The Initiation (Filthy Rich Americans 1)

The only source of light came from the flickering, five-arm candelabras around the room. Long, white tapers burned, and crystals dangled from each base. There were two candelabras spaced evenly apart in the center of the table, one on the side buffet, and one tucked in the arched, built-in alcove.

It transformed the dining room into a shadowy cave. If I hadn’t been filled with apprehension, I might have laughed at how over the top it was. But this wasn’t a space for laughter. It was ominous. Its walls held secrets of perversion.

Royce was waiting beside the buffet table, and I was drawn to him. My dress fluttered around me like moth wings, and he was the flame I couldn’t resist, even if he was going to be my downfall.

He was spectacular, wrapped in a classic tuxedo without a vest, a black bow tied at his neck, and a glass of champagne in one hand. When the door was pulled closed behind me, it drew his attention. He lifted his gaze to meet mine, and for a long moment we simply stared at each other from across the room, drinking in the sight of the other.

His shoulders pulled back as he straightened, and his intense eyes went wide. He liked what he saw, but it also seemed to be hurting him. I understood. I felt the same ache down to the marrow of my bones.

There was awe in his voice. “You are devastating.”

My knees weakened. My entire body wanted to go soft and puddle at his words. He could have said I was beautiful, but no. He’d chosen a word that gave me power, saying I could lay waste to others. I was too tense to respond with words. I swallowed and nodded, hoping he could read the gratitude in my eyes.

Royce picked up a second flute of champagne from the side table and strode toward me. As I reached out to accept it, he caught the subtle tremble in my hand.

“You’re nervous,” he said. It wasn’t a question, just him stating facts.

I took a tiny sip of the champagne, letting the bubbles work my tongue loose. “Yes. It’s better now that I’m here with you.”

Because it felt like I’d crossed the point of no return. I was locked in, and he was with me. It alleviated the anxiety about whether I could back out and run. All I had to do now was get through it.

Being around him helped me, but was the opposite true for him? As I settled into my choice, he seemed more nervous. Like now he was thinking about backing out and running. Instead, he set his glass down on the dining table and pulled out one of the chairs.

“We need to talk,” he said. “And you’re going to want to sit down for this.”

His expression announced he was so uncomfortable, it verged on pain, so I took the offered seat. He grasped the back of the chair beside me, dragging it away from the table, but he didn’t sit. Instead, he returned to the buffet and retrieved something.

“Before we get into it, I have something for you.”

He set the black box down in front of me and dropped into his seat. If this was an engagement ring, it must be enormous. The box, tied with a red satin bow, was as big as a hardcover book.

My hands shook as I unknotted the ribbon and lifted the lid, my breath held.

One look inside and I burst into tears.

FOURTEEN

ALL THE EMOTIONS I’D BEEN TRYING TO AVOID poured out of me now in one uncontrollable instant. I gripped the lid of the box so tightly, the cardboard bent in my hands. Tears streamed hotly down my cheeks, likely destroying the makeup Alice’s stylists had applied.

Royce looked terrified. “Oh, shit. Please don’t cry.”

He had no idea how to deal with me, but it didn’t matter. At that moment, he could do nothing wrong. I stared at the Harry Winston necklace I thought I’d never see again, letting my gaze trace the delicate cluster of diamonds.

I could barely whisper. “This is for me?”

“Yes. It’s yours.”

I wiped away my tears with my thumb, and even though I was crying, I laughed in amazement too. “How? How did you . . .”

“Alice showed me the picture on Instagram. Costolli let me buy it before it went to auction.”

I had to look up to the unlit chandelier to keep from spilling more tears. “Oh, my God, Royce.”

Confusion spread across his face. “You don’t like it?”

“Are you kidding?” I dropped the lid and turned in my seat, gripping his face in my hands. “Thank you. My God, I can’t even find the words.” Now this heirloom could remain in my family. “You don’t know how much this means to me.”

His hands gently cuffed my wrists, and his eyes melted. “Tell me.”