* * *
Gideon didn’t plan to let her down. He knew she needed this to assuage her onus of guilt brought about by a decade of misplaced anger and resentment. Lifting his hand, he gave her a solid swat on her right cheek, an exact replica quickly landing on the other. He continued at a steady pace, alternating between cheeks, setting up a rhythm of smacks and whacks as he moved his hand, covering from the crest of her cheeks to the sit spots where her ass met her thighs.
Her bottom was a rosy pink before he stopped to rub and assess her heat. She had lain still, except for the rapid rise and fall of her back and shoulders as her breath quickened. “How are you doing, baby?”
“I’m okay, sir.” Her voice was husky and breathy. She was responding as sensually as she always had when he’d spanked her playfully.
He smiled at her use of “sir”. The respectful title came easily to her lips during a spanking. She had once told him that the over the knee position always made her feel especially compliant and being deferential toward Gideon seemed only natural during a punishment. His Shannon was the perfect match for him that way, submissive to his dominance. In a decade of looking, he had never once found another who came close by comparison.
“Okay, Shannon, that’s it for your warm up.”
“Warm up?” Her voice quivered as she looked back at him. She was apparently surprised there would be more.
“Surely you don’t think that was it? You’re barely pink. Unless you already feel adequately punished? Is that horrible guilt that has been eating away at you gone?”
She paused and he could almost see the wheels turning as she considered his words. “You’re right. I still have a guilty conscience. Whatever you think I need is what I deserve.”
“I will always give you what you need.”
The next swat took her breath away, and the next. As well as the two dozen more that followed. Gideon didn’t enjoy punishment spankings at all, but he knew his girl’s guilt ran deep. If she had been the only one affected by her actions, she would have easily set it aside when forgiven. However, the impact had extended to Eli and himself, which increased her burden of shame and remorse.
At some point, she began to cry. Poor girl, she’d learn to be more careful with what she asked for from him. Although he didn’t give her his worst, he made sure it was an effective punishment. Pausing halfway, her sobs and moans were accompanied by pleas for him to stop. By the end, she lay submissively across his lap, yielding to the inevitable knowledge that the spanks didn’t stop until he said so.
“Okay, baby, we’re done.”
“Will you hold me, Gid?”
“Try to stop me.”
She moved off his lap and instead, straddled his thighs. Her bare breasts grazed his chest as she wrapped her arms around his neck and cried out her pent up emotions. He held her close for a long time, until her sobs stopped and her breathing returned to normal.
“Better, baby doll?
“Oh yes, Gid. You have no idea.”
“I’m glad. But you are either going to have to move off my lap or take me inside you, babe. Your heat is too close to my cock for me to hold off another minute.”
“Option B, please, sir. I want you inside me.”
“Sit back for a minute then.” Grabbing a condom from the bedside drawer, he rolled it on and the next instant pulled her back to where she had been, her pussy hovering mere millimeters over his hard, aching cock.
“Ride me, baby. Take me inside that glorious pussy and ride me.”
She was so wet that she didn’t need to use her hand to guide him inside her, easily sinking down over him, sheathing him. It felt amazing, but the barrier between them was distracting.
“You need to call your doctor so we can ditch these rubbers, babe.”
“I’ll take care of it first thing Monday.”
“Perfect. Ride me now, Shannon, like there’s no tomorrow.” His hands went to her burning cheeks and he cupped their fullness. She hissed in a breath as he squeezed, but he felt her pussy twitch and clamp him harder at the same time, her groans filling the air. They were not sounds of pain or discomfort, but ones of joy and ecstasy. “That’s it, love. Take all of me. You feel so damn good.”
He gripped her harder as he guided her to a faster rhythm, pumping up into her with each downward glide. Minutes later, their euphoric cries echoed in the room, rolling out the window to be smothered by the sound of the crashing waves below.
