by Kimber Davis
"I'm not talking about that part." She blushed furiously. It had been more than a year since she'd had a boyfriend, and her body was very much in love with the love-making part.
"Let's go outside."
"What? It's still light outside."
"Yes, it is. In this case I think the punishment needs to take place where the crime took place. Near the pool."
He held out his hand. "Come with me."
The idea of making love outdoors held more than a tinge of excitement for Tricia. She walked past him, ignoring his hand. It was cool outdoors, with rain in the offing. She glanced around the yard, then shivered when she thought of the many places he could bend her over to spank her. And do other wonderful, nasty things to her.
He came up behind her, his breath warm on her neck.
"Take your panties off."
She shivered, but obeyed him, lowering her panties past her knees and then stepping out of them. The light wind wrapped around her legs and moved upwards.
"Now, go and lie face down on the chaise lounge. Lift your skirt over your behind so I can see it nice and bare for me."
"Seth." Her breathing was erratic as excitement built inside her.
"Do it. Go be my bad girl."
She walked to the lounger, lowered herself down then twisted until she was on her stomach. She inched her skirt up past her hips and the cool air from the lake drifted over her, making her shiver.
"Feel good?"
"Yes."
"Feel naughty?"
"Yes."
"Good."
"Hurry, please."
"You in that much of a hurry to be spanked? I didn't think you liked it last time."
"I didn't. I'm not in a hurry to be spanked. I'm in a hurry for you to make love to me. Please."
"We'll get there. We've waited for ten years. What's another ten minutes, give or take?"
His hands began to caress her behind, gently at first, and then more firmly, his fingers kneading her flesh until she began to move her hips in a timeless motion of desire.
"Lie still."
"You're killing me." And she meant it. Her body was on fire with need. Part of her wanted to believe that it was because it had been so long since she'd been with a man. But she knew that wasn't true. It was because the man touching her was Seth.
She'd felt the pull between them the first night in her parents' living room. That night, though, she'd channeled it into anger. Now, several weeks later, she felt it again. And she was channeling it into love.
He was the one and only man who'd ever gotten under her skin. She'd known it all her life, but she'd chosen to ignore it for her whole adult life. It was one of the reasons why she'd accepted her father's offer of running the New York office.
She remembered too well the night she'd told him yes. He'd been stunned, and her mother had seemed heartbroken. Now, if she decided to move back to Washington and live with Seth in Medina, what would they think? How would that make them feel? Would they be happy, or were they adjusted to the fact that they daughter lived on the other side of the continent from them?
Seth's caresses had just lulled her into a sense of wonderful contentment when the first strike landed. She jumped, but somehow it didn't hurt as badly as the first spanking he'd given her. She wondered if he was holding back.
Several more swats landed and instead of crying, she moaned. By the time the seventh's swat landed she was moaning out Seth's name.
"Please, stop torturing me and make love to me."
"Hush. Not yet." He placed several more soft slaps on her ass, then stood. Tricia sighed, then started to stand herself, but Seth pushed her back down, straddling her so that his behind was on her back.
"This is for pushing me in the pool." He started to slap her ass again, moving from side to side, alternating cheeks while she laughed and twisted under him. The spanking was not harsh, the swats just hard enough to sting. When she began to buck under him, trying to get him off, he stood and pulled her up with him, dragging her to the pool until they reached the side.
"No!" She grabbed a hold of him, knowing what he was planning on doing. He unhooked her hands and pushed her into the pool. She saw him laughing when she came up for air. She was laughing too, and her laughter turned to groans when he started to take off his clothing.
He stripped quickly, shucking his shirt and jeans until he was naked. He stood by the side for a few moments and she admired his body. Had he been that large when they'd first made love? His erection seemed huge.
"Take off your clothes," he said softly.
She did as he asked, throwing her wet clothes at him as she went. He ducked each piece of clothing, then, when she was naked, she took off for the deep end of the pool.
He dove in after her, coming up quickly and grabbing her around the waist. She could feel his hardness rubbing against her thigh and she moaned.
"Take me."
He tucked her body into his swimming on his back as he led them toward the shallow end of the pool. When they'd reached the stairs, he turned until she was sitting on the middle one, her breasts out of the water.
He caressed each one gently, twisting and pulling on her nipples until she arched into his hands. Then, he lowered his mouth and suckled each one.
"Please, Seth."
Without answering, he gently pulled her toward him, and pushed inside. She wrapped her legs around him as he slowly filled her, as if savoring each second, each inch that swallowed him up.
Their gazes locked as he began to move, slowly at first and then faster and faster until both of them were groaning with exertion.
"So good," he whispered in her ear. "I've missed you. Missed the years we could have had together."
Tricia didn't answer him. When his thumb found her clit, she throbbed through her whole body. Each stroke drove her higher and higher until the orgasm quaked from her body.
"I hate you," she said. "Damn you, I hate you. I hate you. I hate you."
He laughed as he increased his thrusts. "I hate you, too."
"Good," she whispered as she felt him stiffen, then release inside her. "I'm glad we've got that settled.
