by Nora Nolan
"You want me to wear this, um, in public?"
"No one will know, Evie, except you and me. And, yes, I do want you to wear it in public. I'll take it out afterward, when we go home."
WHEN THEY RETURNED home from the restaurant, Aaron called Evie into the bathroom. "Pull up your skirt and bend over the tub, sweetie." She did, and he took hold of the plug's flange and gently pulled. "This may be uncomfortable. Be strong." It stretched her as it made its way out and she thought it hurt more than it did going in. She whimpered a little and he soothed her, telling her he was proud of how well she was doing. Soon, it released with a slightly audible pop.
"Good girl," he said as he set it down. "I want you to clean it, and later, I'll show you where I keep them. Evie," he changed the subject, "I want you to stay here at the house throughout lunchtime, when the stage is due. I'd rather know you're safe here so I can concentrate on my work. Do you understand that I need you to stay here? I'll come let you know whether I need to ride out with the stage or not. I won't go without letting you know. But I want you to stay here all day. Do you understand?"
"Yes. I'll be fine here. I promise I'll stay." She tiptoed to kiss him.
"Good. Keep the doors locked. I love you, Evie."
CHAPTER 8
T he stagecoach was on time, and the soldiers from Fort Bridger reported that they hadn't encountered any problems on the way. They split up, and half the soldiers ate quickly at Mary's restaurant while the others remained to guard the lockbox that contained the payroll. When they'd eaten, they traded places. Aaron and the sheriff sat with the stage driver and Sergeant Butler, the highest-ranking officer accompanying the stage, to discuss whether or not they wanted the lawmen to escort the stage for the next several miles. The driver was satisfied with the soldiers. The sergeant reminded them that another few soldiers would join them at each swing stop along the way. By the time they reached the fort, they would be a very large contingent.
Aaron went back to the house to let Evie know they'd be staying at the jailhouse. "Tell you what, sweetie, come to the jail and get me in time for supper, and we'll go eat at Mary's."
WHEN THEY WALKED into Mary's, Evie saw Harriet waving her hand in greeting. Arthur saw who it was and invited them to sit at their table with them. He introduced himself to the deputy, and they learned that Arthur and Harriet's last name was Smithers.
Evie was happy to learn that Arthur was appreciative of, and approved of, the new friendship between Harriet and Amy and Evie. Apparently, Harriet had reported to her husband that the ladies were delightful company.
"I'm so glad you enjoyed yourself, Harriet. Amy and I certainly did. As a matter of fact, I'd like to invite you over again tomorrow morning, if you'd like to come."
Harriet looked at Arthur. "Oh, I'd love to, dear, do you mind?"
"Of course not," he said, smiling at his wife then turning to face Evie. "I do wish we were in a position to invite you over for tea and refreshments, but since we live at the hotel, I'm afraid we're dependent on your good graces. My Harriet is a wonderful cook and hostess, but that's not very easy to do when you don't have a kitchen."
"Oh, Mr. Smithers, it's my pleasure to have Harriet over. I'm new in town, too, and it's been nice to get to know both Amy and Harriet better."
"My dear, please call me Arthur."
The meal continued, much to Evie's satisfaction, with Aaron and Arthur getting along just fine. The conversation was witty, pleasant, and smooth, and they all contributed. No mention was made of the big spoon beside Harriet's place setting.
THE NEXT MORNING, Thursday, the three new friends were seated around Evie's table again. The Irish whiskey was passed around when the tea was poured. Evie couldn't help but wonder what the topics of conversation might be today. She couldn't imagine anything more intimate than what they'd discussed the other two mornings. It was Harriet who started the conversation.
"I'm so glad you and the deputy joined us for dinner at the restaurant last evening. Arthur and I both enjoyed your company. Matter of fact, when we got back to the hotel, I let Arthur know just how happy I was and how much I appreciated him for letting me come again today."
Evie cleared her throat. "May I ask how you showed him?"
