“Let me have a look.” He set her next to him on the sofa so her legs lay on his lap then took hold of her sore foot.
“Gentle, Daddy.”
“Daddy is always gentle.”
“Nuh-uh.”
“When aren’t I?”
“When you’re spanking me.”
“Ahh, but I’m always careful not to hurt anything but your naughty bottom, aren’t I?” he asked as he studied her toes. “There’s a bit of a red mark here. Can you wiggle them?”
“Nuh-uh.”
“You sure?”
“Uh-huh.” Her toes throbbed although they weren’t so bad that she really thought they were broken. However, she knew she was in trouble and focusing on her sore toes could work to delay what was coming.
“All right. I better call Doc, have him come take a look.”
Uh-oh. Doc wouldn’t like her wasting his time.
“Wait. I think I can wriggle them.” She scrunched up her face in concentration and moved her toes back and forth.
“It’s a miracle,” he said dryly. “I’m going to get you an icepack just in case.” He rose and got an ice pack, returning to set it on her foot then he sat on the sofa by her legs, facing her. “Right. You want to tell me what you are doing out of bed, little one?”
“I couldn’t sleep, Daddy.”
“You tried for a whole minute.”
“But at least I tried, right?” she asked hopefully.
He shook his head sternly. “So you tried to sleep and couldn’t, and instead of calling for Daddy you decided to come down the stairs on your own when I just made a rule that you weren’t to go up and down them alone?”
“Daddy, you won’t always be here to take me up and down the stairs.”
“There isn’t much reason for you to go upstairs during the day and if you need anything, you can call me. Plus, I’m going to try to work from my home office more.”
She knew she wouldn’t talk him out of that.
“You couldn’t sleep so you snuck downstairs once I was in my office to get your toy?”
“Umm, it was Boss Hog’s idea!”
“That so?” he drawled.
“Yep. And he said he’d take my punishment if I got caught.”
“He did, did he?”
She nodded empathically.
“Well, best I go get Boss Hog for his punishment then.” He stood.
Wait. She didn’t want Boss Hog to be punished. Shoot!
“Daddy, no!” she cried out.
He turned back around.
“It wasn’t Boss Hog’s fault. Don’t hurt him.”
“I’d never hurt Boss Hog or you,” he told her firmly. “But you did earn yourself a punishment.”
“Are you gonna spank me, Daddy?” she asked in a small voice.
“Well. That’s something I have to check with Doc.”
Check with Doc? He wouldn’t!
“There’s no need to ask Doc!” She spun her legs around as Kent grabbed his phone from where he’d set it on the coffee table.
“I need to know if it’s safe to spank you or not.”
Her eyes practically bugged out of her head as he tapped his phone then put it to his ear. “Hey, Doc. Got a question for you . . . it’s about Abby . . . no, she’s fine . . . is it safe to spank her?”
Abby’s mouth went dry. Was he really doing this? Holy. Shit. This was so embarrassing. Surely this was punishment enough?
“Good. Thanks.” Kent ended the call.
She groaned, slumping back on the sofa. “Can’t believe you did that.”
“I need to know how to care for you properly. Doc said it’s safe to spank you. But it’s best to ensure there’s no pressure on your tummy and that you don’t get too upset.” Kent looked thoughtful. “We’ll do it in the bedroom.”
She couldn’t believe this was happening. She felt like she was walking to her doom as she let him help her up the stairs. Once they were next to the bed, he turned to her and reached for her flannel bottoms. He pulled them and her panties down over her feet. She put her hands on his shoulders as he helped her out of them.
“You’re going to lean over and put your elbows on the bed, keep your hands out in front of you. Then spread your legs nice and wide. I’m not going to spank you as hard as I normally would. Now, if anything other than your bottom hurts, you’re to say your safeword immediately. What’s your safeword?”
“Tutu.”
“Good girl. Do you want to hold Boss Hog?”
