“Shoot,” Layla smirked and pointed to the kitchen. “It was worth a try. They’re on the counter.”
Jay left some sweets behind for his nephews and waved his sister goodbye on his way out. He didn’t want to show it, but their conversation had overwhelmed him. Layla’s words made sense, but she wasn’t the one with a backlog of failedrelationships. She had a loving marriage and great kids. It was easy for her to tell him what to do.
After going home and taking a shower, he spent the rest of the day sprawled on the sofa, a soccer game in the background, making his way through the snacks. He had to give props to whoever was in charge of their customer relations—the gift basket was the fanciest he’d ever seen. But even the caramel-covered cake pops couldn’t distract Jay from his thoughts.
He wasn’t ready to ask Aaron out on a date. They got along as friends, the occasional flirting gave him hope, and the heat between them at the shibari workshop had been undeniable, but was there more to it? What if all Aaron wanted was a casual hookup? Would Aaron even want to date so soon after his divorce?
Ugh. The divorce.
The very notion of it intimidated Jay. Aaron had been with his husband forsixteenyears. He was used to being with someone who knew him, knew his moods and his body, could anticipate his every need. No wonder the red bracelet never left his wrist. How could he ever find a better Dom than his ex-husband? Who could ever measure up?
Layla’s words flitted through Jay’s mind, and he laughed mirthlessly. Lovely and sweet—hardly a catch. Not for the first time in his life, he wished he could be more, be someone else entirely. Someone confident and assertive. Someone who deserved the impressive, gorgeous man consuming his mind.
No, he would not be asking Aaron out anytime soon, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t find reasons to spend time with him. Perking up, he grabbed his phone and pulled up the Chain Reaction monthly calendar. After scanning through the upcoming events, he spotted one Aaron would enjoy.
He switched to the texting app and realized he’d forgotten to send a follow-up to their earlier exchange.
JAY: The marshmallows were safely escorted to my house, where they were promptly eaten.
AARON: Excellent! I was starting to get worried you were having a stand-off with your sister.
JAY: She used a variety of tactics to distract me, but I emerged victorious.
AARON: I never had a single doubt :)
Jay stared at the screen, willing himself to come up with an organic way to pivot the conversation. His mind was blank.
JAY: So, I know you usually go to the club on the weekends, but there’s a modeling night next Thursday, and I think you’d like it. Some people dress up and model, others show up with their cameras. I’ve never participated, but it’s fun to watch.
AARON: I saw that on the events list! Wasn’t sure what it was all about, but it sounds fun. Friday looks like a light day anyway, and who needs sleep?
JAY: Not me after eating ten pounds of sugar today. On that note, good night.
AARON: Sweet dreams.
It wasn’t a date, but it was something to look forward to.
Kink Talk
SubAir: I'm curious about things peopledon'tlike about the lifestyle. We mostly talk about what we want, but I'm sure there are aspects that are not for everyone.
SubLily: Good point. It’s useful for us to keep in mind that not everyone is into the same things. I'll start—I'm not into restraints. It's not a hard limit, but I'd need to build up to it.
DomAndDommer: I go with the flow, but I’m not into anything potentially unsafe. Breath play, knife play…I trust myself, but not that much.
DomicronPersei8: I try to keep an open mind, but I can confidently say that high protocol is just not for me. It sounds exhausting to keep up.
SubSequins: Personally, I don't see the appeal of degradation. I’d safeword out immediately.
SubZero: I don't have any major icks, but pain does absolutely nothing for me. If someone wants to spank me, I'll go along for the ride and play it up, but inside it's all eye rolls.
SubMarine: Full body bondage freaks me out. I feel like I would have an immediate panic attack.
DomPetty: This is kinda dumb, but I don’t like the idea of people coming up with their own safewords. Why can't we all use the color system? What if they forget their safeword because it's something random like pomegranate or applesauce? What ifIforget it?
DomAndDommer: Dude, I think you’d notice something’s up when your partner is yelling about fruit.
DomPetty: I did say it was dumb, ok?
