by Reece Butler
Sam hadn’t been ready to listen, hadn’t seen a reason to change. No one knew, but the only reason he went was that Tom and Keith had hauled him there. Back then being alone, with everything under his control, made perfect sense. He’d been a fool, but he’d had no reason to change until a red-haired pixie blew into his life.
“Knew you’d eventually break down and admit you were an idjit,” said Trey. “Didn’t think it would take this long, though.”
Sam exhaled, pushing every last bit of stale air all the way out. When he inhaled he sucked in the crisp mountain air. With the tight bands around his chest gone, he hauled in more air than he had in a long time.
“So.” Trey crossed his arms, set his feet, and lifted his chin. “Now you know you’ve got a heart, you going to use it?”
“Huh?”
“I heard Dare and Grant are looking for a few ranch dogs.”
A fist clenched his heart. He scowled. “Too damn bad. I rescued those dogs. They trust me. They belong here.”
“So does Katie.”
Sam screwed up his face, a part of him still not wanting to chance loving and then losing her. He cared about her. A lot. If he didn’t do something to prove it he’d lose her for sure. He’d expected to find a decent-enough woman to marry, someone who didn’t expect much, and wouldn’t demand a hell of a lot from him. Instead, he’d gotten Katie. She demanded, all right. Yet he found himself wanting to meet those demands, and give even more.
“You’re right,” he admitted. “She belongs here, with us.”
“Big brother finally understands pushing Katie away hurts even worse than loving her?”
Sam shrugged. He wasn’t ready to use that word yet. Not without seeing if she felt the same way. What he wanted was to lie on his back and have Katie cuddle up against him, soft and warm. He wanted sex, too, of course. But it was the way she trusted him enough to fall asleep in his arms that he craved most of all. If he tired her out with a couple or three orgasms, she just might do that. He hauled himself out of the truck.
“Enough talk. Katie’s inside.”
“You going to tell her about the dogs?”
“Let’s keep that a surprise for when they come home. Just in case.”
Sam rolled out his shoulders. He looked toward the house. Somewhere in there was the woman he cared about so much that…
Face the truth, dammit! He loved her, body, heart, and soul. How had his mother survived losing both his fathers if she loved them this much? Because the good times more than made up for the bad.
He wasn’t ready to say the words yet, but he loved the woman. He needed to know she accepted him, and Trey, the way they were. Big, loud, demanding, and more than a little kinky. Would Katie accept having her ass reddened with his hand, trusting that he’d give her pleasure as part of it?
“She has to trust us, Trey. Otherwise, no matter how much we care about her, it won’t work.”
“Yeah. We gotta get her in that playroom, see what she thinks of it.” Trey nodded abruptly. “Hell, we’re home early. We’ll ask her to help us clean it, and see if she’s interested in trying a few things out.” He rubbed his hands eagerly. “I’m thinking that spanking bench could use a test run.”
Sam imagined Katie’s sweet ass pointed at him. He bet she’d wiggle it, like a saucy brat. “The bench can wait. I want her across my lap. I’ll be able to feel every twitch and shudder that way.”
Trey groaned. “Dayum, I hope she’s up for this.” He adjusted his pants. “I sure as hell am.”
Walking was uncomfortable. Bending over to shuck his boots was painful. Stairs weren’t much fun, either.
“Sounds like Katie’s taking a shower,” said Sam as he climbed.
“Sounds close. Maybe she’s in our bathroom, getting ready for us.”
“Whoa! The playroom’s open.” Sam hurried up the last few steps. The sound of water got louder.
“Katie’s cleaned the playroom.” Trey bounced on his feet. “Great. Now we won’t have to wait to try it out.”
Sam straightened to his full height. Her disobedience couldn’t have happened at a better time.
“Trey, Katie’s gone and cleaned up the playroom.”
“Yep. I just said that.”
“And what did I tell her about cleaning in here?”
Trey’s eyes widened in understanding. He grinned. “You ordered her not to.”
