Pushing the Limit -Book 2 - 21. Epilogue & Author's Note

Sinclair sat in the truck, just staring at the building they had just pulled up to. David had finally broken down and traded in his Nissan for a Toyota Tundra. It had come in handy when the girls had decided to redecorate David’s house. They had kept the furniture, but had replaced most of the wall decor and knick knacks with stuff they had picked up a little at a time. David’s lessons on budgeting had paid off.

The winter and spring had flown by. Dr. Charlotte had been a frequent visitor and Sinclair had loved having her around. They spent a lot of time out on the boat as she enjoyed the open sea. Her sense of humor was dry and witty and not one visit went by without her making at least one of them, if not all, blush. They were sad when she returned to the UK at the end of April. She promised to come back in the fall and spend the holidays with them and extend her stay through the winter. It was now August and it wouldn’t be much longer before she was back.

Sinclair smiled at the logo that had been painted on the side of the large warehouse-like building. Blue Dragon Gymnastics Training Center. It had taken nearly eight months, but finally the training center was theirs. The family who had owned it had sold for a pretty reasonable price. Most of the equipment had been in good condition, although there had been some apparatuses that needed to be upgraded or replaced. The center boasted a full Olympic size spring floor, vaults, balance beams, parallel bars, high bars, rings and pommel horses, not to mention a few foam pits. There was also an extensive gym with both free weights and resistance machines.

Sinclair opened the passenger door and slid out. David came around the front of the truck just as TC pulled up beside them. He got out and handed Sinclair a set of keys.

“Here you go Sin. It’s all yours.” TC told him proudly.

Sinclair bit his bottom lip, not quite believing this day was finally here. He had given his notice at the end of the school year and spent the past two months working with TC, David and their new general manager, Alex, getting everything ready. Alex had turned out to be a huge asset. David had known him for years through his line of work. Alex had managed a supply company that David’s own company used frequently. Together they had also put together a small office staff. They had an office administrator who would handle the day to day scheduling and everyday office tasks including payroll. They also hired a marketing and salesperson to get the word out there that they would be open for business. A few part-time front desk staff to check people in, answer phones and answer general questions had been hired. Sinclair had reached out to the coaches that he knew and was able to recruit a few. They had also branched out and filled a couple of positions with people who were willing to move to the area.

Sinclair knew the first couple of years were going to be tough. They would have to build their program from scratch, which was never easy. He really wanted to target the younger kids so that in a few years they would have a strong team to take out on the competition circuit. This year they were forgoing that aspect to concentrate on building their clientele. So far they had a good start, most of their programs were full or close to it. Each age group only had a few openings on any given day. Sinclair knew that it would take some time to build up the club’s reputation and he was willing to put in the effort to get them there.

He felt TC’s hand on the small of his back as he nudged him forward. Sinclair walked to the large double wide glass front doors and inserted the key into the lock. As he twisted it and heard the snick of the internal latch turning he couldn’t help but feel a true sense of accomplishment. TC and David may have handled all of the negotiation, legal and financial matters, but Sinclair had been consulted every step of the way. He knew down to the penny how much had been invested into the place and how much they needed to bring in every month to make a profit. He had been instrumental in setting those goals and developing a plan on how to accomplish them. This center was just as much his as it was TC and David’s. It was something they could all be proud of.

Sinclair stepped inside and inhaled deeply. Fresh paint and new floors had vanquished the old scents of sweat and hard work, but it wouldn’t be long before those aromas ruled once more. He could almost hear the sound of feet pounding down the approach to the vaults, the creaking and squeaking of the bars and the rings, the loud thumps of someone sticking a landing on the floor.

He felt a hand come down on each of his shoulders as David and TC stepped up behind him. David reached over and flipped on the lights and the interior lit up. The three of them stood and admired the results of their hard work.

After a minute or two David leaned over and spoke softly into Sin’s ear, “Why don't you go try it out?”

Sin smiled. He was wearing a pair of gym shorts, but he shucked them off, leaving his boxer briefs on. TC helped him pull his tank top over his head. He jogged over to the spring floor and stretched gently. He was still in phenomenal shape, having kept up with working out and stretching. It had come in handy a time or two in their playroom.

When he felt ready he walked to the edge of the floor and stood silently. Taking a deep breath, he let himself go, up on his toes and then feet pounding across the floor. He kept it easy, a cartwheel leading to a double back flip. He bounced a little on the landing. He did two more runs across the floor, twisting and turning and ended with a few scissor maneuvers, walking across the floor on two hands while his legs spun beneath him, never touching the floor. He ended by hauling himself up into a handstand and held it for several seconds.

David and TC both whistled when he was done. He still blushed at their undivided attention as he pulled his shorts back on.

“That was amazing Sinclair. Really sexy too. I think we might have to incorporate some of that into one of our play sessions, what do you think?” TC asked as he came up behind him and put his arms around his chest, fingers automatically going to rest on the short bars that pierced both nipples.

Sin merely answered “Yes, sir.”

TC chuckled, “Good boy Sin.”

