by Maggie Ryan
Juliette lifted her face into the wind to blow away the tears she felt on her cheeks. It was the most precious compliment she’d ever received. Bending, she kissed Nettie’s cheek. “You’ll be plenty busy, I promise. You’re not only our cook, you’re our mama bear guarding her cubs.”
“As long as you don’t expect nothin’ but honey. Don’t you forget I’ve got my—”
“—wooden spoon,” Juliette completed the sentence. “Believe me, we know.” The two women laughed and stood in comfortable silence, not leaving the rail until the the last of the coastline slid over the horizon.
The accommodations on the packet ship were not of the same standard as those on the Bonneville. They’d had to make the choice between waiting for another month to leave New Orleans or accepting the last three cabins on the Prosperity. It hadn’t been a hard one to make. Juliette and Nettie would share one cabin. When Nettie stated that she wasn’t too sure about sharing a room, Juliette had quickly cut her off stating that she promised not to keep her up all night retching.
“You know that wasn’t what I meant,” Nettie said.
“I know that I don’t care what others think,” Juliette said, closing the subject. Only John had his own quarters but Juliette wasn’t fool enough to believe he’d always be sleeping alone. She’d seen the furtive glances he and the other two women exchanged.
The rest of their co-passengers were made up of mostly men, willing to put three, four or even more into one of the coveted cabins. It seemed comfort didn’t matter as long as they got to California and to the mine fields as quickly as possible. Juliette knew that a large majority had spent almost every penny they had to make the journey.
Meals were not served in a salon nor were there little cakes to share. It quickly became routine for John to fight the crowds in the galley for their group’s share of the provisions. He’d bring them to Nettie who would do her magic before serving the greatly improved food on tin plates that were to be reused for the entire journey. The first time she did so, she gave a grin when Juliette nodded and said, “You were right, there is definitely magic in those jars. Now I’m just hoping you packed enough.”
Juliette was faced with her first tough decision when Amy passed her a handkerchief as they met in her cabin for dinner at the end of the first week of travel. Untying the knot, she looked up from the pile of coins. “What’s this?”
“Your share,” Opal said.
“Of what?”
“Our earnings.”
“You’re working?”
Amy gave her an incredulous look. “Of course we’re working.”
As she always did when dealing with something that caught her off balance, Juliette left her seat on the bed and began pacing the very small open area in the cabin. After a moment, she said, “Please tell me your customers are the captain or the crew.”
“What does that matter?” Amy asked.
“Because, these men can’t afford to be paying for sex! They are practically wearing everything they own and need money for supplies once they get to the mines!”
“Who in the hell do you think will pay our fees in Culpepper Cove? Are you planning on limiting our resources by running some sort of financial check?” Opal said, rolling her eyes.
“Watch it,” John said, “there’s no need to shout.”
“I’m not shouting” Opal shouted. “Jewel, I thought you were opening a brothel, not running some sort of charity for us poor whores!”
Amy grabbed her arm before she could jump to her feet. “I’m sure that with some thought…”
“Thought? Well, I thought we were all in agreement. I told you I want to work! I’m thinking that I made a big fucking mistake.”
“Enough! Opal, you need to calm down and stop cussing. We can discuss this like grown…” John began.
“I might not have some fancy education, but I’m not some idiot!”
Juliette shook her head. “No one said you were. But there is no reason to throw a tantrum like a child…”
“At least I’m not some judgmental snob. I left England because of people like you and I can find a real…” She gasped, “Let go of me!”
“Not on your life,” John said, hauling her to her feet. “You and I are going to have a little talk before you say something that will be totally unforgivable.”
“John, please, there’s no need…” Juliette said.
“There’s every need and after I’m done explaining that to Opal, if you still don’t understand, I’ll explain it to you. I suggest you take this time to do some serious consideration of what you are expecting from your gems and what they are expecting from Madame Jewel.”
Juliette stood, her mouth open as he marched a sputtering, cursing Ophelia out of the cabin. Turning back, she saw Amy shaking her head.
“I don’t think she meant…” Juliette started only to stop when Amy interrupted.
“She did,” Amy said. “We love you, Jewel, but you’ve got to decide if you really want to be a madame or if you just want to be our friend.” Juliette watched as she also left the cabin.
“Damn it to hell,” Juliette said and then yelped when an object slapped against her backside. Dropping to sit on the bed, she shook her head at the sight of the spoon in Nettie’s hand. “I thought you were my mama bear, Nettie.”
“And I thought you understood that mama bears aren’t all about honey. Cussin’ ain’t ladylike and I have a big bar of soap for your mouth if I hear you talkin’ like that again. I think you need to do some hard thinkin’, child. You need to get this figured out before we reach California or that dream of yours will become a nightmare.”
***
John was far less merciful in his cabin. Kicking his door closed with the heel of his boot, he wasted no time dropping onto the bed and hauling a very pissed off gem across his lap.
“Let me go! You can’t…”
“Darling, I assure you that I can.” Proving his point, he had her skirts at her waist and her bloomers at her knees despite her desperate attempts to roll off his lap. “I promised Lady Forrester that I’d keep her girls safe…”
“She never said you could spank us!”
