by Joannie Kay
"But, that's against the law!" she gasped in outrage.
"And very profitable. If he took you, you would be in some Sheik's harem, or sold to an expensive brothel somewhere and put to work on your back."
"No!" she whispered, throwing herself into his arms to seek comfort. "I couldn't bear that, Jacob!"
"Now do you see why I smacked your backside, young lady? Opening your door to the likes of Darles would immediately put you on his 'list'. Once he made darn sure you were fairly alone here, he would have taken you in a heartbeat, and even now, he is out there, looking for us. I was working undercover, trying to gather information... who he sells to. If I can find a list of his contacts, I can put them out of business, too. Jenna's college roommate has disappeared; I think Darles took her when Deborah headed back to school after spending a weekend with Jenna at Ma's place. Deborah had an early Monday morning class, but Jenna didn't have to be back until Tuesday, so they drove separately. Deborah didn't make it back to school. No one has seen her since she left Ma's house, and the only information we can gather is that a man matching Darles description was seen talking to her in a convenience store where she planned to stop for coffee. Her car was found there, and had been disabled. I think Darles offered her a ride back to Ma's, and took her captive."
"That is horrible!" Kari was shocked.
"I don't want that to happen to you, sweetheart. I couldn't bear to lose you, so you wear that spanking and know that it was given because I love you. Hear me?"
Kari nodded, and snuggled against him. "I'm sorry I was so careless, Jake. I won't do that ever again, I promise." The look in her lovely green eyes convinced him she meant her promise.
"Let's get settled in here, and then you can lie down. Your body needs rest, and Jase would have my hide for letting you run like that earlier," Jake was worrying again.
"I'm fine, especially considering the alternative," she said firmly.
"I'm going to get you in bed, and then I need to get out there and work, sweetheart. You don't need to worry; you won't be alone. I'll have an officer stationed here with you."
"I don't want to be separated from you, Jake!" she declared. "I'm afraid."
"You're safe here, Kari. I wouldn't leave you if I thought otherwise." Jake didn't take the time to argue with her. He insisted she get into bed and rest and when Officer Kelly Wintrow arrived, he gave her her orders and then left. He was going to find Quincy Darles and take him in for questioning on Deborah's disappearance. He had quite enough evidence, and if he could get him to tell where Deborah was sold, he'd get her home safe if at all humanly possible.
* * *
The house was silent when Kari woke from her nap, and she couldn't believe she'd slept so long! It had to be late by now. She jumped out of bed and put on a robe because the house felt chilly to her. "Jake?" she called out when she left the bedroom, and nearly shrieked when someone other than Jake came around the corner to the hallway. "Miss Morgan, I'm Officer Wintrow. Lieutenant Tobias is working now. I will be with you until morning, and then another Officer will be assigned this duty if the Lieutenant orders."
"I see. How long has he been gone?" she asked in a voice that sounded whiny and petulant, even to her own ears.
"About two hours," the Officer replied. "Why don't you go back to bed, Miss Morgan, and get some rest? I promise to wake you if anything out of the ordinary happens."
Kari shook her head 'no' and then she smiled. "Please call me Kari, and the last thing I want to do right now is go back to bed. I've been in bed so much this week, I want to stay up late and eat junk food. Is there anything good in the kitchen?" she asked wistfully. "Jacob is a very strict nurse," she added. "No McDonalds, no chocolate... just healthy stuff to get me well, as he puts it. Now that he's away, this little mouse is going to play." She giggled at the other woman's amused expression. "Come on... I don't know your first name...?" she said expectantly, and the other woman promptly said 'Kelly'. "Well, Kelly, let's go on a junk food search. We'll stuff ourselves and get to know each other... unless that would get you into trouble with Jake?" she asked.
"I'm allowed to eat, Kari," Kelly grinned.
"Good! And BINGO!" she called out. "Look at this freezer, Kelly. Chocolate Ice Cream, the good kind... A Cheesecake, and Eclairs. MMMmmmMMMM" Kari pulled out the container of ice cream and said, "Does this look good to you, Kelly?"
