Page 80 of Love Limits

But Ash was poking their head out of that weird tube dress and making butterfly wings, which was much more fun to look at.

He just needed to appreciate Ash being here now. Kind of like with Dustin. He’d learn to savor the moments. Absorb them. Keep them bottled up for later.

He took out his phone and snapped a picture. Ash grinned when they figured out what he was doing and started posing. Ash the caterpillar with an impish grin. Ash the little ball of cuteness rolling around on the floor with that curly mop of hair popping out on top. Ash the swamp monster, claws extended through the fabric with threatening teeth. Ash the starfish.

Soon they were both laughing, as Zhong suggested increasingly impossible poses.

A lightbulb? Ash asked. Like this?

Zhong snapped another picture. Ash looked nothing like a lightbulb. But they looked happy.

T-rex, Zhong suggested.

Ash launched forward with little tiny arms and two-fingered claws. Another memory to keep.

Finally, Ash plopped down. Wanna finish the game?

Zhong shrugged. Not really. I don’t think I’ve ever lost so badly. The game is yours. He didn’t feel like he was losing, though. Just having Ash around and spending time with them was more than enough.

Ash smirked. What can I say? I have the magic touch. Another round?

Zhong stretched. I can’t sit on the floor for so long. And I know you’re getting hungry.

Dinner and cuddles?

Dinner and cuddles.

It was only while he was showering later that his darker thoughts came back. Zhong understood better now why Ash needed a Daddy. Someone who wanted this side of them as fiercely as they wanted to give it. Someone who could help them feel whole and balanced.

Which was why Zhong needed to step back if things worked out with… what was his name? Zhong could never remember fingerspelled names like he could sign names. They were so flat, just a jumble of letters that didn’t tell you anything about the person at all.

But whoever Ash’s Caregiver was, their next date or someone they met next year, Zhong already knew that he’d need to step back and let Ash have them. Maybe bring up the poly idea later if it seemed feasible.

Just like he had with Dustin, it was the best thing he could do to support them.

It was just going to hurt.

Chapter 17

Ash

Ash carefully parked in the driveway where Josh told them to, but they weren’t quite ready to get out of the car yet.

They needed to give this a chance.

Two weeks ago, they’d been so excited to meet a Daddy who seemed like a perfect fit. He’d been gracious and fun at the restaurant. He’d smiled at them with adorable little wrinkles around his eyes. He’d talked about the bedroom he’d started setting up for his little, and how he’d already bought the furniture but was waiting for someone just right to choose the decorations.

So when he’d given Ash a soft kiss on the cheek after their first date and asked them to come over for a play date, they’d been ecstatic.

And then that evening with Zhong happened.

It had been, hands down, the best playdate of their life. It wasn’t just that they got to relax and let their inner little be free. It was the intuitive way that Zhong had known exactly what Ash loved and needed. Not just a generic little, but Ash’s little. It was somehow an effortless expansion of everything they already shared together, adding to and magnifying their relationship.

Or at least that was how it felt to Ash.

But now a week had gone by and Zhong hadn’t brought it up once. Well, he had. The next morning he’d asked if he’d done OK, and Ash had assured him that he had, and that was it.

No invitation to do it again. No growing interest on Zhong’s part. He seemed mildly relieved that he hadn’t screwed it up, not that there was any possibility of that in Ash’s mind, and otherwise things had gone back to the way they were before.