12 Naughty Days of Christmas 2018

by Isabella Kole

  She turned enough to look at him, her eyes wide. “What did you say, Nick?”

  He smiled as he caught her eyes. He lifted her up and helped her into his lap. “You heard me right, honey. I said I love you.” He leaned down and claimed her lips. When she met his kiss with just as much passion as he was putting into it, he quickly took control of the kiss and it became more urgent. When he eventually forced himself to pull back, he wrapped her in his arms, pulling her tight. “I love you, Noelle, but I won’t allow you to keep torturing yourself and hurting friendships and jobs. I want you to tell me what it is that keeps haunting you.”

  “Will you help me through it?”

  “I absolutely will,” he promised. “You’re going to sit right here on my lap, with my arms around you. Do you feel safe yet, or do you need me to spank you a little more?”

  She looked up at him, her eyes squinted. “Huh?”

  “Honey, I am so proud of you right now, I don’t know how to express it. When you lashed out at me and I took you over my lap, you were practically begging me to spank you.”

  “Are you crazy?”

  “No, I’m not, and neither are you. Let me explain. When I warned you that you were close to earning a spanking, I was pretty sure that’s what you wanted, or rather, it was what you needed. When you doubled down, refusing to answer my question and throwing in a few swear words, it proved my point.”

  “What point?”

  “You remembered how bad you felt after losing your temper and yelling at those boys, but how much better you felt after your spanking. After I held you accountable for your actions and made you pay for them, you felt better. You also had a content feeling when you felt how much I care about you, which also happens after a spanking, when I’m sharing my feelings with you while holding you in my arms, protecting you. You were feeling bad again this evening and looking for help. You knew if I spanked you, you’d feel better again; the help you were looking for. Again, I’m so proud of you for that.”

  “Why would that make you proud of me?”

  “Because not every lady can admit that. It takes a strong woman to be able to admit that being held accountable by a man that loves her makes her feel better, but you’ve done that. Even if your brain may not be able to explain it, you’ve listened to your heart, and accepted it. I love you for that. I also know that means you trust me to take care of you, and that means the world to me. I promise I’ll always do my best to live up to that trust.”

  “I do trust you, Nick.” She flung her arms around his neck and gave him a big hug. She pulled back enough to find his eyes. “I want you to know that I love you too. It scared me because I normally don’t trust people enough to get that close for a long time, but with you it just happened. Like I said, it scared me at first, but it makes me feel better knowing it was really quick for you too.”

  “I think maybe we’re just one of those couples that are meant to be together. But with that in mind, I think it’s important that you talk to me. Tell me what keeps upsetting you, so we can deal with it and get on with our relationship. I want you to feel safe and content, like you did when I spanked you before. I’ll hold you while we talk. Can we do that now?”

  “Okay,” she agreed, cuddling in tighter against him. They talked for over an hour, with her wrapped in his arms.

  He asked questions to be sure he understood, and encouraged her when she needed it to continue. Eventually he was able to find out that her mother had died when she was young and she’d been raised by her father. She admitted he might have spoiled her a bit, by not often telling her no. She didn’t think it was a problem until he died last year.

  In his will he stated his concern, saying it was his fault, but after giving in to her so often, he didn’t feel she was ready to face life and her finances on her own. Therefore, although he left his entire estate to her – which apparently was fairly substantial – he didn’t feel she had the maturity to handle it yet. So the majority of it had been put in a trust until she was thirty, giving her sufficient time to grow into adulthood.

  That had hurt her a great deal. She had to move out of the house she’d grown up in. it was to be rented out until she was thirty, with most of the rental money going into an account which would also be turned over to her when she was thirty. It would then be her house, and she could do with it what she wished. She was given a little money, but it was clear she would have to work and earn her living. She had her degree in accounting and had already gotten a job at Silverton, but most of her money she’d been spending however she wanted, while still living at home. Now she had to live off her salary.

  Nick assumed that was when she started having problems with coworkers, and she confirmed it was. It was hard, not only financially since she was paying rent, utilities, groceries and everything she needed out of her paycheck now, but she was struggling emotionally, as well. It hurt that her father didn’t feel she could be trusted with her inheritance. Over the year since then, she’d admitted to herself that he was right, and she wouldn’t have done well with her inheritance at the time. Now she could see how much she had taken for granted.