“Katie disobeyed us, Trey.”
“Looks like somebody needs a spanking.”
“And I’m the man to give it to her.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Katie turned off the shower as soon as she heard the rumble of familiar deep voices. Sam and Trey were home early, thank God! She bent over, rubbing her hair vigorously. It was so short that was all it needed. She wrapped the big white bath towel around her, tucking it in over her left breast. Grinning like a fool, anticipating their reaction to finding the room clean, and her naked and eager, she opened the door and stepped into the playroom.
Two big, scowling men glared at her. She half-expected that from Sam, but not Trey.
“What were you told about cleaning this room?” demanded Sam.
His tone got her back up. “You said not to clean it unless you were there, but that was stupid.” She gestured with her right hand. The movement tugged at her towel. She quickly grabbed it so it didn’t fall. “The job needed doing. I was careful, and as you can see, nothing happened.”
“That is irrelevant.” Sam raised a criticizing eyebrow. “I told you this equipment hasn’t been checked. You could have gotten your fingers pinched, or something might have fallen on you. You could have been injured, and so unable to work.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Neither of them liked her reply. She lifted her chin. “You pulled the sheets off everything, which would have been difficult for me. All I did was dust and wipe down the wood and washable surfaces with oil soap.” She crossed her arms under her breasts and glared back at them. “I do know something about wood, you know.”
“Katie disobeyed us,” said Trey to Sam. He nodded, slowly and with great deliberation.
“The room was dirty, I needed to do some hard physical work, so I cleaned it. What’s the big deal?”
“The big deal is that you disobeyed an order.”
Their hard, direct stares made her pussy twinge. She licked dry lips. They stared at her like hungry tigers. If they were strangers she’d be terrified, but it was Sam and Trey. They’d made her scream in ecstasy more than once. They were acting like cavemen just like what Jane and Lila had warned her about. She’d disobeyed them. Would they put her across their laps and spank her? Or would they use the bench? She looked at it. She was close to naked. They could order her to drop the towel…
She was a grown woman. Such a thing should not make her pussy weep and her breasts fill. The challenge in their eyes, as if daring her to react, brought out the worst in her. She was fed up with doing what she was told. Her family no longer had a hold on her. She was not going to let anyone else tell her what to do.
If Sam and Trey did spank her, from what she’d overheard by the time they were done she’d be so hot and wet that she’d be demanding their cocks. Did she want that to happen? Maybe, just once, to see if it was true.
She straightened her back and inhaled. The corner of the towel under her arm pulled loose. Two sets of hungry male eyes stared at it. They wanted her, but they would not take anything she did not give. She held the balance of power. She could obey, and get what her body was already swelling to accept, or refuse and go without.
“I am a fully functioning adult,” she said scornfully, egging them on. “I can, and will, make decisions on my own. You hired me to clean, so I cleaned.”
“You were given a direct order,” replied Sam. “Not only did you disobey that order, you’re arguing about it.”
“I think Katie’s asking for a spanking,” said Trey. His intense blue eyes almost glowed.
A blast of heat blew up Katie’s body. “Do
n’t be ridiculous!”
“I think she just insulted us,” said Trey conversationally. He turned to Katie. “Now would be a good time to apologize,” he suggested. “Unless you want your ass to get some attention.”
She wanted it, all right. But she was playing a game, a serious one, but a game none the less. She stiffened her body, raised her chin, and gave them the same attitude back.
“I have nothing to apologize for. I was hired to do a job. That job included cleaning every room in this house. Now that I’ve cleaned this mess”—she drew her hand in a half circle to show the whole room—“my job is done.”
Sam shifted, turning into the light. His shirt and jeans were filthy. He had red streaks on his chest.
“Is that blood on you?” She squinted. “It’s not yours, is it?”
“Not mine. Don’t change the subject.”
