The Highest Bidder

❊Cʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ Tʜɪʀᴛʏ❊

Sophia stared at me, her eyes still wide. Her mouth was hanging open in what I could only interpret as exasperated anger. It wasn't even close to what I felt once everything settled in.

"I ended up having to go to therapy." I laughed mirthlessly.

How someone could change so quickly overnight astounded me. But I did the same. I changed. I became angrier than I ever had before. My vision went red on more counts than I would have liked to admit. I hurt myself more, figuring out ways to not leave scars.

I showed her the almost invisible scars on my wrists and then the ones that lined my hip bones. They were barely visible anymore, but they would always be there. Mocking me. Reminding me of the lowest point in my life.

I fell back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. "I drank myself into oblivion every single day. But somehow, I managed to get through school and move out."

Journalism wasn't a cakewalk, no matter how easy it seemed. But it ended up being my escape after hurting myself for so many years. It was also an excuse to get out of social gatherings that my colleagues wanted me to go to. I didn't want to get close to anyone again because they always - always - hurt me. I came to the conclusion that all people weren't as they seemed.

Then I began running. And that helped more than therapy ever did with my anger. I ran until my body wasn't shaking with anger. I ran until whatever it was that was pissing me off, wasn't pissing me off anymore.

I bit my lip. "That was the quick version of my life story."

Sophia shook her head in disbelief. "I'd kill that fucking idiot! Did you ever find out why he changed?"

"No." I closed my eyes and Vince's face was there. "I stopped trying to get in contact with him."

She huffed. "Well, good."

"Do you see why I'm so hesitant to trust Enzo," I asked her after a few beats of silence.

"I do." She smiled down at me. "But the way Enzo treats you is about as real as I've ever seen him. When it was just me, he never smiled. Never made jokes or threw people into water with their clothes on. He was a gentleman, but always kept a safe distance. I think what he shows you are his true colors, Eva."

I thought about that for a while, contemplating whether or not that was true. And thinking about it, I realized that maybe it was. I knew Enzo hadn't lied to me since I began working for him. If anything, he tried to avoid talking about what he did for a living up until he had no choice but to tell me. And when I asked him to tell me what he did, he did so without hesitation. He may have not been truthful with his parents regarding our relationship, but I couldn't deny that something happened between us at that wedding. I saw a side of him that I didn't think I would see.

Someone who genuinely cared about me.

And when Maverick showed up at the mall, Enzo looked completely prepared to do what he had to do to get me away. Even if that meant using his gun. But I had run from him because I was afraid of what he was.

I sighed and bowed my head in defeat. "I don't know what to do, Sophia. I don't know if I should trust him or if I should keep him at a distance like everyone else."

"Do you believe he has ever lied to you," she asked.

I shook my head. "But I didn't think Vince did either and look how that turned out."

"I don't believe that all men are the same." She shrugged one shoulder and looked towards the door. "And I don't believe Enzo is anything like that dick you dated. Whether or not he acted that way because he lost the baby as well doesn't excuse what he did to you. And those people you met in high school were losers. Enzo is successful in whatever the hell he does. And I know you don't see the way he looks at you. I doubt he even realizes it."

The way he looked at me? I tried to sort through my memory to see what she was talking about. All I remembered was his signature scowl. And then that smile that showed off his dimples.

"But I can see interest," she continued, breaking into my thoughts of his smile. "A lot of it."

When she turned her head to me, I was already staring at her. I wasn't sure whether or not to trust her judgment.

She placed her cool hand over mine and leaned in. "The reason I've been trying to push you two together is the fact that you two seem like you're made for each other. You keep him on his feet with your sass, and he keeps you grounded. This ship will sail if it's the last thing I do here, damn it."

The door opened right after she spoke those words and Enzo was there. He glanced back and forth between the two of us curiously.

"Oh!" Sophia stood. "I need to go clean up the dining room! Think about what I said, Eva. You don't have to do anything drastic, but just think about it, okay? Pay attention to it and you'll see what I mean. Take everything one day at a time."

I nodded at her retreating back. Talking to a therapist never did anything for me because I felt like I was just telling my life story to a stranger. A stranger who would mentally judge me while plastering a fake smile on their face. But telling Sophia seemed to help a lot more than I would have liked to admit. She didn't fake a smile. Her reactions were genuine and she didn't judge me.

Enzo stepped to the side so that Sophia could rush out. She turned and shot me a grin before disappearing around the corner, leaving me alone with him.

He shut the door, but didn't lock it. That eased a little bit of my worry.

"Welcome to my office." I held my hands out. "I heard that you've been bad."

He cracked a small smile and walked over to me. "Oh, yeah?"

"Mhm." I stuck my tongue out as he sat down beside me.

He glanced down at my tongue. "And what's my punishment, principal Whelan?"

I didn't know what to say to that, so I remained silent. Usually I would have had an awesome comeback, but the way he was looking at my lips was disconcerting. I tried to see the interest that Sophia had talked about, but all I saw there was hunger.

"How long has it been since you've had sex," I asked, genuinely curious.

That startled him into looking into my eyes. "A few months. Why do you ask?"

I shrugged. "You said that you had self-control and it looks like it's slipping."

He chuckled as he raised his hand to move a lock of my hair from my face. His long fingers curled around a fistful and pulled ever so slightly, baring my neck to him. His eyes were dark as his eyes first traveled from my eyes, down to my lips, down my neck, and rested curiously on my chest. I let him scan me over, even letting his eyes trail further down until his eyes rose back up to mine.

"I have plenty of self-control, Eva." He cleared his throat. "And even if it was slipping, I would want you to tell me you want me before I do anything of the sort to you. And plus, that's not why I'm here."

His hand was still wrapped up in my hair. After a few seconds of me glaring at him, he let me go.

It may not have been the reason why he was in my room, but he was sure trying to tempt me. That much was certain, and he was certainly doing it well. I wanted his hand back in my hair. I wanted him to kiss me so that I could feel his lips moving against mine. I wanted his tongue in my mouth as his hands traveled over my body.

But I wouldn't tell him any of that.

He was in my room to talk about what we were discussing earlier. Nothing more. Nothing less. And if he was waiting for me to tell him that I wanted him, he'd wait a long time. I bet that his control would slip before I told him that I wanted him.

I smirked.

No, I knew it would.

°°°°°
A/N: Only 2 chapters today, guys I'm sorry 🥺 at least it's not really a cliffhanger, right? Lol