The doors to the salon opened promptly at 8:00 p.m. Amelia greeted each guest. She was flanked by two large members of the club’s security team.
Quin hung back, allowing the others to enter ahead of him. Cosmo was one of the first to arrive, so it was best if Quin didn’t get too close.
This constant state of nonstop stimulation he was experiencing shortened his fuse. Hopefully, Cosmo would behave, and all would be well.
It was mostly men, dressed in suits, participating tonight. A handful of females had also shown.
Amelia noticed Quin once the group had gone past her. She smirked. Quin had never been on one of her auction lists, not even the slave auctions some of his brothers were so fond of.
“I must say, Quin, I was surprised when I saw your name,” she teased, good-naturedly.
“Yeah, join the club,” he chuckled, running his hand across the top of his short hair.
Now that he was about to enter the salon, he was questioning his decision. What other people did in private was not his business, as long as no one was harmed. Even Cosmo wouldn’t dare to cause injury.
“I, uh, I’m not exactly sure what I was thinking.”
Amelia put her hand on his arm and patted.
“It doesn’t matter. You might just find something of interest tonight. In fact, I think it may be a positive experience for you,” she winked.
“We’ll see,” he shrugged.
“Go on in,” she said. “There’s plenty of seats. We only have three on the agenda tonight.”
Quin walked through the doorway and took a seat off to the side, away from the dozen or so seated in the front.
The salon was a large room. It was his favorite room in the manor. It reminded him of Washington’s Mount Vernon with its intricate and detailed décor.
The pale blues and whites gave it a calming effect. The room, filled with wealthy beings dressed in fine clothing, was deceptively innocent. No one would guess this was a place to buy and sell sex.
Amelia entered through another door connected to a powder room. It was where Quin assumed the females were waiting.
“Welcome, everyone, to this evening’s Vendita di Innocenza! We have three very special offerings for you. Before we begin, let me remind you of the rules.”
She held up the stack of papers in her hand.
“First, you all signed contracts. You will be held to the agreement.”
Her tone was firm. The contracts were ironclad. Not legal, but definitely binding. Amelia would use her ability to be sure they were enforced. Sirens were the only ones who could use compulsion on immortals.
She released her siren power, her melodic voice ensnaring the small crowd.
“No harm shall come to anyone. You will uphold your end of the contract. If, at any time, you are told ‘no,’ you will stop and ring for security. Your partner will be removed, and you will not intervene. You also forfeit the monies paid and risk expulsion from the club, depending on the situation.”
Quin felt his head nodding in agreement. Her compulsion was strong, and it ensured the innocents were safe from physical harm. Of course, the first time might hurt a little, but that was part of it.
Amelia’s gaze landed on Cosmo when she spoke next.
“Lastly, please remember our guests tonight volunteer for a variety of reasons. You are told very little on purpose. Do not assume you hold power over any of them, in any way, especially financially.”
Quin held back the snort wanting to come out. She was vicious. He liked it.
“First up, is Josef.”
Quin was surprised to see the male nereid come out from behind the door. Josef worked in the kitchen. He never would have guessed one of the employees had yet to do the deed. Maybe he was saving it for tonight.
The females were bidding rapidly. It was like watching a tennis match. Quin’s head was twisting back and forth as the paddles shot up until the last bidder won.
He couldn’t fault the nereid for volunteering. He’d just made six figures. Most of the immortal population was wealthy. Few were virgins. It made sense sexual beings would covet another who remained untouched. Anything rare was worth more.
As security led Josef and his new lady friend off to another room, Amelia brought out the second guest. This one was female.
Her name was Eliza and she was cute as a button, though, he couldn’t tell what sort of immortal she was. He’d need to be close enough to smell her for that.
Almost everyone bid, including a couple of the females. Eliza must have been very willing with the preferences she marked on her application. Interesting.
Quin’s boner had never died down completely. He considered bidding but refrained. Eliza was too doll-like in her looks for his taste.
He feared he’d break her. He would probably scare her when he brought in another male. It wasn’t really a first-time thing to do.
He noticed Cosmo only bid twice and both times he low-balled the number. Cheapskate.
Amelia waited until Eliza and her companion exited to announce the last volunteer. The female must have been nervous because she stepped out before her name was called.
Quin’s world stopped spinning.
He couldn’t pull air into his lungs.
His cock swelled.
His body shook.
Primal need like he’d never known bore down on him. Heavy and suffocating. Worse, so much worse, than it had been this week.
Mine, his mind howled inside his head with an intensity that scared him.
What was her name? Vanessa. Amelia had called her Vanessa. He could barely hear the siren above the whooshing of blood pumping through his veins.
The most magnificent vision of beauty in all the realms stumbled towards Amelia, tripping over her own feet.
Graceless, his Little Fawn was graceless. Quin would teach her to control her body. He would teach her the pleasures of the flesh. He would …
Fuck. He clenched his eyes shut, as if doing so would make her disappear.
What was he thinking? He couldn’t take this virgin up to his suite. This redheaded virgin. He hadn’t touched red hair since Josette.
It turned him off. It sometimes made him feel ill. He shouldn’t be reacting to Vanessa like he was.
Scrubbing his face, he opened his eyes to see Cosmo with his hand up, his tongue grotesquely flicking in and out of his mouth at Vanessa.
Quin was disgusted. No way in hell was he going to let Cosmo defile the exquisite creature, red hair or not.
He waited to hear the current bid. A man behind Cosmo had just bid $250,000.
Quin would not waste his time in a bidding war over peanuts.
“One million,” his voice rang out across the room.
There. Beat that, assholes.