by Selena Kitt
She shook her head. "I feel so weak asking. No. Don't. Don't take on any more burdens. You have so many. I don't want you to feel like I'm asking too much of you."
"Shhh." He tangled his fingers in her hair. "You're not. You've been asking too little. You haven't asked for help. You haven't let me in to your life, not like we used to be. We used to talk about everything, but we don't anymore. Let me in. Let me help you. I am still the alpha of our little pack, and I should have stepped up sooner. I just didn't realize that what I needed was still what you needed."
She cuddled closer to him. "I don't want to be a hassle or a distraction to you."
He snorted, hugging her tightly. "You're not a hassle, apple cheeks. You make me smile every time I think about you. Even tanning your naughty butt gives me something to smile about later, when I remember how red and shiny it gets."
Irene squirmed in embarrassment. "Don't talk about that."
"Why not? You're getting that spanking anyway."
She jerked her head back from where her face was buried against his chest. "What? Why?"
"I told you. It's not up to you where I take you for dinner to celebrate your graduation. Now, do you want your spanking before, so I can watch you squirm in your seat, or do you want it after, so I can fuck you properly immediately?"
"Drew, no! I don't need a spanking. We talked about it. You're my alpha..." her voice trailed off as her eyes widened in chagrin when she realized what she'd just said.
He grinned down at her. "That's right, apple cheeks. So what I say goes."
"But… you haven't… haven't… haven't… tanned my butt. At all. For years."
"Believe me, if you'd done something really out of line, I would have anyway, talk or no talk."
Her core heated up. "Really?" Her voice rose in pitch. "Really? You would have spanked me if I did something you didn't like?"
He thought about it for a minute. "'Didn't like' isn't exactly right. If you'd done something against my direct order, or something I thought was not healthy for you or the boys, I would have."
"Which I haven't."
"No, you haven't disobeyed any direct orders. But that's partially because I haven't been giving them lately."
She wiggled around, unsure how to feel about this conversation. On the one hand, his words were rekindling a fire in her belly that she hadn't felt in a long, long time. On the other hand, she felt cheated, somehow hollow, that he was claiming to still be her alpha, her leader… when she couldn't tell, couldn't feel it for the last few years. She struck at his chest. "No, you haven't! So it's not fair!"
He continued as if she hadn't interrupted. "But there's still the matter of you not telling me that you needed help. Setting yourself up for burnout is not healthy for yourself or the boys." She stiffened, the skin on her bottom tingling. "I'm only human, and I'm not around all the time. I'm sorry I wasn't able to read your mind and find out what you needed help with. I wish you'd told me. But I'm glad you're talking to me now, which is why I'm going to go easy on you."
Her voice squeaked on the word. "Easy? You're going… easy? On me?"
"Yes, Irene. I'm going to spank you for not telling me sooner that you needed help. And I'm probably going to spank you for not listening to me when I told you to get ready to go out."
"But…"
"Either you wiggle your cute cheeks into some pretty dress so I can take you out right now, or I'll give you one spanking first. And another later. Are we clear?"
"But…"
Drew chuckled and shook his head. "I see we have to do some remedial training here. Turn over my lap."
She didn't struggle, exactly, so much as not cooperate very well. Her stomach was in knots—will it hurt? She remembered it hurting a lot. But he said he'd go easy on her. There was also trepidation —what if he said he would be a more active leader… but then he wasn't? Can I trust him?
SMACK! The first swat caught her by surprise and she yelped. "Ow! Drew, that's enough, that's enough!"
He stroked the back of her thighs, slipping her long skirt up to the middle of her back. "You don't remember how this works?"
She shivered. "You spank until you're finished."
"Good girl." He swatted her bottom again, and she squeaked. "Settle down. This is a reminder not to defy me when I tell you something isn't up to you."
"But, Dre-ew!"
"Apple cheeks, you need a solid spanking. You've needed it for a long time. I'm sorry I've neglected you."
