Dad Bods and Blizzards (Dad Bod Christmas #1)

4. Four

Four

Griz

My teeth threaten to crack, I’m clenching my jaw so hard. When Naomi and I first locked eyes, I would have sworn there was a bond.

Something changed. When she was led away, she seemed like she was in a trance. Is she being forced to do this? Does she know who we are?

My blood boils thinking about her idiotic father.

“This doesn’t add up.” Woody pushes off the bar, keeping his voice low. “Why would Dennis offer to sell her if he was sending her here? All of the money goes to charity. He won’t benefit.”

“We need to get her out.” I scan the room full of men eyeing her like wolves. I’ve got to protect my little lamb.

Tubs downs his whiskey. “How high do you suppose the bidding will go?”

“I don’t care.” I pull out my government-issue credit card and head to the table where we can sign up to be bidders. “We’re not letting her get bought by these vultures.”

“Are you insane?” Woody grabs my wrist. “I want to help her too, but accounting would have a shit-fit over this.”

The auctioneer taps the microphone, and the first woman up for bid takes over. The dollar amount skyrockets out of our league. She’s not my concern, though.

I use the time to think through any possible way this can work, and the repercussions if it doesn’t. Incarceration aside, the worst-case scenario would allow the cybercrimes classes we’ve been taking to serve us in the private sector. I could live with that.

Naomi takes the stage, her gaze darting nervously to us despite her repeated attempts to look elsewhere. I don’t know if she’s terrified of us or hoping that we’ll save her.

“Listen.” I get Tubs and Woody to lean close. “I’ll take the heat. Say I went rogue, did this without your consent. Little Lamb needs my protection.”

“Griz, did this get personal?” Tubs asks.

“Starting bid for our lovely Naomi is twenty thousand dollars!” The auctioneer’s voice booms.

I raise my paddle. “Twenty-five!”

“Suddenly, the kidnapping version sounds better,” Woody grumbles.

I keep my eyes locked on Naomi. “You can report me later.”

“Thirty thousand!” A voice calls from the back. It’s some rich dude who bid into the millions for the first woman and lost. Fuck!

I grip my paddle tighter. “Thirty-five!”

“Let’s do it. Some things matter more than a badge.” Tubs shocks me.

We both turn to Woody. I give a sharp flick to my paddle, renewing my stake when the bid goes up again.

He rakes a hand through his hair. “The credit card won’t clear. Even if we win, she’s not obligated to go home with us. Are we prepared to kidnap her for the week leading up to the raid? We need a plan.”

Watching Little Lamb with her hands clasped innocently on the stage, I’m certain of two things: I’ve never been so clear on my need to protect someone, and my cock has never been this hard.

I’ll deal with the latter on my own. I would never force her into honoring the contract to have sex. But it is why everyone is here.

Case in point—the first woman who was auctioned is getting boned at a table in the back. She’s already come once.

We’ll figure the sex part out once we win her. I turn to Tubs and Woody, thankful I got the better nickname, and hand them the paddle. “Do not let that fucker win. I’ll be right back.”

I rush into one of the unoccupied sex rooms and call our contact, cutting off the pleasantries when he answers. “You’re going to have to trust me. A charge is about to come through that’s going to need special authorization. It’s life or death.”

“What’s going on?”

“No time for details. Do it or the blood is on your hands.” I hang up.

If fifteen years and a stellar record as an undercover agent has earned me the right to ask for special treatment for just one moment, I need that moment to be now.