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He was hearing, seeing and feeling everything

“Yes, Sir,” Aleks said softly, reverently

I wanted to throw up

Luca touched his chin briefly in what one could have almost called an affectionate way But then his expression hardened, and he motioned to the floor and Aleks immediately dropped his eyes and went silent “Of course, if the price were right and I found so that was more in line with my tastes…”

Luca let the words drop off and took a sip of his drink We’dfor

A teenager with fair hair and light eyes

I forced myself to listen to the conversation as the men talked about different pets they’d had and had either lost or gotten rid of for one reason or another… they could have been talking about cars for all the emotion they showed Almost forty minutes had passed before Luca reached his hand up to motion to me

“Yes, sir?” I asked as I stepped around the chair

“Take hi the auction”

“Of course, sir,” I said

Aleks didn’t ot to his feet, keeping his hands folded demurely in front of him Since I was allowed to touch Luca’s property for this purpose, I took Aleks’s ar by the back hallway I discreetly rubbed my thumb into Aleks’s upper arm, but he didn’t react

He couldn’t

I shouldn’t have even done thatas him