Baby
by Kaley
copyright © 2002

She shivered as his hand ran over her thigh and up her hip, standing naked and bared to him and his touch. Her every breath was hinged on where he touched next. The hardening of her nipples made her arch into him, pushing to be closer to him. As he pulled her back against him and felt her yield, his hand took possession of the erect nipple, bringing a soft sigh from her.

She tried to turn towards him but found herself held firmly where she was as he explored her exposed neck with his mouth. She leant her head to one side to allow him freedom to continue and he nibbled seductively down her nape. The shiver compounded in her, bringing goose bumps of desire to her.

Her eyes closed as he continued kneading her breast gently and slowly making his way down her neck to her shoulder. Relaxing into his hold, she felt his own arousal as it grew behind her, pushing more urgently against her.

Slowly he turned her around, gently pulling her up to him to catch her nipple in his mouth and managing to cause her to cry out as the pleasure hit her. He looked at her as he pulled her onto his lap, facing him, separated only by his own clothing.

"We need to talk about something," he whispered quietly and she leaned back to look at him more closely. "Something you might think is very strange."

Her heart dropped, wondering what he meant. He looked at her evenly and then slowly moved them both to their bed. He laid her down gently and lay beside her, still partially clothed. She turned to him expectantly and waited for him to speak to her.

"We’ve had some problems just recently. I want to save this relationship. We need to talk about some rules that I want to apply with your consent." He spoke very gently, cradling her head in his arm as she craned to look at him dubiously.

"What sort of rules?" He saw her eyes narrow as she thought about his statement. He took a deep breath, releasing it softly before he trusted himself to answer her.

"Rules with consequences and accountability. Rules about what we do in our relationship and our lives. Rules that give you some guidelines in dealing with life in general." He mentally cringed as he waited for her to throw mental tomatoes at him.

"Rules? You are nuts! I’m a grown woman and I don’t have to follow rules and regulations. You’re barking up the wrong tree!" she spat at him, struggling to get upright, any thought of love making driven from her head in her sudden fury. He waited out her outburst patiently.

"No, I am not nuts and I realize you are an adult but sometimes you refuse to behave like one, and now is a very good example of it!" He looked at her, leveling his gaze at her to make her aware of his seriousness. She was a first class brat and he had just about reached his own limits of tolerance. "Shall I finish, or would you like to insult me a little bit more?"

She was upset with him, he was well aware of the signs. He was so aware of her moods, he knew curiosity was burning more sharply than her outrage at his suggestion she might benefit from a few rules. He smothered a little smile, knowing he’d probably be ducking for real if she so much as thought he was amused by her antics presently and had expected worse if he was truthful. She was a spitfire at the best of times. Just unruly to boot – a little too much at times he found.

She cocked her eyebrow at him from beneath the assumed scowl, inciting a small chuckle from him as he pulled himself up on one elbow to look at her as she sulked on the other side of the bed. So much for intimacy he thought as he summoned up his courage – this ought to be interesting if not productive anyhow.

"I want you to take on some rules so that you learn to control your problem mouth and some more to help you to control that mind of yours. It’s like living with a live cable sometimes – you need to learn some focus and I want to help you to do so. Do you trust me?" He let the last words trail out softly, waiting for her to retaliate.

"What sort of things do you want me to change – why aren’t I good enough warts and all?" she hissed in returned, her anger becoming more obvious by the minute. She had ceased any pretense of playing at sulking; she was livid with him.

"I’d like you to learn to control that temper of yours, to stop slamming out and taking off every time you don’t get your own way, to concentrate more on the important things and less on the fluff in your life. To learn to trust me enough to de-stress while I’m around, not make both our lives miserable fighting all the time." He stated his case evenly, calmly and then waited for the inevitable outburst. She said nothing at all.

He was stunned by this unexpected turn of events – most unlike her to not tender her opinion instantly, sometimes making him envious of her very liberal control of their spoken language and ability to conjure up statements that could be cajoling or cutting depending on the need. If she could focus onto something productive and let her family problems be their problems and not hers, she might just have a chance of using some of her array of life skills and make her own way more easily.

"I will not argue with you about those faults, I’d like to get rid of them myself. I know I need to let go of my family sometime but it’s not easy when they depend on you so much." She would have surprised him less if she had of pulled a bazooka from under the bed and his face obviously said as much to her for she giggled. "You could pretend to disagree just a little bit you know!"

He felt his eyebrows lift cautiously, eyeing the ceiling for anything hard and heavy that might fall on him in a weak moment. He found none. This was altogether too easy and he felt a trap in the making. She was a lot like living with live explosives. He was looking for the fuse line.

"I’m pleased you agree, but you haven’t heard the rest of it yet my Dear." He again adopted a neutral and impasse approach, hoping she’d hear him out before she attempted to kill him with his own cufflinks. Firebrand or not, the woman could be dangerous at times when her temper got the better of her!

"I want to talk about consequences and I want you to promise me that you will not react to this in a bad way until we talk about it, or you just might find out for real what I mean. I don’t like you yelling and swearing at me and I am not going to accept it anymore. I want you to understand that rule breaking carries consequences and you have to be prepared to wear them if you are going to take on these challenges. You won’t like them very much I think, and I am not sure if you will even agree to them, but I think that they might make one hell of a difference when you are about to scream and yell at me for no good reason."

She straightened and looked directly at him as he spoke – "Go on, you better finish it."

He took a deep breath and continued, "Baby, if we do this, I’m going to spank you every time you step over the lines we agree on and keep on spanking you until you can control yourself."

He could have heard a pin drop for two miles when he’d finished, she was speechless and beyond any form of cognitive thought. He waited patiently until her command of language returned and as she spoke, he felt the rage directed at him in bucket loads. He smothered another wry smile – it was about to go badly he felt.

"You want to do WHAT to me if I break YOUR rules!" she hissed at him, rigid in shock and surprise. "YOU want to do what?"

"I am going to spank you if you don’t follow your own agreements Baby, and you’re going to submit to them without fighting me. I am going to insist that you act like a lady now and NOT throw that brush at me, I know you are considering it, or I will turn you over my knee, here and now, and SHOW you what I mean!" He was watching her intensely, these were the moments where she lost complete control of her temper and only good luck saved him on a number of occasions from being seriously injured when she threw things at him.

She was all but turning blue with outrage as she pondered his words and assessed his meaning and intent. She wasn’t altogether sure he wasn’t indulging in some bizarre form of foreplay and not quite game to push her luck and actually throw that brush at him. "You wouldn’t DARE!"

"Wouldn’t I? You just throw that brush at me Lady and we’ll see how much I’d dare to paddle your ass until you squeal like a two year old, just like you act when you lose your temper like you are now." He remained calm and in control of his own emotional content. She was starting to get cheeky again and he was starting to relax, she just might not throw that brush after all if he got just a little luckier.

No such luck. Without warning she leant forward, grabbed the brush and hurled it at him. He dodged the brush and before she was aware what was happening, he’d upturned her over his knee, and seized the brush. He was hard put keeping her where he wanted her and as a way to get her attention, he bought the brush down on her white cheek and was rewarded with a shriek of outrage as she felt the sting. "Stay still then and stop struggling or I’ll do it again!"

"Let me up, you beast, let go of me NOW! OWWWW!" she squealed again as he landed the brush just beside the last red mark. "I mean it, you let me go now, I am not a child."

"Then my girl, stop acting like one and stay still and behave like a lady should!" He was holding her determinedly and she was furious with him. His own urge was overcoming his restraint and he ground out of clenched teeth. "NOW!"

She suddenly stopped struggling, sensing he wasn’t really going to back down this time and she went quiet as she realized her situation more carefully. She was horrified. Imagine being turned over your man’s knee like a naughty grade school girl. His hand was gently rubbing where the brush had reddened.

"Now, are you going to listen to me, and be an adult about this Baby? Or do I need to show you what will happen if you don’t?" He said quietly, waiting for her final choice.

"Let me go, I’ll behave." He sat her up again and bought her into his arms, where she was stiff and unforgiving. "I want to go and shower."

"No, I want you to talk to me Baby, explain to me what’s happening in that head of yours right now and what you think of this all." He wasn’t letting her run away on him this time.

"I said, I want to go and shower now." She was determined to have her own way and he was equally as determined that she would face this now, instead of trying to find a way to justify herself to herself.

"No Baby, we’re going to sort this out now.  I love you too much to have you thinking mean things about me because I want to help you learn to control the only parts of you that are destructive to you." He held her more determinedly, preventing her escape and she sighed as she leant against him reluctantly.

