An Unexpected Wife

by Masters, Constance

  “I could run away.”

  “I guess you could,” Cliff said patiently. “Then, of course, that would lead us to round three.”

  “I’m not even going to ask what round three would involve.” Sage visibly sagged as her breath left her with a whoosh of defeat.

  Cliff watched as Sage dropped her head just a little and he knew he had her, almost. “Undo them, Sage,” he said.

  “Why do you want to spank me? You’re bigger than me and probably faster than me, I get it, but why do you want to spank me?”

  “Simple answer is that you need it. You’re acting so irrationally. You’re not learning, Sage, from past mistakes, from more recent mistakes and you aren’t looking at the bigger picture or our immediate future. You could lose those kids, and by the time you get them back, Bailey will be a teenager.”

  “Oh.”

  “If you’re going to be a parent, you need to understand that there are choices in life and consequences for making bad choices. If you can’t recognise danger for yourself, how are you going to recognise danger for the kids? Now last chance, what’s it to be?”

  Sage’s fingers went to the button on her jeans and her head sagged against his chest. “You’re really going to do this, aren’t you?”

  “Uh huh, could be worse though. If we have to have this discussion again, next time will be my belt.” Cliff went to turn on a light while he watched her struggle from the corner of his eye.

  Sage wriggled and twisted, trying to remove the tight denim but the process was slow. “I’m trying,” she said defensively.

  Cliff placed his thumbs on either side of her and helped her peel the offending garment off her hips and down to her knees. The lace underwear followed. “Step out,” he said, tossing the clothes to the side. He could tell she was embarrassed and that was a plus. The humiliation and the fact she was trying her hardest to keep her lady parts covered from him were all part of the lesson and hopefully would act as a deterrent for her wanting to repeat her actions. “Now walk over there to that corner and stand there until I call you.”

  “Why can’t I wait here?” she asked.

  He turned her around and sent her off with a smack, not bothering to use any more words. He had to admit she looked adorable walking away in nothing but her tiny shirt, hands covering her rear end, probably for dual purposes, to cover and to protect.

  Cliff had made up his mind in that moment, that no other man was going to enjoy this view. She was beautiful and she was his and tomorrow he would start the courting. He would win her over and she would want him to be in her life, in bed and in her heart. Now though, he needed to get them past these games.

  Finally, Jett was taken care of and he was pleased to see that Sage was still waiting where he’d left her. “Sage, come on over,” he said.

  “Couldn’t you just do it over here?” Sage’s face was filled with shame.

  “Nope, start walking.”

  Sage covered her herself with cupped hands as she walked towards him.

  “Good girl,” Cliff said, “you’re learning.” He took Sage’s arm and toppled her over his knee, raising his leg so her bottom was in prime position. Her skin was white, and her muscles tightly clenched. “Unclench,” he said.

  “That’s easy for you to say, you’re not about to get your backside walloped.”

  Cliff shook his head but had to smile at her gumption. That didn’t stop him from waking her up with a slap to the back of each thigh.

  “Hey, not there!” Sage yelled.

  “Then unclench your bottom.”

  Cliff squeezed each cheek and patted the now softer target appreciatively. “Better,” he said. He raised his arm and brought his hand down with a whack on the left cheek. His handprint stood out starkly on the white skin. He repeated the process to make a similar mark on the other cheek and that meant he might have spent a little longer than he realised admiring his canvas.

  Sage wriggled. “Come on! If you're going to do it, just get on with it,” she said with irritation.

  “Oh, I’m going to do it.” This time his hand splattered across both cheeks, then one and then the other. He found a rhythm that had her panting and did curb her tongue somewhat. “You will never drink and use any kind of a vehicle again,” he said, starting to lecture without missing a beat.

  “I was on a horse!” Sage yelled.

  Somewhat, she wasn’t silent. “A horse is a vehicle.” The clapping sound was loud as was the noise coming from the animals, who were obviously disturbed by their evening show. “If you’ve been drinking and you are out on the road, you are, not, safe!” He punctuated each of the last four words with an extra hard spank; even his own hand was stinging.

