by Sue Lyndon
“I’m going to fix you something to eat, little girl. When I come back, I want answers, starting with your name.” On his way out of the living room, he paused and looked over his shoulder, meeting her frightened gaze. “If you move from that chair, rest assured that I will find you, and then I will turn you over my knee and spank your bare bottom until it’s very red and very sore.”
He left her wide-eyed on the chair and strode into the kitchen, where he fixed her a hot ham and cheese sandwich and a cup of tomato soup. As he prepared the food, he kept alert, listening for footsteps or any other sounds that might indicate she’d left her chair, though he doubted she would be foolish enough to attempt escape. Even if he hadn’t threatened to punish her, she was cold and hungry, and he suspected she had nowhere to go. Nowhere except the forest that surrounded Emerald.
Part of the reason Emerald was so well-protected was its distance from other known settlements. The woods were patrolled regularly, and carefully placed sensors would alert his people if a vehicle came within a five-mile radius of Emerald.
Where had the girl come from, then? How long had she been alone in the forest?
He intended to discover the answers to these questions and more, but first he needed to earn her trust. Keeping her warm and feeding her would hopefully achieve that. He had no wish to hurt her, but he had to ensure she didn’t have dangerous friends lurking nearby. He wouldn’t put it past a cowardly Raider to send a woman in first.
After he finished fixing the tray of food, he stalked back to the living room…only to find it empty.
God fucking dammit.
He placed the tray on the coffee table and hurried outside. The little thing was stealthy, he would give her that. As a former SEAL, awareness and preparedness had been drilled into Rick’s psyche. He should have heard her footsteps, or at least heard the door opening and closing, but he hadn’t so much as detected her nervous breaths from the kitchen.
He paused a few steps away from his house and breathed in the scents and sounds of the cold night. It didn’t take long. Leaves crunched three hundred feet to his left. He bolted toward the sound and had the young woman recaptured in no time. She kicked and flailed, and he spun her around and swatted her bottom three times—hard.
“Enough. Now back in the house, little girl. You’re in a lot of trouble now.”
“Let me go!” she hissed, not quite a scream.
“If you wake the Elders up, you’ll be taken to the jail. Trust me, you don’t want to go there.” The jail cell wasn’t heated, and the guards who kept watch over the occasional prisoners couldn’t be trusted to leave a female prisoner untouched.
After he slapped her ass twice more, the young woman stilled in his arms. He guided her back into the warmth of his house and slammed the door. He gave her a stern look as he closed the deadbolt lock she’d undone during her escape attempt.
Despite her shaking and obvious fear, a hint of challenge shone in her gaze. She lifted her chin and returned his stare with a boldness that he couldn’t help but admire.
“Apologize for running away and I won’t spank your bare little bottom.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Go fuck yourself.”
A chuckle rumbled from his throat. He nudged her in the direction of the living room. “Very well. I’d say you definitely earned the shameful punishment you’re about to receive.”
She paused and gazed at him. The first glimmer of regret transpired in her light blue eyes. “You-you aren’t serious about sp-spanking me, are you? I-I’m a grown woman.”
He strode toward her, and she backed up a few steps. “I’m completely serious. After you, milady.” He nodded at the living room. When she hesitated, he added, “The sooner you start obeying my orders, little girl, the better off you’ll be. I imagine when your behind is red and sore from your spanking, you’ll be quicker to do as I say.”
Chapter Two
Heart racing, Ally found it difficult to move her legs. Somehow, she forced herself to enter the living room. The warmth of the fire surrounded her, but it didn’t stop her shaking. Fear had her turned inside out. She stared at the massive man who meant to punish her.
She wanted to scream that it wasn’t fair. Could he really blame her for trying to escape? Furthermore, could he really expect her to grovel for forgiveness after she’d been recaptured?
She gulped and glanced at his hands. Like the rest of him, his hands were huge. Just her luck. Perhaps she could talk her way out of a punishment. Her face heated at the thought of him actually spanking her.