"I hate it! I don’t want you to ever do that again. I don’t need to be spanked, you just don’t understand me at all." She all but wailed at him, frustrated at being questioned and having to answer. "I won’t accept it – you are just a bully! I thought I knew you!"

He was amused by her sudden change of manner since she could look at anything but the bed, and her attitude wasn’t quite as pronounced as it usually was. He was making ground. "Baby, I don’t want to bully you, but I also don’t want to live like this anymore, your moods are destroying our lives and you won’t see sense. I think that if you have to sit on the sense I install for a few days, you might think twice about being a brat!"

"I AM NOT A BRAT!" She was furious with him as he felt her go stiff again and pull against him. "I am an ADULT and I don’t need you to insist I change to suit your perfect model!"

In a matter of moments, she found herself back over his knee and felt the first of what seemed like an endless number of sharp swats on her backside. She kicked and squirmed but he was relentless. She squealed and threatened him and finally pleaded pitifully as the burning sensation set in. He kept landing stroke after stroke on her red backside, watching it as she twisted and writhed, trying to make him let her go. She wasn’t even crying out anymore, nor was she really crying in anything more than frustration. But she was suddenly still, and quiet.

He stopped and commenced rubbing the red areas gently and she wriggled, as his hand seemed to give some relief. He wasn’t ready for her sudden pulling away and she was sitting gingerly on her feet in seconds, glaring murder in his direction.

"I HATE YOU SO MUCH! GET OUT!" She was livid and determined and he stood up and got his shirt from the closet. "AND DO NOT COME BACK!"

He reached over and took her chin in his hand and said "Baby, I’m coming back in exactly one hour. If you are not here, waiting to talk to me and I have to come and find you again, I promise you, you will NOT sit down for a month of Sundays. I have had enough of this nonsense and it will stop once and for all today!"

He walked out of the room, leaving her to decide their fate. He was certain he’d just ruined a potentially good relationship, but he couldn’t live under her rules anymore. She was the most intriguing creature he’d ever met and he adored her, but even more potent than her good points were the destructive impulses that hindered her entire life. He wasn’t going to play a secondary role to anything anymore.

She sat quietly on the bed, her rear smarting and stinging and her pride wounded worse than she’d ever felt before. As she watched his back retreating out of the door, she was certain he’d only come back for his things, not wanting to suffer anymore of her tantrums and mood swings. She was finally able to cry, wanting more than anything to feel his arms curl around her, pulling her close to his chest and just letting it all go. She wanted to say she was sorry for throwing that darned brush at him and this wasn’t something she’d have usually felt if she’d hurt someone unexpectedly.

He walked for a while, finally coming to rest on a park bench, wondering what reception she would give him when he got home. He dreaded the thought of her sitting there, alone and heart weary, but he dreaded the thought of having to live like they had been recently. He wasn’t hard wired to be a housedog and she wasn’t much of an owner in that respects either. He wasn’t sure if she would pet him or kick him most of the time.

He watched ants making their happy way in a single line and wondered why it was that humans couldn’t just get along like ants seemed to do.

She sobbed quietly, not so much for the new pain in her backside, but more the sudden and very powerful alone sensation overwhelming her completely. She was shattered; no one had ever walked out on her before. No one had ever taken her into hand like that before and she wasn’t even sure she hated it anyway! Inside her, she felt empty, as if all the things making her so mad were gone and brush away. She didn’t know how to face him when he came home, but she was fairly sure if she made him come looking for her this time, he would do what he threatened to do and she wouldn’t sit down for days.

He slowly climbed to his feet, and started walking home again, hoping upon hope she would show just a little bit of common sense and actually stay there and not make him go looking for her. He already hated the thought of finding his things in the middle of the pavement and a locksmith changing the locks. The thought of not seeing her again was terrible.

As he fitted his key into the lock and entered the house, the first thing that stuck him was that it was too quiet, no noise. She never came home and left the place quiet, always turning on music or the television. There was no noise at all.

Her car was in it’s parking bay. She hadn’t left on foot surely – and he closed the door behind him. The light shined from their room into the hallway, no other doors open and he made his way down the hall cautiously.

He stopped at the door, the sight of her, now dressed in a robe and sitting quietly at the desk in the corner, typing furiously into her laptop was reassuring. Perhaps she was drawing up his execution orders was a thought he squashed quickly.

She looked up at him. Her face was unreadable and he felt the first real pang of fear. "I think we need to talk," she said.  "What just happened wasn’t something I expected today or any day and we need to talk about it now."

"I agree. I’ll sit and listen, you talk to me." He was elated she was at least receptive.  He pulled up the second chair and took up his seat. 

She waited for him to settle and then she spoke. "I can’t remember ever being spanked before, not even as a child. I was always able to get away with anything. I don’t like being spanked.

"I don’t like it a lot. I don’t like you very much right now either. I am not sure I want to live in fear of being spanked for being myself. I am not sure I can let you spank me when you think I need it. But I do know it has done something for me I didn’t expect. I was so afraid you weren’t going to come home to me again. Afraid that I’d ruined this relationship and driven you away. I felt so completely alone and frightened. And I bought this on myself."  She was still sniffling as she spoken and the emotions hit her again. "I felt as if there was no one else on this planet that could understand how I felt right then at that moment. I didn’t know if you would come back and I didn’t know what I would do if you didn’t. I didn’t know how much I loved you until I thought you weren’t coming back."  She felt the hot tears slide down her face and slash onto her hands fidgeting in her lap. "I do love you, you know."

In a matter of seconds he had her in his arms, never having meant to make her feel deserted but knowing it was a powerful lesson in trusting in him for her to take at that moment. "Baby, I’m not going to leave you for trying to control yourself better. I am not going to leave you because you threw the brush at me, but I don’t have to let you do it in the future either, do you agree?’

She lay there quietly, wondering what choice she seemed to have. She could certainly leave.  Her parents wouldn’t expect her to tolerate him doing this.  Her friends would be appalled to find out she was laying curled up with him afterwards. She would lose him completely if she did this and suddenly the overwhelming sense of being completely lost hit her again. "Yes, I agree, but I am not going to let you just paddle my ass because you want to!"

He felt like he was going to pass out, he was almost certain she’d insist on breaking up because of it and the elation felt unbelievably good to him right now. He held her close, tucking her under his arm protectively, still feeling the residual shudders of silent sobs as shock and anguish overtook her.

"I can’t live with these tantrums you throw anymore, Baby. I love you more than I thought possible but I can’t live like we’re both walking on eggshells and I’ve got to always wonder if I have to start ducking again. I hate it when you walk out on me. I will turn you ass up if you ever do that again when we have a disagreement and we will, you’re never going to be quiet and just like it.  I know that and I wouldn’t want to you be like that. But I need you to think before you react more." He whispered into her hair. "I don’t want you to think I want to punish you, but I can’t find anything else that works. I want to never have to do that again Baby."

 She heard his words distantly, her mind foggy and ready to give into sleep. She murmured against his chest and slipped into sleep, held closely to a man that she didn’t realize she felt quite so much love for before.

He stroked her hair as he felt her give into sleep, knowing tomorrow might be a very different turn of events as she woke up sore and not so sorry. He smiled softly – she was worth it, he figured. After all this time, she was ready to listen not just have him listen to her.

Sleep claimed him shortly afterwards and he felt a lot of tension seeping from him as he too gave in.

It was dawn when she awoke. She rolled slowly onto her back, stretching and suddenly she felt the pains in her rear end and last night came back to her in a harsh and painful fashion. She was stunned when she realized that she’d stayed after he’d come home, and she felt a sense of loss.

She eased from the bed slowly, carefully avoiding too many sudden movements. Making her way to the bathroom, she looked at her backside in the mirror. Small thrills raced through her when she saw a few small bruises remaining. It had really happened.

She used the bathroom, and turned on the shower. In a moment of deep contemplation, she sat on the closed lidded toilet, thinking about how she really felt. It seemed strange to her to look so deeply inside herself and she was shortly ashamed of the behavior that led him to spanking her.

She wrapped her robe around her more closely, chilled from the cold room. Her mind raced, thinking about the other times she’d thrown things at him in rage. She knew how dreadful she felt afterwards and sometimes wondered how he managed to live with her at all.

She thought about her immediate reaction, the need to flee away from him and his reaction to her. She remembered how miserable she had been when she was sure he’d never stop and she’d died in agony. The moment her tears came, she had felt the rage with him washing away. When he stopped and cuddled her up after she’d been so horrid to him, all her fears of him leaving her alone and going out when she felt so emotionally alone and devastated, all she could think of was a burning ass was a small price to pay for his lifetime commitment. How awful she’d feel if he didn’t come home to her again because of her abysmal tantrums. How she’d be all alone and knew she’d of deserved it.

