Page 93 of 10 Rings I Hate About You
Thank you, Victoria mouthed.
I winked at her. It was the least I could do. The Kingsleys were the most down-to-earth people I’d ever met in my life. You’d have no idea they had a dime if you spent an afternoon with them. The last thing they needed was someone triangulating their net worth while Glamma was on stage.
The microphone squealed a protest, and the entire room groaned.
I laughed. We’d all heard Mayor Everly speak at events long enough that the squeal was practically a theme song, and yet every single time, without fail, the same reaction. I caught Adele’s eye, and we both bit back smiles.
Everly gave her welcome speech. “I just wanted to thank everyone for attending our fifth annual bachelor auction. This year, all funds raised will go to the Ruby River Animal Shelter. And in honor of that, we have a very special surprise tonight. Each bachelor has been paired with an adorable animal companion. In your programs, next to each bachelor listed, we have the animal just below their name with their stats. On the back page is the information you’ll need to inquire to adopt any of our cute furry models. And with that, I’ll hand everything over to the emcee of the evening, Glamma!”
“What kind of name isGlamma?” Janine said, not very quietly.
Gasps sounded from two nearby tables. Victoria went rigid. I pressed my lips together and stared very hard at my dessert plate.
“Janine!” Victoria whisper-hissed.
Janine shrugged and tossed her long blonde hair, apparently unbothered by the social temperature of the room, which had dropped about fifteen degrees.
I wanted to say something. Several things. I wanted to kick her ass to the curb. But I held my tongue. The shelter deservedevery dollar in this room tonight, and causing a scene wouldn’t help a single dog or cat.
Or goat.I snickered.
I focused very intently on my chocolate dessert.
“Please tell me these two seats are free,” Vivi, Wyatt’s business partner whispered, appearing at the edge of our table with her fiancé, Henry, trailing behind her.
“Vee! Yes, absolutely.” Penny scooted her chair.
Adele smiled at Vivi, warm and genuine, then glanced at Henry, and something in her expression dimmed by a few watts. I’d heard enough about this guy from Grace and Penny to form opinions I kept to myself.
Glamma’s slight drawl filled the room, with effortless authority. “Hello, my favorite people. To everyone here for a good time, the baked goods—thank you Penny—and for the ten most eligible bachelors of Ruby River, you are in for quite the treat.”
Cheers. Actual cheers of excitement. I had to admire their loyalty.
“Tonight, you are not bidding on just a man.” She paused, letting the room lean in. “You are bidding on a very memorable eveningexperience.”
She winked.
“That sounds either fantastic or threatening,” someone in the crowd yelled out.
Glamma chuckled. “Why can’t it be both, darlin’?”
People clapped.
I zoned out for the first two bachelors and went to get another drink for the third and fourth. By the time the chef, the teacher, and the pilot had been auctioned off, I was back to my seat, sipping something with elderflowers in it and trying to look like I was not—under any circumstances—paying close attention to the last name on the program.
One name.
I’d been staring at it since I sat down. It pulled at my attention, the way you feel a storm coming before the sky had fully committed to it: unsettled, inevitable, and already decided.
“Next up,” Glamma announced, “we have one of our town hero’s, Jamison. He’s six feet of heroism who once rescued a kitten, a kayaker, and a wedding ring from the river all on the same day.”
Jamison walked out with a three-legged mutt whose little tail wagged so hard it was essentially a whole body experience. Jami took his time going down the walkway, easy and good-natured, crouching to let the dog sniff the edge of the low staging they were on.
“With him is Noble,” Glamma continued. “He’s adorable, well-trained, and looking for his forever home.”
“Do the two of them come as a packaged deal?” A woman in the audience yelled out.
Glamma laughed. “Let’s start at fifty dollars.”
