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Chapter Seven
Skylar
“Aren’t you a beauty?” A dark-haired gentleman with a square jaw and the grayest eyes I’d ever seen looked at me as if I were standing naked, gawking. “I’ll take her,” he said, and gestured at Enzo with two fingers.
“Excuse me?” I scoffed.
I wasn’t here as one of his girls to be paraded around, or worse as some form of entertainment.
While Jayden had wanted me to keep a low profile as his fiancé, this went beyond what even I was comfortable partaking in.
Enzo grabbed my jaw and yanked my face to meet his dark stare. “She’s fiery and vibrant. A woman like this would ordinarily cost you double.”
“Get off me!” I pushed away from him, only to feel a set of strong, forceful arms against my shoulders, keeping me in place.
Please, let it be Jayden.
I glanced over my shoulder.
It wasn’t Jayden. He was being detained by two guards, with a third in quick pursuit to silence him or take him out. I wasn’t sure which.
The music continued at a frenzied pace. The violins dropped quick and sharp notes that matched the pace of my racing heart.
Whatever Jayden shouted couldn’t be heard across the distance.
“She’s stubborn, but I’m sure you are quite eager to tame and break her, Angelo,” Enzo said, speaking about me as if I were a horse and not a person.
Unable to run, the giant behind me held me in place. He was monstrous with his thick hands and tight grip, towering a foot above me. In another life he could have been a basketball player.
How had he ended up working for Don Ricci?
Hell, how had I been dragged into this mess for a few lousy dollars?
My life was worth more than a measly two grand.
“I’m not yours to have,” I said, fighting the grip of the man who dug his fingers into my shoulders. He could have easily lifted and carried me out of the room. Maybe he would if I didn’t settle down soon.
The other girls watched me squirm. None of them offered any help. They didn’t try to run.
Did they realize they couldn’t get away and it was of no use?
I wasn’t willing to give up that easily, but it didn’t appear as though Jayden was of any use.
Great.
“She is the starlet of the evening, our main showcase,” Enzo reminded. “You can have her on one condition.”
Angelo practically drooled at the invitation.
“And what might that be?” Angelo asked. He stepped closer, and I suppressed a shiver as his heavy scent of cologne that wreaked alcohol burned my nostrils.
Bile rose up in my throat. I held my hands in tight fists at my sides, my fingernails digging into my palms, leaving an indentation with the pain I felt. I did it to keep from crying.
Neither of these men deserved to witness the fear and trepidation that burned through me.
No, I wouldn’t cower at either one of the bastards who thought I was nothing more than a piece of merchandise.
“I don’t want you or your men anywhere near my turf. Our business is done.”