The sound of him coming home was enough to have her start to sob again with relief, her mind racing and her backside hurting, she hoped he was going to forgive her for her tantrum.

She felt the goosebumps cover her as he gathered her up in his arms again, softly kissing away her tears, holding her carefully as she thought about his demands. At that time it seemed so easy to give over control to him, to share this intimacy level with him, but the cold light of day and an unforgiving round of plastic beneath her made her cringe as she realized what she’d agreed to.

She knew she would feel the misery of a serious spanking regularly and this made her mind rebel. Who did he think he was, making her submit to his rule? But her sensible side, it’s existence, let alone appearance surprising her, told her that he was right. Any relationship she’d been in ended badly and in recrimination. None of those had meant anything like this one did to her.

She also fought acknowledging that it turned her on just thinking about it. That seemed to be just too strange to her sense of right and wrong. Her own body rebelled on her, insisting that it did something for her as she felt her nipples pucker and the throb take hold in her pelvis.

She wondered what could possibly turn her on about having a man inflict pain like that on her rear and then questioned her sanity. She remembered the feeling of being able to get away with anything as a child and never questioned it into adulthood either. It was just who she was and if caused anyone else any real problems, it was really their problem to deal with – wasn’t it? Not anymore, she thought wryly.

She had sunk so far into private thought she didn’t notice him enter the bathroom with her. He quietly walked up to her, startling her as he crouched down beside her. He looked at her hesitantly, wondering what she was thinking and how she was feeling.

"Morning Baby, are you ok?"  he asked and she focused on his face more thoroughly, pulling herself out her memories. She smiled gently at him, raising her hand to stroke the side of his face.

"I’m fine. My backside is sore and a little bruised but I’ll live. We need to talk about this. I need to know what you want from me and if I can live up to it. I won’t let you do that again until we’ve sorted this out though. I have to know what I’m expected to do to avoid it." She spoke quietly, without anger or rage or trying to make him feel guilty.

That didn’t work terribly well, he thought – he was looking at a pale and very withdrawn woman that wasn’t the same one he’d spanked mercilessly the night before for being nothing short of a bad tempered brat. Guilt was his first reaction. What if he’d killed the very spark that he’d been drawn to?

He stood up taking her hands and standing her up, and slowly slid her robe over her shoulders. As it slipped to the floor, he ran his hands down her sides, and drew her close to him, naked and warm and willing.

He led her into the bedroom, laid her gently on the bed. He stripped and climbed in beside her. She waited for his lead and sighed softly as his hand ran over her torso.

The next hour was spent lost in his arms of love and afterwards, each slept soundly, curled into each other contently.

Things progressed evenly for three weeks. He was surprised at her control and lack of outbursts, even when the car broke down and left her stranded for several hours on the side of the road in the heat.

Her mother was equally as mystified at her amazing turn around of attitude and said as much at the weekend’s family gathering. He felt it was too good to be true and was ready for the next outburst to be spectacular as she let go completely of the frustration and stress that had to be building within her.

He arrived home a little early one afternoon, very hot and exhausted from being in the sun all day. She was already home as he expected her to be and he hoped she would be happy to stretch out in front of their air conditioner for the rest of the afternoon.

There was no such thing to be had. She was in a fit when he got inside, the pots and pans crashing around in the kitchen. He could hear her mood in her choice of music and the attitude was most definitely there – she’d done almost nothing in the past two hours, not even looked through the mail. He felt himself tensing up. This was never a good sign.

He peeked through the kitchen door and saw her with her back to him, merrily convincing stainless steel to bend under her very liberal usage of them as noise production units. He winced. Last time she’d done this, he’d spent five very long hours waiting for her to come home and explain why she’d walked out this time. He retreated up the stairs to take a shower, knowing she wouldn’t be happy he hadn’t said hello, but not up to an encounter with her at that time.

He turned on the water and climbed into the shower. Just as he was starting to feel human again, he saw the door open and she entered. "Nice of you to let me know you were home."

Her greeting was waspish and not one that brooked pleasantries. He sighed and said, "You were busy and I was bushed. I’ll be out in a minute and I’d love a cup of coffee!"

He tried for evenness and she slammed out in disgust. He sighed once more and turned off the water, climbing out dripping wet and reaching for a towel. The evil little witch had taken his towel when she left and would have a fit if he used hers. He reached out and flicked hers into his hand. Drying himself off thoroughly he replaced it, carefully spreading it out so she couldn’t possibly miss that he’d used it.

Calmly he walked into their room and stretched out on the bed to wait for her to appear again. Curiosity would ensure she would appear eventually.

In a few minutes she reappeared, coffee in both hands and a surly look on her face. She put the coffee on the table and sat on the bed, far from him. He looked at her face, hoping to find the reason for this sulky attitude written there. "So Baby, what’s your problem?"

And with that she let him have it – all three weeks of how stifled she felt, how miserable she was under his control, how she was not happy with this whole thing, not even the thought of it and how, in the end it was ALL HIS FAULT.

He let her work it out in her own time until she ran out of words, offering no defense or offense seemed like the best deal.

"Did you manage to pay your bills on time this month?" he asked casually when she was silent. "Or remember to get your files into order for the accountant?

"Did you remember your mother asked you to pick up your father’s old mirror? Or that we’re supposed to be going out tomorrow night?" He wasn’t giving her a chance to weasel out of this outburst, nor was he going to let her make it into being his fault she was completely irrational.

She stared at him and he saw the warning signs again surface, she was losing her control completely. ‘"NO, I did not and I am not a bloody computer and I don’t need you to tell me my shortcomings! Mind your own business!"

 He raised his eyebrow at her. "Thought I was, making sure you kept your life in order. Baby, I am growing weary of this already. You know what is going to happen if you don’t start to think more clearly about what you say to me."

"You wouldn’t dare! I’m stressed out and you want to spank me for it?" She was quite stunned by this revelation.

"No, I’m NEVER going to WANT to spank you Baby, but I will if you don’t stop it right now and start to calm yourself down. I think that you need it and if you keep going, you will get it, worse than before." He was tiring of her berating tone and miserly interest in his own feelings as she went on.

She dropped her bottom lip and spat, "I don’t know why I bother trying to explain anything to you, you never listen to me anyhow and now you just want to make me comply by spanking me into submission."

 That was the final straw for him. He came up on one elbow and looked into her eyes. "Baby, I’ve had enough right now, stand up and take your jeans off and come here to me now. I know what will make you feel a whole lot better and will give you some incentive to do what I ask of you!"

 She was appalled. "I will NOT!"

 He was determined and as she was wary of his sudden movements this time, he knew grabbing her and just forcing compliance from her wouldn’t be so easy. He lay back down and looked at her evenly. "It’s ok, I can wait until you decide you deserve it and come and ask for me to do it."

 She snorted. "You’ll be waiting a long time."

 He remained silent and waiting. She sat silently watching. He didn’t say anything else to her at all and after fifteen minutes of non-speaking silence, she slowly got off the bed and to his amazement dropped her jeans on the ground. "If you have to do this then you’d better get it over and done with I suppose."

She slowly came around to where he was sitting. As she came to his side, he felt the sudden pangs of regret and knew this time it would be even harder to carry it through. He took her hand gently, pulling her over his knee so the bed supported her. He felt the tension in her as she tried to fight the urge to run from him.

His heart was heavy as she finally settled into position and he pulled her panties down to her knees. Her cheeks stared accusingly at him as he rubbed them.

Smack! She reared against his hold with the first stroke and by the forth was swearing blue murder at him. He stopped shortly to take her legs under his own and restraining her at the same time. Again, he bought the back of the brush down on her backside. Every time she yelped and squirmed and swore. Every time he just bought it down again.

Suddenly her demeanor stopped and she went almost still, her body still twitching with each stroke and he felt her crying desperately as he blistered her rear end. "Please, no more, no more, I won’t do it again, I promise I’ll try harder to stop it. Please stop it now!"

He felt like a heel and yet, something told him that he wasn’t finished yet. He renewed his stroke and she felt the heat blending with the pain as her mind wondered if he would ever stop and let her go again. She was sobbing and pleading and begging and would have done almost anything at all if he would just stop.

Suddenly he did and she lay spent and sobbing as she felt his hands smoothing her burning and cherry red cheeks. He gently helped her up into his arms and kissed away the tears streaking her face. She was so ashamed of the way she felt, and he was so horrified that it took so much and so long to have her let go.

