Loving the Bastard (11 page)

Until she actually saw the bastard for the first time since she’d left, Zeta hadn’t realized how much she’d missed him. Unfortunately, he seemed to have moved on. Not one, but two women hung all over him, both of them as white as a woman could get. Even still, Zeta was awed by how handsome and dangerously good-looking he was in the expensive tuxedo he wore. Seeing the women clinging to him only reminded her how much he’d hurt her. True, she’d been the one to suggest that marrying a woman of color in this part of the country might not do him any favors in the business community, but hearing him voice it after everything they’d shared together cut like a fucking knife.

Disgusted at her own traitorous heart, Zeta turned away from him, fully intending to leave when the announcer took the stage. “Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention. It’s time for the celebrity auction, the portion of our evening that will provide the most support for our cause tonight.”

A smattering of applause scattered throughout the room along with excited murmurs. Zeta’s heart started to pound as she fumbled in her clutch for the program she’d picked up when she walked in. Sure enough, the last celebrity on the card to be auctioned off, the highlight of the evening, was none other than Maximilian Roth. She could have groaned out loud but had no intention of Max’s harem overhearing. In fact, she didn’t want to be here at all. There was no way she could watch him leave there with one of his blonde bimbos, and there was no way Zeta was shelling out the kind of money it would take to buy his company. At that thought, she nearly laughed. It would almost be poetic justice if she bought him. She remembered thinking those few weeks ago that was exactly what he’d done to her.

Taking one last swallow of champagne, Zeta turned to go. Damn her heart, anyway. She never should have let herself get involved with a man like Max. She’d been doomed from the very beginning.

“If I may?”

Zeta froze. Was that Max at the microphone now? Very slowly, she turned back to the stage. Max stood there, the auctioneer speaking to him with a look on his face as if trying to understand exactly what Max wanted but incapable of believing what he was hearing. Finally, the man nodded, backing away from Max, motioning for him to go ahead with whatever he had in mind.

“The rest of the auction will go on as scheduled, but I’m making a bit of a change to my involvement.” Max gave the crowd his most charming smile. Then his gaze locked on her. The breath slammed out of Zeta’s lungs.

The look he gave her was challenging. Daring. Was he calling her out? He certainly wanted her to be there. Was this his way of getting even with her for leaving him? Did he intend to show her exactly what she was missing? Because she already knew. At least, she knew what she’d be missing if he ever decided to stop being a bastard to her.

“I’m not selling myself for one night. I’m selling myself for a lifetime.” There were excited if confused murmurs all around as Max reached into his pocket and pulled out a small white box. He didn’t open it, but the implication was obvious. He was offering himself…as a husband? What. The. Fuck? “The…lucky…woman to
buy
my hand will get a lifetime with me and all the quirks that represents. I’m hard to get along with, and more than a little bit of a bastard, but I am confident the right woman, the only woman who can handle me, will dig deep into her purse and purchase me for her partner.” He paused before raising one hand in a “slow down a bit” gesture. “Before you ladies get too excited, let me emphasize that you don’t get to take possession of your merchandise before you pay for me. No thinking I’ll foot the bill once you’ve bid on me. Any amount you bid must be paid for by funds you have available on your person.” Surprisingly, more than one woman looked crestfallen. “The proceeds for this sale—and this sale only—will be split between the women’s shelter and a new facility that will be built to complement both the Y and the shelter. A center for disadvantaged inner city youth education. Not only will this facility have state-of-the-art equipment and the most dedicated, experienced teachers, but the entire area will have enhanced security to benefit not only the education center, but the Y and the shelter as well.” There was a frenzy of flashes as photographers scrambled to capture the moment. Reporters threw a barrage of questions at Max but he only ignored them, his gaze remaining fixed on Zeta.

The auctioneer took the mic from Max, clearing his throat. “Well, what a surprise indeed. The first celebrity up for auction will be none other than Maximilian Roth. Not for a night, but for marriage.”

“What about a prenup?” one woman yelled out. Zeta raised an eyebrow. Indeed. What about a prenup?

Max merely grinned. “No prenup. As a marriage should be.”

Zeta’s heart pounded, and she felt more than a little lightheaded. Reaching out to the bar, she steadied herself, trying to breathe through the shock Max had just delivered. There was a message in there for her, only for her. Zeta knew it like she knew her own name. He wanted her to do this, but how? There was no way she could compete with these women with more money than good sense.

“We’ll start the bidding at fifty thousand—”

“One hundred thousand!” One of the tall blondes raised her hand, her voice loud as she spoke over the auctioneer.

“Very well. One hundred thousand for Miss Blythe.”

“One fifty!” Another woman cried out from across the room. Zeta couldn’t see her, but she was certain it was another tall, willowy blonde. Still, Max’s gaze never wavered from hers.

