He quickly dried off and wrapped the towel around his waist and I allowed myself to feast on his naked form once more.
Goddamn body like a marble statue.
He sat me down on the edge of the tub and gently worked a comb through my hair. His touch was gentle and soft as he worked through the snags, carefully brushing out each and every tangle. When he was done, he helped me to stand back up with a kind smile.
Finally, he took my hand and led me from the bathroom and back into the bedroom. I held the towel tight around my body as we walked down the stairs and into an opulent kitchen where he indicated that I was to sit down at the table. I watched as he pressed a button and a holographic screen appeared before his fingers. He tapped a few buttons and typed in a few commands before a laser light shone straight onto the place setting right in front of me.
I watched as a plate of food appeared before me, hazy at first and then clearer as the teleportation worked its magic. In seconds, a big bowl of spaghetti, garlic bread, and then a glass of red wine materialized. I watched as the light shifted to the setting across from me, and another meal identical to mine came into focus.
“I haven’t seen a meal teleportation service like that in a long, long time,” I muttered in delight, before picking up the fork to the right of the dish.
Bane sat down across from me and smirked at me.
“You can get whatever you want when you have the money to pay for it,” he answered evasively and I narrowed my eyes, studying him.
“What do you do?” I asked then, trying to figure him out but he shook his head.
“No. Not tonight,” he replied.
I huffed with annoyance and his expression hardened a bit.
“Behave, or I’ll send you to bed with a freshly spanked bottom instead of what I have planned for you,” he warned, and I glared back at him. I knew that he was serious. He hadn’t hesitated to whip my naked ass with his belt in the middle of the market square and he’d do the same here in the privacy of his own home, without a doubt.
I licked my lips, choosing that moment to dig my fork into the steaming meal in front of me. The two of us ate in silence for several minutes then before he cleared his throat and cocked his head to the side, studying me as he did so.
“Tell me about yourself, Cara. What brings a human like you out here to a planet like this?” he asked.
I stared back at him. I opened my mouth and then closed it again, biting my lower lip when I did so.
“It’s kind of cute when you do that,” he said, leaning back in his chair. His smile was warm and honest. It made me feel more at ease.
Immediately, I blushed and turned away, feeling embarrassed all of a sudden.
“Where are you from?” he asked then. He reached for me, brushing his fingers against mine and I felt the rest of my walls fall away.
“I grew up on Station XII, near the center of the Intergalactic Coalition stronghold. The rules were strict there, especially among the lower class. Money was really hard to earn because the city leaders took their share of heavy taxes, leaving barely enough to get by week to week. Sometimes my mother even had a hard time putting dinner on the table. It was tough,” I started. The more I talked, the more comfortable I felt and the more I opened up to him.
I told him about my childhood. About how life had grown nearly impossible on the station and how I had begun to steal to help my parents feed my family. I told him how I was the oldest of three, how I had felt responsible for my sisters and how I’d begun to work in the reigning crime syndicate to take care of them.
My involvement in the Association had taken me away from the space station where I’d spent my childhood. As often as I could, I deposited credits in their account, but it had been some time now since I’d been able to do that.
“I need to find work so that I can help them to make ends meet. My youngest sister is only six and I want to ensure that no one else in my family has to do what I do to pay the rent and keep food on the table,” I explained.
Talking to him felt good. It was as though a weight had been taken off of my shoulders and I felt much better now because of it.
“Was your last ship a part of the Association?” he asked, his brow furrowing with concern and I shook my head.
“No, it was more my cover for the retrieval of a certain document from a rival organizations base. Since the ship got impounded though, I haven’t been able to get in contact with my handler and I’m sure he’ll be displeased with the delay in my progress,” I replied.
Bane’s jawline tensed and I pressed my lips together nervously, instantly sensing the change in his demeanor.
“You aren’t going to be in contact with him either. You’re going to stay here with me. I’ll train you in my work and I’ll pay you so that you can send money home to your family. There will be no more Association for you,” he said firmly, and I just stared back at him in disbelief.
“You can’t decide that for me. People can’t just leave the Association just because they want to,” I replied.
“You will,” he responded, his tone incredibly dark. Dangerous.
I turned away, taking another bite of my garlic bread.