Just like last time, Lizbeth meets us in the hallway right before we enter and shuttles us out to another room. This is the waiting area with refreshments in the far corner. I pour myself a glass of water to quench my thirst. There are fifteen girls in the room - more than there were last time. Every single one is dressed in a bra and panties and black heels. We’re all wearing black. I’m one of the shortest, and the only one without a blowout. Everyone is sitting around chatting. There’s a definite aura of excitement about the whole thing.

“Have you ever done this before?” Caroline turns to the girls at the nearby table.

They all shake their heads no. I look over the girls’ faces more carefully and, suddenly, it hits me. They’re all new. Not a single one is a repeat from last time. Except me.

“Has anyone else done this before?” Caroline asks a bit louder. All the girls in the room shake their heads.

“Oh my God, you’re the only repeat, Ellie,” she whispers to me. “You must’ve made an impression.”

The stage is right in front of us. Lizbeth stands behind the podium in the front of the spotlight. Just like last time, she’s the auctioneer. Just like last time, I peek out into the room to get a glimpse of the men. But much to my surprise, there’s no one there.

“There were men there last time,” I say to Caroline. “They were filling all the seats.”

She comes up and looks for herself. Then she points to the mirror dividing the room.

“They must be behind that mirrored partition. It must be some sort of two-way mirror.”

I nod in agreement. The mirrored partition gives me some pause. Why is everything so different from last time? I was really expecting this to be the same and now I find myself all thrown off.

Lizbeth introduces herself and goes over the rules. She addresses the audience as if they are right there, so they must be. She tells them that they have to be quiet and press the button when they want to make a bid. She motions to her ear, implying that she can hear them through a hearing device. Lizbeth then says that she will call out the price three times and if no one goes any higher, the girl will go to the highest bidder. They are then expected to make out a check, money order, or wire transfer to the account of the girl’s choice before they’re allowed to take her to their cabin.

I pray silently that I’m not called first. As much as I want to get this over with, I just can’t bear to go first. A few minutes later, it starts. Lizbeth calls out the first name. Caroline. My eyes grow wide and I turn to face my friend. What are the chances? I expect to see a terrified look on her face, but instead that familiar excited twinkle is in her eyes. She practically leaps out of her seat and prances to the stage in her four-inch heels.

She inhales deeply before stepping onstage. The spotlight focuses on her and she basks in it. All eyes are on her, just like they are meant to be forever. Lizbeth introduces her by name and states her height. She then starts the bidding at ten thousand dollars.

Unlike last time, I can’t see the paddles. There’s no one else in the room, but Lizbeth announces the bids as they come in. Caroline smiles when the bidding reaches fifty thousand, but tries to contain her excitement. By the time the bidding reaches one hundred thousand, she can’t contain her smile much longer. But the bids continue to climb even higher. There’s a slight pause at one hundred and twenty and Lizbeth says that price twice before someone else bids one hundred and thirty. It stays there for three counts.

“Sold for one hundred and thirty thousand,” Lizbeth announces. Caroline gives a little curtsy as a thank you and leaves the stage.

“Oh my God, Ellie! One hundred and thirty thousand! What kind of money is that? For one night?”

I give her a warm hug of congratulations.

“I mean, it’s nowhere close to what Mr. Black paid, of course,” she says. “But still.”

“That was a fluke,” I say, shrugging it off. “It’s awesome to get thirty grand over one hundred thousand. I mean, it is one night.”

I try to make her feel better, but I know exactly how competitive Caroline is when it comes to looks, money, and men. And I also know that the fact that Aiden paid more for me will gnaw at her.

“So, what do you think he looks like?” Caroline asks.

“I have no idea,” I say. “Last time, we could see their faces. Plus, we didn’t all have to wear the same thing. I guess they’re changing things up.”

Caroline’s eyes sparkle at the prospect. “That’s exciting!”

The auction starts again. One girl goes for ninety thousand and another goes for one hundred and fifty. Caroline stares daggers at her, probably wondering what she has on her.

“Listen, you never know when a particular guy has a particular type. Or maybe he just wants to spend more money than the others to show them up. It doesn’t mean that she’s better, or hotter, or anything like that.”

A familiar meek little man with glasses and a briefcase comes over to our table.

“How would you like your money, ma’am?” he asks, sitting down next to us. Caroline stares at him.

“You can get it as a check, money order, or cash,” he clarifies. “Or we can wire it to a numbered account of your choice.”

“I have an account in the Cayman Islands,” Caroline says. Wow, I did not know that.

“My grandmother set it up when I was little. She was a big tax evader,” she explains. “It doesn’t have much in it, but I guess that’s a good place to put the money if I don't want to pay taxes on it.”

I haven't even considered any of the tax implications of all this. Hmm, perhaps it is something to think about it. I just had the money deposited right into my bank account, but maybe that wasn’t the best thing. So what should I do now? I can’t very well walk out of here with a money order for all that cash, let alone cash itself. What if I lose it? Or get mugged? I mean, New York City is a much safer city now than it used to be, but it would just be my luck to get mugged the one day I was carrying around one hundred grand in my purse.

“Ellie?” Caroline breaks my concentration.

“What?”

“She called your name.”