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“I’ve done that,” I confess. “Been someone’s mistress, Cam. That was a long time ago.”

“Why did you stop?”

“I was in a relationship for a few years that went south. It hurt. I can’t tell you it changes who I am. But it did alter how I view my life and relationships. I want a meaningful relationship with someone willing to know me—all of me.”

“Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“It’s just—you’re so sweet,” Cameron says.

The affection and sincerity that color her voice warm me from the inside. “And you don’t think a dominant person can be sweet?”

She blushes and shrugs. “Caleb can be sweet with Kelsey. But he’s?—”

“Caleb is a dude,” I say.

Cameron chuckles.

“Cam, I have to tell you—it surprises me you’re interested in me.”

“Why?”

“I never got that vibe.”

“I’m not good at vibing.”

I can’t help but laugh.

“See what I mean?” Cameron asks. “It’s hard for me, Piper—letting anyone close to me—romantically.” She takes a deep breath. “Or?—"

“Sexually,” I say.

Cameron blushes and nods.

“I understand.”

“You do?”

“Probably better than you think I can. Yes,” I tell her.

“This is not me,” Cameron says. “Talking about this to you before we’ve even kissed—it’s, well?—”

“Awkward?”

“Yes.”

“If Kelsey hadn’t said something to both of us, we wouldn’t have this conversation—at least, not for a while. I’m not Caleb. And you aren’t Kelsey,” I remind Cameron. Looking at Cameron so vulnerable, hopeful, but unsure stirs something profound within me. I see what Kelsey was trying to explain to me. Cameron needs someone who will lead a relationship. It shouldn’t surprise me when I think about it. In the past, I might have noticed it sooner. I’ve avoided romantic and sexual entanglements for a long time. That ends today. “It helps to know,” I tell her, “Where you stand with someone before you become intimate. I would dare say it would be helpful to any couple, no matter what they desire from a relationship. Cameron?” I smile inwardly at her reluctance to meet my gaze. “Look at me.” I wait for her eyes to lift to mine and continue. “We don’t need to pursue this discussion tonight. We don’t need to discuss this again if it makes you uncomfortable. Kelsey and Caleb’s relationship began differently. He guided her into her role as a submissive before their relationship became romantic.”

“I know.”

“And that isn’t what I hope for us.”

Cameron’s smile tugs my heart unexpectedly.

“I’d like to see if something develops between us,” I admit. “I don’t think I realized until tonight how much I would like to pursue something beyond friendship with you. But I also don’t want to lose our friendship.”

“I don’t want that, either, Piper. And I am sorry if I don’t seem like myself tonight. It’s—Kelsey spent yesterday afternoon educating me.”