Page 51 of Hushed

She thought about it as she wet her hair and let the water relax her muscles. “Are we in a dynamic?” she asked.

He smiled. “It doesn’t have to mean anything more than we want it to mean. It’s just a straightforward way to identify what we’re doing.”

She didn’t know what she wanted dynamic to mean to them, but the idea of having something more with him made her happy.

“Will you collar me?” She wiped the steam off the glass so she could see his face again. He ran a hand through his hair.

“That’s a serious commitment, Kenz. If it weren’t kink, would you be asking if I’m going to propose already?”

“I guess I hadn’t looked at it like that.”

He shrugged. “For some people, a collar is just for play and that is perfectly acceptable. But for me, it means something, and I don’t want to rush with you. Not because I don’t think we’ll last, but because I’m certain we will, and I want things to be right.”

Her heart hammered as she reached for the shampoo. “You think we’ll last? What happened to keeping things confined to you teaching me about kink?”

He gripped the counter behind him. “We both know what we have is bigger than that, Kenzie. I think about what might have happened to you at The Cage and I get sick to my stomach. When I remember how long I’ve left you alone, I want to kick my own ass. So yeah, it’s more than just teaching you about kink, and it’s going to last if I have anything to say about it. If you’re not OK with any of that, I need to hear it now. Because I’m all in, babe.”

Wow. He was really serious about this. She stuck her head back under the water and let the shampoo swirl down the drain as she thought about what it would be like to be in a committed relationship with a man like Gage.

“I want to be all in with you,” she finally said, then turned the water off. “There are things I have questions about, though.”

He grabbed a towel for her when she opened the shower door, and she used it to dry off.

“I’ll answer any questions you have.”

“How do we combine our lives when I live in New York, and you live in D.C.?”

She wrapped her short hair in the towel, and he handed her a second one to wrap around her body.

“Being all in doesn’t mean we have to move in together right away. Just like I’m not going to collar you or propose tomorrow. The point is that you need to be aware of my intentions for this relationship, and if your intentions aren’t the same you should let me know.”

“Where is this coming from?” she asked as she put a hand on his chest.

“The other day, you said no one did forever anymore unless they were old-fashioned. You didn’t have much of a reaction when I told you I might be old-fashioned.”

She leaned in and kissed where her hand had just been. “I’m sorry. Sometimes I say things without thinking about how other people will receive them. And sometimes I say things to put people at ease about a situation which is what I was trying to do when I said that. I didn’t want you to feel like you had to commit to me if you taught me about kink. You have a reputation, and I didn’t want to put pressure on you.”

“So, on top of being too hard on yourself about things, you’re a people pleaser. Good to know.” He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. “You don’t have to worry about trying to make things easier on me, babe. I want to make your life easier. I want to help you achieve your goals. And I’m smart enough to recognize that living in D.C. with me isn’t going to help you do that. We’ve already proved I can make the trip. And whenthe time comes that we’re ready to live together, we’ll sort it out then. But right now, let’s just focus on getting to know each other and figuring out what we want our dynamic to look like.”

She nodded and snuggled close. “That sounds good. And I am not a people pleaser.”

He laughed. “It’s not something to be offended about. But I’ve noticed it in the past. You take less money than you’re worth for projects because you’re afraid of upsetting clients by raising your prices. You do way more than you’re supposed to at the clubs on nights when you DJ instead of just doing your job, because you’re worried they won’t ask you back for another show.”

She pulled back and glared at him. “What is this, dump on Kenzie day?”

He cupped her jaw and stared at her adoringly. “You’re a good person, Kenz. But I want to see you value yourself. If you charge what you’re worth and let your skills speak for themselves, you won’t lose clients. And if you do, they weren’t the right clients for you to begin with because they don’t value you.”

She wanted to squirm away and hide as he spoke, but deep down she understood he was at least partially right. But she couldn’t just stand there without saying anything, so she lifted one corner of her mouth and tilted her head to one side. “Is this anything like how you date your friends’ exes to keep them busy, or how you never let anyone help you with a problem you’re having, but you always solve other people’s problems? Or maybe it’s kind of like the way you can’t say no to a friend in need even if their need is inconvenient for you?”

He dropped his hand to her waist and pulled her tighter to him. “It might be. But we’re not talking about me, little imp. We’re talking about you. Now get your ass dressed before I decide to fuck you in front of this mirror and make you watch every second instead of taking you to breakfast.”

If her stomach wasn’t already protesting the lack of food, she might have begged him to do just that. Though she wasn’t sure she loved the idea of watching herself get fucked, his threat still stirred arousal deep inside her, and she hoped breakfast didn’t last too long, because she was ready to go back to bed with him.

Instead of asking him to, though, she darted into the bedroom and pulled on clothes before he decided to keep pointing out all the ways she was a people pleaser. Despite her protests, she knew he was right, and she fucking hated that.

Chapter 10

Kenzie

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