A Husband for Charli Rae

by Elly Knight

  Charli bit her lip nervously as she regarded the frown on her husband’s face. His demeanour was making her more nervous by the minute.

  “Do you seriously think that you’ve learnt your lesson Charlotte?” he asked her, surprising her by reverting to her full name. “If Stanley Bartholomew decided to pay you another visit, you wouldn’t point a gun at him?”

  “Of course I’d point a gun at him. I have a right to protect my property and myself!”

  “Charlotte, do you not understand how dangerous guns can be? You could have accidentally shot yourself! Not to mention the gun was terribly maintained. You could have blown your own head off!” Ben’s voice was tinged with anger as the full import of her folly took hold. He decided the rest of his lecture could be done with her over his knee and tugged her down swiftly so that she lay over one knee with her torso supported on the bed behind him. His open palm began to swat firmly over the seat of the pants she was wearing.

  “Ow, Ben!” Charli protested. “If he doesn’t want to get shot, he should stay away from my property!”

  “I think he’ll leave you alone now that you have a husband to protect you,” Ben told her, even though he couldn’t be certain it wasn’t Bartholomew that was responsible for trying to sabotage the chickens.

  “If he leaves me alone we won’t have a problem then and this is all completely unnecessary,” Charli argued.

  “What’s unnecessary is you putting yourself in danger,” Ben scolded as his palm continued to heat her behind. “We’re a team now Charli Rae and I expect you to come to me with any problems, is that clear?”

  “All right, owwwww,” Charli whined. Did her husband have any idea how hard his hand was?

  “Excellent, now we’re getting somewhere,” Ben said as he stood her back to her feet. Charli’s eyes widened once again. Was that it? Were there really done? She squealed when Ben reached out and untied the cord holding her Papa’s pants up. Charli grabbed at them before they could drop to the ground. “Let them go Charlotte,” Ben scolded her. “You can’t really believe you’re taking this spanking over clothing!”

  Charli’s heart sank as she realized that not only had he not finished; he’d barely began. It took several seconds of strained silence before she slowly released her hold on the pants and let them fall to the floor, her face flushing scarlet with humiliation.

  “Step out of them, you won’t need them again tonight,” Ben told her. Charli kicked the pants off of her legs and they flung across the room, settling when they hit the wall. She knew she probably shouldn’t feel this self-conscious in front of her husband, but he was only her husband on paper. It wasn’t like they’d consummated the marriage or anything. That thought gave Charli an idea. Once the judge had approved her punishment as complete, could she get an annulment? Perhaps life could go back to some kind of normality. Ben could return to his old life. Or stay and run his business from town. Charli could continue to run the farm. A tiny tinge of regret at the thought of Ben leaving settled in her heart but she did her best to brush that aside. This was best for both of them and almost made her eager to get this over with.

  “There’s a hairbrush on the cupboard there,” Ben said, pointing toward an old chest of drawers in the corner of the room. “Bring it to me,” he instructed her firmly.

  “Can’t you just use your hand?” Charli asked, horrified at the thought of being struck with an implement. Her parents had very rarely spanked her, and when they did, it had only ever been a few swats of her Papa’s hand.

  “The judge was very specific about this punishment Charlotte,” Ben informed her, his tone a little distant and formal. “He himself purchased that hairbrush and gave me some very specific instructions as to how long your punishment should be.”

  Charli did her best to corral the tears as she made her way across the room to pick up the brush. Ben made this all sound very much like a business transaction and his lack of warmth confused her a little. When she returned he took the brush without a word and placed it on the bed beside him before guiding her back down over his knee. He resumed spanking her with his hand, this time the sting being a little more pronounced with only the protection of her drawers. Charli guessed she should at least be thankful he was giving her that dignity.

  Her gratitude was very short-lived when after a minute of spanking her, he stopped again and this time undid the ties at the sides of her drawers. She quickly went from docile to a fighting animal when she realized his intent.

  “NO, BEN, NO!” Charlotte screeched as she did everything in her power to stop him lowering her drawers and baring her behind. Ben quickly locked his legs over hers and gathered her hands in one of his. Charlotte’s farm work made her stronger than many females her size but Ben was much larger and stronger again. He had no difficulty restraining her. His other hand found the backs of her legs with some sharp smacks that took her breath away.

  “SETTLE DOWN CHARLOTTE,” he scolded in a voice sterner than he’d used on her before. “THE MORE YOU FIGHT ME THE WORSE THIS WILL GO FOR YOU,” he warned.

  Charli was pretty sure things couldn’t get any worse although the smacks to the backs of her legs stung like the blazes compared to those on her bottom. She whimpered into the bedcovers but stopped fighting him so hard.

  Ben rewarded her by running his hand over her exposed bottom and down her smarting legs, soothing the sting and sending sparks of pleasure to her core. She couldn’t help but wonder how one hand could go from pain to pleasure so instantly as she melted a little over his knee. Ben couldn’t help but smile to himself at his wife’s reaction, although he suspected she’d be mortified later on.

