A Deal With the Devil by Abby Matisse

opened the door. “Come in,” she said, trying to exude a confidence she didn’t feel.
    Jake stepped inside. “Just get home?”
    She nodded.
    “Nice place,” he said, as he glanced around. “When did you buy it?”
    “Eight months ago.”
    He smiled. “It looks like you.”
    Her gaze followed his. She recalled the minimalist design of his townhouse and figured his comment meant her decor looked fussy and girly. “Thank you, I think,” she said. “Kate helped me.”
    “It was a compliment.” He pointed to his briefcase. “Where do you want to do this?”
    Amanda gestured toward the sofa. “We’ll be more comfortable in there. Wine?”
    “Sure, unless you have something stronger.”
    “Sorry, all I have is Chardonnay.”
    “Then make it a double.”
    She poured Jake his double, fixed herself a fresh glass and carried them into the living room. As she leaned over to hand Jake his wine, his spicy, woodsy scent enveloped her in man and memories. She backed away and settled on the loveseat across from him, which was as far away as she could get and still be in the same room.
    Jake removed a stack of papers from the briefcase, set them on the table and tapped them. “Why don’t you take a few minutes to read through these?”
    She slid the papers toward her as Jake tipped his glass back and swallowed a good amount of wine. She smiled. “Nervous?”
    “As any sane person would be,” he drawled.
    “Good to know I’m sane.” She looked at the first sheet and then leafed through a few other pages but the words blurred together. She laid the papers on the table and picked up her wine. “Can you just cover the high points?”
    “Sure.” He cleared his throat. “Most importantly, the agreement has no expiration date. Our engagement will continue for three months after I get access to the trust fund. Then, we’ll stage a break-up. But I warn you; I don’t know how long it’ll take for this charade to play out. Hopefully, for both our sakes, it’ll be quick.”
    “Why do we have to wait for three months before we break up?”
    “So my grandfather won’t get suspicious. It would look bad if I got the money and we broke up the next day.”
    “True. What else?”
    He pulled an envelope out of his briefcase and tossed it on the table.
    “What’s that?”
    “An advance,” he leaned back and watched her. “You’ll get the rest after the break-up.”
    Her eyes shifted from Jake to the envelope and her pulse raced. It was all she could do not to snatch the envelope off the table and rip it open. Instead, she calmly reached for it, but her finger trembled ever so slightly as she slid it the under the flap. When she saw the amount, she couldn’t stop her sharp intake of breath and her free hand flew to her throat as she said, “This is a hundred thousand dollars!”
    “Fifty percent upfront seemed fair,” he said, looking like he was fighting the urge to smile.
    It was all she could do not to leap onto the coffee table and dance a little victory jig. Instead, she maintained her boardroom-cool façade and slid the check back into the envelope. But her voice sounded a little shaky as she said, “Thank you, Jake.”
    “You’ll earn it, trust me. You have to deal with me and my grandfather for God only knows how long and that’s something I wouldn’t wish on anyone,” he said with a grimace.
    She smiled and inclined her head.
    “Finally, there’s the confidentiality agreement. Sam and Kate are in the loop but I don’t want anyone else to know. If word gets out, you’ll have to repay me in full.”
    “I promise.” She wasn’t worried about the confidentiality clause. She didn’t want anyone to know about their deal either.
    “That’s it. As soon as you sign, our agreement is official.”
    She pulled the papers toward her. Jake handed her a pen and then leaned back to watch. Amanda initialed the bottom of each sheet, signed the last page and then pushed the stack toward Jake. He initialed and