  But that wasn’t her problem with Christmas. Her best friend had helped her through the loss of her father. She was always there for her when she felt down and needed a friend. But then, right after Thanksgiving, her friend’s husband, who was in the service, was transferred to Germany, and they moved away. Christmas last year had been awful. It was not only her first Christmas without her father, but she didn’t have her best friend either, who had been the one person she went to when she missed him the most.

  Therefore, she’d been upset last year at Christmas time and refused to put a tree or any other decorations up. It also explained why Silverton Accounting had gotten several complaints from her coworkers last year in December.

  Nick kissed the top of her head. “Noelle, I’m sorry you lost your dad. He sounds like he was a smart man who cared a great deal about you though. You said you can admit now that you weren’t ready at that time to inherit his full estate, so he actually did you a favor. He was looking out for you when he did that.”

  “I can see that now,” she agreed. “I could use a little bit of my inheritance now, but I admit I wasn’t ready to inherit it all when he died. I also admit that having to live on my own was very good for me, and it did make me grow up a great deal.”

  “As far as you associating Christmas with being alone, and not celebrating, that I can’t agree with,” Nick said. “I understand why you were upset last year, but things are different now. You’re not alone any longer, honey. I’m here with you, and anything you have to go through we’ll go through together. I don’t think your dad would have wanted you to not celebrate or allow yourself to be happy because of him. I think he’d want you to be happy.”

  She sighed. “I never looked at it like that, but you’re probably right.”

  “Now, about celebrating. I don’t think it was losing your father that kept you from enjoying the holiday last year, but the pain or hurt you felt from being alone. You’re not alone any longer, but for us to enjoy Christmas this year you need to be able to let go of that pain. Once you can do that, I think we’ll be able to go forward and make our own new memories. We’ve already started, with memories of Santa and Mrs. Claus. Once we have good memories to look back on regarding this time of year, I think you’ll be able to recall your past holidays with your father and smile. It may take a couple years, maybe more, but I think as we make more and more good memories it will become easier for you.”

  She thought about that for a couple minutes before answering. “When you said let go of the hurt you make it sound simple. When you’ve been hurt, how do you just forget it?”

  “It isn’t simple, but I think in this case you’re making it harder than it has to be. I totally understand you being sad last year at Christmas. But it sounds to me like you were not only sad, but also angry last year and refused to celebrate or allow yourself any happiness.”
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  “Why do you say I was angry?”

  “Weren’t you?”

  “No. I was upset because I’d lost my dad. Then my best friend, the one who had been there and helped me through that really hard time, left, and I needed her at Christmas.”

  “That sure sounds to me like you were angry,” he said. “You were understandably sad. Your friend was someone you could count on to help. When she was pulled out of the picture you had another void in your life. For someone who’s already sad and grieving, it would be much easier to feel anger than sadness. In some ways it’s easier to deal with.”

  “How is it easier to deal with?”

  “There’s not a lot you can do to fight sadness or grieving. It takes time. In your case you got mad and made the decision that you would not celebrate or allow anything that might bring you a little happiness. But you see, that’s a limit you put on yourself as a way of handling the anger. Your life is different this year than last, and there’s no longer any need to be angry or to hold on to that. You’re not alone this year. Holding onto anger and acting out because of that anger sounds more like something a spoiled girl would do rather than the maturing young lady this spoiled girl is growing into.”

  Nick watched as she sat up straight as she thought about his words, and he saw a flash of anger cross her face. He arched an eyebrow, and when she looked at him and saw that, he watched her back off a little. After a while she snuggled in next to him, leaning against his chest again. “Was I really a spoiled kid acting out?”

  “I prefer to think of it as someone who was hurt, and acted the way they always had with the person they were grieving for. Maybe it was your way of subconsciously feeling closer to him.”

  “I like your way of thinking of it. I look much better that way.”

  He chuckled and gave her an extra little squeeze. “I love you, so I will probably always see the best in you. That reminds me, are you okay, after your spanking?”

  She cocked her head to the side a bit and thought about his question. “This spanking felt different.”

  “This one was on your bare bottom.”

  “I know, but that’s not what I mean. To answer your question, yes, I’m fine, which is part of why it seems different. I’m not as sore this time.”

  “This spanking was something you needed for a different reason. Whereas the first one was meant as a deterrent to unacceptable behavior, this one was meant as a means to help you feel safe enough to talk to me about something that was hard for you to open up about. It was hurting your life, and I couldn’t just sit by and let that happen, but I knew you needed to talk about it in order to be able to get past it.”

