Of Yesterday

by Alta Hensley

  Taylor shook her head to clear her thoughts. She had been terrified to give up everything to make this move, but the idea of this new life excited her. The thought of spending time with Mandy warmed her, and the thought of Jason...well, the thought of Jason confused her. She wanted to strangle the man. Yet, when she remembered his kiss, his embrace, she could not help but crave more. She enjoyed sparring with the arrogant ass. Yet, she did not want him to truly hate her. It was a fine line. Never had her body responded to a man's touch like it did with Jason. His fingers seared past her skin and reached her deepest core. Her pulse pounded at the very thought of him. She could not understand how the memory of him pressing her against the wall took her breath away. She could not understand how the thought of his commands and orders only made her desire increase. Maybe she would be able to figure out what made Jason have this power over her. Maybe, now that the dust had settled a bit, she could figure out what she truly wanted from this modern-day cowboy.

  After cleaning up by giving herself a sponge bath in the water basin provided in her room, Taylor made her way to the closet to try to find something to wear. Jason had assured her that all her needs would be met. Did he mean clothing as well? Inside the beautiful, cherry wood armoire were several summer dresses of all colors and designs. They were absolutely lovely, delicate and feminine. Taylor could not help but smile as she selected a peach dress that would flow just below her knee. The thin straps that tied on each shoulder seemed innocent, yet sensual. She ran an ivory comb through her curly locks and pulled her hair into a loose bun. She looked like she belonged in a Better Homes and Gardens magazine ad. Taylor could not deny that she loved it.

  She walked down the stairs and made her way to a room she guessed to be the parlor. She walked around, her eyes taking in all the splendid furniture. Everything was antique and elegant. Not a piece of furniture nor trinket were modern-day in appearance. The wooden floor, the fireplace, the rocking chair in the corner of the room, all screamed history. It was obvious that every detail to make this house feel like a home of the past was executed flawlessly.

  Taylor walked in the kitchen and found Jason sitting at the table. His long legs were stretched out and one arm was slung over the back of the wooden chair. He exuded superiority and seduction at the same time.

  The kitchen was far from modern. At least there are some useful items, Taylor thought as she noticed an old-fashioned icebox, an indoor hand pump, and a sink with a drain. Sturdy wooden shelves near the stove held several cast-iron frying pans, roasters, cooking pans, and a large coffee pot. Cooking in this kitchen was definitely going to be a challenge.

  "Good Morning, Jason." Taylor walked into the kitchen toward the wooden chair across from Jason and quickly sat down and placed her hands on her lap. She looked down at her short fingernails and now wished she had given herself a manicure one last time."Where's Mandy?"

  "She's out collecting eggs from the chickens so you can make us some breakfast." His eyes scanned her from head to toe. "You look really pretty today."

  Taylor bit her tongue. She was about to tell him to make his own damn breakfast, but tried to remind herself that a deal was made, and she needed to keep up her end of the bargain. The compliment did not hurt, though.

  Jason leaned forward on the table. "Everything has happened pretty fast. I want to take this time to get to know you."

  Taylor shifted her weight and wiped her dampened palms on her dress. "Well, I uh…I love kids and I...I'm not really sure what you want—"

  "Favorite food?" Jason interrupted. The firmness in the question startled her.

  "Cheese." Taylor caught the corner of his mouth curve to what looked like a smile.

  He continued, "Favorite color?"

  "White." Taylor swallowed the lump forming in the back of her throat. She had no idea why this man made her so nervous. "I know white isn't really a color, but I like it."

  Jason just stared at her. Was he thinking? Was he waiting for her to continue? This man was impossible to read. What did she need to say? What did he want?

  "My favorite music is anything with an acoustic guitar," she blurted out."I love to dance and I attempt to run from time to time. I love unusual flowers but hate roses. Well, except the pretty yellow ones around my window. Those are gorgeous. I adore children but am uncomfortable around teens. I love coffee at all times of the day, since the caffeine doesn’t seem to work on me." Taylor paused as a small smile worked its way on Jason's face. "Is that what you meant?"

  He took a deep breath and leaned across the table. "I think we need to get the rules straight while you live here."

