Page 19 of Collision of Winters
After the storm had moved on.
Kayden giggled again.
“What’s got you in stitches out there?” I called.
He let out a guffaw. “My favorite episode ofSouth Park!”
I groaned internally. He and Chris had that in common.
“It’s the only thing I have on my phone,” he explained. “I would’ve traded it forSpongeBoborTransformers, but this works too! Oh! OrNinja Turtles!”
Safe to say, I wasn’t getting any more sleep.
I forced myself to sit up, and my feet landed on the floor.
I scratched my chest.
It wouldn’t take much of an effort to charge my laptop and download theTransformersmovie for his birthday. I was fairly sure I knew which was his favorite.
I’d actually bought Push Pop lollipops for him too, but now I wasn’t sure it was a good idea to give him that. What if he mistook it for encouragement to be morelittlewith me?
While his comfort meant the world to me, his…regression or whatever I should call it was another matter. He’d said he was a Middle, a definition as personal as any other identity.
I couldn’t allow our dynamic to shift into anything that remotely resembled D/s. It would be wrong on so many levels, and frankly, it sickened me that a part of me wanted to see him in that environment.
“Breakfast is ready! Also, why are there a million dog cages in the Jeep?”
Four wasn’t a million.
“Because I don’t want them lost in the storm,” I replied. I’d put them in the car after I’d parked it closer to the cabin.
“But why cages in the first place? The doggies are so polite and obedient.”
“Until you get them in a bush plane.” I yawned and rose to my feet. “Tundra and Prince haven’t learned to settle down yet.” And that made the other two restless.
“Oh.”
I pulled on a pair of sweats and walked out of the bedroom. My hip wasn’t hurting too badly this morning, thank God. Kayden had stoked the fire already, so I didn’t have to bother with that.
I spotted him in the kitchen nook, where he was plating eggs, bacon, and some leftovers.
“I’m kinda curious about being caged,” he said.
“I’ll bring one in after we’ve eaten,” I joked.
“Really?” The way he lit up caused the sound of screeching tires in my head.
“Wait, you’re serious?” I asked.
He couldn’t be fucking serious.
He turned sheepish. “Um, yeah. I’ve read about subs who are into bondage, cages, and body suits—they find those restraints, like, super calming. But I don’t know if I have that curiosity because I lack the most basic structure. If I did, maybe the cage would be overcompensating—I don’t know.”
Pump the brakes. Pump the fucking brakes. He was too comfortable bringing this up with me.
I had to divert.Withoutmaking him feel like he’d crossed a line. Which meant I had to be painfully honest with him.
I swallowed and scratched the side of my head.
