CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Jess
I had been primped and polished to within an inch of my life, but so far Madeline and Glory hadn’t let me see myself. “You know, y’all should really open a salon and boutique together. Madeline could run the boutique, and Glory could run the salon. You’d make a fortune.”
They both got really quiet, and I looked up to see that they were staring at each other.
“That’s not a bad idea,” Glory said, which I’d come to learn was a high compliment from her.
“I love it, actually,” Madeline admitted.
“You’re welcome,” I grinned at them, and they both laughed. It was the first time I’d seen Glory laugh. She was always beautiful, but she kind of had a bad case of resting bitch face. When she smiled? She was breathtaking.
“Okay,” Glory clapped her hands. “We’re finished. Have a look at yourself.”
I stood up in my Christian Louboutin shoes and turned to see myself in the floor length mirror. I gasped and held a hand to my mouth. “Wow,” I said. “I look so… glamorous. I’ve never looked like this in my life.”
I smoothed the skirt of my beautiful blue cocktail dress.
It was gorgeous with a silky netting over my shoulders.
It was studded with crystals, and from a distance, it looked strapless and like I had little stars all over my chest and back.
The rest was a dark blue gown of raw silk.
The bodice was tight, but the skirt flared out. It ended a few inches above my knees.
“You have great legs,” Madeline said. “I wanted to show them off. Carmen’s been into putting the featured Cinnamon Girl in a ball gown each time, while the other women wear cocktail dresses. This is like a hybrid mix.”
“Well, I love it. I’m never getting rid of this dress. I’ll be ninety years old in a nursing home and still pulling it out to wear to go play bingo,” I said absentmindedly while doing half twirls in the mirror.
Glory gave Madeline a look. “Just when I start to think it’s impossible that she and Nadine are sisters, she says something like that and… well, I see it.”
Madeline grinned. “And that’s a very good thing,” she said, giving me a quick hug.
I hugged her back. “Thank you both. Seriously. I couldn’t have put this look together. I’ve been wearing biker chick chic for the past five years. It’s not exactly auction ready.”
I heard the click clack of heels hurrying our way and looked up to see Carmen almost upon us. “Are you ready?”
“I’m ready,” I said, my heart starting to pound. I didn’t love the idea of walking the runway while Carmen talked about my selling points. At least I knew someone would bid on me. Enzo would be out there waiting. I took a deep breath and blew it out slowly, then followed her out to the runway.
She practically had to push me through the stage door and into the spotlight. My smile froze for a minute. The light was so bright I could barely see any faces.
And then Carmen put her hand on my back and started walking with me to the center of the long runway. I could look down and see men staring up at me from tables on either side of the runway.
Carmen stopped and started saying all these nice things about me while I walked to the end of the runway and did a few half turns like she’d taught me. Then I stood and smiled out at the audience of men, hoping my eyes would land on someone I knew. Anyone I knew.
And then they did. With relief, I saw the Salazar table.
Enzo, Leo, and Joaquin were sitting there with…
Ardley? I wasn’t sure it was her. She was dressed to the nines, wearing contacts, makeup, and a form-fitting dress.
She looked beautiful. Leo kept looking over at her, and I found myself more interested in what was going on between them than anything I was doing on stage.
Carmen was not. “Come on back here, Jess, so the gentlemen get to see how lovely… and sexy… you look tonight.”
I did as she asked, swaying my hips and playing to the audience. It wasn’t that far from stripping except I had clothes on and didn’t look skanky.
Maybe it was very far from stripping, come to think of it.
I did one more loop of the runway while she spoke, and then I paused at the end and waited for the bidding to start.
Several men bid, and I recognized most of their faces from Cayenne.
They were handsome, but I shuddered to think of living with someone I didn’t know at all. I was glad when Enzo raised his paddle.
A few of the men instantly back off when they realized he was bidding. But a couple of others didn’t.
“Do I hear two million?”
My legs almost buckled at the thought of all that money. It was crazy how much disposable income some people had while others could barely pay their water bill. It made me sad.
