by Ivy Nelson
“Slow down, Darci. I wondered if that was you calling the detective. Where are you right now?” he asked. The prospect of going home alone did not sit well with him. After their clash on television the other night, he wasn’t sure where they stood. Especially since she had canceled their lunch, but he decided not to worry about that.
“I'm leaving the station now. Can we grab drinks or dinner or something? I could use a friendly face right now, Darci.” Hopefully he didn’t sound too desperate.
Her response was immediate. “Of course. I’m still at work. You're not too far from my office if you’re at Michael’s precinct. Come pick me up. We'll figure out where to go from there.”
He disconnected and took a deep cleansing breath. Time spent with the intriguing redhead would help him forget the gruesome things he saw today.
A few minutes later, Bradley stood against his car while he waited for Darci to come out. When she emerged, he gave her a lopsided smile.
“Thanks for this, Darci,”
Instead of saying anything, she wrapped her arms around him. After a long hug she said, “I’m so sorry, Bradley.” He returned the hug, and he couldn’t help but think about how good it felt to hold her. The scent of lemon and ginger washed over him, and he let it comfort him for a minute before he pulled away and opened the passenger door. As he closed it behind her, she offered him a shy smile.
They decided to go back to Bradley’s apartment with wine and takeout. Sitting on the floor in front of his coffee table watching her enjoy Chinese food, he smiled. Things almost felt normal.
When she looked up at him, he said, “Thanks for hanging out with me Darci. We weren't together anymore, but she was still a friend. I was at Exposure last night. We talked, but she left and went to Midnight Diamond. I had to go rescue her because she was causing a scene.” Darci grabbed his hand as surprise filled her eyes.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.”
He closed his eyes. “It’s OK, really. I feel bad that things were so tense between us. When I talked to the police, I told them about Midnight Diamond, but I left out Exposure. I figured outing myself as a member there would risk outing Michael too. If the media finds out they will have a field day with me. I'm thinking of resigning before Atleigh can fire me.”
“Bradley don't!” she exclaimed. “I can help you with the press if you'll let me. You know Gary won’t talk to the press or the police unless he’s forced to, and Michael will protect you as much as he can without risking his badge.”
“I don't know Darci, Atleigh will lose his shit if he finds out.”
They agreed to table the issue for now and enjoy the bottle of wine and dinner. He didn’t want her to leave, but he knew it would be awkward to ask her to stay. To his delight, she suggested putting a movie on. Tomorrow was Saturday, and neither of them had to go into the office. A late-night movie sounded perfect to Bradley.
They settled on a comedy. Halfway through the film, Darci dozed off, and her head wound up on his shoulder. He placed a blanket around them and fell asleep himself.
The next morning, Bradley woke up disoriented. Why am I on the couch? As the fog cleared, he realized Darci had shifted and was sleeping with her head in his lap. He resisted the urge to run his fingers through the wild mess of red hair flowing around her face. She was so beautiful, and she looked so innocent sleeping there. In that moment, he knew he wanted to pursue this woman. The typical arrangement he made with women was unlikely to be enough for her. He needed to figure out what to do about that.
She shifted and opened her eyes, confusion filling her sleepy face as she sat up and looked around. “Oh, my goodness, I'm so sorry.” She was flustered, and it was adorable. He smiled.
“Good morning, sleepy head.”
“Morning? What time is it?”
“I’m not sure, I just woke up a moment ago, but it's light out.” He nodded toward the window across the room.
Darci groaned. “I'm so embarrassed. I didn't mean to pass out on you.”
“Hey, I passed out too. I promise I didn't watch you sleep all night. Just the past five minutes.” He winked, and she turned an even brighter shade of red.
“I should go.” She started to get up, but he gripped her hand to stop her.
“Stay. I'll fix breakfast.” He glanced at his phone. “It's early. We can finish the movie while we eat. I must say, it was nice waking up with you curled up with me. I wouldn’t mind experiencing that again.” His voice grew quiet.
She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. “Don't say anything,” he said pressing a finger to her lips. “I want to kiss you right now, but I'm not going to. Mostly because I don’t want you threatening to kick me again,” he teased. Her eyes grew wide, and he put his hands on either side of her face, letting his hands run through her hair like he had been dreaming of doing.
“Thank you for being here for me. I'm not sure what it is, but there's something here.”
She nodded, still speechless and pressed her forehead to his. After a moment, she spoke. “I've been feeling it too, but Bradley I would ruin your career if we dated. We can't go there. You work for a man I abhor.”
“Shhh.” He pressed his finger to her lips again. “Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Let me cook you breakfast.”
“I should be cooking you breakfast.”
“Why?” he asked, puzzled by her statement.
“The whole I'm a submissive, and you're a Dominant thing I guess.” She shrugged looking sheepish.
“Well you're not my submissive,” he trailed off as if to say “yet,” but left the word unspoken. “And besides, I like cooking breakfast. Would you deprive me of that pleasure?” One eyebrow quirked upward as he gave her a stern look. Hope soared when she got up and followed him.
