by Measha Stone
John picked up the rifle he’d dropped to catch her when she stumbled and walked over to the tree she’d been using as her target. “Come here,” he called her with a snap of his fingers. Making sure the safety was on, he laid the rifle on the other side of the tree, away from her grasp and out of their way.
Leaves crunched below her feet as she made her way to him.
“Take off my belt,” he instructed, putting his hands on his hips and facing her. Surprised eyes met his, her mouth opened like she was going to object, but she must have wised up when she saw his expression.
He ignored the fresh scent of soap rising from her as she got close to him. He pretended her hands weren’t working his belt open as she did so. But his cock was just as disobedient as the girl sliding the leather from his pants and came alive beneath her touch.
“Fold it in half and give it to me.” He put one hand out, palm up to receive it.
“I already said I’m sorry. I think you’re overreacting.” She held out the belt; at least she had folded it.
“Noted.” He took it from her. “Hands on the tree, push your ass out.”
“I-I’m already sore from yesterday,” She glanced at the trunk, where her target reminded them both of her crime.
“Suppose you should have thought about that before digging around my drawers and closets.” He wouldn’t be budged, and she would learn it. “Be glad I don’t make you cut me a switch out here.”
He wouldn’t. This was only her second punishment spanking in her life, he wouldn’t jump to a switch so quickly. But she didn’t need to know that. She needed to know disobedience, unruly behavior, and going around halfcocked would get her ass tanned.
Her lower lip trembled. Just a little, just enough to let him see her fear, before she stiffened and raised her chin. Frightened as she may be about what was about to happen, she wouldn’t allow it to show. No. His kitten was tough, but at the moment she was naughty.
Without another word she abruptly turned and made her way to the trunk, pressing her hands flat against the surface and arching her back until her ass presented high for him. The same bruise he’d noticed the day before still lurked on her cheek. Somewhat faded, but he would still keep away from it. Hurting her for punishment didn’t need to mean harming her.
“When I tell you to stay inside, you stay inside.” He maneuvered the belt to his right hand, cupping the buckle in his palm. “Taking my things and using my rifle were bad things to do, Julie. Bad bad bad.” He stepped closer to her.
She sucked in a breath but made no other sound. Her breasts hung, swaying with the trembling of her body. The chill of the air puckered her nipples, but he had to ignore all of it. All the signs told him she wanted to be held, that she wanted to jump to the forgiveness, but he had to deliver what she needed first.
She howled with the first stripe of the belt across her thighs and danced from one foot to the next with the second. Pulling his hand back, he waited until she’d stilled before giving her the third and the fourth.
“I’m sorry!” She stomped her right foot.
Another stripe across her sit spot. She’d feel that one the most. He gave her another in the same place, watching her bountiful ass bounce from the impact. Fuck, she was gorgeous, even when she was being punished. She didn’t beg him to stop, didn’t try to run off; she took the lick, cursed and repositioned herself for the next.
He gave her a dozen in total, leaving her round bottom and thighs bright red. She gulped air as he slid the belt back into his jeans. A tear dripped from her face to the pile of dried-up leaves on the woodland floor.
“You can stand up now.” He kept his hands at his sides until she faced him. Thin strands of hair stuck to her face where tears had wet it. Her hands moved behind her, rubbing her ass.
He pulled her arms in front of her. “No rubbing, kitten.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead. She’d taken her punishment so well for him, even when she felt it unfair. Wrapping his arms around her, he rested his chin on her head, inhaling the scent of her. Letting the goodness of her encircle him and remind him she was good, he was good, together they were good.
“I didn’t think you’d mind,” she whispered against his chest.
“I wouldn’t mind you shooting off my rifle?” He didn’t even try to hide his laugh. “You’re impulsive. C’mon. I need to get the stuff from the car.” He had it in his mind to make her crawl, to put her on all fours and let her remember where she stood in their relationship, but at the last second, he grabbed the rifle from the ground, swung it over his shoulder, and plucked her up into his arms.
He carried her to the back room and put her down next to the crate. “In you go,” he said.
“But—”
He flicked the little bell on her collar. “You didn’t take this off.”
“No, I—” She looked away. All of sudden shy?
“You didn’t take it off because you like it on.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “I do, too. I’m happy to see it still on. But you were bad, and I need to get the stuff from the car. Get in your crate. I’ll let you know when you can come out.”
“Yes, Sir,” she whispered. Two words, simple, two syllables. Without getting long-winded or making a scene, she let him know she respected him. Not just as the guy helping her, but the man in charge of her, taking care of her, dominating her. Two words, but they held so much fucking weight.
Julie sank to her knees while he opened the door. After a soft look back at him, she crawled inside and found a comfortable spot on the cushion before lying down. Her ass faced out at him, the redness fading already, except for one thin welt along her sit spot. Where he’d concentrated on the most. She’d find sitting for dinner difficult.
He didn’t mind.
Chapter Twelve
“Julie, your phone has a message.” John walked back into the kitchen where she stood naked at the sink washing the dishes from their spaghetti dinner. He hadn’t allowed her to put the t-shirt back on once he’d released her from the crate.
