“I’d done it before. Playing cello, getting praise and encouragement afterwards. No big deal. So I went with him, all dressed up in my tuxedo, and I played the song I knew best: Air from the 3rd Suite. Father has always approved of Bach.” My mouth ticks up into a cutting smirk. “When I finished, they announced dessert, but Father kept me on the performance platform.” Despite being cold as fuck outside and only wearing a towel, a sheen of sweat coats my skin. “That’s when the bidding started.”
