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How was I supposed to respond to that, though?

“I…” I tried. I really did but the last thing I wanted to do was insult my mates.

“Some people shut down when they get overwhelmed.” Agent Murphy was sweet and stepped in when I froze up. “It can be just verbally or it can be more than that. You just need ways of communicating physically if that’s the only form of communication you have at the moment.”

Barely pausing, his brain worked faster than mine when it came to problem-solving. “One finger up means green. You’re fine with whatever is going on. Can you do that?”

Yes.

That was much easier than talking, so I put one finger up.

“Two fingers will be slow down.” He barely paused before I followed the implied instructions. “Good job.”

As I just soaked up the relief I felt, Zorin wiggled like he had ants in his pants and Agent Murphy shifted to focus on him, giving me a reprieve. “He needs some kind of praise to give him emotional comfort and to reinforce behavior that you like.”

I was basically some kind of puppy and the confusion I felt from Zorin had me wanting to laugh. It was almost distracting enough to keep me from realizing Raxius was feeling very differently. I just didn’t understand the mix of confidence and something else as he turned to me.

And just watched me.

What was I supposed to do?

The not knowing sent more panic running through me which made it even harder to know what to do.

Why in the world had the fates given me mates who needed me to explain what I wanted?

“Raxius.” Agent Murphy finally broke the silence. “I want to remind you of several things. It doesn’t matter if you’re a Dom or a sub, you safeword if you need to. Period.”

What was Raxius?

Was he a Dom?

Did he not know?

As I wondered what he was thinking, Agent Murphy continued. “Second, I know this is new to your entire society. Part of me is sorry we’ve changed your lives in such difficult ways but being a Dom is a wonderful part of my life. It genuinely makes me happy and has given me ways of dealing with my emotions and needs in a healthy way.”

How did Raxius see being a Dom?

How did he see being a sub?

“It’s not always easy to talk about but everyone has to start somewhere. A submissive has to take the first brave step to let someone else take care of them. A Dom has to trust their sub enough to share what they want and what makes them happy.” Agent Murphy paused, probably trying to give us a moment to think, but we were still silent and probably overwhelmed or confused, maybe.

“To get to that point requires trust and the people of Earth start with verbal and physical communication.” His firm but still careful tone made me realize how much my mates needed to believe I could do it. “Shiloh might be shy but he’s going to hold up one finger to show that it’s okay for you to touch his head and shoulders while you verbally communicate with him.”

One finger up.

Had to show it was okay for them to touch me.

Hopefully he wanted to touch me?

All I could feel was quiet confusion coming through the bond, but I thought that was because he was doing his best to block it. Still, I knew I had to do something if we were going to have a healthier relationship. A bonding couldn’t function just having dinner together and talking like we were colleagues at a work event.

One finger.

I could do it.

As Raxius started reaching for me, one finger went up and something else flickered through the bond before both men went nearly silent again.

I wasn’t sure if I wanted more or needed it or if it would’ve just been overwhelming, but I shivered as his hand finally stroked over my head sending tingly pleasure through me. It was so distracting I almost missed the odd feelings coming from Zorin, like he was mentally trying not to wiggle.