“The feeling is mutual, Nellie, but do us both a favor. Keep your fanny planted on this sofa while I get the rest of your things from your car. If I have to haul your butt in here one more time tonight, I’m not going to be nice about it.”
Nellie watched him with a wary eye as he went outside once more. If she had any pride at all she’d get up and lock the door! But, he wasn’t even wearing a coat… and, try as she might, she didn’t hate him enough to let him freeze to death. Still, she wasn’t about to let him find her sitting meekly on the sofa! She jumped up, and looked for something that would make a good weapon to brain him with…!
Mike ducked his head to the right when he came inside carrying the last of her things. He’d known she would throw something at him. He had experience in dealing with Nellie’s blasted temper. “I’ve always thought your temper needed some mending, and I would strongly advise you not to push me right now,” he scolded, dropping her bags in front of him, then turning to shut and lock the door tightly against the wind. “You can pick that up that book, little girl, and put it back on the table where I left it, or…” he turned to look at her, “…you can get that cute little fanny of yours spanked soundly, and then pick it up.”
Nellie looked at Michael in surprise. He’d made references to spanking before, but this was the first time she actually believed he might be serious. She debated on whether or not to pick up the book. Did she really want to test him? Did she really want to know if he would really spank her? No, not any more. Now it didn’t matter. They were finished. It was over. She sneezed. It caught her completely by surprise, and was followed by another.
“You’re catching a cold!” Mike announced, his voice full of concern. “I’ll bet you haven’t been taking any vitamins, have you?” he asked accusingly. “And I’ll bet those darn silly boots of yours are full of snow, too! Take them off right now!” he bossed.
“I’ll do as I please! You stop ordering me about, Michael Cassidy!” Nellie sassed.
“Why does everything have to be an argument with you, Nellie? You’re about as prickly as they come.” He picked her up again and sat her on the sofa. She tried kicking at him when he reached for her feet, and he gave her a totally wicked grin. In the next instant he’d pulled her off the sofa, and over one bent knee. “I’ve wanted to do this for a long time, Sprite!”
Nellie gasped as Mike’s large hand landed on the seat of her snow dampened jeans. “Ow!” He continued to spank her until her bottom was on fire, and then he seated her on the sofa once more. This time when he reached for her feet she held perfectly still and let him remove them.
“Just what I thought. Your feet are soaking wet, Sprite. Let’s get you into some dry clothes, and I’ll make you a hot toddy.”
“You spanked me, Michael!” she whispered tearfully.
“And I’ll do it again if you don’t listen to me,” he warned. “You go and change into something warm while I fix you that toddy.”
Nellie was too shaken to argue with him. Why now? Why now? She asked herself. When they were together, he never once turned her over and spanked her, not even when he should have. Lord knows, she’d given him plenty of reasons… plenty of chances to prove he loved her as much as Bill loved Tess. Instead, he’d opted for silence, or storming out of their house until he cooled off and she calmed down. But now, her poor bottom was burning. Now, when it was all over for them! Tears leaked from her eyes as she stripped out of the wet clothing and put on dry, warm sweats and a pair of heavy socks. She found her tissues and blew her nose, then ran a brush through her flaming red hair and braided it loosely into one thick plait.
Mike had her toddy all ready when she walked into the other room. “You sit here, Nellie, and I’ll wrap you up with this to get you warm.” He held a soft blanket in his hands, and Nellie didn’t protest as he tucked it around her, then handed her the mug. She sipped the hot drink, and had to admit it was delicious. “Thanks, Mike. This is great.”
“You’re welcome, Sprite,” he smiled, taking a seat on the floor in front of the fireplace. They were silent for a while, then Mike said, “Neither of us are going anywhere for a few days, Nellie. We’re snowed in. The telephone is out, and we’ll have to use the generator when we need electricity. There’s plenty of wood to burn, so we won’t be cold… and since we both brought food, we’ll be okay…”
“I’m not worried, Mike,” Nellie said truthfully. “I just needed to be alone this Christmas… I wouldn’t have come here if I’d known that Bill promised you the cabin.”