“I’m not a Raider.” Her desperation grew with his confident, steady approach. “I’m by myself, and I don’t have any information about any other settlements. I swear. I’ve been on my own for weeks.” She looked at the tray of food on the coffee table. If she hadn’t moved from the chair, she could be eating hot soup and a sandwich with melted cheese right now. Her mouth watered and tears filled her eyes.
She hated how pathetic she probably appeared to him, but in the morning he probably planned to turn her over to his Elders. What sort of punishment did they mete out for thievery? She didn’t want to find out.
“Tell me your name.” Kindness softened the deep tones of his husky voice, taking her by surprise.
“Ally.” She met his eyes and sniffled. “Ally Wilson.”
“Ally. That’s a pretty name.” He cleared his throat. “I’m Rick Stanford.”
Emotion muddled her senses and she found it hard to swallow, let alone breathe. She was a captive in an unfamiliar settlement. How would she make it south now? She doubted he would trust her enough to leave her alone again. She’d blown her one and only chance at escape.
“Sit down and eat, Ally, before your food gets cold.” He nodded at the couch.
“But…”
He grinned at her. “Don’t worry. I didn’t forget about your spanking. But I want you to get some nourishment in you first.”
She flushed at the mention of her punishment, but she sank down on the couch and reached for a spoon, grateful that he hadn’t taken her meal away. Brent didn’t let her eat when she was bad. But she wasn’t in the Raider camp, and Brent wasn’t in charge of her future anymore. Well, as long as she continued to elude his search parties. Shoving thoughts of her brother away, she lifted a spoonful of tomato soup to her mouth.
Rick stood near the fire with his arms crossed, wearing a pensive look as he watched her eat. Flavors exploded across her tongue. She couldn’t recall having ever tasted food so delectable. She ate every last bite, practically moaning at the flavor of the melted cheese, and pushed the tray back and stared at him uncertainly once she’d finished.
“Th-thank you, Rick. That was delicious.” Tears burned in her eyes. She blinked fast, trying to hold them back. The kindness he’d shown her, despite her crimes against him and his people, touched a part of her soul that hadn’t known the comfort of compassion since she’d lost her grandparents. They’d been kind and loving, and not a day passed that she didn’t mourn the loss of the two people who’d kept her safe during the worst parts of the war. Too bad Brent hadn’t inherited any of their good qualities.
Rick moved a chair across from her, on the other side of the coffee table, and sat down. Questions burned in his dark brown eyes, and she finally took a moment to study him. Ruggedly handsome, he had a strong square jaw and a military look about him, with his hair cropped close to his head. She judged him to be in his late thirties or early forties. Perhaps he’d been in the army during the war. It would explain the Hummer in his garage. Or maybe not. He could have easily stolen it.
“You wanted to take more than food.” He cocked his head at her. “You wanted to steal my vehicle too. Why?”
She shrugged. “Why not? It would certainly get me wherever I’m going faster than on foot.”
“Fair enough. And where is it exactly that you’re going?”
She pressed her lips tight together. Should she tell him?
His gaze bored into hers. Heat
seared her face under his scrutinizing glare.
“Ally, we can do this the easy way, or we can do this the hard way.”
Her bottom tingled at his threat. “I’m headed south,” she quickly replied.
“Why?”
Yep, he was definitely former military. That, or he used to be a police officer. The confident and assessing look in his dark eyes was so intense that she felt certain he would know the moment she told a lie. Her tongue felt suddenly thick in her mouth and sickness churned in her stomach.
She opted to tell some of the truth, but hold back the darkest secrets for herself, hoping he wouldn’t make her regret it later. Besides, the Raiders didn’t know about this place, or she would have heard them talking about taking it for themselves. Of course, that didn’t mean they might not stumble upon it as they searched for her. She shuddered at the memory of all the settlements they’d conquered, and all the innocent people they’d slaughtered.
