Bribery

Kristo

I watched her as she climbed out of the car, eyeing me warily as she did so, and she slowly made her way to the door like she half-expected me to lunge out at her out of the blue. I crossed my arms over my chest as she tried to walk around me and into the apartment, but I stepped in front of her.

“Amaya, I need to talk to you,” I told her firmly, but she shook her head. Her eyes were focused on the ground, and I didn’t blame her. But I had found some time to think, and we needed to discuss the ins and outs of this relationship before she blew it up.

She threw her hands in the air and glared at me, the first time she had looked me in the eye since she had climbed out of that car.

“What do you want?” she demanded. “Seriously, what can I do for you?”

“I want you to finish out the rest of the contract,” I replied smoothly, carefully, playing professional. As long as I kept feelings out of this, I might be able to convince her this was the best choice for the two of us. She rolled h