“There’s always the safeword, other than that,” he shoved her panties down, “no.”
“Okay.” She put her head back down, thrilling to the cool exposure of her buttocks and the warm caress of his calloused palm despite the vulnerable unease this position always conjured up.
“No pleas or extra apologies?” He squeezed one globe, the tight grip drawing a shudder.
“I learned long ago never to try and dissuade a Master intent on punishment. And I know when I’m in the wrong,” she admitted in a muffled reply, goosebumps racing across her backside as he released his hold on her flesh.
“You intrigue me, sweetheart.” Kurt swatted her right cheek, hard enough to warm her skin and sting. “You don’t hesitate to admit when you’re guilty of wrongdoing and don’t balk at accepting your punishment.” Another smack generated more heat and a deeper pain that snagged her breath. “But anything personal sends you running.” Two rapid slaps bounced her cheeks, the ache and burn seeping deeper into Leslie’s flesh. “Do you go to the club just to appease your submissive needs?”
Four blistering blows threatened her composure, forced her to tighten her arms to keep from sliding forward and bite her lips to prevent a sob from the throbbing pain encompassing her entire butt. Master Kurt allowed her time to adjust to the discomfort and to answer his question, softly rubbing the abused flesh. Taking a deep breath, she let the pain work in her favor, waited for it to spread down between her legs and warm her pussy. He helped it along by brushing his thumb along her seam, the light stroke enough to draw a damp response.
“Sir?” She shook her hair out of her eyes as she peered up at him and saw his focus on her bare butt and his teasing thumb.
“Answer my question, Leslie,” he ordered without looking at her.
“Yes,” She huffed, annoyed with his persistence, but not surprised.
“Thank you.” Lifting his hand, he added pressure between her shoulders as he braced one leg over her calves and proceeded to spank her in earnest.
Peppering her quaking buttocks with a steady volley of hard swats meant to hurt and redden pulled a tortured sob from Leslie. Responding like always, she slid into a tailspin of emotional turmoil before finding her way to that quiet place where she could float without a care. With the deepening, swelling pain came tears of release, the escalating heat spreading over her cheeks wiped away the ever-present coldness of her lonely life and bleak future. Kurt shifted to land a devastating blow to the under curve of both buttocks before delivering the same to the tops of her thighs. She couldn’t move her legs or shoulders, and the struggle to wiggle her hips to ease the pain soon wasn’t worth the effort. With a shuddering sigh and tears running down her face, she embraced the pulsating numbness starting to cover her flaming backside as she lay limp as a noodle over his lap.
Kurt relished the moment she gave herself over to the hot pain, could tell when she let go of the tension riding her and landed in that zone where nothing else mattered except her Dom’s attention. Which she had in spades. His palm ached by the time he tempered the smacks to softer taps before halting to rub the trembling bright red flesh that was hot to the touch. She would have a few bruises come morning, and he liked knowing he marked her, and that she would think of him when she saw them and every time she sat down. He’d been hard on her on purpose, letting her know what he would not tolerate over the next few weeks. He couldn’t do anything if she insisted on keeping her secrets, but he wouldn’t accept lying or deliberate deceit.
The glistening slit between her legs tempted him, but he’d have to wait a little longer to bury his cock inside that snug, squeezing pussy again. That’s part of the sacrifice for keeping her guessing while trying to hurdle the walls she’d erected around herself. Turning her over without pulling up her panties, he held her close as she sniffled into his neck. She wasn’t the first woman he’d brought to tears, but somehow, the shaking of her slender frame against him, her soft, trembling sighs and cute, watery hiccups got to him on a level no other sub managed. It had been that way from the moment he rescued her from a street thug and looked into her sad blue eyes.
Kurt placed two fingers under Leslie’s chin and nudged her head up, the look in her drenched eyes sucker-punching him in the gut. She might still appear uncertain of him and his motives but at least she wasn’t pulling away.
“Are you with me, sweetheart?” Releasing her chin, he trailed his hand down her arched neck, over one plump breast and up her smooth thigh until he reached the soft flesh of her bare labia.
“Yes.” She shifted against his cupped palm with a low, needy moan. “Sir?”
