How Miss West Was Won

by Lexie Clark

  “Well, we’ve had some excitement in town,” Jacob said. “Someone broke into the general store last night and took a bunch of rope, some pick axes and other assorted tools.”

  Eli frowned. “And you thought to come out here first?”

  “Well, Nathan mentioned to me that you hadn’t fallen off a horse, but been hit in the head by an intruder. We don’t have a lot of trouble, so I put two and two together and think your problems might be linked with the problem at the store.”

  Jacob stood with his hand on his gun, and a very unhappy look on his face. For his part, Eli wanted to ride into town and punch Nathan in the nose. Why would he tell Jacob the truth about how Eli was injured?

  “I’m waiting,” Jacob said. “Because if something is going on here, something that threatens the safety of the people of my town, I want to know about it. So out with it, Eli, all of it.”

  Eli took a few seconds to decide what to say, and then he decided to tell his old friend the whole truth. When he was done, Jacob was scratching his head. “You get a look at him?”

  Eli shook his head, grateful that it didn’t hurt to move. “Nope.”

  “You have no clue what he wanted?”

  “Nope.” Eli gestured toward the house. “You want something to drink? Or eat?”

  “Sure, let’s go inside.” They made their way into the front door, and Eli called for Mrs. Dunlap. When she came into the hallway Eli told her that he and the marshal would be in the library, and they would like something to drink.

  They sat down in the big chairs his mother had bought in Denver, and Eli once again felt a twinge that his parents were not there.

  After a few moments, Cordelia came in, carrying a tray with some lemonade and cookies on it.

  “Thanks, Mrs. Bannister, or should I say Miss West?” Jacob said.

  Eli watched as she pulled up short. He was thankful she didn’t drop the tray. She set it down on a table near his chair.

  “I do not know—”

  “Save it,” Jacob said as he reached for a glass. “Eli told me everything.” Then he reached into his pocket. He pulled out a folded sheet of paper. “This came for you this morning in the telegraph office. I happened to be in there at the time, and told Mr. Peak I was coming this way and he asked me to deliver it.”

  He held out the paper and Cordelia snatched it up. “Is nothing sacred in this town?” she asked.

  “I’m the marshal,” Jacob said. “And I happened to overhear him telling his hired help to bring it out. I just saved the boy a trip.” Jacob snapped his fingers. “Chop, chop, Miss West. Open it and let’s see what it says about Miss Perry, who, by the way, is still sitting in the hotel, fuming.”

  Cordelia glanced around the room, and Eli noticed the questioning look in her eyes. “Go ahead,” he said. He explained to her about the break in at the store. “I told Jacob everything.”

  Cordelia walked to a chair and sat down. She opened the telegram and Eli watched her eyes as she skimmed the words. “Mr. Tuttle says it’s true. He had a reporter check out the woman in England, which is why it took so long. She is an actress. What do we do now?”

  The room was quiet for a moment, and then Eli sighed. “I think what we need to realize is the information Nathan gave me about her being my intended bride was false. Don’t we agree?”

  Eli didn’t want to think that his longtime friend had told him an untruth, but he wasn’t sure what else he could think. If Constance was an actress and following a part, she had to have been hired by someone, and Nathan was the person who told him about the agreement between Eli’s father and Constance’s father.

  “Let us not jump to conclusions,” Cordelia said. “There is every possibility that Nathan received the papers and thought they were truthful. He may not have written them himself.”

  Both men looked at her. Eli hoped she was putting out a theory that proved truthful.

  “Either way, it is obvious that Constance is working with someone,” Jacob said. “The way for us to find out is for me to stand guard at the hotel tonight and see if she has a visitor, an early morning one that doesn’t go in through the front door.”

  “That’s a good idea,” Eli said. “Do you want me to help?”

  “No,” Jacob said. “People see you in town in the middle of the night and they might wonder why. I can wander the streets at will.” The marshal drained his glass, and then looked at the tray. “No pitcher for seconds?”

  “I’ll get it,” Cordelia said. She swept out of the room, and when she was gone, Jacob leaned toward Eli.

  “This is none of my business, but if you let her go after all this is over, you’re a fool.”

  Eli wanted to say she was nothing more than an employee, but he didn’t. One of the things he had left out while he was telling Jacob about recent events was the wonderful times Eli and Cordelia had made love. She was more than a worker to him. She was someone he wanted to keep in his life forever.

  “I know,” Eli said. “But I don’t know if, in the long run, I’ll have a say in the matter.”

  Jacob snorted out a laugh. “You find a way, Eli. Woo her, give her flowers, tell her you want her to stay. Do anything that works.”

  Eli wanted to ask if that included spanking her, because he’d done that a few times; and he planned on doing it again tonight.

  * * *

  Cordelia looked out the window again, wondering exactly where Eli had gone. After Jacob’s visit that morning, Eli had gone out to work, as he had said he was going to do earlier. He had come in for dinner, but had eaten quickly and then gone back out, telling her he would return sometime before it was dark.

  But it was dark now, and he had not returned. Not long after dark, true, but it was still past the time when he had said he would be back. Her stomach was in nervous knots as she waited.

