Page 95 of Love Limits

He hefted the duffle bag he’d prepared. He was going to look like a complete tool at the kink club. It looked like he was going on a trip, not a night out.

He hadn’t even been able to fit his laptop and the change of clothes in there, since he’d be staying the night at Ash’s place. Those were in another bag that he grabbed on his way out the door.

He sure hoped he was doing this right. He hadn’t known what to wear, but Dustin had just told him to put on a black t-shirt with his regular jeans. Dustin warned him that he’d be a little underdressed, but not to worry about it since they’d be in the mosh pit. So not helpful.

Zhong: Be down in a minute.

Well, this was it. He couldn’t prepare any more. If he’d just been invited to hang out at the kink club with Ash and Dustin and Landon, it would have been fascinating. He really was curious.

But being there to support Ash felt like a lot of responsibility. He didn’t want to let them down.

He finally hurried downstairs and slid into the passenger seat of Ash’s car with the ridiculous duffle bags between his feet.

Ready? Ash’s smile was contagious and he felt himself starting to relax.

I hope so. I’ve been reading a lot. You eat real dog food, right?

Ash looked stunned for a second, then punched him lightly on the arm as commentary. You know better. Puppies get treats!

I don’t know, he mused. Do they get treats if they punch their Handlers? It hadn’t even hurt when it happened, but it was fun to tease them.

Yes! I’ll be such a good puppy.

I know you will.

And you’ll be an amazing Handler. Ash gazed up at him with such adoration that that fluttery warm feeling in his chest felt like it would overflow.

Maybe he could figure out how to do this right. That was one of the biggest things that he kept reading about on the kink blogs—that there wasn’t just one way to do it. He didn’t have to know everything about puppy play, he just had to know about Ash.

He thought he was at least pretty good at that.

As Ash pulled into the street, another worry rose to the surface. He’d been so focused on Ash that it hadn’t really occurred to him that other people would be there.

You ready for this? Ash asked.

Yeah, um… I read about the bracelets. About red for not available and green for interested. People really use those, right?

Yep. People follow them fanatically. You can get kicked out for propositioning someone with a red bracelet. I mean, obviously not if you realize it right away and apologize, but if someone approached a few people with red bracelets or didn’t stop asking after noticing it, they’d be asked to leave. In general, the kink community is really strong on verbal consent, even between established partners if they’re playing in a public space.

Got it. That was a huge relief. In the rest of his life, he felt like he had to explain being asexual all the time. I wish people used these bracelets in the rest of the world.

Ash laughed. I know, right? I would love to walk into a bar and just wave my bracelet around to let people know if I were open to something or not that day.

Maybe I can get “asexual” tattooed on my wrists or something.

You should at least make it classy. Like an ace from a deck of cards in the colors of the ace flag. I could think of some really nice designs.

If I ever decide to get a tattoo, I’ll let you design it.

Ash gave him a beaming smile. Speaking of things I designed… I made you something to wear tonight.

Really? What is it?

It’s a surprise. I’ll show you when we get there.

With his worst fear alleviated and Ash looking so happy, the two of them chattered about inconsequential things on the way there. Ash filled him in on some of their patients and Zhong told them about the terribly written article he’d been trying to revise on solar-powered homes. It seemed so normal, yet Ash was grinning at every word.

It was such a difference from last week when Ash had been all mopey and withdrawn. Zhong really, really wanted this evening to work out.