Gina and Paul (Last Chance Program Book 2)

by Malone, Misty

  “That I am. I’m glad I got to meet you.”

  “I was thinking the same thing. The fact that you’re standing out here and Gina’s nowhere around would tell me she’s sleeping in this morning, as normal?”

  “Apparently she is,” Paul admitted. “I called and woke her up. Hopefully she’ll be opening the door soon.”

  “I wouldn’t put any money on that bet,” John said with a sad expression. “She’s not an early riser, but on Saturdays and Sundays you’re doing good if you see her by noon.”

  “We talked about this just two days ago, though. I told her it was a seven day a week program, and we would start at 9:00 sharp every day.”

  “I’m sure you did tell her that. And she either let it go in one ear and out the other, or chose to ignore it. She does that if something doesn’t suit her needs.”

  “She just ignores it, even after she agrees to it?”

  “Maybe I shouldn’t be telling you any of this, but if you’re around her a couple weeks you’ll see it for yourself anyway, I suppose. She’s apt to agree to anything to get it taken care of at the moment. That doesn’t necessarily mean she plans to follow through with it. It’s all about what suits her. At that moment it probably suited her to agree to it so you would go on to something else.”

  “Has she gone through life like this? How has she managed? I mean, surely her teachers in school had something to say about that?”

  John shook his head. “Sadly, yes, she has gone through life like that, and I have to admit it’s mostly my fault. My wife used to try to tell me her attitude was becoming a real problem, but I just didn’t see it. Well, I wouldn’t see it.”

  “Your father-in-law had good things to say about you, but he said the one problem he had was that she had you wrapped around her little finger, and you refused to see it.”

  “He was right. He talked to me about her a couple times, but again, I refused to open my eyes and see the truth.”

  “He said it was because you knew she was going to be your only child, and you couldn’t stand the thought of her being angry with you. I can understand that.”

  “That is the reason, but it’s no excuse. When Nancy and I were told she couldn’t have any more children, I knew right then and there I was going to give this one the world. Anything my little girl wanted, she would have. Nancy saw the problem, like her father did, but I was too stubborn to see it.”

  “Can I ask, what opened your eyes to the problem?”

  “When she flunked out of college. She’d lied to us all along about how she was doing. She said she wasn’t doing really well, but blamed it on her professors. They didn’t like her, for varying reasons. I bought her story, everything she was telling us, hook, line and sinker. She always said she was doing good enough to pass, but didn’t like it because the professors were so against her, and she didn’t really know why. She insisted she’d been nice to all of them, but for some reason unknown to her, they didn’t like her. When we got the notice in the mail that she was failing every class but one, we called her. She insisted she’d pulled her grades all up. She wasn’t doing great, but she was passing. Well, that wasn’t true.”

  “I’m sorry. That must have been difficult.”

  “Not as difficult as when I went to talk to her professors to see why they didn’t like her. One after the next, I heard them explain that she’d done absolutely nothing in their classes, attending about a third of the time, and was told of all the papers and assignments she’d never completed. When they sought her out to ask if there was a problem and offer help, she was rude, claiming she’d turned in papers and they must have lost them.”

  “Oh, no.”

  “Yes. That’s when it hit me. Nancy and her father were right. I had a rude, selfish daughter, and worse, I had no one to blame but myself. I talked to her mother and grandfather, but I just wasn’t sure how to handle it. It’s difficult to start over raising a daughter when she’s twenty and just flunked out of college.”

  “That would be a very daunting task,” Paul agreed.

  “When George, her grandfather, came up with this program, I thought it sounded fantastic. I had no idea how we’d ever get her to agree to do it, though. George is the one who came up with this idea of adding it to his will. We all hated to let her go in the meantime, but none of us had any good ideas what else to do. Everything we thought of, we were sure she’d fight against it, and she’d be upset. George was sick, and could tell he was getting worse by the week, and for his sake we didn’t want her upset. None of us knew exactly what she’d do, and George thought the world of her. So I guess we took the easy way out and let things ride. She and her grandfather spent a lot of time together since she returned from college. I think we all kind of hoped some of him would rub off onto her.”

  “Thank you, John, for sharing that with me. It helps me understand her a little better. I’m also seeing I may have a bigger challenge on my hands than I realized.”

  “I’d say you have quite the challenge in front of you.” He paused, shook his head, and looked back up at Paul. “It’s hard to admit that, especially knowing you’re the main one to blame for it. But I want to thank you for agreeing to take her on, and I sure wish you the best. I came down to tell you if there’s anything Nancy or I can do to help, please don’t hesitate to call either of us. We’ll be happy to answer any questions you may have, or if you’d like us to do or not do something, just let us know.”

  “Thank you. I appreciate it. I also appreciate all the information you’ve given me. The more information like that I have, the sooner I’ll be able to figure out how to help her.”

  “If there’s any way we can help, come ask. Right now, though, since it would appear she has no intention of letting you in anytime soon, I’ll give you what I came down here to give you.” He reached in his pocket and pulled out a key. “This opens the back door. It’s your program and I certainly want you to run it as you think, but I might suggest you let yourself in the back door. I can assume what will happen next, and I’d rather not see or hear it, so I’ll be going back to the main house now. Good luck, Mr. Parker, and I mean that sincerely.”