  “The judge has given me a minimum number of swats with the hairbrush,” Ben told her as he picked up the brush and ran the cool back of it over her blushing bottom.

  “How m-many?” Charli asked. Ben could tell she was very close to tears.

  “One hundred,” Ben said, tightening his grip around her waist when Charli began to struggle to get free.

  “I CAN’T TAKE THAT MANY! YOU’LL BREAK ME!” she wailed.

  “SETTLE DOWN CHARLOTTE!” Ben said, raising his voice to be heard over her wailing. “If I think it’s too many we’ll pause and take a break,” he told her. “If I don’t think you’ve submitted to the lesson, there’ll be more,” he promised her.

  “MORE?” Charlotte screeched angrily. “WHAT KIND OF BRUTE ARE YOU?”

  “The kind that wants to keep his wife alive and out of jail,” Ben informed her with a growl. Charlotte dissolved into heavy sobbing and Ben decided the kindest thing was to make a start. He brought the brush down with a sharp snap on her left buttock. Charli’s head snapped up and her wail grew a little louder at the intense burn the brush left in its wake. She knew without a doubt she would not survive one hundred of these.

  “Please Ben,” she begged as her wails morphed into fear filled sobbing. “It really s-stings.”

  “I know sweetheart,” Ben said with no small measure of sympathy. “The judge told me to try it out on my own thigh first so I would have some idea on how much it hurts.” Ben knew the time for talking was over and brought the brush down in a matching swat on her right buttock, quickly settling into a rhythm of swats that alternated back and forth from one buttock to the other. He was careful to spread the swats across her whole bottom and watched for any bruising or lesions forming.

  Charli wrapped her arms around her head and cried harder than she’d ever cried before. Harder than when her Papa had passed away and left her all alone in the world. She was certain she was married to a brute who hated her and delighted in hurting her. No matter how hard she tried to wriggle and squirm the brush continued to land in a steady cadence of swats that left a breathtaking burn in their wake.

  Ben continued the steady cadence of swats until he’d landed fifty. Her bottom was a fiery red and very hot to touch as he gently soothed it with his hand. It took Charli’s brain a few minutes to register the swats had stopped coming.

&nb
sp; “Are we done?” she asked, her voice wavering as sobs continued to cause shudders to run through her body.

  “We’re halfway there,” Ben told her sympathetically, his words causing her to break down in a fresh wave of sobbing.

  “Please Ben, I can’t,” Charli begged. “It hurts too much.”

  Ben put the brush down and gathered her up on his lap, holding her tight and rocking her gently while she sobbed into his chest. “I know it’s hard sweetheart,” he soothed her, thankful she’d stopped fighting him. “But going to prison and losing the farm would have hurt a lot more,” he reminded her. Charli couldn’t help but nod. A tiny part of her was grateful Ben had saved her, even if she did resent being married. What she didn’t understand was why the judge had to insist on marriage. Couldn’t he have just ordered Ben to give her the punishment and be done with it? Or the Sheriff even? It would have been more than a little humiliating but at least it would not have ruined her entire life.

  “I’m going to stand you in the corner while I go and clean up the kitchen,” Ben said gently to her as his hand stroked her hair. “We’ll take a little break and come back and finish up before bed.” He didn’t wait for Charli’s agreement but simply stood up with her in his arms and carried her to an empty corner near the head of the bed. His hand reached out and brushed away a few cobwebs before he settled her facing the corner. Charli didn’t have time for more than basic housework and Ben was considering hiring someone to come out and give the place a spring clean. “Stay here until I come back,” he ordered her.

  “What about my pants?” Charlotte sniffled. Her drawers were currently pooled around her ankles.

  “You don’t need those,” Ben told her. “We’re not done yet and I think having your well spanked bare bottom on display will help keep you in the frame of mind you need to be in. Think about the behavior that got you here and how you’re going to change that attitude going forward,” he commanded her firmly.

  Charli wasn’t happy with his edict, but she nodded her agreement. She certainly didn’t want to provoke him into any further punishment at this point in time. Ben kissed her head and then left the room.

  It didn’t take long to put the kitchen to rights and Ben returned quickly to his wife, not wanting to leave her alone with her own thoughts for too long. He walked over and stood behind her. Charli was no longer crying but standing with her shoulders slightly slumped. He put a hand on each arm.

  “What are you thinking?” he asked her quietly.

  “That none of this would have happened if Papa were still alive,” she sniffled.

  Ben gathered her up in his arms and carried her back to the bed where he sat down with Charli cradled in his lap. “Some of it may not have happened, agreed,” he said gently to her. “I do know one thing though. Your papa promised me your hand in marriage and I intended to see him fulfil that promise.” Ben could tell Charli wasn’t happy with that thought and his heart broke a little. She really was hell bent on resisting this marriage. He knew he needed to be patient with her, but a tiny fear formed in his gut that she might never come around. What if Charlotte really didn’t love him the way he loved her. What if she never could?

