THE DEVIL'S VOW

3 CHAPTER ONE The Man Who Bought Her Silence The first time Amara Bennett met Adrian Blackwood, he was buying her future. The floor-to-ceiling windows of his Manhattan office revealed a city glittering beneath the rain. Amara barely noticed. She was too busy wondering why a billionaire wanted to meet a woman whose mother's house was about to be repossessed. “Miss Bennett,” he said. His voice was deep, calm and dangerously uninterested. He sat behind a black marble desk in a charcoal suit, dark hair perfectly styled, his sharp jaw set beneath eyes the colour of winter steel. “Mr. Blackwood.” “Sit.” It wasn't an invitation. He pushed a folder towards her. Inside were the details of her mother's mortgage, the overdue bills and the amount needed to save their family home. “How did you get these documents?” she asked. “I have people.” “That's not an answer.” “It's the only one you're getting.” “Why are you helping us?” “Because I want something.” Amara looked up. “What?” “You.” Silence settled between them. “I want you to marry me,” Adrian said. She laughed in disbelief. “Are you insane?” “Possibly.” “One year,” he continued. “A legal marriage. I clear your mother's debt, purchase the property outright and give you enough money to start again.” “Find someone else.” “Your mother has four days.” Her fingers

4 tightened around her handbag. He knew too much: her brother's overdue school fees, her mother's medication, the house her father had left them. “Why me?” she whispered. “Because I need a wife.” “Then hire an actress.” Adrian rose. He was taller than she expected. “Take the contract. Read it. You have forty-eight hours.” “Don't fall in love with me,” he added as she reached the door. Amara gave him a bitter smile. “Trust me, Mr. Blackwood. That won't be a problem.” For the first time, he smiled properly. It was a beautiful smile, and somehow that made him even more frightening. “That's what they all say.” Outside, rain soaked the pavement. Her phone vibrated with a message from her mother: Baby, the bank called again. Please don't worry about us. We'll find a way. Promises didn't pay mortgages. Pride didn't buy medicine. On the thirty-seventh floor, Adrian watched Amara disappear into the rain. His assistant Daniel asked whether she had accepted. “No.” “Then what happens?” Adrian picked up a photograph of Amara beside her father. “She'll come back.” Five years ago, Daniel Bennett had destroyed everything Adrian loved. Now Adrian intended to take something from him. The only problem was that the daughter looked nothing like the enemy he'd imagined.

5 CHAPTER TWO The Price of Desperation The Blackwood mansion stood behind iron gates on the outskirts of Manhattan.…