a's
s separated by soundproof partitions. The partitions locked by default; if neighboring gue
ible social service the
se to it. Some came to bid on jewelry and art. Others paid the price
t quiet, someone knocked on
nore
he room in her heels, and flipped
you doing?
dealing with," she said. "Recyclable, hazardo
ked open before I found mysel
ves who'd been trailing him all evening. Helena sat closest to him, dress
and the cedar pheromones rolling off him ha
ard eve
been worried the sou
ook and turned a
I asked Shana. "Can we get
lth you described earlier. Turns out it's not that the merch
wo seco
e insulting the version of
at me, grinning. "You just got
rting, but very o
our box. Shana threw her arm across the opening, and out of the s
iking, smiling - nothing about her looked li
old wolf blood, and
ed to lift a
rfectly polite. "You weren't invited, so stay on yo
lid past her an
. Come
ew that tone - the same quie
ell in line. I didn't want one argument to wreck what we had
w, that was exa
for so long that he genuinely
ting my eyes flick to Helena beside him. "You've already got company for the
face pale
od," she said softly. "Jasper only
he bought, sitting next to him, bidding on his card. Just an ordinary b
ression dark
o say all of t
sound ugly, it's usually because the p
anking Alpha's pressure bled through the partition, a
won't come over
rning before he actu
he dropped dead from the strain right in front of
etely
sensed the mood turning and
earlier. You and Jasper are about to hold your
not Mrs
flat, all traces
Xesha Foxx. And s
t it carried far enough to
nted to argue, until his eyes caught the s
rity firms in the world - the kind that only worked f
ont of him, who looked dressed for a fashion party, migh
oyalty in this crowd had a price tag, and none of them were willing
rom her seat,
e dropping to just the right pitch. "This is my fault. I shouldn't have a
retreat a
market, Helena's performance tonight wou
d braced against the pa
from
en his cuff. I knew that tiny gesture too well - it meant he thought I wouldn't actu
na leave first and congratulate
n't walk
of the edge right in front of him, and slid
per saw was my pol
d ni
ition se
es
gh from the other side, bare
and picked up th
ughly refreshed, like she'd just come out
ught you'd go
t page. "Do I look like someone who
not r
m around my shoulders, and p
eep a walking red f
to look
ly terrible at c
know three divorce lawyers, two bonding-rite priests, and one
two numbers. Hold t
ly settled. Helena's muffled crying
Xesha are fighting. I should go explain to he
ve
private auction on his arm - working very hard
in New York corporate circles had appare
Jasper sa
's lineup, but Helena kept up her intermittent sniffling. Ten minutes
I heard her perfectly
private room is disrupting the auction. Could you and your guests please keep th
ext door,
ound a safer target for
she said, clearly displeased. "Why is t
er's side jumpe
themselves to Mr. Dawn. Tell them the room fee's on him tonight
row
the people who actually ran this city, and
e having more and more tro
still had enough sense left to keep things from escalati
way to be irrit
thout fail. We liked a modern painting - he tripled the estimate. Shana
pped away to Jasper in
age fr
e you like? I'll
pieces now hilariously overpriced thank
t tonight is anythin
came almos
bidding o
ancial press might be overra
e-down on the table an
h century - clean lines, cool color, exactly Ale's taste. I rai
e, Jaspe
iting him on purpose all night. Or mayb
n, I got the brace
e buzze
ht I'd ke
ped
awn. Let me actually buy something I w
rec
dn't
of him dropping several million dollars tonight on things I'd deliberately bai
anything. But it
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