  "Rules? You give rules to all your house guests to obey?"

  "You're hardly a guest in this house. You're expected to do all the womanly duties that were expected in the past. With Mandy's help, of course. I am the man of the house and I expect to be treated as such. As I explained before you agreed—"

  "Yes, yes. I know. You want things like the way they once were. I get it." Taylor stood up and walked over to the kitchen window above the old sink. "History was not my best subject in school."

  "There will be a lot of things going on, a lot of construction and a lot of change. I don't have all the answers yet, but I need you to let me lead. Are we clear?"

  Taylor nodded. "I'll try my best." This whole concept intrigued and overwhelmed her.

  "So, first rule is that other than the grounds in short distance from the house, you are not to leave until I feel it's safe."

  "Safe?" Taylor turned around so she was facing Jason once again.

  "Because we're so isolated in the wilderness, there are a lot of wild animals, poisonous plants and so forth. I don't want you or Mandy out in it, until I have secured the premises."

  Taylor walked toward the table, her eyes glancing around the room. "So we're to sit inside this house, day after day, until our Master declares our freedom?"

  Jason stood up, towering over her. Crossing his arms, he replied, "That's right." He smirked. "I like the Master part. Nice touch." He chuckled.

  "You're going to keep me in this house all cooped up? What if I get bored?" She looked mischievously into Jason's eyes. "What could I possibly do to keep myself busy? Hmmm..." She tapped her index finger against her puckered lips. "I guess I could always teach Mandy some witchcraft."

  With a movement quicker than lightning, he grabbed her by the arm, pulling her close. The erotic scent of man permeated her nose, shooting tingles between her legs. "You bring that crap into my home and you'll be pulled over my knee faster than you can blink. I don't recommend you even mentioning the word witch to Mandy unless you want to find your ass tanned." His lips were so close, his eyes lowered to hers. Would he kiss her again?

  Before Taylor could wrap her head around what was just threatened, the door of the kitchen swung open and Mandy walked inside. Jason released his grip and stepped back. Taylor couldn't resist giving an impish smile. She loved how she could get under his skin so easily.

  Mandy looked from one to the other. "Did I walk into something?" Mandy beamed.

  Jason grabbed his hat and made his way to the door. "Just going over the rules. You ladies have a good day. I think I'm going to skip breakfast."

  Chapter Six

  Taylor looked around the kitchen with a sense of fear and intimidation. She could cook. In fact, she could cook quite well. But with no modern-day tools, she was not really sure where to begin.

  She knew the first order of business was to get the stove fired up. She was doing what common sense told her and basically planned to wing her way through the process of cooking tonight's meal. Mandy just sat back and watched in awe. Taylor made sure to open both the draft and damper wide before lighting the match. It should not be that hard to light a simple cookstove fire.

  Once hearing the growing crackle from inside, she sighed in relief. She removed the front cooking lid and added more wood to the small fire. Taylor smiled at Mandy, happy she had accomplished her first task. She pumped
water into the coffee pot and went to remove a large ham from the icebox. She also took out the ingredients to make some griddle cakes to go along with the meat.

  "I think I might have just learned a thing or two from watching all those episodes of Little House on the Prairie." Taylor laughed.

  Mandy laughed as well. Her bare feet brushing back and forth on the wooden floor, her giggles, and her constant company, warmed Taylor through and through. It was hard to be anything but happy in the presence of this young woman.

  A large crackle and pop pulled Taylor's attention back to the stove. The fire! From the noises coming from the stove, it sounded like she may have created a full blown inferno. Without thinking, she grabbed the coffee pot full of water and tossed it onto the fire to extinguish the flames. Most of the fire went out, but the kitchen soon filled with smoke. Coughing and choking on the pungent vapors, Taylor fiddled with the damper some more to try to maintain the fire but eliminate the smoke.

  Her adjustment seemed to work after a few moments. Wiping the tears from her burning eyes, she turned to Mandy. "Open up the door and let some air in."

  Mandy looked at her like a frightened doe. She quickly followed the command and ran to offer her assistance.

