The door to the room we were in—which, upon closer inspection, was actually a library—burst open with a loud bang, effectively cutting off my response to Vali’s somewhat insulting request.

“Dragomir, my son!” boomed the massive bearded man who entered the room like he owned the whole damn place. Maybe he did; how would I know? Either way, he looked like a fit version of Henry the Eighth, minus the crown and robes.

“Father,” Vali clipped, stepping ever so slightly in front of me and blocking my view of this older Românul.

“I heard a rumor that you made a recent purchase at the Onyx Auction.” The older man’s voice was heavily accented and had a cruel-sounding rasp to it. I nudged Vali in the back, as subtly as I could, to try and make him move. I hated the feeling that I was hiding behind him.

“I did,” Vali responded to his father smoothly, reaching behind himself and swatting at my prodding hand.

“Well, let's see what you bought then. I heard you dropped a pretty penny on this one, so she must be something special?” His leering tone made me bristle, and I dug my nails into Vali's back where I had been prodding him. This guy sounded like a real piece of work. No one moved for a second, then the older Românul made an exasperated sound. “Come on boy, move aside. We don't have all damn day; the party starts in an hour.”

Slowly, almost reluctantly, Vali stepped to the side and allowed me to get a good look at his sleazy father.

“My, my, she is quite the looker isn't she,” he purred and actually licked his lips! Ugh, so gross!

I opened my mouth to give him a piece of my mind but was interrupted by a very fake sounding cough from Vali. Raising my brows at him in question, he gave me a tiny headshake, and I remembered what he'd said about not being myself. Ah, this must be what he meant.

For some insane reason, my brain was screaming at me to trust him. I guessed things could still be worse for me than they currently were, and by the way his father was eyeing me up and down, I definitely did not want to find out what he was thinking.

I adopted my Emily personality, batting my eyelashes and giving the older man a vacant smile like a simpering fool. He continued inspecting me for a bit longer before giving a satisfied grunt and turning his attention back to his son.

“I see why you chose her, boy, but if you had wanted a girl, I could have given you one from the club. There was no need to go dropping millions at the fucking auction house. Dirty, fucking Russians.” He sneered his lip in disgust for the Onyx Auction coordinators. “Anyway,” he continued, “it's done now, and turning out to be a most profitable move. I have already been contacted by a gentleman offering twice what you paid for her.”

I sucked in a gasp, turning panicked eyes to Vali. He must be talking about Mr. Grey. As painfully obvious as it was that it was neither the time nor the place to beg for my life, the impending panic attack sneaking up on me was forcing me to still at least silently beg Vali not to let him have me.

He met my pleading stare blankly but answered his father, “You told him no, I should hope? I didn't travel all that way to walk away empty-handed, father.”

“No?” The man barked a loud laugh. “Don't be ridiculous! Of course I told him yes! He will be here to collect his property first thing in the morning. I thought you might appreciate a night with her first, eh?”

A small whimpering sound escaped my throat, and Vali's huge hand closed around my wrist. It was tight but strangely reassuring.

“Is that all you came to say, father? Because if so, you can leave again. The party doesn't start for another hour, and you're not particularly welcome until then.” Vali's voice was flat, bordering on bored, and I watched as his father's eye twitched and his teeth made an audible grinding sound.

“Very well. You must be eager to make the most of your time with this curva. I will see you shortly, son.” He gave me one last lingering leer, then strolled out of the library as though he hadn't just been effectively kicked out. Once he was gone, Vali gusted out a heavy sigh, and his shoulders drooped.

“Vali, um, I don't mean to sound paranoid, but that man that is coming for me is the same one from the auction house…” I chewed my lower lip hard and clenched my hands into fists.

He narrowed his eyes at me and said nothing as he stepped backwards to an armchair and flopped himself down.

“Why?” he asked eventually, watching me with shrewd eyes.

“Why… what?” I replied, confused.

“Why does this man want you so badly that he would defy me and go to my father with an offer of seven million dollars? Who is he to you?” The suspicious look he was giving me got my hackles up. For me, it was always a fine line between fear and anger, and more often than not I chose anger.

“I have no interest in telling you all the sordid details,” I hissed defensively. “But let me be perfectly clear when I say that he will not take me from here alive.”

He raised his eyebrows at my firm statement, tapping on his stubbled chin with his long fingers.

“You mean to tell me you'd kill yourself to avoid being in this man's possession?” His question was quiet but loaded with menace, and my breath caught.

“I mean,” I stated, steeling my spine and hardening my jaw, “that I would do whatever it took to try and kill him myself. If that meant I didn't make it out of this house alive, then so be it. But I will never, ever, be at his mercy again.”

He held my steady eye contact, as if assessing my level of commitment to that statement, then nodded carefully.

“It won't be an issue,” he said quietly. “I have someone coming to the party tonight that will help you return to your friends. Just hang in there a while longer, and for the love of God, please don't throw yourself out of any more windows.”

My jaw gaped open. “Sorry, what? I could have sworn you just said you're letting me go—”

“I am not letting you go, dragă; I am organizing your escape. It is very different for my reputation. Now, you will require a change of clothes for the party. Your escape will happen at midnight, so you'll have to play the part of demure arm-candy until them. Can you handle that?” A small smile twitched at his mouth.

“Why midnight? Why not sooner?” I demanded. Now that I knew there was a plan in place, I wanted it to happen now!

“Because it is the easiest time for you to slip out unnoticed with your escort. While everyone is doing the countdown and drinking and celebrating, the guards around my home will likely be paying less attention.” This time his lips pulled into a real smile. “You did know it was New Years Eve?”

No… no, I did not. But I supposed it made sense if his estimation of ten days since my kidnapping was correct. Instead of admitting that, I just nodded.

“I guess I should say thank you. But it still doesn't change the fact that you murdered a man.” I was determined to keep reminding myself of that fact so I would stop feeling any warm fuzzies towards this man who held me captive.

He just rolled his eyes, like I was being ridiculous, and stood. “Come on, dragă. Let's get you dressed for Românul’s party.”