Page 6

Marcus

Letting go of Eden’s chin, he took her hand and pulled her forward.

It took no effort at all to drag her over his lap.

The tight dress she was wearing was sexy as hell, but he recognized an unspoken attempt to brat when he saw it.

Did the dress bother him? No. Did he know that she’d worn it in an attempt to bother him?

Yes. That was enough of a reason to indulge in some funishment, especially since she’d already agreed to a scene.

“Hey!”

“Tell me, little girl,” he said, resting his hand on her upturned bottom, the tips of his fingers brushing against her thigh where the hem ended.

It was just under the curve of her ass, so he was touching her sensitive sit-spot and felt her shiver in reaction.

The soft side of her stomach was pressed firmly against the bulge of his cock, rubbing the leather over the aching shaft and head as a massive tease when she squirmed.

“Did you wear this dress because you thought I would find it inappropriate?”

Eden went still.

He could practically hear her thinking.

If she admitted it, he could spank her for it.

If she didn’t admit it, he could spank her for lying.

This was a funishment, not a punishment, so it didn’t really matter what she said. Either way, she was in trouble. Even if she didn’t admit it, they’d both know she was lying. He could still read her like a book. He knew exactly why she’d worn that dress.

“What’s inappropriate about it, Daddy?” she asked, her voice so overly and insincerely innocent, a judge would condemn her on that alone.

So, that was how she was going to play it.

Rather than answering, he lifted his hand and brought it down hard on her bottom, making her squeal. She jerked upward, and he used his forearm to pin her down across his thighs, his cock throbbing in response to… well, everything.

“It was a yes or no question, little girl, not an invitation to ask Daddy a question.”

Eden squirmed. Since she’d indicated sex was fine, he dipped his fingers down, brushing the tips along the wet fabric covering her pussy. She was already incredibly turned on.

Fuck.

Keeping his desire under control was going to be a massive feat of willpower.

“Noooo, Daddy, I wore it because it matches my hair.”

Marcus snorted. He had no doubt that was part of the reason—that was a very Eden thing to do—but that wasn’t the whole reason. He lifted his hand and gave her bottom another hard swat.

“And because I wanted to look hot!”

He yanked up the skirt, revealing the skimpy, lacy black underwear. It cupped her curves, her paler skin peeking through the lace, a hint of blush on the places where his swats had landed.

“Okay, fine, and because I thought it would piss you off,” she huffed, but he could hear the amusement in her voice. She wasn’t admitting it because the spanking had actually hurt her. She was playing the game, playing the role of naughty little girl who didn’t want the spanking.

Even though she really did.

“That’s what I thought, naughty girl,” he said, shaking his head as he pulled down her panties.

Not because they would protect her bottom at all—they wouldn’t—but because there was always a psychological component to scenes like this.

The lack of any protection over her bottom, the knowledge she was completely bare, would have an effect on her.

He'd also chosen to use his hand for the same reason since it was more intimate than using an implement.

His hand came down hard on her cheeks, making her squeal and squirm again, even as her hips pushed upward, lifting her bottom for more punishment. Fuck, he’d missed her.

Missed this.

“Such a naughty girl, deliberately trying to provoke your Daddy,” he said as he rained down swat after swat on her curves, turning the skin from its normal creamy hue to a nice, hot pink, while she squealed and kicked.

He knew he wasn’t really hurting her; she just liked the production of it. He did pause to check, dipping his fingers into her eager pussy and giving the wet folds a stroke before returning to his work.

Eden

Fuck, she’d missed this.

As much as she hated to admit it, even to herself, she couldn’t deny that being over Marcus’ lap felt different from when she’d scened with some of the random Doms here at the Outlands. Even the Daddy Doms. It hadn’t been the same as this.

Hadn’t felt the same.

Because she still had lingering feelings for him, dammit.

Or, at least, new feelings that had grown when he’d come back into her life, and she’d realized he’d turned into a new and improved version of Marcus. She couldn’t even say he was the Marcus she’d married—he wasn’t. He was even better.

More self-aware. More mature. More introspective.

More observant. More present in the moment, rather than half his focus being on work even when he was ‘home.’ Not that she’d seen him at home, but that he had things to talk about other than work when he was with his friends was a huge difference from before.

Sure, he talked a lot about plants, but he was talking about actual plants, not just the business side and how much money he was making or how well the nursery was doing. He had hobbies . He took time off. He was… fun.

Which was why she was constantly snapping at him. She was so mad he’d waited until she was gone to turn into her dream man.

One tear leaked down her cheek. Then another. And another. Each blazing swat added heat to her bottom and another tear sliding down her cheek. It wasn’t the spanking that hurt though, it was her heart.

A sob ripped from her, and Eden’s hands flew up to her mouth to cover the noise, but it was too late.

“Eden? Baby?” Marcus sounded panicked as he pulled her upright, resting her hot bottom on his thigh, turning her so he could look at her face—which she immediately tried to turn away because she didn’t want him to see her tears.

If they’d been from the spanking, she wouldn’t have cared, but right now, she felt so vulnerable, she couldn’t bear for him to look at her.

“Eden, what’s wrong? Did I hurt you? Fuck, I’m sorry, I should have checked in to make sure the spanking was?—”

She opened her mouth to tell him that the spanking had been just fine, that he hadn’t hurt her, and what came out was a wail.

Burying her face in her hands, she felt him wrap his arms around her as he rocked her on his lap, making soothing noises and telling her everything was going to be okay.

Even though he couldn’t guarantee that, he said it, and he sounded like he meant it.

Which just made her cry harder.

Had she shed tears when their marriage ended? Sure, but not as many as she had during their marriage.

She’d never allowed her inner Little girl to grieve.

She’d let herself cry over the end of romance, over the loss of her husband, for letting go of the future she’d envisioned for herself…

but she’d never cried over losing her Daddy Dom.

She’d shut that part of herself away to keep that lonely Little girl inside her safe, long before their marriage had ended, way back when she’d stopped being able to rely on him.

So, she’d never really mourned that loss.

Now, it was all bubbling up to the surface at the worst time possible, and she couldn’t stop it. The barrier had broken, and there was no time to rebuild it. So, she sobbed and sobbed against his shoulder, letting the Little girl at her core cry on her Daddy’s shoulder and receive his comfort.

The comfort she’d needed so long ago, when he hadn’t been there to give it to her.

By the time she was hiccupping and finally able to get a hold of herself, her tears slowing, her breathing normalizing, she felt utterly spent.

Marcus continued to make the soothing noises, his chin resting on top of her head, his hands gently stroking her.

Her butt was still on fire, but the rest of her felt… better.

Calmer.

Empty but in a good way, as though she’d been holding something toxic and terrible inside her, and it had been purged. She felt lighter.

“Eden?” Marcus’ voice was hesitant. Soft.

All he knew was he’d been spanking her, and suddenly, she’d been sobbing in a manner extremely disproportionate to the spanking he’d been giving her. He was probably freaking the fuck out.

Eden giggled.

“Eden.” The hesitation was gone, and there was a hint of warning in his voice. “What just happened?”

“You’re right, I have feelings for you, but some of them are that I’m still so, so mad at you.” She hiccupped again.