Page 73 of Redline Baby

"Same as Red."

"Good boy."

The praise warms me immediately. Soren takes a drink of coffee.

"One more thing about punishment."

My pulse kicks again. He is going to kill me.

"If spanking is the consequence we've agreed on, are you comfortable with me baring you for it without asking permission again every single time?"

Heat crawls all the way up my face. This conversation is going to kill me.

"Yes." His eyebrows lift. "Yes, Daddy."

"Good." He gives me a second. "And if you squirm?"

I look at him. "If I kick or try to get away because it hurts..." I know exactly what he's asking now. My heartbeat gets louder.

"Do you want me to let you move?"

And the answer comes embarrassingly fast.

"No." Soren waits. "I want you to hold me there." My voice has gotten very quiet. "If I'm just squirming. Or kicking. Or trying to get away from the pain without actually wanting the scene to stop."

Soren nods. "I can do that. But Red overrides it."

"Yes."

"Good."

Jesus.

"Then it's over," Soren continues. "No sulking for three days. No making you wonder whether I'm still angry. No withholding affection." My chest aches. "I hold you. We talk if we need to. And we move forward."

"Why are you doing this?" The question escapes before I can stop it. Soren's brows draw together slightly. "What do you get out of taking on a broken rider with a death wish?"

His expression changes.

"You're not broken, Kit." I look away. "You're just running rich and fouling your own spark plugs.”

I stare at him. "You cannot possibly turn every emotional crisis I have into engine diagnostics."

"I can try."

A tiny laugh escapes me. Then his face softens again.

"And what I get out of it is you." The laugh disappears. "I like taking care of things that matter to me." His gaze doesn't waver. "You matter to me."

Oh.

"I want to take care of you."

"Okay," I whisper.

"Anything you want to add, pretty boy? A rule you want from me," he says. "Something you need."

I hadn't thought about that. Of course I hadn't. Rules are things other people make. Apparently now I'm allowed to ask for them too.