“Saying no is a non-starter?” She’d have liked to cajole, but it would have been counter-productive. In many ways, Peg craved that kind of benevolent dictatorship in her life. People had let her flail around for far too long. She had no direction and nowhere to find a map.
Tripp nodded. “A non-starter. It’s my only requirement. I’ll love ya in any case, but without that one stipulation, we can’t make something out of this relationship.”
“You’ll listen to me?”
“Absolutely. And almost all day-to-day decisions will be yers. However, on a few big things, like if ya endanger yerself, cause harm to others, behave thoughtlessly when it can be avoided, I will spank ya. I promise you, I will. If ya can’t handle that…”
“It can’t be the answer to everything.”
“Agreed. Like I said, I don’t want to run every detail of yer life, hell, or even a large share of them. Just the important things.”
Wiping her eyes with the back of her free hand, Peg nodded. “I’ll do my best. I promise. What about my friends? My phone?”
“We’ll work that out. I can’t expect ya to give it up, I realize that now. All I can ask is that ya keep yer safety in mind and ya learn to respect others yer with. Don’t text and drive; don’t get so lost in your phone that ya lose track of dangers around ya; and don’t neglect the other people who deserve yer polite attention.”
“Thank you. It was definitely an issue for me.”
“So, will ya marry me?”
Could she live with him and accept his rules? Could she love him forever, maybe start a family with him? Could she make Australia her home, so far away from family and friends? Tripp’s family would be good to her; she was sure of that.
“I could still do my photojournalism, right? Because I got a note back from the publisher and they want to send me a contract to look over. They didn’t reject me.”
“That’s fantastic! I told ya you could do it! And remember, professional rejections are about it, not you. It won’t all be easy. Ya didn’t answer my question.”
“Yes, I’ll marry you. I love you.”
“I love ya, too, Peggy. I was very hurt when ya left me. I was a great berk to let ya go.”
“I pretty much gave you no choice.”
He smiled a soft smile. “No. I had no choice. I might be a dominant person, but I’m not likely to imprison ya.”
“I know. I’m not always my best friend.”
“Enough of that, now. Shall we tell yer father?”
“Kiss me first?”
Tripp encouraged her to stand, tugging on her hand, and then he took her face in his cupped fingers and kissed her sweetly. Peg was having none of gentle, however, and pressed her whole body against him, kissing him forcefully, tasting his love with every moment they breathed together.
When they broke, Tripp kissed her on the nose and said, “I hoped… I brought you a ring.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a diamond solitaire, set in gold. “I hope it’s okay.”
Peg held out her hand and he slipped the jewelry on her ring finger. “Oh, Tripp, I love you so much.”
“Just don’t leave me again, Peggy. That’s all I need.”
* * *
Peg’s mom flew into Perth to attend the wedding, and Peg was a bit of a nervous wreck as she tried to make it the best party it could be in only a short period of time. Peg wanted a big wedding with all the accoutrements and Tripp wanted something smaller and more intimate. They’d had a few tiffs over it. The afternoon after her dress shopping was perhaps the worst of the arguments, when Peg had told him about the two dresses she was most interested in. His lack of helpfulness had been irritating.
“Help me decide.”
“Pick whatever ya like, Peggy. I’m sure it’ll be beautiful. Try not to break the bank for yer dad, though.”
“But I don’t know if strapless would be better, or if I should go with something more conservative. What do you think?”
He’d pushed his shaggy hair back from his forehead, and sat back against the sofa cushions. Her dad’s condo was bright with summer sunshine. “It doesn’t matter to me, luv. You’ll look gorgeous no matter what ya pick.”
“Tripp…”
“It’s yer decision.”
“You’re no help at all.”
“If it was up to me, we’d go visit the magistrate and have it done simple and quick. This big wedding to-do is for yer benefit, Peggy. I know it’s been a dream of yers for a long time and I don’t want to say no. But I’m not too interested in wedding dresses.”
“But I really need your help!”
“Fine. I’ll pick strapless.”
She paused in her pacing. “Why? What’s wrong with conservative?”
He looked thoroughly exasperated. “Nothing! Ya wanted me to pick!”
“But you have to have a reason or it doesn’t count.”
“Make the choice yerself. I honestly will be pleased with whatever ya choose.”
She had stomped her foot. Perhaps that had been the wrong thing to do. “You must have an opinion! Tell me!”
He stood. “I’ll tell ya this, Peggy-girl, if ya don’t get a grip, I’ll take ya over my knee. Maybe that’ll help ya make up yer mind.”
“You are so mean to me, you big bully!”
“Bully, am I?”
She should have taken his tone of voice more seriously. She realized that later. “Yes, you are. A big, mean, rotten bully who can’t even make up his own mind.”
“My mind? Yer joking. Make a decision yerself, or I’ll make it for ya with the palm of my hand.”
After sticking her tongue out at him, she’d gotten about three paces away when he’d grabbed her and hauled her back over to the couch. “Enough of that!” He sat and pulled her over his lap.
They had been alone in the condo. There had been no one there to hear her protesting when Tripp had pulled her dress up and panties down.
“Stop!”
“Not on yer life. You’ve had this coming for a week. Every little detail has had ya in a fit. Ya need to get past this and stop fretting over things that won’t be important a month after the wedding. This is about you and me building a new life together, not whether yer dress has straps, or shoulders, or a tutu.” His palm connected smartly with her quivering behind to punctuate his lecture. Every word he’d uttered after that had been accompanied by a spank, until her bottom was burning and screaming for it to stop.
“I’m sorry,” she said on a sob. “I’ll pick. I’ll make the decision on these details.”
