Page 19 of Piece Us Together
“I’ll show you. Nolan, would you like to get us something to drink? There’s water, milk, orange juice, and green tea. I’ll take water. Maison?”
Maison frowns at me. “He’s not your slave. Get your own drink.”
“First of all,” I say, my mood shifting dramatically as I remind myself I’m not allowed to put Maison over my knee and spank his ass. They pick up on the change, likely because of my tone, or maybe the sharp look I settle on Maison. A look that has him taking a step back and swallowing hard. “The use of the wordslaveis a hard limit for Nolan, something I’m sure you know as I made it clear you both needed to read each other’s packets. That’s unacceptable. Don’t do it again, or you’re out. Understood?”
“I—” Maison sucks in a shaky breath, eyes darting to Nolan before quickly dropping to the floor. “I understand. I’m—fuck, I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”
“Apologize to Nolan, not me.”
Maison rubs at the back of his head before looking at his boyfriend again. His eyes are sad. Scared. “I’m sorry, Nol. I can’t believe I said that. I can’t—that wasawful. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay.” Nolan scoots closer to him, not stopping until he can take Maison’s hand. He gives him a shaky smile. “I know you. I know it was an accident.”
“It won’t happen again,” he promises Nolan before looking at me. “It won’t happen again.”
“See that it doesn’t.” I eye them before deciding to add, “Second of all, Nolan and my dynamic is going to be different than what yours is, Maison. If he has an issue with it, he’ll talk to me. If you have an issue with it—a real issue, not just you being cranky and defensive—then you can also talk to me. That said, you both agreed to domestic servitude on your packets. Can I trust you that you’ll actually respect the boundaries you gave me using those packets or will you need to redo them?”
A few emotions flicker over Maison’s expression before he settles somewhere between anxious and annoyed. “I’m fine with him serving you. I get that. But this isn’t a scene. It threw me off, you just ordering him around like that when it’s not really your place at the moment. We haven’t started. You’re not his dom yet.”
The words are tiny little hurts that are impossible to ignore. The worst part is how true they are.
I’m just here to fill a role. To be the dom during scenes. Nolan isn’t mine until a scene begins and he stops being mine again the moment his aftercare has been finished.
“You’re right.” I take a step away from them, putting my hands up. Wells’s voice echoes in my head.You’ll get hurt. You’ll regret this.“I apologize.”
“But I—” Nolan stops himself, looking between us as he nibbles on his bottom lip.
I want so badly to encourage him, but I’m not sure it’s my place. It doesn’t matter anyway. Maison steps in. “Go ahead, baby. Whatever you need to say.”
“I liked it,” he whispers. He closes his eyes as if he can hide from us. It’s heartbreakingly adorable. “I thought maybe—couldn’t things begin once we’re here? I just—I want to be able to let go when I step in the door, not have to be on pins and needles while I wait for someone to say action and I finally get to be a sub. Can’t I just…be a sub here? The whole time?” He shakes his head, eyes still closed. “That’s asking too much, right? That’s asking too much. Forget—”
“Can you be his dom from the moment he walks in?” Maison asks me, cutting his boyfriend off.
My heart jumps. “Yes.”
“Okay.” Maison takes a deep breath before turning to Nolan and giving him a nudge. When Nolan looks at him, he gives him a grin that even has me relaxing a little. “Go ahead, baby. You can be a sub. You can let go.”
Nolan’s blush deepens until he’s fascinatingly pink from his throat to the tips of his ears. What’s even more interesting is the way his entire being seems to soften. “Yeah?”
“Yes,” I say. “And you can start by being a good boy and getting us drinks. I’ll take water. Maison?”
With a light chuckle to acknowledge the full circle we just went in, Maison says, “I’ll take some water, too.”
“Get yourself something as well, Nolan. Bring them to the coffee table there.” I gesture toward the hall, eyes now on Maison. “Let me show you the room.”
Maison’s expression shutters for a moment before his smile is firmly back in place. “Lead the way.”
Trying not to wonder what just went through his head, I lead him down the hall to the last door on the left. “My room is upstairs, but I thought it’d be a good idea to give the two of you your own space. It’s also where we’ll do scenes.”
“Sounds good.”
“Good.” I open the door before stepping back, allowing him to walk through first. He takes the room in with surprisingly critical eyes. Of all the things I was nervous about for tonight, this damn room wasn’t one of them. “It’s all new bedding. There are a few things in the top drawer of that dresser for aftercare, in case you need anything in the middle of the night. Of course, you can always come get me if you need something, or even just want something.”
“Alright.” He eyes the ceiling. The corners, in particular. And the ceiling fan.
“Isit alright?” I ask uncertainly.
“Hm?” He looks over at me before blinking. “Oh, yeah. This will be great. Thank you.”