Charming Isabella

by Maggie Ryan

  Chapter 8

  Coleman felt his anger return as he thought about the conversation he and Jack had the evening before. Coleman had confessed that he was quickly losing his heart to the little redheaded spitfire. Jack knew Isabella was reacting in the same manner. Though he was excited and thrilled for both of his friends, he was also very concerned about Izzy’s being hurt. He decided that honesty was the best way to protect her. He had brought them both a beer and told Coleman to listen to a pretty bad story. Coleman found he wasn’t surprised at the warning. He settled back on the couch and waited to discover exactly what had caused this girl such pain.

  Jack had explained that Isabella had always known she needed something more than vanilla sex. She had felt incomplete in dating what most people considered regular men. Nancy and Izzy had met Jack in college and had been introduced into the dom/sub lifestyle when they visited the local BSDM clubs. It hadn’t been shocking to either of them, as they had grown up in a loving, but strict, household. Tom and Beth believed in the husband as head of the household and both girls had been spanked when they had stepped out of line. Neither had protested the right of their uncle to spank them; they both knew he loved them unconditionally.

  Nancy had immediately fallen for Jack, and their journey into the lifestyle had nothing but pleasant memories. Not so for Isabella. She had met several men, all of whom were anxious to apply for the role of dominant in her life. None had given her what she had needed. She had enjoyed playing, but no man was able to capture her heart. She stepped away from the scene as Nancy and their other friends paired up. She didn’t like the role of fifth wheel and no longer wanted to bounce from one Dom to another. If she couldn’t find what or whom she was looking for, she found she’d rather not date at all.

  Her plan seemed to work until she met Bryan at her job. She ran the medical billing department, and Bryan was an intern. He had swept her off her feet, and she quickly fell in love. While he didn’t show any interest in anything other than quick, straight sex, she decided that she could learn to accept his lovemaking. He had been appalled the first time she suggested that he spank her and asked if she thought she was dating a pervert. Ashamed of the way he looked at her, she assured him that she had been joking. His obvious disgust had her beginning to believe that she was indeed a sexual deviant. She decided that just not being alone was good enough, and she did feel as if he loved her. After a few months, she became engaged to the man she thought could fill her life. However, once she accepted his ring, he changed.

  She wasn’t allowed to go anywhere without his permission, which he rarely granted. His hours were insane but she was expected to be home, ready to serve him dinner or whatever else he wanted. When she wanted to visit the ranch, he made sure he went with her and worked to convince Tom and Beth that they were totally in love. Isabella was too ashamed to admit her mistake and didn’t want to worry her aunt or uncle, so she played her part well. She lost touch with most of her friends, but Nancy refused to give up on her. Nancy was dismayed that Isabella was slipping away and urged her to leave Bryan before it was too late. Izzy assured her that she was fine and happy. Nancy worried still but was caught up in her own new love and trusted her friend to tell her if she needed help.

  She and Nancy had dinner one evening when she Izzy thought Bryan was on call. When she returned home late, it was to find him half-drunk and very angry. He was furious that he hadn’t known where she was and that his dinner wasn’t ready. That was the first night he hit her.

  She had been shocked and far too ashamed to admit it to anyone. She had been in dominant relationships most of her life; part of her admitted that she deserved being punished for not pleasing her man. He accepted her apology but only after giving her a black eye. She missed several days of work and simply told Nancy that she must have gotten food poisoning from their dinner. Nancy wasn’t truly convinced, because they had eaten the same thing, but didn’t push her friend. By the time they saw each other again, the bruises were healed.

  It took months and more beatings before Isabella finally got the guts to run. She packed her stuff and drove off after Bryan left for the hospital one evening. However, he hadn’t gone to work. He had seen her bags in the closet, knew she was leaving and refused to give her up.

  He followed her and was shocked when she parked in the lot of a local club and went inside. He had expected her to go either to Nancy’s or out to the ranch. He waited for a while for her to come out, and when she didn’t, he finally went inside. Bryan couldn’t believe what he was seeing. This wasn’t a regular club; he knew deviants frequented it. Though there was an inner foyer, the reception desk that checked in the members or guests was unmanned at the present. He pushed through the door into the club. The first thing he saw was a woman being led by a collar and chain around her neck, wearing nothing else but high heels.