She took a deep breath. “I’m headed south because…because it’s warmer there. This is still Pennsylvania, right? Well, what used to be Pennsylvania, I mean. I want to make it south before the heavy snows start.”
“Fair enough. But where did you live before you were on your own?”
Oh, God. How could she answer that? His gaze hardened, as if he knew an untruth lingered on the tip of her tongue. She swallowed hard and tried to keep her wits. Stay calm and maybe he won’t realize you have something to hide.
“I lived north of here.”
“With whom did you live, Ally? A small camp of people? Or in a larger settlement?” The suspicion lurking in the depths of his eyes caused her heart to beat faster. When she remained quiet, too choked up with fear and indecision to speak, his eyebrows lifted and a look of warning flared in his eyes, as if he was daring her to lie to his face.
But how could she tell the truth?
If she confessed to living with the Raiders, she would surely be hanged at first light. Elders hated the Raiders. She’d heard the stories around the campfires in the middle of the night, whispered horrors of Raiders being caught, even young women, and being sent to the gallows without a fair trial.
“Ally, I think it’s time for your spanking.” The chair scratched against the floor as he pushed back and rose to his feet.
“Please, no.” She held her hands out in a gesture of surrender and shook her head. “I’m sorry I ran. You’re going to turn me over to the Elders eventually. Can you really blame me for running?” Shame heated her all over. She couldn’t fathom the utter humiliation of receiving a bare bottom spanking from a complete stranger. Especially a stranger as handsome as Rick. Her heart wasn’t only beating rapidly due to fear. One glance into his stern, dark eyes, and tension gathered and pulsed hot between her thighs. What the fuck was wrong with her?
“Ally, you disobeyed me earlier. I told you exactly what would occur if you moved from the chair. Remind me, what did I say would happen?”
Her lips felt numb and she swallowed hard. “You, um, said I would get a spanking.”
“That’s right.” He grasped her hand and drew her up. When their eyes clashed, the world seemed to narrow, as if they were the only two people left on Earth. If only it were that simple.
Dammit. She really needed to stop looking in his eyes. Whenever she met his gaze, she couldn’t form a coherent thought, let alone a believable lie that might save her from the Elders’ wrath.
“To be more specific, I believe I said I’d spank your bare bottom until it’s very red and very sore.”
Her breath caught, and Lord help her, she couldn’t tear her eyes from his.
She gave a slight shake of her head, the only movement she could manage. “Please, sir. I don’t want a sp-spanking.” All the adrenaline induced bravery that had been coursing through her when she’d told him to fuck off earlier had long fled.
Tipping her chin up, he stroked the side of her face with his thumb. “You will go over my knee, little girl, and you will take the punishment you earned. And perhaps after you are well-spanked, you will be more forthcoming with your answers.”
* * *
She was fucking adorable. Ally’s nervous responses to his nearness made Rick’s cock go painfully hard.
How long had it been since he’d spanked a woman? Six years, maybe? He’d spanked the lover of a Russian spy during a deep cover assignment, not long before the whole world went to hell. It felt like a lifetime ago, and he shook away the memories of his last official assignment and focused on the pretty brunette who was trembling in his arms.
“Bare bottom,” he announced, reaching for the button on Ally’s tattered jeans.
She whimpered as he lowered her pants and panties to her knees, but she didn’t fight him. She bowed her head as a flush spread over her face. Cupping her hands in front of her exposed center, she stood still as he again brushed strands of hair behind her ears. She was so soft and beautiful, he wanted to run his hands over every inch of her body and explore her nakedness.
Giving himself a mental shake, he grasped her hand and moved to one of the tall-backed chairs in the middle of the living room. After sitting down, he gave a slight tug on her arm and guided her down across his lap.
A thrill jolted through him and he struggled to ignore the swelling hardness in his pants. His gaze became riveted to her perfect, heart-shaped ass. He cupped her bottom and squeezed, then shifted her higher on his lap.
