Page 49 of Ashes of Sin and Stardust

She nodded and smiled a little.

“Did I upset you?”

She shook her head.

“Are you going to keep being a brat?”

She smirked. “Is it going to get me punished like that again?”

“Like that? No... much, much worse.” Visions and fantasies of things I wanted to do to her flitted through my mind, sending another hot wave of desire through me.

She grinned, her eyes lighting up. “Then... yeah, absolutely.”

“Good.”

I caved to the temptation to turn my face and feel the softness of her neck against my cheek, and then straightened. I needed to be careful about getting up in her face, because her lips were just too plump and bitable, and her breath smelled like candy.

“I thought you didn’t like brats.”

“I didn’t think I did. Guess you’re changing my mind.”

“Hm. Guess that means I won this round.” A cheeky smile settled on her face.

“Oh, is that what you think?”

“Mh-hm. Yep.” She popped her lips on the “p” obnoxiously. “Sure did.”

“I see.” I reached over to her pencil cup and withdrew a pen, handing it to her. “Three hundred lines.”

“Hold on... what?” She stared up at me in shock.

I said it again very slowly and clearly. “Three... hundred... lines.I will not be a brat in church.” I turned away from her and headed for the door. “You have until next Sunday. If they aren’t finished, your punishment will be severe, embarrassing, and very public.” I looked back over my shoulder at her, challenging her to say something, but she shut her mouth, swallowed, and angrily began writing.

I smiled as I shut the door.

Baby steps with this one,I thought.But she’ll be worth it.Watching her force herself to have some control simply because I demanded it of her was the hottest thing I’d seen in months, and I was very quickly becoming addicted to putting her in her place.

Maybe I was wrong about this brat thing.

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