  “It’s hurting too much, Cliff, please!” she yelled.

  “I don’t want you to go drinking and dancing with other people,” he said. You’re mine! I only want you to go drinking and dancing with me, is what he wanted to say, but now wasn’t the time.

  “I want you to be careful and to think before you do things,” he said. Her bottom was a dark shade of pink, but her crease was still white and untouched. He helped her to stand. “We’re not finished yet,” he said, ignoring her crestfallen expression.

  “But it hurts plenty already,” she whined, her eyes brimming with unshed tears.

  “I want you to remember this, Sage. I don’t want to have to repeat the same lesson.”

  “You won’t I promise, I’ll be sensible, I’ll do anything you want.”

  He stood beside her. “Bend over.”

  “No, I don’t want to.”

  “Really, Sage? That must be the fastest recant I’ve ever heard.”

  “I don’t want you to see.” Her face was as pink as her bottom and she squirmed with embarrassment.

  “I hate to tell you, honey, but I’ve already seen. Now bend over.” He wasn’t going to bend her this time, he wanted her to do it herself.

  Sage bent, although her body automatically twisted away from Cliff, trying to keep from him her dirty little secret.

  Cliff pulled her back towards him at the same time and bent to peek at his intended target. Ah, all became clear, it seemed his naughty girl thought she had a reason to be embarrassed. Nothing could be further from the truth. The fact that her girly parts were shimmering with pleasure, made his heart thump and his member twitch. He wanted to dip his face right in there but, once again, there was a time and a place and this wasn’t either. Taking a second to compose himself, he once again brought his hand down with several fiery spanks to one silky strip of pale skin that was now on show, the delicate place that was where her bottom met her thigh.

  “Oh, my Lord!” she squealed. “Stop it, Cliff, please, it burns!”

  “Almost done,” he said. He evened her up, spanking the other crease until it was as pink and warm as its counterpart.

  “Stop!” she cried, “please!” Her hand shot back to cover her burning skin.

  He caught her hand and held it behind her back while he gave the whole area one more layer of sharp spanks. “There, I’m done,” he said, pulling her into his arms when she straightened up. He half expected her to take a swing at him but was surprised when she wrapped her arms around his waist and sobbed into his shirt. He rested his chin on the top of her head and savoured the closeness of the moment.

  * * *

  Sage pulled the t-shirt over her head and tossed it into the corner of the room. Stupid thing. Once again, now that she was feeling a little better, the young woman couldn’t help herself, she had to review the damage. She backed up to the mirror and this time she was surprised at how pink her bottom really was—it was warm to the touch too. Time to shower. It was going to hurt, but she felt sweaty and gross and her hair was a tangled mess. She’d have to wash and dry it but then all she wanted was to crawl into her bed and go to sleep. It would be nice to have Cliff’s arms around her she had to admit. Although the spanking had been embarrassing and had hurt like holy hell, his hug after had made up for it
all. It was an intimate moment and one she wouldn’t mind reliving, just the hug part, not the spanking.

  “Feel better?”

  Cliff startled her. When she came out from the bathroom he was perched on the end of her bed. “A little,” she said, pulling the towel around her tightly. It was silly, he had just had an up close view of her most intimate parts, and it wasn’t the first time, yet she felt shy. “I’m tired.”

  “I’m not surprised.” He pulled back the covers and motioned for her to climb in. “I made you some tea,” he said.

  “Thanks.” Ask him, she thought. Tell him you need him. “Are you going to stay? Inside? I mean inside the house, in here?” Oh man, could she sound any more pathetic?

  “Do you want me to stay?”

  “Kind of, I don’t want to be by myself.”

  “Then I’d like to stay.”

  Sage had shaved and perfumed in case but she found she was nervous now. “I just have to get changed.”

  “Me too, I’ll give you some privacy.”