The bidding went on and on, women shelling out more money than Zeta could even imagine giving for anything. Still, she looked on helplessly, her gaze wandering back to Max time and time again. He never looked away from her. The bidding had started to lag, apparently no one willing or able to go much above one point five million, when Zeta shook her head, giving him a look that she hoped said “I don’t understand what you want me to do.” Max interrupted the auctioneer again.

“You can do better than that, ladies. Dig deep…I mean
really
dig deep into your purses. I know you can come up with more. Now is not the time to prevent credit card abuse.”

Everything in Zeta stilled. That is, everything but her pounding heart. Then she opened her clutch, furiously digging until she pulled out…

That goddamned Black Centurion Am-Ex.

When Zeta hadn’t immediately bid on him, Max’s heart sank. Then she gave him an adorably confused look and it hit him she’d forgotten about the credit card he’d given her. It didn’t take her long to find it though. It was good luck on his part she’d even had it with her. Max had counted on her sense of responsibility, that she wouldn’t let that little piece of plastic out of her possession for fear of it being stolen. It was a gamble he’d won. Well, that
and
he’d had Samson at the ready with another one in case she hadn’t had it with her.

The bidding was up to one point seven million when Zeta’s hand flew into the air and she yelled out, “Two million!”

Excited whispers and murmurs erupted all around, and Max let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. Not only was she still interested, she had looked a little desperate before she’d realized she had the means to have him for her own. That could only be a good thing.

When the bid was raised to two point one mil, Charleen nodded her head, not as confident as she had once been. Charleen had money of her own, but there was no doubt in Max’s mind she had to be getting close to the limit she had on hand. She was possibly the only woman there tonight who could give him a run for his money—literally—but he’d feel better once Zeta started bidding in earnest.

Sure enough, no sooner had the auctioneer acknowledged Charleen’s bid than Zeta made one of her own. “Three million.”

Charleen’s lips tightened as she calmly said, “Three point one.”

“Four,” Zeta said without missing a beat.

“How the hell do you have four million on hand?” Charleene cried. “I demand someone run her finances before we continue!”

An official stepped to Zeta, who calmly handed him her card. He swiped the thing on a card reader before handing it back to Zeta and nodding to the auctioneer.

“I would seem all is well with Miss Lawless’s finances. Shall we continue?”

“I need time to secure more funds,” Charleen demanded.

“Everyone knew Mr. Roth would be up for auction, Miss Blythe. If Miss Lawless is able to continue without securing more funds herself, then the auction will continue. Miss Lawless?”

“Your people have run my card. I’m good to go. Any question at this point is more than a little insulting. If Miss Blythe didn’t come prepared to pay what it takes, then perhaps she should wait for the next round.”

If Max could have fist-pumped on stage without looking like a dork, he would have. Zeta was taking control of the situation, and she was determined to win. He’d ponder the why of it later. For now, he only hoped it was because she had been as miserable as he’d been, because he was going to let her know exactly how he felt about her. If she didn’t feel the same way, if she didn’t actually love him, he was probably in for a really, really bad night.

“But I didn’t know the actual terms of the auction! I’d have secured more funds!”

“Then you’re missing the point of the whole thing,” Zeta said without missing a beat. “If you aren’t prepared to donate the money with no thought of return, perhaps you didn’t need to bid in the first place.”

“If you knew what was happening before the auction—”

“I had no more of a clue than anyone else did. It’s just that I spend a lot of time working with kids in this area. I have a legitimate investment in their well-being and the well-being of the community. Any money I could spare I’d already freed for this event.” Zeta shrugged as if she did this kind of thing every day.

“Then shall we continue?”

Charleen hissed her disapproval but placed the next bid…which Zeta promptly raised. By another million. Max had never been so glad to watch money slipping through his fingers. Mainly because it meant Zeta was now his. Every luscious, passionate inch of her.

Finally, with an outraged screech, Charleen stormed from the room empty-handed, and Zeta had won her prize for a paltry eight million. There was loud applause and whistles as Zeta stepped forward to pay. Max had to wait until the transaction was complete when all he wanted to do was rush to Zeta and take her in his arms.

“Well, well,” she said as she sashayed toward him. “I guess we have quite a bit to discuss.”

“I think the fact that you bid eight million to have me for your husband speaks for itself. What more is there to discuss?”

“First of all,” she said, sticking a finger in the middle of his chest, “it was your money. You cheated.”

“
We
cheated,” he corrected, not willing to let her deny her part.

Zeta merely shrugged. “Secondly, you’re a bastard.”

“I made that perfectly clear at the beginning of the auction. You can’t hold that against me.” When she would have opened her mouth to speak again, Max merely pulled her to him and covered her mouth with his. Immediately cameras clicked and flashed while reporters yelled out questions, not the least of which was “Are you really marrying Miss Lawless?”

