CHAPTER 11

Aurelia

Across the room, he holds my stare.

I can't even keep the shock off my face.

The girls and their silent conversations grow louder, and my heart rages. No

Someone else in the room says a word.

"Twenty million dollars for Blue Ivy." The mistress calls, "Going once,

going twice. Sold! The prize is yours for the night, sir. The night has kicked off with a bang!"

The mistress pushes down on my back, urging me to step down from the stage. A waitress dressed more appropriately than the others waits by the edge, greeting me with a warm smile.

I feel Kane's eyes on me the whole way down. It's choking; I'm finding it so difficult to inhale under the weight of that stare. My eyes try to look anywhere but right at him. They move up to the ceiling, taking in the lone man resting his arms on the edges of the cubicle high above everyone else. He has a mask on. It's simple and black. And just like everyone else, his eyes are on me. I look away immediately.

The girl holds her hands out to me and says, "I'll be your escort for the night."

I take it shakily. She leads me out of the room through another door other than the one leading to the dressing room. Once we're in the hall, she turns to me.

"Put this on." She held up her palm, a small golden ring sitting in the center.

I take it from her: "What is this?" "Your safety button."

"My safety button?"

"In case things get a little too intense and you want out," she says, "the servers usually understand how things work; they're not supposed to cross your limits. But in the event that they ignore your safe words, you can press that button, and help will come. Your safe words are yellow for reaching your limit and red for them to stop. It's supposed to work like a stoplight; in the event it doesn't, She glances at the ring.

Safe words.

It only makes me wonder what the hell could be happening in this place for me to even need one.

"What..." I say, "What am I meant to do?"

She smiles again. "Whatever they want. Your room is across the hall." "My room?"

"Yes. Your servers are waiting."

"Servers. Plural?"

"Yes. The man in question placed the bid for himself as well as his

companion." Rune.

"Just walk down the hall; you can't keep them waiting long."

"Wait." I reached out, grabbing onto her arm. I don't know what to say to her, but I don't want her to leave. I can't be alone with them. I can't serve them.

"It'll be okay," She tells me, "The girls always have fun. Naturally, you're not allowed to talk about your shifts, but some of them still do. There's nothing to be scared of. They won't hurt you."

That's all they've ever done.

But I don't tell her that; instead, I loosen my grip.

"You'll be fine," She says, "Now go. The Dark Prince doesn't like it when his customers are kept waiting."

I go.

Every step I take closer to the room fills me with dread. My palms are sweaty, and I feel hot all over as I reach for the door handle, pulling it open.

They're already waiting.

For me.

They don't know it's you. They don't know it's you.

The lighting in the room is dim, a dark glow covering every inch of the

large room. My eyes go from the silver pole in the center of the space to the long velvet sofa they're both spread out on, a single ottoman sitting right in front of them.

Rune has the decency to greet me with his gaze, but despite the amount of money he'd just blown on my head, Kane's eyes remain on the glass tumbler resting on his knee, focused on the swirling liquor even as I shut the door behind me.

"Blue Ivy." A wide grin splits Rune's face, drawing my attention back to him. He lifts his eyebrows when I don't say anything back. "That's what they call you, isn't it?"

Slowly, I nod, my back pressed firmly against the door frame.

His smile thins to a slow smirk. "Cat caught your tongue?"

I should say something, but I'm too frightened they would recognize my

voice. I don't look right at him, but I can feel it when Kane lifts his head.

Rune leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. His eyes move over

my body slowly, dragging up every inch of my exposed flesh with an unparalleled type of patience. They linger on my breasts, and my hands twitch with the need to shield them from his stare. "Come closer."

I hesitate long enough to make him arch a dark brow.

With my heart pounding in my chest, I push away from the door. He lifts a hand when I'm halfway to him, halting me mid-step.

His finger circles in the air. "Turn around."

I swallow thickly, but I comply anyway.

"Slowly." He instructs.

When my back is to him, he speaks again. "Stop."

Awareness tickles the back of my neck. I can't see them anymore; I can't

I see the expressions on their faces, but I know they're watching me. Right now, I'm the sole object of their attention.

It's electrifying.

A shiver races down my spine.

"What do you want to do with her, brother?"

Kane doesn't respond.

"Now don't hold back on me." Rune's voice is playful. "Around everyone

Otherwise, your pretty little suit might put up a good front, but I'm your brother. I know you."

This time, his reply is nothing but a harsh exhale.

I moisten my chapped lips.

"With that get-up, there's hardly anything left to imagine." Rune muses,

"Yet all I'm thinking about is how I could possibly make her even more appealing."

I exhale a long breath through my nose.

"Turn around," he says.

I do, my eyes meeting Kane's instantly. Cold, delicate green. So pale they

look almost transparent.

Every bone inside me is telling Aurelia Summers to look away; it's like

second instinct. But right now, that's not who I am. And the version of me

standing in front of him doesn't want to cower away from his chilling stare. This version of me wants to relish it.

"Take it off."

My eyes slide back to Rune, widening at his words, "W-what?"

"All of it." He says, "Take it all off."

The lost anxiety rushes back in. My stomach tightens at the prospect of

being naked in front of them. "Well?"

Shakily, my hands move to my stockings.

"No," he says. "Leave that on. Take off everything else."

My hands move to my back, unclasping my bra. I hold my breath.

squeezing my eyes shut as I let it fall to the ground.

The silence in the room turns stifling. I don't let myself think about it.

fingers hooking into the thin lace thong and pushing it down my legs. Standing completely bare before them, I risk a glance.

Hot and cold. Two pairs of eyes eat up my body. It could be the cold draft.

in the room, or the contrast in their gazes, but my nipples stand at attention, desperate for some type of friction.

Rune looks dazed, his eyes dragging back up my frame. When he speaks, his voice ripples through me: "Touch yourself."

He rakes his teeth over his lower lip, watching as I cup my breasts with both hands.

"Lower." Kane orders. His green eyes were already fixed on my pussycat, impatiently waiting for me to obey. Tentatively, my hand slides down my legs, a tinge of darkness hardening the edges of his irises as my fingers press into my center.

Rune runs a hand over his jaw and says, "I could use a better view." Reluctantly, I widen my knees.

He shakes his head, curling his fingers at me. "Walk over here."

"No." Kane interrupts. Rune turns to look at him, but his focus is on me. "Crawl."

My pulse quickens. Rune slides his gaze back to me, clasping his hands between his spread knees as a roguish smile takes over his face.

There's a trembling building underneath my skin. I swallow down my nervousness, my limbs shaky as I drop to my hands and knees slowly. Kane takes a long drink from his glass.

The air feels thinner down here. My breasts sway as I close the distance between us. Rune pats the ottoman, silently telling me to sit. Gingerly, I do.

"Spread your legs."