Continuation of Rented Heart
432 Words
Chapter 2: The Rules
The elevator doors closed with a soft hiss, and Amara felt her breath catch in her throat. Standing this close to Leon Wolfe was like sharing air with a panther — powerful, silent, and utterly unpredictable.
They rode in tense silence up to the penthouse suite, the numbers blinking past in gold. Amara tried not to stare, but the way the suit hugged Leon’s frame was impossible to ignore.
> “You look nervous,” he remarked.
His voice was still calm, but something flickered behind those icy eyes — curiosity, maybe, or just boredom.
> “I’m fine,” Amara lied.
Leon pressed his lips together, unreadable. When the doors opened, she stepped into a palace of glass and steel, with views of the entire city glittering below.
> “Come,” he said, motioning her toward a couch.
They sat, an awkward space between them like a chasm. Leon pulled out a thick folder, flipping it open.
> “These,” he said, tapping the papers, “are our terms.”
Rules?
Leon tapped his pen against the table, eyes narrowing. “You are not allowed to fall in love with me. Ever.”
The words hit her like a slap.
“I wasn’t planning on it,” she snapped, offended.
He smirked, clearly amused. “Good. Because I don’t do love, Amara. This is a transaction, nothing more.”
She swallowed hard, staring at his cold face. It was clear — there would be no mercy if she broke that rule.
“Fine,” she said, trying to sound confident. “What else?”
Leon continued, outlining an entire list of demands: no public drama, no revealing their arrangement, always answer his calls, always be available when he needed her.
It was suffocating. But somewhere, deep in her chest, was a spark of something reckless.
Maybe this was her chance to rewrite her entire life.
> “Do we have a deal?” he asked, extending a hand.
Amara stared at him for a heartbeat that felt like forever.
> “Deal,” she whispered, and shook it.
Right then, she had no idea that agreeing to Leon’s rules would break every single one of hers.
- Writer