"I was hoping you would! It's a variation of a game we play. While he was engrossed in the newspaper, I quietly slipped out of my clothes and picked up this spoon." She thoughtfully stroked the length of it. "I went to a corner of the room and assumed a position he sometimes requires of me when I've misbehaved. I was on tiptoe, nose in the corner, holding the spoon in my hands behind my back. I coughed, hoping to get his attention. It's uncomfortable to stand for very long in that position, you know. I hate it when he makes me do it! But I did get his attention. He put down the paper as he told me to come stand in front of him."
Evie noticed Amy was listening carefully, too.
Harriet continued. "He asked what I had done to merit a whipping. I said I had been thinking dreadful, sinful thoughts." She looked at each of the others in turn and smiled. "That's our code for 'I haven't done anything wrong, but let's play like I did.' So, this time, he took the spoon from me and ordered me to the floor, on my hands and knees. He leaned over and gave me a few swats with the spoon before he stood up. He said I was to trot about the room as he delivered more swats. It's not a huge hotel room, but it's big enough that I covered a lot of territory! Then he increased the heat by telling me he wanted my breasts to drag on the floor as I trotted. I had to lower my top half quite a bit for that to happen, and it was humiliating. At least it would have been for most women; I found it exhilarating. I was ready for penetration by then, soaking wet. But my Arthur, oh yes, he knows just how to drive me beyond what I think I can take."
Evie took a few sips of tea, poured more and reached for the whiskey flask.
"Arthur went to the dresser and removed one of his belts, a very thin one. He directed me to position myself a couple of feet in front of his chair, facing away from him. He made me spread my knees very far apart, uncomfortably so. Then he insisted that my head and shoulders touch the floor, which made my backside prominent. I don't know if you can imagine it, ladies, but one's backside and intimate parts are displayed quite completely in that position. And there's no way to hide!"
Evie responded, "I can imagine it, and I do believe I would be mortified. I don't see how you can derive pleasure from these things. It seems so degrading. Please understand, I don't mean to insult you; I just don't understand."
"Oh, dearie, I'm not insulted. I just hope to help you understand that pleasure can be derived from, well, from very many situations others might find unsettling or distasteful. Let me continue. Arthur took that belt, the thin one, and striped me across my bottom and thighs several times. He didn't put much force into it; after all, we were playing, but still, I let myself sink into the pain. He was doing it hard enough to leave stripes. I can't explain it better than that, I don't think. I cleared my head of anything else and concentrated on Arthur's control over me. I anticipated each stroke and relished when it arrived. It hurt some, believe me, and I cried, but I still reveled in it. Then he took the belt and aimed it at that inner area of my back cleft that doesn't normally get touched in a regular spanking."
Evie gasped. "No!"
Harriet smiled. "Oh, yes. It was, at once, excruciating and exquisite. Each lash took me further into my own sublime space."
Evie looked at the expression on Amy's face. She could tell Amy wanted to say something but was too shy or intimidated.
"Harriet," Evie said, "I can't understand how you could invite that kind of treatment. Isn't it humiliating?"
"Not for me. I know Arthur loves me dearly. He knows what I can take. He also knows what makes me, well, amorous, and he enjoys exerting his authority. He enjoys giving me commands and watching me obey, no matter what the commands are. I find my pleasure in completely giving myself over to his dominance. It's very heady for me. Would you like to see my stripes? I wear them proudly."
&nbs
p; "No!" Evie cried, and she was surprised to hear Amy answer yes.
Evie sensed Harriet's amusement at their differing responses, but she didn't say anything when Harriet rose and turned away from them, pulling up the back of her skirt and petticoats. Evie caught Amy's eye and could tell Amy wasn't sure what to expect, either. Harriet lowered her bloomers and the visible stripes across her bottom and thighs were testament to the fact she'd been whipped recently. It was when Harriet reached back and spread herself so they could see the vertical stripes that Evie spoke up.
"Oh, Harriet, that's awful! It looks horribly painful. I can't believe Arthur would subject you to that."
"Evie, you're forgetting that I asked for it. This is exactly what I wanted from Arthur last night. Don't forget that it pleased us both very much."
