by Starla Kaye
“I’m sorry,” Tanya said awkwardly. Yet she couldn’t help wondering what it would be like to be taken over the big, handsome cowboy’s knee. Probably not any fun. Still, the idea intrigued her, definitely more than being taken over her father’s knee.
“We had a difference of opinion. He settled it the way he does occasionally, with the application of his hand to my posterior.” She shrugged. “After he’s vented in his way, things settle down. He’s just a domineering kind of guy, but I love him in spite of that fact.”
She knew she shouldn’t ask, but Tanya did anyway. “Did he uh…did he spank his ex-wives?”
Swallowing another sip of beer, Mandy looked thoughtful before saying, “Probably. I don’t know for sure. But a man who believes in spanking, spanks. Maybe that was part of why the marriages didn’t work. Maybe neither of them could handle a sometimes hard man like Drew. They were stupid, though, if that was the reason they quit on him. He’s a good man, really good.”
With a yawn, Mandy pushed to her feet, wincing slightly. “I’ve had it for today. Plus I’ve got to leave early in the morning.”
Tanya was thinking about her own mixed impressions of Drew and if they could get along for a month when Mandy stopped in front of her.
“Hold your own with him and you’ll be fine. He’s tough, but he’s a pussycat too. Part of why he feels so strongly about taking in wounded and abandoned animals.” She moved toward the tiny second bedroom, walking gingerly in her tight jeans.
“A pussycat who spanks,” Tanya mumbled. Still, she didn’t race to her room to pack her bags and flee the ranch with Mandy. Maybe she was nuts.
By the time Tanya managed to drift out of the depths of slumberland and glance at the bedside clock, she almost felt rested. The last couple of days had been long ones. Flying from California, and then driving from Denver. Plus there was all the stress in her life. Especially about this new job.
New job! Tanya shot up in bed, heart racing. Good golly, Molly! This was Monday. The first day for that new job. Another glance at the clock and the time finally registered in her foggy brain: 9:30 a.m. Oh no! Late. On her first day.
She nearly fell out of bed from being tangled so much in the sheets. The instant her feet hit the carpeted floor, she raced from the bedroom, fully intending on demanding to know why Mandy hadn’t awakened her earlier. A genuine morning person, Mandy was always the first one up whenever she stayed with her. She always had coffee brewing by the time Tanya strolled into the kitchen like a zombie.
Tanya sniffed the air. No coffee smell. The house was silent, too. Mandy always had the radio on and turned to country music, something which Tanya hadn’t quite gotten her mind wrapped around yet.
Then she froze in the middle of the small living room and realized that Mandy was already gone. Tanya’s slowly functioning brain was just absorbing the idea when someone knocked on the front door.
Without thinking first, she went to answer the door and came face to face with none other than her new boss. A not so happy looking tall cowboy. A hunk in a sky blue chambray shirt and worn jeans, who drew in a quick breath and blinked in surprise.
“Stopped by to see if you’d quit already,” he sounded a little too hopeful in her opinion. He took a step back on the covered porch, looking uncomfortable.
She reached up to toss her hair back over a shoulder and stiffened. This day was just getting worse and worse. She stood before her new boss—already tardy for work—in her favorite soft pink sleep t-shirt, one that was well-worn and barely covered her bottom. At least she had on bikini panties, too.
“Ten minutes. I’ll be there in ten minutes.” She shoved the door closed, noting his mixed expression of relief and disappointment. Jeez Louise, could I make a worse impression? She didn’t want to think about that, and instead raced to get ready for a job she may not have longer than today no matter what Mandy had said.
Drew sat behind the large oak desk his father had handmade years ago in the home office at the back of the house and battled a whirlwind of emotions. Again, he was furious with his sister for putting him in this awkward position. He was pretty damn furious with himself for not having gone with his gut instinct and said NO right off. As far as Tanya was concerned, that’s where his emotions were a complete wreck. He knew she needed this job, and hated that he felt sorry for her because some asshole had put her in this position. He needed accounting help, yes, but not from someone who looked like Tanya Montrose. He hoped to hell he wouldn’t find himself acting like that scumbag partner. She was nothing like the women he was used to, so he shouldn’t be drawn to her. But he was, big time drawn to her.