“Yes, and Bun-bun’s ear.” Her stuffed rabbit’s ear was all she had left of the old toy.
Kent guided her around and she bent over, her legs spread wide, her forearms resting on the mattress. He handed her Boss Hog and Bun-bun’s ear.
She held them tight as he started to spank her. He was spanking her much lighter than he usually would. But after around ten spanks, she found herself crying. Tears dripped down her cheeks.
“Abby? Abby, shit! Are you hurting somewhere?” He drew her up and against his chest, rubbing his hand over her back. “I’ll call Doc. Shit! I shouldn’t have spanked you.” His voice was panicked.
“No, no. It’s not that. I’m fine. It’s just . . . it’s a relief.”
“Being spanked is a relief?”
“No. It’s a relief being able to keep this. Being your baby girl. You being my Daddy.”
“Ahh,” he said. “And the tears?”
“Just a way of letting out all that emotion, I guess.”
He kissed the top of her head. “I love you, Abigail Reynolds.”
“Love you too, Kent Jensen.”
“We’re gonna have to change that, you know.”
“Change what?”
“Your last name,” he whispered. “You’re going to be a Jensen.”
“Kent Jensen,” she scolded. “That better not be your idea of a proposal.”
“Um, well, yeah?” He squeezed the back of his neck.
“Nuh-uh.”
“No?”
“Nope. You have to do it properly. Ask me. And not when I’m half-naked after getting my bottom spanked.”
“Well, to be fair you haven’t really had your spanking—”
“Kent!”
“And I wasn’t going to ask because that implies you can say no.”
She put her hands on her hips. “That isn’t going to fly, mister.”
“Mister, huh? I’m guessing I’m in trouble.”
“Yes,” she huffed.
Yep, he’d screwed up if the fire in her eyes was anything to go by. Abby was very sweet-natured, but this obviously meant a lot to her.
Of course it does. Not every day she gets engaged. In fact, it will never happen again.
Make this better!
“Can we erase the last few minutes?” he asked
“How far back?” she asked with a hopeful look.
“Back to where you were bent over, about to get a spanking.” It would be too easy to ignore the fact that she’d disobeyed him. To simply not spank her. But he had a feeling that right now, she needed rules and boundaries more than ever. She needed to know he wasn’t going to neglect her Little side. And while she might not admit it, rules gave her a sense of security.
“Drat,” she whispered.
He raised his eyebrows at her.
“Okay, I’ll forget that terrible proposal,” she agreed.
“Thank you, sweet girl. I don’t deserve you.”
She softened. Total sweetheart. “Yes, you do. You deserve more than me.”
He scowled. “Abby, are you wanting to add to your spanking?”
Her eyes widened. “No.”
“Sure? Because I could go grab one of your big anal plugs and have you nap with it inside you.”
“No, no.” She shook her head frantically.
He placed his hand around the back of her head, and leaning in kissed her until they were both breathless. “Because you are all that I could ever want or desire. There is no one in the world like my sweet girl.”
She smiled up at him.
“Now turn and bend over, time for the rest of your spanking.”
11
Marisol and Linc
11th December
“Eek! Will you look at that cute dragon!”
Marisol tugged Linc’s hand as they walked past the toy shop on the busy Houston street. It seemed crazy to be walking around without a jacket when just last week she’d been all bundled up for the snow. As much as she loved warm weather, she kind of missed the snowy peaks of Montana.
“He’s very cute, teeny,” Linc said, his hand tight around hers. He had a rule about her holding his hand when they were out of the hotel room. Or if that wasn’t possible then she had to stick close by to him.
“Can we go inside?” she pleaded, knowing there was very little he wouldn’t give her.
They were on their way to meet Harry for dinner, but they had a bit of time up their sleeve, surely. That dragon was really cute.
“We don’t have time right now,” he told her.
