Page 72 of Break Me, Daddy

Again, her anger was validation he hadn’t even realized he’d needed. “I’m not. But I do have a bit of a dilemma. She’s been trying to get me to spank her all morning. Even confessed she lied to me about going to therapy the other day. Got Lottie in some trouble with Braden because she covered for Frankie when it came up.”

“So she definitely earned herself a hell of a punishment for that.”

“She did. But I don’t want there to be any doubt in her mind that I’m punishing her for the lie and not the binge. And I’m worried if I give in and spank her…”

“Then she’ll twist it in her head as a punishment for the binge.” Cordelia let out a low whistle. “Yeah. That is a bit of a dilemma.”

“It is. My instinct is to use a different punishment, but I’m not sure what’s going to get the message across. If we weren’t keeping things platonic, I’d put her on orgasm restriction, maybe force her to sit and write lines while I edged her with a toy.”

Cordelia’s chuckle, dark and a little wicked, came through the phone. “I might have to steal that one. Not that Ivy is ever quite naughty enough for something that harsh, but just in case.”

“Happy to help. Now, I just need to figure out what to do about my own naughty girl.”

“Well, for starters, I think taking her over to Braden’s and having her apologize both to him and Lottie would be a good start. A real apology, not just ‘I’m sorry’. Make her explain what she did and why it was naughty. Did she have any excuse for why she lied about going to her appointment?”

“Said she didn’t need it. That she already knows everything from when she went before.”

“Oh, well then I’d have her write me an essay. With plenty of cited sources about the importance of therapy during recovery. And if it were my girl, I’d make her write me up a detailed schedule of every minute of her day for at least a week with regular check-ins to ensure she is where she’s supposed to be.”

“Hmm. That could work.” The essay, at the very least. Checking up on her like that felt too intrusive for the relationship they were supposed to have.

“The other option, if you think she needs a spanking for the emotional release, would be to have Braden do it.”

Frowning at his computer screen, he rolled the idea around in his mind. “Because she got Lottie involved in her lie.”

“Exactly. And it would be harder for her, in my opinion, to twist it into something it’s not ifyouaren’t the one giving her the spanking. It should be very clear to her why she’s being punished if Braden is the one delivering it.”

“You are sadistically brilliant. It’s a good thing for Ivy she’s such a good girl.”

“It is,” Cordelia agreed with a laugh. “She plays the brat for me to give me an excuse to spank her, but I rarely have to truly punish her. My sweet girl would rather die than disappoint me.”

“You’re good for each other.”

“So are you and Frankie.”

“Really? Then why were you so…”

“Why was I such a bitch about you two getting back together?” she asked, her tone dry.

“I would like it noted that those were not my choice of words. But yes.”

“Because you’re both my friends and the last thing I want is to see either of you doubt what you have because of the circumstances that brought you together. I’ve seen it happen too many times when a Dom swoops in to save a submissive from herself. Once she doesn’t need him anymore, she starts to want her freedom. Or she feels like she owes him and that’s why she stays. You both deserve better than that.”

“We do.” The last thing he wanted was for Frankie to feel trapped, or like she owed him some kind of fucked-up debt because he’d supposedly rescued her.

It was something to think about, and to talk to Frankie about. After her punishment. Ending the call with Cordelia, he scrolled back through his contacts, his thumb hovering over Braden’s name for several long moments before he finally tapped the screen.

“Hey. I need a favor.”

Chapter27

Frankie

As much as she hated to admit it, she’d obviously needed the nap. After the emotional turmoil of the past few days, she was more drained than she was willing to admit, especially to Holden. If he knew half of what she’d been dealing with…

The temptation to tell him everything, to lay it all at his feet was strong. Was that love? Or was that just her being a needy, selfish bitch again?

Because she still didn’t know, she pushed the question to the back of her mind, where her subconscious would hopefully manage to work it out for her before she had to really think about it again. After a quick check of the time to make sure she’d been in bed for the required hour—thirty minutes over, as it turned out—she made her way back downstairs to Holden’s office.

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