“She never said I couldn’t,” John countered, his hand cracking down on her bare bottom. The swat had Ophelia screeching and kicking. Lifting his leg, he pinned hers down and tightened his grip at her waist. “Keeping you safe means keeping you from harming yourself.” His hand continued to crack against her flesh, quickly turning the plump globes pink.
“You bastard! You’re the one harming me!”
“I told you to stop cussing and I’m not harming you, I’m spanking you!” A flurry of swats had her clawing at the mattress, her hips bucking and twisting to avoid the swats that were searing her seat.
“I hate you!”
“I hate seeing you act like a brat.”
Crack… crack… crack… crack
“I hate hearing you screaming like some alley cat,” John added. “Shouting is not ladylike…”
“I’m a damn whore, you… ow!”
Crack… crack… crack… crack
“Keep cussin’ and keep screaming and we’ll be here all night.”
Crack… crack… crack… crack
“I don’t care! Evidently I’m supposed to be embroidering some damn sampler and not working! Stop! That hurts!”
Crack… crack… crack… crack
“Judging by your continuing unacceptable behavior, it’s evident I’ve barely begun.” The room was echoing with one sharp crack after another as he continued to blister her bum. When her hands came back to try to cover his target, he found another; moving his hand to pepper smacks against the back of her thighs.
Crack… crack… crack… crack
“Please… it really… ow… please stop!” she sobbed, removing her hands and collapsing across his thighs.
“Now that I have your attention, we can finish this.” He knew she expected the punishment to end, but he had other ideas.
&
nbsp; Crack… crack… crack… crack
“We have several weeks left to travel together.”
Crack… crack… crack… crack
“You love Jewel and she loves you. She’s new at this and has asked you to help her…”
“I tried to explain…”
“No, you started shouting and cussin and accusing her of being a snob.”
Crack… crack… crack… crack
“I didn’t mean that. I just meant…”
“I know what you meant and I agree with you…”
“Then why the hell are you… ow… sorry!”
Crack… crack… crack… crack
“Though I agree that you have the right to work, I also believe that you and Amy should have discussed it with her first. Jewel is your boss…” When she reared her head back as if to protest, he landed a hard swat in the exact center of her ass. “I’m not done. She is your boss until the day you do quit which is also your right. However, until that day, which I sincerely hope you are not foolish enough to make this day, you owe her the courtesy of talking to her with respect. You won’t always agree and you will argue sometimes, but, Opal, you need to ask yourself do you really want to lose her as a friend?”
He’d continued to spank as he lectured and though she was sobbing, she was no longer attempting to stop him. With her submission, he gave her a last few swats and then flipped her over and sat her on his lap.
“Ow!” she cried, her face contorting as her glowing red globes connected with his clothing. Adjusting her slightly, he pulled her head to his chest. His hand ran up and down her back as she calmed. When she sniffled, he pulled a cloth from his pocket and offered it to her.
“Thank you,” she whispered, blowing her nose.
“You’re welcome,” he said, dropping a kiss on the top of her head.
“I meant for the handkerchief,” she said, squirming a bit.
He chuckled and patted her hip. “I didn’t think you were thanking me for the spanking.”
When she was fully calmed, he helped her from his lap. “Do you need to stand with your nose to the wall for a bit or can you tell me what you’ve learned and how you should have handled the situation.”
“I will not!” Ophelia said, her hands going to her hips.
“You will indeed unless you are ready to act like an adult and discuss things without cussin and screeching.”
He had to fight back a grin as he watched her eyes dart to the corner and then to the door. If she bolted, he’d have her back over his knees and though he knew her ass was tender, he’d have no problem spanking her again. However, he hoped she’d learned the lesson he’d intended to teach. He’d far rather guide her to kneel on the bed, spread her legs, and hold onto those hot buttocks and push his throbbing cock into what he knew to be her dripping pussy.
“Can… can I sit on your lap?”
“Yes, you may,” he said, pulling her back down.
“I am really sorry. I didn’t mean to scream or… or say some of those things. Jewel is the least snobbish woman I’ve ever known. God, she is going to hate me!”
“No,” John said, “she is not. Tell me what you are going to do to make sure she has no reason to think you are going to quit on her.”
Ophelia took her time but when she said she would apologize and then explain her opinion on the subject in a nice, calm adult manner, he nodded.
“Good. I’m sure that doing so will allow the three of you to come to a clear understanding.”
“John, she really can’t think that we can only offer ourselves to rich men or…”
“I know and that is something you can explain—in a nice way.”
“Or you’ll blister my ass again?”
“Yup, and when Lady Forrester hears why…”
“You wouldn’t!” Opal said, sitting up, her eyes wide. “I’d just die if she knew you spanked me!” John’s laughter and raised brow had her punching his chest, “It’s not funny!”
“Yes, it is. You don’t care if she knows you are a gem as long as she doesn’t know you have a blistered butt?”
Ophelia giggled and did a bit more squirming. “It does sound rather silly, but, you weren’t serious were you?”
