Highest Bidder

3. Myles

3

MYLES

The middle of August is smoldering hot, and the Florida humidity is suffocating as always. The lane starts in five minutes. Looking around, I see dealers running from lane to lane, often running into people, and dealers looking at the cars that are waiting to come in. I get a feeling today is going to be a different kind of sale. I’ve already seen men whisper while they point at Hunter with a scowl on their faces. Whenever I’ve worked with or seen a female auctioneer, I’ve noticed they can get harassed a bit by the dealers. I may not like her being here, but I won’t tolerate anything unprofessional. Maybe one day, I’ll get my shot, but today it’s my job to work with her.

I walk toward the lane outside, passing cars when I spot Hunter standing on the auction block. She seems deep in thought with her nose scrunched and brows pulled together over eyes so intense I can't help but be drawn to her. God, she's beautiful. And that hair. It seems to have a mind of its own, the way it tumbles around her shoulders and down her back. Because my eyes are on her and not paying attention to those around me, I stumble when JT bumps into me. Our lanes face each other, so we usually have a little bit of fun messing around throughout the sale .

“Are you ready for this?” JT asks, slugging my shoulder as he grins in the direction of the auction block Hunter stands on.

JT has been my best friend for eleven years. He transferred to my high school during our senior year. I wasn’t a social person, and he seemed to think I was someone who needed a friend. He couldn’t fathom someone actually enjoying being alone. I’ve been stuck with him ever since. Not that I’m complaining. He always has my back, and I don’t know what I would do without him. He’s become more like a brother to me than anything else. So he knows when something is off.

“Want to talk about what happened after the meeting?” he asks another question without waiting for me to answer the first.

I cast my eyes in Hunter’s direction and hold back a curse as her eyes meet mine, catching me staring. I allow her to get too far into my head and not in a good way. I second guess if the dream I have will ever be a reality. My pride has taken a pretty hard blow today.

“Nope,” I bite out.

He nods. “Well, I’m going to enjoy my view.” He looks over at Hunter, giving her a wink.

He can never keep it in his pants. I risk taking a glance over my shoulder and see her giving him a bright smile. As soon as she notices me looking, her expression morphs into a scowl. She turns back to JT, and he chuckles.

“Think you can do your job without drooling?” he asks.

He has no idea how hard today is going to be. “What? Seems to me you are the one who might have a problem doing your job. I’ll just be here when she screws up, and they need me to take over.” I say it like it’s a fact that is bound to happen, although I’m not naive enough to believe that based on where she got her training. JT’s eyes widen and flit to something over my shoulder.

“Oh, is that why you’re here? To save the day?” Hunter’s warm and intoxicating voice fills my ears, and I slowly turn around, cringing inwardly at what she just heard .

Where the hell did she come from? Had I known she was standing behind me, I wouldn’t have said something so arrogant. But in reality, was anything I said untrue? She may not like it, but there’s a good chance of it happening. Nerves are a bitch, especially when you’re starting a new job. I stand by what I said, even though I didn’t mean to say it to her face.

I take a step back and look into her eyes. “Look, that wasn’t meant for your ears.” I stuff my hands in my pockets and shrug. “But, yeah—if I’m being honest—I don’t think you’re going to be able to hack it. It’s a lot harder than you think. Not sure even the great Conrad Smith could keep you from sinking.”

“Hmm.” She taps her finger against her chin in mock deliberation. “Okay. Well, I was going to try to be nice and let you know you need to bring the cars in. But since you’re too busy gossiping out here like a little schoolgirl. . . I’ll do your job for you. Mike was it?” she taunts.

“Myles,” I say through gritted teeth. “I’ll get the cars, sweetheart.” I taunt right back, glaring so hard I see red. This wild-haired beauty is going to be the death of me. I want her gone. Why the hell would Griffin hire this girl? What could he possibly gain from getting on her daddy’s good side?

She swings around, her hair flying every which way as I turn back toward JT, whose mouth is pinched into a smirk. A telltale sign he’s about to burst out laughing. I send him a glare while I follow the little miss back inside the lane. He’s enjoying this too much, the asshole. I watch as her hips turn toward the stairs to go up the auction block. I look over and see JT walking down his lane to get his cars, too. Why am I the one getting stuck with the newbie princess? Why didn’t she just stay where her daddy can give her a leg up?