“Can I help at least?” she asked, as her eyes darted around his kitchen. It was larger than a lot of apartment kitchens in D.C., and he found himself wondering what her kitchen looked like. Hopefully he would get the chance to find out soon.
“You can make coffee and chat with me.” Pointing out the coffee supplies, he set about making a pancake batter.
It had been a long time since he’d cooked for a woman. Most of the women he had arrangements with didn't come over to hang out, and they rarely spent the night. He never paid them, but they could have been seen as professional submissives. It worked for him, fulfilled his dominant desires, and didn’t get complicated while he focused on his career.
In college he dated around, and he always had a play partner at parties. But when he got more involved in politics, he felt the need to be discreet. Peggy—who had been a friend since college—had told him about Exposure. He became a member there because he trusted the leadership and it was far enough out of town that nobody recognized him.
It delighted him to have this woman perched on his barstool watching him cook. Every time he came near her, he was overcome with the urge to kiss her. Her face was flushed, and there was a hitch in her breathing whenever their bodies connected. She felt the sparks between them the same as he did, or his name wasn’t Bradley Givens.
“Damn it, woman. I still want to kiss you,” he whispered, stepping toward her.
“Is that all you want to do?” She smiled up at him, her eyes big and innocent.
“Don't be a tease,” he warned. In an unexpected motion, she reached out and pulled him close to her, locking her gaze with his. His heartbeat quickened as he stared into the sea of green that were her gorgeous eyes. After staring at him for a moment, she leaned in close and he thought she might kiss him.
“You're going to burn the bacon,” she whispered. Before dropping the handful of his shirt she was gripping, she leaned up and planted a quick kiss on the corner of his mouth and pushed him away.
“Devil!” he growled. It crossed his mind to pull her to him and fist his hands into that head of hair, but she was right, the bacon would burn if he didn't get it out of the pan. She giggled and he shook his finger at her.
While they ate, conversation flowed easily. He was enjoying himself, and he didn't like the thought of her leaving, so he suggested spending the day together. Darci’s expression changed, and she set her fork down.
“Bradley, what are we doing?”
“Eating breakfast,” he responded casually.
“Not what I'm talking about, and you know it smart ass.”
“Watch it,” he warned instinctively. She’s not yours. She can call you a smart ass if she wants to, he thought, mentally chastising himself.
“Bradley, we can't do this. I can't hide my feelings for you, and if we start a relationship how do I explain hiding it from my friends?”
The easy conversation was gone, and so was the relaxed woman he was enjoying.
“Who says we have to hide?” he asked, not fully understanding her panic.
She huffed and closed her eyes. “You’re infuriating. You're the one who said you would be fucked if your boss found out where you were the other night.”
Picking up both of her hands, he squeezed gently. Her eyes were closed again, so he waited for her to look at him.
When she did, he said, “I'm saying, let's see where things go. No pressure, no public dating, just two people getting to know each other. And besides, I’ve been going to Exposure for almost a year and no one has discovered me.”
“I can't. I don't want to be the reason you lose your career.” He shook his head. He was regretting expressing his concerns about his job.
“Let me be the one to decide if that's what will happen.”
“No!” she exclaimed, pulling her hands from his. “I should go,”
Bradley rose to stop her when she jumped up and started for the door. “Darci please stay and finish your food. I’m sorry, I shouldn't have pushed.”
Crossing the short distance between them, he placed his hands on her shoulders. “Look at me.” She refused at first, but he squeezed her shoulders, and she sighed, giving in and looking him directly in the eyes. “Good girl. I said I'm sorry. But Darci, there's something here, and you can't deny that. We don't have to act on it if you don't want, but don't withdraw from me because you're scared I'm going to lose my job.” He was overwhelmed with the desire to kiss her again as she stared up at him with wide eyes.
“I can't risk that Bradley. It's not worth it.” She turned her eyes away again as she spoke.
“I’ll be the judge of that.” He moved his hands from her shoulders. Gently he turned her face to his, forcing her to meet his gaze. “Let's agree to be friends. If it goes farther, we'll explore it, but promise me you won't avoid me.”
“Fine,” she agreed. “But we are not dating.”
“Fine,” he said echoing her tone. “Finish your breakfast.”
She hesitated a moment longer. When she lowered herself onto the barstool, he gave himself a mental high-five for the small victory. She was staying. He could figure out the rest of it later. For now, he wanted to enjoy his time with this beautiful woman sitting across from him.
• • •
Darci stepped out of Bradley’s building and headed for the street. What are you doing Darci Sanders? You know you can't get involved with this man. As she walked down the sidewalk to the metro station, she mentally scolded herself.
Once she was home, she took a long shower and contemplated recent events. Peggy was the second woman in the local BDSM community to be murdered. This couldn't be a coincidence. She considered calling Michael but took a nap instead. Being curled up on the small couch with Bradley all night hadn’t given her a great night’s sleep.
Her nap was not much more restful than the sofa had been and after tossing and turning for an hour, she got up and sat at her computer. When she checked her phone, there were several texts and missed calls including one of each from Bradley. She would return the others now and deal with his later.
