Nicole Edwards - Perception

But no matter which way you looked at it, BDSM was a far cry from a threesome, at least based on what he saw last night.

 “I don’t know what I want anymore.”

“Talk to me, Sam.” This was the first time he’d ever heard her frustrated when she talked about their sex life. He knew things had been a little vanilla for the last year and a half because, after Tag, they’d both been hesitant to find someone who might be able to fulfill a role that they both were trying to define individually.

She didn’t want casual. Logan feared permanent.

They were at an impasse.

“I don’t even know how to explain it.”

“Baby, you’re gonna have to try. This is your show. If you want to try something new, I need to know what it is.”

“You’re not interested in asking Xander to be…?” she trailed off.

“No,” he told her now, keeping his eyes on the road. “I don’t think Xander is the right person.” Logan glanced over at her when he said, “But I won’t deny that I had thought about it.”

“I had too,” she told him, sounding surprised by her own admission.

Logan knew that she had. He knew his wife better than anyone in the world. He knew what she liked, what she didn’t like, and what she feared. When it came to their sex life, they were on the same page.

“Do you think Xander would be willing to help us with this BDSM stuff?”

He knew she was redirecting the conversation much as he had earlier. She was good at that. Instead of trying to turn the conversation back to the bigger question, – was a threesome what she really wanted? – he went ahead and told her what he thought. “I think Xander’s open to giving us a few pointers. As to how far I’ll be willing to go, I don’t know.”

That was nothing but the truth. Logan enjoyed trying new things. As far as what he wasn’t willing to do, he had a very short list. He would be the first to openly admit that he enjoyed watching Sam with another man. And he knew she enjoyed it too.

Apparently his wife needed that something more too because ever since Luke had been involved in their sexual encounters back in the very beginning, Sam had craved having another man. But then Tag had been a part of their lives for such a short time, and she’d never been the same after that.

Logan understood Xander’s belief that Sam was drawn to Logan’s domination. He got that. But that didn’t mean she wanted to venture down the road that neither of them was familiar with.

Logan knew there were people who didn’t understand various sexual kinks – and yes, he had many – but he also knew it wasn’t necessary for him to explain them. People were entitled to their desires, and he and Sam embraced theirs. Openly. Honestly. Together. And as far as Logan was concerned, that was all that mattered.

But BDSM? That was an area that Logan knew nothing about aside from the glorified aspects that could be found on practically any website.

Sure, the scene from last night had been hot as hell. He’d enjoyed watching, but that didn’t mean he would enjoy taking a flogger to Sam. Shit, he was more worried that he would hurt her, and that was the last thing he wanted to do.

The pain, yeah, well, it wasn’t really his thing.

And just because Xander believed Sam was more interested in Logan’s dominating side than an actual threesome didn’t mean it was the truth.

“You can’t tell me that you didn’t like what you saw last night.”

Logan glanced at Sam and chuckled. “Baby, I buried my cock in your pussy, I don’t think there was any disguising the fact that I liked it. I won’t deny that. That doesn’t mean you’ll enjoy it if you were in Mercedes’s shoes.”

“Are they together?” Sam asked, damn near giving him whiplash with her abrupt change of the subject. Again.

“I don’t know.” If she would’ve asked him that question before last night, he would’ve said no, but seeing Xander and Mercedes together… now he had to wonder.

“If they aren’t, do you think you would reconsider Xander for a threesome?” Although she asked the question directly, Sam sounded incredibly nervous.

“No,” he stated firmly. He hadn’t yet explained exactly what he and Xander had talked about, but he figured now was as good a time as any. “Sam, Xander’s not the right man for what you’re thinking. He’s a Dom. He’s not going to willingly walk into a situation where he isn’t in control.” Logan knew that from what Xander had told him. “And you know I’m not willing to give up control.”

Logan heard her shuddered breath, saw her force a smile.

“I need you to do something for me, Sam,” Logan said, waiting for her to acknowledge him before he continued. “You need to think long and hard about what you want. If you want to pursue this BDSM stuff, I’m game. If you’d prefer to find a third for the future, I’m open to that too. I just need to know which you want more.

