Chapter 21
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
ORION
Elena still lingered on my mind as I entered the extravagant silent auction. I couldn’t push her away as easily as I’d hoped. Could I abandon what I had with Kate? She was an integral part of my life. Was I ready to move on? I didn’t know what to do.
And that infuriated me too.
I’d hoped this event would distract me from the embarrassing episode in the Cosmic Lounge. But all it did was make me wish she were here at the auction with me. I could buy her all the clothes she wanted.
You have it bad for her.
Elena left without saying anything to me. She probably saw me on a conference call, but still, she could’ve interrupted me. I didn’t mind.
She left me a sticky note with a drawing of a smiling flower. I’d stared at it for too long.
Elena was like the sunshine to my gloom and doom. Even her reaction to my inexplicable explanation of what had transpired earned my respect. She didn’t push me away like I had expected.
More importantly, I hadn’t stepped away like I had planned. I’d stepped even closer.
Clearing my head, I headed to the crowded banquet room. I hadn’t expected this many people to attend the silent auction, but I supposed the New England elites enjoyed their fashion and food. Arrow had donated some CheckMate Red and CheckMate Black to the hotel for the event.
The host standing in front of the banquet room checked us in, providing Ralph and me each with a bidding tablet and our table number.
“We’re over there.” Ralph gestured to a table with four chairs and an elegant centerpiece with glowing lights.
I didn’t know who was sitting at our table. I glanced around at the conference room, taking in the faces. Unfamiliar faces met my gaze, and I offered a courteous nod. I hadn’t planned on attending tonight’s event until I learned Samuel Donatello would be here.
He had been roaming freely even after two women were discovered held captive at his home. His lawyer got him released on a two-million-dollar bond awaiting trial. When I discovered Sam had posted bail, I directed Ralph to reach out to those girls’ families and offer them the best legal team. Their legal fees would be paid under a company that couldn’t be traced back to me.
Ralph had been tailing him upon his release. Who was the judge who’d allowed him to roam freely? I had no doubt he received an irresistible bonus. Ralph had sent me pictures of Sam living life as if he didn’t have a trial waiting for him. As if he didn’t care who was watching him. A man with this kind of confidence or arrogance confirmed one thing for me: he had someone backing him. Someone powerful was protecting him.
No one was invincible. He should also know that no one was indispensable. A man like Sam was normally a scapegoat—the man who harbored all the blame and would probably die for it.
So here I was attending a silent auction to observe a man who probably had connections to The Trogyn. Perhaps members of The Trogyn would be here tonight.
I would rather be at home, continuing my research on Octavius Rollins, the man Elena was seeing. What kind of name was that anyway? I spent too much time on her social media pages to see who he was. I couldn’t find anyone with that name. This was something I’d never done before, but I had to know her type.
“There he is.” Ralph’s voice yanked me back to the auction. He jerked his chin to the entrance. “That woman looks underage. What do you think?”
I studied the brunette with her hair piled up onto her head. Her youthful face was dolled in makeup. The black gown and diamond necklace made her appear older. The fucker enjoyed young girls. She looked like she was eighteen. According to my files, Sam was an Italian man in his fifties. He’d never been married and had no kids.
Bringing a date who could be his daughter to this event wasn’t a smart idea. “We’ll just monitor him and see who he speaks to.”
A waiter walked by with a tray of champagne and some hors d’oeuvres. Ralph and I each grabbed a champagne flute and sat down.
“Do you think he’s an elite?” Ralph asked.
“Not sure.” I sipped the champagne. “But his careless actions tell me no. An elite would be more careful. But then again, he could be an elite who believes he’s untouchable.”
But my gut told me he wasn’t an elite, he was simply working for one.
“Hello there.” A pretty brunette approached our table with her red-headed friend. Both wore fitted dresses that showed off their figures. “You must be Orion Reimann. I’m Chantel Henderson from Channel Seven News. This is my friend, Sabrina Marshall from Hollywood Chitchat.”
I didn’t want to be sitting at a table with journalists, especially someone specializing in gossip. The only reporter I trusted was the one mad at me right now.
“Are you ladies here to buy dresses?” Ralph smiled at the women.
“How can we resist exceptional designs? We like supporting charity.” Chantel sipped her champagne.
“What about you?” Sabrina asked Ralph and looked over to me.
Ralph lifted his champagne flute. “Supporting a good cause.”
“It’s important to support the community,” I added.
“No significant others for you to buy dresses for?” Chantel smiled, revealing perfect teeth.
I liked a confident woman, but this one appeared overly confident. I’d seen her on Channel 7 News. Did Elena get along with Chantel? She reminded me of my cousin, Jasper, a spoiled trust fund kid who believed everyone worked for him.
“He’s got too many to buy for.” Ralph slapped a playful hand on my shoulder, looking at me with amusement in his eyes. “How do you even remember all their names? I’d be so confused.”
Asshole.
But I appreciated him stepping in so I didn’t have to reply to Chantel.
Chantel raked a gaze down my body, making her invitation obvious. “The noncommittal type fascinates me.”
“They’re like a charging bull, focusing only on expanding their empire,” Sabrina said.
Chantel studied me. “There haven’t been many images of you until recently. What made you step into the spotlight?”
Because I wanted to. Because my presence in Providence benefited the WaterFyre Rising video game and several business ventures I needed to promote.