  Taylor grabbed a dish towel and tried to wave the smoke out past the open door. Coughing again, Taylor said, "Well, we're off to a fine start, aren't we?"

  ****

  The full moon lit up the clear night, making it a perfect evening for a quick jog. Taylor had had a great, yet exhausting day with Mandy, but she needed to feel the air hit her face as her feet pounded against the ground. She needed a release.

  Jason was still downstairs, awake. Did the man ever sleep? Taylor waited for as long as she could, but had no choice but to plan her escape now before fatigue took over. She knew that going for a run was out of the question, per his rules. And a night run would even be worse in his eyes, but Taylor did not care. She would sneak out of the house like a teenager trying to meet up with her secret boyfriend.

  Taylor threw back the bed covers and pulled off the cotton sheets. She started to knot the bed linens into a makeshift rope she would use to climb out the window. Throwing her leg over the pane, she found her first footing. Holding onto the ledge, she backed out of the window and placed her second foot onto the lattice that held all the beautiful yellow roses. With her full weight on the framework, she could feel the wood break away from the house and begin to sway. Moving as quickly as she could, she descended down the knotted sheets, using the wooden lattice to aid in her escape. Every thorn of every rose pierced and scraped her arms and legs with each move downward. If she had not hated roses before, after tonight she would never want to see, or smell, another for as long as she lived.

  Inches before reaching the bottom, the sheets broke loose and she fell the remaining distance, landing square on her bottom. The thud, and her own squeal, did little for her covert operation. She stood up and brushed the petals, thorns, and dust from her body, praying Jason had not heard a thing.

  Taylor started as a deep voice called from the shadows, "What in the hell are you doing?" Jason emerged from the darkness, anger painting his face. "Are you crazy? You could have broken your neck!"

  Taylor's heart skipped a beat. "I...I uh...I wanted to go for a run. I knew you wouldn't allow it...and uh...well..." She knew how stupid her idea seemed. And after her little misadventure, Taylor could not help but be embarrassed by her poor use of judgment.

  "You've got one minute to march your ass back into that house," Jason commanded.

  The demand attacked every ounce of feminism and woman power Taylor had in her. Them were fighting words. "I will not! I will go on my jog just as I planned." Even though Taylor's body stung and ached from her climb and fall, she was not going to let this man win.

  "Wrong. You will turn your little butt around and get inside before I do it for you."

  "You're not the boss of me!" she yelled, her arms folded over her chest and her lips in a pout. Taylor knew she was acting like a spoiled brat, but she could not help it.

  "You've got five seconds," he warned.

  Taylor stood her ground, shooting daggers from her dark green eyes.

  "Five, four, three, two, one. Time's up."

  He started for her with two big strides. Taylor tried to back away with no avail. Jason picked her up and threw her over his shoulder with very little effort.

  "Put me down now!" she said, trying to kick and punch her way free.

  Jason swatted her ass, causing a yelp to escape Taylor's lips. Jason continued to spank her bottom as he made his way toward the house. She continued to pummel him with her fists, only to have them bounce off his muscled back. Each punch warranted another spank from him. With her bottom high in the air, Taylor was at Jason's mercy. Even though she fought, her desire grew with each swat of his hand. The spanking was infuriating...and yet, was erotic at the same time.

  "How dare you hit me?" she screamed.

  Jason spanked her three more times before saying, "I'm not hitting you. I'm giving you a good ol' fashion spanking."

  He made his way through the front door and sat down on the kitchen chair, slinging Taylor's body across his lap. Without pause, Jason continued to place swats all over Taylor's now-burning backside. With her face inches from the ground, Taylor did everything in her power to kick and fight her way free, but Jason's strength won over.

  "Stop! Stop...Okay, I'm sorry," she pleaded.

  "Not until I'm sure you will never do something so foolish, reckless, and dangerous again." Jason swatted her behind as he spoke.

  "I won't! I know what I did was stupid. You don't need to spank me for me to know that!"

  The spanking continued, leaving Taylor breathless with sexual hunger. The sting was like electricity, that went straight to her inner core. She had no choice but to succumb to the punishment. Closing her eyes, she flinched with each spank, but no longer put up a fight. The surrender was like nothing she could have ever imagined. It felt right, natural, and damn if it didn't feel good.