“Mom?” She wiped her hands on a nearby towel and reached for the phone.
“I didn’t listen to it yet. Here.” He waved her over and placed the phone on the table, swiping to the voicemail screen.
Julie pulled out a chair and kneeled on the seat, leaning over her phone. She nodded for John to press the play button and tucked her hair behind her ears.
“Julie! It’s Mom. Julie, my card isn’t working. You have to turn it back on… Shit… I’ll call you tomorrow. Don’t call me back. I’ll call you!” Another curse, then the call ended.
Julie brushed John’s hand away and replayed the message, tilting her head and leaning closer to the speaker on the phone.
“What is it?” John asked when she finished listening to it again.
“She’s panicked. But not in her usual way. Not like she’s trying to get her next fix. This is different.” Julie pointed at the phone then leaned back, grimacing when her ass touched the back of the chair.
“Well, if she’s mixed up with cookers, she would be panicking without any funds to buy the materials. They could be relying on her to buy the supplies.”
“I’m telling you she wouldn’t do that.” Julie pushed off the table and hopped back onto her feet. Couldn’t he get it through his head? Her mother was an addict, not a dealer.
“Why is it such a hard thing for you to consider?” he asked, taking the phone back from the table.
“Because it’s not who she is.” Julie crossed her arms over her stomach. The warmth from the stove when they’d cooked dinner had dissipated, leaving the room chilled.
“You said disappearing on you wasn’t her style either,” he pointed out. He put up a hand. “I’m not saying she’s dealing or cooking, I’m saying this whole situation is outside her character. So, we can’t count anything out. She said she’d call tomorrow. We’ll have the phone out and you’ll take her call. You’ll be able to find out a few things, mostly where she is—hopefully.”
John tucked the phone back in the box and closed it up. His eyes didn’t quite meet hers, just a quick glance before refocusing just behind her. If she hadn’t seen the same look on too many ex-boyfriends checking out someone else, she may have missed it.
“What is it?” She followed him when walked down the hall to the bedroom. “There’s something else. What is it?”
He walked around the bed and put the box on the nightstand. Demanding he tell her wouldn’t get the information she wanted but would get him irritated. And as cute as he looked when he got the little tic in his cheek, she needed him to tell her what he knew.
“I got a call from back home. Your mother has definitely fallen in with the wrong people. The last two times she got picked up for solicitation she was bailed out by the same guy. But he used a different name each time.”
Julie shook her head. “That doesn’t make any sense. I saw the reports, it didn’t list bail.”
“She was bailed out, but the names don’t get listed on the report you saw. The guy I have helping me can get information you can’t.”
“Well, how can he know it’s the same person if the reports list two different names?” she asked.
“Like I said, he gets information you can’t—and most of the time even I can’t. He has connections with guys on the force who aren’t walking the straight line every day.”
Julie took a long breath and rubbed her forehead. “Okay, so one guy bailed her out both times, so what? I doubt he’d give his real name when bailing out one of his girls.”
“Right now, it looks like the guy that bailed her out was one of the big dealers in the area a while back. He’s been locked up for the past fifteen years, but he’s out now and it looks like he’s getting back into the game.”
“So, what does that have to do with my mom?” How did she get to a place in life where connecting dots from her mother to drug dealers was an actual thing?
“I don’t know yet. He’s looking into it more.”
“I don’t understand. If it was money this guy wanted, why wouldn’t she just call me? I would have given it to her if she was in trouble.” No matter how many times Julie told herself she’d stop bailing her mother out, she wouldn’t. “Maybe she saw me moving out as some sort of disownment?” Julie squeezed her eyes shut and took a long breath. She was not going to spill another tear over the situation. Crying wouldn’t help. It solved absolutely nothing. She would deal with the problem, and she could feel everything she wanted to about it later.
Just as she pulled herself back under control, John’s hands ran down her arms, then back up. Instinct told her to pull away, but he must have seen that coming because he pulled her to his chest and enveloped her in his arms.
“You never disowned her. You started your own life. Like everyone does when they become an adult. She can’t see it that way.”
To lose herself in his arms would be so easy. Melting into the comfort he offered could soothe the knot twisting in her chest, threatening to choke her, but how could she take such liberties with him? Sure, he was helping her, he even admitted to enjoying her company, but there would be no real future. Not with the mess of a life she had. Not when she would have to help her mother get back on her feet. Somehow, she would have to help her straighten herself out. Moving back in with her would be the first step. And what boyfriend wanted a girlfriend who lived with her mom?
What dom would want such a thing? How could he come over to play, with her mother in the next room? Any sort of real dynamic taking place outside the bedroom couldn’t come to life with the situation she continued to find herself in.
No. Taking refuge in his embrace wasn’t an option. No matter how appealing.
“I guess we’ll have to see what she says tomorrow,” Julie whispered, pulling away from him and scooting several feet away. “Aren’t you supposed to be back at work tomorrow?” she asked, finding a rag hanging on the faucet and using it to wipe down the countertop.
