Page 202 of Key of Kink

I hadn’t said it. I wasn’t even sure I was ready to say it. But the thought was there now, sitting comfortably in the back of my mind as if it had always belonged there.

Which raised a new question.

What did this mean for us? For what we did at the club, the scenes, the way we… fitted.

That was partly why I’d asked to visit Obsidian tonight. I needed to know the answer. Not by asking Max directly, but by seeing how it felt. Seeing if kneeling still felt right. If submission still felt like joy rather than complication.

The truth was, I didn’t want to stop being Max’s sub. That part of us mattered too much. But I also didn’t want to pretend that was the only thing we were.

Which means the real challenge isn’t choosing between those roles, but figuring out if both of them can exist at the same time.

I suspected the answer was going to involve a lot of communication, and possibly a few spectacularly awkward conversations.

I’d have to find Max first.

“Well, you look like a man who’s had an interesting twenty-four hours.”

I recognise that voice.

I turned around, beaming. “Is it that obvious?”

Alex Hart leaned one shoulder against the wall beside me, his arms folded.

I couldn’t help myself. I gave him a hug. “I thought you were going back to Manchester.”

He smiled. “I don’t often come to London, so Leo decided to make it a mini holiday. We’ve been staying with our friends Eli and Jarod, and I’ve been doing the tourist thing. You name the attraction, I’ve probably been there, queued up, walked my feet off, and raided the souvenir shop.” He cocked his head. “But let’s talk about you. Which, by the way, is what everyone else is doing around here.” His eyes sparkled. “Something about a scene with a fuck machine?”

My face heated up. “Oh. That.”

“I figured you were still suffering from the aftereffects when you walked in here like someone who forgot what he came for—or should that be who?”

I blinked. “Are you always this observant?”

“It comes with the territory.”

“Which territory is that?”

“The one where you fall for someone who rearranges your brain chemistry.”

I stared at him. “Who have you been talking to?”

“No one.” Alex shrugged. “Leo has that effect on me.” He gave me a sideways glance. “So… how was the scene?”

I hesitated. “Intense.”

“Good intense or therapy intense?”

“Good intense,” I said. “The kind where you come out the other side feeling as if your skeleton’s been upgraded.”

Alex snorted. “I’ve seen the machine. I can believe that.” He cocked his head again. “Did you shake Max up? That was the plan, last time we spoke. You were all set to destabilise him.”

I glanced across the room. Still no sign of him.

“I’m not sure at this point who destabilised who. He did let me in, though.” I leaned against the pillar. “There’s just one thing I’m trying to figure out.”

Alex tilted his head. “Only one?”

I gave him a mock glare. “Don’t push it.”