Page 14 of Chasing Trouble
He took the strap off the wall and shook it to make sure there was no dust, dirt, or creepy crawlies on it.Then he lifted her dress over her back and exposed her paper-thin panties once again.He caressed them lightly, noting her flesh was still pink from his hand spanking.Her rounded bottom and legs were already trembling.
He refused to lower her panties to protect her modesty—and his desire.Still, it was an attractive sight, and his lower buddy made him well aware of the fact.With a silent groan, he stepped back, lifted the strap, and then brought it lightly down against one quivering buttock.She glanced back, a question in her eyes, but she didn’t say anything, and she didn’t try to get out of position.
“Good girl,” he murmured.He alternated cheeks then, each slap of the leather a little harder until she finally squealed when the tenth one landed across both buttocks with a cracking, sharp sting.To her credit, she endured it all without trying to get up or complaining.
“Oh,” she gasped at the last one.“That one hurt more than the others.”She wasn’t crying, though, and Mac hadn’t intended to make her cry.This was an object lesson in obedience and the reward for that obedience.The hills could be dangerous, and they needed to trust each other, and she needed to know where he stood.
“Are you going to hit me again?”he asked softly, waiting for her reply.
“No, no, I won’t, Mac, I promise,” she replied earnestly, looking around at him with a shiver.
“Good,” he replied, satisfied with her sincerity.
Then he landed one additional burning stripe along both cheeks, causing her to cry out and grab her buttocks with one hand, but she still didn’t get out of place.“Oh, that really hurt,” she moaned.
“So did that punch,” he reminded her.He hung the strap back up on the wall and then rubbed and caressed the sting away.Gently, he pulled her up and brought her dress down, reluctantly covering the delicious offerings he would love to explore more fully.
“So that you know, I still think you deserved to be punched.You were rushing me and punishing me at the same time.That doesn’t work for me; I need time to process things.When I get cornered, I defend myself, and that’s the way I felt.”She stared up at him, her entire body tense, waiting for his reaction.
Mac studied her sincere, blue eyes.She wasn’t being defiant or sassy, just determined and stating her position with blunt honesty.“Thank you for telling me that, honey.I’m afraid I’m more the burn the bridges, fire the cannons, and get it over with sort of person.When something needs to be done, I don’t procrastinate.”
She studied him in return, and then heaved a sigh.“I can see that...but I need time to process situations and then decide on the best course of action.But I am sorry I hurt you.”
“He chuckled and rubbed his hands up and down the back of her arms.“Just not sorry you did it—I got that.”
“And you’re not going to hold it against me?”
Her body was starting to relax as he tugged her in closer.“No, you did well, honey.I will never hold honesty against you.Thank you for obeying me.I really didn’t want to punish you again—I wanted your trust.I’m a very protective man, and I need to know that I can count on you to obey me when it’s necessary.The hills can be dangerous, as I’m sure you know.”He kissed her tenderly and then reached for their coats.
“It was worth obeying,” she replied softly, slipping her arms into the jacket he was holding for her.She smiled up at him.“I was really dreading a strapping, and I thought about running away again,” she confessed.
He grinned down at her, knowing that the solution had been spun around in her brain.“But?”
She blushed, but her eyes were sparkling with mischief.“I made the mistake of underestimating your tracking skills once, so I knew you would eventually find me.And as stubborn as you are, I knew I’d be in for it when you caught me.”
He threw his head back and laughed.“Smart girl and a quick learner, I like that,” he teased as he opened the door for them.
Neither of them was prepared for what they saw when they stepped out the door.
***
LITTLE AMELIA AND LUKEwere coming out of the barn, Luke holding his sister’s hand.He waved eagerly at them with his other hand and yelled, “Whitney, Mac, we were looking for you!”
Whitney’s sudden intake of breath told him she’d seen what he was seeing.A mountain lion was slinking out from the edge of the forest, stalking the two children.The rogue cougar his mother had warned about.
Whitney took off running towards the kids.“Run to me, run,” she screamed.
Luke darted a look behind him and quickly grabbed his little sister around the waist like a sack of potatoes and began running as fast as he could.At twelve years old, the boy was strong and fast, but the cougar was faster.
Mac didn’t waste words or time; he grabbed the chopping axe from the stump and ran like the demons of hell were after him, catching up and passing Whitney.The cougar was six feet behind the kids when Mac threw the axe just like the lumberjacks did in the summer competitions.It whirled over their heads and hit the cougar in mid-air, square in its broad chest as it leaped for its prey.It went down screaming that horrible scream like a woman in pain, then came back up.
Mac grabbed Amelia from Luke.“Run for the house as fast as you can,” he ordered.Luke was lightning fast now that he wasn’t carrying his little sister.Whitney had caught up by this time, and Mac handed Amelia off to her, and she followed Luke.
“Keep going,” he instructed her, looking back over his shoulder.He could have passed all of them, but he stayed between them and the cougar, facing the animal head-on as he backed towards the cabin.It limped towards them with deadly stalking precision.Its steps began to slow, though, and then suddenly, the big cat just lay down, stretched out with a coughing groan, and closed its eyes.
Mac backed inside the door of the cabin, his eyes still on the cat, and grabbed his rifle.It was a shame he’d had to kill the animal, but a rogue killer was dangerous to people.Whatever had set this killer in motion was a mystery, but it happened sometimes.If it was still alive, it was going to die, and Mac wouldn’t let an animal suffer needlessly.Sighting in his rifle, he fired one shot and then lowered his gun.“I think it’s already dead,” he murmured to Whitney, who had stepped up beside him with Amelia in her arms.She was panting hard from her run, and Amelia was clinging like a limpet to her neck.
“Better to be safe, but I’m sure it is too.”She shivered and hugged Amelia close.