"Harriet." Amy finally joined the conversation. "Has Arthur ever striped you in that way, um, when you weren't playing? When it was for real?"
"Oh, my, yes! The first time, it was almost too much, even for me, and I was begging and crying for him to stop, but he didn't until he was satisfied I'd learned a lesson. Believe me, I did. Even as bad as it was, when it was over, I fairly attacked Arthur in my lust." She laughed, remembering. "I was still crying while I ripped his clothes off."
Evie couldn't think of any response to that, but she wondered if perhaps Aaron and Arthur were alike in that they both liked to be authoritarian and have their commands followed without argument. She wondered if Aaron would ever want to take things as far as Arthur and Harriet.
THAT NIGHT, it was Aaron's turn to man the jail again, and once more, Evie planned to stay at the jailhouse.
After they had eaten and cleaned up after themselves in the front office, Aaron issued a command, "Go into your cell and take off all your clothes. I want to find you in the corner when I get there. Bad prisoners aren't allowed clothing. New rules."
Excitement and trepidation went thru Evie. She was happy to have a game to play with her husband that she knew would end in fun for them, but she wondered if it might ever escalate into anything close to Harriet and Arthur's games. She knew she wasn't ready for that. She removed her clothes and took her position in the corner. She was curious as to what Aaron had put in his saddlebags this time, but she was unsure if she could look in them and still have time to get back in place before he came in the cell. Even though it was a game, she wanted to be where he wanted her to be.
She heard him come into the cell after he locked the doors. There was some rustling around and she realized he was putting a sheet on the bed, as he had on Tuesday evening. She wanted to get into character. "What are you going to do to me?"
"I'm going to curb your tendency to make trouble. You're going to wish you'd never got yourself into this predicament, missy. I'm going to take your clothes away and fill your ass so you won't even think about trying to escape again."
"No, please not that, anything but that!" They both knew she was playing her part.
"You don't get a choice. I'll tie you down if I have to. Will I have to?"
"No, sir."
"Good. Come over here and bend over the cot and spread 'em." She complied.
Aaron applied a lubricant to Evie and to the same plug he'd used before.
"Please don't do this. Why don't you just whip me instead?"
"I'll probably do that anyway."
"No, please, don't. Don't do this to me. Please, I'll let you have your way with me if you don't do this."
"I may do that, anyway, too."
"But you can't! You're a lawman! I'm a prisoner!"
"I can if you beg me to."
"I'll never do that."
"Oh, yes, you will."
She felt the plug and held her breath until it popped into place. She stood up.
"I didn't say to stand up. Get back into that position."
She heard him move a chair behind her and sit down. She felt his eyes on her and she had to admit, she felt it oddly stimulating.
"Bend over more."
"W-why?"
"Because I said to."
She did, realizing what she must look like in his eyes right now. He got up from the chair and stood directly behind her. He didn't touch her, though, and his nearness made her wet with anticipation.
Finally, he put one hand on her back, bracing her, and tugged on the plug with the other one. He pulled it out and reinserted it a couple of times. Evie realized it didn't hurt as long as she didn't tighten her muscles.
Aaron hoarsely announced, "Little lady, this is what happens to prisoners who try to escape." He pulled the plug out quickly and reinserted it in rapid succession. Evie realized he was simulating sex with it. She moaned.
"Ah, you like that, do you? Let's see if you like this one." He pulled it out and reached into his saddlebag and retrieved a larger one. He lubricated it and pushed it into her opening. Evie could tell it was larger, and it stretched her painfully as he inserted it. When it was seated inside her, she exhaled loudly.
Aaron sat back down. "Let's see how quickly you can get used to this size. Stand up."
She did.
"Now walk back and forth in the cell until I tell you to do something else."
She did.
As she walked, she saw the sexy smirk on his face and knew he must be as aroused as she was. She wondered if she could endure the things Harriet described as long as she pretended to be someone else.
