She put her paints in her room, like he said—no, like he ordered her to. She paused when that thought hit her. He'd ordered her to put her paints in her room and then wait for him in his office, and she knew what that meant. He was planning on giving her a spanking. Thoughts of her first spanking came back. She'd been upset because he'd given her a rule, or an order, and she hadn't followed it.
She still wasn't at all happy with the thought of him issuing orders for her. No one had ever told her what to do, or ordered her what to do in the past, and she didn't want to start taking orders now. Something was different this time, though. She was upset now, especially when she thought about him spanking her again, but she knew she wouldn't run this time. That thought caught her off guard. Something was different this time, but what was it?
She thought about it while she slowly walked down to his office and sat down on the couch. She knew he was upset and she knew he would spank her. But this time, instead of running from him afterward, she'd let him comfort her like he tried to the last time. She was sure she'd even snuggle into his arms as if to let all his cuddling soak in.
Then it hit her. She'd snuggle into his arms to let his love soak in. Dalton loved her. He'd said it before he'd sent her to the house. She wasn't sure if he meant to say it, but he'd said it. If he didn't mean to say it, that was almost better. If it just slipped from his lips, it was from his heart. She stopped to consider that a moment.
That's what was different this time around over the last time. The last time she had feelings for him, but she hadn't yet fallen in love with him. And she now knew that back then he was trying to guard his heart from her, so he wasn't in love with her, either. Now they were. She knew in her heart she loved him, and now she also knew he loved her. He'd said it. But more important, she could feel it. The things he'd done for her since she'd been back showed just how much he loved her. That's why she had no trouble believing him when he said it; because he'd been showing it. In her heart she knew he loved her.
Knowing that, though, she thought back to how upset he was when he pulled her out of that pasture. She could see it in his eyes. She could see how much she'd disappointed him. But she hadn't meant to. She thought back to what she'd done to disappoint him so badly. She listed in her mind the things she'd done, but none of them were contrary to her rules. He'd told her she could take the Gator, and he knew the general location where she was going to be painting and was okay with that. The only thing she could see that was different than any other time was the radio. She hadn't specifically asked him if she could take a radio, but he'd never told her she couldn't, either. And she hadn't opened the gate to go into the pasture. She'd climbed over the fence, just as he'd told her to, to be sure the cattle wouldn't get out.
The cattle! She wasn't supposed to go into any pasture where there were cattle. At the time she'd set her things up, the cattle were at the other end, over the hill, and she hadn't seen them. But he told her to check with him to be sure a pasture was empty before she went into one, and she hadn't done that. The view was so beautiful she just had to paint it. She never thought to call him and make sure it was empty. She felt bad now. She had indeed disobeyed his rule.
And that was exactly how she thought of it now; she'd disobeyed his rule. Not his order. She remembered when he told her about that rule. They talked about it because it seemed like he was being too picky. But he'd explained that he kept a bull in with one herd, and that bull is fine unless it feels threatened. A bull is protective of his herd of heifers, and if someone invades their space, or their pasture, he could feel threatened. A bull that feels threatened is not something you want to encounter. She realized then that this indeed was a rule she was to follow to keep her safe, and not just a way for him to order her around. And she'd disobeyed that rule.
One thought crossed her mind that made her smile just a bit. She'd disobeyed a rule that happened to involve the cattle. Now ironically, she was recalling the cattle to help her through the punishment she earned. She recalled the cattle and how much pain they appeared to be in when they were branded, but how quickly they recovered, with no residual issues. Hopefully she would recover as quickly.
She thought next of Dalton, and hung her head, ashamed. He was trying to protect her, and look what she'd done. As she thought back to what could have happened, and what all Clay and the men had done to prevent the worst from actually happening, she felt worse, and tears started to stream down her face.
That was exactly how Dalton found her when he walked into his office.
Chapter Eleven
Dalton was a bit shocked to find her sitting on his couch, looking so small, and crying. She was pretty headstrong and independent, one of the things that attracted her to him, and this startled him. He sat down beside her on the couch. He was surprised again when she wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Dalton, I'm sorry. I love you. Please don't give up on me. I was ready to tell you exactly what I thought of you spanking me again for not doing anything wrong, but I did. You were right to be upset. I did mess up. I don't want spanked, though. Please hold me."
Dalton may have been a little confused as to how he wanted to handle Lilly when he walked into the room, but he was totally lost now. The one thing he knew he couldn't ignore, at least until he knew what she was thinking and feeling, was her begging him to hold her. He put his arms around her and instinctively pulled her onto his lap. She instantly laid her head on his chest and cried.
Of the many ways he'd pictured this talk and the ensuing spanking to go, none of them were anything like this. Well, at least not before the spanking!
He held her tightly and tried to calm her, much the way he was doing after her first spanking. He waited until he felt she'd calmed enough to talk. "Lilly, what's going on? What are you trying to tell me?"