"Baby, you have to learn to stop being so bitchy. I hate doing this to you. I hate it when you are crying like this. You need to learn to let go of things or I’m going to be doing this every third week. You’re relaxed now, and you’re not fighting me anymore. I love you so much, but I have to find a way that you can let go without having to endure this type of punishment for letting it build up." He spoke softly but firmly and she nodded.

"I know, I don’t know what happened this afternoon, I was just having a lousy day and it wasn’t your fault!" She admitted her behavior, which made him somewhat happier with the situation. She was learning something obviously, even if it was the most painful lessons she’d ever been through.

She snuggled into his chest, waiting for him to speak again. Waiting for him to tell her it was ok and she was forgiven. "Baby, I love you so much, I love you even when you make me so mad with your silliness. This doesn’t change how much I love you. You do know that don’t you? In fact, I love you so much I’ve got something to show you. I hope you’ll like it!"

He set her down on the bed, carefully wrapped in the blanket. Going to his jacket pocket, he extracted a small velvet box and returned to her. Sinking to his knees beside the bed bought a fit of giggles from her, which didn’t help his resolve any, but at least she wasn’t trying to hit him with something.

"Baby, I know this is not the best moment to ask you, but I love you so much and I don’t to think about you looking at any other man or any other man eyeing you either. I want to spend my entire life with you and raise our children together. Will you marry me?" He spat it all out quickly, before he changed his mind and didn’t.

She looked at him and the ring he was offering. The spanking still very fresh in her mind clouded her happiness at his question. This would be part of their life forever if she married him.

"Yes, my Love, I will marry you." She heard her mouth speak before her brain even registered she’s spoken. She was stunned that her mind would override her own control like that.

Before she had time to change her mind or even think it through she was wrapped up in his arms and he was kissing her senseless.

A little later she called her mother and told her the news. The squeals of delight gave way to her fathers’ gruff congratulations and her younger sisters’ howls of delight that her older sister finally met her match.

His parents reacted in much the same way and they smiled at each other as he hung up. "Seems the folks have no objections to this, Baby. So the question is WHEN!"

 She smiled at him, handing him a cup of fresh coffee, "Let’s eat and figure it out then!"

The wedding was planned for three months into the future. In that time they’d saved enough to add their savings together to purchase a small but functional cottage on the outskirts of town, where she could have pets and he could spend his days happily renovating their home.

The first month was as pleasant as he could ask for. She was a delight to be around, no tantrums and horror story nights to be reported. The second month though was not so good for either of them.

His parents wanted the weekend changed due to doctors appointments and travel arrangements and her sister hated every color she’d picked for her gown so far. She was stressed more than he’d ever seen her before and he was worried about her control.

Friday night appeared just after Tuesday morning, or so it seemed to both of them and the cottage was almost ready to move into. She had taken two weeks of the four owed to her to move into their home and she was already being bombarded by cell phone calls constantly from her employees. Anyone would think that they didn’t know their jobs, although they were among the best that money could find.

She was growing increasingly irritated by her family and their inability to allow her any say in her own wedding. They’d offered to pay for the event and had been turned down and his parents weren’t helping with their insistence that they had to be back earlier than they expected and the traveling would be very hard on them.

She had picked a dress and her other slightly younger sister had told her she didn’t like it. He was rapidly regretting not eloping and knew she would have been into the idea had he of suggested it in the first place. Things had gone too far to let it all go now he supposed.

She was cooking rice when the water splashed onto her arm and she swore as she ran it under the cold water. He entered the kitchen and as he tried to apply burn cream she let him have it – the whole six and a half weeks of built up pressure and he let her go.

When she’d finally let him put burn cream and a plaster on her arm, he turned off the stove and took her by the arm and they made their way to the bedroom. She realized what was about to happen as they entered the room and tried to pull away from him. "Not now, I don’t deserve it now. I’m just so stressed out about this wedding."

"I know Baby, but I don’t deserve it either and you agreed to let it go before it got to that point, remember?" He wasn’t backing off although he fully understood her logic. This wasn’t about punishment, it was about giving her a form of release and a chance to feel cleaned out again.

She was very reluctant, as he demanded she drop her skirt and come across his knee. She did it, very slowly, and to his mind, deliberately provocatively. He settled her into place and as he rubbed her cheeks gently, he felt her relax against him. He was surprised but was starting to realize that she was learning to let him give her the release she couldn’t find herself.

As the strokes started, she still fought him, but not like she did last time. He didn’t spank as hard this time, not wishing to distress her, just release her from her own frustration and tension.

He’d barely landed two dozen swats when she broke and started to cry and in a few moments she was in his arms, sobbing fitfully as she told him all the things that she was feeling. Most of all, she told him that she thought he wouldn’t understand why she got like this. He responded to her gently and completely, reassuring her all she had to do was ask to talk to him and he would listen to her for as long as it took, but that he still wasn’t prepared to take her excuses and abuse.

That night, as they finally lay in bed, having eaten and showered, he held her to him, listening to her sleep contently for the first time in weeks. He wondered if perhaps this wasn’t what he needed to do from now on BEFORE she got that far out of her own control.

Two weeks past leaving two weeks until the day they got married and she was almost frantic with the preparations. To her dismay and his horror, the two mothers had invited half the world unknown to either of them and they were not happy about it. What was supposed to be a small family affair had deteriorated into over 200 people and a massive sit down reception. She was hopelessly upset and he was at a loss for an answer.

He came into the kitchen in time to see her hang up, crying miserably and so utterly destroyed that his heart sank, surely someone had died!

"My mother just told me that my grandma won’t come if her sister comes and her sister refuses not to come and see me married. I don’t know what to do!"

"Tell her that if she doesn’t come, she’s the one missing out?" he offered as his only injection into the situation that seemed reasonable. He was growing thoroughly tired of the wedding, even if it meant she was then his forever.

She dissolved into a fit of tears that he couldn’t shake her out of. He felt the first stirrings of hope as she cried desperately into her empty coffee cup. "I feel so lost, no one listens to what WE want and we’re the ones getting married!"

He leaned against the bench, just letting her talk, not sure if he should hold her or not. This was a completely new event in their relationship; her being able to cry was almost a non-event, even when close family members died. He wondered if perhaps she was learning to let go all on her own and could only hope so silently.

After a few minutes of heart breaking sobs, she slowly gained her senses again. Suddenly she stood up, blowing her nose just one more time and putting the kettle on again. He didn’t see the signs of stress in her shoulders and he felt the first real glimmer of proven hope hit him.

"Oh Baby, I am so proud of you – you’re learning to let it out on your own!" He moved to pin her against the sink bench. She was staring at him like he’d grown two heads and then she realized what he meant and a smile lit up her face!

"So I am, see, I am learning after all! Now if I can do that every time someone ticks me off, we might be in business!" She was delighted, the first real smile in weeks lighting up her face as she realized the success she’d had.

No cooking tonight he decided and they went out for takeaway under the stars.

He saw the warning signs building again as her mother, his mother and several aunts descended on their little cottage three days before the event. Because of tradition, he was banished to her parents’ house and he wasn’t happy about it.

He came home the last night he was to spend with her before they married to find her throwing one doozey of a tantrum at the florist at the door. The poor man didn’t know what to say or do with the flowers he’d sent to her and she had assumed were delivered to the wrong place.

She hadn’t read the card and as he worked out what was happening and the poor florist stood there wondering what he’d done so wrong, he pulled out the card and opened it. Holding up the card so she could read it, she looked it over casually as she launched into a raging lecture of inferior service and stopped dead.

Baby, I love you so much and soon you 
will make my dreams come true. 
Smile for me!

"Oh good grief, I am SOOOOOOO sorry!" She spluttered at the unsuspecting florist as she realized her error. "I hope you can forgive me, I shouldn’t have let go at you like that. Mr. I am so very, very sorry!"

The florist shrugged, obviously used to irrational and stressed out young women if his actions were anything to judge by. "No problems Lady, I hope you both have a great life together."

He turned and winked at him as if to say "And my best wishes to you, Buddy".

Flowers or no flowers, she was horrified at her over reaction and embarrassed by it even more so. She couldn’t believe she didn’t even take time to read the card before she cut loose on the poor driver.

He was also less than impressed and she knew it. Surely though, he wouldn’t spank her this close to the wedding!

He watched her as she tried to justify her action and decided to wait this one out. It was possible she would realize her own offense and admit it on her own. She was certainly contrite.

When the evening came and they retired to their bedroom, she lay beside him, stiff and still. "I want you to spank me. Now."

He turned on the light and looked at her expectantly. He couldn’t quite believe his ears and didn’t really believe he wasn’t dreaming already. "You want me to spank you? WHY!?"

"Because I deserve it for how I behaved this afternoon. There was no excuse for it and I knew it was coming, and I should have stopped it and taken some time out." She was not looking at him.

