by Alta Hensley
“Over.” He pointed to the bed.
She bent at the waist, placing her hands flat on the mattress.
“Raise your bottom. When you’ve earned Daddy’s belt, you present your bottom for your punishment just like this. The next time I have to pull you out of the dayroom for a spanking, you’ll come right in and do this.” He moved into position beside her, laying his warm hand against the top of her ass. “Do you understand me?”
“Yes, Daddy,” she said, finding a spot on the quilt to focus on. If she could just keep her mind trained on one of the purple lilies covering her bed, maybe she wouldn’t feel so much of the spanking.
The first lash landed, and she jumped to her toes. His hand pressed firmly against her back, keeping her in position as he brought the belt down again and again.
She lost track of the lily as she danced from foot to foot as the leather cut across her flesh igniting a new fire with each strike.
“You are not to be selfish or rude. And you never put your hands on anyone.” His voice was firm as he brought down the belt across her thighs.
“I’m sorry!” she howled. Never before had she felt such pain. No matter how she wiggled, he found his target every time. “I won’t ever do it again!” she cried.
“If I have to punish you again for the same thing, you’ll be spending the next day in the nursery where we put the babies,” he said before another lash connected.
A nursery? They had women as mentally young as babies? Her stomach turned, but she quickly lost track of that thought as he continued to spank her with his belt. He may talk to her as a child, but he was whipping her like the adult she was.
The belt hit the bed beside her left arm as he switched to his hand. The peppering of spanks continued until tears flowed easily from her eyes. They dripped from her cheeks onto the quilt below her. She stopped dancing away from him, dropping her head to the bed instead as her shoulders shook with her sobs. The fire in her ass grew and grew as the spanking stretched out.
“I’m sorry,” she whimpered. How would she ever survive this place if a simple shove to another girl made him roast her ass like this? What would he do if he found out she was searching for a way out of this place?
She sucked in a shaky breath and realized the spanking had stopped. His palm ran over her upended ass in a soft circular fashion. How long had she been sobbing into her bed while he tried to soothe her?
The bed dipped beside her as he sat down and pulled her into his lap. His jeans brushed angrily across her sore backside, but having his arms wrap around her waist helped ease some of the pain. She pressed her face into the crook of his neck and dragged her hands across her cheeks to rid herself of her tears.
She hadn’t cried so openly in years. Since the death of her parents left her alone in the world. For a month she’d mourned them and let herself sit in a pit of despair, but then she’d pulled herself up and gotten herself together. She’d been old enough for the system to leave her alone, but not yet adult enough to navigate the world. But she’d done it. As best she could. And now. One spanking had her blubbering and holding on to this man who’d given her so much pain.
“It’s okay, Ariana,” he said in a calm voice. His hand moved to her back, petting her while he placed kisses to the top of her head. “It’s over now. Don’t ever forget this afternoon, and we won’t have to repeat it. Understood?”
She nodded. Her head hit his chin as she did so. “Yes, Daddy.”
His sigh blew her hair back into her face and she swiped it away. A yawn caught her off guard.
“Sleepy?”
“I guess so,” she said, snuggling into the warmth of his embrace. Only another moment and she’d detangle herself from him. She couldn’t let herself enjoy his touch, or any encounter with him. There needed to be a barrier between them.
“Let’s get you under the covers. You’ll be spending the rest of the afternoon in your room. I’ll come for you tonight after my meetings. It’s time we had our first big girl training.” He easily picked her up in his arms and shoved the quilt down enough to slide her beneath it.
She watched through a hooded gaze as he laced his belt back through his jeans. The thick black leather sent a shiver through her, but not from fear. Her ass still hurt, and probably would for the next day, but her clit tingled at the sight of him buckling the belt.
It was unexplainable—this attraction blooming for him. Blaming it on the medicine, she yanked up the quilt to her chin and flopped onto her side. Keeping him out of her sight would have to do until she could get her body back in control.
“Do not leave this room, Ariana, until I come for you,” he instructed in a heavy tone. Her only response was a nod. She assumed he saw it, because he sighed. The next sound she heard was the door clicking closed.
With the quiet of the room carrying her away to sleep, one thought slipped through.
What the hell was big girl training?
Costello walked into the study, his erection pressing painfully against the zipper of his jeans. If he’d had more time, he could have found another girl to help him with his problem. But as it was, he had meetings to get through.
Although, he harbored some doubts as to having another girl in his bed right now. The images of Ariana kept floating into his mind. The sweet surrender of her own orgasm the other day, the beautiful tears she’d shed today when he corrected her behavior. It was enough to make his cock pulsate in his damn pants.
“Heard there was a problem in the dayroom.” Frank turned his attention to Costello once everyone was seated around the table.
Costello nodded. “Ariana had some trouble. I dealt with her.” And if they could hurry the fucking meeting, he could go deal with his fucking hard on.
“Nancy has some concerns that she’s not reacting to the Lullaby the same way as the other girls. Have you noticed anything?” Frank asked.
Costello drummed his fingers against the table. Meddling Nancy.
