Page 22 of Key of Kink

That brought me up short.

Absolutely not.

Chapter Five

Quinn

I was standing in the middle of the main floor, naked except for my boots, and I couldn’t have been happier. I was mentally willing my dick to deflate, but it wasn’t getting the memo.

Max told me to kneel, and I did so without hesitation. I liked the clean certainty of kneeling, the way my body settled when someone else took responsibility for what came next.

“Eyes down, hands behind your back.”

Yeah, I liked that too.

“So this is what I have in mind. You on your back on a bench, ankles cuffed, knees apart, arms down to the sides, wrists cuffed and joined with a chain under the bench. So you’ll have movement.”

I nodded. “Yes, Si—” I froze. “Do I call you Sir? We never discussed this.”

Grant had insisted on it. I hadn’t minded that at first.

Later, I realised it felt wrong to use the term with a man I was losing respect for.

Max cupped my chin and tilted my face toward his. “I don’t expect or demand honorifics, mainly because I believe they should be earned.” His lips twitched. “Unless you’re trying to impress me.”

I squared my shoulders. “Noted.”

He brushed his hand lower over my bare chest, pausing at my nipples. “I have a box of clothes pegs with your name written all over it.”

I blinked. “A box? Just how many are you planning to attach to me?”

He shrugged. “Two or three?” He grinned. “You’ll love it when I remove them. You might even come.”

Aha.

“So I am allowed to come?”

“This time, yes.”

That implied there would be more scenes to follow, and a pleasurable shudder coursed through me.

Max explained the scene with meticulous care, with short, controlled sentences. I listened closely, storing every detail. I liked the way he phrased consent, not as permission, but as an ongoing condition.

He wants to hear me. He expects to hear me.

Yeah, I liked that very much.

The more he explained, the easier it got to breathe. It didn’t feel like being boxed in, but rather, knowing where the edges were.

“And if you decide you want me to stop?” Max asked.

I lifted my head a fraction. “I’ll say so—Sir.”

The pause was immediate.

His gaze met mine. “Any questions?”

I hesitated. Let it go. But guessing had gone badly for me before.