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Lainie tugged at her short hem, but stood straight, facing him. “And because of that, I knew about Mason’s plan, and you’re alive, and he’s in prison.”

  “True,” Hal said. “And because of your heroism, despite your disobedience, this punishment will not be as prolonged as it should be.” He looked at the middle couch, pointed with the paddle, and looked back at her. “Go over there and bend over that couch.”

  “No fucking way. You’re not touching me with that.”

  “You’re determined to make this as rough on your hind end as you can, aren’t you? Face the couch, lean over the seat, and hold onto the back.”

  “Stay the fuck away from me.”

  He came up behind her, wrapped his injured arm around her waist, and with her bottom up against him, he dragged her to the couch and around in a half circle until she was facing the seat. He placed one foot in front of her feet and said, “Do as I say. Lean over now.” He pushed on her back and bent her forward. Unable to move her feet, she fell toward the couch and put out her hands to catch herself. “You’re going to learn to listen to me,” he said.

  She wasn’t going to beg. He slapped the paddle hard against her buttocks. “No, please don’t,” she said. “Don’t do this. Don’t make me do this. I won’t be able to stand it.”

  “Stay still, or it’ll be twice as bad.” He lifted her short skirt above her waist but it fell over her buttocks. “Lean down more,” he ordered. “Stick that bottom out where I can reach it.”

  He pulled her hips backwards while she clung to the top edge of the couch. Her bottom stuck out shamefully now. Her skirt was lifted again, and this time it stayed, resting on her lower back, above her waist. He pulled down her panties.

  “Don’t,” she whimpered. “Please don’t. It’ll hurt too much.” Her knees shook.

  “You should have thought about that when you went out on that job. And that is why,” she heard the slap of the paddle against his hand, “I’m going to punish your rump for as long as it takes to get the message across, no matter how bad this feels, and it’s going to hurt like the dickens.”

  Which way could she twist to run around him? But the door was locked and he’d pocketed the key.

  The paddle slammed down on her behind. Her buttocks quivered. Pain seared. This was so much worse than his hand. With every thump of the paddle, her bottom shook and burned. The wood striking her flesh left its mark on her nerve endings and her bottom tensed with anticipation before the next blow. A hail of whacks thundered through her. He spanked her so hard her quivering legs were turning to jelly.

  “Stop it,” she cried, tears streaming down her face. “Please, please stop. I can’t stand it.”

  But the paddled cracked down on her behind, a rain of spanks, again and again it struck her skin. Her feet danced, she squirmed and wriggled from side to side. The spanks moved from one buttock to the other.

  “Keep still.”

  She couldn’t. Her fingers curled and dug into the back of the couch, she was sure her knees would buckle. She cried out, sobbing and begging.

  “I’m going to stop now,” Hal said. The spanking stopped.

  She sagged; her back sank down, her arms still holding her up, her bottom high in the air and on fire. Then she pulled herself toward the couch and felt his arms around her, lifting her, helping her to lie down on her front on the cool leather.

  He ran a light fingertip over her raw buttocks. “Your rump is bright red, and splotchy, and you have welts.”

  Lying on her stomach, Lainie cried and cried for the shame of having brought this punishment on herself. She knew he wanted her to clean up her language, and stop taking risks by working in settings where Mason could find her. She didn’t regret that last job, though her bottom burned and throbbed horribly. The gorgeous governor was alive because she’d overheard Mason. Still, if Mason or his men had caught her listening to them, she and Hal might both be dead.

  “Do you know why I spanked you?”

  She gulped out between sobs. “Yes. I took a huge risk working a banquet where Mason could have seen me.”

  “He could’ve caught you, killed you. You have to know that you mean so much to me, Lainie, I can’t let you take a chance like that again.” He rubbed her back. “And? Why else did I punish you?”

  “And I keep swearing.”

  He sat by her head and stroked her hair. “Are you ready to listen to me?”

  Face nestled in her arms, she nodded.