“I haven’t noticed anything odd,” Costello answered, keeping his gaze frozen on Frank. He had his own suspicions something wasn’t quite one hundred percent, but he’d be damned if Frank stepped in before he knew for sure. If Frank believed the drug hadn’t worked the way he intended it to, he’d haul Ariana out of the House and replace her. There wouldn’t be a second chance, and Costello speaking up on her behalf would only get his own ass burnt.
The Daddies of the House could play with their girls however they wanted, but they were not to become attached. If a Daddy became infatuated with someone in their care, they may help them escape. Or they wouldn’t do enough to get the girl ready for adoption. Both were punishable. And Frank didn’t spank as punishment. He preferred the old ways when dealing with his men, and Costello had no desire to be fitted for concrete shoes anytime soon.
“Well, keep an eye out. Better we replace her before we get too deep into her training.” Frank rapped his knuckles against the table. “Johnny, what’s next on the agenda?”
“Gianni, Shelby goes to the playroom tonight.” Johnny looked up from his phone. “You have her ready.”
“I’ll talk to her this afternoon. She’ll be ready,” Gianni agreed, folding his hands on the table in front of him.
“Good. We have another House opening up in a few months. Out in the suburbs. We need five men at first, but it’s a big ass House. Eventually we’ll be able to house twice as many girls as we do here,” Johnny explained. “We’ve also purchased a warehouse downtown. It’s going to take some time, but eventually we’ll be able to house up to fifty girls there and use the rest of the space for playrooms and a movie studio.”
“Movie studio?” Costello asked. “We’re going in the movie making business?” He chuckled with a wicked smirk.
Frank grinned. “Plenty of money to be made in the movie business. Especially with our girls. Those who can’t get adopted out will be put in the foster program.” He laughed.
Costello held his playful smile on his lips, but his insides tigh
tened. Frank thought himself so damn clever.
“In the meantime, business as usual. There are ten girls in the House right now. Five more are being brought in next week, so we need to see some movements here. We’ll hold an adoption party at the end of the week. Get some prospective men in and let them play with the girls. Maybe clear up a bed or two.” Johnny tucked his phone back into his inside pocket.
Frank got up from the table, ending the meeting.
“How the hell am I supposed to explain to Shelby she has to go be a whore tonight to those perverts?” Gianni hissed into Costello’s ear after the other men filed out of the room. Costello swiveled his chair around to face him.
“You haven’t brought it up yet?” Frank had told him days ago this was happening. He should have been preparing her.
“I was hoping…fuck.” Gianni pinched the bridge of his nose.
“Don’t tell me you like this girl?” Costello accused with a laugh.
“She’s just innocent is all,” Gianni defended. “Getting her settled with someone permanent is fine, but letting these assholes touch her and use her…” His words trailed off, but the frown tugging on his lips explained the rest.
“You’ve had girls get sent to the playroom before,” Costello reminded him, getting up from his chair.
“Yeah, and I know what they’re like when they get back.” He rubbed the back of his neck.
“You’d better get used to the idea.” Costello pointed a finger at him while reaching for the door. “You don’t have a choice. Besides, after one night there, she’ll work harder at the next adoption day. She’ll get placed.”
Costello tried to imagine Ariana being sent to the playroom for a night, but the bubble of rage overwhelmed him too much to keep the picture in his head. She was too innocent for the likes of the scum who frequented the play parties Frank and Johnny threw for clients. Not every asshole wants a girl to keep forever. Some of them just want a girl to fuck around with for a night. Be her daddy for a few hours, get his cock sucked, spank some ass—those dickheads frequented the playroom. And any girl who wasn’t getting adopted fast enough, was sent there to play with them.
“You’ve never had one of your girls sent there,” Gianni pointed out. “It’s harder to train them once they’ve been there. The fear they have of going back to that place nearly freezes them.” He sighed. “I’ll talk to her. Maybe I’ll skip her Lullaby dose this evening, so she has a clearer head.”
Costello stopped at the front door of the House.
“That might work.” He checked his phone. “I have to get across town. We’ll grab dinner tonight, and get away from all this bullshit for a few hours.”
Gianni nodded. “Yeah, that sounds good. Marco takes the playroom girls around six. After that.”
“Sure thing.” Costello opened the front door. “Have some fun with her this afternoon, some warm up for what she’ll expect tonight.”
Gianni’s lips pinched together. “Obviously.” His serious expression cracked, and a hearty laugh escaped. Even with his concerns about Shelby, Costello knew Gianni wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity to get his own fun in while he could.
Costello dropped his keys onto his dresser next to his phone. It had been a long day. The short staff meeting in the morning had only been the start of his afternoon. After that, he’d had to go on a few collection calls for Frank and get across town to supervise a new shipment of Lullaby being distributed. It wasn’t often Frank sent him out of the House for errands, but everyone had to do the job they were given. Costello was no different.
But having spent the day with men all watching out for their own asses and trying to find a crack in the system to make a quick buck, he craved the simplicity of being Ariana’s Daddy. Often throughout the afternoon, he wondered what she was doing to keep herself busy while being stuck in her room.
