Page 77 of Surrender

He retrieves his wallet from his slacks that were crumpled on my bedroom floor. He opens it and pulls out what looks like a credit card, but it's white.

"I know you still have my credit card, so you technically don't need this, but I also know how much you want to stand on your own two feet." I take it from him, noting that it's a Georgetown U lunch card. "And I know how important having access to food is."

Now it's my turn to fight back the tears. God, this man. He was doing exactly what I was doing. If he hadn't given me his black card in the beginning and we were really just starting, this is exactly what I would have wanted. A safety net - a life raft. Something to create a wedge between the starvation I experienced and my future self.

Starving does something to you - it changes you on a cellular level. Food is reduced to simple calories, and you'll take them in whatever form you can get them.

I know Declan, and I know this card will be unlimited, or have some ridiculous balance on it so that I never have to worry about food again.

He did that.

He's my life raft, and I know he'll always be there to protect and support me.

I lose the battle and let tears slip down my cheeks.

And then Declan's there, wiping my cheeks and kissing my hair, and I know, deep in my soul that it's all going to be alright.

Chapter forty-eight

Serenity

Declan: Come by the home office if you're free this morning. It's lonely without you.

Ismile as a flood of emotions swims through me. I'm giddy at his completely normal, vulnerable admission that he misses me. Honestly, I miss the hell out of him, too. It feels incredible to be wanted, needed, loved.

It feels even better knowing that we're developing a normal, loving relationship that can serve as the foundation for our bedroom activities.

Me: I don't have classes this morning and I do have some reading to catch up on!

Declan: I know.

I shake my head, smiling, and pocket my phone.

I pack my backpack quickly and take a taxi to Declan's house.

"You know you don't need to knock, right?" he says as he opens the door for me.

"It felt rude to just walk in," I reply, blushing. Dec's wearing the black slacks and button down he knows I love. Just being near him sends a storm of butterflies sailing into my stomach in a way I've never experienced before. He's so handsome, and powerful, and sexy.

"This is as much your home as it is mine," he replies, taking my backpack from me, and leading me back into his office.

"Magda's at the grocery store, so we have about an hour alone."

I raise an eyebrow at him, knowing what he's suggesting.

"Is that so?" I flirt back.

He closes the office door with a 'snick' and locks it, murmuring, "Just in case."

"Sir?"

It's my way of starting a scene without being overly demanding, and he knows it.

"Grab your book and take off all of your clothes, Serenity." The deep tambor of his dom voice has a shiver rolling down my spine, even as I move to do as he said. I pull my textbook for Introduction to Business with Computer Applications, which I'm struggling with, and hand it to him primly.

Completely unaffected, he sits in his chair and thumbs the book open. "What page?"

"Chapter three. The chapter on spreadsheets," I reply, stepping out of my jeans and underwear as if we're having a perfectly normal conversation. He flips to the chapter and lays it on the desk in front of him. I pull off my shirt and bra under his watchful gaze. I've gotten comfortable being naked with him. He's never looked at me with anything other than pure affection and lust. Session after session of knowing he's attracted to me and wants me has been incredible for my self-esteem.

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