Suddenly, Joaquin got in on the bidding. I froze. This wasn’t part of the plan. But I saw the way his dark blue eyes raked over me, and I knew he was going to keep trying to win.
Enzo looked pissed. He sighed.
“How about two point five million?” Carmen asked. I glanced behind me and saw that she was shooting laser beams at Joaquin with her eyes. He ignored her and raised his paddle. So did Enzo.
And then there was a commotion towards the back of the room, and Byron, Nadine, and Reynolds hurried in.
“Three million,” Byron called.
Everyone turned to look at him. We all knew he was well off, but I didn’t think he was able to drop three million dollars so easily. Or that he even had three million dollars.
I saw Enzo lean over and say something to Joaquin. He looked angry, but he threw his paddle down. Enzo laid his down, too, and winked at me.
Byron was going to win. But… why did he want me? I glanced back at Carmen. She’d made it sound like she and Byron were together. I’d heard him say that he loved her. What was going on?
Carmen’s face looked sad and a little angry. “Sold to Byron St. James for three million dollars!”
I walked to the end of the stage while she said the closing words for the auction.
“Gentlemen, I’m going to do something I haven’t done before to close out the show,” Carmen said.
“I have already selected next month’s featured Cinnamon Girl.
And she’s someone you’ve been waiting to see in the auction for a long time.
So, without further ado, here comes everyone’s favorite bartender, Nora Fontaine! ”
There was a brief, shocked silence, and then the men started clapping.
Some stomped their feet and a few even whistled as Nora made her way down the runway.
She looked like a dream in a white satin gown with silver beading that caught the lights just right.
She was stunning, and I knew she’d bring in a huge bid at her auction.
She walked to the end and gave me a hug.
We stood there together for a minute, and Ardley took pictures.
I was surprised, because cameras were usually banned, but I figured Carmen had a good plan.
She always did.
“Thanks again, Nora,” I whispered.
“No problem at all, sweetie,” She gave me a little squeeze, waved to the crowd and walked back down the runway.
“That concludes tonight’s auction. Let me have all of the ladies who participated tonight come back out on the runway. Gentlemen, please escort your ladies to the back, where there are hostesses to explain the next steps to you.”
I walked down the stairs. Byron hurried over to me. “Let’s go back there. I have to fill things out, I’m sure, since I was late.”
“Where were you?”
“I’ll explain everything once we get to my condo. I actually live right below Enzo’s penthouse in Salazar Towers, so you’re going to be doubly safe. You’ll live with me but still be in close proximity to Enzo Salazar. Not a bad duo of protection,” he grinned.
“Right.” My smile suddenly felt frozen. He hadn’t wanted to bid on me. He’d only wanted to protect me. His bid was probably fake, too. The Salazars were probably covering it. I tried not to sigh.
He was more than likely just as in love with Carmen as he’d always been. He was just providing security until Skeeter was caught.
I felt my eyes getting moist, and I had to fight back the urge to cry. It was just so difficult. I’d fallen hard and fast for Byron.
Byron wrapped his arm around me and gave me a quick hug. “You look gorgeous,” he whispered in my ear. “I’m going to have Enzo and Leo take you home while I handle the paperwork and talk to Carmen for a bit. I’ll see you soon.” He smiled at me distractedly and then sort of left me there.
It wasn’t long and I saw him in a deep discussion with Carmen. I wanted to watch and see what it was about if I could, but Enzo showed up at my side.
He offered me his arm like the gentleman he was, and I slid mine through his. “Shall we?” he asked.
He walked me to his car, a Mercedes Maybach, while his driver opened a door for us. Leo was also riding with us, it seemed.
“Is your driver with St. James Security?” I asked.
Enzo nodded. “Byron and his family provide the security details for Salazar Enterprises. It’s a change I made a couple of years ago. My father, Carlos, didn’t think we needed that level of protection.” He shrugged. “I thought he was wrong.”
“Well, this is beautiful,” I said, in awe of the luxurious interior of the car.
