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Slowly but surely, smack after smack, he felt his sense of control return. He smacked her curvy bottom, enjoying every jiggle and bounce, painting the pale curves of her thrashing backside a firecracker red, a color of which he was particularly fond.

He probably should feel guilty about the way his cock swelled as she wiggled her bottom up and down, back-and-forth, anything to avoid his hand. But he did not feel bad at all. His gypsy had a great ass.

Before he finished, her bottom darkened from firecracker to ripe cherry red. He left no spot from the top of her bottom to the middle of her thighs unscathed, despite all her kicking and scissoring and waggling.

Soon she was sobbing over his lap. "Please. Please! Oh, please, Daddy! Please! I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I promise, I'm sorry!"

Only when at last her struggles ceased, and she lay limp and crying over his lap, did he decide he was done. Setting her on her feet, he was not surprised when her hands immediately reached behind her to cup her red-hot bottom.

He reached for her again, pulling her back on his lap. This time facing forward, sitting on his thighs so he could hold her tight and tell her what a good girl she was as she calmed. "This may not be the right time to say it, baby girl, but I love you."

He worried when the pause lasted, and she did not answer him. Had her punishment changed her mind about being his Little girl? He didn’t regret spanking her. She deserved every swat he’d given her. But he did regret the ill-timed declaration of love.

His heart eased when, with a sniffle, she said, "I-I love you, too, Daddy. But you spank really, really hard.”

“Keep that in mind, Gypsy, and you’ll never have to get another one.”

Well, not one for punishment, anyway. She’d said she loved him, too. Simple as that even with a burning ass, she loved him. He hoped she knew what she was saying. He was never letting her take it back.

CHAPTER 16

Lunch on Sundays was Chance’s favorite meal of the week. On Sunday, the entire family, those related by kinship and those related by friendship, all gathered together around the table to enjoy the food and fellowship. He and Joy had missed the past two weeks because she’d been sick, but she’d declared herself “all better,” so they were headed downstairs.

Holding his hand, Joy hopped down the stairs, making sure to land on each step. “Thank you for my new anklet, Daddy. I love tiny bells. They make it sound like my ankle laughs every time I move!”

“I like it, too, babygirl. Every gypsy needs bells on her ankles. How often do gypsies take their anklets off?”

“Never. Once it’s on, it stays forever and always. That way, if they get lost, you can always find me. That’s smart, Daddy.”

He’d been afraid to let her out of his sight since she told him she’d gotten lost in her hometown on multiple occasions. He could see her wandering off and getting lost in the woods. The dime-sized charm on her anklet was a micro tracking device. He could look at his phone and see where she was any time he wanted to.

“‘Bout time you two got down here,” Tanner said, grinning as he set a large tub of ice on a side table by the window. “I thought I was going to have to entertain all the women by myself.”

“You wish,” Trace said. “Are any of those cans cold already?”

Without asking what he wanted, Tanner dug through the tub and tossed Trace a cold beer before grabbing one for himself.

Boone walked in from the front porch, scowling, with Tildi following close behind. The front of Boone’s shirt was soaking wet.

She was trying to blot his shirt with the sleeve of her coat. “I really thought that would work, Daddy. It should have worked. I think there’s something wrong with the thermometer today.”

“What does the thermometer have to do with anything?”

“It was supposed to turn to snow. Really, it was.”

Ruby grabbed a towel and headed their way. “Oh, dear. What happened?”

Before either Boone or Tildi could answer, Kenzie looked up and burst out laughing. “I’m not sure what you were trying to do, Tildi, but great job!”

Chance smiled. It was good to hear his sister laugh. Chance hadn’t heard that since the Friendsgiving. He hadn’t even seen his sister smile. Something was wrong, and he needed to get to the bottom of it. He’d been so busy caring for Joy, he hadn’t had time. He’d find time in the coming week to have a cup of coffee with her to see what was bothering her.

“You can laugh,” Boone groused. “You’re not the one she emptied a water bottle all over.”

“Hush, now,” Ruby scolded. “You’ll hurt her feelings. Here, dry off with this towel and then go get changed. Lunch will be ready in just a few minutes.”

“I’m not going to hurt her feelings. I’m gonna hurt her backside.”

Tildi gasped. “Daddy! Don’t tell everyone that.”