The Edge

by SJD Peterson

  Joshua rolled gracefully to his feet, and it was apparent by the expression on Joshua’s face that Nash wasn’t the only one dealing with powerful emotions. Nash brushed his finger over the collar, then placed his hand over Joshua’s heart.

  “I am so proud of you and so honored you’re mine. I love you,” he whispered into Joshua’s ear.

  “I love you too,” Joshua mouthed, and Nash’s chest swelled with pride.

  Nash nodded, then turned Joshua to face their friends. “My submissive,” Nash announced with pride.

  “Nash and Joshua!” Malcolm shouted.

  A heartfelt applause echoed around the room as well as cheers from Doms and subs alike. Nash gave Joshua a little nudge. “All right, boy. You better go give Denny a closer look before the poor boy pees himself.”

  “We can’t have that, Sir.” Joshua chuckled.

  “Enjoy. I’ll find you later.” He leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to Joshua’s lips, speaking against them. “I love you.”

  “I love you too.”

  Joshua rushed off to talk to Denny and Cooper, and Nash thought he’d never get tired of hearing those words from his boy. The words he never thought he would hear. Nash walked over to Malcolm, who pulled Nash into a hug. “Congratulations, my friend. It was a beautiful ceremony.”

  Nash patted Malcolm’s back and stepped back. “Thank you. It looks good on him.”

  “And looks good on you too.”

  “What’s that?” Nash asked absently, his attention on the interaction between Joshua and the other subs. Joshua’s pride was evident even from across the room.

  “Happiness,” Malcolm clarified.

  Nash turned back to face Malcolm and winked. “It feels good too.”

  Cedric joined them and offered his hand. “Congratulations, Nash. I’m extremely happy for both of you.”

  Nash shook Cedric’s hand and grinned. “We couldn’t have done it without you. I am forever in your debt, my friend.”

  Cedric waved a dismissive hand. “Nonsense. You two did all the hard work. I merely listened while you two worked through it.”

  “Just accept my thanks, will you?”

  Cedric laughed, then nodded. Leave it to Cedric to be humble. He was a good man, and whether he wanted to take credit for it or not, he was a huge part of the reason why Nash and Joshua had made it to this day. Nash’s gaze drifted once again to Joshua, who was talking animatedly with the other boys.

  “He looks happy, Nash. You’re a very lucky man.”

  “I know. I really am,” Nash said softly.

  Sammy, one of the new boys Malcolm had recently hired, arrived with a silver tray of flutes filled with champagne. Malcolm picked up two and handed one to Nash before raising his.

  “A toast!” Malcolm announced. He waved Joshua over before he began. “Thank you all for coming to share this special night with Nash and Joshua. I know it means a great deal to both of them.”

  Joshua joined Nash. Nash wrapped his arm around Joshua’s waist and pulled him in close to his side.

  Malcolm turned his glass toward them. “Every collar ceremony we witness is something special, but yours is even more so. You’ve both worked extremely hard and overcome some huge obstacles. You never gave up. I have never seen two people work or love as hard as you. Continue to hold on to each other, support each other, respect each other and love each other, and I have no doubt you two together can overcome anything! To Nash and Joshua!”

  A chorus of “To Nash and Joshua” went up around the room. Nash felt himself tearing up again and was thankful for the flute to hide it behind as he took a sip of the bubbly.

  Nash spent the better part of an hour accepting congratulations and chatting with his friends and peers. However, his eye and his focus never strayed from Joshua for too long.

  After dinner and another round of toasts, he and Joshua finally got a moment to themselves. He pulled Joshua to him and kissed him soundly. “You’ve made me so damn proud. I can’t tell you how happy I am at this moment.”

  “I think I may have a clue, since I feel like I could burst. I don’t know how I can ever thank you enough for the collar, for standing by me, for—” Joshua gave him a watery grin. “—just everything, Sir.”

  “You earned every bit of happiness,” Nash said softly. He ran his finger over the collar. “Just as you’ve earned this. You honor me by wearing it.”

  “I doubted this would ever happen, Sir,” Joshua told him. “And it wouldn’t have if it weren’t for you. I owe you my unconditional loyalty and trust.”

