“What’s going to happen?” Anna asked, feeling her stomach clench into knots. She felt confused because his scolding words weren’t matching his tone of voice.
With his free hand, he reached around to the nape of her neck and pulled her head toward him.
“This,” he said, and tilted his head down. He paused before he touched his lips to hers, giving her a chance to break free if she desired. When she didn’t move, he kissed her and lingered on her lips. Anna closed her eyes. No man had kissed her on the lips before, and she didn’t know what she was supposed to do. All she knew was that she didn’t want it to end. When she felt his lips beginning to retreat, she kissed him back, holding his bottom lip between hers. She sucked at him with hunger and determination to make the kiss continue. Carter moved back in, capturing her needy lips in his and massaging them open. She felt his tongue flick hers. She was timid at first. She kept her tongue in place while his rubbed around hers. In time, she moved her tongue with his. The growing sensation in its nerves gave her a thrill she had never known before. She needed more. She thrust greedily into his mouth, feeling every part of the new territory with a sense of urgency. They continued to explore each other, alternating between forceful and gentle until together they retreated and ended where they started, with lips held together in a final moment of tenderness. They unlocked and Anna simmered in rapt silence.
When she opened her eyes, Carter was looking at her with astonishment. He had taken a step back. He moved his hand to his forehead and lifted his hat a little off his head. Then he unbuttoned the top few buttons of his shirt and ran a hand over his face. He tried to say something but then cleared his throat instead. He was speechless, she realized. She felt a power that she had never felt before—power over a man. She liked how it felt.
A slow smile spread across her face. “Are you blushing, Carter?” His skin was too dark to tell, but she could see that he was warm.
Carter found his voice. It was gruff. “That kiss would make the devil himself blush.”
“But you liked it?” Anna asked, the impish smile still on her face.
Carter coughed a quick laugh. “Yes, little girl, you could say that.” Gone was his soft expression. It was replaced by something much more intense. Adoration or maybe savagery—she couldn’t tell. She continued to grin at him.
“Wipe that smirk off your face and get on the horse,” he growled.
Anna stood in place. She wasn’t done reveling in her newfound power. She had never seen Carter flustered in this way, and it emboldened her. “I forget,” she said, her tone saucy, “Was that kiss supposed to make me remember something?”
His voice lowered even more. “You’re in so much trouble, angel. You have no idea the wicked things I’m going to do to you someday.”
She knew he was talking about things that happened between a man and his wife. She smiled even wider. He wanted to marry her. She was almost certain of this. Of course! He wouldn’t have kissed her otherwise. She felt like she was going to burst any moment with the strong feelings welling up inside of her.
She stepped on the block and slid her foot in the stirrup. When she was seated on Bella, Carter handed her the reins. She walked a few steps forward until Carter told her to stop. Moving to her side, he adjusted the stirrup so it was the right length for her height. He grabbed her ankle and shoved her foot into the correctly lengthened stirrup. He moved to the other side and matched the length in that stirrup. He manhandled that foot in place as well.
“The stirrups only need to be adjusted once, unless someone else rides her,” he said, his voice rough.
They walked to the circular corral. Carter stood in the center with his arms crossed while Anna walked Bella around him. Carter observed her first loop in silence, then began instructing her, his voice and demeanor back to normal. “Put your heels down as much as you can. Bring the reins in a bit—there’s too much slack.”
Anna adjusted and rounded Carter once again. “Straighten your back and hold your head in the air. Pretend I just threatened a spanking again and you’re going to tell me off.”
Anna laughed. “Don’t make me laugh! I’m trying to concentrate.”
Carter chuckled. “Don’t forget to keep your heels down. They went up when you put your shoulders back.”
He was enjoying this, Anna thought. She had shown him some sauce and he was letting her know who was in charge by mentioning the spanking, and correcting every little thing she did in the saddle. The funny thing was she enjoyed it too. A lot. Carter continued to give directions while she adjusted her seat according to his instructions, which bordered on excessive. She rode for a half hour, walking and trotting Bella in circles going both directions.
Heading back to the cabin, Carter said, “You’re a solid rider, Anna. You have a balanced seat and you’ll be fine going back and forth from here to your place. I’ll still give you a quick lesson every morning until you’re as good as any saddle slicker.”
Anna touched his arm and stopped. Carter stopped too and turned to face her. Her emotions were raw. “Carter, I just want you to know…” She choked a little, unsure how to express herself. She looked past him for a minute, then turned her eyes to meet his. “I’m so glad I came to work for you all those months ago.”
Carter gave her braid a familiar tug. “I’m glad too, honey.”
Chapter 10 - The Spanking
In the next few days, Anna developed a fascination with Carter’s hands, which she imagined touching her body. She watched how he used his knife to cut his food. She watched him measure the coffee out to brew. She watched him pack tobacco into his pipe. She liked the way he lit a match and extinguished it with just two flicks of the wrist. His hands were callused and skilled. It made her weak watching the way he used them.
