Forbidden Love

26

Barrett

My heart thrashed about like a bull in a cage. Evelyn’s hand fell on my forearm as though sensing my discomfort. She looked beautiful in a pale pink floor-length gown hand-picked for her by my stylist, who rushed over at my last-minute request.

I watched from the back of the room. Round tables with gold overlays, gold centerpieces, and the warm glow of festoon lights hung overhead in the grand ballroom. She’d had a year to plan this event, and Elizabeth had thought of everything down to the custom his-and-hers fragrances. Just with the guest list alone, the paparazzi would cream their panties, which would be talked about for months to come.

All eyes were on Pepper and Connor as they ran through the list of auction items until they were at the last item for the evening.

“So that concludes tonight’s auction items,” Connor said, and my heart instantly took flight, landing in the middle of my throat.

Right on cue, Alfred walked up on stage, whispering into his son’s ear as the audience grew quiet.

Connor turned to his father, his eyes widening to the size of golf balls.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, it appears that wasn’t the last item up for auction. We have another last-minute item for auction. This item is not in the catalog and is a first for the Diamond charity. Men, get ready to sell some blue-chips for this one as I’m sure it will be the most expensive item we’ve ever had.”

Oohs and aahs echoed around the room, but my gaze settled on Lourde. Dressed in a stunning navy satin dress with loose waves falling around her mid-back, I hadn’t been able to take my eyes off her since arriving.

“Okay, Okay. Settle down. Jimmy, can we go to the live item?” Conner asked.

If I thought my heart rate had spiked, now it was off the charts.

The large screens on either side of the stage changed from an image of the Diamond logo to a ring.

Women in the audience chatted animatedly, no doubt trying to convince their husbands or partners to bid. Bid away, people.

Connor read from the piece of paper his father passed to him.

“The last auction item for the evening is a ten-carat emerald cut flawless diamond. Wow. You heard correct, ten-carat flawless diamond!”

Gasps erupted from the crowd.

“Flawless and impeccably designed, this…” he went on for what felt like fifteen minutes. All I could hear was my heart in my ear pounding as blood passed through it. Evelyn held onto my arm, not letting go.

“Do I hear an opening bid or offer?”

“Three hundred thousand dollars.” A man near the front popped up his white paddle to signify his bid.

I laughed alongside a few others who knew the true value of such a priceless item.

“Mr. Percival, really?” Obviously, Connor was one of them. “We all like a bargain, but that’s a steal!”

“Okay, half a million.” He laughed. “It was worth a shot.”

“Thank you, Mr. Percival. We have half a million dollars. Do I have any other offers? This is truly a masterpiece handcrafted.”

“Six hundred thousand.” A gruff voice cut through the silence.

The spotlight shone where the sound came from in the middle of the room.

Decent bid.

“Excellent bid, sir. Can you hold up your paddle, please?”

“Thank you, the bids with you, number thirty-one.”

My gaze fell to the table where Lourde was standing behind her seat, looking as though she was about to walk away.

No.

The two of them were going back and forth, and the price had crept over the million-dollar mark.

I didn’t have time to wait any longer with the battle of the cheapskates. It was now or never. And never was not a possibility when it came to Lourde.

“Two million dollars,” I said, my voice boomed from the back of the room.

Heads turned, and gasps were louder than ever when they realized where it came from.

But I was only interested in one person, and she turned around immediately after hearing my voice.

Her hazel eyes hit mine.

I moved out from the shadows, the spotlight finding me and lighting me up.

“Barrett?”

I ignored the voices and began to slowly walk toward her. Everything around me fell away, the shrieking noises, the warm ambient lights, the smells of the expensively prepared banquet. It was just her and me and none of the prying eyes.

I knew I’d taken a gamble, and it could backfire, but it was one I had no choice but to take. Fight to the death or fall hard. We were about to find out which.

“Do I hear any other offers? No? I didn’t think so.”

“Going, going… sold to my dear friend, Barrett Black.”

Eventually, I arrived at her table as applause billowed and echoed around us. She stood in front of her chair, her arms trembling as they held on to it for support.

“You came,” she said, her breath hitched as I paused a hair’s breadth away from her.

“I got your messages,” I said, breathless myself.