And there it was. Neglect. That's what I've been dying of. She melted over his lap, her right arm tucked under her face on the bed, her left arm wrapped around his hips. He tugged her panties down and left them about mid-thigh.
She moaned in shame but when he caressed her full cheeks, she forgot to be embarrassed with how good his hand felt rubbing and squeezing. "Drew, can we skip the spanking and make love?"
"No."
She pouted.
"But if you're a good girl and take your spanking with no more fussing I'll make sure to pleasure you after." He parted her nether lips and slid a finger along her slit, tapping her clit.
Her cunt flooded. Her voice came out a breathy whisper. "Yes, sir."
"Good girl." His hand left and landed again, a sharp splat that had her sucking in breath. He started at the top of her buttocks, spanking down her crack until he reached her thighs. There he gripped her buttock with his left hand and lifted it, spanking along her sweet-spot, the crease between buttock and thigh. Irene moaned. He continued to spank along the sweet-spot of her other buttock, and then up, over the fullest parts of her cheeks. It stung more than she remembered, but it also burned. She remembered the heat. It raced along her skin, the flames fanned with each spank. Her bottom cheeks blushed red and then crimson as his hand covered every square inch of her skin.
Her face flushed; shame, desire and joy twisted together in her belly. This was what she wanted. This was what she masturbated to when he was gone overnight on a duty shift. How can I want this, though? Doesn't it mean I'm weak? He continued to spank, and each sharp smack jarred her thoughts until she wasn't sure she could keep them straight. Is it weak? To have a commanding officer? Drew was the strongest person she knew. And he isn't weak, just because as a Sergeant he reports to the Staff Sergeant and the Gunny. Inadvertently, she began to giggle.
"Oh?" He continued to spank while he questioned her. "What's so funny, apple cheeks?"
"I was just… trying to figure out what this made me. If my CO is a Sergeant." She giggled some more, despite the heat rising off her skin. "And I can't imagine the Gunny spanking you."
Drew snorted. "Believe me, if you'd seen some of the PT discipline Gunny hands out, you would be grateful you only get your ass spanked. And your rank is that of chief household officer, chief education officer, and chief officer cunt. Got it?"
She giggled. "Chief officer cunt? Do I get a nameplate with that on it?"
"Hm…." he spread her cheeks and slipped a finger into her wet cunt. "Let's see. Is this wet enough to qualify for a nameplate?" He wiggled his fingers around. She gasped. "I don't think it's quite hot enough to melt metal for a nameplate. Let's see if I can fix that." He slipped another finger in, turning his hand so his fingertips rasped over her g-spot. She bucked on his lap, squeezing down on his fingers and moaning. "Good girl, Irene. I told you I'd make you feel good afterward." He stroked her insides, pressing right where it shot bolts of pleasure through her body. "Come for me, apple cheeks. Your bottom is so hot and red right now—you took your spanking like a good girl. Let me reward you."
She squirmed and panted, heat suffusing her entire body. She pushed back against him until he slapped her bottom with his left hand. "No. Keep your hips right here. Clench down. Good girl. You feel how hot you are? Now I think we can melt metal. I think you need a pretty nameplate. It's going to say Chief Officer Cunt Apple Cheeks. And when you need a reminder, I'm going to pick up that nameplate right off your desk and spank you raw with it. How about that?
And when your butt is red enough, I'm going to fuck you, just like I'm fucking you right now. You like it, don't you? You love it when I fuck you, don't you? Come on, cum for me, like a good girl."
She did, her chest heaving and her legs shaking with the force of the orgasm that bubbled up around her burning nerves. "Oh, gods!"
He continued to finger fuck her until her body went limp, tremors chasing each other over the surface of her skin.
He slipped his fingers out and stroked her crimson bottom. His voice was soft and soothing. "Good girl. I'm proud of you. You haven't given in to me like that for a long time."
She shivered, so he pulled her up, tucked her into his lap and kissed her sweaty temple, then her soft mouth. She responded, kissing him back with ardor.