"Yes, you do deserve it and I am pleased you realized why you deserve it. I think you should be spanked but I didn’t know how you would react this close to the wedding. I know you are doing it hard right now, I don’t want to punish you for being human."  He was going to give her every chance to back out of this if she really didn’t want it.

"No, wedding or not, I have to stop this. I have to learn to control it more or I will end up hurting people that shouldn’t be hurt! Please, My Love, spank me!" She sat up, waiting for him to provide a lap for her to lie across.

He helped her settle into place, holding her carefully and gently, rubbing her cheeks, as was his custom. As the first stroke fell, he felt her shudder and tonight she didn’t fight him like usual, she flinched and jumped but she didn’t try to pull away from him and she didn’t beg him to stop.

She was crying half way through and as he continued to make her backside glow, she cried softly and convincingly. As he laid down the last stroke and gathered her up in his arms to get over it she sighed softly, and as she snuggled into his chest, she said quietly. ‘"I am so sorry, I love you so much and I need you more than I thought possible."

He looked down just seconds later and found her asleep and curled up like a baby against him. She was learning something after all.

The day of the wedding dawned and was one disaster after another. It rained and washed out the ceremony. It then got too muddy to use the other venue. The main car broke down and couldn’t be restarted and all the decorations had to be changed to another. The reception hall’s refrigeration died at the worst possible time and her dress was spotted with something that wouldn’t be shifted for anything.

She was absolutely beside herself with worry and very few dared to approach her at all.

As she sat before her old childhood dresser, surrounded by big girls’ makeup, she wondered what she thought she was doing. She wasn’t old enough to get married. Or to have children, or to live with another being, the SAME being forever.

Doubts clouded her judgment and she felt very sure that this was the biggest mistake of her entire lifetime and she wavered between hysteria and running as fast and far away as she could.

Her door flew open and her younger sister came in, nursing two cups, one of tea and one of coffee. She kicked the door closed with her heel as she’d done thousands of times before. "Todd just arrived! He’s having a shower and we’ll go down and see him, he’s only got tonight and tomorrow night before he’s got to be back on base again."

She felt her heart rise as she heard her only big brother was in residence. He was among her favorite people and given her present state, he would give her the strong shoulder to get through this on.

"But now you and I have to have a talk, Sis. I want to know what is going on with you two and what he’s doing to you when no one else is looking!" Her sister wasn’t one for small talk. She cringed as she wondered what her sister had seen.

"I don’t know what you mean. Things are fine, we’re just both a little stressed right now." She stuttered slightly, wondering what was coming in the next statement.

"And the bruises on your backside came from where?" Her sister sat on the side of the dresser, perched in the same spot as she would have been ten years ago as her big sister got all the luck and got ready for a date.

She was horrified. Someone KNEW! "I don’t know what you mean!"

"Sure you do, I know you don’t know I saw them, but you didn’t see me sneak into the bathroom before when you were showering. Now I want to know what he’s doing to you!" Her sister was characteristically brash and in spite of their mother's best efforts, she never did master tact.

"Oh, them, I tripped down the stairs. That’s all. I promise!" She tried for bright and perky and failed miserably.

"OK, then I’ll just have to go and ask Todd to go and ask him for me I guess!’" Her sister had lost none of her negotiation skills over the years. She looked at her sibling and sighed softly.

"He spanked me." These three words were the first and only words that came to mind. "I was acting like a brat and he spanked me with the hair brush!"

Her sister was all but speechless and tipped half her tea over her lap. She was amused by the younger woman’s reaction and knew that was the last thing she’d expected to hear from her headstrong opinionated sister.

"And you LET HIM?" Her sister was dumbfounded. She couldn’t believe she was hearing this, let alone that he was still walking and talking after having done it.

"I didn’t get a lot of choice the first time and yes, I agreed to let him if I didn’t follow the rules properly. I gave consent, Sis. He doesn’t beat me. It has seemed to work I think.  We’re not fighting as much and I am not as stressed out as I was." She would have given ten years of her life to know what her sister was thinking at that moment. Given that it was her sister, she didn’t have long to wait.

"I am pleased for you both if that’s what works for you both. I know someone had to take you in hand and make you responsible for your own temper, the olds didn’t do it very well and no one else I’ve ever met had a chance. I hope he has learned what he’s in for, living with a bitch like you!" Her sister tried to cover up her surprise and repulsion with cheery good nature.

"I don’t understand it either Sis, I really don’t. I don’t know what it is about having him do it that makes me feel like he loves me more than I could imagine. I don’t understand it at all!" She gave her sister insights into her own mind as she struggled with the past issues herself.

"Neither do I frankly. I think you are a nutter, but I love you and I do notice now you mention it that we’ve had none of your usual bad morning cheer and you aren’t climbing walls and screeching at anyone today. It might just be the thing you need I guess!" Her sister wasn’t giving her any lee way either.

"He just grabbed once when I threw a hairbrush at him and he spanked me thoroughly and then he left. When he was gone I realized what I was doing to us and him and I felt so damned alone it wasn’t nice and he was right to be upset that night." She told her what had happened and was pleased to see her sister's eyes grow rounder by the minute.

"Good for him, at least you know your place now! I think he’ll be very good for you because I would have choked you ten years ago if it wasn’t illegal and I know that Todd would have turned you over his knee if he’d of thought it would have worked, a long time ago! If anyone I know deserves the occasional spanking, it’s YOU!" She chuckled as she recalled some of the more spectacular outbursts from her most adored sibling. Her brother would have enjoyed this conversation immensely and she wished she could tell him herself to see the look on his face.

"I don’t know if I like that you are so much in agreement with him, you are MY sister you know!" she responded with good-natured bickering.

The phone beside the bed rang and her sister picked it up and then she started to giggle furiously. "Oh we’ve just been talking about you and my sister. The things you learn on her wedding day!"

She hit her feet, grabbing the phone from her sister, threatening all manner of evil things to her person if she didn’t be quiet right now. Roars of laughter met her on the other end of the phone and she realized he was laughing as hard as her bratty sister.

"I don’t think you are very funny you know," she offered for want of anything else to say. Her face was burning as red as her backside ever had and she was horrified to think her sister might just tell her big brother too.

He was suitably chastened, at least momentarily anyhow. "But she wouldn’t have known if you hadn’t told her. Baby, what’s wrong?"

"I didn’t tell her. Oh, I did tell her. She tricked me. She threatened to send Todd to ask you what you did to me and why I had bruises. I had to tell her, and I hope she keeps quiet about it too!" She was mortified and he sobered up almost immediately, this was important to her.

"Oh, Baby, I wasn’t laughing at you, I was laughing at your response and reaction. It’s not the end of the world and what did she say anyhow? Was she ready to hang me?" He spoke softly and gently as she figured out if she would died of embarrassment or not.

"No, she thinks I’m mad and you can’t do any wrong I think. She approves anyhow as long as I am consenting! That makes it worse, my sister thinks I need to be spanked," she wailed, not noticing a hulking figure standing in the now open doorway. She nearly passed out when the deep male chuckle made it into her mind. ‘"Oh Todd, how long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough to agree with Sis completely, I couldn’t think of a bigger brat that deserves a spanking more than you do, can I watch as payment for all the nasty things you did to me over the years?" the young man offered up as explanation for his amusement.

She looked at him with daggers in her eyes. "I have to go now.  I’ve got to deal with Todd and I haven’t said hello to him yet, I’ll talk to you later."

As she hung up, her brother sprawled out on her bed, eyeballing her cautiously. One could never tell how she would react and he didn’t expect her to take it very well.

"So my girl, what’s this I hear that you’re caught up with a guy that likes to make that butt of yours glow?" he said it casually but she knew that if he thought for one moment she was not consenting and willing, he’d go looking for him and make him one sorry man for even thinking it.

"It’s ok, Todd, I am an adult now. I know what I am doing. I gave my consent." She was suddenly very shy and not sure she felt right discussing this with her big brother so casually.

"Then my girl, I am pleased for you both, ‘cause I can’t believe that anyone would be able to spank your ass for you let alone be brave enough to remain standing in your face afterwards. You are still going to marry the man, I want to shake his hand, I wouldn’t want to be married to you on a bet!"  He chortled at her discomfort. "I promise not to tell Dad, though I think he’d be terribly pleased to hear it!"

She peered at him dubiously. He was trustworthy and could keep secrets when required. That he approved didn’t do anything to improve her frame of mind about the subject though. She started to cry and her brother cuddled her up, figuring she would eventually let all the stress out. He’d heard the basis from his third and youngest sister and was surprised that she hadn’t exploded long before this moment.