She pouted. Darn it. She really wanted to touch the dragon. He looked so soft. They’d been in Houston for close to a week. It had been an amazing holiday, not the least because she’d gotten to reconnect with Harry. She thought it might be weird. After all, she hadn’t seen him in close to sixteen years. Things likely should have been awkward. But when she was around him, she felt at ease.
They’d met with him every night for dinner since Linc had arranged for them to meet him at the fair. Tomorrow, though, they had to go back to Sanctuary.
And she wasn’t ready.
So maybe doing a bit of browsing in the toy shop would help take her mind off having to say goodbye tomorrow.
“Please, Daddy.”
He gave her a firm look. “Five minutes. And when I say we have to go, then you’ll leave without argument.”
Yay. She barely managed not to bounce up and down in excitement. She tugged him through the doorway. The toy shop was far busier than she’d anticipated. It was huge inside, easily three floors high. And decorated beautifully for Christmas.
People crushed around them. Kids crying. Parents looking harassed.
“Stick close to me, teeny,” he warned her.
She nodded absentmindedly. Then, spotting the dragon again, she slid between a couple who were arguing over the price of a box of Legos and picked it up.
Ooh, he was so soft and snuggly. She sighed. Too bad she had no room left in her bag for him. The gorilla Linc had won her at the fair took up most of her bag.
She spotted a crafting section and headed towards it, the dragon still under her arm. Excitement had her moving from thing to thing and it was at least five minutes before she realized that Linc hadn’t been following her.
She turned, looking around. Panic unfurled. Where was he? How had she lost him? People were pressed around her, making her feel claustrophobic.
Call him, silly.
Of course. He was still somewhere around. He wouldn’t abandon her. Putting the dragon down on a shelf, she drew out her cell phone but as she was trying to work it, someone bumped her and it skittered under a shelf.
Mierda!
Now what?
She crouched down, trying to reach under the shelf to grab it.
Someone tripped over her leg, making her flinch and cry out. Ouch! That was going to leave a bruise.
“Jesus, lady, what the fuck are you trying to do?”
She drew back at the angry voice, staring up, wide-eyed as an older man in a suit scowled down at her.
“Are you trying to trip me up? You could have fucking injured me!”
“Sorry, I dropped my phone. I was just trying to get it.”
The man turned and stormed off, pushing his way through people. She reached down again and managed to get her fingers around the phone, dragging it back. As she stood, she shakily ran her hand over her clothes. What a horrid man.
She winced when she saw three missed calls from Linc. Her phone was set to silent so she must have missed them.
“Marisol!”
She glanced up, relief filling her as she saw him headed towards her. He was dressed in a pair of jeans and a dark blue shirt. His eyes were narrowed, intense. She knew he wasn’t happy with her and she didn’t blame him.
But right then, she didn’t care either. As soon as he was close to her, she threw herself into his arms. He wrapped her up tight in his embrace.
“Hey, hey, baby, you’re shaking. It’s okay. I’m here. I’m here.”
He kept his arm around her, and she pressed her face into his shirt as he led her outside. As they reached the front of the shop, she could hear someone berating one of the cashiers. She glanced up to see it was that awful man. She shuddered.
Linc, in-tune with her as always, glanced over at the man as well. “Did something happen?”
“No. No, I just want to leave.”
They reached the pavement and he kept a tight hold on her as he walked her to a quieter side street and pulled her into an alleyway between two shops.
“Don’t we have to get moving? Harry will wonder where we are.” She didn’t point out that it was her fault they were running late.
She tried to move, but he grasped hold of her hips. “Haven’t you gotten into enough trouble tonight by wandering off? I already texted Harrison to tell him we’d be late when I lost you in the shop and you weren’t answering your phone. Do you know how worried I was?”
She guessed about as worried as she was when she’d looked up and noticed he wasn’t with her.
“Teeny? What did I say about staying by me?”