"Now, walk over to the bars and hold on to them at about waist high. That's it. I want you to feel that plug in different positions now. Slowly lower yourself to the floor, into a squat. Good girl. Now bounce up and down a few times, just a few inches."
"No! It's too humiliating!" It was out of her mouth so quickly that she wasn't sure it was her or the fictitious prisoner talking.
Aaron was up and had her hair in his fist in no time, forcing her to look up at him. "Escapees don't get choices. Do it."
"Yes, sir."
She bounced. Aaron sat back down, appreciating the way her breasts bounced, too.
"That's good, but now you have to pay for that defiance. Come over here, over my lap."
She did, embarrassed that the plug must be prominent in this position. He rubbed all over her bottom and thighs before tugging on the plug. "Does this hurt?"
"Not really. It's uncomfortable when I bend, though."
"We'll have to get you used to that," he said as he delivered a few stingers to her backside, being careful not to strike the plug directly. "If you'd only been a good—"
They were interrupted by loud and insistent knocking on the front door. "Sheriff! Deputy! It's Sergeant Butler! I have some prisoners for you!"
Aaron helped Evie scramble upright. "Get dressed! I'll come get you when it's safe for you to come out." He went to the front, closing the cell door behind him and then the other door that separated the front office from the back addition.
Evie grabbed her clothes and hurriedly put them on. Her heart was pounding at the thought of facing her father and brothers in this situation. She ran to the cell door but found it locked. Damn. She looked around and spied the saddlebags, hoping she'd find something useful in there. To her relief, she found a pistol and tucked it into the back of her waistband. She kept looking and found an inside pocket. Reaching in, she felt a key and smiled at her good luck. It unlocked the cell door. Evie realized that Aaron might want to use the cell they'd occupied for prisoners, so she hurriedly removed all their things to an alcove across from the cells near the back door. Then she tiptoed down the hall to the closed door of the front office and put her ear up to it. She couldn't hear more than muffled voices. She slowly turned the knob, hoping it would open silently. It worked well enough that the small sound wasn't noticed by anyone in the office. She opened the door less than an inch, but it was enough to allow her to peek into the office and make out the conversation. She could see much of the front, but the cells were just out of her line of vision.
The man in uniform was speaking. "We have seven pris
oners out there for you, Deputy. There are six Goodacres, the father and five sons, and an accomplice named Walters. I'd like to avoid a dangerous situation, so I propose bringing them inside in small groups. My men have them safely in custody."
"How were they apprehended?"
"Much easier than you might expect. I think they were hesitant to attack when they saw the military escort, but they went ahead and tried, the damn fools. Then the rest of our men came riding up and they realized they didn't have a chance. Caved in like the cowards they are, sir."
Aaron picked up a ring that held keys to all the cells and waited near the cell closest to the front. Sergeant Butler went to the front door and directed his men to bring in the first two prisoners. "This is the elder Goodacre and one of the sons. Men, see them safely in that cell."
The enlisted men followed orders and didn't release their hold on the Goodacres until each one was inside the cell. Aaron pulled the door closed and ensured the lock was engaged. "All right. Two down! Bring in another group."
Sergeant Butler went to the door and gave the command to bring in two more brothers. They were led in and locked safely behind the door of the second cell.
Aaron needed to let Evie know he would put the remaining three prisoners in the back where she was. He was surprised when the door to the jail addition in the back opened just as he was walking toward it to open it.
"YOU NEED to put the rest of them back here. I took our things out of the cell to make it ready," Evie said.
"Thanks, sweetie. Are you sure you're ready for this? Maybe you should go on home now and wait for me."
"No, Aaron, I'm fine. You're here," she said, "and I'll be fine." She took his hand and squeezed it.
"All right, then. They'll bring in two more brothers to this first cell, then we'll put Walters in the back cell."
He went back to the front and told Sergeant Butler to bring in the other brothers.
They were brought in, and when they went through the door to the back, they both saw Evie at the same time. One brother, Galen, got a confused look on his face. Clement, the middle brother, became enraged. "Lina, you damn no good cunt!"
