by Susan Thomas
It was clear he was making for her because he looked nowhere else but straight towards her and followed his eyes by walking in that direction. He approached unhurriedly with his usual stern looking face until he reached the bench.
"Good morning Alice."
"Good morning Mr. Whittle."
"May I sit a spell?"
"Certainly, but what are you doing here?"
"I was at my prayers early this morning and the Lord told me that you were in need of help and that I must see to your needs before all else."
"The Lord...?"
"Yes, and Erin told me she thought you might have come here to the lake although she was not sure. So tell me what is wrong."
"Nothing."
"Oh please young lady, spare me that female 'nothing' nonsense. A young woman with a fiancé and a place at college does not sit on her own with a tear-stained and haggard face unless something is seriously wrong."
Alice looked at him at first resenting the intrusion then it occurred to her that it would feel really good to just tell someone her troubles.
"If the Lord sent you, is talking to you going to be like going to confession in a Catholic church? You know, you can't tell anyone else."
"Have you committed a crime?"
Alice was upset. "No, of course not."
"Then I shall tell no one unless you give me permission to do so."
She tried to begin but it was hard; there was so much worry bottled up inside her it had become a mass that didn't want to come out. If he had been impatient she might well have dried up, but he watched her intently but saying nothing and bit by bit she forced the whole story out from the beginning: the difficulties in her relationship with Mark at the college; his kindness to her when she was ill; their making love; on and on the story went, hesitant to begin with, but later becoming a torrent with the worried words tumbling over one another.
Mr. Whittle said nothing except for a few brief questions to clarify when he had been unclear. He nodded every now and then, his face showing nothing except its usual sternness. Finally she finished and he leaned back with a quiet sigh.
"Has your period ever been late before?"
She hesitated... such a personal and embarrassing question but not unreasonable in the circumstances. "Well not since I was about thirteen. Oh and except when Mum died, it went all over the place for a few months."
"You had not been with a man when that happened?"
"No! Mum was dying, of course not."
"Did you see a doctor then?"
"Yes, she said it was because of the stress caused by Mum's illness and death."
"Do you think that the guilt you feel about your physical relationship with Mark, combined with your anger at his behavior and the trauma of your abduction might have affected your monthly cycle?"
Alice was shocked at this possibly simple explanation. A bud of hope opened inside her. "I suppose it might."
"Have you used one of those tests or seen a doctor?"
"Well... no, I haven’t."
"Then you shall see my doctor immediately. Get in your truck and follow mine."
Alice was never able to work out just how he was able to get her in to see his doctor without any appointment. It was if he had some magic wand which just opened the door. He ushered her in to the doctor's surgery but didn't go in with her. He just retreated and sat in the empty waiting room.
When Alice came out, relief was etched into her face although it was clear that she had been crying. Without thought she rushed up him and threw her arms around him. "I'm not. I'm not pregnant. Oh thank you so much for helping me."
Later, when she told others that he had put his arms around her and held her until she was ready, there was general disbelief. However, when she was feeling better he returned to his stern manner.
"If you and Mark were my children, no matter your age, I would have taken a strap to you both. However, it has been made clear to me that it isn't my place to do so but your behavior has been foolish as well as ungodly. I think Mark needs to be made aware of the anxiety his behavior has placed on you. Do I have your permission to tell him?"
She nodded, he was right she felt. Mark was going blindly in one direction and she in another but she doubted she would be able to explain it all to him. They drove to the camp where it was now less easy to get in. Police and security guards were stopping and checking every visitor.
---oOo---
"Mark Accourt, I have known you all your life and now I am ashamed of your behavior."
Mark sat behind the small, cheap desk and looked open mouthed at the stern Mr. Whittle and switched to look at Alice who looked white faced and as if she had been crying. He stood and came warily toward them.
"You are the man and should provide leadership, but instead you have had unprotected sexual intercourse and given no thought to the consequences. You have then assumed a relationship with Alice without discussing it with her even to the point of announcing to others that you were to be married. This has worried her considerably as has a late period."
"Are you having a baby?"
"No she is not, no thanks to you. We have established that just now at my doctor's something that need not have happened had you taken your Christian duties seriously to begin with. You have behaved badly young man and now you must take the leadership that has been lacking and discuss with Alice what you both want to do. Remember that a husband should love his wife as he does his own body so if you have any ambition to marry Alice then you must put aside all selfish desires and think of her. I shall wait outside and I expect you to resolve all problems between you even if it is to end your relationship.
Chapter 22
Thus grief still treads upon the heels of pleasure:
Married in haste, we may repent at leisure
William Congreve the Old Batchelour, 1693.
"Oh Alice I am so sorry. I've been a total jerk haven't I?"
"Yes."
"Why didn't you tell me you were late? I would have taken you to a doctor."
"Because you were strutting around acting like you were some nineteenth-century husband who was allowed to tell me what to do and spank me when I didn't do it. It dawned on me when you were giving me the belt that you didn't have the right. It made me so angry that you just assumed it. Remember what you told me when I was ill that time... that corporal correction in marriage had to be mutually consensual, and we weren't even married."
