Nathaniel's wide eyes follow Asher's every move, his ears picking up every nuance of his lover's voice.

He knows what now sits on his chest, what bleeds.

What will scar.

"Even outside this room, Asher," he breathes. "Those things are still yours."

It's there in Nathaniel's eyes, this deep desire to please his Master, to be owned and kept and loved and brought to the heights of pleasure and pain his body craves.