“Unfortunately, I think you’re going to have to make a choice here. I don’t see you getting both. And definitely not with Xander.”

Logan knew his wife, knew she was going to do some serious thinking. And he’d wait. Patiently. Because, when Sam finally decided what it was she wanted, he knew she’d do what she felt would make them both happy. That’s just the way she worked. And that’s one of the main reasons he continued to fall in love with her a little more each day.

Xander hung up the phone and looked up from his desk. He had heard his front door open for the second time about three minutes ago, and there were only a handful of people who had a key to his house. The housekeeper, the cook, his assistant Leah, Shane, and yes, Mercedes.

Needless to say, he’d been only half paying attention to Hirsh’s incessant rambling on the other end of the phone because he’d been more interested about who was there, praying that Mercedes had come back.

His heart had pounded frantically in his chest when he heard her leave. If he hadn’t already been on the phone, he would’ve gone after her, but he wanted to get Hirsh off his back once and for all. Not that that’s what happened.

A quick glance at the clock on his computer and he noticed it was right at noon. It had to be Mercedes.

Fighting the urge to go in search of her, Xander remained where he was. The whole point was to make her come to him. If she didn’t, then that was his answer. It wasn’t the one he wanted, and he wasn’t certain he would stop pursuing her, but at least it would give him some idea of what he was up against.

Opening his email, he skimmed through the items in his inbox. There wasn’t anything pressing, and he knew his calendar was clear for the rest of the day, but he had to do something to keep him from jumping out of his seat and going to search for her.

If he had to guess, Mercedes was pacing the floor in his living room, trying to convince herself to turn around and go back home.

Looking up from his computer screen, Xander watched as Mercedes stepped into his office.

For a moment, he thought his heart would pound right out of his chest.

Leaning back in his chair, he studied her. She didn’t look much different than she had earlier, although somewhere along the way she’d lost the blazer, which he considered a good thing.

Her silky, onyx hair was flowing loosely down her back and over her shoulder, her crisp white shirt had two buttons opened, revealing just a hint of her gorgeous cleavage, and her black skirt was back to its original form before he had gruffly thrust his hands beneath it.

She looked prim and proper and so fucking sexy it made his teeth hurt.

“I’m here,” she told him.

“I see that.” He made a point not to look pleased, but he definitely was. So much so that his cock was now straining against his slacks, begging for attention. On the flip side though, Xander was leaving what happened next up to her, so his dick was likely going to have to be patient.

He’d asked her to come to him, and she had, which meant she was accepting his proposal. If she weren’t, Mercedes would’ve emailed him with the bad news. She wasn’t big on conflict, and she tended to avoid it whenever possible. So it was good news that she was standing there. Except he knew Mercedes, which meant she would have a few stipulations to go along with her acquiescence. Now he just had to wait to see what those were.

She moved closer, her arms loose at her sides. Not only was she still mostly buttoned up like the business professional he knew her to be, she had also put on even taller heels. He happened to prefer the ones she’d had on earlier, but these were nice too. They’d come right out of her Domme wardrobe; he recognized that immediately.

If Xander had to guess, the shoes were a power play. Being that she was roughly a foot shorter before the five inches added to her height, she probably felt less intimidated by his size now. Without her shoes on, he could easily rest his chin on the top of her head. With her shoes, her forehead would be level with his chin, but the woman would come eye to eye with most men she encountered.

“So, how does this work?” she asked, looking around at anything but him.

“How does what work?” he questioned, playing her game right along with her.

Mercedes met his gaze head on, and he saw the frustration in her eyes. She was doing this, but she wasn’t exactly happy with her own decision.

It was a start. That’s all he needed.

He waited to see if she would clarify.

She didn’t, which left him in charge.

Pushing up from his chair, Xander didn’t waste time as he made his way over to her. Taking her hand, he pulled gently, encouraging her to come with him.