The Deal

Elena's Point Of View I stared at him for a long moment. The air between us crackled… sharp, electric, charged with something neither of us dared to name. He stood there, framed by the soft glow of the room’s chandelier, his shirt slightly rumpled, sleeves rolled to the elbows, dark veins tracing down his forearms like danger personified. His jaw was tight, his eyes focused solely on me, like I was a puzzle he couldn’t wait to take apart piece by piece. I hated how composed he looked. How he made chaos look like art. My chest tightened, not with attraction… at least that’s what I told myself, but with indignation, pride, and something else I couldn’t quite place. Every rational thought screamed for me to walk away. But what was rational anymore when my world had been blown apart, when the man I gave my vows to was rolling in sheets with his so-called “cousin”? And now this devil was offering me a deal? Something inside me snapped. Slowly, deliberately, I nodded. “Fine,” I said, my voic