Awkward Love (Stumbling into Love 2)

“And I have a secret love of museums, which isn’t so secret anymore.”

Oooh, maybe not the complete opposite of me. He was the only one to have mentioned museums so far, and I totally dug those too.

Before I knew it, Will was gone, and the next person came onstage. Even with his cute rambling and hidden bashfulness—which I’d likely fabricated in my mind—Will definitely wasn’t the guy I should try and have a summer fling with… Oh my God. My stomach twisted again. I was trying to have a summer fling with a random person. This was going to be a disaster.

We listened as guy after guy walked across the stage and spoke. None of them screamed I want to have a fling with an awkward sociology major who likes to dress up. So I was counting this evening as a total flop.

“We should go,” I said quietly.

“What? They haven’t done the auction part yet,” Ali countered.

“Did any of those guys look like I would have anything in common with them?” I’d make a fool of myself.

Kira shrugged. “We’re trying to get you laid, not married.”

“Shh!” I looked around, but no one was paying attention to us.

A few minutes later, Elijah came back for the second portion. He called out each guy’s number, and they strutted around the stage in their tuxes. Most of the guys went for a few hundred dollars, some around a thousand.

What in the hell was I doing there? This so wasn’t me.

“Next we have number sixteen—Will,” Elijah said, and oh, wow. Why did he have to look so good in a suit? A bow tie would be better, but I wasn’t complaining.

“We’ll start the bidding at a hundred dollars,” Elijah said.

Someone immediately raised their paddle.

“Do I have two hundred?” he asked, and Kira held up ours—I mean, mine. What in the hell was she doing? The guy liked entertainment, bars, and the gym.

“Two hundred. Do I have three?” Elijah asked.

“Stop it,” I said under my breath, not wanting to make a scene.

“Trust me, sweets,” she replied.

No, I didn’t. I didn’t trust her at all.

When someone said three hundred, Kira went with four. As the bidding went higher and higher, I got dizzy, felt faint. I was going to kill her. He was bi, so I would make her date him. I wasn’t going to go out with Mister Blond Gym Rat.

Whoever the guy was in the bidding war with Kira didn’t seem to want to stop. He countered each of her bids. I couldn’t see him because my vision was so blurry, and the room was spinning, and oh my God. Was I having a panic attack? I’d never had a panic attack before.

“Two thousand dollars!” Kira said, and everyone in the room gasped, including me.

“Wow…two thousand dollars,” Elijah said. “Going once, going twice, won by the woman in the—”

“Will’s for him!” Kira said as both she and Ali pointed at me.

Elijah smiled. “To the gentleman in the bow tie.”

I waved because, well, because I didn’t know what else to do, then sank low in the chair and did everything in my power not to crawl under it.

CHAPTER FOUR

Will

“Holy shit! I can’t believe you went for two thousand dollars!” Shaw said to me backstage.

“Jealous?” The truth was, I couldn’t believe it either. I’d gone for more than anyone, but I sure as shit wouldn’t let him know it surprised me. Plus, I wasn’t convinced my date wanted a damn thing to do with me. He’d looked like he was going to run out of the room. I was fairly certain that if he’d stood, he’d have fainted. That was likely the only thing that had kept him in his chair.

“Did you pay him off?” Danny teased.

“That was my next question,” Shaw added. “It makes the most sense.”

“You’re just jealous too. Shit, I’m in high demand. Maybe I can make a business out of this.”

“There is zero chance of this not going to your head, is there?” Shaw asked.

“First, no. Second, do you know me? And third, you would be even worse. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go find the cute, dark-haired guy willing to shell out two g’s just to spend an evening with me.” Yeah, even saying it, the whole thing still didn’t compute. Two thousand dollars for one date with me? I felt like I was in Indecent Proposal, only you know, without the spouse or the sex as that was adultery and prostitution.

Elijah rolled his eyes. “They’re all in the other room. There’s staff inside to hook you all up.”

“Thanks, man. I appreciate this opportunity to have something to brag to Shaw about for the rest of our lives.” I squeezed his shoulder.

“Um, yeah, I have E in my bed every night. I automatically win,” Shaw said. Elijah melted, and damn it, he was good.