He hadn’t had to confine her; he could have sent her back to the dayroom after he’d delivered her punishment. But doing that would guarantee she’d be stuck in the corner for at least ten minutes so Nancy could get her rocks off on viewing Ariana’s red ass. Daddies didn’t always have to order it to be done after a girl had been punished. If the nannies felt the other girls would benefit from seeing the results of one naughty girl, they would act on their behalf.
It shouldn’t have bothered him; Ariana being humiliated in that way, but it did. If she was going to have to endure such embarrassment, he wanted to be present. Her face would turn a soft pink; her tears would quietly slip down her cheeks. His cock would throb just looking at her, but it was his right to make her endure it. Not Nancy’s.
“Costello?” A voice came just before a knock on his door.
Opening the door, he found Maria standing with Ariana behind her.
“Here she is, like you requested.” Maria stepped to the side, giving him a full view of his little girl.
Dressed in a white nightgown with pink ribbons tied into bows at her neck and on her sleeves, she kept her hands folded in front of her.
“Very nice. Thank you,” he said as he dismissed Maria. “Come in, Ariana.”
She walked slowly into the room, her bare feet making no sound against the carpet. Her hair had been brushed and left loose around her shoulders.
“Did you have a good afternoon?” he asked, closing the door and flipping the lock.
“I did a lot of reading,” she answered. “Picture books,” she added quickly, catching Costello’s attention with her sharp tone.
“Hmmm.” He worked his boots off and tossed them beside the dresser.
“Did you apologize to Shelby?” he asked, pulling his shirt over his head.
When he dropped the polo to the dresser, he caught her gaze. Her eyes fixated on his chest. Working at the House was the least dangerous job he’d held as an adult. The scars and marks on his chest attested to the street violence he’d endured while working his way up Romero’s ranks.
“I tried, but she was upset about something. Nanny Maria took me back to my room.”
“Shelby is having a hard night,” Costello said, reaching for his belt. She cringed at the jangle of his buckle, and he stilled. “Ariana. Come here.”
She tucked her bottom lip between her teeth. Slowly, she crept back across the room until she was just out of his reach. Did she think he couldn’t simply step toward her and grab her?
“I don’t want you to be afraid of me.”
She looked ready to blurt out a retort, but instead shook her head. What was going on in that little mind of hers?
“I only punish you harshly when you deserve it. I’ll never hurt you like that when we are having alone time.” He closed the gap between them and knuckled her chin higher. “Sometimes I’ll want to hurt you, to make you cry, but it will be good for you. For both of us. It’s a little confusing, but you’ll understand after I show you.”
“Okay,” she said plainly, but he heard the disbelief in her voice. Normally, his first time with his little girl she was nervous and skittish. Ariana looked resolved and ready.
“Did Maria give you your medicine already?” he asked, brushing her hair behind her shoulders.
“Yes. She said she only gave me a little though. She said you wanted me to be your big girl tonight.” Ariana’s body stiffened as he unraveled the pink bow holding the bodice of her nightgown together.
“That’s right. And do you know what big girls do with their daddies?” he asked, working the second bow open.
She shook her head.
“Well, that’s what you’re going to learn tonight.” He grinned and pulled the ribbon on the last bow, opening the nightgown and exposing her naked body beneath. With both hands, he pushed the material over her shoulders and down her arms, leaving it in a puddle at her feet.
Her gaze lowered from his face, back to his chest.
“Move down to your knees for me, Ariana.” He put light pressure on her shoulders. Once she knelt before him, he ran his hand over her head. “Did you have your bath
yet?”
“No.” She shook her head, keeping her gaze fixated straight ahead.
“Good, you can take it after we’re done here.” He worked open the button on his jeans and pulled his zipper down. Even the warm sensation of his own hand wrapped around his cock as he pulled it out for her, gave him some relief from the burning desire he’d been fighting all day.
Her eyes widened.
“I gave you lots of kisses the other day. A Daddy will do that whenever he wants his little girl to feel good. But sometimes, Daddies need to feel good too. And that’s your job.” He slid his hand down her face, hooking his hand around her chin and pulling her head back. Once her gaze worked its way up his body and steadied on him, he ran his thumb over her lower lip. “Open your pretty mouth for me, Ariana. Daddy’s going to feed you.”
Tears filled her wide eyes, but she didn’t argue with him. His balls tightened at the blush creeping across her cheeks.
“Go on, open wide.” He slowly stroked his cock, bringing the head to her lips. A small bead of precum formed, and he wiped it along her lip. “Lick that up first, little girl,” he ordered, still holding her chin.
Her pink tongue darted out of her mouth and swiped up his gift.
“Good, now open wide.” He pushed his dick past her lips just as she started to obey, not giving her time to fully comply.
She gagged immediately when he hit the back of her throat, but he held on to her chin hard, keeping her in place.
“No. No.” He clenched his eyes closed, gaining something resembling control. “Breathe through your nose. Swallow me down,” he ordered.
When she got herself under control, he slowly eased out of her mouth.
“Use your tongue, Ariana. That’s right, lick under my cock.”
He began pumping in and out of her mouth slowly at first. Being a bright girl, she caught on quick. She wrapped her lips tightly around his shaft and began to suck while flicking her tongue along the sensitive spot under the head of his dick.