Gary, the owner of Exposure, was first on her list. He was calling with the same conclusion that someone was targeting local women in the scene. Both had been active at club Exposure. He needed her help to deal with the press on this one. She promised to come by and help him come up with a statement for the media as soon as possible. She had a feeling that Midnight Diamond was the more likely point of connection. It was not a private club and their discretion practices left something to be desired. Why either woman would want to go there was beyond her. Especially since they were both active in politics and fundraising in D.C.
Next was Carrie. Her best friend had read about the murders and was concerned for her. Carrie and her husband Peter had been her first friends and mentors in the BDSM lifestyle. Peter had worked for the secret service followed by a private security company, but the couple left a year ago to move to California where Peter started his own firm. “Be careful Darci, we don't want to read about you in the papers,” her friend said at the end of their call.
“Don't worry Carrie. I'll be fine.”
“Just promise you'll be careful. Maybe you shouldn't put yourself in the spotlight so much.” Darci closed her eyes. Why is everyone always saying that?
“I will not stop doing my job just because some lunatic is killing submissive women,” she said. Carrie sighed but then changed the subject.
“I miss you, Darci. I love living out west, but we miss the scene in D.C.”
“Come see me,” Darci said. “I miss you and Peter so much.”
“Let me talk to Master. It might only be me. The security firm keeps him busy, but I’ll try to talk him into using some vacation.”
For the first time all morning, Darci felt excited. “Oh, I hope you guys can come. We have so much to catch up on.” They disconnected with Carrie promising to call her back next week to plan a visit. Darci smiled and worked on a new blog post. She considered calling Bradley back but waited a bit. She was still confused about him.
At three o’clock in the afternoon, Michael called her. She asked if he had connected both women to the community yet. He had, and that's why he was calling.
“We want to warn women in the community to be careful, but I know you'll have my head if I do it wrong.” She laughed.
“C'mon I'm not that much of a bitch, am I?”
“You're not a bitch, but I am a little scared of you. Just help me write a press release.” He sounded whiny, and it made Darci laugh.
“I'll e-mail you something with the backing of the ACSL. Community members respect our organization, they'll listen if our name is attached. I'm considering asking Gary to shut the club down for a few weeks since both women were associated with it. I don't want to see more of my friends dead.”
“I don't want to see you dead,” he said. There was a hint of frustration in his voice.
“I'll be fine. You just find the fucker that's killing these women,” she fired back.
“I'm working on it. Don't ask Gary to close Exposure. I don't want to panic anyone, and if this guy is targeting the club, we might have a better shot of catching him if we can watch the place while it's open. I’m doing my best to keep my connection to the community out of it so I can stay on the investigation, but if there’s a chance of it coming out, I’ll have to let someone else take over.”
“I'll talk to him and let him decide what to do.”
When Michael said he had to get back to work, Darci finally listened to the voicemail from Bradley.
“Hi. Just wanted to say I'm sorry if I scared you this morning. Call me back. I'm concerned that this guy might be targeting women in the lifestyle. I just want to know you're safe. I uh... I enjoyed having you over last night.” She smiled. He sounded nervous. Calling him back was the right thing to do, so she hit the green phone icon and waited for it to ring.
“I had the same thought about this guy,” she told him.
“Just promise me you'll be careful,” he murmured.
> “You're the third person to tell me that today,” she said, slightly irritated.
“Well maybe you should listen to us,” he snapped.
“I'm sorry,” he said. “That came out harsher than I meant it to. I don't want anything to happen to you.”
She smiled, her irritation dissipating. “It’s OK. I’ll be careful. I promise.”
“I wish you had stayed longer.” His voice was soft again. Darci closed her eyes, not sure how to respond.
Before she could, he said, “I was looking for you.”
“Excuse me?” she asked, “Looking for me where?”
“At Exposure. That’s why I was there Thursday. I was hoping to bump into you.” He sounded nervous again, and it made Darci’s heart constrict.
“I’m not sure what to say. I’m sorry I wasn’t there.” The call was getting awkward now, but she wished she had stayed at his apartment longer too, so she told him as much.
“I can tell you’re feeling nervous,” he said after an awkward pause. “So I’m going to let you go now but promise you won’t avoid me.”
Darci blew out a breath. Was that a promise she could make?
“Please, Darci,” he said, tugging at her heart again.
“I promise,” she whispered before jabbing at the end call icon.
How soon before that promise was put to the test? Darci still couldn’t shake the feeling that this was a bad idea, but she also couldn’t shake the memory of his eyes piercing into hers just before she’d kissed him this morning. Avoiding Bradley was exactly what she needed to do before it was too late.
Chapter Fourteen
Once a month, Darci held a munch at a local restaurant. It was something she started doing not long after she became active in the community and went to work for the ACSL. Despite pulling back from the public kink scene after her break-up with Damion, she continued hosting the monthly event.
This month, with two women from the community dead, Darci wanted to go back to the basics and discuss lifestyle safety. The munch was two days away. She posted the time and information on how to get the location on her blog and checked the event listing on Fetlife. Forty-three RSVPs. It was usually only ten or fifteen. With so many planning to attend, she had asked a few people to speak on various aspects of safety and discretion.
