"Welcome, everyone," a tall, dark-haired man said from the front of the room. His voice was heavily accented and charismatic, and I stared at him in wonder. Who was this man who seemed to command the attention of everyone in the room?
"Who is that?" I asked Xavier curiously and he smiled at my dazed expression.
"Prince Stephan of Germany."
"Germany?" I said, surprised. “Really?”
"Not everyone in Germany is blond," Xavier said with a smirk.
"That wasn't why I was surprised. I didn't even know they had a royal family." I explained.
"Aww, I see. That's not surprising. You're American."
"You say that so patronizingly." I glared at him.
"Don't be sensitive." He grinned. "Now pay attention. Stephan's talk isn't to be missed." His eyes narrowed and he looked back to the front of the room.
"Whatever." I turned away from him and stared at the German prince on the stage in front of me. He was handsome—more handsome than Casper with his deceiving boyish good looks, and more roguish than Xavier. He looked like a Hollywood hunk, a rebel, a man who could command attention from everyone he encountered.
"I'm so glad that everyone could join us this weekend." He looked out at the crowd with a wide, genuine smile. His blue eyes were dazzling, and for a second his eyes met mine and he smiled, a wide welcoming smile, and I responded back automatically. In that moment I felt like we were the only two people in the room and my breath was taken away. "It brings me joy to see so many beautiful women in the room," he said, his eyes never leaving mine, and I felt myself blushing.
"I see my dear Lola isn't turned off by flattery," Xavier said in a dry voice, and I looked over at him. He had a wry smile on his face, but his eyes were anything but humored.
"He didn't say anything specifically to me," I said hurriedly, embarrassed at how easily I'd given myself away. Yes, I loved Xavier, but I wasn't immune to attention from a hot man.
"You're right." Xavier nodded. "His comment was directed to me and not to you."
"To you?" I frowned in confusion.
"It was a challenge." His eyes looked thoughtful.
“A challenge?”
“Do you know who runs the world?” Xavier asked me, his eyes serious.
“The presidents of the Western world?”
“No.” He had a wry smile on his face. “They are figureheads. Interchangeable. They mean nothing. We run the world. The men in this room run the world.”
“Oh.” I waited for him to continue, as I wasn’t quite sure what he was saying.
“And do you know what runs the world?” he whispered as Stephan continued to talk at the front of the room.
“No, what?” I shook my head.
“It’s not money. It’s not power. It’s not sex. There is no power of the pussy.” He grinned and then looked down toward my crotch. “Though pussy has a lot of power.”
“Xavier!” I blushed.
“What runs the world, you ask?” he continued. “What runs the world is fearlessness. He who dares will always win. He who has no fear. He who can conquer and lead in any battle will always be on top.”
“Battle?” I frowned.
“Battles don’t mean war. Battles don’t mean games. The most dangerous battles are the ones that happen behind closed doors. The ones that the everyday public don’t see.”
“I don’t really know what you’re talking about,” I said with a whisper.
“The Society of Brothers is made up of royalty from all over the world. We have Arab sheikhs, African tribesmen, and Britishlords—anyone who is anyone. And we only have one leader and we have an inner circle. To make it into the inner circle one must completely trust their allies. When you control the world, nothing and no one can be more important than your trust in your fellow brothers.”
“But you don’t trust Casper, do you?”
“I need to make it into the inner circle.” His eyes sought mine. “That is why we are here.”
“What do you have to do to get into the inner circle?”
“I have to pass the test.” He looked away from me. “It’s all a game, Lola. It’s a game to test my resolve. My patience. My power. My ability to assume authority.”
“So how do they test it? What’s the game?”
“You’re a part of the game.” His eyes burned into mine intensely. “They are going to test me by using you.”
“Using me?”
“We’re surrounded by beauty and riches. Money means nothing to anyone here. The most prized possession we all have is the woman by our side.”
“You mean I’m your most prized possession?” I grinned. “And by the way, I’m not your possession, but I’m going to ignore that for now.”
“This isn’t a joking matter, Lola.” His face looked grave. “These men, these men are powerful and calculated. They will say and do anything.”
“You mean like Violeta?” I asked softly. “She’s not a man, though.”
“Everyone here is capable of things you wouldn’t want to tell your children at night.”
“What are they going to do to me?”
“That’s completely up to you,” he said, and then turned away and started applauding with the rest of the crowd as Stephan had stopped speaking. “I’m going to go and get us some wine, okay?”