In the near silent house, he heard the front door open. A second later the soft tap-tap of heels on the tiled hallway headed his way. He heaved a sigh and gritted his teeth. Still wearing those ridiculous heels. Stubborn female! Every nerve in his body went on full alert as she grew closer. It would be months—if ever—before he got the sight of Tanya standing before him in that barely-there t-shirt and Lord-help-him miniscule panties. She better be covered from head to toe right now, was all he could think.
With his typical luck of late, she wasn’t. She’d obviously dressed in a hurry, putting on something easy and taking very little time with her hair. The mass of blond silk draped her shoulders, long, sexily wavy.
Trying not to think about how much he wanted to touch that hair, he turned his attention to the rest of her appearance. Another mistake on his part. The sight of her standing in the doorway wearing a pair of slim, black tailored slacks and a red deeply v-necked sweater—like that purple one she’d worn that still haunted him—had him rethinking how much he liked women in jeans. This casual outfit hugged every inch of her petite, delectable body.
Heaving another sigh, he looked down. Her small feet were encased in spiky high black heels. Hot red-painted toes peeked at him, teased him. He was a dead man.
“Okay, where do you want me to work?” Tanya asked, having decided to act in control even if she was a nervous wreck. “Is there a second computer? I did bring my laptop, and I could load your programs on it.” She walked over to stand in front of the desk.
He looked shell-shocked for an instant, and then seemed to mentally shake out of that mode. His dark-eyed gaze settled on her and she shivered. The man gave all new meaning to the word “hot.”
He cleared his throat and said, “I’ll overlook the fact that you’re two hours late on your first day of work. As long as you understand that it can’t happen again.” He straightened an already stack of straight papers on his desk.
She felt the heat of a guilty blush. “Understood, and I’m sorry.” She also had the same kind of feeling she’d experienced many times over the years as she’d stood in front of her father for some infraction of his rules. And she recalled how Mandy had admitted that he’d spanked her last night. The shivers increased, joined by a swirl of heat.
“Even though this won’t be a permanent position, you need to understand that I want things done in a certain way. At a certain time. I’m a busy man, pulled in many directions.” He held her gaze. “I demand organization. You work according to my system—so that I don’t have to waste time learning something new—and we’ll get along fine.”
Tanya started to worry her lower lip, but stopped herself in time. Organization wasn’t her best thing. “No problem.” At least she hoped she could follow his system for the month they’d agreed to.
He shoved to his feet, towering over her by a foot. She drew up as tall as possible, but it didn’t help much. Lost in thoughts about their many physical differences, she said distractedly, “Rules, too. Probably lots of rules.”
“Yes,” he said, making her realize she’d spoken her thoughts out loud. “Because of all that I am responsible for, I do have a lot of rules and time schedules to follow. Pay attention to them and you’ll be all right.”
“If I mess up?” she asked quietly, moving out of his way as he walked around the desk. Why was she pressing him
about this? Did she even want to know his answer? Would he even answer?
“There are consequences to not following the rules. If you do as expected, there’s nothing to worry about.”
He motioned her to sit down in the executive chair. “I use QuickBooks for both the ranch books and for the foundation’s books. Are you familiar with that program?”
Tanya slipped into the big chair, still warm from his large body. Her feet dangled. She adjusted the chair until her feet touched the floor. “I know the program.”
A touch of amusement flitted from his gaze as she looked at him. “You’re tiny, almost like a child.” He seemed to say it without meaning to.
She bristled. “I’m not a child, though.”
His attention moved to her chest, where she realized her breasts were now thrust forward in indignation. And, to her mortification, at his intense focus, her nipples hardened.