  “Please call me Paul, and thank you.”

  “You’re welcome, Paul. Was that thank you for the information, or the key?”

  Paul had turned toward the back door, but stopped and turned to face John again, and had to grin. “For the key, and the information. Mostly right now, though, for the key.”

  John nodded and chuckled as he turned to leave. “That’s what I figured.”

  Chapter Seven

  Paul turned the key over in his hand a few times, thinking, then headed for the back door. He opened the back door and walked in. He stopped and listened a moment to see if he heard any movement. Unfortunately, he didn’t. He checked the bathroom, and that door was open. That had to mean the princess was still in bed. He went to the bedroom and looked in the open door. Sure enough, there she was, sleeping.

  Paul was a very patient man, but seeing her there sleeping, while he was standing outside waiting, was enough to try anyone’s patience. She didn’t hear him approach the bed. He picked her up, sat down on the bed and had her over his lap before she woke up. The short gown she had on was cute, but not cute enough to deter him. He pushed it up over her back, just as she was waking up. He was a little surprised to see she wasn’t wearing any panties underneath it. That was convenient. She screamed, and Paul wondered if John heard the scream, and what was going through his mind.

  “Stop! What the hell are you doing? How did you get in here? I’m going to call the police.”

  “When we’re done here you can call them if you want, Gina. We can show them the contract you signed and I can show them the key to the back door your father gave me. But first things first. Did I or did I not tell you this program was seven days a week?” She didn’t answer, and he gave her two sharp swats on her bare behind, which showed barely a sign of yesterday’s spankings. It was a little pink in a coupl
e spots, but that was it. There were now two red hand prints on it, which he had to admit looked rather nice, considering his present state of mind. He forced himself back to the task at hand. “Did I tell you the program was seven days a week?”

  “Yes! Ow!”

  “And did I or did I not tell you we would be starting at nine o’clock sharp?” He didn’t wait very long this time before giving her two more sharp swats.

  “Ow! Stop that! Yes, you did.”

  “Then why weren’t you up and dressed, ready to answer the door by 9:00?”

  “Because it’s Saturday. Nobody gets up this early on Saturday.”

  He started the spanking then, alternating cheeks, quickly going from one to the other. “From now on you will be getting up this early on Saturday. And on Sunday, too, I might add. I told you it was seven days a week, and I told you we will be starting every day at 9:00. I suggest you listen to what I say from now on. When I give you a rule like that, it stands, whether it’s convenient for you or not. Do you understand?”

  “Ow! I understand you broke into my home and this hurts. Now stop, damn it. You have to at least let me have a cup of coffee before you start this shit.”

  Paul shook his head, and increased the speed of his spanking a bit. “That may as well be the next thing we talk about. I don’t know why you are so determined to turn every spanking into a monumental thing. When you earn a spanking, you will receive one. I’ve told you that numerous times now. But yet you seem determined to do everything within your power to turn a simple spanking for one thing into a multi act theater production. You throw in enough bad language that, just like this morning, I can’t ignore it, so we have to add a spanking for that. You seem to have this need to lose your temper and see how rude you can be. This morning you outdid yourself, my dear. Telling me it’s Saturday, and rolling over and going back to sleep when you knew I was standing outside your door, is about as rude as it gets, and I will not allow that kind of behavior to go without consequences.”

  “But I’m not used to getting up this early on the weekends. Ow! Please stop! I’m hardly even awake yet.”

  “Then consider this a favor. I’m helping you wake up early on a weekend. You better get used to it, and quickly, unless you’d like to repeat this every morning. It wouldn’t be my preferred way to wake up, but if you insist on sleeping in, we’ll start this way again tomorrow.”

  He continued her spanking, watching as her bottom turned pink, and then red. We’ve now covered the fact you were late, and your language, and how extremely rude it was to make me stand outside and wait. How long were you planning on making me wait?”

  “Ow! I don’t know. I wasn’t thinking of it that way. I just wanted to sleep some more.”

  “So in other words, you never even gave me any consideration. You were thinking only of yourself?”

  “I was tired!”

  Paul couldn’t believe the little prima donna on his lap. Her bottom was moving past red. It was now a crimson, angry red, but she still had her attitude. He knew if he didn’t curb that attitude, they wouldn’t get anywhere today, so he continued a little more. “Gina, you’ve proven to me you’re a very stubborn little lady. But I’ve gotten to know you well enough now to know that you’re also a very smart little lady. Prove that to yourself right now and lose the attitude. I think we both know this spanking won’t end until the attitude ends.”

  She whirled her head around to glare at him, but he held her eyes, never giving in. Finally, she looked down at the floor and slumped over his lap. The fight was gone from her, finally. He stopped the spanking long enough to talk to her. “Good girl. Now show me the attitude is, in fact, gone, for now at least, and admit you’ve earned this by accepting the rest of it instead of fighting it.” He didn’t give her time to respond, which he was afraid would be a negative response, but started spanking again. He was firm, but not as firm as he had been. She was obviously sore, but if she stopped fighting it as much, he would know she’d finally given in and submitted to his will, which was such a hard thing for her to do. She wasn’t used to giving in to anyone.