Sin looked over at David who was now adjusting himself.

“So, one week until the grand opening. Is everything ready Sin?” David asked.

“Pretty much Sir. Just a few last minute details that can’t be done until that day. Otherwise I’m pretty sure everything has been taken care of. I have a meeting with Alex tomorrow and we have staff training the rest of the week. Safety protocols, company policies, sensitivity training, that kind of stuff. I’m glad Alex is taking care of all that. It makes my head spin just thinking about it. I get to go over rules and regulations with the staff. That’s the easy part.” Sinclair stated.

“You’ll do just fine Sin. I’m just glad I’ll be here for it. Owen too. He’s really happy for you. I just wish he wasn’t leaving so soon. I’m going to miss him.” David stated. He and Renee were driving up to Connecticut the day after the grand opening to bring Owen up to the Coast Guard Academy. They would be gone for four days.

“I’m going to miss him too. Who’s going to run interference with Lyssa and Morgan? We’re screwed Sir.” Sinclair said.

TC chuckled and replied “That’s putting it mildly. You have to work with them. Just stand your ground and don’t look her in the eye.”

Sin laughed. That was easier said than done. Both Lyssa and Morgan were going to work part time at the front desk. Lyssa was still grinding her dad down on the great puppy debate and Sinclair was sure that there would be a furry creature added to the family before the end of the year.

Everything seemed to be falling into place quite well. TC and David were both successful with their jobs. His mom had settled into her new villa. His sperm donor had been fired after it was found out that he lost his government security clearance. The divorce had gotten messy, but in the end Claire had gotten everything she asked for due to George running his mouth off in front of the judge.

Sinclair’s fingers reached up unconsciously to touch the blue stone that was nestled in the hollow of his throat. A year ago he had taken a leap of faith and had pushed his limits further than he ever thought he could. It had been an amazing journey.

Author’s Note

Well my dear Readers, we have come to the end of this little tale. I hope you all liked it, especially if you stuck it out this long. Thank you for staying through until the end.

I set out writing this story to challenge myself. I knew right away that it would be two separate books, 20 chapters each and I set a goal of 5000 words per chapter. That made things extremely challenging for me trying to figure out where a logical break would be. Most chapters hit the mark, a few fell short and a few went way over, so in the end I still made my goal.

The idea started with the last chapter in ‘Raising the Limit” That whole scene just spun around in my head for several weeks. It was the first thing that I wrote. The rest of the story was built around it.

Now that it is done I hope you can understand why I felt compelled to write this as two books. ‘Raising the Limit’ was written to show what NOT to do. ‘Pushing the Limit’ was basically TC and David fixing everything they screwed up. The books have two different feelings to them or at least I hope they do, that’s what I was aiming for. If you felt frustrated and annoyed with me at how the story developed, then I consider it a success. Their whole journey was meant to create a sense of the difficulties in dealing with and overcoming the obstacles I threw at them.

I know that this subject matter can be a difficult concept to understand. I can admit that when I started I really had no clue what I was getting myself into. I ended up doing a lot of research and asking a lot of questions. Luckily I found a few people who were willing to answer my questions with brutal honesty.

If there is one thing that really sticks out in my mind it is the fact that for those who choose to live the D/s lifestyle 24/7 it is an integral part of who they are. Relationships, no matter what type will always have their ups and down. When a person willingly submits to another, there is a huge amount of love and trust involved, or at least there should be. There can be no secrets. There can be no holding back. It is truly a beautiful thing to see.

Every relationship is different and what is right for you, may not be right for someone else. It’s what makes us human. BDSM is one of those things that has many different interpretations. There are Doms who are just like TC, there are Doms that are just like David. There are also Doms who are cruel, use pain and humiliation to control their subs. There are subs who enjoy that and there are subs that don’t. What matters is that whatever goes on between two individuals (or three) should be completely consensual. If not, then it’s abuse and unfortunately there is too much of that in this world.

I’m pretty sure that a lot of what is portrayed in novels and stories is pure fantasy and wishful thinking on a lot of people’s parts. My whole outlook on BDSM and the D/s lifestyle took a complete 180 with this story. I still don’t understand a lot, but I’m willing to learn and be open minded about it. I’m sure that there is plenty that I will never really ‘get’, but I will respect the choices of the people who make them.

So now I have to figure out what to do next. I still have ten or eleven chapters of a shifter story that I abandoned to write this one. I also have a few other ideas jotted down. Every once in a while Ian’s friend Jase knocks on my brain. I guess I’ll have to take a few walks with the dogs and see what the old brain cells will land on. You just never know.

This year has certainly been a long and trying one. I hope that everyone who got this far enjoyed the distraction for a little while. I was glad to have this to focus on even though these characters, especially TC gave me a fit. He turned out a helluva lot more complex than I ever imagined. Trying to figure him out was like trying to unravel the mysteries of the universe. I hope in the end I did him justice. He really is a good guy.

Next book I think I’ll focus on something lighter. Will I ever do another story like this one? Hell, I hope not. Well….maybe.

Until next time, thanks again!

kbois