After he had caught his breath, he rolled away from her and crossed to the bathroom to rid himself of the loathsome condom, a temporary but necessary inconvenience. Gid figured they didn’t need to start their marriage with an unplanned pregnancy on their hands. He wanted to take some time to reestablish their relationship. He also wanted to spend some one-on-one time with Eli before adding to their family. Thoughts of marriage and family reminded him of a little something he had stashed away. Making a detour to his dresser, he retrieved a little black velvet box, before crawling back into bed and pulling Shannon into his arms.
“Honey?”
“Mmm,” was her sleepy, sated response.
“Stay awake another few minutes, babe. I have something for you.”
Curiosity roused her and she turned toward him, her eyes widening as she spied the ring box he held in his hand. Her breath caught audibly and tears wet her lashes as he opened it to reveal a stunning, marquise cut diamond engagement ring. It was framed with smaller, round diamonds and additional matched stones sparkled along the band.
“Oh, Gid, it’s gorgeous,” she breathed softly. “When did you find time to shop for that? We’ve been so busy.”
As emotional as she’d been lately and with the guilt still near the surface, he hated to even tell her. “Try not to lose it again when I tell you this, Shannon,” he forewarned.
“What? Why would I lose it? Other than the fact that the ring in that box is spectacular.”
“It’s smaller than I’d like, but it was all I could afford at the time.”
“But that’s a least a carat there, plus all the little stones…” She paused and he could tell she was putting it all together. “At the time?” she asked, hesitation in her voice as her eyes rose slowly to meet his. It was clear she was dreading what was coming next.
“I picked this ring out ten years ago, honey, before our trip to Napa. I planned on proposing then.”
As he expected, the tears overflowed as his words sunk in.
Damn!
He should have let her believe he’d just gotten it. But he thought it was important for her to know how serious he had been then, as now.
He tried to deflect some of the gravity of the moment by taking on a light, teasing tone. “Those better be tears of happiness, Shannon, because my hand and your butt can’t take anymore guilty feelings tonight.” His attempt at teasing fell flat and he decided that maybe it was better for her to get it all out of her system. He slipped the solitaire on her left hand as he spoke, smiling as it fit perfectly on her ring finger.
“You kept it all this time. Even when you thought I’d dumped you for no good reason?”
“Yeah, a man in love acts that way.”
“Oh, Gid! Hold me. My heart can’t take much more.” Wrapping her arms around his neck, she clung to him, once again sobbing out all her pent up emotions.
“Shh, baby. This should be a happy moment.”
“These are happy tears. Don’t you know women often cry at proposals?”
“Hmm… I guess it’s good that this ring isn’t actually part of a proposal. The hardware just makes it official, baby, a public proclamation that we belong to each other. It’s a done deal anyway since we’ve already discussed it and you’re already moved in. We are marrying, building a family for Eli, and together we are going to finally have our happily ever after. I think we’ve more than earned it.”
“Yes, we do and yes, I will—marry you, I mean.”
“I appreciate that Shannon, but I think you missed my point. I wasn’t asking; I was telling. It may make me sound like an arrogant douche, but I’m not giving you a choice in the matter. Understand?”
She pulled back to look at him through long, spikey black lashes, her face wet and reddened from tears. As he waited for a feminist reaction to his domineering male power play, he was surprised to see her lips twitch. She was trying not to smile but failed miserably as her lips kicked up into a huge grin.
“I understand Gid, but I want you to know that I am very happy and willing to marry you. Although the telling versus asking part is quite caveman-like in nature, it is exactly what I expected from my take-charge kind of man.” Reaching up she cupped his cheek gently as all humor suddenly fled her face and her voice took on a serious tone. “To be honest, Gid, I’m relieved. After making such a mess of things last time, I happily hand you the reins. That way we can be sure I don’t muck it up again.”
Gideon was thoroughly surprised by her reaction. He’d been expecting at least a mild push back at his high-handed pronouncement, but instead, she was taking it all in stride. As she leaned in, she sealed her lips over his and began to kiss him gently. He sat motionless, accepting her tender advances as he recovered and tried to assimilate her response.
