Folsom (End of Men, #1)(17)
“This is Folsom,” she tells them proudly. “These are my friends.”
I’m introduced to a lineup of names I’ll never remember. The most interesting of the group is a tall redhead in an emerald green dress. She’s striking and sexy and she bites her lip when she catches me watching her.
“Folsom,” I hear from behind me. Governor Petite approaches us, a benevolent smile on her face. It’s time for the lottery drawing. I nod to the group of women and untangle myself from Sophia’s fingers. Sophia’s hand is replaced by Governor Petite’s.
“It looked like you needed some saving,” she says quietly as we walk arm in arm.
I glance at her. “Can you save me from all of these women, Governor, or just the one?”
She looks up at me, surprised. “Do you want to be saved? I thought that…”
“There it is,” I say, interrupting her. I didn’t want to hear her surprise about me not finding contentment in being an End Man. I approach the lottery draw and see that it’s a giant fish tank, a miniature of their grand bar.
“Yes,” she says, clapping her hands together. “We had it constructed just for this. You put your hand in and pull out a plastic fish. Inside each fish is one lucky girl’s number.”
“Brilliant,” I say dryly. “Should we get started?”
Governor Petite mistakes my sarcasm for genuine excitement and she runs off to make the announcement that we’re going to get started. I see Gwen out of the corner of my eye. She’s standing nearby with a bottle of water in her hand. When I look over, she shakes her head at me, a small smile on her lips. She mouths the word “brilliant” and rolls her eyes up in her head. I stifle a laugh and turn my attention back to the fish tank.
Fishing the plastic molds of fish out of the water and calling the numbers out as the cameras stream it live takes less than ten minutes. I’m given a towel to dry my hands, and I’m told that a lottery winner is here, one of the women who waited to see me walk the red carpet.
They pull her inside for an interview and check her number against the one we drew from the tank. When all is confirmed, she starts to scream. I try not to grimace, especially when the camera pans in on my face. Her circumstance calls this a miracle. She is not part of one of the elite families, my fee too exorbitant for someone of her standing to ever afford. If she becomes pregnant from our coupling, she will be hailed a hero among her people. The Region will financially provide for both her and her child. She is led up to the stage where I wait with the governor, and when she reaches me, she throws her arms around my neck. She’s a pretty girl, fair-skinned with long, auburn hair. Her dark eyes fill with tears when they meet mine.
“Thank you, thank you,” she says so that only I can hear.
I lift an arm and wrap it around her back, breathing in the scent of her hair. When I open my eyes, I immediately see Gwen. She’s standing stoically in the crowd watching me. Her eyes are the saddest eyes I’ve ever seen. Despite my own.
Her name is Audrin and she’s twenty-four years old. We are to be taken to a room somewhere in the building. I’m guessing it’s used just for this purpose. Before we go upstairs, Robin finds me in the crowd and discreetly palms me a little blue pill.
“I heard you had an exciting afternoon getting drunk,” she says. Her face is stern, but Robin could never be truly mad at me.
I shrug. “You took the day off. I didn’t have a babysitter.”
She frowns at me. “It won’t happen again. For either of us,” she says sternly. “You know how they get. You could have been mobbed.”
“Almost was,” I toss over my shoulder. “See you later.”
I pop the pill in my mouth and swallow it dry. Once we are alone in the room, Audrin looks ready to faint.
“Have something to drink,” I tell her, motioning over to the bar. “Take a bath to relax if you like, we have some time.” The bathtub was the first thing she noticed when we walked into the room, exclaiming about the size.
“Are you sure?” she asks shyly. “You don’t mind?”
I shake my head. I don’t blame her. I’ve seen the way some of the lower ends of the Regions are forced to live. Entire families crammed into tiny, one-bedroom apartments, sharing a bathroom with everyone else on the floor.
“I’ll make myself a drink. Go ahead.”
While Audrin runs the water, I fill my glass with bourbon and sit on the bed. I’ve had a buzz from the time I woke up until now. Robin would be pissed if she knew how much I’ve been drinking. My arms feel stiff and there’s a dull ache in my head. I find some aspirin in a gift basket on the table and pop a few into my mouth. I’m already getting hard, I can feel it. The longer you’re on the pills, the less time they take to work. I wonder if Gwen left after I came upstairs. Would she ride home with her mother and sister, or would she find her own way? If I’ve learned anything about Sophia thus far, it would be likely that she’d close out the party downstairs, being the last to leave.
When Audrin emerges from the bathroom a while later, she’s wearing a silky white robe and the expression of someone who looks like they want to throw up.
“You don’t have to be nervous,” I tell her. How many times have I said that to a woman? I motion for her to sit next to me on the bed and she does, perching herself on the edge while I’m stretched out next to her. I kiss her softly at first, and she kisses me back, moaning softly into my mouth.