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fisted his hands, locking eyes on Marcus.
Strangely enough, he felt like this was his last chance. He loved
Fabian so much, but fear had kept him from pursuing the man. And
although he wasn t sure why he felt this way he knew his time was
running out. He needed to see this plan to fruition, needed to complete
the tasks he set himself, complete the plan he had implemented the
30 Anika Hamilton
night of the twin moons. He needed to storm Fabian from two fronts,
the secret and the obvious.
Fifteen, Marcus announced, the auctioneer barely having a
chance to get a word in edgewise. A smug smile showed from
Marcus oily face, reminding Caden of the reasons for his hatred of
the man. He could not be trusted. He had waltzed into town, never
telling much about his past that didn t sound false. Caden had taken
an instant dislike to the man, Marcus rubbing him the wrong way, on
many levels.
Thirty, Caden exploded, his teeth gnashing together. That was
all the money he had in his pocket. At his sides, his hands balled into
tighter fists as he waited to hear from Marcus again. The auctioneer
acknowledged his bid, but Caden s eyes never wavered from Marcus,
watching his every move, fearing it wouldn t be enough to win
Fabian.
Marcus rummaged through his pouch, finally coming up empty.
Crossing his arms over his chest, the man plopped down on the chair.
The satisfaction rushing through Caden s veins made him giddy and a
little lightheaded. He d won. Fabian was his.
Caden s bid of thirty, going once, going twice, sold to Caden
Eliot. A wide smile split the auctioneer s face. The crowd looked
quite pleased with themselves as well. Everyone acted like they each
won Fabian, too, some even clapped. He couldn t help how proud he
felt, as he went to claim his man. Half the town probably knew he was
in love with Fabian. And sometimes he wished someone would let
him know if Fabian felt the same way.
He walked to the table at the side of the stage, paying the bid price
to the collector before going up on stage to claim his prize. Holding
out his hand to Fabian, Caden waited with bated breath to see what
the other man would do.
Fabian had seemed so hurt during the whole Jasmine fiasco.
Would he look past his hurt to eat with Caden? The hand capturing
his in a warm embrace told Caden, yes.
Dancing With Your Heart 31
* * * *
Fabian had felt betrayed, unable to even look at Caden. He hated
to admit his crush on the man, his fantasies about having him, of
having the experience of falling in love with each other. And when
the man seemed to have bid on his best friend, Jasmine, he figured he
had no chance. He couldn t compete with breasts and other such
womanly parts and more importantly he didn t want to try. No one
ever bid on Jasmine at these auctions. Taylor was way too scary to
tangle with. The man s love for his mate was always on display for all
to see, just like the kiss he planted on her lips a few moments ago.
Now before the whole community Caden had declared his intentions
to pursue Jasmine and challenge Taylor.
The unfairness of life hit him hard, to have a secret admirer who
he had no hope of identifying and a long lasting crush he had no hope
of acquiring. Heart constricting with his disappointment, Fabian
remembered feeling the need to leave, to escape. He hadn t been
stupid enough to expect Caden would bid on him, but he had hoped.
The auctioneer called his name, eliminating his ability to exit
gracefully and unseen. The bidding had started and Fabian had
ignored the auctioneer s words not caring overmuch who would win
him, until he heard, Five from Caden.
And just like that Fabian had perked up. Caden bid on him, his
mind tried and failed to understand, to truly comprehend the situation.
Why would Caden bid on him? What was the other man playing at?
Pondering these questions, that pesky thing called hope started to
blossom again, lightening his heart. His confusion and happiness,
however, were short-lived as the wonder of Caden bidding on him
morphed into the horror of the disgusting man, Marcus Fuller, bidding
on him as well.
This was some kind of celestial trance where he would be forever
plagued with the man of his dreams and the one of his nightmares
32 Anika Hamilton
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