"You don't say," I murmured.

Scott cocked his head. "What?"

"Never mind. Tell me more."

He hesitated, then went on. "A lot of people think BDSM is about violence, abuse, and humiliation. That couldn't be farther from the truth. It's all about power, trust,

control, pushing boundaries, things like that."

"That's why it intrigues me so much these days."

"But you've never tried it."

"I wanted to. Alec didn't. I wanted to try it with him, and figured that would be a safe way to explore it since we had an established relationship." I paused. "And, I suppose you could call what we had 'trust'."

Scott pursed his lips. "Hmm. Maybe it's just as well you never tried it with him, then."

"What do you mean?"

"Did you trust him?"

"I, well, I guess I did."

He shook his head. "Unless you can answer 'yes' without a moment's hesitation, he was definitely not someone you wanted to play around with. If you don't trust each other, you don't want to go anywhere near the lifestyle."

"Good point." I watched my finger trace a crack in the concrete railing. "Though it makes a bit more sense than trying it with a stranger, you know?"

"True."

"So, I don't know, maybe for now I'll just stick to finding someone a little more adventurous, then see if I can't convince him to branch out a bit more."

"Probably not a bad idea," he said. "Though someone with more experience might be the better choice. Better than the blind leading the blind."

I shrugged. "Yeah, but I'm not going to jump into whips and chains with someone I've just met."

Scott was quiet for a long moment. His eyebrows knitted together as he stared at the terrace floor. Then, without looking up, he said, "Do you trust me?" His serious tone stopped a smartass retort of "as far as I can throw you" at the tip of my tongue.

I took a breath. "Of course I do."

He fell silent again, chewing his lip before turning to me. "What if I said I could introduce you to the lifestyle?"

"You mean..."

"Take you under my wing. Give you a safe environment, ease you into it, and help you figure out if BDSM is something you really want to do."

"Are you--" I paused. "Are you serious?"

"Absolutely." He wetted his lips and looked me in the eye. "Maybe I'm being a bit forward, but the fact is, I know my way around this lifestyle. I know you, and we trust each other. If anyone can guide you, you're looking at him."