Carter didn’t kiss her again, which left her with painful longing, and when Friday morning rolled around and he left for the range with no mention of the spanking, Anna reasoned with great disappointment and a small amount of relief that he’d forgotten. He returned that evening holding one of his saddles and an oily rag. After they’d eaten, Carter sat in his armchair with the saddle in his lap. She became mesmerized watching his hand work oil into the saddle’s leather with the strip of cloth. He used rhythmic circular strokes over and over. Some time passed without her realizing. When she finally looked around, the sun had gone down and Paddy was asleep on the sofa.
“I’m going home now,” she said.
Carter didn’t look up. “All right, hon. Give me just a minute to finish.”
“You don’t have to come. I’ll be fine. There’s a full moon out.”
Anna knew what she was doing. Trying to go home alone in the dark was one of the reckless behaviors he had threatened to spank her for. She was testing him to see if he’d really punish her. Carter continued to rub the saddle. Anna thought she saw a smile playing on his lips, but she couldn’t be sure. If it was there, it was gone a second later.
A couple minutes later, he put the saddle aside, walked to the basin, and washed his hands. He dried each finger slowly and deliberately. After throwing the towel to the side, he hung his thumbs on his belt loops and leaned one of his shoulders against the wall. “Come here, Anna.”
Anna’s stomach lurched. He had passed her test, and suddenly she felt very, very nervous. She trudged to him.
When she stood in front of him, he asked, “Do you remember what I said to you about reckless behavior, which includes going home alone in the dark?”
Anna knew this was her one and only chance to back out. If she apologized and said she had forgotten, he would let it go and take her home, but if she admitted to remembering and still suggesting it, he would punish her.
Anna nodded slowly. “I remember. I just don’t think it’s a big deal.” She searched his face in an attempt to read his mood. Was he angry at her answer? He didn’t look it. She continued to search his face, looking for a sign of the tenderness he’d shown toward her before, but she couldn’t fin
d that either. He wore a neutral expression.
“Then it looks like you’re in for that spanking I promised you. Let’s take a trip to the barn.”
Anna felt like her heart had crashed into her stomach. Carter picked up a lamp, opened the front door, and waited for her to pass. She wondered if this wasn’t the stupidest thing she had ever put in motion, but she knew it was too late to back out. She walked past him through the door and headed toward the barn, feeling more scared with every step.
Carter hung the lamp on a nail, and the barn glowed with soft yellow light. She watched as he pulled an alfalfa hay bale down to the ground from the top of the stack, pushed it into place with his boot tip, and took a seat. Tuck nickered at them, and for a moment Anna felt embarrassed that Tuck was going to witness this. She let out a nervous giggle when she realized how ridiculous that was.
Carter was rolling his right shirtsleeve to above his elbow. He glanced up at her. “Best not to laugh before punishment, Anna.”
“I wasn’t.”
Carter shook his head. “It’s best not to lie before punishment either. Get over my lap.”
She took a deep breath. She wanted this, she reminded herself, though she couldn’t exactly recall why at that very moment. With Carter’s guidance, she laid herself across his hard thighs and scooted into a comfortable position. She was glad he couldn’t see her face, which she was positive was the color of a tomato. Her braids hung down and the ends touched the dust and hay on the ground. Carter anchored his left hand around her waist and settled his right hand on her bottom. His hands on her body sent desire coursing through her. How could she want something so much and be so afraid at the same time?
She didn’t have time to think about it. Carter brought his hand down and gave her a sound swat. He did it again, a bit harder. He applied seven more swats before he stopped. She remained quiet and motionless.
“Have you ever been punished with a spanking before, Anna?”
“No, sir,” she said.
“I didn’t think so. I’m not sure you would have suggested it otherwise.”
Anna shifted in his lap. “I can’t remember why I wanted you to do this. I-I feel scared,” she stammered.
“That’s natural. You should feel a little scared.” He gave her a firm pat. “But you don’t have too much to worry about. Now if being adorable was wrong, you’d be in for a real thrashing. You wouldn’t sit for a week.”
Anna’s stomach fluttered.
Carter gave her another spank. “And if being a good kisser was a sin, I’d strap you with my belt until you begged for mercy. And then I would whip you harder.”
Anna felt a tremor go through her, thinking about him handling her in such a harsh way. She knew he never would, but the fact that he had that power excited her.
“I’m going to lift your skirt. These layers won’t let you feel a thing, and I want to make sure you feel your punishment.”
Anna’s body stiffened and she felt alarmed as he pushed her skirt and petticoat over her hips. Then she felt embarrassed, knowing he was looking at her bare bottom. Her three sets of bloomers were in the to-be-washed pile.
“I take it you don’t like wearing drawers?” he asked. “It’s just as well.”
Anna thought she heard mockery in his voice, and she felt worse than embarrassed. She felt humiliated. No man had ever seen her naked, and for him to laugh at her nakedness was unbearable. She felt angry and more vulnerable than ever before. “Don’t laugh,” she exclaimed. She tried to get up.
His grip around her tightened. “Where in tarnation do you think you’re going, Miss Brown?”
The next thing she knew, her bare bottom was receiving a volley of fast, stinging swats. She yelped in surprise and forgot about her anger and humiliation. She could only think of the sting building with every swat.
