The Instigator

by Abigail Webster

  Rob unloaded his bag and headed in the house. "Holly, I'm home," he called out. She didn't come running like Becky had, but he hadn't expected her to. He took his bag upstairs and put it on the bed. Rob was sure he would find Holly in the room they used as a home office, talking on the computer. She spent nearly all of her free time in there, talking to all sorts of people that he didn't know. He tossed his coat and tie on the bed, and then walked down the hallway to find his wife. He was disappointed that she didn't come and greet him, but he didn't know how to fix that. It was hardly the type of thing he could demand of her.

  Just as he thought, Holly was at the computer. He walked up behind her and leaned down to give her a kiss hello.

  "Don't! Can't you see I'm trying to type?" she snapped. "I can't believe you're so late getting home! Where have you been, anyway?"

  "I dropped off Trevor and Becky had a late supper for us," he explained.

  "Oh yes! The perfect little Becky. Does she realize you have a home and wife of your own?" Holly demanded, her tone full of venom.

  "I had my cell phone, Holly. You could have called if you were worried."

  "I wasn't worried... and there is no point in calling. You'd just make up some story and not tell me the truth anyway!"

  "Holly, shut off the computer. We're going to have a talk." There was no sense in putting it off. He needed to put his foot down and set some rules. Holly's behavior was out of control.

  "No. There is nothing to talk about. You never spend any time with me, Rob. I'm miserable. I want you to pack up your things and move out." Her green eyes were fixed on the screen as if the words typed there meant more than Rob's reaction to her words.

  "I'm not going anywhere, Holly. You insisted we buy this house, and I'm not leaving. Get off the computer, and we'll talk."

  "I told you NO!" she snapped at him. "Just get out and leave me alone, Rob. I'm sick to death of you and your perfect twin sister!"

  Rob's temper snapped. He reached out, and flipped the switch on the power strip, effectively shutting off the computer and everything else.

  "Rob! Look what you've done!" Holly screamed at him, her eyes snapping in fury.

  "We are long overdue a talk, Holly, and we are going to talk NOW," he said firmly. He pulled the chair away from the desk "Come with me."

  "I told you I don't want to talk! Leave me alone, Robert Martin Crawford!"

  Rob muttered under his breath, but he was determined that his wife was going to hear him out. He turned the chair around and pulled her to her feet. When she struggled, he picked her up and put her over his shoulder and carried her from the room, kicking and cursing. "Settle down, Holly, or I am going to turn you over my knee and spank you."

  Holly went perfectly still for about two seconds, and then declared, "You wouldn't DARE spank me, Robert Crawford!"

  "Unless you want to be proven wrong, you'd best calm down right now, Mrs. Crawford," Rob replied. Holly cursed again, and started pounding on his back while screaming at him to put her down. He carried her into their bedroom, kicked the door shut with his right foot, and then walked over to the bench in front of her vanity. He took a seat and then flipped the little blond over his knee. All she was wearing was a short, silky robe, and the minute he turned her bottom side up, the robe slipped upwards to reveal her pretty bare bottom. Rob took a second to admire the site, and then spanked the inviting target. "You can tell me when you are ready to listen, Holly. I dare say I can keep this up longer than you can."

  Holly was in shock! Completely in shock! She'd never dreamed that Rob would actually spank her, but he was... and it hurt! "Ouch!" she cried out, unable to prevent herself from doing so. "Stop! You are hurting me!" she protested. Rob ignored her and even spanked that much harder! "Rob, did you hear me? Owwwww! It HURTS!" she tried to wiggle off his lap, but his left arm was wrapped snugly about her slender waist, and she couldn't evade his large hand as it meted out the punishment. "Please, stop!" she gasped when that same hand moved a bit lower and caught an even more sensitive spot right above her thigh.

  "I'm not stopping until I am convinced you are going to give me your attention and hear me out, Holly Danielle Crawford. I'm tired of your sharp tongue, and from now on THIS is how I intend to deal with your sarcasm and your hurtful comments."

  "I only want to have more time with you, Rob, and you're never here!" she accused heatedly. "That isn't a good excuse to beat me!" she cried.