“I’m sorry, I just got excited and I didn’t realize you weren’t with me. Then I went to get my phone out and someone knocked into me and I dropped it. It went under a
shelf. I bent down to pick it up and this man tripped over me. He wasn’t very nice about it. Then he left and I saw you. I really am sorry, Daddy.”
“Did he hurt you?”
“I think I might get a bruise on my leg.” She pulled up her pants. There was a red mark there. Linc crouched to inspect it then kissed it lightly before standing.
“Daddy was so worried when you slipped out of his hold and disappeared into the crowd. And then when you didn’t answer your phone.” He shuddered. “I thought something had happened to you. That you’d been taken.”
“I’m so sorry,” she cried, throwing herself into his arms. “It won’t happen again.”
“Damn straight it won’t. Because when we get home, you’re getting a spanking for disobeying me.”
She sighed. “Yes, Daddy.”
He drew her back and took her hand firmly in his. “Let go again, little girl, and I won’t even wait until we’re back in the hotel to warm your butt. I’ll take you into the toilets at the restaurant, strip down your pants, and smack your bottom until it’s red, understand me?”
She froze, blushing. She couldn’t believe he’d said that to her, even if there was no one around to overhear. And he wouldn’t really do that, right?
She glanced up into his face, noting the stiffness in his jaw.
Uh-oh.
Wisely, Marisol didn’t say anything as he led her to the restaurant that Harry had chosen for their last meal tonight. She felt even worse as she saw Harry’s worried face as the waitress directed them to their table.
“What happened? Are you okay?” Harry pulled her in to hug her, looking over her as though trying to ascertain if she was injured.
“I’m fine,” she reassured him. “I’m sorry we’re late. We got waylaid.”
“Marisol disappeared in the toy shop,” Linc said after he’d ordered them some drinks from the waitress. “I couldn’t find her anywhere and she wasn’t answering her phone.”
“Oh.” Harry put a hand on his chest. “That’s a relief. I was worried when I got Linc’s text. What were you doing in the toy store? Looking for gifts? Are there children on the ranch where you live?”
“No, not currently,
” Linc said.
“I saw this cute dragon,” Marisol told him with a blush. She hoped he didn’t think she was weird.
“You always loved dragons,” Harry replied, a soft look on his face.
The evening passed quickly. Harry kept them entertained with stories of Marisol’s childhood until the tension bled from Linc’s face and her cheeks hurt from smiling.
“I can’t believe you remembered that,” she told him. “It was so long ago.”
“It feels like yesterday. All I’ve had these past years were my memories.” Sadness filled his handsome face.
Reaching over she squeezed his hand lightly. “Now you can have new memories.”
“I just regret wasting all these years. I also wish I’d never left you with that bitch.”
“It’s okay,” she told him gently. “At least we’ve found each other now, right? And you might’ve regretted being stuck with me. I mean, I was a real hellion when I was a teenager.”
“I’m sure that’s not true.” He gave her a smile, though.
When the check came, he and Linc fought over who was going to pay. As usual. She stayed out of that one. It seemed to be a man thing. The two of them appeared to get on well enough, but occasionally she caught Harry watching Linc closely.
She figured he still had fatherly feelings towards her, wanting to protect her. After all, he’d been paying Rosalind money all these years to take care of her. And he’d sent private investigators to check up on her, even if they hadn’t uncovered Rosalind’s abuse. Rosalind had been smart about that, never going too far or doing anything in public. And Marisol hadn’t realized that Harry was still trying to keep an eye on her, trying his best to take care of her.
They finally agreed to split the bill. Which they’d done for every meal. She could have worked that out straight away and saved them both time. Men.
She sighed sadly. “I wish we weren’t saying goodbye.”
Something flashed in Harry’s eyes. His whole face softened as he reached over and squeezed her hand.
“I know, banana. I wish you were staying longer.”
“I feel like I just found you again. But we can come visit again, right?”
Linc smiled at her. “Of course. When I can next get some time off, we’ll come back down.”
A Little Christmas Cheer Page 8