She held onto his legs for support, and he took another minute to admire her beauty, as well as her reluctant surrender to his authority. Rather than hurl more insults and curses at him, she had accepted the fact that he was about to punish her, though the prospect of receiving his discipline left her quivering and inhaling quick, shuddering breaths.
He lifted his hand, preparing his aim. “After I’ve finished reddening your little bottom, Ally, you’re going to answer my questions. All of them.” He slapped her bottom once, twice, and then kept going as he alternated from cheek to cheek, even striking the very tops of her thighs on occasion.
Whimpers drifted up from her, and it wasn’t long before she was squirming around vigorously on his lap in an attempt to dodge the blows. He moved her over one knee and draped his free leg atop hers, and when her hands shot back to shield her bottom, he pinned her wrists together at the small of her back.
He spanked her harder and faster, determined to make her repentant for her disobedience. The punishment would continue beyond the point of tears, and he wouldn’t stop until she was beside herself with pain and humiliation, when she was at her most vulnerable. Then she would give him answers, and he could better decide what to do with the little minx that had trespassed in Emerald, swiped food and supplies, and tried to steal his Hummer.
The Elders would want to make an example of her. They wouldn’t sentence her to hang, but they wouldn’t set her free without consequences. A harsh public whipping, months of hard labor, or months in a dark jail cell awaited her. After a sufficient punishment, they might allow her to remain in the settlement and marry one of the men here, if she displayed enough humility and repentance. His jaw clenched and rage pummeled through him at the thought of such harm being visited upon Ally, even if she had broken their laws.
Instinct told him something terrible had happened to this young woman. She was obviously desperate, otherwise she wouldn’t have risked her life to sneak into a closed settlement.
Finally, she started sniffling. Her whimpers increased, coming more frequently and at a higher pitch. He concentrated a quick series of slaps to her lower bottom, on her sit-spots, and a deep, anguished sob erupted from her throat. Then she cried openly, no longer holding back, her agony superseding the pride she’d been so fiercely clinging to. He pushed aside the tender emotions that kept trying to rise up, pretending this was an assignment and he needed to find answers no matter the cost.
She wasn’t the first pretty girl he’d interrogated. So why did he ache to wrap his arms around her and stroke his hands through her hai
r until her tears dried up?
At last, she grew limp over his lap, but her sobbing continued. This. This was what he’d been aiming for. Her complete surrender. Her obedience and willingness to accept that no matter how hard she fought, he wouldn’t release her until she’d received every last smack he intended to give her.
He paused and rubbed her bottom, caressing her bright red orbs as her tears continued to fall. He kept her over his lap for several minutes, letting her sob while he held her in place and rubbed her behind. He probably shouldn’t be so familiar with her, but he couldn’t help himself. She was so fucking soft and tempting.
“If I let you up, Ally, are you going to answer every last one of my questions truthfully? Or shall I start your spanking all over again?” He firmed his voice and probably sounded like the biggest fucking asshole, but it was necessary. He couldn’t risk her keeping secrets about any potential threats to Emerald.
“Please no more!” Her voice wobbled and she sniffed, then she peered over her shoulder at him.
His cock jerked at the sight of her large, tear-filled blue eyes. If they were lovers and she’d just earned this punishment, he would finish it off by making her suck his cock to show just how sorry she was for breaking the rules. But fuck, he couldn’t shove his cock down this poor girl’s throat. He’d never forced himself on a woman, and despite how much he wanted to feel Ally’s lips closing around his throbbing length, he wasn’t about to start now.
He rubbed her upper thighs and moved upward, stroking her well-punished ass cheeks. He rose an eyebrow at her and kept his face hard. “Will you answer all my questions?”
“Yes, sir,” she breathed.
He guided her off his lap and stood her up between his spread legs. Her jeans and panties were tangled around her ankles, and her hair was disheveled about her shoulders. She looked like a woman who’d just been fucked to tears, and that thought didn’t help ease the desire pulsing through him.