Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Two Turtledoves

brUNO

"You're a dead man, Joel," I threatened. I paced the conference room, glancing out at Sin City through the floor-to-ceiling windows while I pressed my cell phone closer to my ear.

"What did I do this time?" Joel chuckled, his voice sounding gruff through the phone.

"You pretty much demanded I take this Marriage Auction contract, and here I am, waiting to meet the next candidate I will be guarding through a week of first dates with a bunch of rich pricks."

"Oh, come on, it can't be that bad," Joel countered and then coughed.

I hissed through my teeth. "You should hear the lame shit these men say to the women. And worse is how the women respond as though they adore every breath of air escaping the blowhards' mouths."

Joel chuckled. "Like what? I'm intrigued."

I groaned. "Well, the last date I went on the bidder took the candidate to a zoo. When they stopped to watch the lion habitat, a pair of lions were fornicating. The guy pointed it out then made a joke to the candidate about how he'd like to be doing that with her."

"I'm beginning to see your point," Joel grumbled and then coughed again.

"You have a cold?"

"I'm trying not to have one. Penny came home with one from elementary school and now Faith, Eden, and I are all starting to feel the effects."

"Another reason not to have children," I taunted.

"Children are the best, Bruno. Don't knock it until you've tried it."

That made me chuckle. "Yeah, I don't think it's in the cards for me. I'll leave all that legacy and progeny business to you, cousin."

Joel sighed. "I do wish you'd at least find someone special to share your free time with."

"Free time? What free time? And Joel, we've talked about—"

"This before. Yes, I know. It doesn't change the fact that you are a thirty-four-year-old man with nothing but work in his life. Believe me when I say there is more. You know I thought I'd lost all hope for happiness when Alexandra died and left me to raise Penny alone. Seeing Faith standing up on that stage in the auction last year changed my entire life. And look at me now. Happier than I've ever been."

"I'm not like you, Joel. You make time for those you love. I've not met anyone that made me want to slow down. My work is my life. Besides, I wouldn't want a woman who didn't understand that. My career matters to me."

"But what about love? What about sex?"

"Sex I can get. And if you count up all the so-called dates I've been on, not a single woman has ever made me feel anything but lust." Truth be told, I wouldn't even begin to know what love feels like as I've never experienced it before.

"That's because your father, Uncle Nicko, was a womanizing piece of shit. Your mother deserved better, Bruno."

"On that we both agree, God rest her soul."

"God rest her soul," Joel croaked, his voice losing its pitch all together.

"Joel, why don't you find that beautiful wife of yours and make both of you some tea and then go back to bed? You sound terrible."

"Yeah, I'm thinking movie day in with the girls." He sighed. "Just give the experience a chance. You never know, maybe the woman of your dreams will be standing on that stage, looking into your eyes, and you'll just know she's the one."

"Doubtful, but I promise to relax. The job is easy. After everything that's happened within the last year, I sure could use an easy job."

"There you go. See, you're already taking a more positive slant to the approach. Oh, whatever happened to that woman you saved a few days ago? Is she okay?"

Visions of Holly entered my mind. Her long, wavy blonde hair, those warm brown eyes, the cute beauty mark just above her plump, full lips. My cock started to harden behind my slacks, shocking me stupid for a moment.

"Was she released from the hospital?" Joel asked.

I attempted to shake off the lust, even though my lower half was taking its sweet time getting the message from my brain.

"Uh, yeah, she was. The next day. Apparently, Alana went to see her a couple days ago. Offered her a coveted position in this year's Christmas auction. I'm still waiting to hear if she's accepted or not." A strange part of me didn't want to believe that Holly would entertain such a ridiculous concept. The woman seemed self-assured, confident, and very much her own person. I especially didn't want to see her bowing down to some rich pencil dick.

"Don't be surprised if she does join. Alana has a way of getting others to do things they wouldn't do otherwise."

"Isn't that the truth. I'm a perfect example." I laughed out loud then heard the door behind me open. I turned around and was shocked to see the woman herself, dressed in a pair of skintight black jeans, suede ankle boots, a slouchy white sweater that hung off one tanned shoulder and a lion's mane of golden hair.

"It's you!" Holly exclaimed with a huge smile plastered on her face as Alana entered behind her.

