Page 94 of On His Ranch

“Yes,” she whimpered; the moment she said it she knew it was the wrong answer.

Chase lifted her off her lap and set her on her feet in one quick movement.

Piper was so caught off guard by the change, not to mention the not-so-gentle way he handled her that her legs wobbled and she had to reach out for him to steady herself on her feet. He either didn’t notice, or didn’t care because he didn’t comment. As soon as she let go, he stood up.

“Bend over the chair,” he ordered.

“Wh-what?” Her voice quivered.

“You’re right, Piper. At the end of the day, you can do whatever you want, and I can’t stop you, but you’ll still pay for it.”

“Chase…” When his face remained a hard mask, she bit down on her bottom lip. She didn’t want to be spanked more, didn’t want the pain, but it was more than that. He hadn’t softened, not even a little bit. The man she was looking at now felt like a stranger, and that scared her. “Please.”

If he heard her plea, he gave no sign of it. “Bend over the chair. Put your hands on the seat, and push your butt out.”

“Daddy…”

“Now!”

Her tears began to fall in a hot torrent down her cheeks. “If that’s what you tell me to do, I will,” she near whispered. “But this isn’t you.”

His only response was a hard glare. “Do. It. Now.”

More tears fell, and in a way, Piper was grateful for it, because it made his angry face harder to see. Moving with small, hesitant baby steps, hoping that any moment he might relent, Piper walked to the chair. One by one, she put her hands on the seat and then arched her back toward him.

“More.”

With a sob, she obeyed.This is the worst I’ve felt in my whole life. I wish I’d never come here, that he’d never found me, that I’d just gone to Aunt Sarah’s! She may not be warm, but anything would be better than falling in love and having it ripped away like this.

Piper inhaled a sharp, shaky breath, trying to stay calm. But there was the ache in her chest, the knots in her stomach, and what was soon to be a very sore behind, if he carried out his implied threat.

For several long, agonizing moments neither of them said anything. And then she heard his footsteps, felt his hands on her back. For a second, he rested his hand on the small of her back, and her heart gave a leap of hope. Which was instantly dashed when his hands moved to her hips, which he maneuvered until her ass jutted out even further.

The cool air kissed her bare cheeks. Piper shivered, and not from the cold. “Daddy…” She tried one more time.

He clucked his tongue at her. “All naughty little girls wanna do the crime and then cry ‘Daddy.’ Well, I’ve got news for you, missy. You’re not gettin’ out of the whippin’ you’ve got comin’.”

She could barely digest what he’d said before she heard the sound of his belt being unbuckled. Piper turned her head just in time to see him pulling it free of his belt loops. It hissed as he did, and her heart stalled in her chest. “Chase, please.Please,I am so sorry, please believe me. I’ll never do it again, I swear.”

But his face didn’t change one iota as he looped the belt in his hand. “That’s what they all say.”

His words stung even more than when he brought his arm down and the belt cracked against her bottom. The impact was instant. A line of fire sizzled along her skin. But she was so broken by his words, she almost didn’t feel it.

The next whack she felt. He’d given it just slightly below the first so that another line of fire began and yet mingled with the one before.

Then there was the sound of something hitting the floor. Piper knew better than to move out of position, so she stayed bent over, hands taut on the seat. Only when she felt sure several minutes had passed did she dare turn her head. She saw the belt on the floor. Craning her neck, she realized she was all alone. He had left without a word to her.

Any other time, his sudden absence would have made her feel bereft. But just now, all she felt was relief. Body-sagging, knee-weakening relief. The man who had wielded that belthadbeen a stranger to her. Even more savage and unkind than the stern-faced cowboy she’d met her first day here.

He doesn’t love me anymore.The thought hit her worse than a shove to the chest and stole her very breath. Tears continued to fall, hot and fast.Maybe I never really knew him at all. That man isn’t the one I love. He’s not my daddy. Yes, I knew he could be stern, even severe, but that… that was over the top. If that’s who hereallyis… I can’t stay here.

And even though the thought had only just occurred to her, Piper knew it with a certainty that filled her whole being with determination. She had to get out of here. What if he came back in a worse mood than he’d been in when he left? She couldn’t risk that. She needed to get moving, without a second to waste.

When she reached the doorway she paused for a single second, taking a good look around the room. When all was said and done, she hadn’t known the Whitfield family for very long. Still, it had felt like home.

You’ll get over it. Things change, people move on.

But even as she tried to reassure herself, Piper knew that the pain of losing her daddy—because even if he was never the man she’d thought him to be, she’d lost him just the same—would never fade. Those were invisible scars she’d carry with her forever.

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