“I’m willing to do anything to help you, Hunter,” Payne said, flattening his palm against Hunter’s back over the tattoo. “I want to be here for you until the end.”
What Hunter wanted more than anything else at the moment was to pull Payne into his arms and kiss him breathless. Payne’s words were like a lifeline tossed to Hunter when he felt like he was drowning, all the more precious because Hunter knew Payne meant them. But they weren’t alone, and Hunter had to remind himself that Payne was a natural caretaker, and his words would have been said with equal sincerity to anyone who needed him. Hunter couldn’t do something incredibly stupid like falling for Payne just because Payne was the only one who understood. Especially since Payne didn’t need Hunter in return.
Unfortunately, it was probably already too late.
He became aware he’d been staring into Payne’s eyes for longer than he should have, and Payne had an uncanny knack for reading him. He glanced away. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Payne leaned his cheek briefly on Hunter’s shoulder before sitting up straight.
James watched the two of them with a knowing smile while Tyler beamed proudly. “I think this will work,” James said. “As long as the two of you work together, I think you’ll be fine.”
“I hope you’re right,” Hunter said. “Thank you for listening. Um… sir.”
Chuckling, James leaned across the table and patted Hunter’s hand. “You’re a fast learner!” He grew serious again as he pulled a pen out of the pocket of his suit jacket, and he wrote something on a cocktail napkin. “If there’s anything I can do to help either of you along the way, let me know.”
He started to slide the napkin across the table, but Tyler stopped him with a hand on his arm, and at James’s questioning look, Tyler made a beckoning motion toward the pen. James handed over the pen, and Tyler scribbled something on the napkin as well and then pushed it over to Hunter.
“You have our numbers,” James said, giving Tyler a proud smile as he caressed the back of Tyler’s head, and Tyler leaned into the stroking with apparent bliss. “Feel free to give either of us a call. Tyler isn’t always under a vow of silence, and I’m sure he’d have plenty to say if you ever want to hear from a sub’s perspective.”
Tyler flashed a mischievous grin and nodded vehemently.
“Thank you.” Hunter hadn’t paid as much attention to the sub as he probably should have, but he hadn’t wanted to cause him any difficulties. Now, however, he smiled at Tyler. “I appreciate it. I might need some advice in figuring all this out. It’s not exactly like there’s a home study course I can take.”
Tyler gave him a double thumbs up and then leaned against James, who slid his arm around Tyler’s shoulders again.
“You’re in good hands,” James said. “Our Payne is quite the caretaker.”
“I noticed,” Hunter said. He looked at Payne. “What shall we do now, Master Payne?” His lips twitched in amusement.
“Smartass.” Payne shouldered him hard enough to budge him a little. “Are there any demos scheduled for tonight?” he asked James.
James glanced at his watch. “There’s one featuring caning in about ten minutes. After that, it’s going to be sensation play, then rope bondage, and I believe the last one is spanking.”
“Would you like to stick around and watch the demonstrations?” Payne gave Hunter a questioning look. “You might see something you’d like to try.”
Hunter was interested in seeing how other Doms and subs interacted, since he wasn’t certain if most of the things he’d seen on the internet were real examples or simply porn. “Yes. I’d like to.”
“Great!” Payne’s wide smile showed how pleased he was.
“You’re welcome to sit with us,” James said. “Unless you’d rather move to a table closer to the front.”
“I’d like to be a little closer, since I have no idea what I’ll be looking at,” Hunter said. “You’ve been helpful, sir, and I appreciate it.”
“Anytime, darling. You two run along and have a good time,” James said, and Tyler waved goodbye.
Hunter waved at Tyler, then slid out of the booth, stepping back and waiting for Payne, who exited the booth right behind him.
“Go ahead and pick a table,” Payne said. “It looks like there are a few still open near the stage.”
As he wove through the tables, Hunter used his training to make note of the different people he passed. There were several subs who sat or knelt at their Dom’s feet, and even a couple who were curled up in laps. There were a few tables that had groups that appeared to be one Dom and several subs. Hunter found an empty table off to the right of the stage.
“Is this all right?”
“This is fine,” Payne said with a reassuring smile. “Have a seat.”
Hunter sat down and angled his chair so he could be close to Payne. “I might ask dumb questions. It’s one reason I wanted it to be just you and me. I didn’t want to look like a complete idiot in front of your friends.”
“You’re new to this.” Payne rested his hand on Hunter’s bare shoulder and rubbed it gently. “They wouldn’t think you’re an idiot for asking questions.”
