Bad Behavior (Bad in Baltimore) by K.A. Mitchell

Tai’s eyebrows came to a peak on his forehead. “And yet?”
    “Imagine my surprise,” Beach agreed dryly.
    “Why me?”
    The orange flashes from the television made Tai appear firelit. Black hair, black eyes, unyielding jaw, broad nose and cheeks. His lips were full, but right now they held a tight line. Not the classically handsome prep-school type, but dead sexy. Beach hadn’t known he wanted a man who looked like he could snap him in two until he met Tai.
    “Why not?” Beach knew exactly how to inject a purr of appreciation in his voice.
    “I’m not fishing for compliments. I want to know.”
    “Toluaotai.” Beach was a pretty good mimic. He bet he had the inflection right. Glottal stops and all.
    “Close enough,” Tai agreed.
    “What does it mean? I mean, David is beloved, if you can believe that. Aiken was my grandmother’s maiden name, we’re from Aiken too. And Beauchamp is French for—”
    Tai’s hand landed on Beach’s knee and squeezed. “David, focus. And answer my question.”
    All the static went away for an instant, and Beach was nothing but the heat of the palm on his knee. Didn’t need to be or do or think about anything but this.
    “Because of that.” He looked directly into those dark eyes under slashed brows and with all the sincerity he possessed tried to explain. “Because you do that, and I want to give you exactly what you asked for. I’m not saying you’re not hot. You are. But I don’t do this. I don’t chase lovers for do-overs. You’re not the first man who’s ever been take-charge in bed, but you’re the first one who’s ever made me feel like this.”
    It wasn’t because of what Eli had told him to do. Or because he was playing some role. Beach went to his knees at Tai’s feet because something in him had to be there.
    Beach had thought he was nervous before, in the hall, exposed and waiting, but this was far worse. That could have been dismissed as a game, an experiment, curiosity. But now there was no arrogance or bravado in him. He needed Tai to understand more than Beach had ever needed anything in his life. And until that moment, everything was paralyzed. Lungs, heart, blood, nothing worked. His chest locked in a frozen burn.
    Then Tai let out a breath and put his hand on Beach’s head, and everything was going to be okay again. His breath came back in a shaky rush.
    Tai’s hand sifted through Beach’s hair. “Okay, David. But we still need to talk about some things.”
    “I wouldn’t tell anyone, of course.” Beach tried not to think of how many people he’d already involved in his little quest. If Gavin knew something, chances were Jamie did. There was Eli, which meant his boyfriend Quinn. And possibly the other two, Nate and Kellan. But they only knew Beach was looking. Not who he was looking for.
    “That’s not what I meant.”
    Beach’s mind strayed to the things Eli had talked about. “Oh. I understand that punishment might come up in this.”
    “Yes. It can be playful.”
    Beach had heard that from Eli but still doubted it.
    “When it’s not, it’s uncomfortable, but it’s part of the dynamic,” Tai continued. “And something tells me that with you, it’s going to be a really necessary part of the dynamic.”
    “And this punishment is corporal.” Beach had bared his soul to this man and yet tripped over the word spanking.
    “Not always, but it can be. Is that something you don’t want to do?”
    “I’m afraid of pain,” Beach confessed.
    Tai’s fingers were still drifting through Beach’s hair. They paused, and a rough pad moved carefully over the thin scar on his scalp. “Yet you do all these crazy stunts that have seriously painful outcomes.”
    “A natural consequence is one thing. But to let someone hurt me on purpose, I don’t know if I can.”
    Tai cupped Beach’s chin. When Tai spoke gently, his deep voice buzzed in his throat like part of it was trapped there. “You realize we’re not talking about anything