“Nope, definitely not a child.” He glanced up again. “The new bank statements are in the top drawer, for both accounts. And there is a file with bills to be paid. Think you can do the bank reconciliations and write out the payment checks while I go take care of some ranch chores? Or do I need to stay here and—“
She shook her head. “I can handle it. I am a certified public accountant, you know.”
“Don’t get all huffy. I know you’ve got credentials. More credentials than are necessary for my accounting needs.” He frowned down at her.
He really could irritate her so easily. “I’m not huffy. I’m just frustrated with my current situation.” She looked at the monitor and back at him. “I do appreciate you hiring me, even if only for a short while.”
His whole demeanor mellowed. “Got a long range goal? Something to plan for?” he asked, surprising her.
She hadn’t told anyone her dream, not even Mandy. But maybe if she did talk about it even a little, maybe it would help her get to seriously thinking about what to do next. “Actually, I’d like to have my own accounting practice. A small office somewhere. Maybe have a partner, a limited staff. I don’t really like working in the bigger firms.”
He opened his mouth to say something when his cell phone rang. With a flash of annoyance, he glanced at the phone and flipped it open, walking out of the room. “I’ll catch up with you later.”
Drew hadn’t meant to leave Tanya alone nearly all day. From the second he’d left the house, he’d faced one new problem after another. Two of his ranch hands had come down with the flu, making even more work for the remaining two hands. His foreman got a phone call mid-day from his ex-wife demanding that he meet with her and their lawyers TODAY. One of the contacts for abandoned animals called to inform him that there were three half-starved horses a county over, and his contact would be bringing them here early this evening. And then—even more frustrating—the IRS agent who’d sent him a notice of audit called to say she would be starting the audit in two weeks. He needed to round up every piece of supporting documentation for the ranch for the last two years.
He growled low in his throat and stomped his way up the front steps. Hell of a day. And it wasn’t close to being over.
Setting his hat on the entry table, he toed off his boots. He took a second to wiggle his toes. He sure didn’t look forward to putting the boots back on and heading out for more chores. At least he wouldn’t have to worry about balancing his accounts tonight.
“Got the checks ready for me to sign?” he asked, walking into the office half lost in ranching thoughts. “I’ve only got a few minutes to take care of this business.”
A hand waved at him from behind his desk, and a finger pointed at a jumble of checks and invoices on one corner. “There. See them?”
As a tingle of wariness curled through him, Tanya blistered the air with some of the most colorful swear words he’d heard in a long time. Which made him frown. He didn’t like ladies swearing.
“Someone needs a mouth washing,” he muttered, padding closer, stopping at the side of the desk. A mighty fine ass caught his attention as his office help was on hands and knees beneath his desk. The position gave certain parts of his body ideas…ideas that were definitely out of place.
The sound of paper ripping drifted upward, followed by an even more colorful string of curses.
No sooner had they stopped than Tanya wiggled her way backward with a crumpled portion of paper clutched in one hand. She looked at it with a glare hot enough that it should have burst into flames. Then she looked at him, still clearly angry. They were both in watch-out-world moods.
“Stupid invoice got caught by a blast from that damn paddle fan of yours. I grabbed for it, messed up the whole stack of invoices in the process. And broke a fingernail.”
She held up her right hand to show him the damage. “Do you have any idea how hard I work to get my fingernails to grow this long? I hate fake nails. I should insist on Workman’s Comp.” She focused on the nail again and ground her teeth.
Crazy woman was blabbing away faster than he could even take it all in. He did manage to frown at the mention of Workman’s Comp.
He was about to protest that bout of idiocy when she raged onward with her tales of woe, waving the tortured paper again. “The invoice managed to fly all the way under the desk. All the way! It didn’t stop until it had slid underneath the drawer unit. I know, I know. It should have been no big deal to pull it free.”