“Mmmm, I think you still don’t deserve to be let off the hook for your lie.” He rotated his wrist until her seeping juices coated his palm, unable to hold back a grin when she narrowed those glazed eyes as he wiped the dampness on her thigh. Before he changed his mind, he lifted her off his lap and pushed to his feet. “I’ve got to get back to the ranch and check in on my dad. I’ll call in a few days.” Hauling her against him, he took her mouth in a slow, searing kiss before walking out without a backward look.
Leslie stood there glaring daggers at Kurt’s retreating back until he closed the door behind him, her whole body vibrating with unfulfilled arousal, her buttocks hot and throbbing. And yet, for all her frustration, she hadn’t felt this good in a long time. It still amazed her how a long, hard spanking worked to soothe her rioting emotions. She might still be uncertain about entering into an affair, but not about with whom.
By the time she climbed into bed, wincing before she rolled onto her stomac
h and took the pressure off her sore butt, she was looking forward to seeing Master Kurt again. With the punishment for her lie out of the way, she figured he would be as ready as she to fuck again next time they got together.
She figured wrong.
Kurt jumped back from the mustang’s rearing front legs, swearing under his breath at the close call his inattention brought about. Yanking back the lassoed rope that missed the irritated stallion’s neck for the second time, he leaned against the rail and gave the agitated horse time to calm down before trying again. Endeavoring to gain the wild mustang’s trust might prove as fruitless as attempting to get inside Leslie’s head. And if he couldn’t quit thinking about her long enough to focus his full concentration on the potentially dangerous task he’d set out for himself then he was in big trouble.
Running a hand behind his sweaty neck, he eyed the now still horse who gazed at him from across the corral, his eyes wary, his dilapidated body quivering from his exertions. Damned if that mistrust didn’t remind him of Leslie. He’d finally succeeded in getting the stallion to take a carrot from his hand that morning, which had prompted him to try catching him for lead training. It was hard not to compare that short-lived success with talking Leslie into an affair, and then admitting he had a long way to go. Usually, he was a patient man, he’d had to be in dealing with his father the past ten years. But seeing the neglect the mustang had suffered tested the patience he needed to restore his health and teach him all people weren’t bad. With Leslie, the moment he’d seen the desperate loneliness in her blue eyes when he’d escorted her home that first night, he’d been drawn to discover the source and erase it for her.
“I am so fucked,” Kurt grumbled, pushing away from the fence. Refusing to give up for the day, he moved slowly toward the mustang, keeping the rope at his side. If there was a way to get through to the animal, he would find it, just as he would come up with something to breach the walls of one stubborn submissive.
With a toss of his head, the stallion trotted along the fence as Kurt neared, obviously still disinclined to allow him to loop the rope around his neck. Determined to give it one more try, Kurt lifted the rope, braced his feet apart, twirled the lasso above his head and waited until the wild horse stomped close enough to let the noose fly. He didn’t know who was startled more by his success, him or the horse. Gripping the rope with both gloved hands, he tightened his stance and arms against the mustang’s surprised, angry reaction of rearing up.
Several cowhands, including Roy, quietly took up guard along the fence as the two of them danced around the enclosure in a battle of wills. Dust flared up as Kurt struggled to stay clear of flailing hooves while maintaining his hold against the strong jerks of the stallion’s head. He might be three hundred pounds underweight but that didn’t mean he wasn’t still a force to be reckoned with given his size.
By the time he managed to calm the mustang enough to stop his agitated rearing, Kurt’s arms ached and his heavy breathing matched the horse’s labored huffs. “That’s a boy,” he crooned, approaching the quivering equine with slow steps. “There, all done. See, no harm done.” With a cautious hand, Kurt slipped the rope off and stepped back as he took off with a loud neigh.
“You’re fucking crazy, you do know that, don’t you?”
Kurt pivoted at the sound of Caden’s amused voice, a grin wreathing his dust-smudged face as he spotted his friend and Connor leaning on the rail next to Roy. “I’ve been told that a lot since bringing that son-of-a-bitch home. What brings you two out here?” Jumping the fence, he joined them on the other side.
“I didn’t get a chance to tell you they were stopping by to pick a Thoroughbred for a gift,” Roy said. “I decided to wait to see if you survived that stunt before wasting my breath.”