  "This isn't a beating, honey. It's a well-deserved spanking on the part of your body meant for spanking. I'm not in a rage, and I am not out of control. I am out of patience, however, and taking a firm stand. I love you, Holly, or I would have walked out the door months ago!" He continued to spank her until her bottom and upper thighs were a deep red, and burning furiously. "Are you ready to have a conversation now, Mrs. Crawford?" he paused to ask.

  "NO!" she hissed angrily. "I'm going to kill you, Rob! I can't believe you are treating me like this! It's simply not done!" She was furious, embarrassed, and she was in pain.

  "You certainly are a brave one," Rob grinned in spite of himself. "Seems to me that you wouldn't want anymore spanking, but I can see you do!"

  "NO!" she instantly realized that arguing with him was a huge mistake. "NO! I do NOT want you to spank me!" she yelled angrily, trying once more to escape the hold he had on her.

  Rob just shook his head. "You aren't going anywhere until you change your tune, young lady, and lose the attitude." He half turned, and spotted her hairbrush lying on the vanity table. He picked it up, and decided it would do a good job on her sore butt, and spare his sore hand in the process. "Maybe your hairbrush will make more of an impression than my hand?" he asked rhetorically.

  Holly gasped in shock and pain when he rested the brush on her flaming rear for a few seconds before he spanked her right cheek. "YEOOOOCH!" Two seconds later, the brush landed on her left cheek, and it HURT. "Rob, nooooo! I can't stand it! Please stop! Please!" Holly felt hysterical, and she fought as hard as she could to evade the painful spanks on her tender bottom.

  "I can't stand your attitude and your sharp tongue, Mrs. Crawford. I can't stand your threats of divorce, especially when I know we love each other and neither of us wants a divorce. I can't stand your using the threat of divorce over my head all the time just to get your way. From now on, THIS is what will happen when you try to slice me to pieces with your hateful words." Rob was not enjoying Holly's cries of pain, and he only hoped he could hold out long enough to break through that wall of attitude she wore around her all the time.

  "Rob! Honey! Stop! Please! I'm begging you! I'm so sorry! I'm sorry! I really am sorry!" Holly sobbed between cracks of the hairbrush. Rob was spanking that same tender area between her cheeks and thighs once again, and it was awful. She didn't know how much more she could bear! "I'm sorry I threatened you with divorce. I love you, Rob." She really DID love him, Holly realized. "Please, honey!"

  Rob stopped spanking to ask, "Are you ready to have a civilized conversation now, Holly?"

  "Yes!" she replied, thankful he'd stopped spanking her sore backside.

  "Good." Rob was gentle as he lifted her to her feet. He caught her hands when she started to reach back. "No rubbing, Holly," he said quietly. "That spanking is meant to last a while, and if it doesn't, I'll turn you over my knee again!"

  "No! You wouldn't!" Holly's words weren't a dare, but more of an expression of dismay. "I don't want another spanking... ever!" Her green eyes were swimming in tears and she whispered, "I'm sorry, honey!"

  "No rubbing, honey," he warned, pulling her close to hug her and offer comfort. He permitted her to cry for several minutes, and then said, "Holly, I don't want a divorce, and I really don't think you want one either... am I correct?" he asked.

  Holly looked up at him, and the hurt in his blue eyes was painful for her to see. "I don't want a divorce, Rob," she admitted. "I just want us to be happy, and we aren't. I don't know how to fix it, either. You are gone so much of the time, and we c
an't agree on anything. I feel like a failure. Your family hates me... especially Becky," she stated.

  Rob had heard the accusation before. "Becky doesn't hate you, Holly; she hates the fact that she can feel how unhappy I am. She's blaming me for not standing up to you."

  "So you spanked me to please her?" Holly was hurt.

  "Nope. I spanked you because I decided it was time to take drastic measures if our marriage is going to work. Honey, Becky knows I love you. Never once has she encouraged me to leave you. She wants us to make our marriage work." Holly was silent, but at least she was listening and not screaming at him. Rob decided that was a good sign. "You are right when you said we aren't agreeing on much of anything. This weekend I want us to sit down and take those things one at a time and agree to a standard. We need to make a budget and then stick to it."

