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“Okay,” I whisper.

“Two.” He holds up a second finger. “You don’t talk badly about yourself—not your body, your worth, or your abilities. That mouth is mine now, and I won’t have it used against you.”

My throat tightens. I nod again.

“And three.” His expression softens. “You’re honest with me. Always. There won’t be lies between us. You’ll be honest about how you feel. What you need. What’s too much. This only works if you trust me enough to say the hard stuff.”

“I can do that,” I say quietly.

He leans in, pressing a kiss to my forehead. “I know you can.”

We sit in silence for a moment, the rules hanging in the air between us. Finally, I rest my head on his shoulder. “So… about that spanking I earned earlier.”

He chuckles, wrapping an arm around me. “Oh, sweetheart. We’ll get there.”

“And you’re sure you want all of this? My baggage, my sass, my giant ass?”

He gives my hip a light squeeze. “Especially the sass.Andthe ass.”

I laugh into his chest, the sound muffled by the steady thrum of his heartbeat. For the first time in a long time, I feel like I’ve found solid ground.

Matt hadn’t moved his hand from my thigh. I could feel the weight of it, warm, grounding, entirely in control. And when he spoke again, his voice had shifted just slightly, softened around the edges but still laced with authority.

“You know,” he said, thumb making slow circles against my skin, “we’ve had our heart-to-heart. Talked about where this is going. Shared a whole lot of honest words.”

I looked up at him, already sensing where this was headed. “We did.”

He nodded once. “But you still haven’t been held properly accountable for the things you said at the wedding.”

Heat flared in my cheeks instantly. “Matt?—”

His brow lifted, just a little. “Excuse me?”

I caught myself and corrected quickly. “Daddy.”

“Better,” he said, with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Now, what did you say at the wedding, sunshine?”

I exhaled, the memory coming back fast. “That I was self-conscious. About my… about my butt. And that it wasn’t self-deprecating if it was true.”

His hand slid just a little higher on my thigh, a subtle warning. “And what do we call that?”

“Breaking a rule,” I said, quieter now.

“That’s right.” He leaned in, brushing a kiss against my temple. “You don’t speak badly about what’s mine. And that gorgeous body of yours? Every inch belongs to me now.”

I swallowed, body thrumming with anticipation. “I know.”

“So,” he continued, sitting up straighter. “You’ve earned a real spanking. Not just playful. This is a correction. Discipline. To help you remember that your words have weight. Even the ones you aim at yourself.”

My heart pounded, but I nodded. “I understand. I want that.”

Matt stood and held out a hand to me, his presence suddenly larger than life. “Then come here, baby girl.” He took my hand and led me to his bedroom before saying, “time to get bare for Daddy.”

The phrase made me shiver, but I obeyed. I’d fantasized about this for years. I didn’t think it would ever be me. My turn. Real life. My fingers tremble slightly as I peeled off my pants again, then slid my panties down over my hips. When I turned back toward him, cheeks hot, I found him seated on the couch, his expression unreadable.

“Over my knee. You know why.”

God, yes, I do.