  She was quiet for a couple minutes, and when she looked up at him her eyes were filled with tears. “That’s the other reason this spanking felt different,” she said. “This time I wasn’t scared of what was going to happen. I know now that I may have been a spoiled brat when I acted out like I did with the boys that earned my first spanking, but you didn’t spank me because I was a spoiled brat. It was because you love me and won’t allow me to continue being a spoiled brat. I see that now, and I love you for it.”

  “You are such a smart, strong little lady, I can’t believe my luck. You are the best Christmas present I’ve ever gotten.”

  She laughed out loud. “And you’re the best Christmas present I’ve ever gotten. And that says a lot,” she added with a mischievous grin he loved seeing. “Because money wasn’t much of an issue with my dad and I was a spoiled brat growing up.”

  He laughed, then looked at his right hand and flexed it a few times. “I better get my hand warmed up then, because spoiled brats generally need lots of, let’s call it guidance, to change their spoiled behavior.” He stretched his hand a couple more times. “Lucky for you, my hand and I are up to the challenge.”

  “Promise?”

  His eyes widened as he looked at her. “You like getting spanked?”

  “No. Well, to be honest, this one wasn’t too bad, but the first one really hurt. But since we’ve been dating I’ve learned that you really are looking out for me. You’re always watching me, paying attention to me, and won’t let me get away with everything like I used to. So, although the spankings may really hurt, I love the way they make me feel afterwards. I feel loved and cherished when I’m safe in your arms after you’ve, shall we say: reminded me you’re watching me?”

  He laughed again and pulled her in for another kiss. “I am so looking forward to spending time together. I know life with you will never get boring.”

  “I’m looking forward to it too, Nick. And you’re right about us making our own new Christmas memories.”

  “I’ve already got some new Christmas memories. You in that Mrs. Claus suit, telling the kids some of those stories you come up with is something I’ll always think about at Christmas time.”

  “And you telling me you love me is something I’ll never forget.”

  “Good. Now, about this Christmas tree. We’ve got to decide where we’re going to put it and how big it should be.”

  “But I gave away my tree and all the ornaments last year.”

  “Good. That means we can go buy a new one and pick out special ornaments that we like. Shopping for them and picking out ones we like will make them special for us and make a good memory we’ll be able to remember every year when we put our tree up and decorate it.”

  She had tears in her eyes again as she listened to him. “I love you, Nick.”

  “I love you, Noelle. Merry Christmas.”

  The End.

  Misty Malone

  Writing has been a dream of Misty’s for several years. She’s finally following that dream, and began writing in 2013. She enjoys writing romance stories, with a handsome man who falls in love with a lovely lady in need of a strong man who can take her in hand. Having grown up on a farm, she especially enjoys writing about strong cowboys. She lives in the Midwest with her husband and son, not far from where she grew up. Misty hopes you enjoy reading her books as much as she enjoys writing them. Reviews to her books are very much appreciated, and she would like to thank you for each one of them. She invites you to leave a message for her at authormistymalone@gmail.com.

  Don’t miss these exciting titles by Misty Malone and Blushing Books!

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  Audiobooks

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  12 Naughty Days of Christmas 2018

  Paige Parsons

>   Chapter 1

  She hated when he had early morning meetings. It was the only time he opened the office before ten o’clock. Since they worked late most nights, he didn’t think coming in early the next morning was anything except torture, and in his words, it wasn’t the good kind. Such a goof. This was why she was standing in front of the coffee maker in the break/sample room. Stopping by the bakery on her way in, she’d already placed the pastry assortment on a tray, so they looked less like the afterthought that they were.

  Hunched over the counter contemplating her life, which was something she despised having enough time to indulge in, she didn’t hear him come in the room. She wasn’t aware of him until his hot breath was on her neck.

  “Good morning,” the words came out between breaths and kisses.

  The man made her weak in the knees. Life contemplations were gone from her head and suddenly her body and mind were fully awake in another way. He moved to the other side of her neck and proceeded to ask questions like she could make sense of anything with him working her up.

  “What are you doing? Didn’t you check the messages? I tried to reach you, so you didn’t have to get here so early.”

  Her temper stirred and was radiating off of her instantly. Was he kidding about her not having to be up so early? Six in the morning exceeded ‘up early’ by a mile. Bracing her hands on the counter, she made to turn around but was stopped by his larger ones on her waist holding her still.