  "Oh, that will be just fine and dandy!" Holly scoffed. "You'll make me save every last penny!"

  "We don't even have an emergency fund; what if one of us was injured and couldn't work for a few weeks? We'd lose this house, or our vehicles. This isn't something I take lightly, Hol. We need to spend a lot less than we do, and those damned credit cards should be used for emergencies only."

  "You don't understand that I need clothes for work, Rob. I'm expected to look glamorous all the time, and the kinds of clothing I need for my work do not come cheap."

  "Okay. We'll set an allowance for your work clothing within the budget, honey. I don't expect you to do without what you need."

  She smiled. "Okay."

  "What I'm objecting most to is those spur of the moment purchases that aren't necessary. The shop to feel good sprees you go on when you're upset." He looked down at her and shook his finger. "One night you came home with four pairs of shoes, Hol. When the bill came, you'd spent close to $350. The last I checked, those shoes hadn't been worn yet." Holly's eyes dropped and her cheeks turned pink.

  "Okay," she finally admitted. "I did go overboard there. I'm sorry."

  "It's not the only time, honey," he reminded her. "This kind of overspending is killing us, and it has to stop now. We'll never accumulate a nest egg if you keep spending more than we earn." He realized she wasn't going to answer, and said, "It's late. We can talk more about a budget tomorrow. Right now, all I want from you is a promise that we are going to talk and not fight."

  "I don't like fighting, either, Rob," Holly answered.

  "We aren't going to use sarcasm either."

  "What if I don't agree with you?" she asked. "I'm not a meek and mild woman without a mind!" she declared.

  "I don't expect you to keep your opinions to yourself, honey. I want to know what you think, and I promise to take your wishes into consideration. But, there can only be one head of household, and that is my job as your husband. My promise to you is that I will always hear you out, weigh your wishes against my own, and do my best to make a decision that is best for us in the long run. Will you trust me to do that?" he asked softly.

  "You are asking me to trust you completely?" Holly stated. "What if I don't agree with your decision?"

  "I am sure there will be times you don't agree," he nodded. "But, do you trust me to always do what I feel is best for us? Do you trust me not to be a selfish bastard and put myself before you?"

  "Of course I do!" she seemed shocked that he would think otherwise. "You aren't selfish, Rob!" She paused, and then smiled, "I guess I just answered your question. We have to start working together in this marriage, and there can only be one boss. Right?"

  "Right. But a good boss is always open to ideas and suggestions."

  "As long as I have my say, and you promise to really consider my words, then I can live with you having the final word," Holly agreed. "I do love you," she said so earnestly that he chuckled, and then kissed her.

  "I love you, too, Mrs. Crawford."

  "You have a funny way of showing it!" Holly's hand went back to her bottom. "I still burn and hurt something awful, Robert Clawson!"

  She was pouting, Rob realized. He kissed her lightly, and then said, "That spanking was an act of love. I wouldn't take the time to spank a woman I didn't love, Holly. And, I'm going to be honest right now and tell you that I've considered spanking you for some time now. The only reason I didn't was because I was afraid you would walk out the door and divorce me. Now that I know you love me as much as I love you, I will spank you whenever I feel you need a spanking. Not to be mean; not to control you, but to help you control yourself."

  "I'll bet your twin wouldn't permit Trevor to spank her!" Holly retorted, not sure whether she should be angry or pleased with his words.

  "My sister is sporting a sore bottom right now," he said matter-of-factly. "Trevor is the only man, besides Dad, who can handle Becky's temper and her tendency to get into trouble."

  "But, they are so much in love!" Holly gasped in surprise.

  "And so are we," he reminded her. "A spanking is a good thing when used in the right way, Hol."

  "Not if you are on the receiving end!" she insisted.

  "It does sting, but aren't you feeling better inside your skin right now? Settled, at peace? Do you feel loved?" he asked, searching her green eyes for answers.