  He slipped into the room and around a corner, unseen. He stood in the shadows looking for his fiancé. He didn’t see her but saw people engaged in various activities, all of them perverted, in his mind. What the hell was Iz doing in this place? He finally spotted Nancy and couldn’t believe that was Izzy’s friend. Instead of the girl next door, this woman looked like a harlot. She was in high heels, a very short red mini-skirt and a corset that hid almost nothing of her breasts. She was ignorant of his presence. Iz appeared with some man. She was talking animatedly, and the man pulled her into his arms and bent to kiss her. Bryan saw red. He was about to step out of the shadows when the man led Izzy to a seat at the bar and ordered her a drink. He watched as Izzy hugged him, and soon they were joined by Nancy. After a few moments, Izzy nodded and waved them away. What the hell was she thinking? Coming to some sex club, letting a man paw and kiss her and then watching as the same man went off with the woman who was supposedly her best friend?

  He watched as Jack led Nancy to a nearby bench. When she voluntarily lay across the bench and the man lifted her skirt, Bryan saw that the whore had no panties on. The man was soon spanking her with some type of paddle, and her cries and moans caused Bryan’s cock to rise, despite his disgust.

  All of a sudden, he remembered how Izzy had suggested he spank her. He also realized she wasn’t shocked at what she was witnessing; no one in the club was even paying attention to the spanking that was going on in full view. He looked back at the woman he loved and saw her smiling and chatting with the bartender. She hadn’t been joking . . . she must really have wanted him to do that to her. His attention returned to Nancy when she began to beg for the spanking to stop. It didn’t stop; in fact, it sounded like the paddle landed even harder on her upturned bottom. He was glued to the scene and didn’t realize he’d stepped out into the light until he heard Izzy’s cry. His head jerked to the side to see her staring at him, her hands now covering her mouth. He snapped. His anger burned hot, and he stepped up and grabbed her off the stool.

  He had her out of the club in seconds, before anyone could react. He threw her into his car and burned rubber out of the lot. He didn’t go home; he knew that Nancy would find them there. Instead, he drove to a cabin that was owned by his family. Izzy had felt terrified at his driving as well as the constant screaming directed at her. She flinched as he called her horrid names and assured her that if she wanted to be punished, she’d certainly earned what he was going to give her by trying to leave him.

  He made it his goal to teach Izzy that sexual deviance was a very wicked and evil thing. He remembered all the times she had begged for him not to hit her even though she obviously wanted it. She was nothing but a liar. If she got her kicks from letting some man beat her, he’d be sure to give her want she needed. He told her that she would learn to be his submissive; she’d do whatever he told her to do and enjoy it. After all, she was the one who wanted to be dominated. She screamed and pleaded with him, even as he whipped her again and again. He used anything he could get his hands on: his belt, a metal barbeque spatula, switches and even a piece of firewood.

  She was raped repeatedly and
told that he owned her—that he would wipe out the devil inside her. He reassured her that by the time they wed, she’d be the proper wife with the proper attitude. Three days passed before his anger was extinguished. He had looked at her, her injuries well beyond what little he could do for her. He became frightened of the consequences of his actions and began to promise that it would never happen again.

  Izzy promised to be a good girl, to be a proper doctor’s wife and never to talk about what had happened. She could barely move, most of her body covered with bruises, welts and cuts. She begged for him to take her to the hospital, promising she’d say she had fallen or gotten mugged. He didn’t believe her and was too terrified about what might happen if she was seen. He doctored her as best he could but then tied her to the bed when he went to work, telling her he’d bring back what medical items she needed. Isabella was only conscious some of the time, too weak and in too much pain to fight any longer.