"Definitely," the other woman answered with a giggle. She would be in trouble later, but it was so hard to resist temptation all the time. She got out two bowls and spoons while Kari looked for an ice cream dipper in the drawers. She finally found one, and filled their bowls generously.
"Now all we need is some chocolate syrup," Kari wiggled her eyebrows and went searching again. Kelly helped, and sure enough, there was a large unopened bottle of Hershey's chocolate syrup in one of the cupboards. "This is going to be sinfully good." She put generous amounts in both bowls, and then put away the syrup and the ice cream, and cleaned her mess off the counter. Kelly went to sit at the table and Kari blushed and said, "Could we sit in the living room, Kelly? Those chairs look uncomfortable." She led the way, and then gently eased herself down into the softest sofa in the room. She still winced; Jake didn't know his own strength, and she was really sore!
Kelly nearly dropped her ice cream as her brown eyes looked at Kari curiously. "Oh my goodness! I thought I was the only woman in this town with a man who spanks!"
"You get spanked, too?" Kari was shocked. "Really? For what?"
"For lots of things, but mostly for disrespect or sass," Kelly admitted, her cheeks pink.
"But, you're a police officer! You could arrest him, or flip him on his back!"
Kelly laughed. "My Nevin is a Police Officer, too, and he is an expert in Karate. I couldn't flip him if I tried all day." She giggled at the thought. "And, as for arresting him, it wouldn't be fair since I asked him to take charge in our marriage and begged him for a Domestic Discipline relationship. Both of my older sisters have been married and divorced at least twice, and I don't want that. I want one husband for life. A sore bottom works to keep communication open, end resentments, and it puts a stop to pettiness. Nevin and I are very much in love and very happy... even when I need a cushion to sit comfortably," she admitted.
"You don't find it odd to accept a child's punishment?" Kari asked the other woman.
"Nevin doesn't spank me like a child," Kelly answered. "We don't spank our kids unless the situation is extreme, and even then it is only a swat or two to get their attention while we explain why what they did was wrong or dangerous. When Nevin spanks me, it is very embarrassing, and I end up sore each and every time, but it isn't abusive... and he'd never, ever spank a child as he does me. It's an expression of love," Kelly insisted.
"That's what Jake says, too. That he wouldn't bother to spank me if he didn't love me..." She looked at Kelly and said, "I answered my door without asking who was on the other side, and it's my fault that Quincy Darles learned Jake was in my apartment."
"That would be spankable at my house, too, but I wouldn't answer the door without looking. I've been to too many crime scenes that started just that way and I know better."
"I do, too. Now," Kari said with a rueful expression. She had to smile when Kelly giggled, and they talked like old friends.
Kelly's cell phone beeped and she answered, "Officer Wintrow. Yes, Lieutenant. Thank you, sir." She hung up and smiled. "Your man is on his way. Maybe you ought to go on back to bed before he comes in...?" she suggested.
"No, I couldn't sleep. I want to know what happened tonight," Kari answered.
Jake came in through the garage door and came to find them in the living room. "What are you doing out of bed, young lady. You've been ill and you should be sleeping!" he scolded.
"I slept six hours today, Jake. I'm not tired or sleepy right now."
"Jase said you are to rest."
"I've been sitting here resting all night, getting to know Kelly," Kari smiled.
> "Anything at all to report, Officer Wintrow?" he turned his attention to the Officer, who was standing.
"No, sir. Everything has been quiet."
"Good. Go on back to the Station and see where you are needed for the rest of your shift. I'll expect you back here tomorrow evening at eight o'clock."
"Yes, sir." She turned to leave.
"Good bye, Kelly, and thanks for keeping me company."
"It was my pleasure, Kari," she smiled in return and then left.
"You need to be in bed, sweetheart," Jake said firmly.
"Not until you tell me what happened tonight," she crossed her arms over her chest.
"Nothing much, sweetheart. I spent all night looking for Darles, but didn't find him. He might have spotted the unmarked car I had on him," he admitted with a disgusted frown.
"Well, don't worry about it. I feel safe here, and Kelly was very nice. We talked of everything under the sun."
