Chapter ThirtyTwo

The rest of the evening passed in a blur.

The auction went much better than I had expected, nearly too well. My designs were on full show, and the audience buzzed with excitement.

Each bid appeared to raise the stakes, increasing the cost of the design I'd spent weeks coming up with.

Then the final bid came in. Tyler.

It had to be him, out of everyone in the room. He'd lifted his paddle and immediately outbid everyone.

The room had fallen silent, a weird tension creeping over the audience as the auctioneer's hammer fell.

Sold.

To Tyler Wills.

I didn't know what to feel at the time. Shock? Anger? Perhaps both.

He said nothing, just he sat there grinning broadly as though he had just won some twisted game.

The event ended soon after, and as people left the room's energy changed. I had done my part and met my commitments. Now it was time to leave.

And so I found myself in Caleb's car, driving away from the scene, the tension between us thick enough to cut with a