  “Lainie Sam,” he said, “I’m falling in love with you. And I am the governor, incumbent, and I believe, I’ll be in the governor’s seat for more than another term. I want a woman by my side, and you’re the woman I want. The woman who stands up there with me when I speak, when the residents of my state are listening, when the press is present, has to be able to speak with intelligence, as I know you can do, and be diplomatic and courteous, which you must learn to maintain.” His hand massaged her neck and her shoulders. “Are you listening to me?”

  Face hidden, she mumbled, “Yes,” into her arm.

  “The governor’s woman must be well spoken and clean-mouthed, in any situation, without fail. If I have to hammer on your behind every day, you’re going to understand that.”

  A spasm clenched the muscles in her bottom. And then the rest of his words registered. The governor’s woman, facing the public with him. What did that mean?

  His hand moved lower, rubbing circles on her lower back. “And you can’t always be thinking about how you want my attention. Others need me too, but I’ll support you, pay for anything you need, I will never neglect you, I will always let you know where I am, and when I’ll get home to you. You are going to live here, and stop working at that job. Do you hear me?”

  She brought her hand around behind her and felt the welts on her flaming buttocks. But she still wasn’t ready to trust him. She’d have to hope for mercy. “I can’t.”

  “Can’t what? Give up your independence?”

  “What if you get tired of me? I told you, you can’t buy everything you want.”

  “I want you with me, Lainie. Sit up now.” He rose and took her hands to help her to a sitting position. She didn’t think her bruised buttocks could take it. Her backside hurt, but the couch was smooth and cool.

  He stood, tall, over her, holding her hands. “I know you’re going to be a brilliant doctor and I want to help you get there. But the governor’s wife has to behave like a lady.” He tapped her leg with his palm, emphasizing each word. “At. All. Times.”

  The now familiar twitching in her behind reminded her of what would happen if she failed. And then she realized what he had just said.

  “W-w-wife?”

  He let go of her hands, knelt in front of her, and reached into the pocket of his slacks. When he pulled his hand out, he was holding a midnight blue velvet box. He opened it and held it in front of her eyes.

  The ring that sparkled there, nestled in velvet, was a gold band set with a large, exquisitely cut diamond. Glittering diamond baguettes circled it, radiating out from the center stone. She gasped at its beauty and her hand flew up to cover her mouth.

  “Lainie Sam, will you live with me now? As my fiancée, and soon, my wife?” Tears sprang to her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. “And just so you know,” he wiped his thumb beneath her eyes, one and then the other, “I didn’t buy it. It belonged to my grandmother and my mother. And I’ve never offered it to any woman before.”

  “Oh my gosh.” She burst into tears again.

  “I hope those are happy tears.”

  “They are. And I promise I will never jeopardize your political career,” she said. “I will be polite and correct. And I’ll quit the catering business.”

  “Yes you will,” he said, “and I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure of that. A governor’s wife has to behave, and a husband retains spanking rights.” He smiled, hugged her to him, and then kissed her for a long time.

  When he eased back, he put the ring on her finger.
/>   Chapter Six

  Lainie lay back in the king sized canopied bed, running one hand over the silk sheets her fiancé loved to sleep in as she punched in Anna’s number on her phone.

  “Hi, Ms. Governor’s Fiancée,” Anna chirped.

  Lainie laughed. “And hardworking just graduated med student, don’t forget.”

  “No,” said Anna, “I know you’re a hard worker.”

  “The inauguration is tonight. You’re coming?”

  “I told you, I’ll be there, with Roger,” Anna said, and giggled. “Half a dozen times now. Are you a nervous wreck, or what?”

  “I’m a nervous wreck. I’m not used to big public gatherings, and I’m afraid I’ll be in the limelight with him. I really have to mind my Ps and Qs.”

  “And what about privately? How is that going?”

  “He’s sweet. And he just outdid himself. You know I always thought a canopy bed would be grand? Well, he’s too busy to buy one himself, but he told me to shop for one yesterday, and I did. It’s rosewood with carved posts, a gold embroidered canopy, and little lights on the inside, and outside of each post that look like candles. He’s extremely disciplined about his time, he has a lot of obligations and I understand that. It’ll be the same for me when I begin my internship, but he’s loving and generous with me.”

