Page 69 of Bloody Business

He nodded slowly.“I'm afraid you're at a disadvantage.I hope you've wrapped up your affairs,” he said gravely.He needed to play up this moment.He had her in the palm of his hand.Right now, he could ask for the moon and get it.

She glanced at the window.“Whether I have or not is irrelevant, now.”She smiled brightly at him.“Shall we make a deal?”

It was the smile.She'd learned that she was going to die, and she smiled.His chilly old heart gave a thump.

Silly woman.She was done for, now.

Silly woman.She was done for, now.

“Would you like to start with a formal alliance?I can draw up a draft.Under the circumstances, I'm afraid the terms won't be very favorable.”

“Keep it simple, then.We can renegotiate later.”Her tone was light, but she gripped the arm of her chair.

He tsked.“You know better than that.”

“Just get on with it,” she said impatiently.He was making her lose her cool.

He wrote in silence for a little while.Her fingers tapped silently against her thigh.The poor girl was wound tighter than a clock.

Finally, he slid the contract to her.

She glanced at it, but it took a moment for her eyes to actually focus.She scanned the page.“This is a marriage contract!”

He leaned back.“You did say you wanted one.”

“It puts all my money under your direct control for three years!”

“I thought about making it five years, but decided three would be enough.You did say you expected an evaluation.I'm curious to see just how much you trust me.”

She stared at him, speechless.

“Don't look at me like that.Goblins go to war with drums and fire.If I'm coming for you, you’ll know it.”What he meant was, he wasn't gunning for her.This wasn't a direct attack.

Her mouth moved, but no words emerged.

He pressed his advantage.“You expect me to battle a crime lord for you.I know exactly what that entails; I watched Artur Bloodhand do it for years.It's ugly and it drags on.I'm going to lose people and money on it, and what will I get in the end?A loving wife?That remains to be seen.”

She winced.

“Do you object to me using your money to fight him?”

“No, but...”

“Do you trust me to provide for you in the meanwhile?It's an important question.Marriage gives us both a lot of power.”

She pinched the bridge of her nose.“I know that.”

“And then there's the question of children.if you marry me, there will be some.”He certainly wasn't settling for a marriage in name only nonsense, not with this kind of risk.

Her expression flattened.“I'm aware.I just wasn't expecting this discussion to go...”She took a deep breath.“One year.”

“Two.”

She ground her teeth.“Eighteen months, plus a stipulation that you leave a basic sum untouched.Say, one third.You can’t spend it all.”

He didn't need her money, but he wanted her to feel like she'd worked hard on this contract.He wanted to see how committed she was.“One third,” he said thoughtfully.

Her face hardened.Clearly, she wasn't going to budge.

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