  She did, in fact, prove to him she was bending to his will, and he stopped the spanking. He gave her a few moments to recover and get her breathing back under control, then gently moved her to his lap, where he guided her head to his shoulder. He’d found rubbing her arm or back seemed to help her calm, so he did that, while talking to her softly, in the soothing voice that also seemed to help her calm. He told her it was over, and she was forgiven. As she calmed more, he just held her.

  She seemed relatively comfortable sitting there, so he gave her time. Eventually he asked, “Are you okay now?”

  “Not really.”

  “Do you still want to call the police?”

  “No.”

  It concerned him that she wasn’t expanding on her answers. “What did you mean you’re not really okay?”

  She shrugged, but didn’t answer. “Gina, I told you before, I need you to answer my questions for this program to work. Why are you not really okay? Do you mean physically, or emotionally, or what?”

  She sighed. “Well, physically you know I’m so sore it’s hard to think of anything else.”

  He sighed. “I hate having to spank you this harshly, Gina. I really wish you would start accepting it when you’ve earned a spanking, so we could stop with just one. When you keep piling on more and more things we need to cover, I know it hurts. I don’t like doing that, either. It’s not easy on my hand, either, you know.”

  There was no response from her at all, which worried him again. There was no chuckle, no smile, not even a look of disgust. “But I don’t really think the pain is the only thing you’re thinking of when you say you’re not really okay, is it?”

  “No,” she whispered.

  “What else?” She didn’t say anything. “You’ll feel better if you tell me and we can talk about it. You really will. What else is bothering you, that makes you say you’re not really okay?”

  “I’m not really sure. I just don’t like this.”

  “Okay, we can start with that. It makes sense, after all. I mean, I know you don’t like the spankings because they hurt. But what else don’t you like?”

  “I don’t know. You said I have to start getting up early on the weekends, whether I like it or not.”

  “And which of those two things bothers you the most; getting up early on the weekends, or whether you like it or not?”

  She turned her face to look at him, and seeing the angry expression, he assumed he’d guessed right. “Could it be that one thing that’s really bothering you is that you aren’t in control of this program?”

  She cocked her head to the side, thinking. “I don’t know. Maybe.”

  “Think about it a minute, Gina, and let’s try and figure it out. I know you say you’re not a control freak, but you do like being in charge of what you do, don’t you?”

  “Yes, I guess. But a control freak wants to be in charge of everything. I don’t.”

  “No, you don’t. But you do like to control what you do, and when and how. You don’t like following rules much, and I think it’s because it makes you feel like you’re not in control of your actions, what you do.” He watched as she thought about his words.

  She frowned, but nodded. “You might be right. I hate it when someone tries to tell me what to do.”

  “That statement proves it.”

  “Why? What did I say?”

  “You said you hate it when someone tries to tell you what to do.” He emphasized the word tries. “You didn’t say you hate it when someone tells you what to do. I think that’s because when someone tells you what to do, you rebel. You do the opposite, just to prove that they won’t get away with trying to control you.” He paused before adding, “And up until now, they haven’t. I think that’s at least part of what has you upset now, is that you’re starting to realize this program and I are different than anything you’ve encountered. I’m telling you what
to do, but when you rebel and do the opposite, I don’t let you get away with it.”

  She dropped her head. “And I hate it.”

  “But it’s a necessary part of becoming an adult, Gina.”

  She looked up at him, shaking her head no. “No, I don’t think so. Why do you have to let people walk all over you? If you know what you want, and you’re not hurting anyone, why should you give in and be a puppet?”

  “There are rules that govern everyone in a society, and to be part of that society you have to follow those rules. But that doesn’t make you a puppet. In fact, you have to be able to bend to follow the rules sometimes to be a productive member of society, but that’s all part of growing up.”

  He could tell she wasn’t following his line of thinking, so he continued. “For instance, you say you’re not a morning person and would prefer to stay up late at night and sleep in. But you can’t fight society. If you were to decide you want to open a clothing store, for instance, you have to follow society’s lead. If you sleep in until noon or one o’clock, and open your store at 2:00, even if you keep it open for twelve hours like some stores do, you’re still not going to get as many people in. Not too many people are out shopping for clothes at 1:00 in the morning.”

  “Yeah, I guess not.”

  “So you have to bend to fit in. The same is true if you need to go see a dentist or a doctor. You won’t find many willing to give you an appointment at 9:00 at night. You just have to accept that most businesses operate during the day, when there’s sunlight and people can see. It makes sense.”

  “I guess.”

  “The same with going to college. If you want to get a college degree you have to complete certain classes, dictated by the college, depending on what degree you’re going after. To get credit for a class you have to not only pass the tests, but do the papers or other things assigned during the class and turn them in on time. Unless and until they come up with something better, that’s the way colleges work, and if you want a degree, you have to bend enough to follow their rules. But it isn’t just you; everyone has to follow these same rules. Everyone out there who has a college degree has had to bend enough to follow their rules.”