Page 7 of The Foreman
He set her bag by the door. Not that she’d packed—just a beat-up duffel she’d grabbed on the way out of her apartment.
"You’ll sleep in the guest room. Eat when I tell you. Sleep when I tell you. Stay inside. You don't go outside without my telling you that you can. Stay out of the barn, the paddocks, and my office."
She opened her mouth.
He held up a finger."You get one warning, Macy. One."
Her jaw clicked shut.
He stepped closer. His body heat wrapped around her like a noose. His gaze locked on hers. Dominant. Steady. Deep.
"You broke the club rules. You defied authority. You didn't accept responsibility or discipline. And you ran your mouth and caused chaos."
She blinked. "Are we still talking about three years ago? Or this week? Because while I will deny the first..."
"Accepting discipline is a rule for subs."
"Okay, but I didn't break any other rules. But for the record, I routinely do all the rest."
His lips twitched. Almost a smile. Almost.
"Why does that not surprise me?"He backed away, slow and sure. "This is your last chance saloon, sweetheart. My house. My control. My rules."
"And if I break them?"
His smile didn’t reach his eyes. "Then you’ll find out exactly what it means to be under my protection. And the spanking you took tonight will feel like a distant and pleasant memory."
The air between them sparked with tension. Not quite a threat, and just short of a promise.
Trace’s gaze lingered on her face for a moment, then slid down her body in a deliberate perusal that made her skin flush. "Have you eaten dinner?"
She blinked. "Yes. Sort of."
His lips quirked into the barest hint of a smile. "That’s not a yes."
"It’s not a no, either."
"Close enough. Go to your room."
Her brow lifted. "Excuse me?"
"You're staying under my roof, you're following my rules. You get cute with an answer to a question or refuse to answer it and you can go up to your room and consider the consequences of being a brat. Now, upstairs. First door on the left."
She opened her mouth, but he was already turning away.
As she passed him, he swatted her tender backside with a sharp, deliberate smack that was hard enough that she felt it through the sweats and made her jump.
"Ouch. I felt that."
"You were supposed to. House rule: No panties."
Macy flushed from head to toe, pulse kicking hard, the sting of his palm lingering on her skin like a brand. And damn it, she didn’t argue. She just kept walking.
"Has it been so long that you've forgotten what you say to acknowledge you heard me?"
She turned and smiled. She hadn't forgotten one damn thing, except for how much she craved this. There was such peace to be found in submission to the right Dom.
"Yes, Sir," she said sweetly, grabbed her bag and turned to go up the stairs.And some small, secret part of her thrilled at every step.
