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bit of discomfort, but you want to continue with it in the future, use yellow. If you say red, they won’t try doing anal again at all. Red warnings, unless the Dom thinks you can handle it, go on the hard limits list. Do you have any questions so far?”
    “No.” Safe words? Hard limits? Anthony had never discussed any of this stuff with me. Were all Doms like Dylan? He’ll make sure you get a good Dom, I reminded myself. Doms like Anthony probably wouldn’t come my way again. And if they did, at least I knew what to look out for.
    I breathed a little more easily. Dylan’s hands moved from his lap and the jingle I’d heard earlier returned. I froze up immediately, my attention floating from the collar around my neck to the one in his hands. You can do this. I stared at the band in his lap, breathing when I noticed it was just an ordinary length of metal. Not a shock collar.
    “Remove your collar,” Dylan ordered, his jaw straightening the slightest bit.
    My hands shook as I reached up to remove the lock. I let it fall to the floor before opening the collar and removing it from around my neck. After fishing the lock off the ground, I handed both items over to Dylan, awaiting his next order.
    “This is a collar of consideration and protection. Are you familiar with it?”
    I shook my head. I’d seen other subs with collars before, but aside from the shock collar Anthony had used on me and the one I’d just removed, I’d never had a collar of my own.
    “While you’re under my protection, you will wear this collar. It cannot be removed without my permission unless it’s an absolute emergency. This collar is for your own protection. Any Dom or sub who wishes to speak with you in the future will know you have a Master, and cannot do a damned thing to you unless I give my okay. Understood?”
    “Yes.”
    “Yes?”
    Master—say Master. “Yes, Master.”
    “Good girl.”
    His approval washed over me, calming the nerves that continued to twist in my stomach. With very little effort, Dylan placed my old collar on the couch behind him. Discarded. Forgotten. He then opened the one in his hands.
    As a collar, it was fairly simple. The band was made from stainless steel and lined on the top and bottom edges with a thicker piece of metal. I stared at the foggy reflections on the metal, then looked away when I met my own eyes.
    Dylan moved his hands closer to my neck, pausing in midair. “By wearing this collar you accept me as your Dom. You will not question any of my orders unless you feel I may be endangering your well-being. This collar not only shows other Doms my ownership over you, it also shows your loyalty to me. By wearing it, I expect your obedience and your trust. If you feel fear towards me or any other Dom I share you with, you must say so immediately. Doms aren’t supposed to scare you. Make you nervous? Certainly. But not scare you.”
     I bowed my head, and the collar locked into place.
    After giving me an approving glance, Dylan continued, “You cannot remove this collar unless it’s medically necessary or unless we part ways, understood?”
    “Yes, Master.”
    “What do you pledge?”
    My gaze shot up to him. “You mean like wedding vows?”
    “Sort of. Not as serious, though. That only happens if and when a Dom gives you a more permanent collar. I just want you to tell me what you promise to do while this collar is on—with me as well as in my absence.”
    I closed my eyes. I didn’t even know the first thing about collars, ownership or vows. You wanted this, remember? It wasn’t too late for me to back out, but then I’d be right where I’d started. An offer like this only happens once. Even so, if I did leave, he’d still be my mentor. Why does everything have to be so fucking complicated?
    I growled under my breath, which resulted in Dylan crossing his arms over his chest. “Sorry, Master. I—”
    “You aren’t sure of what to promise.” He smiled. “It’s okay. You’re still