This is going to be a long ass day. I take a look at the run list. We have over three hundred cars to get through. On a good day, Dave, the auctioneer usually assigned to Toyota, could get through three hundred in three and a half hours. I have another auction to get to. Auctioneers, ringmen, and a lot of the block clerks drive from auction to auction to run the sales. We drive all over Florida. I don’t have time to go at a slow pace for this woman, even if she is auction royalty. Whatever, I was probably right. They will end up having me take over for her. I usually get to fill in when my lane gets done or if Dave ever wants a break. So even though I think they should have given me the job straight, I know it’ll be mine soon. I knock on the hood of the first car to let the driver know we are ready. He pulls forward and follows me back down the lane. Other lanes are starting up, too. It’s the quiet rumble before the storm. With this many lanes and this many cars, I know it’s about to get loud. I look directly into Hunter’s deep eyes. My heart skips a beat, as if she’s looking into my soul. She goes to open her mouth but gives me a wink first, then starts rattling off, leaving me standing here shocked.

“Lane eighteen, let's have a good day, and let’s roll. Number one, do I hear twenty-five thousand dollar bid, twenty-five dollar bid, twenty-five thousand, twenty-six thousand dollar bid, twenty-six dollar bid, twenty-six, twenty-five thousand five-dollar bid, twenty-five five, twenty-five dollar bid, twenty-five thousand two dollar bid, four, six, eight….”

She keeps going while I’m standing here gaping after her. I was not expecting that. She’s got the smoothest chant. The dealers are all bidding. Jess is clicking away with the online bids. “Twenty-seven, two, four, six…send it out, eight.” It’s then I quickly bring myself out of whatever mind-altering trance she has me under, realizing she’s telling me or the driver to get the car out of here. I jump into action, knocking on the hood to signal the car out before she can finish selling the car.

“Sold,” she calls out, as the next car rolls into its place. “Twenty-nine thousand one hundred dollars to bidder number thirteen-seventy four. Number two, do I hear thirty thousand, thirty-dollar bid, twenty-eight thousand dollar bid, twenty-eight, two, four, six, eight, twenty-nine thousand, two, four?— ”

Before she can say anything else, I send out the car and start taking bids. “YUP!” I yell, pointing at one bidder. “YUP!” Pointing at another. I point back to the first one when he nods. “YUP!” Hunter and I get into a steady rhythm. If I missed a bid, she got it. If she missed a bid, I would point out who the new bidder was. I’ve been on this lane for over three years, and I’ve never seen this many cars sold and so many bidders bidding on the same cars. Don’t get me wrong, this is usually a very good lane to be on. We always sell over fifty percent of the cars, but this is something completely different. It’s like the bidders are drawn to her, and Hunter knows how to suck them in. The next thing I know, the last car pulls into the lane.

“Alright everyone, here’s our final beauty.” Hunter motions toward a top of the line, 2011 silver Toyota Avalon. She looks back out at the audience walking around the lane and places a hand on her hip. “Now, I have a rule on my lane. I always sell my last car. I like to end the day right. You all have been amazing, so please don’t let me down.” Taking a breath, she brings the microphone back to her mouth and begins her chant. “Car, three hundred and thirty. Twenty-nine thousand dollar bid, twenty-nine dollar bid, twenty-nine, two, four, six…”

Hunter keeps going, and I send out the last car, pointing out each bid. Usually, the last car of the day is a little harder to sell since dealers usually head into the office to pay for their cars. They could also have too many already. But this one seems to want to sell, or maybe the bidders don’t want to let the beautiful auctioneer down.

“Sold. Thirty-one thousand one hundred to bidder number twelve-eighty-one. Thank you everyone. Enjoy the rest of your day.” With an enormous smile, she turns off her microphone and turns to talk to Jess.

I look over, and JT’s lane is still running. He jerks his head, trying to get me to join him on his side. I head on over to see what he wants .

“Hey, give Aaron a break.” JT points over his shoulder to his auctioneer. “He said he needs a breather.”

I give him a little glare because he usually gives his auctioneer a break, but I’m not going to pass up getting up there. I go over and tap Aaron on the shoulder, letting him know I’m here when he finishes the car. He sells it, unhooks his mic, and lets me plug in the one I always keep in my back pocket. I turn my hat around backward and begin with the next car.

“Alright. Two hundred and seventy-nine. Twenty-six thousand bid, twenty-six, now two, now four, now six, now eight, eight, eight bid. Sold twenty-six thousand six hundred, bidder thirteen-fifty-six.” I open my mouth to start on the next car, but something catches my eye. I look up and see Hunter is watching me from the floor. She looks small compared to all the people around her. I shake my head to get my focus back and continue my chant. After about twenty more cars, Aaron comes back, and I hand his lane back over. When I get to the floor near JT, Hunter has disappeared. JT gives me a smirk when he sees me looking around. Rather than trying to talk to him over all the noise, I lightly punch his arm and walk away. I’m still blown away by how well she did today. It was not at all how I thought it would go, although that doesn’t change my disdain for her being here in the first place. Maybe this will be the only auction to hire her, and I can get the position at the other sales. I’ll just keep telling myself that, but I have a feeling I’m going to be seeing her again real soon. That thought alone annoys and excites me at the same time. Whatever the fuck that means.