  “He sounds great, you got lucky there.”

  “I know. And I can’t wait to see you with your wonderful Roger.”

  After some chatting about the outfits they’d planned for Hal’s acceptance speech and the ball that would follow, they hung up and Lainie went downstairs for breakfast to fortify her for a day of working on her applications for internships, and practicing what she would say that night if anyone asked her a question, or, god forbid, turned a microphone in her direction.

  ***

  Center stage, head high, Hal spoke with the clarity and wisdom Lainie had come to expect of her man. As soon as he finished his acceptance of the governorship for another term, he held out his hand for Lainie, who was shaking as she waited off to the side, to step closer. He introduced her as his soon to be wife, put an arm around her and kissed her cheek. The cheering and applause that followed was deafening.

  They worked their way through the line of people waiting to congratulate Hal, and to give Lainie a warm welcome. She talked to them easily, naturally. It wasn’t as hard to speak proud words about Hal in public as she’d imagined.

  Anna and Roger were at the end of the line, and when they reached Lainie, the women hugged and briefly rocked each other. Lainie introduced Hal to Roger and the men shook hands, smiling as if they’d each just met a long lost brother.

  “Sweetie,” Anna said to Roger, “Is it possible for Lainie and me to have a little girl time?”

  Roger turned to Hal. “What do you think, Governor? Is it acceptable for your fiancée to leave your side for a few minutes?”

  “Just Hal is fine, Roger, please,” Hal said. He smiled at Anna and Lainie, and held up his palm with five fingers straight out. “Five minutes,” he said. “If you’re gone from my side for longer than that, tongues will wag. I’ll get to know Roger a bit, if the crowd will let me, while you two catch up.”

  Lainie said, “Of course,” and kissed his cheek.

  With his lips close to her mouth, Hal said, “Don’t make me come and find you, that will look bad.” Lainie nodded.

  Anna took Lainie’s arm and guided her down the hall toward a reception area where the champagne flowed from a glass fountain. She held one flute, and then another under the stream and handed one to Lainie.

  “I shouldn’t.” Lainie shook her head and backed away.

  “Oh come on, any fiancée of a newly elected governor would celebrate.” She wrapped Lainie’s fingers around the glass and sipped her own drink.

  “You’re right,” Lainie said. “I’ll just stick to one and it’ll be fine.”

  “He’s even more of a hunk in person,” Anna said, “and maybe now that the election and the inauguration are over, he’ll have more time and we can all get together.”

  “I hope so. And Roger is everything you said he was.”

  “And more.” Anna giggled, put her champagne down on the table, and slapped her own wrist.

  Lainie felt a flush creep into her face. “You mean he still...”

  “Spanks me? You should have seen him last week. He wanted me to quit catering because I was working a lot of evenings, and we are going to get married...”

  Lainie squealed. “Oh my gosh, that’s terrific, congratulations!” She, too, put her drink down and then threw her arms around Anna.

  “Thank you.” Anna picked up both glasses and handed Lainie hers. “Anyway, so Roger said if I kept working evenings we’d never see each other, and I agreed. He’s so considerate, he asked me if there was anything else I really wanted to do, and I told him I’d always dreamed of becoming a hairdresser. So do you know what he did?”

  “Tell me.” Absorbed in the story, Lainie emptied her glass, while Anna did the same.

  “My Roger told me to sign up for a course at the cosmetology institute, and that he’d pay for it while I wasn’t working, and he bought me a new laptop for the online classes I’d be taking. Well, everything would have been perfect, but one of the courses was chemistry, and it was hard. It would be a walk in the park for you, Dr. Lainie, but it was really difficult for me. When I got bored, I started playing computer games instead of studying.

