Chapter 3 -The Proposal
1073 Words
I sat across from the most dangerous guy in New York, and he was promising me my family’s salvation… in return for my soul.
Damon’s office was quiet save for the ticking clock on the wall. The drapes were half-drawn, allowing in streaks of early sun that fell across his chiselled face. He sat behind his big black desk, fingers steepled beneath his chin, dark gaze fixated on me.
I moved in the leather chair, my hands quivering on my lap.
“Why…why did you call me here, Mr Sterling?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
His eyes didn’t waver. “Tell me, Miss Hayes. How much is your family’s debt?”
I froze. My chest constricted with terror. “How do you…?”
He raised an eyebrow. “Answer the question.”
I swallowed hard. “Almost four hundred thousand dollars… including the mortgage and loan penalties.”
He nodded slightly, as if he’d anticipated it. He leaned back, his fine suit embracing his wide shoulders.
“I’ll pay it all off,” he remarked nonchalantly.
For a time, I forgot how to breathe. “What?”
“I’ll clear every debt your family owes,” he said, his tone cool, icy, and cruel. “Your mother can keep the house. Your brother can go back to rehab. You may continue your education without worrying about money ever again.”
I glanced at him, hope growing in my chest like a withering flower begging for sunlight. But it faded just as swiftly.
“What…what do you want in return?” I muttered, my voice shaking.
He leaned forward, putting his elbows on the desk. His eyes latched onto mine with such intensity that I felt like he was peering into my soul.
“Marry me.”
The words hit me like a blow to the chest.
“What?” I gasped, feeling my world tilt. “Is this…some kind of joke?”
“Do I look like a man who jokes?” he said quietly, dangerously.
I shook my head, tears welling in my eyes. “Why? Why me? You detest me. You scarcely even look at me.”
He was silent for a long period, his stare never leaving mine.
Finally, he spoke, his voice low and harsh. “Because I need a wife. And you…you are desperate enough to agree.”
My tears flowed down my cheeks. “Why do you need a wife?”
His lips curved into a sour grin. “That’s none of your concern. All you need to know is that in exchange, your family will be liberated from poverty and shame.”
I felt like I was drowning. “This isn’t marriage… this is slavery.”
He c****d his head slightly, his stare getting colder. “Call it what you want. But remember this - I’m not providing love. I’m offering survival. Choose wisely.”
My chest heaved with muffled sobbing. “What would I even be to you? A…a trophy?”
He shook his head slowly. “You will be Mrs Sterling. You will live in my house, attend events at my side, and do your responsibilities as my wife. Publicly, you will be regarded. Privately…” His stare deepened, and my gut wrenched. “…you will obey.”
I covered my lips with my palm, choking on a sob. “Why me? Why not Naomi or any of the models you date?”
His jaw tensed at the mention of Naomi, but he didn’t look away. “Because they know too much about my world. I need someone with nothing to lose. Someone I can control.”
His words pierced through my heart like glass shards.
He opened out his drawer and pushed a cheque over the table to me. My eyes opened as I saw the sum printed in strong ink: $100,000.
“This is just the beginning,” he added quietly. “A token to prove I keep my promises.”
I shook my head, tears flowing down my cheeks. “I can’t… I can’t sell myself like this.”
He leaned closer, his eyes dark and cold. “You can. And you will. Because if you don’t… your mother will perish on the streets. Your brother will drink himself to death. And you…you will spend the rest of your life blaming yourself for allowing it to happen.”
I cried, hiding my face with my shaking hands. My chest felt like it was being crushed from the inside.
“Why are you doing this to me?” I yelled out.
He stood slowly, walked around the desk until he was standing directly in front of me. He bent down so we were eye to eye. His fragrance blended with the subtle scent of mint on his breath. His glare was so black it almost engulfed me whole.
“I’m giving you a choice,” he murmured. “Say yes, and your family lives. Say no, and watch them drown.”
I shook my head frantically, my tears dropping into his fine shoes. “You’re a monster.”
His lips trembled, but his eyes remained lifeless. “Perhaps. But even monsters can help people… if the price is right.”
He rose up and headed back to his desk. He pressed a button on the intercom. “Claire, show Miss Hayes out.”
His eyes trapped me as I stood shakily, clutching my purse to my breast.
“You have twenty-four hours,” he replied quietly. “After that, the offer disappears.”
I staggered out of his office, my eyesight hazy with weeping. Claire flashed me a frigid grin as I passed, but I didn’t care.
My legs felt numb as I headed to the elevator. My chest boiled with wrath, dread, and shame.
How could he do this to me? How could somebody be so cruel?
But deep down… underneath the horror and pain… a worse emotion coiled in my gut.
Desire.
Because for a tiny second, as his eyes latched onto mine, I saw something in them that worried me more than his proposition.
I saw a man who needed saving… just as urgently as I did.
As the elevator doors closed behind me, his words reverberated in my thoughts like a curse.
“This isn’t love. This is survival. Choose wisely.”
How could I choose when either way… my soul was now his?
- Writer
