Page 5 of Tame Me

“Deep breaths,” Reid says gently.

“I’m sorry,” I sob. “Please don’t give up on me. I’m sorry.”

“Ayla, why would I give up on you?” Reid asks. “Open your eyes and look at yourself.”

I open my eyes, and everything is blurry through the tears, but seeing how distraught I am somehow helps me calm down. I can see the reality of how fast I spiraled.

“Before you pushed me, what did you feel in your body?” Reid asks.

“My chest was tight,” I sniffle.

“That was panic, Ayla. You are triggered,” Reid says. He takes his hands off my waist, and I turn to face him with my back against the mirror. He doesn’t move, and it keeps him close to me.

“Does this help?” he asks. “Having someone close?”

“Yeah,” I admit quietly.

“Look at you getting all dominant, Reid,” a man says from the doorway.

“That is Thane, your trainer,” Reid says, rolling his eyes almost playfully. “Thane, you’re early.”

“I wasn’t expecting you to be here,” Thane says as Reid backs up.

“This is Ayla. She is triggered by offices, so we came here,” Reid says.

“It’s good to meet you, Ayla,” Thane says, offering me his hand. I step closer and give him my hand to shake. “Is Reid triggering you?”

“Uh,” I say. “He did.”

“Yeah, he does that on purpose,” Thane laughs. “It’s his thing.”

“You’re not a very good boy, then, Reid,” I say, making Thane’s deep, hearty laugh fill the room, and Reid smiles.

“Let’s sit,” Reid chuckles.

We all sit, but it’s them facing me. I feel almost isolated. They are looking at me like they know already, so I force myself to speak up.

“I don’t like sitting here like I’m in trouble,” I say. “Can we like… Sit in a circle.”

“We can,” Thane says, moving over to better form a circle. “So where are we at, Reid?”

“Well, I know her subtype. We will move on to limits and goals. I want to make sure she understands what is expected of her. I think with you being her trainer, it might be fitting for it to come from you,” Reid explains.

“Do you want me to give you a Reid-type explanation, or the quick and dirty version?” Thane asks me.

“Quick and dirty,” I say sheepishly.

What is wrong with me?

“You will be my submissive. You will do what I say, but I will earn the right to hold your trust. Everything we do will be consent-based, but I will push you to your absolute limit and teach you what those boundaries feel like. You will learn various kinks like impact play, sensory play, orgasm control, and more. We will also go over different fantasies while keeping your trauma in mind... The goal is to help find where you are most comfortable. Ideally, these tools are something you can leave Meridian with and practice in your everyday life,” he says, stopping to study me for a second. “Do you know your limits?”

“Don’t shit on me,” I say, making him smile. “Just no bathroom activities. Oh… No fisting. That doesn’t sound like a good time.”

“You don’t seem set on that,” he remarks. “Is it a limit you are comfortable with being pushed?”

“Uh… Maybe,” I say. “You have big hands.”

“It’s not literally an entire fist, Ayla,” he laughs. “Something to consider. Anything else?”