But that wasn’t what Chantel was asking. She believed it had to do with a woman. So I played along.
“I’m redefining the term commitment. It’s time to see who’s out there that’s suitable for me. If I’m in the shadows, she won’t see me.”
“A fashion show is the perfect place to meet potential partners.” Chantel smirked.
Ralph lifted his eyebrows and nibbled on the appetizers.
“What do you know about me?” I asked.
“You’re an eligible bachelor with businesses all over the world. Your father and cousin run the largest bank in Europe. You’re not married, and you don’t have a girlfriend. You’re friends with billionaires like Remington Starke, Grayson Wu, Arrow Holt, Forrest Navarro, and Royce Viktorsson.”
“I suppose you did your homework.”
“I’m a journalist, remember? I like to uncover information about those who interest me.” Her eyes gleamed. “You interest me a great deal.”
“The audience at Hollywood Chitchat would love to know more about you and the WaterFyre Rising team. All of them have significant others but you.” Sabrina got out of her seat. “Can I take a photo of you and Chantel?”
“Take one of me with him first.” Chantel leaned close to me.
“Beautiful.” Sabrina snapped a few pictures and passed her phone to Ralph, asking him to take a picture of me with the two ladies.
Christ.
“That’s enough photos for today,” I said.
“But you’re so photogenic.” Sabrina glanced at her phone.
“Don’t I get a picture with you pretty ladies?” Ralph winked.
“Of course.” Sabrina passed me the phone. “Please?”
I tossed Ralph an amused look. Unlike me, he didn’t mind the attention from the women. Mom told me when Ralph was younger, he was a ladies’ man. But his heart was now set on a woman who took care of my home in Sweden. They’d been in love a long time, but he hadn’t asked her to marry him.
“Can you send me those pictures?” Chantel asked Sabrina, then turned to me. “Do you want a copy?”
Absolutely not.
“No thanks.” I wouldn’t offer my phone number. “Where are your boyfriends? They should be here making donations on your behalf.”
“I’m recently single,” Chantel said.
“My boyfriend is traveling right now.” Sabrina sat back down and began a conversation with Ralph.
Chantel whispered, “Feel free to make a donation on my behalf.” She placed her hand on my thigh, running it up and down.
I’d dealt with several aggressive women before. They needed to know where I stood before it got out of hand.
I gripped her hand, placing it back onto her thigh. “We should concentrate on the auction.”
She pouted, and a slow smile crept onto her lips. “If you want to concentrate on other things later, I’ve got a room in this hotel for the evening.”
“I’m busy tonight.”
She was an attractive woman, and a lot of men would want the enticing offer. She had a perfect body, the right curves, a pretty face, and plump lips that promised an exciting evening.
Despite that, my body didn’t react to her. Not in the slightest.
Another woman held my interest. This woman not only commanded my body, she also reached into my psyche, shoving away the darkness like no one had done.
A woman dressed in a gold ballgown approached the podium, gave the audience instructions for the bidding process, and announced the beginning of the show. The band in the corner increased their volume, and the waitresses emerged with platters of more hors d’oeuvres.
Chantel slipped a piece of paper with her phone number into the chest pocket of my jacket. Then she placed her palm on my thigh. I’d met a lot of brazen women in my life, but this one was beyond that. Was this how she conducted all her interviews? Or was she testing to see how far she could go?
I gripped her wrist, moving it aside. “You’re a very aggressive woman.”
“You seem like a guy who prefers a woman who knows what she wants.” She licked her bottom lip.
There were several ways a woman could show her desires and confidence. But not any of these ways were admirable to me.
From under the table, Ralph kicked me lightly. I looked at him, but he pretended he was busy eating.
“These are delicious,” he said to Sabrina, who nodded in agreement.
Wasn’t Chantel covering the banquet for Channel 7 News? Did she choose this table on purpose? Had she targeted me tonight? I kicked Ralph back, and he knew what to do.
“So what kind of men do you like to report on?”
Chantel’s face beamed as though she’d been waiting for someone to ask her that question. If that question had come from me, it would’ve given the wrong impression. I’d experienced this kind of situation several times and Ralph had helped me maneuver out of each unscathed.
Though I ran a successful empire, women were a different topic altogether. Some required too much energy from me.
And some women—like Elena—introduced me to a fascinating uncharted terrain. Everywhere I looked, something new intrigued me. She filled in the parts of me I had assumed were already full. I was discovering a lot about myself recently, and it was all because of her.
I wished she were here with me.
As the models emerged from the back, the waitress placed two plates of hors d’oeuvres filled with stuffed mushrooms, smoked trout croquettes, goat cheese and salami stuffed dates, and other delicacies.
A woman wearing a black gown with a section of the dress twisted into a flower shape walked between the tables. She stopped and chatted with potential buyers.
I glanced at the tablet and saw the dress had already had a few bids.
Sabrina kept Chantel busy as she swiped to see more dresses.
My gaze remained on Sam at the far-right table. The young girl walked off with a woman. He chatted with another man, eating and laughing.
Something red caught the corner of my eye, pulling my attention away from Sam. My heart galloped when Elena walked down the carpeted aisle like a powerful goddess who didn’t need to say a word or make a single gesture.
Her mere presence demanded all the attention from everyone.