"I gave you the belt because you were rejecting the therapy. Alice you simply can't do it all by yourself. You've had it tough growing up but you never share it unless forced. I don't care what you believe, that experience was terrible. You didn't just have to worry about rape and violence, you had to worry about Liam. The therapy wasn't because you were showing signs of distress it was to ensure that you didn't go into some delayed shock or distress, but you were too proud. You made me angry, but you're correct, I had absolutely no right to do it but I still think you should go just to talk it all through."
Alice stood there at first angry that he should still be banging on about therapy but then the words began to penetrate.
"I was more worried about your attitude and being pregnant. I thought I was going to have to quit college and go back to England, which would have been the end of my dreams. Now I know I'm not pregnant... well maybe you're right... I was very scared the whole time. When you hit him I was so pleased and I shouldn't be. It was dreadful what that bat did to his face."
Mark stepped closer to her. "Alice I'm so sorry. I am a jerk, I can see that. Is there any hope for us? I'd dreamt of us being married I care for you so much."
Alice stamped her foot on the floor with tears flowing down her face. "I care for Liam but I don't want to marry him. I love you." She stopped for a moment, "I also hate you at times, but I love you too."
Mark groaned heavily and sat down abruptly. He buried his face in his hands for a while and then lifted them and looked at Alice.
"All my life I have bee
n a success. At school everything came easily. Sport... didn't matter what, I was good at it. In the end I had to choose between baseball and gymnastics and I chose gymnastics. Then I realized I had to choose between my academic career and the gym. I chose academia. Then you come along and suddenly it's like I've got two left feet and am cack-handed as well. It's because from the first moment you disturbed me. You send my brain into some sort of scrambled state. Do you know why? I love you. Totally, completely. I only ever want to be with you. I know I've never said I love you before, but I do. Can you forgive me and let me start again?"
Later, neither of them could remember how it came about, they were both standing locked into a tight embrace with Alice crying into Mark's shirt. It lasted a long time until finally they pulled apart a little and Mark proposed.
"No." Alice shook her head. "It's just too soon for me. I know nothing about marriage especially not how your church sees it. I want to find out how it all works and talk to Erin, your mom, and your Aunt Nicola. You've got to start your teaching and I have only done one year of my degree. Why can't we just get engaged? That's a commitment which everyone then knows about."
"We can... we can." When they broke apart for the second time Mark said, "I'll be very good. I promise... no more taking you down to the cabin."
"Oh." Alice went very still. "I rather liked what we did. I will go on the pill but I'd rather like it if we did more of that. I know that's shocking and all but... I like it."
Mark felt his upbringing disappear at the thought of being able to make love to his fiancée and in an instant he decided that since they would get married sometime or other then it was OK.
There was another interval of hugging and kissing and Mark said, "OK no spanking anyhow, not ever. It is dismissed and unwanted."
"I didn't say that either. When I signed up for college I knew exactly what it was all about - why we could get spanked, how and when and what the limits and rules were, how far you could go and what to do if I thought you were unfair. I don't know anything about marital discipline and we have never discussed it. Maybe I would think it helpful. Maybe I would agree but I want to know what it's all about first. That's not unreasonable is it?"
"No. We do have a lot to work out don't we... but we can do it, can't we? I love you and you love me... we can work it all out, we can if I can stop being a total jerk anyhow. Come on we'd better put Mr. Whittle out of his misery."
The stern looking Mr. Whittle got out of his truck as they came out of the office. He stood looking at them, his face unreadable. "Well?" he said severely.
"We're getting engaged and going to talk through every aspect of marriage before we go any further. We love each other."
"Thank the Lord for that. Now I'd best be getting back to my Josh. He'll be thinking I'm shirking my work. Oh... congratulations by the way."
Alice and Mark watched him go until Alice asked, "Who do we tell first?"
"My mom and dad I think."
Suddenly it seemed a very good day to both of them.
Also from LSF Publications...
Further details of all Susan Thomas's ebooks can be found here:
http://susanthomas.lsfpublications.com/
Erin's Visit by Susan Thomas
Instead of going to University, Erin decides to go to America and stay with her Aunt Nicola and Uncle Jack, and work at the family business. Erin's mother has some misgivings as her churchgoing sister and brother-in-law live in a strongly religious area. Undeterred, Erin makes the trip, and discovers that she is now in a totally different environment and culture - because here in this devout Christian community, spankings are the norm. She finds that the church endorses physical chastisement and all the neighbouring houses have a church-approved spanking paddle hanging up in their homes. Erin realises her status as an unspanked 18-year old may mean she may not be popular with the other girls - so she takes steps to sign up to receiving regular spankings from her Uncle Jack. This is a rite-of-passage tale for Erin, who begins to learn the meaning of traditional discipline. She starts a relationship with local boy Josh who comes from an extremely strict family, and as their relationship develops, Erin grows in confidence and maturity and also learns more about the community in which she lives.
