of my life all because of some fucking moral code?
He frowned, the expression only lasting a moment before melting away. He stalked toward me, crowding me against the wall. With his hands on either side of my head, I got a flashback to the private bathroom at Temptation. I was caged there, staring into his dark eyes, wondering what he would do next. Now I knew exactly what he could do, making the urge to resist him even harder.
“I did say it was just one night, didn’t I?”
I nodded my head because I was sure my words would come out garbled if I opened my mouth. I was also terrified that if I opened my mouth, I would simply just say, “Fuck it” and let him have his way with me.
With a groan, he stepped away from me, retreating a few steps and perching his ass on the edge of the front counter behind him. I drew deep breaths into my lungs, blinking at him. An erection was straining against his jeans, and my knees went weak with the desire to relieve him.
I watched as he scrubbed a hand over his face, his expression pained. “I’m a fucking idiot,” he announced on a harsh bark. His dark eyes were still on my face. “I apologize.”
What in the actual fuck? “Accepted,” I replied, gripping the wall. We stared at each other, the few feet separating us feeling like a form of torture. I wanted him to fuck me again, but if I let him, he would just keep taking and taking and taking. I didn’t agree to the original deal, but it seemed he had enough integrity to stand by that too.
Pushing off the wall, I straightened my fur-covered shirt and walked toward the counter. “Did you just come in here to fuck me?”
He nodded. “It feels like you’re in my veins, Little Bird.” His admission made my pulse pound in my ear. “I don’t know how to get you out of there.”
Against my better judgment, I reached for him, running my fingertips along his stubbled jaw. “I feel it, too, Bane. But Jesus, I need to find another way.”
“Why?”
“Because giving myself to you for two weeks to pay off my brother’s debt is messed up.”
Bane looked away at something over my head. My words had affected him.
“I don’t know of any other way to do this,” he replied roughly. When his eyes returned to my face, there was such anguish in them. “I don’t know if I could do it any other way.”
I frowned at that statement. “Relationships aren’t a transaction. Would you rather I come to you because I want to instead of being forced into it.”
He shook his head and pushed off the counter. Putting more distance between us, he started to pace. “I’d rather you do as I want. Most women would jump at the chance to have access to me for two weeks.”
I folded my arms under my breasts, watching him stalk around like a caged tiger. “I’m not most women,” I reminded him.
That statement gave him pause. “I know you aren’t, Wren. You’re something else. I knew it the moment you walked into my club and demanded mercy for your brother.”
Slowly, so I didn’t frighten him off, I walked toward him. I had a feeling this was a side of Bane Rivera very few people got to see. His vulnerability was bared to me in this moment, a bubble of weakness that wouldn’t last beyond the walls of my shop. I opened my mouth, but he stopped me with a finger against my lips.
“Come to dinner with me tonight.”
“Why?”
“Because I fucking want you to,” he growled. “Jesus, why can’t you do as I say?”
I smirked, and it looked like he wanted to bend me over his knee again. “Is this like a date?”
He shook his head. “No. I want to show you something. I need you to see that I’m not some sex-crazed drug dealer without a heart.”
“I already know you’re not those things.”
“Then you need to learn that my word is my bond. Come to dinner at my sister’s house tonight, and you’ll learn all you need to know. Maybe then, you’ll give me two weeks of your life in order to save your brother’s.”
15
Bane
What in the actual fuck was I saying? I wanted her to come to dinner with me, but that I had to go and fuck it up by bringing business into it? I hadn’t lied when I said I didn’t