Epilogue #2
When Alaska had first broached the topic of raising money for veterans, he was all for it. Said he’d be glad to do whatever was necessary. That was, until he’d learned that it was not only all the way across the country in Washington, DC…but it involved a bachelor auction.
By that time, it was too late. Alaska, Henley, little Jasna, and even Reese were already rolling with it and super-excited.
So, here he was, along with Owl.
“How long do we have to stay again?” Owl asked.
Pipe sighed. “You? You’re a spectator, you can go at any time. Though I appreciate you hauling ass all this way to have my back. Me? I’m third to last to be auctioned. Then I have to play nice with whoever bought me before I can get the hell out of here.”
Owl chuckled. “That sounds so wrong.”
Pipe’s lips turned down. It did. The whole idea of bachelor auctions, of “buying” anyone, for any reason, was ridiculous and outdated to his mind.
His phone vibrated with a text, and he pulled it out, praying it was Brick texting with some emergency that would necessitate him and Owl immediately flying back to New Mexico to The Refuge to deal with it.
He wasn’t so lucky.
Alaska
Thank you for doing this. You’re gonna raise so much money, I know it!
Pipe sighed. The only person who could’ve gotten him here, dressed up in this tux, parading in front of a bunch of women who scared the crap out of him because they were so out of his league, was Alaska. Or one of the other women who now lived at The Refuge with his friends.
Pipe
You owe me.
Alaska sent a bunch of emojis in response and Pipe put his phone back into his pocket.
“Alaska or Henley?” Owl asked.
“Alaska.”
His friend nodded and ran a finger under his collar. “You have to admit, the women aren’t hard on the eyes,” Owl observed as they looked around the crowded ballroom.
The event had around three hundred people in attendance.
Pipe was supposed to be mingling with the guests, chatting with the women, and maybe men, who might bid on him later.
It was supposed to be a chance to get to know people, and let them get to know him, to hopefully raise the bids in the auction.
But Pipe had never been good at small talk. He was too rough around the edges. So he stayed on the side of the room, leaning against the wall, praying the night went by quickly.
There were twenty men who would be auctioned tonight. Whoever won them would get a one-on-one dinner with their date. That was all that was promised, but Pipe had the feeling some of the women circling the room, looking like hyenas hunting for their next meal, were hoping for more.
They wouldn’t get it from him. Dinner was all Pipe had signed up for. He didn’t want or need a woman. Nope, he was perfectly happy being single.
After getting out of the SAS, the British special forces, he’d been lost. He’d seen and done too much to go back to a “normal” life.
He saw bad guys around every corner. He’d started getting tattoos the day he left the military, and didn’t care that many people looked down on him because of his ink.
Definitely didn’t mind that people shied away from him because they were leery. He preferred it, actually.
Being invited to be a part of The Refuge had been a lifeline for Pipe. He’d gone to America, to New Mexico, without a second thought. He loved what he and his friends had built. It truly was a refuge. Not only for them, but for the men and women who came to escape their lives for a short while.
And because he truly believed in the mission of The Refuge, to help those who suffered from PTSD, no matter if they were military or not, he was here. To raise money to help even more people.
“What time is it?” Pipe asked Owl.
His friend chuckled. “Two minutes after you last asked.”
“Bloody hell,” Pipe swore.
“Come on. Let’s walk around. Maybe if you keep that scowl on your face, you’ll scare all the ladies away and no one will bid on you.”
“Oh, that would be awesome,” Pipe breathed. Taking a deep breath, he pushed off the wall. He could do this. He’d promised Alaska.
Cora Rooney took a deep breath. She didn’t want to be here.
Didn’t fit in. She knew it, and everyone she met knew it.
She’d spent a lot of money she couldn’t afford to waste on the ticket to the gala, just for the chance to win a date with Bryson “Pipe” Clark.
She’d read everything she could find on the man, and The Refuge.
She knew all about his time in the service, as well as the backgrounds of the other men who owned the retreat.
They were all former special forces of one sort or another.
And she needed them.
She’d sent several emails begging for a chance to talk to one of them, but they’d all gone unanswered.
She’d even called a couple of times, but no one had ever called her back.
Cora supposed she could understand that they wouldn’t be interested in talking to someone who needed the kind of help only they could offer. But it was still extremely frustrating.
The last three months had been nothing but one disappointment after another, and she was desperate. Which was why she was here. Her clothes weren’t designer, her makeup amateur at best, her hair not in a fancy updo like most of the other women’s. She had no diamonds around her throat or wrists.
Cora had sold as many of her belongings as she could to get the money she thought she’d need to succeed tonight.
She’d scrimped and saved and done everything in her power to come up with more cash.
It was pure luck that she’d seen the flyer announcing the bachelor auction tonight.
Money was being raised to help veterans, and when Cora had seen that one of the men from the now well-known and successful Refuge was going to be there, she’d been determined to do whatever it took to attend.
And here she was.
She was nervous as hell. Social gatherings weren’t her forte, but if she was going to succeed, she needed to suck it up…
and play nice. Which was another thing that wasn’t a strong point for her.
She was too blunt. Too impatient. And she didn’t trust anyone in this room.
She’d learned that the hard way. She only trusted one person in her life…
and that woman was the reason she was here tonight.
Taking a deep breath, Cora scanned the room. She hadn’t seen Pipe or anyone else from The Refuge yet, and she hoped he hadn’t backed out. Just when she was beginning to think all her planning was for naught, she caught sight of a bearded man across the room.
And her breath caught in her throat.
Bryson Clark was an amazingly handsome man, even with the current scowl on his face. Maybe because of it. He wasn’t smiling and kowtowing to the simpering women in the room. He looked as if he’d rather be anywhere but here.
For some reason, that drew Cora to him even more. Maybe she could talk to him before the auction. Plead her case. And she wouldn’t have to spend any of the money she’d saved to purchase a date with him.
She took a step toward him—but it was too late. A man’s voice came over the loudspeaker, telling all the bachelors who would be participating in the auction to meet behind the small stage that had been set up at one end of the room.
Cora cursed her bad luck. The train she’d taken to the venue had mechanical issues and she’d been way late arriving. Too late to try to talk to Pipe or anyone else who might’ve come with him from The Refuge.
Determination rose within her. She had to win that date.
She’d spend every dollar she had if she needed to.
Getting a chance to speak to Pipe one-on-one, to explain why she needed him and his friends, was literally a matter of life and death.
He had to help her…if he didn’t, she had no idea what to do next.
She’d gone to the police, the FBI, and the media, and no one believed her.
She had one more chance to get someone to listen, to believe her.
Closing her eyes for a moment, Cora whispered, “This has to work. Please, it has to work.” Then she opened her eyes, threw her shoulders back, and headed toward the stage, along with everyone else in the room.
*
Bachelor auction, missing best friend, and a Hero who wants to be anywhere other than he is…what could possibly go wrong? Find out in the next book in this box set, Deserving Cora!