  This was awkward. Sage frantically searched through her drawers, wishing she was a neat freak who could find at the drop of a hat, a perfect, unwrinkled piece of lingerie that was just the right thing to wear to bed. What an odd thought. Usually the only thing she’d be wearing to bed was her birthday suit. There would be heavy kissing, drinking and it would all just kind of happen. She would fall into bed and wake up in the morning in a tangle of sheets, sometimes alone. This was different, she cared. Finally, she settled on a silky pair of pyjamas. She rapidly made her unmade bed and slipped inside, waiting for Cliff to return.

  “I hope this is okay,” he said, returning a few minutes later. “I don’t actually own pyjamas.”

  “Fine,” she managed to choke out. It was more than fine. He had been wearing jeans and a t-shirt but as he slipped into bed beside her he was in fresh boxers and a tank top. She had to admit, he was beautiful. As he climbed in beside her, she leant towards him, he smelled good, he felt even better. He kissed her but it was soft and gentle, not the urgent kind she was expecting, maybe hoping for. His underwear left little to wonder at and she knew he wanted her as much as she wanted him so it was confusing. Unless she was wrong, it didn’t seem like anything was going to happen.

  “I want it to be perfect the next time we make love,” he said. “Turn over.”

  “Okay,” she said, trying to process the answer to her unanswered question. She did as he asked and found herself pulled back into a tight embrace. His whole body outlined hers and his arms closed around her, folding her into a safe and loving embrace.

  “We’re going to find a way to make this work,” he whispered.

  Sage wasn’t sure whether she was supposed to hear what Cliff had whispered or if he was, in fact, trying to reassure himself. Whatever he’d been trying to do, she did feel reassured, so much so that she closed her eyes and melted into him, falling into a deep sleep.

  Chapter Seven

  The next morning when Sage woke, she was a little disappointed to find an empty space beside her. Cliff had left, just like the last time and it looked like they would be back to square one. She got out of bed, her heart heavy in her chest but then noticed a note on her the pillow where Cliff had slept. She tore at the envelope ripping it to shreds in her haste to find what was inside.

  Didn’t want to wake you, you looked so sweet and angelic in sleep. Get dressed up pretty for a date by 10:00 am.

  Sage’s mood immediately lifted. After leaping into and out of the shower, she spent an hour and a half deciding on what to wear. If this were a date, she mused, maybe a dress. She slid dress after dress out of the way in her closet until she came up with a simple floral sundress. Finally, out of ideas and deciding it was fairly decent, she chose that one, paired it with a denim jacket and of course her good boots.

  Hair dried and matching underwear on, she slipped the dress over her head. She looked in the mirror and decided the dress was pretty. It was fitted to the waist and then it flowed into folds that ended a few inches above the knee. It wasn’t too bold and it wasn’t completely old-maidish either.

  On the dot of ten there was a knock on the door. Sage’s eyes widened in shock when she answered it. Standing there wearing a button-down shirt in the exact same blue as his eyes and a pair of chinos, was Cliff. “Hi,” he said with a smile. “I brought you these.” He handed her a bunch of the prettiest pale pink roses she had ever seen. “I hope you like roses.”

  “I love roses. Thanks, Cliff,” she said. “I’ll just put them in some water.” The flowers weren’t from a florist either, these were roses cut from a garden, probably his own. He’d even taken the trouble to remove the thorns. Sage had never been brought flowers in the whole of her life and she liked the way it made her feel, kind of special and tingly inside. “Where are we going?” she asked as they walked down the front stairs.

  “We’re going out.” He wiggled his eyebrows cheekily.

  “Can’t I ask where?” She rolled her eyes and poked out her tongue and it didn’t escape her that they were flirting. It was a nice feeling.

  “No you can’t,” he said with a grin. “It’s a surprise.”

  “Ooh, I like surprises.”

  They walked to a car that surprisingly wasn’t his truck. His big warm hand rested on the small of her back, extremely close to her bottom but not close enough. She was a little surprised to find that she wanted him to slide his hand lower. He didn’t. He was obviously keen to show her that he could be a gentleman.