  She had healed, but very slowly. She was terrified of the man she had promised to marry. He doctored her but also told her that if he couldn’t have her, no one would. He didn’t let her out of the house or off the bed when he was gone. He had forged a letter of resignation and given it to her boss, boasting that he was the type of man who would be the sole provider for his wife. When Nancy showed up at the hospital, he told her that Iz had left him and he had no idea where she was. She demanded to be allowed to look in his house. When he met her and Jack there that evening, they could find no trace of their friend. Her car had disappeared from the club parking lot after Bryan had taken a taxi to the club and then driven the car to the cabin. It was as if Izzy simply disappeared.

  They vowed they would never stop looking. Neither trusted this man, and both knew Izzy had simply disappeared from the club after coming to tell them she had finally left Bryan. Both blamed themselves for not taking her home with them, even though she had encouraged them to continue their playing. She assured them she was better than she’d been in ages and that she was happy to have a drink and wait for them.

  Bryan continued to threaten Izzy. He threatened the lives of everyone she loved, and she believed him. She withdrew and barely spoke. She allowed him to do whatever he wanted and submitted to him in all ways. He found he enjoyed her waiting on him hand and foot and began to joke that she was becoming a perfect submissive. She stopped eating and began to lose weight. He tried to force her to eat but when she just threw up, he told her she could stand to lose weight as she was fat and ugly—not like those beautiful women at that sex club. Finally, one day she convinced him not to tie her down, as she would most likely be sick in the bed. Disgusted with that thought, he locked her in the bathroom, instead. He went to work and Isabella decided that she would either die that day or make a last attempt to live. She was weak and feeble but managed to break the bathroom window open by beating the glass out with the trashcan. Even as small as she was, she barely fit through the frame and received cuts on her arms, stomach and legs before finally falling through to land on the pine needles below. It took her a half hour to crawl around the house to her car. She was terrified that he had removed the spare key, but her shaking hands found the small magnetic case under the bumper. On adrenaline alone, she managed to get into the car and drive away from the cabin.

  Coleman had started pacing back and forth while Jack told the story. His heart was racing and his hands kept clenching and unclenching as if aching to hit something. He had turned to Jack and growled, “Where the hell were you Jack? God, she disappears from the face of the earth and you and Nancy just let her!”

  Jack had shaken his head, his hands also clenched. “Tell me something I don’t know. I will live with this the rest of my life. I can only thank God that she got away before he killed her.”

  Coleman nodded and said, “Finish it.”

  Jack began again: “She drove to Nancy’s. Nancy wasn’t home; she was at work. Iz couldn’t get out of the car, and I’m not sure how long she hid in it, but she was almost comatose when Nancy found her. We had been looking for her for weeks, Coleman. Everyone had been looking. Beth and Tom were practically insane with worry and Nancy, oh man, Nancy.”

  Coleman gave him a look of loathing, and Jack nodded. “I know our pain was nothing compared to Izzy’s. Nancy got home and saw the car. She was hysterical by the time she called me. I broke every speed limit to get to them. I was trying to get Izzy to talk when that asshole showed up. He didn’t make it across the lawn. I stopped him and almost killed the sonofabitch. Nancy had called the police by then, and they showed up just in time. I think they thought I was the bad guy and had me in handcuffs. Tom and Beth got there and eventually the cops handcuffed the right guy.”

  “I wish you had killed him.”

  Jack saw the truth in his friend’s face and nodded. “I know, but then I’d be the one in jail.”

  “Jail? The asshole is in jail?”

  “Oh yeah—for a very long time. Iz didn’t want to go through a trial, but everyone convinced her she needed to press charges. If she didn’t, it would haunt her forever; he’d haunt her forever. Man, it was tough, but Izzy made us all proud. She never broke, never backed down. She was finally free when he took a deal and was sentenced to thirty years. He would have gotten a lot less if it had been simple assault. Thank God the cabin was just a mile over the state line, so he faced federal kidnapping charges, as well.”

  Jack had stopped, his entire being exhausted with the telling. Coleman had finally sat down, his head in his hands, his shoulders shaking. The room was silent except for his sobs. When he calmed, he lifted his head. “She’s not free. She is still a prisoner of what that bastard did to her.”

