Brandon and Cassandra didn’t have a lot of time to spend together for the next several
weeks after their engagement. Her hours at work had changed when the department decided to
increase the efforts to catch the man terrorizing women. Brandon had talked to his Captain
as well; and the departments were working together in a task force to find the perp.
Each time there was another attack, Cassie felt guilty for it, and Brandon had yet to
figure out why. He knew it hurt her to see the victims, but still, she was a cop, and
unfortunately, used to seeing things that civilians would cringe over.
When she was home, Cassie spent more and more time on the Internet, in the chat rooms,
trying to draw him out. They’d set up the secure ISP in the house so she could get on in
the evenings. Brandon didn’t like it still, but he didn’t argue with her about it.
Brandon had been patient with her, knowing how much this case was bothering her. He’d put
up with her being distant and distracted, although he didn’t much like it. After two
weeks, though, he’d had enough. It was time to bring her back to their relationship. He
really could understand her obsession with wanting this sick bastard, but he wasn’t going
to let it consume her. Not if he could help it, at any rate.
They were both off for the weekend. He knew she’d want to spend it trying to ferret the
bastard out, and knew she’d be pissed off when he told her that the computer was staying
off for the weekend. He was prepared for battle. It was one of the times when he’d do what
she needed, even if she wasn’t sure she’d want it.
He heard the front door close, and looked up from the book he’d been working on. “Hey
lady love. How are you doing?” he asked softly. Once again, she was several hours later
than he was getting home; even though they were working the same shift. He’d gotten almost
an entire chapter written in his new book while waiting for her.
Cassie looked up after she’d sat her purse down. She ran an impatient hand to her hair
and yanked out the ponytail with barely restrained force. “Fine,” she snapped. She saw him
sitting so relaxed at his desk, working, she guessed, on his next book. How could he just
pretend there was nothing wrong? She didn’t understand how he could put his badge on a
shelf for the evening when he was off work. She certainly couldn’t. “Sorry,” she said with
a sigh and walked over to him. She ran a hand through his dark hair. Lord, but she loved
this man. He took her just as she was, faults and all. “I didn’t mean to snap at you.”
He nodded and looked into her hazel eyes. There were shadows beneath them, testifying to
the late hours and little rest she’d gotten in the last week. Even her luxurious auburn
hair looked dull, testifying to the extent her wellbeing had suffered with this case. “I
want to go away for the weekend, Cassie. We need some time away. I packed for us, but go
ahead and check to see if there is anything else you need.”
She was taken back by that. “I can’t go anywhere, Brandon. I have to work on the
Internet. You know that!”
He shook his head and looked at her sternly. “Not this weekend, you don’t. The bags are
by the bed. Make sure you have everything you need,” he repeated.
Cassie stood still and planted her hands on her hips. “No.”
Well, he thought, he hadn’t expected this to be easy. “Excuse me, young lady?” he said,
his voice very soft.
She waved her hand dismissively. “You can turn off Dom mode. I said no. I’ve got a lot of
work to do, and I’m tired as hell. I need to sleep a few hours and get on the computer.”
Turn off Dom mode? She’d never used that particular line on him before. He’d have smiled
if he wasn’t so determined that they were going to get away. He knew laughing at her when
she was like this would just make matters worse. Right now, definitely the Dom was called
for. When she was like this, nice just didn’t cut it. “No, Cassandra, you’re not working.
We are going away for the weekend. Your only option, at this point, is whether you sit
comfortably for the ride,” he pointed out reasonably, a not-so-subtle warning in his tone.
Cassie narrowed her eyes as she glared at him. He had that look on his face that he got
when he was getting ready for mega-Dom, and she was just in no mood for it. “I’m not in
the mood to play, Brandon. I need to take a nap.”
He knew that was the truth. She looked exhausted. “You can sleep on the way, love.” He
stood and gave her a kiss on the forehead. “I’ll go get our bags.”
Cassie stomped her foot; totally unaware that she was being unreasonable. “What part of
‘no’ didn’t you hear?” she demanded hotly. He didn’t understand how much this was
bothering her. She should have found this guy by now. She should have been able to sense
his evil. Of course, she couldn’t explain that to him; he’d consider her a freak if she
had.
Brandon narrowed his own eyes. “What part of `your only option is whether or not you sit
comfortably for the ride` did you not hear?” he retorted.
Cassie sighed. He wasn’t kidding, but she had to make him understand that she simply
wasn’t caving in this time. He’d told her that he wouldn’t let their D/s relationship come
between them and her job, and he was. “I’m not afraid of you, Brandon.”
“I know. We’re still going, though, and you’ll do as you’re told or you’ll go with a sore
ass.”
“You told me not to bring D/s into an argument,” she reminded him, although she did feel
a slight thrill in the pit of her stomach at his words. He hadn’t spanked her in almost a
week. Not even playfully. She missed it. “And you said that you wouldn’t like it when I
let my job overrule what you might want in our D/s relationship,” she reminded him.
Brandon took her shoulders and looked down into her dark eyes. “That’s true, I did. But I
also told you that I wouldn’t stand for your not taking care of yourself—and right now,
you’re not. I’ve had enough of it. We’re taking the weekend off. End of discussion.”
“I don’t want to go anywhere. And I’m taking care of myself just fine, for your
information.” Well, that was mostly true. She wasn’t about to admit to him that she’d been
skipping meals most of the week.
Brandon studied her for a long minute. She’d lost weight over the last week, although not
enough to really worry him. He knew that she was just overstressed and overtired. A
weekend away would do her a world of good. But she wasn’t going to go willingly. And, he
didn’t want to spend their weekend together punishing her, either. “Find a corner, little
girl.”
| 
