by Piper Stone
Tobin gave his right hand man an appraising look. “And?”
“And to eat more fiber.” Jeep gave a nod of his head, as if he were explaining to a toddler that if you unplug the sink, all the water will run out.
“Eat more fiber?” Tobin paused for a moment of contemplation. “She seemed so concerned, I couldn’t deny her request. She said the doctor had insisted on lifestyle changes.” The humor was back. “I guess one could call that a lifestyle change.” He started to chuckle.
Jeep saw very little reason for mirth and wondered how Tobin could laugh at Jenny’s manipulation of the truth. “She’ll be making a lifestyle change: giving up sitting for the next week at least!”
Tobin put out placating hands. “Before you rev up your paddle, you have to admit that I am partially to blame.”
“That’s right! You indulge her. You spoil her. You always have.”
“As if you don’t. You worship the ground she looks at, much less walks on.”
“That’s my right. I’m her husband.”
“And I’m her employer.”
“I wish everybody would quit making out like she still works here. She hasn’t had an office in the building since our kids were born.”
“But she’s pitched in plenty over the years, and you can’t deny that she’s shaped the… atmosphere around here.”
Jeep inclined his head and settled back in his chair, distracted. “There’s no denying that. If she hadn’t been so traditional in her views…”
“She never would have turned me down and taken up with you, for starters,” finished Tobin. “As I recall it, you were the first of us to marry and yet stay in the company. Everyone else got out if they found a wife. She not only helped more of the operatives find suitable brides, but she shaped the culture of the workplace into something more livable, more… family friendly without dulling any of our edge. ”
“That’s my girl,” Jeep said. “I have to admit, when I first read that newsletter she subscribed to back in the nineties, I thought I’d mixed her file up with someone else’s. I couldn’t believe that people really lived that way, much less that a sweet young thing like her would consent to it. Now, I can’t imagine any other life. If that’s helped your company, fine and dandy, but it doesn’t excuse her scuttling around the truth like a crab avoiding a cat.” Jeep was still turning things over in his mind as he spoke, using his boss as a sounding board. “She’s the one who wanted a husband to be in charge and to enforce the rules with spanking if need be, so she shouldn’t be surprised if I take her to task for interfering in my job by exaggerating and telling half truths.”
“That’s between you and her, of course.”
“So you’ll quit giving me the easy, safe jobs?”
“Easy? Safe? I don’t think I’d describe any of our assignments in that manner. Your last three missions have run very well with you at the helm rather than in the riggings, so to speak.”
“I don’t mind being in charge, but I want you to call off Salk and Pepper at least. And I want to be in the thick of things every once in a while.”
“Nothing would suit me better, as long as you’re fit.”
“If you’re in any doubt about that, just check with Jenny tomorrow morning. She’ll be able to testify to my physical health and well being, especially when it comes to my knee, which she’ll be bent over, and my arm, which will be swinging at her rump.”
“Don’t be too hard on her, Jeep. It’s only natural for the gals to worry when their men are in the field. With all your kids grown and gone, maybe she’s starting to look at the future with new eyes.”
Jeep stood, but looked down on his boss. “You might have a point there. I’ll be sure to ask her about it. There’s no better time to get a straight answer out of a stubborn wife than when she’s sitting carefully on a warm rear end.”
Tobin stood to shake Jeep’s hand. “After the success you’ve had tonight, you should be celebrating. Why not go home, get Jenny and the two of you join me at the club for our usual late night after action conference? Give her a chance to come clean and explain herself.”
“Oh, she’ll get that chance, and she’ll be apologizing to you too, but whether it will tonight or not depends a good deal on her attitude when I get home.” He headed toward the door, wondering what he would find on his arrival. Between his job and his wife, his life was never exactly dull.
Jenny Eep’s nerves were winding up like a pull-action toy car. Why hadn’t Jeep called? Her big bear of a husband was never much of a talker, so she hadn’t been too surprised when she only got her official notification from Mrs. Abernathy that the mission had ended successfully, but still she kept checking her phone. Of course, Jeep never wanted to talk for long on the phone. He was more of an in-person type man, better suited to the days before the cell phone had become like an extra hand.
When they had first married, the challenges of security work had seemed so immediate and clear cut. When he was away, she didn’t know and fought the worry by keeping herself busy with kids and interests. When he was home, he was all hers, not distracted by screens or email. Those days were long gone. Now she wondered every minute. If he was gone, why wasn’t he calling? If he was home, when would the phone ring, summoning him away? Perhaps she preferred the pre-phone days too.
So now she was nervous, wondering why he hadn’t called her himself to reassure her that he was all right. But of course he was fine. What could hurt her big strong husband? Especially now that Tob had seen reason and decided to keep Jeep behind the lines and use his talents more wisely… and safely, Jenny knew that she should relax. Jeep would be fine. He was probably on his way home right now. He had probably left the Sports and Spuds while Salk and Pepper were still at the table bragging about their exploits. Ah, Salk and Pepper. Always joking, never serious. She counted on that fact. They would never think to discuss Jeep’s health or ask him about his condition.