She’d worked up another head of steam. She climbed to her feet—her bare feet, which he immediately noticed of all the ridiculous things—and snapped, “Your stupid desk refused to let go of the paper. It ate half of the invoice…after I spent a good half hour trying to ease the paper free.”
“Surely it’s not that much of a problem,” he stated, feeling downright testy about her attitude. This was definitely a woman out of control. He wasn’t in the mood for dealing with minor problems at the moment. A torn invoice and a broken fingernail were tiny problems, to his way of thinking.
Her eyes widened and then narrowed. “Not that much of a problem! It certainly is! I don’t know the total amount owed. Half of the invoice is missing. What are you going to do about it?” She slapped the bit of paper down on the desk.
She’d pushed his patience beyond its limits for the day. Without an instant’s thought, Drew took hold of her arm, half-turned her into a position he wanted, and then smacked her bottom.
Tanya yelped indignantly.
He smacked her a second time, harder. The sound echoed in the room.
“What do you think you’re doing?” she hissed, squirming in an effort to get free.
His action had surprised the hell out of him, but he didn’t regret it at all. Maybe this would send her fleeing from the ranch. He could only be so lucky.
“Swatting the backside of a woman acting crazed over something silly,” he said flatly as he released her.
“Silly!” She faced him fully and he couldn’t help but watch her breasts heaving in annoyance. “I needed the whole invoice.”
Drew gave her a warning look, but she went right back to rattling on about the situation. “What you just did, did it solve the problem of the missing invoice part? No! Did it stroke your ego? Yes.” She glared at him, but didn’t make a move to run from the office.
“What I just did was spank you,” he stated as if she hadn’t understood, hoping maybe by putting it into words she’d go running now.
“Duh.” She rubbed her bottom even though it couldn’t possibly really hurt. “I’ve been spanked before.”
“So you’re not going to race out of my sight? Not going to jump in your car and leave the ranch immediately?” Disappointment battled with an odd feeling of approval.
She handed him the torn invoice and rolled her eyes. “You’re not going to be that lucky, cowboy. Plus, I don’t have a car, remember? Your sister drove us here in a rental car, which is now gone, along with your sister.”
Confused about what to do next and how to handle the situation, he glanced at the invoice to one to his bigges
t vendors. A vendor who demanded full payments upon receipt of invoice; a vendor he’d been having trouble with lately. “You can call them first thing in the morning and have them fax over another copy of the invoice.”
To his astonishment, all the irritation seemed to disappear…like she finally realized she’d been making something out of nothing. She perched on the edge of the desk and said tiredly, “Sorry. I’m not used to handling the smaller accounting things like paying bills or balancing checkbooks. Guess I just got freaked.”
His mood settled as well and he reached for the scattered checks and a pen. “I haven’t had the best of days either.”
She tossed her hair back over one shoulder and the soft scent of her perfume drifted to him. He was aware of her every move, no matter how slight and that concerned him a lot. He looked intently at the checks, quickly scribbling what passed for his signature.
“Are you going to apologize for what you did?” she asked.
Drew couldn’t help but glance at her, inwardly amused by the prim look on her face. “For spanking your butt?”
Pink inched up her cheeks and she nodded. “Yes, for that.”
“No.” He went back to signing checks.
She straightened and scooted around the desk. “Am I to assume that is what you meant by consequences for not following your instructions? And I should point out that I hadn’t disobeyed any instructions today.”
He had a hard time controlling the urge to grin at her sassy tone and her daring. When he was in a bad mood most people left him alone. They sure didn’t try to push his buttons.
“Yes, that is exactly what I meant.”
“No wonder you can’t keep office help,” she muttered and attempted to re-stack some loose papers.
“I’ve never had office help before.” He set the pen down and they studied each other.
“Well, that type of management behavior is … well, it’s…”
Lord, she was a pretty woman. Especially when her sweet face got all pink with embarrassment or anger. This would be one hell of a long month, unless she quit now.