*****
Tricia should have been embarrassed that when Bev called the next morning, her first words were, "you got laid. Lucky bitch."
She laughed and settled back into Seth's arms. His eyes were opened and there was a lazy smile on his face.
"Yes, I did."
"And I had a baby."
Tricia sat bolt upright. "What? When? Why didn't you call us?"
"Because, he came really quick. I started labor at three, and gave birth at five forty-five. My parents barely had time to get here. The doctor teased me about him taking the expressway."
Tricia laughed and turned to Seth.
"A boy."
"How much?"
Tricia related the question, then said, "seven pounds, two ounces. Twenty two inches long. Tall and lean, just like his daddy."
She turned back to the phone when Bev called out her name.
"No, we'll come down this afternoon, if that's OK. Sure. We'll see you then. Bye."
Tricia snuggled back into Seth's chest.
"That could be us, you know." His voice was deep.
"No, I don't think so."
She felt him stiffen, but ignored it. "Sure it could. We didn't use any protection the three times we made love last night. Unless you're on the pill."
Tricia felt fear seep into her bones. He was right, they hadn't used anything. Not only did they have to worry about babies, but also disease. As quickly as that idea entered her mind, though, it disappeared.
"Don't worry," he said, echoing her thoughts. "I'm clean."
"Me, too. Of course it's been more than a year since I've been with someone."
"Me, too."
She laughed. "Which would explain why we fell into it so quickly."
Seth sat up, a hurt look on his face. "Easy? Falling into it easy would have been us having sex the fir
st night you got into town. This wasn't that easy."
"Oh, Seth, face it. We had sex because we were horny, not because we're in love."
"You think so? I don't think that, and I'm sorry that you do, because I love you. I always have."
"No, you don't. Seth, we hardly know each other. We haven't seen each other for ten years, and the relationship we had before ended very badly. We can't just expect to pick up where we left off, just like that."
"No, you're right, we can't. But we can work on it. Together."
She shook her head. "I have a life now, in New York."
"Do you? A great one? Do you have a lover? Regular friends that you see or talk to everyday? If you stayed here, with me, you would have a lover. Me. And you would have friends to see and talk to. Bev. And Margaret. And your parents."
"That part of my life is..." Tricia stopped. What was she going to say, over? In the past? Finnished?
"Is what?" Seth asked. "A closed book? A finished chapter? What?"
She didn't want to let him in. Losing him last time had hurt too badly. And she'd been a total bitch to him. How could he want her back?
"I'm sorry, Seth. I'm not moving back here."
"Fine." He got up and moved toward the door, secure in the fact that he was naked.
"Where are you going?"
"I won't be your boy toy for the summer, Tricia. I thought you still had feelings for me. I was wrong. I'm going back to my own home. I'll be here for work on Monday."
"Seth, wait!" But he didn't listen. She heard his footsteps as he walked down the hallway. She lay back on the pillow, tears leaking from her eyes. Why had she just done that? Last night had been so beautiful, so perfect. And she'd screwed everything up.
She sat back up and screamed, "I really do hate you!"
Then, she tumbled back onto the pillows and began to cry in earnest.
*****
"Isn't he beautiful," Bev said softly, holding the baby out for Tricia to see.
Tricia had cried for almost an hour. She'd listened to Seth load his stuff in his truck, and back out of the driveway. She'd been alone. As she always was.
She'd cried and cried, and then she'd slept. When she awoke, it was after two. She'd gotten up, showered and tried to eat, but the food wouldn't go past her throat.
Now she stood and watched her friend cuddle with her newborn child. Something that Tricia would never have happen to her. She fought back a fresh batch of tears and nodded.
"Yes, he is. And how lucky are you to have had such a short labor. I know lots of my fri... co-workers in New York would be jealous."
"Yes, he came quick. Mom said his older brother paved the road, and he just drove it. If I have another one, they'll probably come even quicker."
"Are you going to?"
"Have another? I don't know. We'll just see how things go. Speaking of things... where's Seth?"
"He went home to check on things at his house. He was worried about getting the lawn done, that type of thing." How easily the lie had come. Tricia didn't want to ruin her friend's happiness and tell her that she and Seth weren't together, nor would they ever be.
The nurse came in several minutes later and said it was time for the new mother and child to nurse. Tricia promised that she'd come back tomorrow, and leaned over to kiss Bev's cheek.
"I'll be home tomorrow, so come there. And bring Seth."
She nodded and left. In the car, she allowed a few tears to creep down her cheeks. Then she went home and sighed as she looked at the mess in the kitchen, and on the patio.
The food had been put away, but dirty dishes still needed to be done, and trash needed to be taken out. She got to work, using the petty chores as a way to take her mind off Seth.
When she was done, though, images of him filled her brain again. Had she done the right thing? Were she and Seth truly made for each other, as he seemed to think? As her parents seemed to think? As Bev seemed to think?
She thought about the few boyfriends she'd had since him. None of them inspired the amount of passion that he did. None of them made her weak in the knees, or made her stomach feel as if it could take flight and leave her body.
