Auctioned to the Sheikh - Holly Rayner Page 0,2

in the knowledge that she was the one who had been stealing from the company, and that soon they were going to figure everything out.

Chapter 2

Emily had never intended for things to end up this way. She’d never stolen anything in her entire life, save for a gummy worm she’d taken out of a bin at a candy store when she was five, and even then she’d cried to the shop owner, begging him for forgiveness.

Now, twenty-one years later, she was still stealing and hoping for forgiveness, but the outcome wouldn’t be the same, she realized. The senior management team was going to conduct interviews with everyone, and it was only a matter of time before they found her out.

Emily’s mother, Janet, had fallen ill several months ago. She had recovered quickly from her life-threatening illness, but with no health insurance to cover the expenses, no sooner had she left the hospital than she was saddled with thousands of dollars’ worth of medical bills.

Janet lived several hours away, making the ordeal especially painful; there were some days Emily simply couldn’t be there for her. In desperation, she had done the unthinkable and used company finances to pay off the medical bills. She’d covered up the theft using a bit of accounting wizardry, and fully intended to pay the borrowed cash off over a period of time. She just hadn’t expected to be found out before then, if at all.

Realizing that she was trembling, Emily began to do some breathing exercises she’d seen in an online video. They were supposed to help with stress or something.

Her mind reeled, trying to come up with ways to avoid being found out, to no avail. She wondered if she should just put in her two weeks’ notice now, but figured that might look more suspicious. She could just quit right here and now, but that would only raise eyebrows, and lead them to her faster.

Emily unlocked the bathroom door and walked back over to the sink to dab some water on her face. Looking at her reflection in the mirror, she choked down a guttural sob. Who had she become? This was supposed to be a small loan, that was it. She was so careful to cover her tracks; she never should have gotten caught.

She sighed as she heard her cellphone going off, and took it out from her blazer and stared down at the name. It was a text from Lindsey.

‘Signed you up for tonight. Lucky number 22! Thanks girl, you’re a lifesaver.”

Great, Emily thought. It looked like her day was only going to get worse.

The day wore on like a snail racing through peanut butter. Emily spent the rest of her time at work in absolute fear that any moment she was going to lose her job. She could tell everyone in her department was a bit more rigid than usual that day. After all, it was natural to assume that if anyone was stealing money from the company, the accountants would be the ones with the easiest access to cover it up.

Several hours later, after one of her most horrendous days at work, Emily found herself standing at the entrance to Lindsey’s fundraiser; she’d figured it would look suspicious if she didn’t show up, so here she was, making small talk with some of the staff as they hustled into the building.

“Thank goodness you’re here!” came Lindsey’s voice. The girl knew how to yell, that’s for certain. Her words cut clear across the crowd as she offered Emily a smile and waved in her direction.

Once she reached her friend, Lindsey gaped, eyeing Emily up and down. “You look gorgeous!”

“I do not,” Emily huffed bashfully.

“Little black dress. It’s perfect.”

Emily laughed nervously and batted her friend’s hands away. “Lindsey, I’m not going on stage!”

“Em, I’m so not kidding around right now. We really need you. You’re number—”

“Number twenty-two, I got your text.”

“No, no, no!” Lindsey grabbed Emily’s hand and started rushing her toward backstage. “Forget about twenty-two, you’re number one now!”

“I beg your pardon?”

Lindsey ushered Emily through the crowds and took her into the beautiful backstage area. She always managed to find the most beautiful venues in Arizona for her benefits—old, historical buildings full of character and class. Anything less just wouldn’t be Lindsey. Emily marveled at the beautiful wooden arch that lined the hallways leading to the area behind the stage.

Once backstage, Lindsey sat Emily in front of a makeup stand; women with curling wands, flat irons, beautiful cocktail dresses, and makeup