“Yeah, once I make the call that I’m not coming in, Grover will make the assumption I’m with you. I didn’t get a call from him today, it’s my day off so he wouldn’t really have a reason to call. I said I’d let him know if I ran into you, so he won’t call to check up.” John spoke matter-of-factly, like he understood she didn’t want to talk about her mom any more. She didn’t want to figure all of that out right now.
“What happens then?” she asked.
John took the rag from her and dropped it back in the sink. Taking her hands in his, he pulled her to get her attention. “We’ll worry about that tomorrow. If it’s not safe to stay here, we’ll leave. If we can stay here, we will. Let’s see his reaction and what your mom has to say before we make decisions.”
Waiting wasn’t exactly her strong suit. A fact he’d pointed out quite painfully twice already.
“Okay.”
“Since we can’t do anything tonight, why don’t we just light a fire and relax.” He ran his fingers along her temple, pushing her hair back behind her ear.
“Odds you’ll show me some of those clothes you bought me?” She tilted her head and smiled, a gesture that often worked to entice a positive response from the male species.
He laughed. “Zero. But I will let you wear your tail if you want.”
He posed it as though she could say no. Could she? Would they just sit on the couch while the logs burned in the fireplace, like a normal couple?
“Go on, it’s on the dresser in the bedroom. There’s some lubricant in the bathroom. I’ll get the fire started and get us a snack.” He patted her bottom.
She searched his features for mocking or irritation. Having her wear the tail the night before had been about obedience training, but this was different. This didn’t have a taste of negativity.
“Go on.” He gestured to the bedroom. “If you need me just call.”
“We’re just going to stare at the fire?” she asked, taking a small step toward the bedroom.
He grinned. “Well, at first. We’ll just have to see how things go.”
“More patience.” She shook her head.
“Yes. You’ll need to be patient, and you’ll need to follow directions, and if you’re a good girl and can do those things, I promise you’ll wonder why you ever thought about behaving any other way. Now go before I think you’d rather just go to sleep.”
“It’s barely eight,” she pointed out, taking another step in the right direction.
“So? If I say it’s bedtime, it’s bedtime.” The softness of his jaw tensed.
Spoiling his mood wouldn’t do either of them any good.
“Okay, right. I know.” She turned and sauntered from the room, knowing he stared at her ass as she moved. And knowing the little bruise on her ass cheek got his cock as hard as it made her pussy wet.
* * *
She almost called him into the bedroom to help her but imagined doing so and decided quickly against it. Having to do it herself was bad enough but admitting she couldn’t quite get the damn butt plug in would be worse. She didn’t need help with something so trivial.
After several tries, she managed to finish inserting the plug and put the cap back on the lubricant. She took a moment to inspect herself in the full-length mirror hanging on the back of the door. Turning around so her ass faced the mirror, she looked at the image over her shoulder. She still sported the bruise from the day before, and along with it now was a red welt across her ass from the belting she’d taken that afternoon. But what she couldn’t tear her eyes away from was the tail.
The lush tan fur hung from between her cheeks. Biting down on her lower lip, she wiggled her hips. She huffed a soft laugh to herself at the wag of the tail. She’d admired similar toys in catalogues and online stores, but she never dared purchase one, or ask Jimmy if he had something like it.
John had known, though. She hadn’t had to ask or hint. He’d just known. Although it had been an instrument in her discipline the night before, tonight would be different. Tonight, he offere
d her a safe place to unwind, to let herself open freely to his dominance.
And she would indulge. Who knew what would happen when her mother called in the morning. Everything could come to a screeching halt, or spiral into chaos. The next few hours could be her little treat. The thing she thought back on during her nights of checking on her mom and making sure they both stayed afloat financially and mentally.
She flipped off the light in the bedroom and made her way down the hallway to where she could already see the fire flickering light into the room. Her chilled skin would welcome the warmth of the flames. Being made to remain nude all afternoon had effectively kept her in a more obedient place. Following his dictate did that to her, and he knew it.
John’s chest was bare when she walked into the room. He still wore his jeans, though, which sparked disappointment.
“I didn’t realize police officers worked out so much. The ones I’ve dealt with seemed a lot less likely to have the ability to chase after a criminal.” She motioned with her hands to suggest a beer belly.
“I’m not like most police officers. Besides, I’m not a uniformed officer. I work mostly drug cases, gang-related stuff.” He tossed a large pillow from the couch onto the floor and signaled. “Here.” He pointed at the cushion.
“You want me to kneel at your feet?” The question was presented with more indignation than she actually felt at the idea.
“No, I want you to lie down on your back, kitten.” He smiled and took a seat on the couch, straddling his feet so the cushion was between them. “Remember what I said about being a good girl tonight.” A light warning tinted the words.
Right. Being a good girl would mean amazing things. She could go along with that. For one night at least.
She padded across the carpeting to the cushion. If the fullness of the plug didn’t remind her with every step of the plug’s presence, the light touch of the fur brushing the back of her thighs with each step did.
Sinking down to the cushion, she rolled onto her back, folding her legs to keep herself within the confines of his legs. She wiggled her bottom to dislodge the tail bunching beneath her.
