Page 11 of Melt For Us, Daddy (Big Daddy Energy #4)

Cordelia

F uck .

Letting her head fall back against the couch, Cordelia closed her eyes.

She didn’t want to spank Ivy. The only reason she’d even offered it as an option was because she knew her babygirl. Ivy was a submissive right down to her toes. And when she acted out, when she broke a rule as grandly and publicly as she had tonight, she needed a punishment to set her right.

But fuck, this one was going to be rough. Ivy never would have lashed out the way she had if Cordelia had been honest with her from the beginning. If she’d opened up the way her therapist had been urging her to for years.

If, if, if.

So many times she could have chosen differently. Could have done the right thing, but she hadn’t. And now she had to punish her babygirl, because she’d pushed her into acting so out of character Ivy would never be able to forgive herself otherwise.

“Dee? You okay?”

Lifting her head, she raked her gaze over Ivy’s fairylike form, clad in nothing but a pair of navy-blue silk shorts and a matching tank top. God, she wished she could just drag her off to bed and eat her sweet pussy until she begged for mercy.

“Yeah, baby. I’m okay. You ready?”

Pink crept into her babygirl’s cheeks as she twisted the bottom of her shirt between her fingers, looking so sweet and innocent in nearly unraveled Cordelia’s resolve. “Yes, Ma’am.”

She needs this. She needs you to be strong. Pulling the authority she normally wore so easily around her like a cloak, Cordelia crooked a finger at her girl. “Come here, Ivy Mae.”

The pink in Ivy’s cheeks darkened as she hurried over, practically throwing herself across Cordelia’s lap.

Running her hand over the silky blue shorts, Cordelia gave her bottom a gentle squeeze.

“I want you to know I’m not angry with you, baby.

I understand why you were so mad. Why you acted out the way you did.

This spanking is so you can forgive yourself.

Once it’s done, you will forgive yourself and let it go.

Am I making myself perfectly clear, little girl? ”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

“Good girl. Lift your hips for me, blossom.” Steeling herself for what needed to be done, Cordelia tugged the shorts down over her girl’s bottom, halfway to her knees. Ivy had ditched her underwear, probably in the hopes she could sleep more comfortably with just the soft shorts on.

“You will speak to me with respect, Ivy Mae. No matter how angry you are, that is not grounds for you to raise your voice at me and it is especially not an excuse for you to tell me to fuck off .”

Whimpering softly, Ivy buried her face in her folded arms. “Yes, Ma’am.”

Lifting her hand from Ivy’s bottom, Cordelia paused only for a moment before bringing her palm back down, hard enough to make her girl jump in place over her lap.

A light-pink handprint appeared on her pale skin, and she allowed herself a moment to appreciate the sight before delivering another swat to Ivy’s other cheek.

Back and forth, she peppered her babygirl’s bottom with sharp swats, drawing the occasional kick or squeal in response.

“ My girl is sweet and respectful. My girl knows how a good girl behaves at the club. Do you understand me, Ivy Mae?”

“Yes, Ma’am! I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”

Capping the spanking off with a hard swat to the top of each of Ivy’s thighs, she ran her hand over the heated flesh of her bottom.

“I’m very proud of you for admitting you needed this spanking, baby.

I know how hard punishments are for you.

I’m so, so proud of you, and once this is over you can have all the cuddles you need.

Hand me the strap, so we can get this over with. ”

Sniffling quietly, Ivy reached out to grab the short strip of leather Cordelia had left sitting on the couch and lifted it over her head.

“Thank you, baby. Do you know why I’m being so hard on you tonight?”

“Because I was rude and horrible and I deserve it?”

“Oh, babygirl. You weren’t horrible. I’m only being so hard on you because I have a feeling that guilt you’re carrying goes pretty deep and you need me to be harsh. But if you tell me otherwise, if you think you’ve been punished enough, we can stop now. Do you want me to stop, baby?

The silence that followed her question dragged on long enough to let her know that Ivy was seriously considering it. But then she sighed, a sound so dramatic it would have made Cordelia laugh under different circumstances. “No, Ma’am. I don’t want you to stop. I need this.”

“Okay then. Keep those feet on the couch or it’s two extra on your thighs. Understood?”

“Y-yes, Ma’am.”

Not wanting to drag this out any longer than necessary, Cordelia raised the strap and brought it down on her girl’s bottom with a loud snap .

Ivy

Oh god, oh god, oh god.

It was moments like this, with her ass on fire and the unrelenting fall of a belt or paddle or her brush against her tender skin that she questioned her sanity the most. She hated being punished. Unlike some of her friends, she never felt anything close to arousal after it was done.