"Good. I'm pleased you made her feel at home. She's a nice young woman."
"Did you know they have two children?"
"Yes, they're Nevin's from his first marriage. His first wife was killed in a car accident, right after the youngest was born. He was left with a two year old and an infant. His Mom helped a lot, and then he met Kelly at work, and they hit it off right away. She adopted those babies as hers, and that was that."
"Oh, she didn't tell me any of that! I wondered how she could be so young and have a five and three year old!" She paused and then asked, "Did you know that Nevin spanks her?"
"What? No...! You talked to Kelly about spanking?" he was shocked.
"She realized that you spanked me when I asked to sit in here instead of at the kitchen table to eat our ice cream. Those chairs don't have cushions!" she said in an accusing tone of voice. "And then she admitted that Nevin spanked her, too, and she asked for a Domestic Discipline relationship because she didn't want to be like her sisters and divorced several times."
"You two did talk," Jake said quietly.
"Ut oh... Did I do something wrong?" Kari wanted to know, and her green eyes were full of trepidation.
"A spanking is personal, sweetheart. Like making love. It happens between two people who love each other, and it should be kept private and personal."
"Oh... I'm sorry," she said contritely.
"No harm done, but Kelly is under my supervision. I'm not saying she would want to make trouble for me, but having information of that sort could be a weapon in the wrong hands. Just as me knowing that Nevin spanks her. I don't feel that either of us are abusive, but it could be twisted and used against us by someone with a grudge or an axe to grind," he explained as gently as possible.
"I'm sorry, Jake. I would never purposely say something to hurt you."
"I know that, sweetheart, and I'm not upset with you. Kelly and Nevin are good people, and I trust them... but please be circumspect until you check with me... at least until you get to know everyone I work with a bit better."
"I will," she promised.
"And now, young lady, you are going to bed, and if I catch you up before eight o'clock, you'll get a spanking and sent back to bed." He scooped her up and carried her, giggling, to the large master suite and put her in bed and tucked her in. Goodnight, sweetheart," he said as he leaned down to kiss her.
Kari returned Jake's kiss with passion, and was disappointed when he ended their embrace. "Go to sleep, sweetheart. We need to get a wedding planned soon," he said.
"I'm sure you're the one, Jake. I don't care if you join me here..." the invitation was for more than 'sleeping' and he knew it. She loved Jacob Tobias and didn't want to wait any longer to make love.
"You've been ill, sweetheart, and I don't want you to make a decision like this until you're well, and when your body isn't full of desire. I don't want to seduce you unless I'm sure that you are sure. If you want to wait until our wedding night, I'll wait. I might be impatient and think I'm going to die of frustration, but I'll give you time... all that you need, Kari. He kissed her once again, and then left her alone in the huge bed.
Kelly came back the next evening, and Jake went looking for Quincy Darles. He didn't find Darles, but found one of his minions. The man was tying up loose ends for Darles and was to meet him elsewhere. Jake questioned him for hours but couldn't find out where Darles went. Rosenberg said he was to fly to Detroit and wait to hear from Darles. Jake asked him about Jenna's friend Deborah, and the man told where she was sold and he gave up several other names as well, trying to minimize the time he would spend in prison. Jake contacted the FBI, and heard a few hours later that they had found Deborah and she was being treated at a local hospital. The other girls were released from captivity, too, and Kari shivered to think that Darles was intending to do that to her, too.
"You aren't going back to your apartment, Kari," Jake told her the next morning.
"But, I can't afford..."
"Hush, sweetheart. You cannot stay there. It isn't safe. I'll go and pack up the rest of your belongings, and I'll take you to my place, or to Ma's if you'd rather stay there until we're married...?" he gave her an option to consider. He didn't want her to set foot in her old apartment. Quincy Darles and his hired goons wrecked the place and left graffiti on the walls. A lot of her furniture was destroyed... and he didn't want her seeing any of the destruction.
"I want to be with you, Jake. I'm sure of my feelings for you, and as long as you won't think less of me, I want us to be together. We can have our wedding night before the wedding, can't we?"