He stopped as suddenly as he started. “I wasn’t laughing at you, Anna.” He planted a tempered but firm slap on the back of her thigh.
“Ow,” Anna stated.
“That’s for thinking me to be a lesser man than I am. You should know me better.”
“I’m sorry.”
“I’m glad to hear it. That’s the right attitude. Now, you said you can’t remember why you wanted this punishment. I’m going to tell you what I think, and you tell me if I’m right, all right?”
She nodded and he gave her another spank.
“For months, I didn’t notice you. I didn’t notice the kind, beautiful woman who quietly took care of my son and me with no desire for anything other than to be noticed. Am I right about that?” Spank.
Anna nodded.
“I’d prefer if you answered out loud.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Thank you.” Spank. “You wanted me to notice you because that would mean I cared about you. Am I still on the right track?”
“Yes.”
His hand came down again with more force. “You’ve done a few things to displease me. You want me to spank you because ignoring your misdeeds implies that I don’t notice or care.”
Anna couldn’t believe how well he understood her feelings. He understood them better than she did.
“Did I get all of that right?”
“Yes, sir.”
“In that case, young lady, you’re about to learn just how much I care about you because I’m going to punish you for putting yourself in harm’s way on several occasions.” He raised his voice a notch. “You’re never going to be reckless again, unless you want to find yourself in this same position. Do you understand?”
“Yes, sir.”
Carter spanked her then without speaking. His hand came down again and again at a medium, steady tempo. After a few minutes he stopped.
“Why won’t I tolerate your reckless behavior, Anna?”
“I don’t know,” she whimpered. She felt the sting of the spanking now. “It hurts, Carter.”
Carter resumed spanking her. “You’re getting punished, so it’s supposed to hurt. Furthermore, you do know why I won’t tolerate it because I told you not five minutes ago. Not answering my question will only make it worse for you.”
Carter continued at a faster pace with firm swats that were not very hard but that built up a sting when layered on top of each other. She squirmed on his lap and let out small noises of protest.
He slowed and the swats became harder. “This is for telling me you wanted to walk home in the dark.” Spank. “This is for disobeying my order to rest the other day.” Spank. “And now, I’ll ask you again. Do you know why I won’t tolerate your reckless behavior?” He paused to listen.
Anna groaned. She knew the right answer was ‘yes,’ followed by the explanation that it was because he cared about her, but she was embarrassed to say it. It felt strange to be the one to say it. She also felt that the spanking might end as soon as she answered the question correctly, and she wasn’t ready for it to end. She couldn’t understand why being over his lap and vulnerable to pain was exactly what she wanted, but she knew she wanted to feel Carter’s power and for him to truly punish her. She wanted to see just how far he would take it, and she wanted to put her trust completely in his hands.
“No, I don’t know,” she said in answer to his question.
For an awful moment, there was no sound or movement at all. Carter seemed to consider what to do. It didn’t take him long to decide. His voice held heat. “Your answer is no, is it?” Carter planted a stinging swat on her untouched thigh. “That’s the wrong answer, Anna, and you know it. Are you testing me?” Carter gave the same thigh another smack that made Anna’s eyes moisten for the first time since being over his lap.
“You’ve chosen an odd time to be stubborn. Sounds to me like you need your bottom to be a whole lot sorer than I’d originally intended.”
The swats rained down hard and fast.
“And believe me, I’m more than willing to blister your bottom if that’s what you need. Is that what you need, young lady?”
He ignored h
er protests and denials as he collected her wandering wrist in his left hand, pinned it to her side, and held her body tight against his. She couldn’t move an inch.
He leaned over and said his next words close to her ear, “This isn’t a game, and I won’t tolerate you messing around when you’re being disciplined. Do you hear me? You’re about to learn a very painful lesson about what happens when you misbehave over my lap.”
He punished her then, the swats different from before. Every spank was solid, severe, and followed by another at lightning speed. Five landed one on top of the other where her left cheek met her thigh. He applied the same punishment to her right cheek. She screamed for him to stop after the first two painful strokes then let out a long wail that lasted throughout the rest.
After the tenth swat, he stopped and asked for a third time, “Why won’t I tolerate your reckless behavior?” His grip on her remained firm.
Anna burst into tears. She had never felt anything like what she had just experienced. It was painful and it was scary. She hadn’t known when he would stop, and it seemed possible that he never would because her wail did nothing to slow him. Her tears now didn’t seem to move him either. Looking back to see his hand poised to strike again if she answered incorrectly, she felt renewed fear.
“Because you care about me,” she choked through her tears and looked back down, cringing and hoping that he wouldn’t strike.
“What was that?”
“Because you care about me,” Anna cried, a bit louder.
“That’s right, Anna Brown. And because you made me ask three times, you’re going to say it again for a third time. Very loudly, or you’re going to get a repeat of what just happened.” Carter reinforced his threat with another punishing swat.
“Because you care about me!” Anna sobbed. One of the horses whinnied.
“And when you’re over my lap being disciplined, how are you going to answer my questions from now on? Honestly or dishonestly?”
The Unbraiding of Anna Brown (Lone Star Love Book 2) Page 7
