Surrender 01 - Surrender

submitted to him, he was certainly enjoying the journey the two of them were taking. He almost dreaded the day he grew bored of her. He couldn’t imagine another woman stirring his damaged soul so much.
    As Rafe sat at the dining table, watching the clock, he almost hoped she would try to defy him again. He wouldn’t mind hunting her down and teaching her the first real lesson in what happened to those who displeased him.
    When nineteen minutes hit, his feet twitched. At exactly twenty, he was going to stand up and begin his lesson.
    “I’m here, master.”
    “Master?”
    “I figure you think you’re the lord of all, so you’d want to be called by a name appropriate to a dictator,” she snapped as she sat across from him.
    “ Sir is just fine,” he mocked.
    “How about ass ?” she asked with an innocent air.
    “Careful, Ari. I’ll be pushed only so far,” he threatened.
    “Do you honestly think that you frighten me, Mr. Palazzo? I’m actually curious. If you so much as lay one finger on me, I won’t hesitate to have you thrown in jail. You may get back out very quickly with your vast fortune, and what I’m sure is just about everyone in your back pocket, but still I’d get the satisfaction of seeing you cuffed and taken in,” she said while looking him squarely in the eyes.
    “I laid more than a finger on you earlier, Ari, and you were screaming — but not in displeasure. Should I demonstrate again how much you like my…fingers on and in you?” he asked.
    “That wasn’t the most unpleasant way I’ve spent a boring afternoon, but you know that’s not what I mean. I looked at your stupid paperwork, and though I may not be the most knowledgeable person on this planet when it comes to sex, I can read between the lines. You get control of me? You get to choose what I do, whom I see, where I go? You’re a control freak and I want no part of it. I would never allow a man to hit me!”
    “Is that what you think of me? Honestly? You think that I need to beat my women into submission?” he thundered as he stood up with his hands on the table and his body leaning toward her. He shook with fury.
    “I’m just repeating what I read,” she fired back.
    “There was nothing in those papers that said I get off on hurting a woman!”
    “Then, please tell how you exert your control!”
    Rafe sat back down, his temper at an all-time high. He took in several deep breaths as he once again thought about the sanity of dealing with this woman. She’d made a lot of assumptions and he owed her no explanations. He was furious that he even wanted to have the conversation.
    Instead of saying anything, he pressed a buzzer, letting the staff know he was ready for their first course. Two people moved into the room, silent as they set down plates and filled glasses with wine and water.
    Rafe lifted the cup to his lips and took a sip of the dry chenin blanc as he waited for the servers to exit. His eyes didn’t leave Ari’s face. She glanced at him, then looked away, muttering a quiet thank-you as her antipasto plate was placed before her. Nervously, she picked up her own wineglass and took a large gulp, then swallowed half the contents before setting the glass back down.
    His staff went quietly to the back of the room, ready to refill glasses and bring out new courses. They had proved their loyalty, and he didn’t have to worry about his words in front of them. He wouldn’t hire anyone he couldn’t be himself around, anyone without absolute discretion.
    “Why don’t you come and work for me so you can find out?” Rafe finally spoke after ten minutes of silence that stretched out awkwardly for Ari.
    She jerked her gaze up, seemingly surprised that he was still in the room. Rafe didn’t know whether he should be offended to be forgotten so easily. Yes, Ari wasn’t great for his ego.
    “I do appreciate your saving me from the club and having a doctor look after me, but no matter how much you rescue me, or swoop in on your white horse, I won’t be a part of your chosen lifestyle. My mother raised me to expect more out of life than to be some man’s mistress. This entire seduction scene is pointless. I won’t be yours.”
    For a moment her eyes held a hint of pleading in them as if she were begging him to let her go. If he had an ounce of humanity left in him, he might have done just that, but when it came to women, he chose not to be humane. He chose to seek out pleasure.
    “You say you’re