  “And I promise to do whatever I can to continue to deserve those gifts.”

  “I know you will.”

  “Okay, Okay, this is getting a bit mushy, boy.” Nash laughed softly. “I think I’d rather take you home and show you exactly what this night has meant to me.”

  Joshua pushed in closer and pressed his lips to Nash’s. “There is nowhere I’d rather be than home with you, Sir.”

  Nash kissed him deeply, then took him by the hand and snuck away from the crowd. Tonight was simply another milestone, albeit an extremely important one. But still, just one of many yet to come. He had no delusions that it would be clear sailing from there. They still had many hurdles to maneuver through. But they had each other, and Malcolm was right—they could conquer anything as long as they did it together. He’d found Joshua looking over into the abyss of loneliness and despair. So many had given up on him, tossed him aside as someone who didn’t matter, wasn’t worthy. But Nash had known in his core, that they’d only had to pull Joshua back from the edge, turn him around, and he’d lead them to happiness. Nash had been right. Joshua not only led him to happiness but along the way, he became the love of Nash’s life.

  More from SJD Peterson

  An Underground Club Tale

  Don’t judge a book by its cover….

  At over six feet, with a body honed in the gym, auto worker Donavan Gregory is used to people assuming he’s a dominant top. Unfortunately, they’re wrong, and Donavan’s desire to explore his submissive side goes unfulfilled.

  Smaller and older than Donavan, Dr. Seth Manning might not look like a typical Dominant, but when the two men meet at Pride, Donavan realizes Seth might be his perfect counterpart. The trouble is, Donavan doesn’t have as much experience with the BDSM world as he’d like. What could an educated, handsome, and confident man like Seth possibly see in someone like him? Seth must convince him that despite the differences on the surface, when it comes to kinky fun and discovery, they’ll fit together just fine.

  An Underground Club Tale

  Even within the context of the Underground BDSM Club, Joshua’s desires are dark and extreme. Hopelessly addicted to pain and the high it gives him, he has no limits. Joshua would quite literally rather die than use a safeword, and he accepts that might be his fate. As much as he depends on others, he has yet to find a man who can gain his trust, and he has little hope that he ever will.

  For Nash, acquiring Joshua from another Dom at the club is only the first step in what will be a long and arduous road to lure the young man back from the brink of self-destruction. He must do the impossible and win Joshua’s trust, and he must be the one to set limits in their exploration—something he’s unaccustomed to as a Dom. But Nash knows dominance doesn’t always mean pushing a submissive’s boundaries. It’s about establishing a bond and fulfilling another man’s needs. In Joshua’s case, he’ll have to strike a balance between meeting the young man’s expectations and drawing firm lines that will save Joshua from himself.

  Clay and Elliott are working toward a dream—working sixty-hour weeks for one of the oil companies that recently sprung up in North Dakota. The pay is good, but is it a fair trade for never seeing each other? The point becomes moot when the company folds, like so many others, and the couple is left with a difficult choice.

  Should they find comparable work somewhere else, or is it time to throw caution to the wind and go after their goal—years earl
ier than they intended?

  What they’ve always wanted is to be together and have time to enjoy it, so they follow their hearts. They’re going off the grid and fixing up an old cabin so they can be self-sufficient. But when they go from all the conveniences of the modern world to outhouses, solar power, a shoestring budget, and more mosquitos than they ever thought possible, will they find there’s such a thing as too much time together?

  Texas native Colt Burrow isn’t happy about his third cold, lonely Christmas in frozen Michigan. But when fate sends him a gift in the form of an abandoned puppy, he can’t keep his heart from melting. With the puppy’s companionship, he doesn’t feel so isolated anymore, and the holidays don’t seem as bleak. He even finds enough Christmas spirit to take Roger tree shopping. But just when Colt’s starting to hope Roger’s owner doesn’t show up… he does, and Colt doesn’t want to say goodbye.

  Will Roger end up being Colt’s Christmas heartbreak… or his Christmas miracle?

  Opposites attract, but are some differences too drastic for a romance to survive?