  Today’s news had been unwelcomed; not the news about Constance, because she had been sure that was a given fact. But the information Jacob had brought, that someone had broken into the general store, added a whole new twist to things.

  How could this be related to the problems happening here? Jacob was sure the events were intertwined, but Cordelia was not. Try as she might, she could not find something to link them together. Maybe she and Eli could talk about it tonight and come up with an answer together.

  In the meantime, she knew Jacob would be out on the streets of Boulder tonight, watching the hotel were Constance stayed, to see if he could come up with more information.

  On top of that, there was something else that had bothered her all day. She had only told Eli part of what Mr. Tuttle’s telegram had said. Her boss was very curious about what was happening in Colorado. He demanded a report; including a date for Cordelia’s return so he could start plugging her story.

  Reading his words had made her remember that she was only here for a short while, that she would be back in New York at some time, working behind her desk, with nothing to look forward to at the end of the day.

  It was not an idea she savored, but it was how life was. Losing William had taught her that life was not fair, that you did not always get what you wanted, and the reality of things was much different than the fantasies that helped most people get through the day.

  What would she think of now while she did Mr. Tuttle’s biding? She thought about it for a few long moments, and nothing came to mind. After William’s death she had been sad, almost beyond belief. But she had gotten over it, had resigned herself to the fact that she would be alone, and felt like she could live with it.

  But now, after she had given herself to Eli like she had, how could she leave and go back home to nothing?

  Something told her that Eli would not ask her to stay, though, after the way she had treated Constance not once, but twice. She had embarrassed him, and she knew he was angry about the situation. He would not want her here permanently, since she was so unpredictable.

  Cordelia sighed. She had never been this way before. What had caused it to happen now
, she wondered?

  As she processed the thought, she looked out the window. She could now see Eli walking across the expansive space between the barn and the house. He looked tired, as if the day had taken all his energy.

  She wondered if he had recovered from the injury he had received in the kitchen. He said he was better, but it was her experience that sometimes men tried to hide their illnesses so they would not seem weak. William had been that way. She wondered if Eli was the same.

  As he drew nearer, Cordelia hurried to the front door. She pulled it open just as he climbed the stairs to the porch. “How has your day been?” She nervously twisted her hair around her finger. “I expected you sooner, and I was beginning to worry.”

  “We had some work on the fence that needed to be repaired,” Eli said. He brushed past her as he entered the house. “It hasn’t been that long since you’ve seen me, Cordelia. I was just here a few hours ago for dinner.” He turned in the hallway. “Did you miss me, Cordelia?”

  Admitting something like that would make things worse when she had to leave. “No, I was just wondering where you were. We have not heard anything from Jacob, although I truthfully do not expect news until the morning.”

  “Right,” Eli said as he made his way into the library. As Cordelia came into the room he sat down in the middle of the sofa.

  “Are you feeling all right?”

  “I am,” he said. “Well enough to spank you as punishment for what you did at the party.”

  Cordelia stopped in the doorway. Her mouth was slightly open, and Eli was staring at her, a very serious look on his face. “You not serious.”

  “Very serious,” he said. “I can’t believe you did that. After the scene you caused in the store, I would have thought you knew I didn’t want something like that to happen. Yet you did it, as if my wishes didn’t matter.”

  Cordelia crossed her arms over her chest. She knew this was coming, but she was not sure how to proceed. It took her a few minutes, but she finally decided it was best to postpone this conversation. The best way to do it was to go upstairs to her bedroom, and to let him know he was not invited into her lair.

  “Eli, you have had a difficult few days. This is not something we need to discuss right now.”

  “On the contrary,” he said. “I don’t want to leave the situation open any longer. It needs to be dealt with. Something like that will never happen again, Cordelia, and to emphasize my words, you will be spanked. Now. On your bare bottom.”

  Cordelia thought about arguing with him, but she knew it would do no good. The last time she argued, it ended badly. If she just agreed to the spanking, took the discipline and then went upstairs, things would be better.

  “Very well, Eli. Would you like to spank me here, or in the bedroom?” She put her hands on her hips. “Or perhaps you would like to use the porch. That worked well for you once, I believe. Or perhaps the kitchen table. The only problem with that is you will think about spanking me every time you have a meal there.”

  “Your sarcasm is not appreciated,” he said. “We will do it right here. I want you to bare your ass and come across my lap.”

  “Fine.” Cordelia started to unfasten her dress. “But I would like you to remember that I cooperated in this endeavor.”

  She sat down in the chair opposite him and took off her boots, taking her time to undo the laces slowly. When they were off, she carefully placed them next to the chair. Then she stood up, her heart racing just a little at the thought of what she was about to do. She really should just lift her skirts and pull down her pantalets and let him spank her.

  But there was a part of her that wanted to be naughty, and she knew he would not appreciate what she was about to do.

  Cordelia put her hands on her buttons and started to work them. Once her buttons were undone, she let the dress drop to the ground.

  “What are you doing?” he asked as she pushed down one of her petticoats.

