Read Three-Part Harmony for Free Online Page B

delicious, so it was win-win.”
    “Win-win.” His repetition came on tight lips. “So that’s what you call it. And it’s win-win every time you smile through one of your dad’s classic flake-outs too?”
    Pain clamped her chest. Dasha huddled tighter. If she scrunched tight enough, maybe the horrid, hot agony would leave her alone. “Damn you, David. That’s not fair.”
    “Right. And what the senator does to you is fair?”
    “My father has nothing to do with this.”
    “Your father has everything to do with this.”
    “Why?”
    “Because you’re lying to him, Dasha. Every time you swallow down your hurt at his no-shows and tell him everything’s fine and make up excuses for his neglect, when it’s secretly tearing you up…those are lies. To him and to you.”
    She had no luck on blocking out the pain. It invaded with its usual, ruthless vigor. “You can’t know what it’s like for him! Mom died right after he got into the Senate. There was nobody there for him—”
    “There was nobody there for you either!”
    He had more than that to fire off, she was sure of it. But David locked it back so hard, she heard his teeth smash together.
    Finally, he let out a hard huff. “Look, I’m not denying how tough it’s been for him. But the loss was also yours.”
    “But I had my music to help me through, and a lot of friends. Dad…he had a shitload of bills to vote on and a state full of people relying on him.”
    “So you weren’t allowed to rely on him too?”
    “That’s not what I’m saying.”
    His jaw scissored. “And there’s our issue.”
    She managed a frustrated frown. “Excuse me?”
    “It’s what you’re not saying that’s gotten us here.” He said it as he brushed her cheek again, the movement so tender…and sad. And scaring her. “And it’s what will stop us cold from going any further too.”
    It sounded very much like a good-bye.
    Now she was really scared.
    “David, what are you saying?”
    “I’m not going to keep playing therapist here,” he stated. “But I also can’t be with someone who thinks she has to edit her truth for fear of it being wrong. D/s is also sometimes called Total Power Exchange—and there’s a reason I seek it in my sexual relationships, D. It’s not just about a great fuck.”
    “And you think that’s all I’m after?”
    “I know it’s not what you’re after.” His anger was oddly comforting. Maybe this wasn’t good-bye. “But listen to what I said. Total. Power. Exchange. D, I’m going to ask you to give your body to me in ways you never imagined. And I know you’ll rely on me to keep you safe. But how can I rely on you in return?”
    She frowned. “I…don’t understand.”
    “I have to know when I’m pushing a limit for you, when I’ve gone too far. I can’t doubt for a second that you’re holding back or that you’re afraid of ruining things or that you’re thinking about the hard day I might have had, and just want to please me…” He stopped then, probably noting how her face continued to tighten. “Any of this sound familiar?”
    Dasha looked away for a second. “All right,” she admitted. “Yes, you’re right.”
    “I don’t want to be right. I want to be real. I want us to be real. The success of D/s relies on honesty, even when it’s hard. Even when it’s not a perfect political sound bite. You have to trust that your Other brings their full truth to the table all the time, every time.”
    She looked back up. Instantly, she was lost in his gaze, his radiating intensity. “And I will,” she told him. “I will , David.”
    He leaned in, relentless with his closeness now. “Really?” His brows went tight, his gaze a dark silver lake. “I barely tapped on the walls of your limits tonight, and you started flinging bricks back at me.” He shifted his hands to encircle both of hers. “If we’re going to go any further, then the bricks have to become dust, Dasha, not weapons. I’m not the enemy.”
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