Leo sat across from us and looked uncharacteristically down in the dumps. He was also quiet. I knew I hadn’t been around the Salazars long, but I felt that I’d gotten to know Leo’s personality fairly well. He was so open it was hard not to feel like you knew him.
“Are you okay, Leo?”
“Yeah. I guess. Thanks for the ride home.”
“Do you live near Enzo and Byron?”
He nodded. “I’m in Salazar Towers, too.”
I knew Salazar Towers was one of the high-rise buildings not too far from the clubs, but I wasn’t sure which one. I really hadn’t had much time to familiarize myself with West Bay yet. I bit my lip. With Skeeter on the loose, I wouldn’t be going on any tours in the near future, either.
“Did y’all see Ardley tonight?” he suddenly asked, running his head through his hair and making it stand on end.
Enzo looked at him, unruffled. “Yes. She looked lovely. It was nice to see her in clothes that fit for a change.”
Leo frowned. “I hope you weren’t staring at her.”
Enzo rolled his eyes. “Good lord. Did you want me to have seen her or not? Make up your mind.”
“Well, yeah.” He looked perplexed. “Guess why she was so dressed up.”
Enzo cocked an eyebrow. “Because the auction is black tie?”
“Yes, but she also had a date.” Leo leaned forward when he said it. “Did you know Ardy dated?”
“Leo, she’s a beautiful woman,” I said. “I’m not surprised she dates.”
“Well, I was.” He looked out the window.
A smile played at Enzo’s lips. “You’re upset because she had a date tonight. You are aware, aren’t you, that she hears you talking about all the conquests you fuck on a nightly basis in Cayenne?”
Leo’s face turned a little pink. “I guess I didn’t think about it.”
“You like her,” I observed.
“No. I don’t. Not like that, I just… she’s not my type.”
“What’s not your type? A beautiful face? A great body? A sweet disposition?” Enzo asked.
“I’m used to… erm,” he looked at me as if realizing I might not want to hear about how many women he fucked each night. “A certain type of woman. One who doesn’t mind a lot of sexual activity.”
“You don’t know, Leo. She could be into that. If so, you’re missing out.”
“I guess I just need to think about it. It surprised me tonight, that’s all. She looked… fucking delicious. And then she had this tall, good-looking guy show up to take her out. He drove a nice car, too. He’s not a loser.”
“You should be happy for her,” Enzo said, “and go back to being friends with her. You’re right; she wouldn’t fit in with your lifestyle.”
Leo nodded, but I couldn’t help noticing how sad he looked.
“Why don’t you go back out? You could swing by Cayenne with Joaquin,” I suggested. I knew they liked to share women and thought that might cheer him up.
“Nah. He’s bummed tonight, too. He wanted to win you in the auction. He’s got a serious thing for you, Jess. And Joaquin almost never feels like that about anyone. So, he might come over and bring a pizza and some beer. I think we’ll play on the PlayStation or something.”
“That sounds fun,” I lied. I didn’t enjoy the PlayStation. I liked mobile games, but I wasn’t going to tell him that. “Do y’all play those shooter games?”
He shook his head. “We like MLB: The Show.
I nodded as if I knew what it was. Skeeter and the MC guys had sat around playing console games a lot. I’d used it as an excuse to disappear for a while and read a good book.
I thought about Joaquin having a thing for me. I couldn’t imagine being with him. I mean, I could imagine the sex. That part wasn’t difficult at all since I’d seen him in the act. More than once. But the day-to-day relationship? I couldn’t see him doing that.
And I wasn’t looking for a sexual relationship without any meaning.
That just wasn’t my thing. I didn’t fault anyone else for it; I just wasn’t interested in that.
I liked seeing what Reynolds and my sister had.
They seemed to be perfect for each other.
Nadine had told me enough to know that their relationship had gotten off to a rocky start.
But she said he’d more than made up for that, and she couldn’t imagine life without him now.
That’s what I wanted. I had wanted it with Byron, but it was clear Carmen was going to get that, not me.
I didn’t know that I would ever have the kind of relationship I’d dreamed about.