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He looked discoh his hair,it up even more It fell back over his forehead and this tiaze softened when she touched hiiven hi you have to understand is that Ash and I" He broke off "Jesus, there’s no way to say this without it sounding all sorts of fucked up"

"Just say it," she urged "I’ry How could I be? You don’t hold ainst you?"

"You’re so daot so lucky When I think ould have happened if I hadn’t seen you that night If I hadn’t found you at the shelterIt guts me, Bethany"

Her eyes widened and her heart pounded as his words washed over her, war Never had she ihtforward He wasn’t afraid to share his feelings He wasn’t afraid to be vulnerable

He averted his gaze, took a deep breath and plunged ahead

"Ash and I shared women A lot of women As in, it was a lot more normal for us to hook up with the sao solo They weren’t always one-night stands either"

"Like me," she said softly

His eyes narrowed "No Not like you at all You were different fro to distract hi is, we had threesomes a lot I’m no saint, Bethany, and I damn sure haven’t lived as a ht, we like control In all aspects It’s a kink It’s a turn-on But it goes deeper than that, at least for ot into a serious one-on-one relationship with a wo as it was confined to a kinky threesoame and no one took it very seriously But for me, it is serious It’s what I like It’s what I need And if you want or need an explanation as to why, I’ive that to you It just is I’ve neverthat part of myself Untilyou"

Her body tensed in alarm, her protest immediate "Jace, I don’t want you to be someone else forinto," he said in a low voice

She shifted up on the couch, relieved they were finally getting so intently into his eyes

"So tell me Lay it out for me How do you knohat I can or can’t accept if you won’t tell me what your wants and needs are?"

"Because I’s I do," he adht surprise you, Jace," she said in a low voice "You know about s were"

Jace’s hand cupped her cheek, his eyes suddenly fierce "Don’t, baby There’s no need to rehash it all I don’t like how it hurts you, and it just reinforces in your h for me That’s bullshit"

She smiled, waroing to say is that not all of that sex was vanilla The truth is, I think I tried it all You aren’t going to shock me And I need to knohat you expect so that I know if I can be that woman you need"

He leaned forward until their foreheads touched His finger traced a line over the curve of her cheek and then down to feather over her lips

"I like a wo enticing about having a woman dependent solely onI like to pa is, I knew a long tio that if I ever did enter a permanent relationship my control would extend out of the bedrooether There aren’t a lot of won on for that At least, not a woht reasons"

Her brow furrowed in confusion "Right reasons?"

"Money," he said grimly "When you have asto put up with anything for what it buys them That’s not the woman I want in my life or in my bed on a pers that I do Me in control Me taking care of her Me acting out my kinks with her I want her to want me Not my damn money, and I don’t want her to suffer a relationship she finds abhorrent because the price is right"

"And those kinks are?"

He pulled back slightly but she caught his shoulders, forcing hi to shockpain"

He looked uneasy as he studied her for her reaction and she was careful not to give him one Instead, she waited for what he’d say next

When she didn’t respond, he went on, his shoulders relaxing just a bit, ally to his ad I abuse wo that about me I sound like a hypocrite I’m violently protective of the women in my care and yet I like to inflict pain"

"How so?"

She was still speaking calet up and run screa from the apartment at any tih sex I like role-playing I like bondage Sometimes I feel like a Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde because there are times when I worship the woman I’m with Savor Touch, kiss, make love to And other times? I want it my way Any way I want Tied up, helpless Ass reddened by asm But sometimes it’s all about mine"

"That doesn’t sound so bad," she said calmly

"Do you understand that I would be in absolute control over every aspect of our relationship, Bethany? Do you really get that? That every decision will be o, where you go When we have sex When we don’t have sex What you wear Who you talk to Are you getting it yet? I’e Are you really willing to sign on for so like that?"

"And if I’ him every bit as intently as he studied her

"Then I’ll accept whatever you can give me," he said quietly