Bending Bethany by Aria Cole Page B

done all my crying in the weeks and months leading up to this, thought I’d worked over every angle and was finally prepared for tonight. But of course, there was no being prepared. I just had to hope and pray that whoever purchased me tonight would be at least kinder than Judy. That was the only hope I had left to pray for.  
    “Get her to sign this, tell her the money will be wired to her account in the morning. We’re done here.” Clancy thrust a few forms at his guard then caught my elbow, escorting me across the office to a doorway hidden among shelves of books.  
    “So…that’s it? I—I never have to see her again?” The words quaked from my lips as anxious anticipation coiled in my stomach. No more Judy. Through those doors and into my next life. It couldn’t be that easy, could it?
    “What, you wanna say goodbye?” The man’s crooked grin and gleaming eyes nearly pulled me in. Made me feel safe and protected, like he actually did have a shred of kindness buried in his heart. Maybe this was one of those agencies that took care of their working girls. Had I, in some small way, lucked out?
    “No, no. No goodbyes.” I shook my head and swiped at a single stubborn tear at the corner of my eye.  
    “Good. We don’t have time for lengthy goodbyes, Shoshanna has to get you ready for your big reveal. He will be here in less than an hour.”
    My heart nearly shuddered to a stop. “ He? ”  
    “Got a special client that saw your file and took an immediate interest in you. Tonight is a formality, as long as he likes what he sees in the flesh,” his eyes jumped up and down my body again, “and I have no reason to see why he wouldn’t, you’ll be going home with him tonight.”  
    My heart thundered at a million miles a minute as I took in his words. “I’ve already been sold? I thought there was an auction.” I struggled to wrap my brain around this new turn of events.  
    “That’s the case for most girls, but it seems you’re not most girls.” His eyes darkened a minute, then looked away, “We have a client uninterested in any of the women, but when he saw your file he didn’t hesitate.”  
    His words rattled on repeat in my head. Nerves hummed through my system as every fiber of my being was suddenly on edge, the ramifications of this night finally hitting home. I would be another man’s property, and he would use me up and throw me away. I was put on this earth to be used by men, my purpose no greater than what they saw in me.  
    But then I sucked in a sharp breath, letting my eyes fall closed for an instant as I thought of the faces of Julian, Mason, and Grant. Their constant encouragement, their laughs, and their love, and their willingness to fight with fists to protect me. I lived for them. They were my everything, and they would be worth all the pain my heart would endure at the hands of a monster. They’d saved me on countless occasions. Now I would save us, once and for all.  
    “Shoshanna will take you in here.” The man opened another door between the bookshelves that led down a long hallway of countless more doors. “Mr. Strong has been very particular. This is the first time we’ve been able to find someone he’s agreed upon,” he perused my body once, “so it’s very important to us that he’s a satisfied customer, but as long as you appeal to his baser needs, I think this arrangement will work out just fine.” He gave me a half smile of encouragement before pressing me into the room and closing the door with a resounding click.  
    “Hello, Eve. I’m Shoshanna.” A tall, blonde, well-put together woman in a fitted dress and heels reached for my hand. I took hers, shaking it nervously. “First things first, let me see if we need to work on the landscaping.” She told me to lie back on a table that I recognized all too well.  
    I swallowed the anxiety and pulled up my dress, spreading my legs to reveal my bare skin to her.  
    “Nice.” Her eyes appraised