Three missions at least, according to her calculation. Four months since she had spoken privately with Tob. Four months worth of nights she had been able to breathe more freely, knowing that he was in less danger. All their married life, she had put worry away from her with bulldozer-like effort, having faith that her family was in good hands, knowing that Jeep possessed the strength and the skills to carry out his job safely, but when the idea had occurred to her, she hadn’t been able to pass up the temptation to do her part to help ensure his safety. He was always protecting her. At last, it was her turn to protect him.
But why hadn’t he called? The mission was a success. Where was his usual check in? The knot in her nerves tightened again. She picked up her electronic tablet and tried to concentrate on the novel she was reading, but noticed her eyes focused as much on the door as they did on the words. Maybe she could get a head start on Christmas cards. It was still November, but every envelope she addressed now was just one less she’d have to do once the real season was upon her. Where had she put those boxes of cards she had bought on sale at the end of last Christmas season? Frustrated, she searched the house with her ears pricked for the sound of the telephone.
She was still clawing around in her giftwrap and decoration containers when she heard the garage door chug open. The large SUV that Jeep drove barely fit into the bay, but he never had any trouble maneuvering it in and out. He rarely had trouble with any physical task, despite his size, or perhaps because of it. The way he answered her annoyed greeting set off warning bells somewhere in the back of her head that perhaps he had another physical activity on his mind, but she ignored their clanging, just as she ignored the rules of civility and common sense. He hadn’t called her after his mission and she wanted him to know that she wasn’t happy. She couldn’t help springing to her feet and rushing to meet him, but she could certainly make her feelings plain in other ways.
She released her hold on him after only a few silent moments. “Where have you been, Jacob Eep? Just because you’re the size of a tank doesn’t mean you can behave like one
!”
Jeep scowled down at her. “Jenny, this is not the night for you to give me that kind of attitude. We already need to have a serious discussion, but I’m willing to put it off. I’ve been talking to my boss and he suggested…”
Jenny knew she should stop. There was just no path in sight that led to any good end, but she couldn’t. “Of course you have. Why would you want to talk to me when you can talk to him? I’m just your wife.”
“It was his idea for me to give us some time to celebrate the end to this mission. You’d be wise not to…”
Why should she wait for him to finish? No reason at all. “Maybe you need to talk to Tob. I think you should, actually. In fact I know you should. And what about? About retirement, that’s what!”
“Re— What?”
His face told the tale more clearly than his stammering words. The idea of spending even one minute away from his job had never even crossed his maddening, mercenary, male mind.
“You heard me! But maybe you don’t even know the meaning of the word. Re-tire-ment. Look it up. It will be right up there with rest, relax, and vacation, three other words you never learned the meaning of.”
“That’ll be about enough, little one. I can see we need to air some issues, but why are you bringing them up right now? Could it be that you are trying to distract me from the topic at hand?”
“It’s all the same topic!”
“Is it? So you admit that you were trying to interfere in my work? You spoke to Tob deliberately?” His tone was so carefully controlled it was almost brittle. “What I can’t figure out is, why now? Why tonight?”
“I’m just tired of it, Jeep! I don’t know how I’ve stood it all these years, but no more. Work yourself into the ground, I don’t care! I can’t care any more. I’m done!” Jenny’s rage had turned her normally serenely lovely face a mottled puce. She tugged at a lock of her hair. “See this gray? All down to you! These wrinkles? Worry lines!” She bent her head back to glare up at her husband.
“All I see is my beautiful wife,” Jeep replied in the gentle soothing tones that drove Jenny to contemplate mayhem.
Since he towered over her and weighed almost twice as much as she did, she had no intention of acting on her impulses, but she entertained them nonetheless. How could he be so calm?
“The mother of my children who are now grown and on their own. You look like the woman I love. When we’re a hundred, I’ll still be chasing you around the living room.” He reached for her, but she slid out of reach.
“Mostly with a wooden spoon, and that’s your fault too!”
“Please don’t blame me for your behavior. When you earn a spanking, you’ll get a spanking. That’s the way it’s always been and how it always will be.”
“But if you wouldn’t be so pig-headed, I wouldn’t get into half the trouble I do, and the other half is down to your oh-so-wonderful boss. If he wouldn’t send you off to the darkest unswept ends of the earth, or keep you working every minute of every day of every year for decades on end, I could finally have a husband!”
“Oh, you have a husband,” he pronounced as he pounced. Slinging her over his shoulder, he headed for the bedroom. “And if you have any doubts about that fact, say goodbye to them now because I’m going to get rid of them in the most certain way I know.” He popped her backside sharply. The sting made her buck, but he held her steady so she didn’t even wobble.
“You can’t do this!” she whined.
“Wanna bet?”
Chapter 2
“But I haven’t done anything wrong. I was just worried about you. I can’t lose you!” Jenny squirmed over Jeep’s shoulder although she knew it would do no good. She could no more escape him than her dishtowel could throw itself off her oven door handle.