She took a deep breath and he could see her trying to gather her strength and choose her words. "I was upset when I came in here. You spanked me out there, where Clay or the hands could have seen or heard. That was so embarrassing! And I didn't like that you were telling me I disobeyed your order, because I didn't feel I had. I was so mad I almost threw my paints at the canvas."
His eyebrows shot up at her words. "What good would that have done? What would it prove?"
"That I have a temper at times," she admitted.
"I'll have to keep that in mind," he said. "But go on. Why didn't you do that—or did you? Is there a real mess upstairs in your room?"
"No, I didn't do it. I started to think. And long story short, I realize now that I was wrong. You told me to always ask you if a pasture is empty before I go in it, and I didn't do that. I didn't see any cattle in it and assumed it was empty. But it wasn't. I'm so sorry I disappointed you, Dalton. And because of me, you had to pull Clay and the two hands off of what they were doing."
Dalton was surprised, but happy, to see that she'd thought this out and was willing to admit her wrongdoing. "Thank you for telling me this, Lilly. I hoped you'd think about it like I told you to, but I wasn't sure you would. And I'm glad to hear you admit you didn't ask me before you went into the pasture. Is there anything else you want to tell me about that you maybe shouldn't have done?"
"I tried to go over everything I did in my head, and that's the only rule I can think of that I didn't follow. I didn't ask you about taking the radio in with me, but I never thought about that. You never told me not to, so I don't know if that's something I did wrong or not. Is it?"
Clay's words came back to him. It was clear to him now that this pretty little lady he already considered to be his did not know a radio would spook the cattle. "You're right; I never said anything about it before. I never thought of it. But no, don't take the radio if there are cattle in the area. You had it so loud that I'm sure that's at least part of what spooked them. They're not used to loud music. Did you see the cattle at all while you were in there?"
She turned a bit red and looked down as she said, "Yes, I did see them, but it didn't occur to me
that I shouldn't be in there with them."
Surprised by her answer, he asked, "What were the cattle doing when you saw them? Did they appear to be upset?"
Still keeping her head down, she shrugged her shoulders. "Looking back on it now, yeah, maybe they were. At the time I thought they were liking the music; like they were dancing to it."
It was all Dalton could do to keep from laughing out loud. But Lilly was being serious and he didn't want to spoil that mood. He took a minute to get himself back under control. "You thought the cattle were dancing?"
"At the time, yeah, sort of. Now I know differently and I feel kind of stupid, but I thought maybe they were just moving around more because they liked the music and were moving with it; kind of how cattle would dance." She looked up at him and the corners of her mouth were turned up a bit. "Now that I know what really happened, you probably think I'm stupid, don't you?"
He couldn't hold back a chuckle, but he recovered pretty quickly. "Stupid? No, I don't think I could ever think of you as stupid. Naive to the ways of cattle, yes, but stupid? No, never." He hugged her a little tighter. "And just for the record, cattle don't dance. Or at least mine don't. They may get spooked, and possibly even stampede, but they don't dance."
"Got it."
He had to chuckle again. After a few more moments she sighed and looked up into his eyes. "So, is this where you spank me?"
He looked at her and had to smile. "Yes, I guess it is. Although you've got me a little off track here."
"Why? How?"
"Because normally I'll talk to you, explain what you did wrong and why you're about to be spanked, and then I spank you. This time you've kind of done that first part for me. You've explained to me what you did wrong and why."
"So do we just skip the next part then since this one's different?"
He chuckled again. "No, afraid not. The only thing that would teach you is that you can talk your way out of a spanking, and that's certainly not true, so I don't want you to think it is. I have to say, though, that I shouldn't be surprised here. You're a very unique, one of a kind little lady, so it stands to reason that your spankings would be unique, as well."
"What do you mean by I'm unique, or one of a kind?"
"Well, you're the only lady who has stolen my heart like this, so that makes you very unique."
She smiled, which he loved to see. "You meant that when you said earlier that you love me, didn't you?"
"I certainly did. Didn't I tell you I don't say things I don't mean?"
"Yes, you did. I just had to make sure, though."
Her grin was almost enough to make him rethink what he knew he had to do. "Did you mean it earlier when you said you love me, too?"
"Of course I did, cowboy. I mean what I say, too."
"Glad to hear it." He smiled as he hugged her against him and gave her a quick kiss on her head. He cleared his throat and got somber again. "Okay, let's get this done." He helped her stand, placing her between his legs. "This time since it's not your first time, and we've established our love for each other, we're doing it the right way, as I believe all spankings should be." He started to unsnap her jeans as he said, "It will be on your bare bottom."
"No, Dalton, you can't do that," she said as she tried to swat his hands away.
"Yes, Lilly, I can do that," he said as he captured her hands and held them momentarily at her sides. "And I will do that. I understand your issue with modesty, and I won't pull your panties down until you're over my lap. But spankings are most effective on a bare bottom, and that's how your spankings from now on will be, unless it's a few quick swats over your jeans to get your attention, like I did out there this afternoon. Now don't fight me during a spanking or you'll earn extras, and that's something I can guarantee you don't want to do."
