“I told you I was staying in Cincinnati, didn’t I?”
“Yeah, but since you haven’t been around, I assumed you changed your mind, upped and left.”
“Without telling you?”
“What was I supposed to think? You weren’t communicating. I decided when you were ready, you would come to me, and here you are. What’s going on with you, August?”
Since he didn’t use my title, I could tell he was asking me as a friend rather than Dom to another Dom. I glanced at the boy at his feet and back at Heath. I didn’t want to discuss this in front of Declan’s friend.
Heath understood well enough. He stroked Ridge’s head, and the boy arched into his caress. Seeing them together, the way Heath leaned forward and kissed Ridge’s forehead tenderly, then whispered in the boy’s ear made me long for a sub of my own.
In the past, I was happy with coming to the club to play and leave as a single man, but it would be so gratifying to have a sub wear my permanent collar instead of a play collar. I’d even settle for a collar of protection.
Ridge got to his feet. He was gorgeous. His eyes connected with mine a split second. Then he lowered his head and walked away, the gazes of other men following him.
“You collared him?” I asked Heath with a frown. I still had no idea why he’d chosen me that night to flog Ridge, but I had the feeling it had been deliberate, and I had a right to know.
“It’s just a consideration collar.”
“Why did you have me flog him that night?”
“Is that what this is about?”
“Yes, I want to know why me?”
“Because I trusted you with him,” he replied, taking a long drag from his cigar. “I didn’t want to get tangled up with him again, but he needed the pain that night, and I couldn’t give it to him.”
“And I fucked up.”
“What?” Heath straightened up and bent forward to grind out the cigar in a petri dish on the circular table next to his leather chair. “Is that what you think?”
“I had a meltdown that night, Heath.”
“A Dom drop. It’s not uncommon, you know.”
“Do you ever get them?” I demanded.
“No, but this affects us all differently, August. You of all people know this. There’s no one size fits all. That’s why communication with your partner is important.”
“And what if you can’t trust your partner?”
“Then you shouldn’t be playing together.”
I took his words to heart. “Then why did you give me someone I couldn’t trust to play with me?”
He glanced away from me before I could read his eyes. “I didn’t know he would take it that far.”
“But you knew he might.”
“A little, yes.”
I swore beneath my breath. “That’s fucked-up, Heath. You should’ve leveled with me before I started that scene. Now thanks to you, I’m having anxiety about playing again.”
Heath’s head snapped around in my direction. “Auggie, what happened that night was poor execution on my part. You’re an exceptional Dom. You realized something was wrong that night when I didn’t. Don’t hold back because of what I did.”
“I don’t know, Heath. It’s stayed with me.”
“Are you saying you haven’t played with anyone since?”
I shook my head. “I couldn’t.”
“Are you here to play?”
I roamed the room with my eyes, checking out slaves, pets and littles, all sharing the same space. A lone boy in a leather harness sat on a sofa. He gave me a shy smile, then lowered his eyes, his signal clear. He was there to play.
“I’ll play.”
“Good. Impact?”
“Is there any other kind?”
Impact play was my favorite playtime. No wonder Heath had chosen me that night to whip Ridge. I’d perfected my strokes over the years and usually prided myself in keeping with my sub’s pain limit.
“Did you bring your own?” Heath asked me.
“No, but I’m pretty sure you have a wide assortment. Surprise me.”
Before Heath could respond, I crossed the room over to the boy, who now had a drink in his hand. Without a word, I took his glass and placed it on a table. The fact that he had a collar in his lap and not around his neck made it most likely a play collar, which was cool by me.
Tonight, I wasn’t looking to get off sexually. With my thoughts so full of Charles, I couldn’t think about sex with anyone right now, but I could get the edge off with some impact play. Many people believed engaging in