by Selena Kitt
Would it start? Did it have a full tank of gas? Or… was it a newer model that ran on solar power? After further inspection, it appeared to be a hybrid, with a gas tank and thin solar panels running over the sides and back. Probably the roof, too, but she couldn't jump that high for a peek.
She gazed at the massive vehicle, fighting down her trepidation. She'd only driven once in her life, but she was pretty sure she remembered how. Pap had given her an impromptu lesson on his long, dirt driveway, only two weeks before he disappeared. She smiled as she recalled the rush of freedom she'd felt guiding his 2028 Ford Solar Model pickup down the drive.
She aimed the flashlight at the bottom of the garage door. Gripping the handle, she slowly lifted it up. Her heart skipped a beat each time the door creaked as she moved it higher. The chill of the night swept in once she had it fully opened. She hurried to the driver's door.
Except it wouldn't open. Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck. Why hadn't she checked the truck door first? Hopelessness spread through her. She shone the flashlight around the garage in frantic movements, searching for a key. But there was no key.
Her heart sank. She had wasted her time, and perhaps even drawn attention to herself. Flicking off the flashlight, she stowed it in her pocket and stood frozen for several long moments. Listening. Watching. She decided whoever was on guard tonight wasn't very skilled at their job if they'd missed her flashlight.
Well, she would berate herself for her foolishness later. Right now she needed to get the hell out of this settlement and put a few more miles between herself and the Raiders before she even dared to attempt a few hours of sleep. Ignoring the exhaustion that weighed her down, she headed for the tall fence.
But just as she stuck the spike on her boot into the wood, a hand clamped over her mouth. Her blood ran cold as terror seized her. She was dragged away from the wall, her captor impervious to her struggles. As she fought him, her gloves flew off and the cold air bit at her bare hands.
Hot breath tickled her ear. "Cease your fighting now, little thief."
The deep rumbling tone of his command made her go instantly still.
"Good girl. Now cooperate and this will go much easier on you. No screaming. Trust me, you don't want to wake the Elders up." He released her mouth and gripped her upper arm, leading her back into the settlement, toward the large brick house.
Oh, God. What would he do to her?
"Please," she whispered. "I only took a little. I'll put everything back."
"Quiet." He paused and peered down at her, the lamplight from a nearby porch bathing his face in yellow.
Her stomach flipped at the man's stern expression, towering height, and dark unforgiving eyes. Would the Elders be lenient if she cooperated? She'd heard stories of settlements like this, strong settlements that were governed by Elders, and the stories frightened her now. Their laws showed no mercy to Raiders or thieves or troublemakers of any kind. In fact, Raiders and thieves were typically put to death.
Coldness permeated her senses, but when she shivered, her captor pulled her closer. His dark eyes, visible in the light of the full moon, softened a few measures.
"Let's get you out of the cold, little girl."
* * *
Rick led the young woman into his living room and guided her to sit in a chair by the fire. Tremors besieged her body, but he wasn't sure if she was shaking due to her fear, or the cold. Well, probably both. She had to realize how much trouble she was in.
All the pockets lining her pants and her jacket bulged. He figured she'd visited a storage shed before she tried to steal the Hummer. The sheds were supposed to be kept locked, but sometimes the Elder overseeing the supply storages forgot.
Rick glared at the little thief. She lowered her head, as if chastised from his censuring look alone.
"I'm sorry I stole."
"Are you really sorry? Or are you simply sorry you were caught?" Fuck, he couldn't believe a woman had entered the settlement. He'd caught men before—most of them Raiders—but never a female. Females always knocked on the gates during the light of day and requested asylum.
Startling blue eyes peered up at him. Her lower lip quivered and she blinked back tears. "I really am sorry. I don't like stealing, but I ran out of food two days ago and when I saw your walls…" Her voice trailed off and her stomach chose that moment to rumble.
Thief or not, he felt pity for the pretty girl. He crouched in front of her and reached for the zipper of her dirt-covered jacket. "Relax. Let's get you out of these filthy clothes." After he got her jacket off, he stroked an errant strand of hair behind her ear, unable to resist the impulse to touch her feminine softness.
A strangled gasp left her and she flinched. "Please don't."
"Please don't what?" He looked at her with concern. "I'm not going to hurt you."
He grabbed a thick fleece blanket off the sofa and draped it over her shoulders. Then he pulled another chair to face hers and sat down across from her, leaving enough space in the middle to give her a sense of safety.
"What's your name?"
"I'm nobody." Her eyes darted around the room. "Please, if you let me go, I promise to never come back. I'll never steal from you or trouble you again." Her stomach growled once more, prompting Rick to his feet.
"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 slam
med 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.
"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.
He 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."
"I'm headed south."
"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.
She opted to tell some of the truth, but hold back the darkest secrets for herself. 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.
"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.
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.
"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 lowered 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.