“I couldn’t face people this year either,” he admitted, his voice husky with emotion. “This was always a special time for us.”
“I didn’t put up a tree,” she admitted.
“Me either.”
The silence took them again, and the warmth of the fire along with the rum in the toddy relaxed Nellie to the point that she fell asleep, and her dreams were pleasant ones. She dreamed that she and Michael were together again, and snuggled in bed, and she didn’t want the dream to end. She didn’t want to wake up and find herself alone in her tiny apartment on the day before Christmas. She wanted to dream away the last few months, and pretend just a little bit longer that she and Michael were still in love with each other, and that he didn’t find her an “impossible-to-live-with, headstrong, temper-tantrum-throwing little brat”. But, she did wake up, to find Mike’s strong arm wrapped firmly around her waist, holding her against his body spoon fashion, and she wasn’t imagining that he was poking her soft bottom with the same need he always had early in the morning. A part of her wanted to wiggle her bottom against him, and wake him slowly, like she used to do. And, another part of her was outraged at waking up in bed with him when she clearly had no memory of how she got here…
At that particular moment, Mike opened his eyes, and scooted to his side of the bed. “Oops. Old habits, Sprite. Sorry.”
He was ‘sorry’? Nellie’s pride was wounded, and she responded in the only way she knew how. “I might have known you would try to take advantage of me, Michael Cassidy! A true gentleman would have slept on the sofa!”
“In case you haven’t noticed, Nellie, that sofa is a loveseat, and it isn’t big enough for someone your size to sleep on, much less me. Like it or not, we’ll share the bed while we’re here.”
“I’ll sleep on the floor tonight.”
“You just try it, Sprite,” Mike growled, then gave her a meaningful look. “Well, just like old times. Feet haven’t even hit the floor yet and you’re tearing strips off my hide.”
“Guess you’re lucky you don’t have to put up with me any more then!” Nellie flounced from the bed and hurried to the bathroom. She would not cry in front of him. She wouldn’t!
Mike watched her stomp into the little room and felt the palm of his hand itch. He didn’t know how either of them would survive the next few days. But, one thing was certain, there was no reason for him to hold back now. If Nellie didn’t curb her tongue, he was going to take her over his knee and warm her backside. He was through being patient.
When she came out, he went in, and by the time he came out, she was in the kitchen, cooking breakfast on the gas stove. “Something smells good,” he sniffed the air.
“I’m making your omelet,” she admitted self-consciously.
“It smells wonderful,” he smiled. “I’ll pour juice.” He thought it was strange that they automatically adapted to their leisurely morning ritual after so many months apart. They’d both enjoyed these special mornings, and he’d loved listening to Nellie sing as she padded around their kitchen. She was humming now, and it made him smile. “It wasn’t all bad, was it, Sprite?” he asked in a low voice.
She turned to look at him, a startled look in her brown eyes. “No… Most of it was special and good, Michael.”
That was something, at least! They ate, and Nellie asked about Mike’s work. He filled her in, and then wanted to know how her job was going. She admitted that she’d quit, and watched as his eyes filled w
ith hurt.
“You quit? After all the times I asked you to, and you refused? Then, once we parted, you quit…just like that?”
“You were right. I should have quit a year before I did… I couldn’t see that until after I moved out.”
“You stayed in that job because you were being a stubborn little brat,” Mike told her.
“Yes, I was,” Nellie agreed, then got to her feet and started clearing the table. “I wonder if the water is hot yet?” she wanted to change the subject.
“I should have turned you over my knee and paddled some sense into you!” Mike muttered, more to himself than to Nellie, but she overheard him anyway, and looked after him in surprise as he walked over and took his coat off the hook.
“What are you doing?” she asked curiously.
“Bringing in more wood. You do the woman’s work, and I’ll do the man’s job!” he grinned at her, his dark eyes sparkling. If there was one thing Nellie hated, it was being told to do ‘woman’s work’. He got the expected reaction, and walked out the door laughing at her indignant expression.