He was proud of her as he unfastened her jean shorts and pulled them down to her knees. She whimpered and he knew it was difficult for her, but she kept her hands at her sides. He gave a quick little tug on her one hand and she was falling/laying over his lap. He gently guided her to where he wanted her. When she was in place, he slid his fingers into the waistband of her panties and pulled them down. Again she whimpered and her hands started back, but she caught herself and put her hands back down on the floor. "Good girl. I'm proud of you," he said as he laid his hand on her bare bottom. Her beautiful bare bottom, he realized.
Forcing himself to focus on his task at hand and not the lovely lady with the gorgeous bare bottom laying over his lap, he gave her a few simple instructions. "Now, I expect you to keep your hands out of my way. I don't care if you want to hold onto my leg or the chair or put them on the floor, but I don't want them back here where they could get hurt. You can cry during a spanking all you want, but no cussing. That will earn you extras. And this last one is very important, so listen carefully. No running away after the spanking is over. If you have something to say or ask, we'll talk all you want. But do not get up and run from me again. Do you understand me, young lady?"
"Yes."
"Good." Without another word he started in, spanking her bare bottom. He didn't spank real hard, knowing this was the first time she'd had a bare bottom spanking. He wanted to be sure she felt it, which he was sure she was by her reaction, but he didn't want to overwhelm her. She was yelling, crying out after each swat, and after a dozen or so she apologized again, and even promised not to do it again. Yep, she was feeling it all right.
He started talking then, reminding her why she was getting spanked. Remembering what she said about the first time, though, he occasionally asked questions while he was spanking. He wanted to be sure she heard what he was saying this time. Keeping her mind on what she'd done wrong and making sure she knew that was why she was being spanked was very important to him. He wanted her to equate the pain she was feeling with the misdeed she'd done to earn it.
Once he'd reminded her of what she'd done wrong, he started telling her what could have happened because of what she'd done. His idea was to get her to see why he was so upset, and so she'd see that he was truly trying to protect her with his rules. He increased the force behind the spanking a little as he talked now. She was complaining more, and was louder, and the tears were streaming down her face now. She'd long since kicked her shorts and jeans off in her effort to wiggle her bottom out of range. He continued to ask questions along with the talk, to assure himself he was getting through to her this time.
He was sure he'd made his point, and he brought the spanking to an end. He held her over his lap for several moments to give her a chance to realize the spanking had ended, and start to calm down. Once she was breathing a bit more normally, he gently helped her up and immediately onto his lap. To his delight, she snuggled right in against his chest, laying her head against it. When he wrapped her in his arms, she somehow managed to cuddle in closer to him.
"Ssshhh, honey, it's okay. It's over now. You rest now while I hold you." He wasn't expecting to feel so relieved when it was over, but he was. It had been one of the hardest things he'd done. He smiled as he realized he was probably just as glad it was over as she was. He found himself tightening his hold on her. He continued to hold her and encourage her with a soft voice, reminding her that he loved her, and telling her what a special lady she was.
When she'd calmed sufficiently, he looked down at her. "Are you okay, Lilly?"
She took a deep breath and let it out slowly before answering. "Yes, other than my poor butt. It hurts so much, Dalton. I know you didn't mean for me to be in this much pain afterwards, but you just don't know your own strength. I understand that you believe spanking is the best way to make a point and help me change behavior you feel is dangerous. To my utter disbelief, I actually understand why you feel that way, and I accept that."
"I'm glad to hear that."
"But you need to learn to control your strength, Dalton. I know you enough now to know that you're very protective, which I've embraced. I like knowing you're watching out for me and protecting me. But you'r
e spanking too hard. After the first one, I was sore for a couple hours. That was bad enough, but this one was worse. I know you didn't mean to hurt me like that, and I don't want to hurt your feelings, but you really need to reign in some of your strength"
He lifted her chin so she was looking directly at him. "Honey, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I spanked you exactly as I meant to spank you."
"But it hurt so bad, Dalton. Surely you didn't mean to do that?"
"Let me ask you something. Did I make my point with you?"
"Yes, of course."
"Do you understand what you did wrong and why?"
"Yes, of course."
"Will you think of this spanking the next time you consider doing the same thing again?"
"Well, yes, but it would have deterred me from doing it again if it hadn't hurt as much, too."
"Are you sure about that?"
"Of course."
"So if I would have just given you a simple swat or two like I did outside before we came in, that would have been as effective in stopping you from doing something again?"
"Yes."
"If a simple swat or two would do it, then I'm guessing a good talking to would have been just as effective, as well. Am I right there, too?"
"Actually, yes, I think you are right about that. I love you, Dalton, and knowing I disappointed you is all it would take for me to not repeat it."
"Did you love your mother, Lilly?"
"What? Of course I did."
"But yet you yourself told me you used to sneak out of your house and back in when you were younger. Why did you have to sneak out? Had she told you not to go?"
Lilly paused and stared at him just a moment, but then quickly answered his question. "I was young then, Dalton. I'm an adult now."
A Beautiful Ranch Page 14