"It’s not like it should be, my wedding isn’t even my wedding anymore.’ With that Todd sat her up and looked at her.

"What do you mean, its not your wedding anymore? Who else is gonna get married this evening girlie?" he asked calmly, suspecting that there was far more behind this than he knew of.

"The two mothers have ruined everything I wanted, it wasn’t meant to be like this and I hate it all. I just wanted to get married to him and I didn’t want to do it like this."  She was crying furiously and he wasn’t sure she’d ever stop. He was growing increasingly angry with his own mother and his new brother in-law's mother interference wasn’t sitting any better.

He lifted her off him and told her he’d be back in a few minutes with some coffee for her and him. She lay on the pillows, still crying fitfully.

She heard raised voices, her mothers and her brothers and wondered if it was going to turn into a weekend from hell, her brother joined the forces to get away from the family. She didn’t even bother to try to hear what was being said until she realized the door had flown open and her mother stood there in the doorway.

"What’s wrong with you, I thought you wanted these things, you never SAID anything about it when I suggested it."  Her mother was in fine form, and she was very determined not to be wrong in this matter.

She sat up and dried her face on her towel. "You didn’t listen to me, you just took over and every time I got upset with you, you wrote it off as pre-wedding jitters. I didn’t even get to pick my own gown!" she said without any real care for her mothers feelings.

Her mother came in and sat down beside her. ‘"I suppose I did, but Darling, every time I asked you about something you didn’t give me an answer, someone had to take charge and get things done. I am sorry if you think I did this on purpose. Can we fix anything now to make it like you wanted it to be? I can’t really uninvite people, but I can do anything else I can to make your day. Darling, I didn’t want you like this, this should be the happiest day of your lives!"

She looked at her mother and realized she was telling the truth, she really hadn’t taken charge of her own wedding and her mother really had asked her several times what she wanted.

"It’s ok, I just feel a little bit off now, stress does that to you. I just wanted to keep it simple!"

A few moments later, her mother left the room and in a couple of minutes the door opened again and she looked up, wondering who it was this time.

As she looked up, he closed the door and locked it behind him. "Shhh, I know I’m not supposed to be here but it’s my house and I will come in here if I want to."

She fell into his arms and felt the weight lifting off her. This is where she belonged, surrounded by her soon to be husband and in their home, with her hand me down furniture and familiar things, his beautiful art work he’d collected and a small but very impressive collection of antique silver displayed carefully in case he’d made for them.

She shivered as he nuzzled into her ear and spoke softly, "I just thought you might like me to spank you before I married you!"

"NO! Not with everyone here!" She was mortified and he laughed at her too loudly. "Shhh, they’ll hear you!"

"I don’t care if they hear me Baby, that’s their problem! Now, come here and let me show you what I’m going to do to you tonight when we escape them all!"

Neither heard the soft knock on the door nor the male footsteps that left again unanswered. Todd had spent enough time in confined places to know when he shouldn’t disturb the occupants of another area!

The wedding went off without further hitch, his breath catching in his throat as he turned to watch her walk towards him on her father's arm. Her eyes filled with tears as she realized that he would be taking possession of her, even figuratively when her father surrendered her arm to him. He looked so solemn as he stood there waiting for her to come to him.

The gathering didn’t flinch when the vows were spoken and she agreed to obey him against the modern tradition. Her mother wasn’t the only one to grasp the meaning behind it and wondered what bought this strange and welcome change to her daughter. She suspected her new son in law was a traditional type of man and she honestly didn’t think anyone else would have the patience to try to take on her headstrong daughter and hope to win any battle.

Her sister and brother both smiled secretly at the wording of their vows. Both were completely convinced of her mothers’ thoughts being true and neither doubted that their sister would be sitting uncomfortably for many happy years to come. Todd didn’t know his new brother in law at all but the single phone call this afternoon was enough to tell him that she was safe and that something holy better help anyone that might think about hurting her in his care.

Her sister was reflecting on the number of broken hearts that she’d tried to patch up over the years when her sister broke it off without warning or real reason in a fit of bad temper. She knew this new brother in law well enough to know that she would have a lot of trouble convincing him to leave her, let alone let her destroy their relationship with her very out of control nature.

He was looking into her eyes as she offered her vows to love, honor and obey him and he saw the light inside her shining as she repeated them. She meant them and he knew she would fight him every step of the way to honoring them when the time came.

She saw his eyes dance as she spoke the word obey and she wasn’t naïve enough to think he wouldn’t enforce that promise when she stepped over the line too far.

As the minister pronounced them man and wife and the applause started, she felt her cheeks growing red as her husband patted her affectionately on the bottom and then kissed her without hesitation before the entire group, bringing forth whistles of approval from the younger of the crowd.

Later that night, after they had escaped to their honeymoon motel room, she slipped from her gown and into the shower to wash the sticky stuff from her hair and the makeup from her still glowing face. As she started to soap herself, she heard the glass door opening and he asked. "Do you want some help there, Wife?"

She giggled as he climbed into the cubical which was barely big enough for one let alone two of them.

The night turned into morning before they finally slept happily rolled up together, content and sated.

They enjoyed a short but happy honeymoon and arrived back in time to find out his mother had to have surgery and that he would need to be gone to help for two weeks. Self employed he had the option of leaving when he had to and she was still on leave.

She offered to go with him, but he wouldn’t hear of it, preferring she would stay here and relax before she went back to her own business. Justifying it by her having to pay through the nose for the right person to allow her to take vacations and that he didn’t want her playing nurse maid the whole time. His mother wasn’t sick, only getting a harmless tumor removed.

He left the next morning and she was bored within ten minutes of his leaving. In fact she was getting more irritated by the moment and she knew the warning signs.

Heading out the door, she pulled on her flip-flops and headed down the road to the river. A river she thought sourly, more like a hypoactive creek. She was immediately disgusted with herself.

It wasn’t his fault that his mother got sick. Why did she have to get sick on our honeymoon? Said the niggling little voice in her head. She stumbled as she realized how horrid it sounded, even thinking it. She’d had the past fifteen months of his undivided attention and she hadn’t seen other than at the wedding. The little voice answered her with "Yes Dearie, but SHE had him for the first 29.3 years of his life and you didn’t even know he was alive."

The shock of how evil her thoughts were almost saw her walk into the shallow water of the little casual river. She sat silently on the dead log beside it, feet submerged to let the cool water drain over them. She was horrified that she could even think such thoughts, let alone try to then compound it by justifying them!

She couldn’t believe how impossible it was to stop thinking like this. Every time she beat down another nasty thought, that horrid little voice piped up from the peanut gallery. This was not a nice part of her and she felt rather silly having a conversation with herself, even internally.

Her brothers face drifted before her, so real she could almost touch him. She looked up into his face and saw the pain that she’d caused when she’d so dreadful to one of his rather pretty girlfriends she’d fled in tears and never came back again. At the time she was elated, she’d gotten her own way. Now she realized Todd had never gotten serious with anyone else again. She couldn’t believe that she was totally at fault, but she may have a case to answer for after all was said and done.

The shadows grew as she lost herself inside her own thoughts and memories, digesting slowly the trauma she’d caused quite deliberately in other peoples lives and then moved along. Nothing too major other than her brother that she recalled but certainly undeserved because she was so selfish. She felt awful and somehow rather dirty when she counted the sins she’d accumulated over a lifetime.

As the semi darkness started to cool the air, she stiffly rose, still lost in thought and headed home. She stopped as she opened the door; loath to enter feeling like she did and she settled into the recliner chair she’d found and placed for ‘watching the sun go down’. It was just too unsettling to enter their home knowing how very much making up she had to do in order to change the entire way she reacted. She had to act, rather than react.

Eventually chill and the need to use the bathroom that drove her inside and as she passed the office they’d set up, she realized that there was a moral to her story and she had to find it.

Returning in just minutes with a sandwich and a flask of coffee, she settled before her computer screen and opened up a new document. As she settled back, keyboard on her knee and coffee at her elbow, she thought about how to start her story and what she needed to say and identify in order to move ahead and learn from what she’d done before.

When I was six I remember my brother…. She typed for hours, immune to the hours ticking by, typing almost hysterically sometimes as she listed her main problem with her life to date. She was emotionally torn to pieces as she realized how events had lead to events and how badly she had acted.

In her words, she found her reason and in her reason, she found her cause. She was sleeping peacefully on the chair, keyboard balanced haphazardly on her lap when the phone rang.

In her sudden awakening and disorientation she knocked the cold coffee cup over the desk and was still swearing heartily when she picked up the phone and the coffee seeped into the paperwork. "Hello?"

