The Auction House Deal: Bought by A Billionaire Chapter 9: A Future Bride on Accident

Roman POV ...

When we pulled into the garage and ca to a stop, two footn opened the doors for and Hannah, and Geoffrey greeted us as we entered the house.

"Welco ho, sir," Geoffrey said.

"Thank you, Geoffrey," I said as he closed the door behind us. "I’m taking my guest up to the Erald room. I’ll et you in the main family room shortly."

"Yes, sir," Geoffrey said. I led Hannah down the corridor past the kitchen. When I glanced at her she was taking in the decor and her surroundings.

"Hungry?" I asked her.

"A little," she said.

"OK, I’ll show you to your room so that you can shower, then I’ll have Geoffrey bring you so food and clothes," I told her, leading her down a wide corridor and to the elevator.

"Excuse for asking," Hannah said, "but you have clothes my size just lying around?"

I smirked at the insinuation. "I have a cousin, Lauren, who visits often," I told her.

"She usually leaves a bunch of stuff here."

Hannah nodded, and we got into the elevator, riding to the second floor in silence.

I led her to the Erald Room at the end of the corridor and opened the door for her. "If you need , I’ll be in the main family room," I told her. "I’m going to contact Freddy and let him know what’s going on."

Hannah didn’t enter the room imdiately. Instead, she held the contract up in front of .

"It doesn’t matter if you send ho," she said. "We still have to get married, Roman."

I didn’t think I would ever get tired of hearing her say my na.

She handed the Contract.

"If we’re not married in three months, I beco the express property of The Auction House again," she told . I didn’t know what to say to her as I stared at the contract in my hand. "If we don’t et the terms of the contract, my father will make sure that I’m sold again - or worse, he’ll sell my little sister."

I rubbed a hand over my face. What the hell had I gotten us into? I t her gaze. "Go ahead and shower," I told her again. "l have food and clean clothes sent up to you."

She stepped into the room and then turned to face . Her green eyes were bright yet serious. "You should read the contract," she said to . I nodded and she closed the door gently between us.

F*ck, I thought. This was too much. I needed

a drink. Making my way back to the elevator,

I took it down to the main floor and walked

to the family room, where Geoffrey t .

"Make sure that my guest gets anything

that she needs," I told Geoffrey. "She’s in the

Erald Room. She’ll need sothing to eat

and so clothes of Lauren’s."

"Yes, sir," Geoffrey said before leaving the

room.

I turned on the projector television and clicked on my favorite alternative music playlist. Once the room was filled with music, I dropped the contract on the coffee table and walked to the bar, pouring myself a shot of bourbon. I downed the shot and poured another. This was supposed to be simple: drop a few million to save a woman and help her get back ho.

It wasn’t working out that way.

I downed my shot and put the bottle of bourbon along with my empty glass on the coffee table next to the contract. I slipped off my shoes and made myself comfortable on the sofa, staring at the contract. If I called Freddy and he didn’t know anything about what just happened to Hannah, I would just stir up trouble. I needed the opinion of an unbiased third party who I trusted.

I slipped my phone out of my pocket and dialed my cousin’s number. Lifting the phone to my ear, it began to ring. I knew Lauren would be awake. She was a known night owl.

"Hey, Roman, what’s up?" Lauren answered the phone.

"Hey," I said, lifting my empty shot glass from the coffee table. "I need a bit of advice."

"Sure, is sothing wrong?" Lauren asked.

"Sort of," I said, twirling the empty shot glass between my fingers. "Can you stop by tomorrow? This is sothing that will have to be discussed in person."

"Oh, God, Roman," Lauren groaned. "You can’t just call and ask for advice without giving a hint at the problem at least."

I rolled my eyes. If I had called a guy friend, he would have just agreed to et tomorrow, no questions asked. "I have a friend that I want you to et," I said vaguely.

"A friend?" Lauren asked. "I need more information than that, Roman, spill it."

"A female friend," I said. "Look, it’s complicated and it’s sensitive. I need to think. See you tomorrow?"

"This should be interesting," Lauren said, and I could hear her smile through the phone. "Roman has girl problems. See you tomorrow."

I hung up the phone and poured another shot of bourbon, trying to decide what to tell Lauren and how I expected her to be able to help and Hannah.

Geoffrey entered the family room. "Sir, I had a maid take care of everything for your guest," Geoffrey said.

"Good, thank you, Geoffrey," I said without looking up at him. The alcohol was kicking in and the buzz was helping to relieve a bit of stress.

"Will you be needing anything else, sir?" Geoffrey asked . I glanced up at him.

Geoffrey wasn’t one to openly display emotions like worry, and he also wasn’t one to pry. I could see the curiosity in his dark gaze, the willingness to help however he could, but now was not the ti. I just needed to think.

"I’ll be fine, Geoffrey," I said. "That’ll be all."

"Very well, sir," Geoffrey said before leaving the room.

I could feel the presence of the contract drawing energy from as it lay seemingly innocently on the coffee table. I placed my empty shot glass on the coffee table and picked up the contract. Glancing through the first section of the docunt that Hannah had read to was sickening.

I tossed the contract back onto the table and poured another shot of bourbon.

My plan to go to the FBI and shut The Auction House down was a non-option at this point. Human trafficking was illegal, therefore the contract had no legal authority.

It would never hold up in court, but the very existence of the contract was one way that Fitzgerald could keep pressure on his clients and maintain the secrecy of his sick business. If his clients squealed, he would have no qualms about ruining their lives. He wanted to make sure we knew that. The idea of sending Hannah back ho was out of the question.

Court Macalester had certainly shown himself to be a ruthless man without a conscience. Am I thinking about sending her back to selfishly get rid of her? I asked myself.

Hannah Macalester was a gorgeous, intelligent woman who knew how to make a man fall to his knees. Just thinking about her green eyes, her red hair, and her perfect body filled with an aching desire for her.

I downed my shot and poured another. If drank too much, I wouldn’t be able to think. If I didn’t drink enough, I’d be able to feel too much emotion.

I leaned back on the sofa and closed my eyes. Hannah told that the contract required a marriage in three months. How did I go from a carefree, single, twenty-five-year-old to a young man who had purchased a future bride on accident?

Was I really going to make Hannah Macalester my wife? I opened my eyes and grabbed the shot from the table, tossing it back and pouring another. My friends were joking about getting married just a few hours earlier at the club. Now I was coming face-to-face with the reality. Hannah wasn’t a one-night stand or even my girlfriend; she was technically my fiancée, my future wife.

I pulled out my phone and searched for quick weddings. The first few links were for businesses offering fast wedding services.

Those were followed by a link to the local Courthouse for marriage services. I tossed my phone onto the sofa beside and closed my eyes, pressing the heels of my hands into my closed eyes.

I can’t handle this, I thought. I’m not ready for a wife. Opening my eyes, I leaned back on the sofa and stared up at the dimd LCD lights on the ceiling. I could barely grasp the concept of the word "wife."

Thinking back to the car ride here, Hannah seed reluctant to even talk to . Unless it was to point out the fact that, like an idiot, I hadn’t read The Auction House’s contract. I glanced at the contract on the coffee table.

Screw it, I thought, picking up the docunt to read it. I scanned through the pages, seeing what Hannah had ntioned. What she had not ntioned was the extra month to ensure an heir or the fact that her doctor had signed a docunt to verify her virginity.

I placed the docunt on the table again, feeling like I had crossed a line into Hannah’s personal life. If I was feeling lost right now, I could only imagine what Hannah was going through.

I picked up my shot and drained the glass, pouring another and hoping that the bourbon would bring answers.