“I’m not going anywhere,” Jeep replied. He rubbed his hand against her nether cheek, making her feel somehow comforted. The gesture was short-lived. Three hard whacks followed almost immediately. “We’re going to have many happy peaceful years together. I’m going to ensure that they’re happy and peaceful by taking you over my knee any time you get out of hand. See? Like this.” As he spoke, he perched himself of the side of their king size bed. It was higher off the floor than the average bed, but his knees still bent when he sat down.
She fit over them so easily, those knees that for better or worse she had gotten quite accustomed to over the years. Sometimes he spanked her standing, or bending over a chair, but most often, he held her over his lap as if he wanted to be in close contact with her. She imagined that he could tell as much from the intimacy as she could. With him in such complete control of her body, she couldn’t help but feel him as well. His tension, his determination, and yes, she had to admit it, his love, all flowed through his hands and chest and legs, anywhere they made contact. His arm fit so snugly over her waist as he held her steady. His ankle so neatly trapped her feet against the bed. His decision, his will, and his inclination kept her so close to him, so ardently, so absolutely his. His strength setting her direction, his words settling her fears… and his palm warming her backside. With a snap, his first spank brought her out of her poignant reverie.
That hurt! Nature took over. Her emotions, already so near the surface, so close to fraying, broke with a snap, her deepest fears and hurts melting under his touch, flowing into his heart where they were overwhelmed by his love. Her tears started almost as an afterthought to the pain of the spanking, as if his swats were merely an answer to the ache flowing out of her.
“All that sass and sarcasm didn’t spring up in the course of one night,” Jeep told her as he applied the flat of his hand where he thought it would do the most good. “You’ve been letting this fester, keeping it secret from me. I won’t have that. You know I won’t let secrets stand between us. Honesty, communication, information. I have the right to know what’s going on with you and the duty to respond, to help, to protect you. When you deny me that right, you get spanked. Isn’t that the way we live?” He paused then, with his hand cupping her nether cheek as it throbbed and burned. His hand was as effective as any paddle, igniting her skin and shocking her senses.
“Yes it is, when you’re around. How can I tell you things if you’re never here?” She stiffened her body, knowing she could never break free, almost enjoying the fact that she could push against him as hard as she wanted. He wouldn’t budge.
“We can’t be together every minute of every day. I don’t work all the time and you know it. I know things have been busy recently, and I did have to cancel our vacation this year, but you agreed to that, for Tob’s sake. Those issues won’t get any better because of you sniping at me.”
Her backside demanded relief from his onslaught, making her roll and pitch futilely. “The kids are gone. You’re busy with work. Who else can I snipe at?”
“Snipe? No. Talk with? Yes. Me, that’s who.” Jeep swatted harder and faster to emphasize his point. “You talk to me. You tell me what’s going on. Are you feeling underappreciated? I thought you knew how grateful I am for all you do around here. Don’t you know how much I love you?”
At this declaration, the last shards of her hostility cracked. She knew it was all true. She saw how unfair she had been and how wrong. She could only nod, her sobs quiet but deep.
He seemed to understand. Perhaps years of helping her in this tender way told him to continue slowly, steadily, with deliberate attention and pace. She hardly knew herself why every swat cleansed her heart and lightened the clouds from her sky.
“You can’t go around interfering in my work, telling lies and playing on emotions just to get your way. You know that’s not the way we do things in this family. You come to me, not Tob or anybody else. Understand?”
She lay across his lap now, accepting his correction, taking into her heart the words and intentions behind them. “I understand. And I’m sorry I tried to get around you like that.”
“I’m going to let you up now, if you’ll do as I say.”
She kne
w that if she cooperated now, it would all be over soon. Really, she had neither the strength nor the desire to deny him now. “I will.”
“Go get the wooden spoon from the trunk in the closet. You’ll get ten for going behind my back and ten for keeping your feelings secret from me in the first place. If you take them well, it will be over.”
She nodded and did as she was told. He had been spanking her over her clothes, so all she had to do was stand up and walk to the closet. She knelt down to unlock the trunk, her fingers hardly fumbling with the combination lock. She hated how her bottom clenched, her muscles remembering what happened after she opened this hiding place. At least he didn’t leave their paddles and other implements out in the open. What they did was private and he enforced that as strictly as he could, considering that fact that most of the families associated with Sentry Security lived as they did. Up went the trunk lid. Over slid the top compartment shelf. On the second level sat the short, sturdy wooden spoon.
“Having trouble finding it?” Jeep asked her from the other room. “Will a few extra swats help your vision any?”
“No, here it is. I’m coming.” Jenny took the chance to rub her backside before she left the closet and returned to his side quickly. She did not want extras. Twenty would be quite enough.
“Lean over the bed.” Jeep patted the spot.
She complied, her face warming with her chagrin. It always gave her a strange, small feeling when he pulled her skirt up and tucked the hem into her waistband. His large fingers, so used to doing wonderful pleasurable things to her, felt hard and unyielding as they pulled her underclothes out of the way. In other circumstances, these feelings would be ones of power and pride in the effect she had on him, even after all these years. Now, it was merely embarrassing. How badly she had behaved! It was her own fault she had landed in this position once again. When would she learn?