"Baby, it’s so nice to know you don’t handle morning any better when I am not there as when I am there. Good Morning to you too!" He had the cheek to sound awake and rested, though she was aware this was far from the truth. He had not had sleep at all and had only just arrived at his parents’ place. She gritted her teeth and bit back her sharp comment.

"Good morning, and that’s about as good as it gets right now, sorry My Love," she said it without any attempt at humor, knowing it was not likely to succeed. How did one get coffee out of fax copies she wondered absently? "How was your trip?"

"Long and very lonely Baby, where are you?" He was still awake enough to realize she was not giving him her complete attention and he had to find out what she’d been up to while he wasn’t around to keep her out of mischief.

"In the office, I just knocked over a cup of coffee and it’s gone into the paperwork. I’m just trying to dry it out. That’s all!" She put a little cheer into her voice, hoping he wouldn’t connect the dots and realize she had just broken one of his more insistent conditions of existence, staying awake all night and not sleeping properly. He was less than impressed she assumed.

"At 4.45am?"  he asked casually and her heart dropped as her eyes flew to the wall clock behind her. Sure enough, she realized her ruse was up.

"I was writing something important. I must have fallen asleep.  I spent most of the day at the river thinking. I needed to get something out and I obviously also needed to sleep!" She was not likely to want to sleep anytime soon though.

"And I suppose you haven’t done all that paperwork I forgot to take to the accountants either huh?" he continued casually.

She was confused now – she didn’t have a clue what he was talking about and then the penny dropped. She was holding it and it was dripping wet. Her eyes nearly fell out of her head as her jaw dropped when it all came more clearly to her – she’d just drowned this years tax returns!

Good Grief! Things weren’t progressing quite the way she’d hoped they would. "No, my Love, actually, I think that is what I just gave a coffee bath to!"

With that she dissolved into a fit of giggles, betraying her real tiredness to him and bringing a smile to his face, she was her same old self. "That’s ok, that’s just the copies Baby, I don’t leave the real things anywhere near you and that damned cup! Obviously you didn’t do that paperwork yourself or you would know that. Good Girl!"

"No, I didn’t have time, I was doing some shrink therapy on myself and I don’t know if it’s worked yet or not! I have to proof read it now. I think I’ve just found out what my most pressing problem is though!" she said through fits of giggles as he attempted to weasel out of her what she’d written and who about.

He was not overly concerned, occasionally she turned out some potent essays about their sex life and he wasn’t immune to the effect. While not terribly interested in her style, she still managed to get her point across effectively."‘Whatchya writing about Lady? What did I do this time when you weren’t anywhere near me?"

"Not this one my Love, this is not something I really want to share with anyone, but it’s something I have to write. Can I go to the bathroom and get something to stop this coffee going all over the floor?’" she responded.

"I’m going to go Baby, I am bushed and I have to get some sleep. I’ll call you again later. You behave yourself please! No more coffee on the office desk and that’s an order. You can use the little table instead, you’re going to do that machine a terminal injury with coffee one day!" he said, and felt he wasn’t lying as standing up was proving a challenge and his mother appeared to have cooked enough breakfast to feed a small but increasingly growing army.

"Ok My Love, I love you'" she said and hung up, leaving him pondering how she did that, just hung up the phone. He couldn’t do that on a bet!

After she had showered and dressed casually, she sat down again, armed with the last of the flask of coffee and reread what she’d written. He was right in so many ways and he was right about how she reacted instead of acting and thinking things through. Here was the answer to her current behavior though it was sketchy on the details of how to change it!

She proofed it a little more thoroughly, seeing where she’d ignored exhaustion and continued to type and made a complete hash of it. She was so absolutely cleansed that she was actually two hours from home when it dawned on her to think about his reaction to her arrival.

In fact by the third hour she was almost convinced he was not going to be pleased with her but resolved to deal with that when she delivered him the Confession as she had started to think of it. THEN they’d deal with her arriving.

She was nearly ten hours from home when tiredness hit her. She pulled into a diner and bought a sandwich and fruit juice and settled into the back seat for a nap. An hour later she was woken up by a large and very noisy truck and started out again towards her destination.

The highway signs signaled that she was only three hours from him when the tire blew. Pulling over, she climbed out, stiff and tired and opened the boot, extracted the tire and jack and set about changing it herself. Her father made sure his girls were car handy before he’d let them own one, mainly to avoid him being called out at all hours to do things they could do themselves. It worked on Todd and he saw no reason the girls couldn’t cope with it as well.

Tire changed without incident, she continued on her journey, lost again in thought as to how he would take her Confession and what he would think of this ‘discovery’. Again, she turned her thoughts to her wisdom of doing this and his reaction and the very real fight she felt almost sure was going to ensure her arrival. In fact, she was almost certain he would insist she sleep before he’d even talk to her.

She pulled into his hometown and stopped to check her little tourist map. His parents’ house was on the other side of town but not difficult to find. Another thing her male kin thought to instill in their women was the ability to read a map accurately. Or so Todd thought anyhow.

Eventually admitting to herself she was lost, she pulled over in front of the local police station and went in to ask directions. Asking at the desk for the directions to her in laws home was almost like dropping a casual comment like – "I’ve got a bomb in here and I’m not afraid to use it!"

 The officer, a young and barely shaving gentleman excused himself and came back with an older man who peered at her over his bi focals. "And who would you be, Ma'am?"

‘"I’m their daughter-in-law! I’ve driven a very long way, I am very tired and hungry and I would like to get there as soon as I can, can you give me directions?" she asked wearily, wondering what she’d done to evoke this type of reaction. Barely caring she looked at the two men. "Today? Please?"

"Ma'am, if you’d just sit here a moment, I’ll get some directions for you. I think you need some coffee maybe? Steven? Some coffee for the Lady." The older policeman sat her down and took her coat.

"I’ll just be a moment," they chorused together as they trooped out the side door, almost colliding as they went.

"I’ll do my best. I’ll see you soon!" She heard the older one end a conversation on a hand held phone as he reappeared, followed shortly by ‘Steven’ who bore a tray with coffee and a small plate of sweet cookies. She smiled gratefully at him as he put it in front of her.

"I didn’t realize just how FAR it was from our place to here when I set out! I’ll have to check my miles more carefully next time!" she said as she took her first sip of very good coffee. Both of them smiled politely at her, but appeared distracted as they watched the front door.

She didn’t turn as the door opened and they both disappeared behind the desk to greet the newcomer. As he spoke, her blood ran cold and she turned to face her white-faced husband. ‘"Hello Baby, they told me I was stupid to be so damned worried about you! They said you’d turn up eventually!"

He was obviously angry and very much fighting to control himself in front of these two men now watching the situation with avid interest. He wasn’t known for his tolerance of extreme stupidity and they felt this qualified; though she was a pretty little thing!

He turned and thanked the two men for their help and he then took her coat and arm and they left the station house. As they got outside, she tried to talk to him and he simply said "Baby, I just don’t want to hear it right now. I have had NO sleep I have been so worried about you.  Your parents are nervous wrecks. Your brother thinks it’s my fault you’re incapable of being able to remain responsible and my parents are worried sick about both of us and your family in case something had happened to you. They were blaming themselves until Tom rang in and told us you were there with them! Do you have even the slightest concept of how angry I am at this moment with you? Not a word, I don’t care if you know or not; but Baby, you are going to and I don’t care WHY you are here.  You are going to find out just exactly what you put me through this past day!’

He opened her door and put her inside without further comment. She was silent and ashen faced when he got in his side. He looked at her and she felt like crying because she really didn’t think she’d done anything all that terrible. The Confession fell from the seat behind her and he picked it up. "And this is why you are here isn’t it?

"You drove all day and night to bring this here. You could have EMAILED it to me Baby! I’d have still read it. Damn it all you are going to drive me insane before we’re married a month if you keep this up! What possessed you to do this? Without telling ANYONE at all and I know you were NOT raised like that!" He was furiously angry and she wasn’t game to answer questions she thought might possibly turn out to be rhetoric anyhow. She also had the fleeting thought of "Anything you say can and will be used against in a court of love!"

He put it down unopened, obviously aware of her discomfort at him having gotten it this way. She was silent and shattered and beyond any form of rational discussion and he just wanted to have her home and asleep. He’d deal with her actions later. She truly could have emailed it to him.

When they drove into the driveway, his parents met them at the steps; his mother looking terribly tired and worn out and completely lost as to what to say. His father showing similar signs behind her smiled at her and she felt his sympathy for her predicament.

His mother kissed her on the cheek and ushered her to the bathroom where she laid out all the requirements for a good day’s sleep. She was soon under the hot water when he appeared and looked through the door at her.

