The Offer
1291 Words
Alexander Sterling had spent eight years learning how to control himself.
His temper.
His anger.
His decisions.
His enemies.
Nothing got beneath his skin unless he allowed it.
Bella Hart was becoming a problem.
Not because she was investigating her father's past.
Not because she had walked into his office and challenged him without trembling.
Not even because she had looked directly into his eyes and told him she wasn't afraid of him.
It was because his body reacted to her before his mind could stop it.
And Alexander hated that.
He stood behind the windows of his office, watching the city disappear beneath another curtain of rain.
"You're staring at the same building."
Sebastian's voice came from behind him.
Alexander didn't turn.
"I'm thinking."
"That's what people usually call staring when they don't want to admit they're distracted."
Alexander's jaw tightened.
"Leave."
Sebastian chuckled.
"Gladly."
He reached the door, then paused.
"By the way, Dr. Hart is downstairs."
Alexander turned sharply.
"Why?"
"She asked to see you."
"Tell her I'm unavailable."
"I did."
Alexander waited.
Sebastian smiled.
"She said she'll wait."
Of course she would.
Alexander looked toward the clock.
"How long?"
"Twenty minutes."
He closed his eyes briefly.
Bella Hart was stubborn.
Infuriatingly stubborn.
And apparently incapable of taking a warning.
"Send her up."
Sebastian's eyebrows rose.
"I thought you were unavailable."
"I changed my mind."
"Naturally."
The door closed.
Alexander exhaled slowly.
He should have refused to see her.
Instead, he adjusted his cuffs and prepared himself for another argument.
The elevator doors opened several minutes later.
Bella stepped out.
She wore a simple dark blouse beneath a fitted coat, her long brown hair falling over one shoulder. She carried a leather folder against her chest.
Alexander's gaze moved over her before he could stop it.
Her face.
Her mouth.
The delicate curve of her neck where her hair exposed it.
His attention lingered for one dangerous second.
Then his entire body seemed to revolt against the thought.
He looked away.
She's a Hart.
The reminder came sharply.
Daniel Hart's daughter.
That should have been enough.
It had to be enough.
Bella entered his office.
"I assume you're busy."
"I am."
"Yet you called me up."
"I changed my mind."
Her eyebrow lifted.
"How generous."
Alexander gestured toward the chair.
She didn't sit.
Instead, she placed the folder on his desk.
"I found another document."
Alexander looked at it but didn't touch it.
"What does it say?"
"That my father and Richard Sterling were working together shortly before Richard died."
"I already know that."
"Then you also know someone was lying."
Silence.
Alexander stared at her.
She stared back.
There it was again.
That irritating confidence.
That refusal to retreat.
And those eyes.
He hated how expressive they were.
Hated the way they seemed to challenge him even when she said nothing.
His fingers curled slowly against the edge of his desk.
"Why are you here, Bella?"
She hesitated.
Then she lifted her chin.
"Because I need your help."
The words surprised him.
Not because she had asked.
Because she looked uncomfortable saying them.
Alexander leaned back.
"With what?"
"My father's estate."
"What about it?"
"The court is trying to determine whether there are undisclosed assets connected to Sterling Global."
"There are."
Her eyes widened slightly.
"You knew?"
"I suspected."
"Then tell me what you know."
"No."
Her expression hardened.
"Why?"
"Because information has a price."
She folded her arms.
"What do you want?"
Alexander studied her.
There were several answers he could have given.
Money.
Control.
Information.
Her silence.
Instead, he said the one thing that would change both their lives.
"I want you to marry me."
Bella stared at him.
For several seconds, she didn't move.
Then she laughed.
It wasn't a nervous laugh.
It was genuine disbelief.
"You've lost your mind."
"No."
"You want me to marry you?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"One year."
Her smile vanished.
Alexander stood.
He walked around the desk slowly.
Bella remained where she was.
He stopped several feet away.
Close enough to see the tiny shift in her breathing.
Close enough to notice the faint scent of her perfume.
His body reacted again.
Heat moved through him before he could suppress it.
His shoulders stiffened.
He took one deliberate step backward.
Bella noticed.
Her eyes narrowed.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
"You moved away."
"I prefer personal space."
She looked almost amused.
"You're the one who asked me to marry you."
Alexander's jaw tightened.
"Don't misunderstand the arrangement."
"I haven't agreed to anything."
"You haven't heard the terms."
"Then give me a reason to stay."
He looked at her.
For one dangerous moment, the room seemed smaller.
Her eyes held his.
He could hear her breathing.
He could feel the awareness between them, unwanted and immediate.
Alexander forced himself to look away.
"One year," he said coldly. "You become my wife. At the end of that year, the marriage ends."
"And why would I do that?"
"Your father's estate will be protected."
Bella's expression changed.
Alexander continued.
"I'll stop the legal proceedings against the remaining Hart assets. I'll give your lawyers access to the Sterling records relevant to your father's case."
Her eyes sharpened.
"And in exchange?"
"You become my wife."
She studied him carefully.
"That's not the whole reason."
Alexander said nothing.
Bella stepped closer.
"You hate my family."
His gaze snapped back to hers.
"I do."
"Then why marry me?"
"Because you're useful."
The words were deliberately cruel.
Bella flinched.
Only slightly.
But he saw it.
Something inside him tightened.
He hated that too.
"I see."
She reached for her folder.
Alexander watched her fingers close around it.
He wanted to stop her.
He didn't.
"You're offering me a business arrangement."
"Exactly."
"No affection."
"None."
"No expectations?"
"None."
"No interference with my career?"
"None."
"And separate bedrooms?"
His answer came immediately.
"Yes."
Bella looked at him for a long moment.
Then she smiled faintly.
"You're very confident I'll agree."
"I know what you need."
"You don't know me."
"I know enough."
She moved toward the door.
Alexander's eyes followed her.
The way she walked.
The quiet determination in her posture.
The stubborn set of her shoulders.
He hated every second of noticing.
His hand tightened into a fist.
Stop.
She reached the door.
"Think about it," he said.
Bella turned.
"I will."
Alexander frowned.
That wasn't the answer he'd expected.
She smiled.
"But don't mistake consideration for surrender."
Then she left.
The door closed behind her.
Alexander remained motionless.
For several seconds, he stared at the place where she'd stood.
Then he dragged a hand down his face.
This was supposed to be simple.
A marriage.
A transaction.
A way to bring a Hart into his world and finally make Daniel Hart's daughter pay for the sins of her family.
So why had his pulse changed when she'd stepped closer?
Why had he noticed her breathing?
Why had he stepped away because being near her felt too physical, too immediate?
And why did the memory of her smile refuse to leave his mind?
Alexander's expression hardened.
He would not allow attraction to interfere.
He had spent eight years building his revenge.
He would not destroy it because one woman made his body forget what his mind knew.
His phone rang.
"Yes?"
Sebastian's voice came through.
"How did it go?"
Alexander looked toward the closed door.
"I made her an offer."
"And?"
"She'll think about it."
Sebastian was silent.
Then—
"You're in trouble."
Alexander's eyes narrowed.
"What?"
"You sound hopeful."
The line went dead.
Alexander stared at the phone.
Then he looked toward the door again.
For the first time in eight years, revenge no longer felt completely under his control.
And that frightened him more than any enemy ever had.
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