"I gotta go, Joel. Christmas came early. Remember, lots of fluids and rest."

"Yeah, ye—" He coughed for the umpteenth time. "Good luck."

"Thanks, I'm going to need it." I ended the call and dropped the device into my blazer pocket. "How are you feeling, Holly?" I took the chair next to the blonde beauty.

"So good. I'm pretty much all healed up." She showed me the abrasions on her palms that were all scabbed over. There were still fingerprint shaped yellow bruises around her neck that sent fire blazing through my core. Instantly, I wanted to pound my fists repeatedly into the Baskin brothers once more. Thankfully, I'd had Jonah keep an eye on their status. Both men were firmly locked away in the local jail until sentencing. I'd be the first in line to serve as a witness on the criminal case, provided they didn't take a plea and it went to trial.

"That's very good to hear. And you're joining us today because…" I let the rest of the question dangle, hoping I was not about to hear what I feared most.

"I'm joining the Christmas Auction. I'm going to get shacked up for an obscene amount of money and open my bar when it's all said and done three years from now," Holly beamed.

I couldn't believe the unexpected burst of anger that flooded my system. I pushed away from the conference table and stood up. "Seriously?" I barked, my gaze going straight to Alana. "Hasn't Holly been through enough?"

Alana sat up straighter, then eased back into the leather chair and primly placed her hands together in her lap. "Are you suggesting that the auction isn't safe? I do believe that is why you are here, Mr. Castellanos. To keep my candidates perfectly safe, is it not?"

"Yes," I hissed.

"Do you not think I'd be a good candidate?" Holly blurted, a hurt note to her voice.

"No! I mean, yes. Fuck!" I snapped and ran my fingers through my hair. I focused my gaze outside on the busy streets and the tourists walking from one casino to the other. "I'm sure you'd make some man very happy, but after what you went through…"

"After what I went through?" Holly parroted. "The reason I said yes is because of what happened. I can't be in that situation anymore, where I'm running an out of-the-way bar, saving every penny, and still having no life while I get no closer to my dreams. What Alana has offered is going to set me up for the foreseeable future. I'm not sure you can understand that," she whispered and put her head down as I turned around.

"I can very much understand being raised poor and having to fight for every dollar I've ever made. That's why I own my company and hire only the best."

"You see, I want that for myself one day. If I go through with marrying a man this month, then I'll have the money I need to do exactly that."

"And what if you fall in love with your husband? Then what about your big dreams?" I spat in a snide tone I didn't even recognize. "They just go the way of the wind?"

What the fuck was wrong with me? I was entirely riled up by the idea of this woman getting married to a complete stranger, and I had no idea why. Was it because I'd helped save her life? Or maybe it was because I was once like her and didn't want her dreams steamrolled by someone else's plans.

She shook her head and glared at me. "My big dreams have nothing to do with marriage and love. And besides, if the man I end up with doesn't care for me enough to want to see me succeed and help make my dreams come true, then I'd be a fool to stay with him, wouldn't I? And another thing, Mr. Know-It-All, I'm going into this scenario with my eyes wide open. I tried other avenues for securing the financial support I needed. This is the only option left."

It was on the tip of my tongue to offer her the money she needed, but that would be ludicrous. I'd essentially known the woman for mere hours if I added up all the time we'd been in the same space together. Not to mention, the fury in her gaze and the ire in Alana's had me believing that making such an offer would not be well received.

I inhaled deeply and let it out slowly, desperately trying to calm my own frayed nerves.

"Whatever. It's your life," I snapped through clenched teeth.

"You're damn right it is. And I don't need you or anyone else telling me what to do. I have parents who love to do that already." She nodded as though she'd given me some kind of what-for. It was cute that this precious woman thought this conversation was over. I just needed more time to change her mind and help her find another way.

But why the fuck did I even care?

"Well, now that we've got all of that out of the way," Alana interrupted, "I brought Holly in to explain to you both that you will be working together for the duration of this auction. Apparently, you've been rather forthright with your feelings on the marriage auction with the other candidate you guarded this week." Her gaze turned into a glare. "Lisa no longer wants you as her guard. She feels as though you are a deterrent to her finding her best match."

"A deterrent? That last guy would have had his hands all over her if I hadn't pushed him away."