Sam yanked at his shirt, causing a staccato of snaps to burst open. Her mouth went dry at the sight of his tanned muscles. He balled the shirt up and tossed it aside. His hands went to his belt. He unhooked the oval championship buckle. She expected him to unbutton and unzip. Instead, he yanked his belt out through the loops. The noise of the leather sliding made her pussy vibrate. She had to open her mouth to breathe because her chest was so tight.
“What are you doing?” she demanded, her voice squeaking.
He took the belt in his hand, folded it in half, and grasped each end. He snapped it, twice. The sound erupted like bullets in the room.
“Guess you didn’t believe I was serious. After this, you’ll believe, and listen to orders.”
She took a step back. It was one thing to read about being spanked. It was quite another to see the evidence of what other than a hand might be applied to her hind end.
“I don’t want you to use that on me.”
“You don’t want?” asked Sam incredulously. “Since when does what you want matter when you’re being disciplined?”
She bit her lip, worrying it between her teeth. “I don’t like pain.”
“And I don’t like being disobeyed. I gave that order for your safety. You ignored it.”
“But nothing happened!”
“That is irrelevant.”
“She’s afraid of the belt, not us,” said Trey quietly. “We don’t know enough of her past. It could be a trigger.”
“I see that,” said Sam. He raised his voice. “Do you think I would ever harm you?”
She thought it over. It only took two seconds. “I don’t think you’d harm me on purpose. But I’ve never been hit. Maybe you’re used to someone who likes pain.”
He took that in, watching her with narrowed eyes. She didn’t know if he'd ever done this before. Surely they didn’t have classes in Spanking 101!
“Do you think you deserve to be punished for disobeying a direct order given to keep you safe?”
The whole situation was ridiculous. Two huge men were calmly discussing spanking a small, adult, intelligent woman, a woman who had taken care of herself all her life with no help from anyone else. It was ridiculous, and arousing. Why did she want them to take her in hand? Why did she want their total attention on her, even if it meant a bit of pain? Would the pain be worth it if it led to even greater pleasure?
“What happens after, if I let you do this?” she asked.
“After a punishment is completed, and you realize why it was done, and agree that you will not do it again, then it’s over,” said Sam.
“Over?”
“We hold you, and comfort you, and make sure you know you’re loved and cared for,” said Trey.
“It’s never mentioned again?”
“We don’t hold grudges, Katie. You make a mistake, you see the error of your ways,” Sam’s eyes lit warmly. “Sometimes it takes a bit of assistance, but then it’s done. We start fresh.”
She’d grown up with every little mistake being remembered. Those sly, nasty looks and cutting remarks biting away at her, over, and over, and over. Never a fresh start. No forgetting, no matter how small the transgression. Would a few minutes of discomfort clear everything away, allowing a new beginning? Pain, after all, was temporary. At least, this sort of pain would be. And would it really be that painful?
“Neither of us would ever harm you, though we will make your ass sting and turn red,” said Trey. “This kind of pain is transitory.”
She continued to stare at them, nibbling at her lip. This was a crossroads. If she agreed to this spanking she would be putting herself under their domination. She, a grown, intelligent woman, would be submitting to the physical application of their hands on her butt. And why did that make her quiver in need?
“What happens afterward?”
“If you’re a good girl, you’ll get an orgasm.”
A rush of blood flowed to her pussy. She shifted her feet, needing to rub herself but not wanting to let on how aroused she was. Was it wrong of her to want to be a good girl for them? All her life she’d worried about what others thought. The last six months she’d had a chance to think about what she thought, and what she wanted.
The last week or so she’d listened to the chatter of the ranch women while they worked. They were not ashamed of a spanking. They laughed about it, while groaning at the same time.
“I bet if Katie puts her fingers between her legs they’ll come out wet,” said Trey.
“Is that true?” demanded Sam.
She swallowed, hard. The most difficult part about this was admitting to herself that she wanted it. She’d been told she didn’t deserve to be well treated, or feel pleasure. She’d believed it. Even now, it was difficult to let go and just feel.
