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“What punishment?” I snap.

“Whatever I decide. Usually it will involve a beating,” he says smugly, and my eyes narrow as the red mist descends over my vision, and I take a menacing step forward.

As soon as I move, The Sheriff’s bodyguards step forward too, and Dec grabs a hold of my arm, pulling me to his side. “I’m not sure I want to pay for an item—and I’m sure I will end up paying a lot of money—only for you to damage it before I take it home,” Dec says casually, like he’s trying to negotiate a business arrangement.

The Sheriff, growing impatient, growls his reply, “You have two choices. Either I punish her now, and she remains unharmed for the rest of the week. Or I punish her on the night of the auction, and she can leave with her owner. I will not offer any alternatives.”

“Okay, but maybe we could come to some sort of an understanding,” Declan suggests, and my gaze flicks to him, like he’s lost his fucking mind.

The Sheriff’s brow raises, like he’s intrigued by the suggestion. “And what kind of an understanding would that be? Don’t forget, you have not won the auction yet, so you have no claim over her.”

I practically growl at the absurdity that he thinks I might lose this auction. I would give everything of value that I own to get Teigan out of this place, and I never fucking lose.

“Be that as it may, I can assure you that we intend to pay handsomely for her. Some may say we’d even be willing to go over what she’s valued at. However, we refuse to pay for something that is damaged, and I can already see she shows signs of your punishments,” Dec growls, and I hate the way Tee lowers her gaze, blush spreading over her cheeks, like she’s ashamed of the marks on her beautiful skin.

“Yes, well, the way we do things here works. Some bitches need to be beaten down until they’re broken. Then we can build them back up and mould them into the perfect little whores we expect them to be. It may not be a pretty process, but it works.” The Sheriff juts his chin and puffs out his chest, looking very fucking proud of what he said.

The anger simmering under the surface is very fucking close to bubbling over right now. If I was a cartoon character, I’m sure you’d see steam coming out of my fucking ears.

Declan completely dismisses Sheriff’s posturing. “Even so, if I’m paying, I expect quality. My suggestion would be to find a way to punish her, without her needing medical assistance afterwards,” he snaps, his patience clearly wearing as thin as mine is.

“I’m assuming you have a suggestion?” he asks, and I look at Dec, wondering if he does have an idea, or if he’s making this up as he goes along.

He winces when he catches me looking at him, and I see his gaze flick over to Tee, who is looking at the floor. For just afraction of a second, he looks in pain, and I know I’m not going to like what’s about to come out of his mouth.

“Maybe I could suggest a two birds, one stone sort of scenario. You want to show off your Lot, to try and make a bit more money, but you also want to punish her. Why not do something on stage now, in front of everyone? It will show her off, but will also act as a punishment. Though, like I said, if you leave any severe form of mark on her, I can assure you, we will not be bidding.”

“What the fuck?” I snap, my eyes widening at his shitty suggestion.

Teigan lifts her head quickly, her eyes wide as she looks at Declan, glaring at him like she can’t believe he just said that either. Then she slowly looks over at me, and she closes them as she lets out a defeated sigh. I hate how small that act makes her look. I also hate how much it fucking hurts me to see her like this.

The Sheriff, on the other hand, his eyes light up, like he’s just had the best idea. “Oh, I don’t know why I didn’t think of that. A show, to help raise interest in your lovely Teigan. What a great idea,” he sings, looking slightly manic.

I take a step forward, not caring how his bodyguards shuffle to meet my aggressive stance. “I swear to God, if you hurt her, I will make you pay.”

Declan’s face scrunches up as his eyebrows shoot into his hairline and he shakes his head at me. I’m not sure if he’s pissed at me, or he’s telling me to shut up, but I’m not thinking clearly. All I can think about is the fact he just told this guy to punish Teigan in front of everyone, like she’s entertainment for the evening. He’s lucky I’m not cutting his balls off right now.

The Sheriff looks at me suspiciously. “You seem awfully invested in her wellbeing, for someone who doesn’t really know her.”

Shit, now I know why Dec looks like he wants to throttle me. I may have just given away how important Tee is to me.

I school my face, pulling on the blank mask I’ve been perfecting for the last decade, as I glare at him without any hint of the whirlpool of emotions that are jumbling up my insides. “Not at all. I just have some special plans for her, and she will be worth nothing if she’s broken. I like my girls to put up a little fight. I also don’t like to have to coat their bodies in make-up to hide the bruises and scars. So, as long as you can ensure she’s not harmed, we won’t have a problem.”

Declan relaxes beside me, and although The Sheriff doesn’t look like he fully buys my explanation, he doesn’t say anything more. Instead, he turns to Teigan. “Go and get into position on the stage. If you are good, you won’t see me for the next week, and you can spend it in luxury. One wrong move and the punishment you should receive will be delivered to Lilly instead…and I will repeat it every day until the auction. She will pay for your sins. Is that clear?”

Teigan nods her head, but I can see the flash of anger in her grey eyes. That look of wanting to rebel is still there, sparking like a flame. I hate how quickly it’s diminished, and she goes back to the expressionless doll. “Yes, Sir. I understand.”

Without waiting any further, she walks off towards the stage, one of The Sheriff’s bodyguards following behind her. Once she disappears behind the curtain, he turns his attention back to me and Dec.

“I hope you both enjoy the show. I should make it very clear, there are others interested in winning Teigan. I know of at least one man with an unlimited budget who has taken a liking to her. If you want her, it may cost you a lot. Though something tells me, you will be willing to pay.”

Before I can say something stupid, Dec cuts me off. “Don’t mistake our interest for more than it is. If she’s damaged inany way, or she goes over the price we’re willing to pay, we will walk away. So don’t even think about trying to jack the price up to make more money off us. She holds a certain level of sentimentality for us from childhood, but that’s as far as it goes. She owes us a lot of money, and if she’s not able to make that back for us, plus whatever fee we end up paying for her, then we will not make the purchase. We are businessmen before anything else.”

The Sheriff's eyes narrow. “And yet you’ve never shown any interest in purchasing someone before now. From what I’ve heard, when you parted ways with Desmond, you were keen to stay on the straight and narrow.”

A wicked smile crosses Declan’s face. “People hear what I want them to. I value privacy more than anything. Besides, Evan here has finally decided to make a stand as his own ruler. Although Brianna O’Keenan is his family by marriage, he’s still the ruler of the Irish Doughtys, and he plans to rule his own way—just like Desmond taught him.”

The Sheriff looks over at me, his gaze assesses whether what Dec’s saying is true or not. I remain quiet and let him make his own assumptions.