A few more spanks and then he’d asked, “Are ya sure? Because I don’t want to hear ya calling me mean and rotten and undecided again.”
“I won’t! I promise. I’m sorry I said that.”
He stopped spanking. “All right.” They had rearranged themselves so that Peg was sitting on his lap. “I know these things are important to ya, luv, but I think yer frustrating yerself for no good reason.”
She wiped her cheeks with her fingertips. “You’re probably right. Mother will help me make the decision. She told me to go with the strapless. I’m just so nervous about this party going well. I only plan to get married once.”
“I know. I know.” He kissed her wet cheek. “Once is all ya need, and me, too. But try to enjoy the experience while ya make yer plans. Have a little fun, okay?”
She’d nodded. “Okay.”
They’d shared a long kiss and Peg had something more interesting to focus on for a while.
* * *
The wedding went off with a few minor missteps. Peg only got spanked once more in the two weeks between the dress and the big day. Her friend, Mandy, had flown in to be by her side, and her dad was proud as a peacock as he walked her down the aisle. Her strapless lace and satin dress was perfect, as it turned out.
Tripp looked a little straight-jacketed by his tuxedo, but his handsomeness had Mandy sighing with jealousy. His friends, Victor and Nigel, were in attendance, Victor acting as Tri
pp’s best man.
When the words were said, the buzzing in Peg’s ears finally started to abate, and the world came into focus once again. She was incredibly happy to be with Tripp. He was everything she wanted and needed. He took care of her and gave her room to grow, without letting her get out of hand. He was, in the end, her discipline down under, and the brightest star in her southern hemisphere sky.
The End
Glossary of Australian Slang Terms
Abo: Aboriginal
apples: “good thing” or “it’s all good”
Aussie salute: waving a hand in front of the face to chase off insects
berk: foolish person
bilby: a nocturnal marsupial that looks somewhat like a cat-sized rodent
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_bilby)
blue: fight, argument
bonzo: really good
brekkie: breakfast
bunch of fives: fist
bushwalking: hiking in the bush
Captain Cook: Australian rhyming slang for “look” (for more on rhyming slang, see
http://alldownunder.com/australian-slang/dictionary-rhyming.htm)
chuck a wobbley: throw a hissy fit
crack a fat: get an erection
doodle: penis
drongo: mean and stupid person
eucalypt: eucalyptus and similar trees (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eucalypt)
freshies: freshwater crocodiles
gobful: hard time
grouse: good
Joe Blake: Australian rhyming slang for “snake”
joey: baby kangaroo
mulga: a type of shrub tree found in the Australian bush
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acacia_aneura)
nong: fool
old fella: penis
piccies: photographs
pissed: drunk
pot of piss: a beer
roo: kangaroo
root: to have sex or be a sex partner (can be a noun or a verb)
salties: saltwater crocodiles
seppo: Australian rhyming slang for an American (not considered an insult)
sickie: a sick day
uni: university
yabbo: foolish
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More Stormy Night Books by Patricia Green
Correcting Kathy
Kathy would never have imagined that one of the most embarrassing moments of her life could make her the envy of every girl at her small university, but after a stumble in the cafeteria leaves her blushing and Hal Emory drenched in soup, she is stunned when the incident ends with her meeting the young, handsome professor for dinner.
She is even more taken aback by the fact that he does not hesitate to lecture her over dinner about her smoking—a habit she has tried many times to break without success. When he offers to help her quit by means of ‘aversion therapy,’ she cannot resist the urge to learn more, and almost before she knows it she finds herself bent over the desk of this stern professor for a good, hard spanking.
After a subsequent chastisement leads to lovemaking that is as hard and hot as it is unexpected, both Kathy and Hal must decide if they want to pursue a romance. Can Hal leave the pain of the tragic death of his wife in the past and allow himself to fall in love with Kathy? Even if he does, will she be able to accept not only his love but also his guidance and, from time to time, his firm hand applied to her bare bottom?
The Princess and the Huntsman
Though she was once as sweet as she is beautiful, since her mother’s untimely passing Princess Brandywyn seems to grow brattier with every passing year… until the day she is waylaid by a band of ruffians and dragged away into the forest. She is taken far from her home, but at last she is rescued from the outlaws by a simple huntsman named Tom and her life is changed forever.
Neither Tom nor anyone else will believe that a girl dressed in rags could be a princess, and without the slightest idea of how to get home, Brandywyn finds herself with no choice but to accept Tom’s offer to share his cottage. The feisty nineteen-year-old princess soon learns, however, that Tom will not stand for being treated as a servant. To her horror, Brandywyn discovers that arrogance will earn her a good, hard spanking on her bare bottom, and that more serious misbehavior will result in even more humiliating punishment.
In spite of his strict discipline, Brandywyn begins to feel things for Tom that she has never felt before… things that make her blush with shame. A princess should not dream of being stripped bare and taken long and hard by a commoner, yet dream of it she does. But what will her answer be if he asks for her hand, and what will come of them if her father finds her and returns her to the palace? Can a princess not only lust for a huntsman, but love him as well?
Patricia Green Links
You can find author interviews, excerpts of upcoming books, and general thoughts from Patricia Green via her blog, her Facebook and Twitter pages, and her Amazon and Goodreads profiles, using the following links:
http://patriciagreenauthor.com/
http://www.facebook.com/Patricia.Green.Romance
https://twitter.com/PatriciaIGreen
http://www.amazon.com/Patricia-Green/e/B002RCB0IK/
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4541511.Patricia_Green
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Glossary of Australian Slang Terms
More Stormy Night Books by Patricia Green
Patricia Green Links
Discipline Down Under Page 14