“Touch yourself,” ordered Sam. “Put your hand inside that towel and run those fingers through your pussy lips.”
His eyes bored into hers. It was a dare, a command, and a plea, all at once. He wanted to challenge her, to master her, and to have her willingly submit to him. She held the towel with her right hand while her left hand crept between the edges. She shifted her feet, moving her ankles farther apart. Her fingers slid easily between her wet lips.
“Show me,” demanded Sam, his voice hoarse. “Hold up your fingers.”
She removed her hand and held it up. The bright light showed her essence.
“Fuck!” The word burst out of Trey.
“Soon,” said Sam, the corner of one lip curling up. “But not until she gets spanked.”
Katie quaked at their intense looks. Sam wasn’t angry, he was eager. Eager, but controlled.
“You’re not ready for the belt,” said Sam. “If you stay, you’ll learn to enjoy it.” He handed it to Trey, who hung it over the footboard. Sam stripped off his dirty jeans and tossed them aside. His boxer briefs bulged in front. He held out his hand to her. “Come to me,” he said, calm and controlled.
She curled her toes into the wood floor.
“Katie, you know you want this. You have your safe words?”
She nodded.
“I asked a question, I want to hear your answer.”
“Red, yellow, and green.”
“And your color is?” demanded Sam, his hand still out for her.
She took a deep breath then exhaled. “Green.”
“Then drop the towel and come here.”
Oh, God. His order should scare the hell out of her but it made her nipples harder. She gripped the towel with both hands, letting it expose her back. She waited for a breath, then released it.
“Jaysus!” whispered Trey hoarsely.
She took a hesitant footstep forward, then another. Sam’s ferocious expression eased.
“That’s it, take your punishment Do well and you’ll be rewarded.”
It seemed as if each step took forever. She finally placed her hand in Sam’s. He lifted it to his lips and kissed her knuckles.
“Good girl.” He led her over to the bed and sat down. Because of his long legs there was lots of room on his thighs. “Lie with your head to my left.”
“Blindfold
first,” said Trey.
“Is that really necessary?” she asked.
“Nope.” Trey winked. “But it makes it a heck of a lot more fun.”
“Fun? There’s no fun involved in someone slapping your behind!” His eager grin increased. She hid her giddiness in exasperation. “Fine. I’ll agree there’s fun for the guy doing it, but not the person with their naked bottom in the air.”
Trey leaned down so they were eye to eye. Brilliant crystal blue sparkled at her. “We’ll see what you say about that in an hour.”
“An hour?” The complaint erupted automatically, from the fearful side of her. A moment later it morphed into anticipation. A little bit of pain was a small price to have two men such as this place one hundred percent of their attention on her.
“Close your eyes, Katie.”
Trembling, panting in trepidation and eagerness, she followed Trey’s order.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Sam’s heart pounded so hard he thought it would explode out of his chest. Katie had fought back, telling them she was in charge of herself, and then submitted. The initial refusal was a good thing. She’d thought about what they wanted her to do and made a decision, and only then did she agree. Her initial reluctance made her capitulation sweeter. She’d conquered her fears, trusting the two of them enough to lie, naked, across his lap.
This first spanking would be the basis of everything going forward. If he did it right, warming her skin gradually so she enjoyed it in spite of what she’d been taught, the process would be easier the next time.
If he did it wrong, there may well not be a next time.
Sam gently rubbed one hand over her plump ass cheeks. The other rested on her back, a gentle reminder to stay in place. She trembled, almost shaking, her butt clenched tight. He slipped a finger between her thighs. His wet finger proved she was not scared, though he could understand her concern. She’d likely never felt so vulnerable. She could roll off his lap at any time and walk out, and he wouldn’t stop her. He had to make sure she wouldn’t want to.
“Thank you for trusting me,” he murmured. “You haven’t trusted many in your life, for good reason. We would never harm you, though we will make you sting.”