  “You wanted my bare ass,” Cordelia said as she stepped out of the petticoat. She kicked it aside and pushed down the second one. “I decided to give you a bare body instead of just the ass.”

  The second petticoat was tossed aside, and Cordelia started to work the laces on her pantalets.

  “Cordelia, may I remind you we are in the library. What would happen if someone came in?”

  Cordelia shrugged. “You should have thought about that before you demanded I bare my ass.”

  Once the pantalets were undone she pushed them down. She stepped out of them and tossed them on top of the petticoats. She thought about asking him if he wanted her top bared also, but decided doing so would ruin what she had already done. With deft fingers she undid the laces on her bustier. It dropped off her shoulders moments later and she was naked.

  “Not that I don’t appreciate the view, but I think you’ve taken things a little too far.” Eli stayed where he was, but Cordelia could see by the look on his face that he was indeed happy to see her naked. Perhaps she could convince him to forget the spanking and they could make love. That would make her happy.

  “Perhaps we could do another activity,” she said, hoping her voice was seductive. “After all, I am already naked, and it would only take a few moments to divest you of your clothing.”

  He was definitely feeling lust. She could see it in his face, and in his crotch, which barely contained a nice bulge.

  For a moment, she thought she had succeeded. But then he patted his lap. “If you are naughty, you deserve punishment,” he said. “Come across my lap and receive what you deserve.”

  “Fine,” Cordelia said as she crossed the room and lowered herself across his lap. Maybe the feel of her body against his would change his mind.

  Or maybe not, she thought, as the first swat landed on her bare bottom.

  Chapter 14

  Cordelia braced herself against the harsh slap on her ass. The sheer force of the first strike told her it was going to be a long spanking. Why had she undressed and allowed herself to be spanked?

  She wiggled on Eli’s lap in an effort to get away from him. Before she could drop to the floor, though, he put his hand on her outer thigh and pulled her back into position. The ease with which he moved her was stunning. It was as if she weighed nothing at all.

  “Don’t even think you’re going anywhere,” he said. “You’re the one who stripped and opened yourself for this. All I asked for was a bare bum. You’re going to take the spanking I give you.”

  He slapped her ass repeatedly until Cordelia felt as if her nether cheeks would catch on fire. She held back from crying out though, because she thought it would provide validation for what he was doing. It was a hard thing to do, because each swat stung like the devil. In an effort to keep hold of herself, Cordelia started to count in her mind. She did not count the number of swats. Instead, she kept track of the time.

  Three minutes into the spanking, Cordelia tried another tactic. The swats continued to sting, and the counting was not helping. So she focused on the number this time. By the time she figured out he could slap her ass up to sixty times in a minute with no rests in between, she cried out, “Enough!”

  Eli slapped her ass three more times. “I hope you remember this the next time you antagonize Constance.”

  Two more slaps, a pause, two more, another pause, and then two more. Cordelia wiggled in an effort to get away from him. He held her fast again, and this time with his free hand he slapped each cheek ten times. She bit her lip to keep from screaming at him one more time.

  After the last three, Eli put his hand on her shoulder as if he would try to help her stand. Cordelia pushed away his hand and stood. She took a few steps away from him and put her hands on her hips. “How dare you.” She kept her voice low and even. “I told you the last time this happened, you had no right.”

  Eli lifted his eyebrows and smirked. “Would that warning have come in between your moans of pleasure?”

  Bringing up the erotic spanking he had given her further ange
red Cordelia. She leaned toward him. “I hope you enjoyed that moaning, because you will never hear it again.”

  Eli shook his head slowly. “You know perfectly well why you were spanked. You needed it because of what happened. If something similar happens in the future, I will spank you again.”

  Cordelia narrowed her eyes. “You touch me one more time and I will slap your ass. If you think that is an idle threat, think again.”

  His laughter pushed her anger past the boiling point. “I am going upstairs. I will not make a threat to leave, because the job is not finished. But if you touch me one more time, in any manner, I will call your friend the marshal and tell him you have assaulted me and have him throw you in his jail cell.”

  Cordelia turned toward the door. She held her head up high. Part of her thought she should stop to pick up the clothing that littered the library floor, but she decided against it; she would get up early in the morning and come down to pick up the items so that Mrs. Dunlap would not find them.

  As she walked up the stairs, naked, she hoped she looked dignified instead of ridiculous. Of course, no one was there to see her. Eli had not come out of the library, and as far as she knew they were the only people in the house.

  Once she was in her bedroom she locked the door, and wished for a lock on the connecting portal. She wondered what she had been thinking earlier, when she said she would want to stay with Eli in Colorado instead of going back to New York.

  There was no way she would ever stay with him now.

  * * *

  Eli stared at the mound of clothing on the library floor. The evening would have been more satisfactory if he and Cordelia had been able to enjoy an erotic encounter similar to the last one they had enjoyed.

  But, as always, Constance caused a problem and there was no way he was going to find comfort in Cordelia’s arms tonight. Part of him wished he had talked to her about the incident instead of spanking her, but he hoped the physical punishment would help her to remember if something like this happened again.