As she stepped out, he was waiting and wrapped her in a big fluffy towel and held her close to him. "I am so damned angry with you I could choke you Baby.  I was convinced that you were dead for pities sake. It was a very irresponsible thing to do and not tell anyone. I’d have been less angry if you’d have told anyone at all. I’ve just floated the profits for next quarter on the Phone Company trying to find out who you’d told about this little jaunt into irresponsibility. I’d like to turn you over my knee right now!"

Her head flew up and she looked at him with wide eyes. ‘"You wouldn’t!"

"Don’t push me Baby, you know I will if you push me too far. You have earned yourself one real doozer when we get home. I promise you that now. Right now, I’m too pleased that you’ve arrived in one piece to fulfill that promise to you. But remember that you are owed one when we get home. My mother moved her appointment forward and I only have to be here for five days. Her sister and niece are coming and I’ve been dismissed. So it’ll be sooner than later Baby."

Her face flushed as the words sank in and she realized that it was quite horrid to have that much time to consider it and try to escape it. She started to shiver and he let her dry off and dress herself.

Breakfast was simple and she ate it all. Her mother in law bought her to their room, which was on top of their garage and where he’d lived when he was working when he left school. He appeared a little later as she climbed into bed, having looked at the photos on the wall and experienced a twinge when she saw him dressed with his date for the prom. She pushed that thought away and climbed into the big warmly dressed bed.

She was already asleep when he entered the room and he took up a seat in his favorite armchair, legs swung casually over the arm as he leant against the other. Reaching just as far as he could, he opened the tiny fridge and his mother hadn’t let him down, it was fully stocked with his favorite things. He grabbed the first can of drink that he laid his hands on and settled back with her ‘Confession’. She mentioned the name and the title alone had him intrigued. She was not much given to personal confessions of any form of guilt!

As he read into the ‘story’ he was amazed at how far she’d come from the very prickly but charming little brat in just a year and a bit. She actually realized what she’d done in the past and dealt with that realization. He was amused at some of the things she’d been up and done to other people. More fool on some of them for not seeing it coming as far as he could see, but he also saw through the really rough parts, where she was struggling with her own emotions and took the easy way out.

She was a complex little witch, he thought as he finished the last page, manipulative and very sneaky when she wanted to be. He was faintly surprised by the absolutely depths of her own selfishness in her words at times, but equally surprised by her recognition of that. Generally, she would rather walk hot coals than be wrong about anything.

He rubbed between his eyes as the real weariness set in. He’d barely slept five hours since he left her safe and sound at home. He really needed sleep if he was to deal with her when she was rested and feisty again.

He climbed into bed beside her and she slid automatically into his arms. He smiled at her as she took up her place like a large cat, nestled into his chest hair and barely even aware he was there. Hopefully she wouldn't do that with any other man if she was asleep crossed his mind and he smiled ruefully. Jealousy was something he was only just learning to cope with and she was a challenge at the best of times!

She became aware of him as she woke up and stretched. He was sleeping soundly, his face finally relaxed again and she felt the first twinge of guilt as she realized how many people her actions had touched. Her mother in law rang her mother when she was in the shower and she’d made sure everyone else was told apparently, she remembered being told that before she came to bed. She still wasn’t overly sure they weren’t ALL overreacting but she certainly hadn’t thought about telling anyone and she really should have she supposed.

As she tried to get up and go to the bathroom, his arm tightened around her. She relaxed into his arms again and his sleep husky voice asked politely, "If I let you go Baby, you have to promise not to leave the premises and drive half way across the damned country to find me, ok? I promise to stay here!"

 She turned to find him gazing at her insolently and she responded with, "Yes, Sir, I promise Sir!"

He scowled at her and she realized he was only half kidding and she backtracked a little, "I promise my love, I won’t do that again next time!"

With that he released her and she skittered off to the bathroom. In the meantime he’d ventured out and found his parents had left earlier that morning for a day of ‘shopping for food while she isn’t here’. Knowing his mother, this could take three days and a semi to bring home. They were in no real danger of being disturbed in the short term. His mind turned that over as he picked up the paper and returned to his room.

As he came through the door, she emerged from the bathroom, having showered quickly and wearing her robe. He looked at her and the bed and as he thought it, she realized his intentions and she was immediately trying to find a way to delay it until they got home.

"Baby, it won’t matter what you say, now is the right time and I promised it to you, you didn’t forget that did you? Then you don’t have to wait until we get home, it’ll all be over and you’ll know better next time won’t you?" He didn’t give her a chance to argue at all.

She sighed and resigned herself to the spanking she knew she not only deserved but deliberately set about getting. As she approached, he told her to bring her hairbrush. She balked at the command and he looked at her. "Now please!"

She picked up the brush, considering telling him how unfair she thought it was that she also had to deliver the implement he was about to use on her so painfully and thought better of it. Best not to antagonize him any further.

She handed it to him and he helped position her across his lap. He drew the robe over her hips and as always gently rubbed her cheeks. As the first slap fell and she bucked, he knew this would be a harsh one on her because it would only end when she stopped denying her actions.

He stopped momentarily, his arm getting sore and she was completely out of control. As he rubbed her rear end and felt her push into his hand, he felt the first signs of her submission and subsequent release.

He again applied the brush, harder this time, quickly and everywhere, on the backs of her thighs and the crease between thigh and cheek and she was starting to beg him to stop.

Again he stopped and rubbed her now hot cheeks and he heard her moan as the pain was intensified but also aided by his hands. He felt her start to relax again and she felt the stinging of the brush as he recommenced his stroke, more firmly again and even more quickly than he was before.

She was squirming fiercely and begging him breathlessly as he landed stroke upon stroke, in the same place six times and then moving only slightly to another. She was nearing hysteria and he felt the surrender as strongly as she did.

She suddenly went completely limp and started to cry very quietly. He landed just six more strokes and then he rubbed her bruising cheeks and talking softly, he made sure she understood exactly why he’d done.

He sat her up, wiping her tears away with the towel that she’d been drying her hair with. "Baby, you’re going to be black and blue by morning. You won’t forget this one in a hurry, I can tell you."

She was barely sitting on his lap, but rather balanced to prevent any contact with her rear end, which was almost purple in the more important parts.

"Do you remember what you will never do again?" He held her face to look at his and she nodded, swallowing tears as she spoke the words to him.

He smiled at her and then holding her close to him said "I love you Baby, too much to allow you to do stupid and dangerous things like that anymore. I could have lost you!"

She said nothing, but snuggled into him closer. A little later, he tucked her into bed and went to find some food for breakfast and was back almost immediately with a fruit tray and a steaming pot of coffee. His mothers honeymoon treat it seemed.

She drank the coffee and picked at tiny bits of fruit, trying to find anyway at all to sit without the burning increasing terribly. She could feel every single stroke he’d applied, she was sure of it and it wasn’t possible to drink coffee laying down she’d found.

After he’d removed the dishes and returned to curl her up beside him, tucked in safely and out of her own harms way, he said, "I read it Baby, I ‘m glad to see that you’ve seen this for yourself. This is how you stop and change things that aren’t productive inside you. I am very proud of you for getting that far."

"But you are a real time little brat and you should have had your ass paddled hourly as a child, you were horrid. I hope it’s not genetic!" He teased her playfully, referring to the pranks she’d pulled with varying degrees of success.

She stuck her tongue out at him and he threatened to paddle her again for being cheeky which made it disappear faster than it appeared. He looked at her curiously as she watched him warily, not sure he wouldn’t just do it anyway!

"I think that you might get more out of this than I first thought Baby. That is an interesting thought isn’t it? Maybe it’s not just when you are stressed that you need it, maybe you actually LIKE it after all!"

Her eye flew open as she took in his words, and she tried to deny and was met with too much male mirth to be heard. She was horrified he’d have read her mind so thoroughly and completely and mortified that he thought she would get off on ‘play spanking’. What did he think she was?

"No Baby, I don’t think you are strange. It’s not always punishment you know in some cases!" She was speechless, he could read minds!

"And I don’t mind paddling your ass without any real need to do so. I don’t get a thing out of punishing you, it breaks my heart, but the thought of just being able to make you jump and twitch is enough to well, you figure it out…" He dragged her to him where she found out exactly what the thought did for him. She was almost afraid that he would want to try it out right now and several times, he was forced to let her go because her backside was too sore to stand the position they’d found themselves in.

His parents arrived home and found silence in the room to be indicative of exhaustion and not just because both had driven so far. Honeymooners his father thought and fondly remembered his own. His mother thought Honeymooners, and looked at his father wistfully.

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