Bound by the Devil's Deal

Chapter 4 "Blackmail"

~ Author’s POV

Sophia’s breath caught in her throat. “What?”

“You heard me,” he said calmly. “Marry me, and I’ll erase your father’s debt. One year. That’s all I require.”

Sophia stared at him, her mind racing. Marry Dante Cross? The idea was absurd, impossible.

“I can’t do that,” she said, shaking her head. “I came here to save my family, not to—”

“To what?” Dante interrupted, his tone sharp. “Become part of my ‘schemes,’ as you call them? Don’t fool yourself, Ms. Hayes. You’re out of options. Refuse, and I’ll take everything. Your father’s company. Your brother’s future. Everything.”

Sophia’s chest heaved as she struggled to process his words, gulping down a huge lump in her throat. The weight of the decision pressed down on her like a crushing wave.

“One year,” Dante repeated, his voice softer now, almost coaxing, but Sophia knew better. “That’s all I require now. Marry me, and your family’s future is secure. You’ll walk away with your life intact. Isn’t that what you came here for?”

Sophia’s hands trembled in her lap as she searched for something, anything, that could make this choice easier. But deep down, she knew Dante was right. She had no other options.

“I’ll... I’ll need time to think,” she said finally, her voice barely above a whisper.

Dante’s lips curved into a faint smile. “Take all the time you need,” he said, though the glint in his eyes suggested he already knew her answer. “One more thing, Ms. Hayes.”

She looked up, her pulse quickening. Dante’s gaze was as sharp as ever, his tone intimidating. “I don’t like to wait.”

Sophia looked around Dante Cross’s penthouse office; the tension in the air was thin. Her arms were crossed tightly over her chest, a thin barrier against the suffocating weight of the situation. Dante sat back casually in a leather chair behind his glass desk, watching her with the calm demeanor of a predator eyeing its prey.

“This isn’t a business deal; it’s blackmail,” Sophia snapped, facing him. Her green eyes blazed with defiance, but her voice trembled. “Do you enjoy manipulating people? Forcing them into impossible decisions?”

Dante leaned back in his chair, his expression unreadable, though his lips curved slightly in what might have been amusement. “Call it what you like. I call it negotiation.”

Sophia’s fists clenched at her sides. “Negotiation? You cornered me, Mr. Cross! You left me no choice.”

“No,” he corrected smoothly, his tone as cold as ice. “I presented you with options. You make your choice.”

Sophia laughed a bitter laugh, filled with frustration. “And you think that makes you noble? Do you really believe you’re some kind of savior, swooping in to save my family in exchange for a marriage of convenience?”

Dante stood, his tall frame towering over her again as he approached. The calm in his demeanor only made her anger burn hotter. “I’m not a savior, Sophia,” he said evenly. “I’m a businessman. And I don’t make deals unless they benefit me.”

“Exactly!” she shot back, her voice rising. “This is all about you, isn’t it? What you want, what you gain. You’re not a human!”

“Don’t flatter yourself,” Dante said, his eyes narrowing. “This isn’t personal. It’s business. You needed a solution, and I provided one. Now, whether you like the terms or not is irrelevant.”

Sophia glared at him, breathing sharply. Every word out of his mouth fueled her anger, but beneath it all was a sinking feeling of helplessness. He wasn’t wrong. She had agreed to his terms. But the way he dismissed her emotions, her dignity, as if they were meaningless, made her want to scream.

“Why me?” she demanded suddenly, her voice quieter now but no less intense. “Out of all the people in this city, why did you choose me?”

Dante’s gaze was sharp, calculating. He didn’t answer right away, and the silence stretched between them. Finally, he said, “You intrigue me.”

Her eyes widened, a flush creeping up her neck. “Intrigue you? That’s your reason?”

“Part of it,” he admitted, his tone so calm that it started to irritate Sophia. “The other part is that you’re desperate enough to agree to my terms. Desperation makes people predictable.”

Sophia flinched as if he had slapped her. The cold, clinical way he dissected her situation made her feel small and insignificant. But she refused to let him see how much his words stung.

“Well, I hope you enjoy your victory,” she said bitterly. “Because I won’t make this easy for you.”

Dante’s smirk returned, faint but no less invisible. “I wouldn’t expect anything less.”

The car ride back to her apartment was silent and tense. Sophia sat with her arms crossed, staring out the window as the city lights blurred past. Her mind was a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions, anger, fear, regret, and an overwhelming sense of uncertainty.

Her phone buzzed in her bag, pulling her out of her thoughts. She fished it out and saw a message from her best friend, Lily: "Did you meet him? What happened?"

Sophia hesitated before typing back: "I’ll explain later. It’s...complicated."

Lily’s response was immediate: "Come over tonight. You’re not dealing with this alone."

Sophia sighed. She wanted nothing more than to vent to Lily, to unload the weight of everything that had happened. But she also knew that Lily would try to talk her out of it, to convince her to find another way. And the truth was, there was no other way. She was trapped.