Not letting Zeta out of his embrace, Max pulled the ring from its case. The ruby and diamond setting complemented her dress as if he’d planned it that way. Sliding the ring on her finger was easier than he’d thought and not because it fit perfectly. He
wanted
this. Wanted Zeta for his wife.

“Yes,” he answered, looking into her eyes rather than at the mob of reporters. “I’m marrying Zeta Lawless. And I’m never letting her go.”

“Because of—”

Again he silenced her with a hard kiss. “Because I realized how much I truly love you. As I see it, it’s my job to make sure you never regret spending eight million dollars on me.”

“Oh, no,” Max said when Zeta would have happily skipped to her suite with Max’s hand firmly in hers. “Not this time.” With a movement so swift she only had time to squeal, Max swooped her up in his arms and headed up the stairs to his third-floor suite. “I want you in my bed this time.”

“I’ve still not decided if I’m forgiving you or not,” Zeta said, feeling like she needed to at least try to make him feel bad for the way she’d treated her when all she really wanted to do was get on with the business of
them
.

He said nothing else until he pulled her into his bedroom and they stood in front of his bed. Then he framed her face with his big hands and urged her to look him in the eyes. “I swear to you, Zeta, I’ll spend the rest of my life making everything up to you. I was a complete and total ass from the very beginning, and what I said to you that last day was inexcusable.”

“Well, you went a long way toward making it up to me by pushing through the education center. Did you come up with that all on your own?”

Instead of reacting as she predicted he would, with anger that she’d suggest his intellect wasn’t what it should be, he grinned. “Well, I had a good incentive. I figured it might make you just a touch grateful. Besides, if you’re going to continue to work with the kids in that part of town, the least I could do was see to it everyone is safe.”

“Why do I get the feeling you’re not nearly the bastard you want everyone to think you are?”

“Oh, make no mistake. I’m a really big bastard. I just seem to have a soft spot where you are concerned.”

“And Trevor?”

He sighed. “Yeah, and that little scamp, too.”

“What did you do to help him and his family?”

“Does it matter? I helped. That’s all there is to it.”

“It matters to me.” Why Zeta wanted to know, she wasn’t quite sure. But she had the feeling she was going to like his answer. Unable to stop herself, she stroked his cheek even as he reached around her, his arms enfolding her, and unzipped her dress.

“I gave his mother a job on the estate. All the servants live in the villa on the south side of the property. It’s not much, but there are two bedrooms, two bathrooms, and she can do her laundry within the estate on her own time. Where it’s safe.”

Zeta couldn’t help the smile that split her face. “They really did get to you. I’d hoped some of the children could help me break through the ice in your heart.”

“Maybe they did,” he said, kissing her forehead, her nose. Her eyes. “Maybe it was just you. I don’t know. All I know is I’m a better man when you beat some manners into me. The way I see it, the only way for you to save me from myself is to be my wife. Stay with me. Forever.”

Laughter bubbled up out of nowhere. It had been a long while since Zeta had felt like laughing. Now, with hope of a future with a man she’d lost her heart to, happiness bubbled up inside her like champagne.

“Maximilian Roth. What in the world am I going to do with you?”

He cradled her head in his hands as he looked into her eyes, the intense blue of his burning deep inside her. “Love me, Zeta. Can you do that?”

“Love the bastard? Yeah. I think I’m up for it. Several times, actually. Tonight. Tomorrow, and well into the next day.” And she knew she would. Max had managed to transform himself into the man she needed him to be because he’d found something in her he didn’t want to be without.

“Good. Because I absolutely, without a doubt, am one hundred percent in love with you.”

Max seemed to take delight in baring every inch of her skin to his hot gaze. Then he kissed everything he bared. By the time they were both naked and in the bed, Zeta was practically squirming with need. Still, Max took his time, licking, nipping, sucking, and generally worshiping her body.

“God, Max! I need you now!”

Levering himself over her, Max held his larger body over hers, supporting his weight on straightened arms. Zeta rubbed her hands over the muscles in his arms and shoulders. His chest. She loved every hard inch of him, every last part of him. How or even why it happened, she had no idea. All Zeta knew was she wanted this man, needed to have him in her life.

“I love you, Zeta. With everything that I am, I love you.” With those heartfelt words, Max sank inside her, stretching her as he went. When he filled her, Zeta realized it was the only time she ever felt complete. They fit. She and Max. They fit together in body and soul. Despite the rocky beginning, despite everything they’d been through, Zeta found she didn’t want to be without him, nor did she want him to be anything other than what he was. She could live with the bastard as long as he actually realized he was being a bastard and rectified the situation. And she knew he would. It was there in his eyes when he’d willed her to understand what he wanted her to do at the auction. It was in his face when he looked at her now while he made love to her. Max would always be what she needed him to be.

It was what made her fall in love with the bastard to begin with.