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As she was finishing a conversation with Jim and his date, Bradley approached and wrapped his arms around her from behind. He whispered into her ear so only she could hear.
“You and I have some things we need to address, so you should say goodnight.” His teeth grazed her ear, and she tried not to groan out loud. Things were about to get interesting.
They said their goodbyes and went to collect their coats.
Bradley was silent for the entire ride home, but he kept his arm around her the whole trip. At the apartment, she was amused if not slightly worried because the guard that normally stood watch directly outside his door stated that he would keep watch from the front desk tonight.
When Bradley had locked the door behind them, he turned and gazed at her for a moment. Nerves twisted her insides.
“I would like some wine, pet.”
His request took her by surprise, and she stared at him confused for a minute before turning for the kitchen where she poured them both a glass of chilled chardonnay.
When she came out of the kitchen, he wasn’t in the entryway or the living room. The light was on in his office, so she tapped on the door with both wine glasses in one hand. “You can come in.” His voice was soft. She set his glass on the desk and stood awkwardly holding her own.
“You seem nervous,” he said as he lifted the glass to his lips for a long drink.
“I’m just waiting for you to yell at me,” she murmured. It practically came out as a whisper.
“Why on earth would I yell at you, pet?” He was being disturbingly nice. “Oh. You mean because you ditched your security and put yourself in mortal danger by going someplace you were explicitly forbidden to go?” His voice was quiet still, but the anger was there again.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
“Are you? Or are you just sorry Jim said something, and your secret got out?” Darci winced at the question. It was a fair one, but she wasn’t sure how to answer. He stood and rounded the desk.
Taking her wine glass from her hand, he set it on the desk and lifted her chin, so she was forced to look him in the eye. “Answer me please.”
“A little of both I think,” she squeaked.
His eyes closed. “You promised you were going to do as I asked, Darci. How am I supposed to trust you if you’re going to pull stunts like this?” His disappointment in her was worse than any physical punishment he could have given.
“I’m sorry, Sir. I hate you being angry with me. Can you just punish me so we can move on?”
He stood back and crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m not sure that’s how it works. Is it going to do any good? Discipline only works if you’re willing to adjust your behavior as a result. If you’re not, then we need to drop the Dom/sub charade and go back to being vanilla.”
A single tear slid down her cheek, and she whispered, “That’s a little harsh.”
When he didn’t respond, she took a deep breath and continued.
“It’s not a charade. I promise. I don’t mean to disobey you or make you angry. I like it when you’re happy with me. I like being yours. I’m just not good at this being caged in thing.” There was still no response from Bradley. Breathing in again, she decided to be as bluntly honest as she could.
“I’m nervous and worried,” she said. Now she was unsure of how to continue, but before she could figure it out, he spoke.
“You should be.” There was an edge to his voice, and she held up her hand. It was important for him to hear this.
“No, please hear me out. Your anger is reminding me of Damion, and I want to bolt. The difference is, his anger was rarely warranted. He got angry with me because he thought it was the dominant thing to do. You actually have a reason to be angry. I’m not telling you this, so you’ll go easy on me, I’m telling you this because I’m trying here.”
Bradley closed his eyes. “I won’t apologize for my anger. You’re right, I have a reason to be angry. But I will apologize for scaring you. I understand you had a bad experience with Damion. I should take better care to make sure you don’t experience that kind of fear ever again.” He pulled her into a hug.
“You don’t understand how much I wanted to drag you out of there and spank you in the car as soon as I heard what you did.”
“I’m glad you waited,” she muttered. Trying to hold in her tears.
“I’m serious, Darci,” he said, standing back again. “I don’t throw around demands just because I can. You know that’s not the kind of Dom I am. But damn it when I ask you not to do something, I expect you not to fucking do it. Especially when there’s a fucking killer on the loose.”
“I know. I’m sorry. I swear. It was stupid and I shouldn’t have gone alone, but I can’t let this situation interfere with my job, Bradley. Find a way to keep me safe without keeping me locked up. I swear from now on I’ll never go anywhere without security and I promise that I’ll do my best to be more obedient about these things. I just need to be able to do my job.”
“I guess that’s all I can ask for.” There was less anger in his voice now.