“I’ll give you a break, this time,” he said. “But if I have to punish you again, don’t be surprised if I write a postscript on one of Jewel’s letters.”
“Ready to make up?” he asked and when she nodded, he once again guided her off his lap. Yes, he definitely wanted to take her clothes off, but instead, he forced himself to pull her bloomers up and adjust her skirt.
“Oh, I thought you meant…”
“Don’t give me cause to haul you right back over here and I’ll be more than happy to join you tonight and offer you my softer side…”
“At the risk of being a brat, I’ll not need you ‘soft’. I’m going to need you to be quite hard.”
She laughed when he growled and they were both smiling as they returned to the cabin.
***
Jewel reached out and wrapped her arms around Opal the moment she stepped through the door. “Are you okay?”
Opal returned the hug and then pulled back. “I’m fine. I deserved the spanking.”
Jewel stopped herself from countering Opal’s words. As much as she wanted to coddle and please her friends, she had done a lot of thinking while the two were gone. “You know I love you, right?”
“I was hoping you still did.”
“Opal, I promise I always will.”
“Thank you but I shouldn’t have screamed or cursed at you and I didn’t mean it when I called you a snob.”
“I know you didn’t.” After another hug, Jewel said, “ I’ve done a lot of thinking and you were right. I can’t be a good madame if I don’t recognize the fact that my gems have the right to work. I’d be a fool to think I can pick and choose how anyone should spend their money. These are grown men and it is their decision. I just want to add that I’m still not accepting this money,” Jewel said, picking up the handkerchief.
“But…”
“I’ve talked to Amy and understand that you are offering me over half of what you earned.”
“If you want more…”
“No. I’m taking this,” Juliette said, pulling another handkerchief from her pocket. “I promised you that my house will be different. I’m not accepting that high a percentage. I’m taking thirty percent.”
“That’s not enough to run a house!” Opal said, “I’m not a charity…”
“Opal…”
Jewel noticed that John’s tone was enough to have her pause. She smiled and pressed the handkerchief she was returning into Opal’s hand. “Trust me, please. I have a plan and that includes more than two gems contributing towards my income.”
Opal looked at the returned money and then slipped it into her pocket. “Okay, but you better… Never mind, you’re trusting us to help you learn the business. I’ve got to learn to trust you to run it.”
“Thank you,” Jewel said giving her another hug. “Besides, you forget I own a gold mine.”
***
Later that night, when the cabin door opened, John was ready. Before she could react, he had her pulled into the room and pressed up against the door he kicked shut for the second time that day. His mouth was on hers, silencing any words she might try to utter. With her gasp, he thrust his tongue between her lips, sweeping across her teeth and tongue, tasting every spice Nettie had added to their meal. When she moaned and her hands reached for his fly, he released her mouth and captured both her wrists in one of his hands. Raising her arms above her head, he pinned her wrists to the door. Releasing his cock from his trousers, he kicked her legs apart and shoved up her skirt to find she’d come to him sans drawers and very slick between her legs.
Positioning himself, he thrust into her, burying himself to the hilt. Her cry was music to his ears.
“Oh, God, yes,” she moaned as he began to pump his hips, slamming into her hard and fas
t.
He pulled the bodice of her dress down, popping her breasts free. Lowering his head, he captured a turgid nipple and felt her arch to offer him more. He could feel her pussy convulse when he bit down, tugging on the little bud until she was writhing. Releasing her nipple, he gave her other the same attention; every moan, every whimper and every cry driving him onward.
Releasing her wrists, he lifted her and she wrapped her legs around his hips. He pulled out almost all the way before pushing back inside the velvet sheath of her cunt, grinding her against him until her hands were clenching his arms and her cry told of her tumble over the pinnacle.
“That’s right, cum for me,” he said, not slowing as her contractions milked his cock, squeezing and releasing as she continued to spasm from her culmination. He moved the few steps across the room and only then pulled from her. Turning her around, he bent her over as she braced herself with her hands on the bed. “Spread them,” he commanded, giving her a swift swat to encourage her to spread her feet further apart. “That’s right, lift that gorgeous butt for me.”
“The only thing better than spanking your ass is fucking it.” She moaned as he reached for a jar and then whimpered when he applied a generous amount of the unguent between her cheeks.
“Oh…” she groaned when he pushed his cock into her pussy and a finger into her bottom-hole. “Please…” she said, her hands opening and closing as she gripped the blanket beneath her cheek. He added a second finger, scissoring them, forcing her to open and after making sure she was well lubricated and her tight ring of muscle had relaxed, he pulled from her cunt and pressed the head of his cock against her asshole.
Reaching forward, he fisted her hair in his hand and tugged until her head came back and her back arched. With a steady, unrelenting push, he popped through her inner ring of muscles as she exploded again. Gritting his teeth, he stilled his entry knowing that if he went deeper, he’d be unable to stop from cumming. When she began to come down from her climax, he shoved forward, impaling her with his full length in one thrust.
“Yes, oh, John, fuck me…” she begged and he was all too pleased to obey. When he felt his seed surging into his cock, his free hand reached between her thighs, finding her little pearl slick and swollen.
