Surrendering by Ahren Sanders Page A

hell, and incredibly gorgeous. I thought about staying away, but you draw me back. I know I have a sordid past that makes you hesitant to give in, but I’m asking you, give me a chance? Please give this a chance.”
    I finally find my voice, “Give what a chance, Declan? What are you asking?”
    “Do I have to spell it out for you?”
    “That would be a good idea since I want to hear exactly what you’re asking.”
    “Shit, woman. What I’m asking is that you give me a shot with you- as in a relationship. I want to take you on dates. I want you to come to my shows and sit in the front where I can stare at you as I perform. I want to take you to yoga on Saturday mornings and bring you home. I want all the guys to know you have a man.”
    My mouth drops open and it takes a minute for me to form words. “You want all of that? With me? We haven’t spent that much time together. You don’t even know that much about me. And it sounds a little possessive that you want people to know I have a man.”
    “That’s why I’m asking you to give me a chance. I want to get to know you. I want to spend time with you- a lot of time. I’m spellbound by you. I can’t stop thinking about you. I know I’m not good enough for you, but I want to try. Can you give me that?”
    “This is completely unexpected, Declan. You’ve taken me by surprise.”
    “It’s unexpected, but is it unwanted?”
    I realize what he’s asking. I’ve spent the last eighteen hours thinking about him constantly. He’s consumed my thoughts and his touch ignites my body. I’ve never felt like this before and I don’t want to let it go.
    “No, it’s not unwanted. I can give you a chance, but we move forward with caution. I don’t mean we have to go at a snail’s pace, but I don’t want to jump into anything too quickly. I want complete honesty between us and I will not tolerate being the other woman. I won’t be walked all over.”
    His eyes become liquid and his mouth moves up at the corners. “I can do caution, honesty, and slow. But you need to know, I won’t tolerate being the other guy either. I’ll work on my jealously with Finn and his roommates, but no one else, Raven. You’re too sexy for your own good and I can only handle so much.”
    “Okay, Declan, we can give this a chance.”
    He kisses me quickly on the lips, “Can we eat now?”
    I jump down and get some plates. “Sure,” I say as I smile at him.
    *****
    “How did you know my two favorite choices?” I ask him as I shove the eggroll into my mouth.
    “The first night we met, you ordered your Shrimp Fried Rice, but then shared the Cashew Chicken with Finn. I thought maybe you would share with me.” He shrugs his shoulders as he starts to eat.
    “Are these your favorites too? Do you even like them?”
    “I wanted to make you happy. I was a total jackass.”
    I don’t say much as we finish dinner. He tells me how busy he has been with the band the last few weeks. It sounds like he and Cooper are taking on a larger roles trying to market the band to larger venues. The Steamroom brings in a decent college crowd, but Nashville is a music hotspot and there are several areas for growth and publicity. Sayge agreed to play Thursday and Saturday nights at The Steamroom, but different venues and more exposure would reach a greater audience.
    I tell him about my schedule and some extra stuff I’ve been doing. I started taking modern dance class on Monday nights at this little studio I found around the corner from campus. I had grown up dancing, but I quit last spring when Finn and Robbie came home from Iraq. I was finishing Emory and wanted to be home on the weekends as much as possible. He listens to me as he cleans up the leftovers and we move to the living room.
    “Um, Declan, I was starting a movie when you broke in earlier. I’m not sure if it is the kind of movie you would be interested in.”
    He raises his eyebrows, “What movie?”
    Magic Mike .
    “Your plans tonight