Then Lexi cleared her throat and asked the drummer to give her a beat. “Austin, you have been so generous tonight. And what you’ve done for these children—well, really there aren’t words to express what it means to their families. You’ve touched lives. This money is going to make a difference.” She paused. “But I think we can do even better.” She eyed the crowd, smiling widely. “I want this to be the best auction event this side of the Rio Grade. What do you say?”
The crowd clapped, but they looked at each other trying to figure out what she meant. It was late and most of them had emptied their pockets.
“So, I’m going to throw in a personal Lexi Wilde one-of-a-kind item.”
Suddenly, she had my attention in a new way. I’d already paid a thousand dollars for an autograph. And that was just so I could talk to her and give her my number, but now it sounded as if she raised the stakes.
She spun on her heels, her eyes locked on mine. She held the mic to her pink velvety lips. “For one night, you can have your very own private Alexa Wilde concert.” She waggled her eyebrows.
The men started hollering. Half of them had been asleep until this moment, but with a chance to spend time alone with the star their eyes and checkbooks were wide open.
I looked around the room at my competition, because that’s what they were. This was no different than Sunday afternoon. I stared at the opposition, daring them to try to take me out. Like hell I was going to let one of them outbid me for a date with this girl.
The mayor quickly grabbed the mic from Lexi. She didn’t look like the type of woman who handled unscripted events well. I wondered why in the hell she was mayor of this city.
“Well, this is a surprise. Thank you, Miss. Wilde. I’d say this would be a treat for anyone. A concert? This is beyond generous. Really, I have no words. I’m not even sure where to start the bidding.”
She didn’t have notes on the valuation of this particular item, and I wasn’t sure what kind of price tag to put on it either. A private concert. To be the only one Lexi sang to, even if it was only one song was the kind of experience that could change a man’s soul.
A man in the front row with a red mustache raised his hand. “Five thousand.”
The mayor laughed nervously. “I guess we’re starting the bidding at five thousand.”
I inhaled sharply. I knew how these things went. I couldn’t jump in right away, I’d only drive up the price and show my hand. Years of gambling taught me how to keep my poker face and my bidding hand calm.
“Six thousand!” a short guy near the bar shouted from a barstool. The men were jumping at the chance for a date with her. I saw a few pull out their phones to check their account balances.
That was one thing I never had to worry about. Linc balanced my funds almost daily. I knew exactly how much money I had to work with.
“Sixty-five hundred,” another man bellowed.
The numbers kept rising. Lexi stood smiling and walking back and forth across the stage. It was amazing how someone coated in virtue could generate a bidding war between men. The pissing contest was heating up. The bids were up to twenty thousand dollars. Fuck.
Lexi looked at me, batting her long eyelashes. She was baiting me. Trying to lure me in. She wanted my bid. Part of me wondered if she had orchestrated this entire sham of a donation for my benefit. I didn’t give a shit if it was manipulation or innocence. This was a contest. This was a game, and I was going to win her.
“Twenty-one thousand.” I raised my hand from the corner.
There was a man on the other side of the room wearing an expensive tuxedo. He called to the mayor, “Twenty-two.”
I gritted my teeth. “Twenty-three.”
I saw him take a sip of champagne before calling out his bid for twenty-four thousand dollars.
There was a hush over the crowd. Their heads swiveled toward me. I could cut my losses now. She had my number. This wasn’t the only way I could see her. But as I stared at the man in his crisp tux and looked at that girl on the stage I felt the swell of competition in my chest. I wasn’t going to lose to him. I wasn’t going to lose in front of everyone.
“Twenty-five thousand,” I announced over the crowd’s head.
There was an audible gasp as the spotlight swung back to me. I tried not to squint this time. I wanted them to see the confidence in my eyes. The look of a winner.
The mayor clutched the microphone. “Twenty-five thousand? Do I have any higher bids?” There was a grumbling from the men around me. Most had spent their money on trips and overpriced jewelry for their wives. I puffed my chest forward. “Going once. Going twice…”
I couldn’t tell if she was hoping the high-dollar suit would swoop in and save Lexi from my clutches. She drew out the count.
“Last chance for a private Lexi Wilde concert.” She scanned the audience. “The winner is Mr. Luke Canton of the Austin Warriors.” She put her hands together and the donors followed her lead. “I’d say this is a night of surprises.”
I was used to attention on the field, but this was ridiculous. I put my hands up to quiet the applause. I nodded at them. I heard a few cat calls as Lexi walked across the stage.
“Let’s tell our star quarterback how much we appreciate him,” Lexi shouted into the mic, egging on the crowd.