  "Just know that if you ever do something that puts your life at risk again, I'll give you a spanking that won't allow you to sit for days." Jason gave her one final swat to emphasize his point.

  Taylor was released from his grip and stood up, trying to rub the sting from her backside. She pushed back some loose curls that covered her face, and blood dripped from her fingers.

  Jason shot out of his seat and grabbed her bloody hand. "You're hurt."

  Taylor smirked. "No kidding, cowboy. You just spanked me. Was that suppose to feel good?" she sulked.

  He gently grabbed her other hand and ran his fingers along the scrapes and puncture wounds caused from the thorny trellis descent. He scanned her body, taking notice of all the injuries along her arms and legs as well.

  "Sit down," he softly directed. His anger seemed to have vanished.

  Taylor had no desire to argue, in fear that she would land back over his knee, even though a secret part of her wanted that again.

  Jason walked over to a drawer, pulling out a first aid kit.

  As he made his way back to the table, he shook his head. "I can't believe you did something so stupid."

  Taylor just sat in silence. She had no good excuse and all the spit and vinegar had left her body.

  Gradually he began to remove the thorns from her hands, working his way up each arm and down each leg. Taylor was stunned by how gentle his strong hands could be. Each touch was warm and soft.

  "I'm not hurting you, am I?" He did not look up as his eyes focused intently on each thorn.

  Taylor could not help but huff. "You weren't concerned about that when you were spanking me."

  Jason continued to remove the thorns, never making eye contact. "You had that coming."

  "A spanking? You think I had a spanking coming? You can't be serious."

  Jason plucked the last thorn out of Taylor's body. "I am. And there will be more where that came from if you don't behave.
" He ran his fingers along her arms, her legs and then her hands tenderly. "I think I got them all out. Can you feel anymore?"

  Taylor's head spun with all the different sensations coursing through her. Her body stung from all the thorns and scrapes. Her ass burned from the spanking, and her inner core throbbed with desire. She wanted more. She wanted more of Jason's touch...whichever way he chose to give it.

  "No, I think you got them all. Thank you."

  Jason applied some ointment on the bigger scrapes and placed some bandages on the ones that were still bleeding.

  "You're welcome." He packed up the first aid kit and made his way to the stairs. "Come on, let's go to bed."

  Taylor's heart skipped a beat. If only he truly meant what he said. Spending a night in this cowboy's bed seemed like one hell of an idea.

  When they reached the hallway between their bedrooms, they both paused in awkward silence. There was something about Jason that made her want to wrap her arms around him and entice her way into his bed. But at the same time, she wanted to strangle the jerk. After tonight, she wanted him more than ever before. Was it the spanking? Was it the strength, the over-protectiveness, and his dominance? Or was it his gentle touch as he cared for her lovingly? Taylor could not figure it out.

  Jason was the first to break the silence. "Good night, Taylor."

  The huskiness of his voice made her heart pitter patter and her knees go weak. God, she wanted him.

  "Good night, Jason." She walked into her room and closed the door behind her.

  She turned and looked over at the naked bed, quickly realizing that her foolish attempt to escape had left her sheets in a knotted pile outside in the dark. She had no choice but to go to Jason to see where the spare sheets were stored. Turning back around, she went to knock on his door.

  Before she could even get the second knock to connect with the wood, it flung open. Jason emerged, his body silhouetted by the light shining through his window. He grabbed her by the back of the neck and pulled her lips to his. The warmth on her mouth dissolved away all thought, and every sense in her body, except for touch. Fire exploded within her, leaving her panting for air. Jason spanned her waist with his strong hands, his fingertips meeting as he pulled her hard against him. She felt his loss of control, as a shudder ripped through him. Taylor gasped for breath, aware of the bulge in his pants, screaming for release. The moan she’d been trying to hold back escaped her in a tantalizing rush. Jason’s hands tightened at her waist. He reeled her into him, molding her to his solid chest with unexpectedly sensual, gentle hands. Feeling more of the hard length of his sex pressing against her stomach, Taylor craved more.