He knew being so heavy handed was a risky calculation, but she needed to know he was in charge. Indeed, since he was the captain and navigator of their ship, she could be first mate, but when it came to guiding their course, from now on, he was in charge. As with everything since he’d confronted her in her apartment and they’d uncovered the truth, he’d taken the upper hand. He’d demanded re-entry into her life and into Eli’s. With little input from her, he’d arranged for them to move into his house, insisted she share his bed, spanking her and loving her as he established his authority. Thankfully, she had accepted it all readily. It dawned on him then. The reason she was so open to following his lead without question was because she knew it was exactly what she needed—what was necessary for them both.
Before long, the press of her soft lips and even softer body snuggled up against him brought him back to reality. Pulling his head back, he broke the kiss. “You’re very agreeable, Shannon. Is this the kind of relationship you wanted back then, honey? Outside of the bedroom, I mean. Did you want me to take charge, to lead, and for you to follow?”
“Yes, Gid,” she breathed against his lips. “Does that make me a freak?”
“Hell no, baby. I actually think it’s very natural, a traditional male-female type of role. But why didn’t you say anything back then?”
“I guess I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know it was a thing, this domestic discipline. It was always fun and sexy in bed, but the couple of times you called me on my behavior… Well, it made me feel better when you held me accountable. I never really had that, Gid. I’ve come to realize I need that kind of structure in my life.”
Relieved and overjoyed by the outcome of their exchange, he celebrated by exerting control and taking over the kiss. Rolling her onto her back, he sealed the deal by devouring her mouth, creating an indelible memory of this moment ten very long years in the making.
Chapter Nine
Beeeeeep!
She knew the long tone meant she only had ten seconds left. Her trembling fingers flew over the keypad.
Damn!
She hit six instead of five again and growled in frustration. “I can’t do this. It’s too complicated.”
His hands brushed hers aside as he entered the correct code and deactivated the alarm.
“Come on, babe. It’s not that bad.”
“Yeah, Mom, it’s so easy a nine-year-old can do it.” Eli, who had conquered resetting the alarm in three attempts, snickered as he watched his mother’s utter failure for at least the twentieth time.
“No comments from the peanut gallery, thank you very much.”
“Try again, Shannon.” Gideon’s deep voice, talking low behind her, was the cause of the problem. His hard body behind her, rubbing against her tender butt and causing the ache between her thighs, was distraction enough, but his hand was her undoing. He had it wrapped around her hip, his thumb dipping just beneath the hem of her top, and he was stroking her belly and driving her mad.
Turning her head, she quietly implored him to stop. “Please, I can’t think when you’re doing that.”
Stunning green eyes looked down at her. She figured her desire was blatantly obvious because his mouth turned up slightly and his eyes flashed with heat. His hand stopped, but instead of stepping back, he pulled her against him, and she felt the proof of his own desire as his hard cock pressed against her lower back.
“Hurry, Mom, I want to go swimming.”
“Hey, bud, why don’t you find something to do in the game room so your mom can concentrate?”
As soon as he had scampered away, Shannon found herself spun around and slammed against the wall. Gideon was grinding his cock against her as his mouth captured hers. The only sound in the foyer was their labored panting breaths. If not for Eli’s presence, she knew her shorts would be history and she’d be getting fucked into, if not through, the wainscoted wall.
Her hands clung to his shoulders as he pulled a leg around his hip, opening her so his cock could ride against the seam of her shorts. A few more minutes and she’d come from their dry humping session. His hands found their way beneath her top and captured her aching breasts, his thumbs rubbing hard against her nipples.
Wrenching his mouth away, he buried his face in her neck and groaned. “I want you so badly right now; if we don’t stop I’m going to come in my pants.” His voice was rough and his breathing harsh as he pushed away from her. The instant he looked down at her he groaned and jammed his long fingers into his hair. “Don’t look at me that way, Shannon. I’m on a tight string as it is.”
“What way?”
“Like you want me to fuck you through the damn wall.”
Her eyes went wide as he repeated, almost word for word, her thought from a moment ago. She straightened away from the wall, an amused little giggle escaping despite her body’s heightened state of arousal. They used to be so close, able to finish each other’s sentences. It was comforting to know that although a lot of things had changed, so many had stayed exactly the same.