  “Coleman, today is the first time in two years that we’ve seen her truly happy, and my man, you are the reason. We don’t tell everyone this story, but you needed to know. You need to keep her safe, to help her find herself, and yes, to truly be free.” Coleman felt the huge weight of responsibility on his shoulders. He had never thought he’d want to be that involved with another woman after Sarah, yet he never once considered walking away. Isabella had touched his heart in a way even Sarah hadn’t. He wanted nothing more than to go to her, to gather her into his arms and to tell her every day that she would always be safe and treasured. By the time they had fallen into bed, he knew he loved her.

  Chapter 9

  “I’m so sorry, Isabella . . . I’m so sorry I wasn’t there to keep you safe.”

  Izzy heard the pain in his voice and snuggled into him. “Don’t. Please don’t pity me. It’s over, Cole; it needs to be behind me. I decided I wanted to live when I climbed out that window, but yesterday was the first time I felt like I had a chance. Don’t treat me like I’m fragile; I can’t promise not to be scared, but I do promise to try. I can’t do that if you turn away; I can’t take that. If you want me, I am yours, but only if you help me to truly live.”

  Coleman felt his eyes fill. God, this tiny thing had more guts and was braver than most men he knew. He pressed his lips to her forehead and heard her moan. He dropped his lips to hers. She pressed into him and he seared his want onto her mouth. By the time he broke away, she was panting hard. She smiled up at him and giggled, “I guess I’ll live, then.”

  “Yes Bella, you will live. It will be my mission to teach you to live again.”

  Her smile lit the room, and she felt as if a huge weight had lifted from her soul. She reached up, stroked his cheek with her fingers and saw the charm swinging on her bracelet. “Baby steps, Sir, and I think it’s time we take another.” He looked down at her as she pushed herself off his knee, lifted her skirt and lay down across his lap.

  She sensed his hesitancy and turned her face to his. “If I can take baby steps, so can you. You told me I was getting a spanking, Sir; please show me I can count on you to take me in hand when I am disobedient.”

  He looked down and saw the love and trust in her eyes. He didn’t speak. Instead, he gave her a nod and then tucked her close into his waist. He did
spank her, but they both knew it wasn’t what he had originally planned. He swatted her softly, moving from one cheek to another. Instead of any pain, Izzy felt nothing but arousal blossom inside her. She felt tears fall from her eyes but knew they were not from pain. They were from letting go of the past.

  He heard her crying and stopped until she said, “Please, Sir.” He took a deep breath and began to spank her again, his hand landing harder against her bottom. She gasped and began to squirm a bit. He stopped when her bottom turned a light pink and then had her cradled in his lap again. He kissed her until she thought she was going to pass out. When he released, her she giggled, “If that is how it is going to be every time, I’m going to be naughty every day.”

  He laughed and hugged her hard. “I wouldn’t count on that, my Bella. You are definitely getting off easy this time. The next time I have to put you over my knee, my hand won’t be as gentle.” He saw her eyes widen just a bit and added, “Just remember, I will only lift my hand to your bottom out of love and respect. I will never spank you in anger, only in love.”

  She smiled and nodded, her bottom tingling just slightly but her core aching with an unfulfilled need. She squirmed on his lap and he groaned as her little bottom wiggled against his thickening cock. “Careful, little one, I’m trying to maintain my authority here.”

  She grinned and wiggled again until he gave her a sharp swat on her hip. “Ouch!” she yelped and then giggled.

  He grinned as well. “Nancy probably needs you, and I’m sure Jack is going nuts.”

  “Oh, God, I forgot!” she gasped as she jumped off his lap. She began to run to the door and almost fell before he grabbed her around her waist.

  “Careful, Bella. Though I am rock hard from looking at your pretty pink bottom, maybe you should pull your panties back up before you break your neck or I go further than I intended.” She blushed, her heart pounding at the arousal in his eyes. He found he adored watching her face and the very open emotions he could read from her expression. He smiled, bent down and slowly pulled her panties back into place. He gave her a quick swat, and she squealed. He gave her another kiss and opened the door. He looked down the hall and saw Nancy standing outside the door, pacing back and forth in the hallway. Her body language showed her concern for her friend. She stopped pacing and stood, her feet apart and her arms crossed against her chest. She looked exactly as Izzy had when she had been ready to defend Nancy.