  Holly stomped her foot in irritation. "You are so unfair, Rob! How do you always know what I am thinking and feeling? I want to be mad at you... I want to throw a fit because you treated me like a bratty child... I want you to apologize and say sorry... But, instead, I do feel loved... and I think a part of me has needed this for a long time." She reached out and smacked him on the arm. "But, I don't want to admit any of that!"

  He chuckled, and kissed her deeply. "We've talked enough for one night. I want to get to the making up part," he whispered. Holly kissed him back, and he could feel that she was as anxious to make love as he was. For the first time in months Rob felt as though his marriage had a chance of working.

  "Let me get this stuff off the bed," he said purposefully, and moved to get his suitcase. As Holly was reaching for his suit coat to hang it up for Rob, she managed to knock the bag from his hand. The latch clicked open of its own accord, and to Rob's shock a pair of lacy panties lie on top of his boxers. "What the...?"

  Holly reached down to pick them up and held them up accusingly, her green eyes full of hurt.

  "Who do these things belong to, Rob? Who have you been with?" She wanted to die. Two seconds ago she was full of hope for their marriage, and now? She was sick to her stomach at the thought of her husband with another woman.

  "Holly, I don't now how these got here. Maybe Trevor is playing a joke?" he offered, puzzled. "No, he wouldn't do that. He knows how upset you would get."

  "I'm more than upset, Rob. How could you cheat on me?"

  Chapter Three

  "How dare you come home and tell me you love me... and SPANK me...! After you've cheated on me?!?" Holly screeched angrily. "I hate you! I really hate you, Robert Clawson! Get the fuck out of my bedroom, my house, and my life!" She pointed at the door. "Go now!"

  "Holly, please, calm down. I know how this looks, but I swear I didn't do anything wrong. You have been the only woman in my life since I first set eyes on you. I don't know where these panties came from."

  "LIAR!"

  Rob felt his temper flare. If there was one thing guaranteed to make him angry in a heartbeat, it was to be wrongly accused of something he didn't do. He did not lie, ever, for any reason at all! "I am not a liar. You need to calm down right now and let me sort this out."

  "I am not stupid, Rob. Why else would those sexy panties be in your bag? There is no other reasonable excuse. You were with someone else and her panties got in your bag by mistake, or else she put them there hoping I would find them and end our marriage!" Holly was furious. "Is she prettier than I am? What does she have that I haven't? Why would you cheat on me, Rob?"

  "I did not cheat on you, Holly, and you are close to getting your fanny spanked again," he growled. "I did not cheat."

  "Don't lie to me."

&nb
sp; It was the final straw. Rob didn't know how the panties came to be in his bag, but he knew he wasn't lying to his wife, and he wasn't going to be accused of something he didn't do. He grabbed her arm, spun her around, and smacked her already smarting rear hard. "You listen to me, Holly Danielle. I am not lying to you! Accuse me of it just once more and I'm going to take my belt to your ass! That is a bona fide promise."

  "How dare you!" she cried, and the look in her green eyes tore him apart.

  "I dare because I am innocent, honey. Look at me... No, really look at me. Look in my eyes. I am not lying to you. I didn't do anything wrong. I do not know where those panties came from." He gave her a little shake. "I don't have a clue how those ended up in my bag, but I'm going to call Trevor and see if he knows. Maybe one of the guys we were working with all week thought it would be funny..? I don't know... but I am giving you my solemn word, there haven't been any other women in my life since I met you..."

  Holly looked at him, but her lower lip was trembling with hurt. "I want to believe you, Rob, but what other explanation could there possibly be?" she asked hopelessly.

  "I don't know, honey," he admitted. "Maybe there was something left in the drawer at the motel and I scooped it out with my boxers when I packed? No," he shook his head. I would have seen them," he stated, puzzled. "They're so obvious." He thought some more, sitting on the bed. "We only stopped for gas and something to drink and snack on... and I made sure to lock up when we were inside. There is just no way..." He looked at his tearful wife, "The only other place I stopped for any length of time was Trevor and Becky's, and..." Rob suddenly knew what happened. The answer was so obvious that he couldn't believe it took him so long to figure it out. He was going to wring Becky's neck! "Becky did it," he announced, his voice flat.