"According to Lisa, and my bidder, you bent back his pinky finger, almost breaking it, when he tried to guide her into the limo after their dinner."

"Pfft. This is unbelievable. He's lying. I purposely sprained the man's pinky finger when he went to grab her ass, without her consent I might add, after repeatedly telling her he couldn't wait to bid on her, so he could fuck her into next week."

Alana's eyes widened for a brief second. "My apologies. I shall instead thank you for intervening. However, you could have reminded the bidder that touching intimately is off limits. You didn't need to resort to violence."

"Spraining his finger is not violence," I deadpanned. "The atrocity that Holly experienced last week was violence. Me beating his face to a bloody pulp like I wanted to, like I did do to one of the Baskin brothers, would be considered violent."

"Be that as it may, Mr. Castellanos, I'd like to see you refrain from your baser instincts when possible. Use your words, not your fists, unless you believe the situation is dire."

"Now you're telling me how to do my job?" I grinned then allowed myself a full-throated laugh.

"I'm paying you handsomely to guard my candidates, not to threaten or maim my bidders." She cocked a saucy black eyebrow.

"Well, if your bidders had better manners, perhaps we wouldn't be having this discussion in the first place."

Alana pursed her lips. " Touché . I will have my protégé, Jade, send out a reminder to all candidates and bidders about what type of conduct is appropriate for our dates prior to the auction. Usually, we just have the auction with no prior contact. This is new territory for me, and we are learning as we go. I appreciate your candor and will take your feedback to heart. Is that acceptable?"

Damn, the woman was good. Within a short conversation she's already dampened my anger with her annoyingly reasonable response.

"Yes," I grated.

"Excellent." She smiled. "Let's continue." She swiped her fingers over an electronic tablet. "Holly's first date is with Colin Omstead—"

"The actor!" Holly gasped. "Colin Omstead, the guy that played in Drifter 1, 2, and 3 !" she half-screeched. "Oh my god! Are you shitting me?"

"I do not understand this American colloquialism shitting me , chérie , but my guess is you are asking if I am being truthful?" Alana queried.

"Um, yeah. Am I really going to go on a date with stud muffin Colin Omstead?" She started to dance in her chair like a tween about to meet her favorite Hollywood crush.

Alana smiled wide. "I see you like the idea of this pairing."

"Hell yeah, I do! Sign me up! Not in a million years did I believe I'd be going on a date with one of the hottest action flick actors of all time. You should have led with that when pitching the idea of the auction, and I would have agreed the same night you made the offer."

"Duly noted for future negotiations," Alana preened. "I am elated you are excited. The date is slated for tomorrow evening. We will have you go through the entire makeover and clothing fitting today and tomorrow morning, if that is agreeable."

"You're going to give me a makeover too? And I don't have to pay for it?" She pulled on her gorgeous locks, twirling a chunk around her finger absently.

I couldn't help staring at her. Holly Knight was uniquely beautiful, but it was her mannerisms that I enjoyed watching most. The woman didn't pretend or play games. She reacted and responded naturally and with gusto, whereas the other candidates I met were more shy, quiet, and seemed content to observe, rather than participate. It was refreshing to meet a woman who was herself so openly.

Alana smiled and noted something on her device. "Everything is set. If you'll follow me, Holly, I'll take you to meet your glam team."

"I have a glam team?" she breathed, clearly awed.

I rolled my eyes and clamped my mouth shut.

"Only the best for my candidates and bidders as promised. Now, let's see if we can pick out an outfit that will have Mr. Omstead drooling to bid on you."

"Fucking hell," I grumbled under my breath. I hated the idea that a woman like Holly was going to be a part of this.

"What was that Mr. Castellanos? I didn't quite hear you." Alana had cocked one eyebrow as her gaze narrowed with the question.

"Lead the way. I'll just be keeping an eye on my girl."

Alana canted her head to the side as I realized what I'd just said.

"I mean, your …candidate."

"That is what I thought you said. Come, Holly. A man like Colin Omstead will be a perfect pairing. Two turtledoves finding one another," she cooed.

On that note, I clenched my teeth and followed the two women, hating every last second of watching Holly prepare to be wooed by another man.

I needed a fucking drink.