Nellie’s feigned outrage turned into a grin, then to a smile as she pondered his words. “Yes, Michael, you should have spanked me… Why didn’t you?” she whispered, then attacked the pile of dirty dishes.
Michael made trip after trip, and stocked enough wood to keep them warm for a couple of days. It was still snowing outside, and Nellie knew she’d have to mop up the floor when he was done. The last time he came inside, he was carrying a tree!
“What is this?” Nellie asked in surprise.
“A Christmas tree, Sprite. I thought we should have one…” he looked at her, trying to gauge her reaction. It would either be a huge mistake, or he would get a smile… He was hoping for the smile.
“Oh, Michael… What a lovely idea!” Nellie’s eyes sparkled. “We’ll have to improvise on decorations.”
“We’ve got all day,” he put the tree where he thought it should sit. “How is this?” he asked.
“Perfect,” she agreed, then slid the wooden rocker over to make a bit more room.
“We’ll have to let it dry a bit… I brushed off most of the snow, but it’s probably going to make a puddle,” he predicted.
Nellie had a project, and Mike grinned when she put him to work searching for anything and everything they could use to decorate the tree. They laughed over some of the ideas he came up with, but Nellie had to admit she was impressed when he fashioned an Angel for the top of the tree out of a cardboard roll and toilet paper. They bent pipe cleaners into ornaments, and Nellie popped popcorn for them to string. They sat side by side on the loveseat to do this, and Nellie couldn’t resist asking, “If you wanted to spank me so many times, why didn’t you actually do it?”
“I was pretty damn sure you’d leave me if I did,” Mike answered, and then he asked a question of his own, “Did you want me to spank you?”
“Maybe… I don’t know.”
“What does that mean?”
“There were times I thought you should, but that doesn’t mean I really wanted you to.”
“When did you think you deserved it?” he wanted to know.
“When I threw your Grandmother’s teapot at you and shattered it. I felt so bad, so guilty… I was so out of control… and I was wrong. I knew it, too, but I couldn’t back down and admit it to you,” she confessed. “There were other times, too, but that one still makes me hurt.”
“We were fighting about your job, I remember,” he nodded. “I left the house… stayed at my folks’ house that night.”
“It was the beginning of the end,” Nellie said sadly. “I couldn’t face you… knowing that my temper was ruining everything between us. Even Tess was shocked at what I did, and she was positive that Bill would have spanked her for a week if she’d done something that awful. That’s when I started wondering about us.”
“Wondering in what way?” Mike asked, knowing how rare it was for Nellie to open up and share her innermost feelings.
“I wondered if you loved me as much as Bill loves Tess. Surely, if you did, you would have put a stop to the tantrums and temper. And you wouldn’t have walked away every time we argued.” Nellie closed her eyes for a moment, then took a deep breath and decided to admit all of it. It would clear the air, and give them both closure. “I even picked fights for the last month, trying to provoke you into doing something. You spent more and more time away, and I finally gave up and left. The fighting was destroying us both, and I couldn’t live there any longer. I do owe you an apology, Michael. The breakup of our marriage was all my fault. I’m horrible to live with...” she said the words that would free them both.
“It takes two people to make a marriage work, Nellie, and two people to let it fail.” He leaned over the bowl of popcorn between them, and kissed her on the cheek. “Peace?”
“Peace,” she smiled.
They decorated the tree, and Nellie managed to make them some Christmas fudge. They ate their dinner on the thick rug in front of the fireplace, and Nellie had to admit that she was happier than she’d imagined possible. This was the Mike she’d fallen in love with and married, and the man she still loved with all her heart. He brought them each a glass of wine, teasing her for packing a couple bottles along with her provisions for the long weekend, and they settled in together, content.
“I have a present for you, Sprite, if you’ll accept it?” Mike looked into her eyes and smiled.
“But I don’t have anything for you!” she protested.
“Yes, you do,” he argued, then held up a hand to silence her. “I have a strong hunch that our little friend Tess set us up, Sprite. I think she realized all along what the two of us have been too stubborn to admit… We still love each other, and neither of us wants to get a divorce…? Am I right?” he asked.
