Surrender To Me

WREN

I opened my apartment door to find Bane standing in the hallway, looking seriously out of place in his ten-thousand-dollar suit and black silk shirt. I smiled, then pulled him into my apartment while I finished finding my other shoe.

“What are you doing, Little Bird?” he asked as he watched me checking under furniture and in cupboards.

“I lost a shoe,” I tell him, frowning. Which was fucking strange since I always made it a point to put all my shoes away in the closet as soon as I get home. Granted, I was looking for a black pump, and I couldn’t remember the last time I’d worn them, so I was even more confused.

I sighed when his arms came around my waist, the feeling of his solid chest against my back a welcome distraction. “Pick another pair.” He flexed his hips into my ass. “I need to feed you, so then

I can fuck you.”

He let me go, and I peered at him over my shoulder. “I’ll just grab another pair.” Walking back into my room, I pulled out a pair of red pumps. They would clash a little with my dusty-rose colored dress but beggars-choosers and all that. Sliding them onto my feet, I wandered back out to find Bane staring out the window.

“Not much of a view,” I tell him.

He turned around, his expression serious. “The lock on your window is broken.”

Broken? “Fuck, Hawk must’ve done it last time he was here. He’s all about brute force rather than logic.”

Bane’s jaw bulged as he ground his teeth. “I hate that you live here.”

“I hate it, too,” I told him, running my hands up his chest, under the edges of his suit jacket. He felt so warm beneath my fingers. “But it’s what I have to work with. And before you ask me to do something insane like move in with you, the answer is no. I make my way in this world. Plus… what happens when this is over?” I gestured between us.

If I thought his expression was unhappy before, now it was downright murderous.

Snaking his arm around my waist, he took control of my neck and forced me to meet his gaze. The intensity with which he looked at me was a fucking turn-on. I shivered in the wake of his desire. “I hope to fuck this never ends, Wren.” He kissed me, pouring all his savage emotions into that one action, his fingers digging in and caging me against his hard body. I sighed, feeling the weight of responsibility bleed from my body.

Only Bane could do this to me.

Only Bane could take over that constant weight, that unrelenting drive to keep all the balls in the air.

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I was becoming addicted to him-to his power, to his demands.

What happens when all of this is over? I knew he said he never wanted it to end, but something bad could happen, right? Something terrible could fuck it all up, and then all I’d be left with was a fucking hole in my chest where Bane had ripped my heart out. I didn’t want to think about the day either of us would walk away, but I was a pragmatist at heart.

He broke the kiss and stared down at me. “I want you safe.”

“I am safe,” I tell him. “I have three deadbolts and a Beretta 92FS in the drawer beside my bed.”

“And a broken fucking window lock in Boyle Heights. Anyone could get in here.”

Pulling out of his arms, I walked a few steps away. “People could have gotten in a hundred times over in the years I’ve lived here,” I retort. Spinning to face him, I added, “You can’t protect me all the time.”

His emotions boiled over in his eyes as he marched toward me. I backed up another step, but he caught me easily, his mouth slamming against mine in a kiss that branded me as his. “I fucking can if you let me.”

“I appreciate the offer, Bane, really, but this is my home.” My words were a whisper, all the fight left in me draining away. I didn’t want to argue with him about this shit. “We’re going to be late for dinner.”

With some reluctance, he let me go, but his hand still lingered on the small of my back. “I’m sorry. I’m a little wound up.”

“Bad day at work?”

“Yeah, you could say that,” he replied darkly. I wasn’t going to push him. I had the distinct impression that Bane Rivera was a closed-off man when it came to the ins and outs of his business.

“So, take me out to dinner, then.”

Together, we walked downstairs to the town car waiting at the curb. Andy smiled at me when we came out of the building’s door, and I returned the gesture. Bane opened the door for me, and I slid inside.

“Where are we going for dinner?” I asked when we were on our way.

“A place called Rivera. I’m part owner.”

Of course, he was. “And was it named after you, too?”

This question made him smile. “Bianca and I own it jointly, although I’m more of a silent partner.

She was the head chef there until she went on maternity leave to have Valentine.”

The depth of this man was fucking surprising. “What other businesses do you have that I’m not aware of?” I asked, taking his hand and intertwining our fingers. I realized what an intimate gesture it was right away and went to pull away, but Bane covered my hand with his large one.

“Leave it there, Little Bird. Somehow, your touch can soothe me when you’re not fucking turning me on.”