  “Roger came home one day and said he needed to check his email and didn’t want to fire up his laptop, so he opened mine. I’d forgotten to close the game I was playing. He said, ‘Is this how you’re spending your time?’ I said, no, of course not, but he could tell by my face I was lying. He told me to show him my latest assignment, and I did, but I hadn’t done anything since the second day of the course, and he saw the date. Then he told me to go and stand in the corner, and pull up my skirt, and just think about how I was wasting my time, and worse, my talent, and to wait there while I thought about why he needed to punish me. He was gone for at least twenty minutes. I stood there, holding up my skirt, shaking in my boots, I can tell you. Then I heard him coming up the stairs, and before he came into the room, he called from the hallway that I’d better have my butt naked when he came in the room. I whipped down my undies. He made me bend over the edge of the bed, and he spanked the daylights out of me. When he was done, while I was still lying there, crying, he told me if I screwed around with my courses again, he’d march me to the school and find a full classroom where he could paddle me in front of the whole class and tell them this was what happened to people who didn’t take school seriously.” She refilled her glass, and Lainie’s. “You can bet I studied my ass off after that.”

  Lainie finished off her glass, squirming a little, her own bottom burning in sympathy.

  “And here you are.” Hal’s voice boomed behind them. He put an arm around Lainie and walked her, with Anna and Roger to the other side of the room where reporters waited, holding out microphones, and photographers aimed flashing cameras and filming equipment. He leaned down to Lainie’s ear and whispered, “I told you not to make me come and get you.”

  At midnight, when the guests were leaving, and the MC for the ceremonies announced it was time for the governor to take his lovely fiancée home, Anna and Roger said goodnight, and walked to the lobby and out the front door. Since she was walking right behind them, Lainie heard Roger say to Anna, “He said five minutes. How could you mess around with Lainie and distract her like that?”

  Hal kept Lainie’s arm tucked into his as the four of them stepped outside to the sidewalk. Roger took Anna’s hand and turned into an alley, towing her with him. Hal’s limo was waiting at the curb, and secret service men and police were carving a lane through the crowd waiting to catch a glimpse of Governor Barmak.

  Lainie heard Anna’s distant squeal, “No, we were just talking. I haven’t seen her for so long.”

  Roger’s voice murmured, low an
d angry. Lainie couldn’t make out the words, but he was seriously displeased. Anna said, “No, please, I didn’t mean to.”

  Two secret service men stood by the open door of the limo, motioning for Hal to proceed through the path the police had cleared. As Hal, with Lainie on his arm, stepped forward, Lainie heard the unmistakable sound of a spanking, the rhythmic slapping of a hand on bare skin, and Anna’s cries. Her buttocks tingled as though she were the one being punished.

  Hal handed Lainie into the limo, bending to whisper in her ear, “Roger is a man after my own heart.”

  Anna’s cries had become so distant, Lainie could hardly hear her, but she knew her friend’s buttocks were still being punished.

  A secret service man closed the door behind her, and Hal went around to the other side where another man held the door for him. “You looked beautiful tonight,” he said. “You were almost perfect.” He kissed her on the mouth.

  “Almost?”

  “I asked you to do one thing, to not make me come and find you. To be back in five minutes.”

  “It couldn’t have been long,” she said. “I was going to come back. It couldn’t have been more than a few minutes.”

  “I had to come looking for my fiancée,” he said, “on my inauguration night.” He looked at her, brows lowered in a scowl.

  Her bottom shuddered. “I know,” she said, desperate to make amends. She began talking as fast as she could get the words out. “You did say that, and I was gone more than five minutes. I was wrong, I shouldn’t have lost track of time.”

  “That can’t happen again.”

  “No, of course, it won’t.”

  “No,” Hal said. “It won’t. And since this is a night of celebration, I’m giving you a choice.”

  It was going to be all right, Lainie breathed a sigh of relief. Her fabulous fiancé was in a forgiving mood.

  He took her hand and held it in his. “How do you want it?”

  “How do I want what?”

  “Over my knee, here and now? Or would you prefer to wait until we get home?”

  Lainie threw her head back in despair. “Aw, fuck,” she sighed, her backside twitching now.