Page 177 of Daddy, Take Me Away
“Count them, baby.”
He moved his aim back to the center of my ass, the fleshiest part, and I did as I was told.
“One!”
Counting made it worse–the pain, the anticipation, even the humiliation, and certainly the aching of my pussy.
“Two!” I cried when the fire striped my butt again.
“Good girl, baby. Let this remind you not to run from Daddy in the future. You stay by Daddy’s side and be a good girl, okay?” He didn’t give me a chance to answer before laying down another stripe.
“Three! Yes, Daddy!” I didn’t say that I wouldn’t have a chance to run off or even call him Daddy after tomorrow. Neither of us did. That particular reality was too painful and neither of us knew quite how to deal with it. But it was there in the room with us, in the air between us. I could feel it with every breath I took. I welcomed the pain because for a split second, it could make me forget.
Cas must have felt the same way, because the fourth and fifth strokes were delivered swiftly and close together.
It was getting harder to stay in place, so I wiggled my ass at him and reveled in his answering chuckle.
“Careful, babygirl, you have to take the end of your spanking first.”
“But whhhyyy, Daddy?”
Cas didn’t answer, but the question was rhetorical anyway and as the leather flew toward its target, the hotel room door burst open, the cool air bringing a chill across my hot bottom.
I assumed it was the storm, and the worn-down hotel not quite being strong enough to hold up. Still, I didn’t want to moon anyone who happened to be brave enough to be out in this weather, so I quickly gasped and rolled onto my back until Cas could shut the door.
What I saw instead of the wind threatening to pull an old door off its hinges was… my brother. Jared stood in the doorway, soaking wet, with his arms folded over his chest.
Chaos ensued. I screamed and tried to wrap my naked self up in the blanket. Cas moved in front of me to shield me from Jared’s view, and practically threw the belt across the room.
I screamed again, and once I was covered, pulled myself to standing and flattened my body against the wall, while Cas advanced on Jared with one hand up in the air in front of him and the other clutching a pillow in front of his junk.
“Listen, bro… it's not… uh… it's not what it looks like.”
Cas was nervous, I could tell. He didn't sound like himself.
Maybe I should try to explain. Woman up and pull up my big girl panties. Deal with my brother head on. Intent on doing just that, I licked my lower lip and took a step toward the center of the room.
Cas did the same thing, and started again. “I was just… we were… its just… see it's like…”
Fuck. He was really struggling.
Taking three giant steps, I walked up to my brother, looked him straight in the eye, got ready to speak my truth and what I hoped was also Cas’ and realized something.
Jared didn't look angry. His face wasn't red. His hands were not in fists at his side. The vein in his forehead wasn't throbbing the way it did when work stressed him out. In fact, he was just standing there, smirking.
I cocked my head, trying to figure out what to make of it when Cas interjected again no more eloquent than he had sounded before. “Jared, man… it’s not… what it looks like.”
I rolled my eyes. My brother had the same reaction.
“Really, Cas? It’s not? It’s not what it looks like? ‘Cause it looks like you finally pulled your head out of your ass, and gave my bratty sister the discipline she’s been needing for the last eight years, subsequently realizing that you guys were fucking made for each other and have had a serious ‘thou doth protest too much, enemies to lovers’ vibe going on for the past three.”
Cas and I stared at each other, wide-eyed and open-mouthed while Jared continued.
“So is that not what it is? Because I’m telling you right now, if it’s anything else, like some sort of convenient vacation fling, then and only then, are you and I going to have a problem.”
I stared at Jared, blinking rapidly, trying to make sense of the words coming out of his mouth and the things that had happened. There was something niggling at my brain, but I couldn’t make it connect, couldn’t make sense of it. “I… you… you’re not mad?”
My brother widened his stance and uncrossed his arms, staring pointedly at Cas. “Depends. Which thing is it? The first, or the second?”