Erin's Cousin by Susan Thomas
Eighteen-year-old Jessica has always been somewhat jealous of her cousin, Erin, who, although the same age, seems to do everything better than her, and she eventually grows to resent her. When Erin goes to stay with relatives in the United States, Jessica keeps in touch and gets to hear that she has agreed to accept a church based behaviour contract which involves her being spanked on a regular basis for any misdemeanours. Jessica decides that this is one area where she can compete with Erin and gets her parents to agree to spank her in a similar way. It's not long before she finds herself on the receiving end of her first bare bottom spanking when her father spanks and paddles her for poor results at college. Further spankings follow and later Jessica is surprised to find that her own mother is now also subject to chastisement in much the same way as herself. As the punishments continue, she begins to find that she is becoming a better person and what's more, no longer in the shadow of her cousin.
Appointment for Contrition by Guy Spencer
Dr Lee, young Pastor of the Faith Temple, is a popular and respected figure within the church that holds regular 'Contrition' appointments for ladies of the congregation. At these sessions, the ladies confess their sins whilst wearing nothing but a white 'Truth' gown. Serious sinners are divested of their gown and subjected to corporal punishment in front of a special 'intervention gathering' usually attended by most of the church's ladies. It seems that some sinners invent sins just to get the handsome young Pastor to spank them! Most punishments are carried out by the Pastor, but some are administered by the formidable Sister March. Occasionally erring husbands are punished too; and many marriages take on a new sexual lease of life following such physical chastisements. The Pastor, whose fame in strengthening the families of his flock spreads more widely, begins to yearn for a wife of his own to discipline and cherish. When two girls in his flock come of age, the Pastor gets his opportunity. There is Nancy, the smouldering beauty who uses her looks to get what she wants in life, and then there is the hard-working and plain-faced Cindy. Both are determined to be the Pastor's wife, and both attend their first Contrition appointment where they are turned over the Pastor's knee. But which one will he choose...?
Journey to Love by Susan Thomas
Soon after Kathy Anderton starts dating, she wonders why she is expected to have sex to keep a boyfriend - a view shared by her friend Kelly, who invites Kathy to attend her church. Kathy's mum is pleased with this development, particularly as she finds out she is dying of cancer, which prompts her to make arrangements with the vicar concerning Kathy's future. Coming to terms with her mother's death, Kathy is sad, scared and angry - angry that she was abandoned by a father she'd never known, and that both sets of grandparents refused to acknowledge her existence. Anger fuels her to research her father, and she discovers several Andertons resident in a small rural town in America, and also finds a girls' college some twenty miles away. Kathy investigates further and finds it to be a very strict Christian college with curfews, rules, mandatory attendance at the college chapel, and weekly meetings with tutors to discuss work grades and responsible attitude. Given that she has no stomach for the drinking and sex culture in British universities, she applies for a place - and is successful.
Her new life begins, and when she receives an invitation from Pastor Brad Hoctor to attend his family church, the ideal appeals to her. After the first service, she joins 'Pioneers', a group for the 16- to 21-year-olds in church, and subsequently has her first sight of Assistant Pastor Jack Myerscough - a handsome man who is to become a key influence. It seems that discipline within the church family is strict, and Pastor Jack has no qualms in spanking young women for their disruptive behaviour. This regime is all new to Kathy, but it does
n't stop her from accepting Jack's invitation to go out on a date with him - even though he later punishes her for her own failings. Kathy's developing relationship with Jack unfolds as she finds out more about her estranged family, and her ultimate acceptance of Jack's authority culminates in a happy ever after ending in this tale of Christian domestic discipline.
The Disciplined Women of Birchhaven by James Simpson
Having lost her husband during the Second World War, Anne and her 19-year-old daughter, Jenny, relocate to the coastal village of Birchhaven, taking over the running of the local general store and Post Office.
Doing poorly at school, Jenny is subjected to a 'wake up' caning by the headmistress, and on the way back home her mother is stopped for speeding by the local police constable, Sergeant Dickerson. Rather than be dealt with by the magistrates, Anne opts for the 'local way', and later that night attends the police station where, her bottom bared, she is secured to a birching block and subjected to a painful strapping. Despite the discomfort she finds herself intensely aroused by the experience and has a powerful climax, much to the surprise of those witnessing her punishment.
When Jenny is driven by her mother to attend the local boys' school for a tutorial, Anne finds herself attracted to the headmaster and, flirting with him outrageously, removes her skirt and gets him to give her a caning. A romantic relationship follows as well as further canings. Some time later, Anne is caught speeding again and subjected to another disciplinary punishment by Sergeant Dickerson, only this time he is able to use one of the canes provided by the headmaster, who also gets to witness her punishment. The following day, it seems that Sgt Dickerson had been putting his newly acquired canes to good use as several village women are to be found seated on cushions...