He stopped her before she got carried away. "Get dressed. I'll help you." She stared at him, unfocused for a moment, but he took her chin in his hand and pressed another kiss to her lips. "I need dinner. I have to keep up my strength if I'm going to fuck you again tonight."
She grinned. "Now?"
He grinned back and slapped her aching bottom. "Fuck later. Food now." She started to pout and he raised his hand. "Did the reason for your spanking slip your mind?"
"No!" She scrambled off his lap and made her unsteady way to the closet. "I have to wash."
Drew got up and brought her a warm wet washcloth, then pulled her back against his body while he spread her legs and cleaned her cunt lips and inner thighs. The rough washcloth made her shiver with renewed arousal so she pushed her mound against his hand in a silent plea for more. He laughed and flicked the cloth tip against her swollen lips. She cried out, clamping her legs together while the spot he'd struck throbbed with delicious agony. "Not yet." She shuddered, but obediently pulled out the first dress she found that still fit her. "Beautiful. Shoes." She put on some high heeled sandals, not caring in the slightest that she wasn't wearing hose—or panties, for that matter—and followed her husband to the door.
The restaurant was lovely. Dark and inviting, it made her nervous. Especially when she saw the prices on the menu. "Drew!" She hissed his name, holding the elegant menu in a trembling hand.
He leaned towards her. "Do I need to take you back home for a belt spanking before we come back and finally have our dinner?"
She bit her lip. The thought made her cunt throb, and her bottom throb, but her stomach was also grumbling. She'd already been promised one belt spanking for not telling him she needed more help. One meal wouldn't break the budget. She hoped.
She snuck a glance at him. He was so much older now than when they'd met. Lines surrounded his eyes, partially from the worries, partially from what he'd seen in the desert, partially from just being in the desert and the glaring sun. But he was still her same Drew—the man she'd adored from the first day she met him, much as she'd tried not to at first.
She was different too, she knew. But she was still the girl who wanted an alpha. She surrendered. "No, sir."
"Good."
The waiter came and took their order—it was worth the wait. Her plate of truffled Parmesan grits was accented with thin slices of short rib meat so tender you could cut them with a fork and topped with huge browned Sea scallops. His dry-aged rib-eye steak was perfectly cooked and juicy beside the pile of whipped garlic potatoes. Irene actually moaned while eating the aioli covered asparagus that came with their meals. "Drew. This is so, so good."
He grinned at her and chucked her chin. "You're worth it."
"Seriously though. How can we afford this?"
"I'm going to start working on my SNCOCDEP. From what my CO tells me, there's a good chance I'll be promoted to Staff Sergeant in the next year."
"Oh, Drew! I'm so happy for you! I'm so proud of you. Wow." She got up and went around the table to kiss him. He returned her kiss before patting her hip and directing her back to her seat.
"And, like I said, Irene, I save up little bits of my spending money so that I can do something nice for you every once in a while. It's been tight with you in school and not able to work. Don't misunderstand, I'm very glad you've been able to do it. But things will be easier at the next duty station."
She took a deep breath. "Yes. You're right. It's only cruising from here."
He wrapped her hands up in his big ones. "Life with you can only get better and better."
She blushed, her eyes watering with emotional overflow. "I love you so much."
"I love you forever."
Chapter Eight: 28
"Drew. I'm sorry. I'm not doing what I need to."
"Talk to me."
Irene shook her head. "What's there to talk about? I still haven't found a job."
"I know. I understand. It's pretty rural here. I'd be surprised if you had, honestly."
"But I can do so much! I'm a machinist. I'm a teacher. They don't even have substitute teacher openings at the school! And there's only one math teacher at the high school, and he's been teaching there for forty years! All the math classes. And the summer school math classes." She threw up her hands and paced away from him. Due to his shift schedule at the Installation he was home in the middle of the day, while the boys were in school. Irene fanned herself. Even in spring the weather was oppressive, far too hot for the pathetic air conditioner in their tiny house to keep up with. "You know how most schools are perpetually short staffed when it comes to higher math teachers. It's difficult for them to find someone qualified—as long as we're near a city, I can always get a job. Always! There's just nothing here! I don't know what to do!"