Jake nodded. "If that's what you want, sweetheart. If you're sure...? I'm not going to rush you into this."
"I wish the wedding was tomorrow," she shocked him by saying. "Couldn't we just call a judge and do it? Or fly to Vegas?" she suggested.
Jake flipped out his cell phone and hit a number. Her eyes lit up as she listened without shame as he spoke to Judge Benson and arranged a time for them to get married. Then he hit another number. "Ma, what are you doing tomorrow? Could you plan a small wedding reception? Kari and I are going to get married at the court house at five o'clock."
* * *
"This is not fair, bro, and you know it!" Jason fumed as he straightened Jake's tie. "I've been engaged for a few months now, and you're beating me to the punch!"
"Just lucky, I guess," Jake grinned, and then said seriously, "If Kari wanted a fancy wedding, I would have waited, bro. She didn't, and I know she meant the words. I'm a lucky man. No tux!" he teased his brother.
Kari's father was there, a stunned expression on his face, and one of her cousins came to be her matron of honor. Jake's family was there, too. His Ma, Jason, and even Jenna was there, looking very unhappy and glaring daggers at her new sister-in-law-to-be. Judge Benson was in a jovial mood, and admitted that he was a little surprised to get a call from Jake and couldn't wait to meet the lucky bride. The wedding didn't take long to perform, but it was done reverently and with respect, and no one in the room could doubt that Kari and Jake were truly in love.
Jake moved Kari to his home from the safe house, and kept insisting that he would go and get her other belongings as soon as possible. Kari whispered that he didn't have to do it that night, and Jake didn't argue. He made sweet love to his bride, and when she shyly admitted she was happy they'd waited, he kissed her and made love to her yet again.
The next morning, Jake's cell phone rang, and he told Kari he had to go to a crime scene. He was relieved when she didn't fuss and promised him she would be fine while he was gone. She unpacked her things as best she could, but learned there were a few things she really needed from her old apartment. She left a note for Jake, just in case he got home earlier than she expected, and then got into her car and drove to her old place. She parked in front and then used her key to let herself inside. What she saw was more than shocking! The furniture that she'd saved for months to buy was ruined. The walls were covered with spray paint and what they said was more than a little frightening. As she walked into her b
edroom the stench was overwhelming. Her clothes, especially her unclothes, were lying in scraps on the floor and the bed was ruined completely. She started crying, and picked up her phone and called Jake. He told her he was on his way, and made her promise not to let anyone inside. It was obvious he was afraid the apartment was being watched, and in the next minute, there was a loud pounding on the front door... and a voice demanding she open up immediately.
Chapter Six
"You open this door, girl. I seen you go inside there!" The pounding continued and Kari recognized her landlord's agitated voice. She crossed the living room, stepping over the mess laying on the floor and jerked the door open. "You're going to pay for the damages in here, girl." The man pushed her aside so he could step into the living room.
"I didn't do this!" Kari was highly insulted. "And I'm not paying for it."
"You are or I'll sue you!" he sputtered. "It's going to mean new carpet, and repainting this entire place. I want you and your stuff out of here now... today, girl!"
"Who the hell do you think you're talking to, Mister? I did not make this mess; I am not responsible for any of the vandalism here, and I will not be intimidated by the likes of you. Is that clear? In fact," Kari warmed to her subject, "I am considering suing you for renting me an apartment next to a convicted felon. AND, how dare you purport these apartments as safe when the attic runs the entire length of the building? This place is not safe, which is false advertising, and for what you are charging for rent, it is high time someone take you to court and have you answer for your irresponsibility!"
"I'm going to call the cops!" the man blustered.
"I already did," she responded and smiled when she heard the siren getting closer.
Jake came running when he saw the door to Kari's old apartment was hanging open, and the relief he felt at finding her inside and unharmed was overwhelming. She was standing there, spitting fire at the landlord, and gone was all the fear she'd felt when she'd called him just a few minutes ago. He much preferred seeing her angry, with her hands on her hips and glaring at the man, than frightened and whimpering and afraid.
