Page 11 of Unzoned

"Neck." He sighed and placed the bottles down softly on the counter. She pulled her hand away from her neck. She really needed to stop being so damn transparent. "You told me you were staying home alone and getting to bed early. You said you couldn't talk last night because you were fighting a headache." He advanced on her, step by step until he stood directly in front of her.

"Uh, that's right."

"But?" One hand rested on the counter top on either side of her.

"I lied." She breathed out, relief soaring through her. She hated to lie, and did so rarely, but doing it with him felt worse. Especially now with the disapproval blossoming in his eyes.

"Why?" His eyes bore into her, not giving her a square inch of privacy as she considered her answer.

"I didn't want to get into everything with you. I wasn't sure of what I wanted, and I wasn’t sure of what to do. So, I told you I wasn't feeling great."

"The wine?"

"Friends. I had some of the nurses over last night."

"Did you think about maybe telling me the truth? That you needed some time to think, and we'd talk today?"

Completely trapped yet feeling freer than she had in a long time. He wasn’t going to let her talk her way out of it, he wasn't going to throw up his hands and give up. The man wanted to talk.

"No, not really." She smiled with her admission.

"Hmm." He nodded.” Do you think you will next time?"

Alarm bells should have rang. Hell, a blaring horn should have been going off from the darkness of his gaze.

"Uh, maybe. Probably. I don't know. This is all new for me."

"I know." Again, he nodded. "So, here's that teaching moment I was talking about." He pushed off the counter and grabbed her by the elbow, walking her toward her bedroom.

"What?" She tried to squirm out of his grasp, but he didn’t let up his grip.

Once in the bedroom, he pointed to the corner.

"You lied. Last night, and today. You didn't even consider telling me the truth. And you hid your concerns from me. Which do you think was the more wrong thing to do?" His hands planted on his hips, and his eyes narrowed.

None of it sounded good. "I don't know."

"That's because it's all the same kind of bad. Bad girls lie. Bad girls hide. What else do bad girls do, Jade? Can you tell me?"

She swallowed. The moisture in her panties betrayed the nervous shaking of her hands. "Uh, they-" Ugh, she couldn't say it, but he looked too willing to wait her out. "They get punished?" she whispered. Maybe if she didn’t say it loud enough, they could breeze over it.

Fat chance, though.

"Damn right they do." He unbuttoned his cuffs and went about folding his shirt sleeves up to his elbows. She could have run, should have at least given the idea a few seconds of thought, but she didn't. Instead, she stood in front of him as he finished rolling up his sleeves and sat at the foot of her bed.

"Now. Off with those jeans and panties. And not just down around your knees, all the way off,” he directed in a deep, firm voice. Playful Garrick wasn’t anywhere to be seen. Authority ruled his tone and his expression.

She stared at him, confused, aroused, and scared all at the same time. Not sure which to deal with first she looked to him for direction. He'd know what to do, surely.

Chapter 8

The woman stood frozen in her bedroom; her hands stuck to the button of her jeans. Fuck he loved her in jeans. They showed every curve and accentuated her waist, no matter which pair she wore. He'd seen her in yoga pants, sweat pants, her scrubs, but it was her jeans he loved most.

After several moments passed with no movement from her, he took pity on her. "Jade. Your pants. Take them down, then your panties. Then I want you to come over here, lay across my lap."

"Why?" A whispered question so ridiculous, it could only come from someone near panic. Like at the club, although there were no tears this time. He could all but hear her heart hammering away in her chest, her eyes wide and searching while her face emptied of color.

"Because you were a bad girl, and I'm going to spank you." He wouldn't soothe her yet. A little fear was to be expected. Letting her feel the trepidation and regret led into her acceptance of her punishment. Once it was over with, he would comfort the hell out of her. He’d spend the rest of the day soothing her if she needed it.

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