"You're smart. You're qualified. I'm sure something will turn up."
"Do you know that there are three machine shops within an hour's drive? Three. And not a single one needs help. None."
"Tell me what you've been doing."
"What I've been doing? Drew, I've been going crazy! I can't stand it! I've been searching online for jobs. I even started putting applications in at all the stores in the area. No one is hiring!"
"Irene, I think you need to slow down. Relax."
"I can't! I have to make payments on my student loans! We have the car payments. Not to mention the regular household bills. The boys are six, Drew. Do you know how much food six-year-old boys eat?"
He smiled at her. "I know. I was a six-year-old boy once upon a time."
"Then you understand why I'm so stressed out!"
"I understand. But I'm telling you, we'll work it out."
She shook her head. "We'll work it out by me getting a job. I'll just put applications in further away."
"No."
She didn't appear to have heard him. "I'll have to take my bike, it'll use less gas, so I won't be able to pick up the boys from school, and I'll have to figure out childcare when their school ends in three weeks, but—"
Drew interrupted her. "But nothing. You are not commuting more than an hour away."
"What?"
He crossed his arms. "I said you're not commuting more than an hour away."
"But Drew, I have to. I need a job."
"How much will childcare cost?"
She hesitated. "Well, it depends. The closest camp is three hundred…"
"Per kid?" he asked. She nodded. "So six hundred. Per week?" She nodded again. "Irene. Even as a machinist you'd be making eight hundred at best. Full time. If you get some retail job at ten bucks an hour, you're losing money."
Her voice dropped to a mutter. "Maybe I'll just have Mom come and take care of them."
"If you want your mother to come visit, that's fine. But she's got her own life and career, and you don't need to be asking her to drop everything unless you really need her."
"I need to do something! I can't do this. We have so many bills."
"We'll work it out."
"How, Drew? How? I worked out a budget when you were deployed last time. Your income plus mine covered everything just fine. And then we fucking moved, again, and I don't have my income and yours is the same, but we still have the bills, and Drew! I jus
t can't."
"Come on. Come here. Sit with me and show me everything."
"What's the point? I know it doesn't work. I have to have a job."
"You're not understanding me. Working for less than the cost of the boys going to summer camp is not an option. It doesn't help—it actually hurts your objective."
She looked away, her arms crossed defensively over her body.
He caught her chin and turned her towards him. "What's our objective?"
She sighed. Missions, objectives. Will I ever get used to military words describing our home life? "Our objective is to raise happy, healthy, stable sons in a safe, loving home."
"Yes, ma'am. You've got it. Now. What part of that objective does working over an hour away accomplish?"
"It accomplishes that we have more income! So I can pay the bills! So the home is more stable and safer and healthier because I can get better groceries and things we need, and happier because I'm doing the things I need to do!"
"This is why I want you to show me the budget. If there is anything we can cut down, or postpone payments on, maybe we can make it work on my income."
"And if we can't?"
"If we can't, we'll work together to find a way to increase our income. But it will not involve you working for less or even close to the same amount as it costs for you to put the boys in summer camp. Especially when you add in the costs of the commute."
She frowned at him, her bottom lip stuck out defiantly. "Drew, I'll handle it. I've been handling it."
He softened his hand on her cheek. "I know, apple cheeks. But this is exactly the sort of thing we've been talking about. You've been handling it, and it's stressful. Let me help. Much as we think alike in some ways, we are different people, and I might have an idea that you hadn't thought of yet."
She set her jaw. "And if I don't like your idea?"
"We'll talk about it. But in the end, I have the final decision, and your job is to carry out that decision. You understand?"
Something inside her relaxed. The fear she'd felt at not being able to provide for her family, the terror at being useless and helpless started to dissolve. Drew will take care of us. It's not just me. The boys have their father to take care of them. I have my husband to take care of me.