  “My grandpa insisted that I take my grandma’s car,” he said with a chuckle. “He said that you can’t woo a lady properly while asking her to climb into your truck.”

  “Very nice,” she said of the decent sized Chevy. “Big car for a grandma!”

  “Grandpa thinks she’s safer to have some metal around her.”

  She smiled. She wanted that, what his grandparents had and what her own parents had had, a partner in life who never stopped caring. “Your grandmother is a lucky woman.”

  “Yes she is, so is my Grandpa.”

  Sage expected that they were driving towards town but she had no idea where they were going or what they were doing when Cliff turned and drove the other way, until they reached the turn off to the mountain. “I know where we’re going.”

  “Oh do you now?”

  “Yes, I bet we’re going to the Smoky Brasserie.”

  “Maybe,” Cliff said giving nothing away with his expression. “I guess you’ll just have to wait and see, won’t you?”

  “Bet I’m right.”

  Sage was sure she was right about the location of their date, until they drove right past the driveway that lead to the restaurant and kept driving further up the mountain. It was then that she realised they were heading to the lookout. Why then had they dressed up? She tried to push it away but disappointment niggled at her. They weren’t even going to eat in a restaurant?

  “Keep an open mind,” Cliff said.

  Had he read her mind? “I’m okay,” she said.

  “You’re disappointed, I can tell. If you’re patient though, you might just be surprised.” He patted her leg.

  The pat on her leg wasn’t very gentle. In fact, if she were a sceptical person, she might have even taken it as a warning. The tingle in her bottom seemed to agree. “I’m sure I won’t be,” she said. After all, Cliff had gone to all of this trouble borrowing a car and bringing her flowers. The more she thought about it, the more she was sure that whatever Cliff had planned would be lovely.

  “We’re here,” Cliff announced. “I want you to close your eyes and leave them closed until I come get you okay?”

  Sage grinned. “Yes, Cliff.” She closed her eyes and covered her face with her hands. She had to admit to feeling a little excited for whatever her husband had planned. Husband, it was weird, felt like she should be thinking boyfriend. This was different, like the feeling you get when you first like someone and you realise they like you back. It was nice.<
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  “I’m back,” Cliff said.

  “May I open my eyes?”

  “Not yet,” he said, helping her from the car and taking her hand. “Watch your step.”

  It probably wasn’t very far but it felt like a long way. When you’re walking blind and you don’t know exactly where you are, time alters. “May I open them yet?” she asked when they finally stood still.

  “Almost.”

  She felt herself being guided down and then sitting on a chair. “Now?”

  “Now you can open them.”

  What Sage saw when she opened her eyes melted her heart and it wasn’t the spectacular view, the prettily laid out folding table and chairs or the wine bucket. The first thing she saw was the child like excitement in Cliff’s eyes. He had planned all of this: a beautiful, outdoor, romantic picnic and he was beyond excited and anxious to hear that she liked what he'd done. He was beaming but barely breathing. It brought tears to her eyes. “No one has ever gone to this much trouble for me ever,” she said. “I love it. It’s the most perfect first date ever.”

  “Thank God,” he said, finally breathing a sigh of relief. “I didn’t want you to think I was a cheap date or something.”

  “Far from it.” She grinned. “Champagne even.”

  “Well, non-alcoholic sparkling wine, I have to drive.” He smiled. “That's okay, isn't it?”

  “It sure is,” Sage said. “So, what’s in the hamper?”

  “Lots of things,” he said. “I had already started packing the picnic lunch when Grandma arrived to deliver her car, so she added to it some.” He started to unload the food from the cooler.

  “Fried chicken, nice.”

  “I made the chicken,” he said happily. “And the potato salad, and the green and avocado salad.”

  “I have a feeling dessert is compliments of Grandma,” Sage said, peeking into the cooler.

  “And you would be right. We have pound cake, fruit kebabs and marshmallow dip.”

  “Yum.”

  “Dig in,” Cliff said. “Grandma also insisted on proper plates and glasses. She said a date should have a little class, even if you’re married.”