The ARRANGEMENT

CHAPTER 1 (EPISODE 2): THE DEAL

The silence that followed had weight to it, the kind that made the room feel smaller than its square footage. Alex was aware, suddenly, of how close he'd gotten without either of them moving, of the particular way he was looking at her mouth like he was already rehearsing how convincing they'd need to be.

"Terms," he said finally, stepping back, and something in her chest loosened at the distance. "I want it in writing. Dates, events, an exit clause. And no falling for me, Ms. Whitfield, I've been told I'm difficult to resist."

"I'll take my chances." She stood, extending a hand, all business again, though her pulse hadn't quite gotten the memo. "Same goes for you, Mr. Sinclair. Try not to fall for the help."

His hand closed around hers, warm and sure, and he held it a half-second longer than a handshake required.

"Alexandra," he said, testing the name like he was deciding whether he liked the taste of it. "Six weeks. Starting with my grandfather's gala."

"Starting now," she corrected, sliding a folder across the desk, the contract, already drafted, because she never walked into a negotiation without already having won it. "I'll need your calendar by Friday, a list of your last three relationships so I know what land mines to avoid, and a promise that you won't touch me in public without checking with me first."

"And in private?"

The question hung there, low and deliberate, and Alex hated, hated, the way her body answered before her mind could stop it.

"There is no private, Mr. Sinclair. That's the whole point of an arrangement."

He smiled then, the real one this time, and it was worse than the practiced one, because it looked like he actually meant it.

"We'll see," he said, and opened the door for her, close enough that she caught the low, expensive scent of him on her way out. "Six weeks is a long time, Alexandra. People change their minds about a lot of things."

She didn't answer. She didn't trust herself to.

But walking back to the elevator, contract in hand, deal secured, Alex Whitfield had the distinct and unwelcome feeling that she'd just agreed to something far more dangerous than a PR strategy.

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End of Chapter One.