  “We’re both tired. Let’s get this finished up so we can get some sleep,” he suggested to her.

  Charli buried her head in Ben’s chest and whimpered. “It still hurts Ben,” she whined. “Can’t we just call it done?”

  “No,” Ben responded firmly. He wasn’t a man into doing things in half measures. “Let’s put your drawers back on and head out to the privy,” he said to her. “That way you can go straight to bed when we’re done. I’ll walk you out and check on the chickens while we’re out there.” Ben had taken to checking the chicken enclosure regularly, even popping out during the night if he woke. So far, nothing more had seemed amiss. He hoped news of his presence had spread to whomever had been sabotaging Charli’s farming efforts and they were now leaving her alone.

  Charli sighed but didn’t argue further as she bent down, happy to return her drawers to their rightful place. When she went to pick up her pants, Ben put a hand on her arm.

  “You won’t need those,” he told her.

  “I can’t go outside in my undergarments!” Charli told him; her horror evident in her voice. She may not care what people thought to a point, but she certainly drew the line at going outside semi-naked. The thought of being caught in her undergarments was simply shocking!

  “Who’s going to see you?” Ben challenged her. “It’s dark outside and we don’t have close neighbors.” Without waiting for a response, he put an arm around her shoulders and ushered her out of the room, stopping only to light a lantern in case they had need of it. Charli huffed a little at the disgrace of it all, but she was all out of energy to keep protesting.

  Putting her boots on without any pants or skirt only highlighted her shame and Charli’s face flushed red. Why her husband had to insist she not put her pants back on was beyond her. Ben couldn’t help but smile to himself as he watched his wife huff her way through putting her boots on. It was clear she was embarrassed. Well, he didn’t think a little embarrassment would hurt her. Not when he was certain no-one would see them.

  “Everything all right with the chickens?” she asked Ben as they made their way back to the house. It was clear she was still very anxious about losing any more, which Ben could understand.

  “All quiet and snug tucked up in their sleeping boxes,” he told her with a smile she couldn’t see. His smile broadened when Charli sagged against him in relief. She was a sweet parcel of sass and he couldn’t wait for her to embrace their marriage and lean on him a little more.

  “These are going to be fast,” Ben said to Charli when he had her situated back over his knee and removed her drawers yet again. Her bottom was still warm to touch but nowhere near as inflamed as it had been earlier. Hopefully giving her a break would make it easier for her to take the prescribed number of swats. While Ben understood the judge’s intention that all 100 be given in one session, he hadn’t specified a time frame.

  Charli whimpered and he knew the kindest thing to do was to get this over with. He brought the brush up high and began to swat at a rapid pace, still allowing enough time to move the swats around evenly and to get a crisp with each one. He didn’t want to risk Charli not learning her lesson and having to repeat it.

  By the time he reached ten, Charli was sobbing again but she did her best to remain in position, only squirming a small amount. Ben delivered the final ten swats to her upper thighs, causing her cries to rise in pitch, coming close to a scream. As soon as he finished, she collapsed against the bed as sobs wracked her entire body.

  Ben gathered her back up onto his lap and rocked her gently, his hand pressing her head into his chest as she cried. “It’s all over sweet pea,” he said softly to her, making gentle shushing noises as he rocked. The stayed like they were for some time and when Charli’s tears finally abated, she fell asleep in his arms. Ben could have happily held her all night but his arms soon grew tired.

  He stood up to carry her out to her own bed but paused in the doorway, his eyes drawn back to his own, very large bed. A bed he desperately wanted to share with his wife. Without really thinking through how she might react to his decision, he strode back into the room and tucked her into the middle of his bed. Quickly shucking all but his own undergarments, he climbed in beside her and pulled her back into his arms, content that he had her right where she belonged.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Sheriff Johnson could see Charli forking hay into the pig yard as his horse ambled its way up the front track to the house. She worked like she was trying to work off a temper and he smiled to himself as he wondered what drama had unfolded with the newlyweds this time. Ben certainly had his hands full with her and he couldn’t help but wonder if his visit was timely. Perhaps the young lad was in need of some more sage advice on how to handle his young bride.

  “Morning Charli,” he called out
as he slipped off his horse and tethered him near a trough to drink.

  “Ben’s still in the house if that’s who you came to see,” Charli practically spat at him. She was in no mood for small talk so was hoping the sheriff hadn’t come calling on her.

  “I’ll just wander on up then,” he said with a tip of his hat.

  Ben was just finishing cleaning up broken crockery and scrambled eggs when the sheriff tapped on the back door. “Morning sheriff,” he said with a sad sigh.

  “What happened here?” Johnson asked as he came through the back door.

  “My wife threw a hissy fit,” Ben told him as he dropped the broken dishes into a container to carry outside and dispose of.

  “I take it you didn’t discipline her last night like we talked about?” Johnson asked him.