None of them had ever made her as angry as Seth did. Around seven that night, she went to the kitchen and fixed a plate of food, wondering how much better the leftovers would taste if he were there to share them with her.
At nine, she lay down on the couch and cried herself to sleep.
At seven the next morning, she stirred to the soft touch of a hand on her arm.
"Wake up," Alicia said, her voice low. "You've been crying. What's wrong?"
Tricia threw herself into the woman's arms and sobbed out the whole story, telling her that she'd managed to drive him away, yet again, and that she knew now that she would never, ever feel the same about a man as she did about Seth. She even told her about the spankings.
"I love him," she said between sobs. "I love him so much."
"We all know that," Alicia said softly. "When he gets here, talk to him. Tell him. He'll understand your reticence. And if he doesn't then you make him understand."
"How do I do that?"
"By telling him that you love him, and that it scares you."
There was a knock at the front door, and Alicia pulled her to her feet. "Go upstairs and get cleaned up. Then you can talk to him."
She hurried upstairs, knowing that Alicia was right. Hell, that they'd all been right and that Tricia was wrong. She hated it in New York. She wanted to move back to Medina, to live with Seth and have babies. She wanted the look of joy that she'd seen on Bev's face yesterday.
She showered quickly, then threw on a sundress and ran downstairs. The workers were still sitting around the table, enjoying bacon and eggs with toast and orange juice. Seth wasn't with them.
"Where's the boss?"
They all laughed.
"He said he had to devote some time to his house," Joy said. "He'll be here tomorrow, but he said you'd give us any instruction that we needed."
Tricia fought to hide her disappointment. "Well, I think you guys know what to do, don't you? If you need advice, I'll be down here."
They got up and trudged upstairs and Alicia shook her head. The older woman went into the kitchen and came back several minutes later with a piece of paper in her hands.
"Here. This is his address. Go to him and I'll watch the troops."
"He obviously doesn't want me anymore."
"Listen, girlie, you go there now or I'll take you over my knee. Now get!" She pointed toward the door and Tricia fled, grabbing the keys to her father's car before slamming the doorway behind her.
She found Seth's house nestled in a very nice, very respectable family neighborhood. His truck sat in the driveway next to a late-model sedan. The yard was freshly mowed, and water jets were doing their job. She parked in the driveway and went to the front door, working hard to fight the panic that had gripped a hold of her stomach.
She rang the bell and didn't get an answer. So she turned the knob and the door pushed open.
"Seth?"
Silence greeted her question. She took a tentative step inside, worried that she was in the wrong house and that any second now cops would come and take her away. Then she remembered seeing Seth's truck in the driveway. And there, sitting on a small table, was his favorite hate.
"Seth? It's Tricia. May I come in?"
There was still no answer. She moved into the house, shutting the door behind her.
"Can you hear me?"
"Yes." His voice was deep. She tried to read something into the inflection, but couldn't.
"You didn't answer me. May I come in?"
"Seems to me as if you're already in. I'm in the living room."
Tricia walked down the wide hallway, which ended in a large room. Seth sat on a couch, clad in jeans and nothing more. She shivered at the sight of his bare chest. He had a cup of coffee in his hands and the large TV that dominated one wall was muted, and turned to a spor
ts channel.
"Hi." She swallowed the fear that he would turn on her, yell at her to get out.
"Hi."
She sighed. He definitely wasn't going to make this easy on her.
"Can we talk?"
"Aren't we?"
"Shit, Seth, cut me a break."
He lifted his eyebrows at her and she sighed. Silence reigned for a few minutes, then he sighed himself.
"Have you come to tell me you've changed your mind?"
"Yes."
"Really? Why the change of heart?"
"You don't seem too happy about it."
"Tell me why, first."
"Because you're, you're, you're... infuriating." She wrung her sweaty palms, her fingers tingling. "You're arrogant. You're ... you're ... because I love you, you jerk."
"Are you sure?"
"Not the response I was hoping for."
"I've already told you that I loved you, and you threw the idea away, like it meant nothing."
"I was wrong to do that. I'm sorry. It means everything."
When he grinned, she returned it. Then, the grin on his face disappeared.
"How do I know you're not going to throw it away again?"
"I'm not. I swear."
He leaned back and put his coffee cup on the table next to him.
"I don't know, Tricia. You were right. We don't have a great track record together. Maybe we just need to leave well enough alone."
"So I mean that little to you?"
"You to me? How about me to you? You're the one who rejected the idea out of hand."
"You're right, I did. And I'm admitting that I was wrong. The least you could do is meet me halfway."
"Like you met me halfway on prom night?"
Tricia crossed her arms over her chest and stared at him, her eyes narrow and dark.
"It always comes back to that, doesn't it? Why don't we just get it over with? Why don't you just spank me for what happened, and maybe we can move on."
Seth's upraised eyebrows almost made her laugh out loud. Almost. Has she really just suggested that he spank her? She couldn't believe she'd made that suggestion. From the look on his face, neither could he.
"That's not a hand or a hairbrush spanking, Tricia. You got me arrested for grand theft auto. That's a belt spanking. Hell, I think it's several belt spankings. Are you sure you want to do that?"
