
I take deep breaths as the panic attack hits me.
Why did I do this? Oh, my god, he could kill me! Jem would know where to send the police, but it could be too late by then and—
“Easy, I’ve got you. Take a deep breath,” Heath says right against my ear.
I realize that at some point, he unbuckled me and dragged me into his lap. “Let me go!” I scream.
He cups my face. “I’m not going to hurt you. I would never hurt you.”
“You bid TEN MILLION DOLLARS ON ME! The bidding was nowhere near that! Why would anyone do that?” I shout.
“Because I didn’t want any of those other men to see you like that. You shouldn’t be naked and paraded around in front of anyone but me.”
“TEN MILLION DO—”
“Yeah, I know. I didn’t mean to freak you out. I just wanted you off that stage.”
“That, that’s like…” I trail off, my mind working overtime.
“It’s a drop in the ocean to me.”
“You sound like an asshole.”
He laughs. “Sorry.”
“Are you?”
He shrugs. “I didn’t mean to make you panic like that.”
“You promise you’re not a murderer?”
“Promise.” He crosses his heart, and something about the movement is endearing.
“Okay,” I relent, moving to crawl back into my seat.
“Sit tight. We’re home,” he says, shifting into drive.
“What?”
I look out the window, and my mouth drops open. Up the driveway is the most beautiful house I’ve ever seen. It’s a modern-style cabin, right on the edge of the mountain. An icy lake sits below it, and the forest seems to stretch for miles all around it.
“You live here?”
Heath nods as he pulls into the garage to park. “Come on.”
He climbs out of the car, taking me with him. Then he carries me inside and sets me down on a couch. I sink into the soft leather, trying not to moan as I relax.
“So, we need to talk.”
“Okay,” I say hesitantly.
“I want you to marry me.”
I blink up at him. “Are you insane?”
“No. I need a wife. Now.”
“Yeah… the auction was only for one night,” I tell him, wondering if he read the information wrong.
“I know. I’m talking about extending that contract.”
“And you want me to be your wife?”
“Yes.”
“Uh-huh. And why do you need a wife right now?”
“My grandpa died, and—”
“Oh, Heath. I’m so sorry,” I say softly.
“I’m not. The old man was a bastard.”
“Oh… okay…”
“His will stipulates that I have to marry before Christmas to get my inheritance.”
I stare at him as he paces.
“My family comes into town in a few days. We can get the marriage license tomorrow and be married by this weekend.”
“I… No one will believe we’re a real couple,” I say, scrambling for a reason not to do this. “I mean, we met an hour ago. We know nothing about each other!”
“We have a few days to fix that,” he says calmly.
“Oh, my god,” I groan, burying my face in my hands.
He’s crazy, but what’s crazier is that I’m considering doing it.
“I’ll give you another ten million to do it.”
I choke on air. “Stop throwing money around willy-nilly!” I snap.
He bites back a grin as he sinks into the chair opposite.
Damn it. With that kind of money, I’d be set for life. I could take care of my grandparents’ house and have money left over. I could give some to Jem to help her out.
Never having to worry about money again is so damn tempting. I chew on my bottom lip as I think it over.
“What would I have to do?” I ask him slowly.
“Pretend to be my fiancée when my family comes to town, then marry me. After that, I’ll get my inheritance, and we can split.”
“When?”
“They come into town in a few days for Christmas, so—”
“No, I mean when do we split?”
He shifts in his seat, and for the first time since I met him, he looks doubtful.
“We’d have to wait a few weeks at least,” he says finally.
“And you don’t feel bad about lying to your family?”
He shakes his head. “They’re not good people, Sienna. We’ve never gotten along.”
I study him for a beat, wondering if I can go through with this. In the end, the thought of never being stressed or worried about my grandparents’ place again seals the deal.
“All right, I’m in.” I stick out my hand.
He stares at it for a second before his hand grips mine, and we shake.