  On the surface, Benson Howard Winthrop III and Hugh Bayard have a lot in common: they’re young, handsome, and blessed to be one of the wealthiest couples in the country. Surely they have everything anyone could want. But Ben is no longer satisfied with their long-running relationship. Hugh’s need to control every situation is suffocating him, and Ben needs to know if he can make it on his own merits by following his passion.

  But Ben’s mother isn’t about to let her son live in a rundown apartment as a struggling actor. She’s determined to get him back to his rightful place at the top of the social ladder—and back with Hugh.

  Rekindling their romance will require more than doing what’s expected. Ben and Hugh need to understand and embrace each other’s differences. They’ll have to support each other even when one makes a decision the other doesn’t agree with. For their passionate love to grow, they will need to redefine the meaning of romance… only then can they find true happiness.

  Readers love The Underground Club Tales by SJD Peterson

  Override

  “I loved this story. Little angst, no anger issues, no overblown drama, just two men finding a way to meet in the middle and merge their worlds.”

  —Alpha Book Club

  “The strength of Override is definitely the strong and steady connection between Seth and Donavan and their growing romance.”

  —Sinfully: Gay Romance Book Reviews

  “…I like my stories with a good build-up, well portrayed characters, good chemistry, and bare minimum angst. This is exactly what I got here and I read it in one sitting, enjoying every page.”

  —Three Books Over the Rainbow

  Limitless

  “SJD Peterson def has a way of sucking in the readers. This book is the perfect example of that.”

  —Gay Book Reviews

  “I recommend this to everyone who’s intrigued with BDSM, the Dom/sub relationship, the concept of pain mixed with pleasure, and flawed, realistic men who more than deserve a happy ending.”

  —Long and Short Reviews

  SJD PETERSON, better known as Jo, is an Amazon bestselling and award winning author of gay romance. Her books have received starred reviews in USA Today.

  Jo currently lives in Greenville, South Carolina, having had enough of the Michigan winters to last her a lifetime. She has no idea where she’ll end up next but wherever she goes, it will be snow and ice-free.

  If you want to know more about Jo or when her next book will come out, please visit her website at www.sjdpeterson.com.

  Facebook: www.facebook.com/SJD.Peterson

  Twitter: @SJDPeterson

  Email: sjdpeterson@gmail.com

  By SJD Peterson

  BAMF

  Going Off Grid

  Innocence to the Max

  Leon

  Masters & Boyd

  My Hometown

  A Night Never Forgotten

  Plan B

  Remember When

  Rival Within

  Roger

  Romance Redefined

  With S.A. McAuley: Ruin Porn

  Splintered (Audio Only)

  Something’s Brewing at Joe’s

  Tuck & Cover

  BEYOND DUTY

  Beyond Duty

  Mauled

  GUARDS OF FOLSOM

  Riveted

  Pup

  Tag Team

  Pony

  Roped

  Mauled

  Bound

  WHISPERING PINES RANCH

  Lorcan’s Desire

  Quinn’s Need

  Ty’s Obsession

  Conner’s Courage

  Jess’s Journey

  Riveted

  THE UNDERGROUND CLUB

  Override

  Limitless

  The Edge

  Published by DREAMSPINNER PRESS

  www.dreamspinnerpress.com

  Published by

  DREAMSPINNER PRESS

  5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886 USA

  www.dreamspinnerpress.com

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of author imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  The Edge

  © 2018 SJD Peterson.

  Cover Art

  © 2018 Ronaldo Gutierrez, Photographer.

  Cover Design

  © 2018 Paul Richmond.

  http://www.paulrichmondstudio.com

  Cover content is for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted on the cover is a model.

  All rights reserved. This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of international copyright law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. Any eBook format cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law. To request permission and all other inquiries, contact Dreamspinner Press, 5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886, USA, or www.dreamspinnerpress.com.

  Digital ISBN: 978-1-64080-174-5

  Mass Market Paperback ISBN: 978-1-64108-074-3

  Trade Paperback ISBN: 978-1-64080-173-8

  Library of Congress Control Number: 2017917048

  Digital published July 2018

  v. 1.0

  Printed in the United States of America