Nellie was touched by the vulnerability in his dark eyes. “I’ve never stopped loving you, Michael, and no, I don’t want a divorce. I just don’t want to hurt you any more…” she added truthfully.
“If you accept my gift to you, then I don’t think that we’ll have to worry about your temper any more.”
Nellie’s stomach clenched as she realized where this conversation was heading. Michael was going to spank her! No! Was he? Certainly not…?
“I’m going to do what I should have done the very first time you had a tantrum, Sprite. I’m going to give you a spanking, and it won’t be a playful one, either. You’ll cry real tears, and you won’t sit comfortably for a day or two. It will be an expression of the love I feel for you, and it will carry with it the promise that I will spank you from now on each and every time you deserve it. There will be no more tantrums, throwing things, and no more walking away in our marriage. Your gift to me will be placing yourself over my knee, and accepting this spanking with love, and promising me that you will accept my love for the rest of our lives, even if that love is expressed on your cute little fanny with the flat of my hand.”
Nellie’s eyes filled with tears, but they were tears of happiness and joy. She loved this man so much she was nearly bursting with it. “I’ll accept your gift, Michael,” she rose to her knees and leaned over to kiss him sweetly on the lips, then she straightened. “Will you make love to me afterwards?” she asked hopefully, her hands going to the snap and zipper on her jeans and undoing them.
“You can count on it, Sprite,” he promised. “When you’re all through with the pouting, we’ll go straight to the making up part.”
“Good. I’m a bit scared, you know. Yesterday was my first spanking, and it really hurt, even through the jeans…” She pushed the jeans and her panties down her legs to bare herself to him.
“Spankings are supposed to hurt, and this one is going to be a lot longer and harder than those little pats I gave you last night,” he warned.
Nellie placed herself over his thighs, glad of the comfy, soft rug beneath them on the hard floor. The heat of the fireplace felt good, and she was determined to take this spanki
ng without a lot of complaining.
“I do love you, Sprite,” Mike said softly, and then started spanking the bottom offered up for his hand. He started out with light pats, and gradually increased the severity until Nellie was crying out each time his hand connected with her reddened flesh. He made sure to color each cheek, and then his hand moved lower and spanked her upper thighs. Nellie cried, but she held herself in place, and accepted what he wanted to give. “There will be no more temper tantrums, will there, honey?” he asked.
“No, Michael!” she promised.
“And if there is?” he asked. “What will happen?”
“You’ll do this,” she said.
“What is this called?” he asked. “I want you to tell me, Sprite.” He continued slapping her bottom hard, wanting her complete acceptance.
“You will spank me, Michael.”
“Yes, I will. And why will I spank you?”
“Because you love me?” she asked, and then said “Owwwww!” when his hand found the tender sit spot. “Ohhhhhhhhhhh! Owwwwww! That hurts!!! Ohhhhhhhhhh… it hurts, Michael!”
“Good. It’s supposed to hurt,” he said, continuing to spank her sit spot until she was sobbing and lying limply over his lap. He realized she’d had enough. “Is your guilt all gone, honey?” he asked, giving her another hard spank on her right cheek.
“Yes, Michael. I’m so sorry… and I promise I won’t ever throw anything again.”
“I promise this is where you’ll be if you do,” he swatted her a couple more times, then raised her up to sit her on his lap. “It’s all over now, Sprite. You’re right where you belong now, safe in my arms.”
Nellie cried, but when her tears were spent, she felt loved, safe, protected, and at peace. She wanted nothing more than to feel Michael’s forgiveness, and he was more than willing to satisfy her needs, and his. It was a magical Christmas…
********************
Tess was growing more and more concerned as the day passed with no word of Nellie and Mike. She’d tried Nellie’s cell phone at least a hundred different times, and she was pretty darn sure that Bill was trying Mike’s too. Neither of them were answering, and she very much feared that Bill was right. Her meddling had cost them two good friends, and no amount of spankings was going to make up for that!
Monthly Maintenance: Selected Stories from Blushing Books Authors Page 19