Chapter 1

At the auction, I had my eyes on a diamond ring to use as our wedding band. But no matter how much I offered, the young girl Damian Tucker was sponsoring—Susan Monroe—would always outbid me by just one dollar. Damian chuckled helplessly. "Darling, Susan is fond of these glittering things. Let her have it, alright? Be good." I raised my hand and made another bid, securing the purchase. That night, Susan left in tears. Damian only kissed my forehead with a sigh and murmured, "You're such a fiery little thing." He never went after Susan. After we got married, he spent the entire year indulging in me every single night. One day, I received an invitation to a private auction. Displayed brazenly on the screen was a photo of me beneath Damian, eyes dazed with desire. It had been turned into a featured exhibit. Damian sat in the front row with his arm around Susan's waist. "You like making bold moves, don't you?" he said with a smirk. "365 intimate photos of you, Eleanor. If you don't want them ending up in someone else's hands, you'd better start bidding." … I stood there in the auction hall, surrounded by men ogling the screen and discussing loudly. "This woman's a damn slut. I've seen it all, but this is the first time a single photo got me hard." "Who would've thought? Eleanor looks so prim and proper, but in bed? She's filthier than the pros. It's funny how she used to act like she was too good for us." "Mr. Tucker's one lucky man. I bet he's wrecked every inch of that classy little body." Someone winked at Damian, who was seated at the head of the room. I clenched my fists. Trembling, I turned to look at my husband, Damian. Susan now sat in the seat that had been mine. Damian didn't even try to hide it. He chuckled and said, "Whoever buys the photo gets the full video from that night as a bonus." "Mr. Tucker, you're the man!" The crowd erupted. "Don't look at me like that. As I said, you are free to place your bids. There are 365 photos. Take your time." Suddenly, a man chimed in mockingly, "Oh, come on, Mr. Tucker. Haven't you heard? The Whitmores filed for bankruptcy. Ms. Whitmore probably doesn't even have much left!" "It takes at least 50 million dollars just to secure an item at the auction," someone added with a laugh. "For her to even have 100 million in liquid assets? That's the heavens being generous." Damian raised a brow, pretending to be surprised. "Oh? Is that so?" "What a shame. All 365 photos are quite a sight. To be honest, I would not mind bidding on the entire set myself just to study them at leisure," another man added with a sigh. "Unfortunately, Mr. Tucker is the only one here with the means to pull that off." Damian chuckled and raised his hand. "Gentlemen, for today's auction, the Tucker Group will not place any bids on any of the items. All proceeds will be donated to charity. Please enjoy yourselves." The room erupted in applause. "That's a real businessman! Thank goodness the Tucker Group forced out the Whitmore Group's partners. Otherwise, these photos might not be here tonight!" "What are you worried about? There are a few dozen of us here. If we do not compete, everyone gets a piece." "Screw that! The third photo is way too wild. I must have it." I clenched my trembling fists, staring at Damian in disbelief. "Did you cause the collapse of the Whitmore Group?" Damian simply looked at me with a faint smile. Tears streamed down my cheeks as I continued, "Why? Was it just because I placed that bid a year ago?" Damian paid no attention to my distress. He picked up the microphone and said, "Time is limited, Ms. Whitmore. If you are not going to participate in the auction, I will let my friends begin." The men around the room stared at me with amusement. Every one of them belonged to the upper elite circle, and the 100 million dollars in liquid assets I had left was probably no more than pocket change to them. It was probably only enough to cover a short vacation of theirs.