But when she messed up, when she broke the rules, she needed it, just as much as anyone else.

She just wished it didn’t have to hurt so damn much.

Digging her toes into the cushion to avoid kicking up, she let out a cry as the strap connected another time with her bare skin. “Please, Dee, I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

“I know, baby. But we are going to make sure this lesson sticks. We’ve got some hard days ahead of us and I want to make sure my babygirl remembers her place in this relationship. And that any behavior that disrespects that relationship will not be tolerated.”

The words brought with them a brief rush of anger. She had disrespected their relationship? What about all the lies and secrets Cordelia had kept? Surely that was more disrespectful to their relationship than one little outburst at the club.

But the anger didn’t linger long. She’d chosen to accept this punishment, because she needed it. And because she had disrespected not just her Domme but their entire dynamic with her behavior, and she knew deep down she wouldn’t feel okay again until the spanking was over.

Again the thick strip of leather connected with her bare skin, and Ivy yelped as a fresh line of pain exploded across her ass. The pressure in her chest, a feeling she recognized as guilt and shame, grew heavier and heavier with every burning stroke.

Until, at long last, the pressure cracked. Then shattered. Leaving her a sobbing, sore mess over her woman’s lap as she landed the final two swats right to the sensitive spots where Ivy would be sure to feel them every time she sat down tomorrow.

“Come here, blossom. It’s all done. You took your spanking so well, baby.”

Scrambling up from her position, she threw her arms around Cordelia’s neck, pressing her face into the crook of her shoulder as she wept.

“I’m s-so s-sorry!”

“Shhh. I know, blossom. I know. That’s my good girl. My good, sweet girl. It’s all behind us now.”

And just like that, the weight she’d been carrying since she’d first learned of Cordelia’s secrets, lifted. With one last shuddering breath, she lifted her head to look in her woman’s eyes. “I love you.”

Tears shimmered over the dark green of Cordelia’s eyes.

“I love you. So fucking much. I was so scared I’d lost you today and it nearly killed me.

” Reaching up, she tucked a lock of hair behind Ivy’s ear, her touch so gentle it made Ivy’s heart do a slow roll in her chest. “I need you to promise me something, blossom.”

“Anything.”

“If we ever… if you’re ever mad at me again like that… don’t disappear on me, okay? You can go talk to the girls, get some space, whatever you need to do, but please don’t shut me out like that again. I can’t take it.”

If she hadn’t already been punished for the way she’d acted, that simple plea would have broken her resolve. “I won’t. I’m sorry, Dee. I didn’t realize… I’m sorry.”

“No. Don’t apologize. You did what you needed to do to be okay. I get it. I’m not mad, baby.”

“My ass sure feels like you were pretty mad,” she teased, desperate for something to break the tension.

And it worked. Laughing, Cordelia pulled her close, burying her face in Ivy’s hair. “God I love you. Let’s get you to bed.”

“Yes, Ma’am. I just need to?—”

“Wash your face. Brush your teeth. I know the drill, baby.”

Love welled up inside her, strong and warm. There was something so bright about being with someone who knew her, who understood her so well. “Actually… I was thinking something else entirely.”

Kicking off her pajama shorts, she rose up onto her knees, straddling Cordelia’s thighs as she dipped her head, brushing her lips lightly across Cordelia’s. Soft, strong hands slid up her thighs to cup her ass, giving the aching flesh there a gentle squeeze.

It was just enough pain to have her whimpering into the kiss, eliciting a chuckle from her Domme in response.

“Are you sure you’re up for this, baby?” Cordelia asked, her tone teasing. “Your poor bottom must be so sore.”

Ivy didn’t get off on being punished, usually. And even now, her arousal was just stirring, spurred on more by the need to connect, to feel, to taste than the punishment itself .

“Need you,” she murmured, wrapping her arms around Cordelia’s neck. “Please, Dee. Take me to bed.”

“You beg so sweetly, my precious little blossom. My beautiful girl. How did I ever get so lucky?”

Letting go of Ivy's ass, Cordelia slid her hands up under the tank top, pushing the silky material up over Ivy’s breasts.

Need grew, not with a sudden intensity like it often did, but with a slow, steady burn as Cordelia dipped her head to capture one soft peak in her mouth.

Ivy arched up with a gasp as that burn grew to an inferno. “Dee, please!”

“What is it you want, my girl?”

I want to taste you. Please let me taste you, just once.

But that was off the table. Always had been.

In their circles, Cordelia was what was commonly known as a stone top.

She would touch, taste, love, worship but she would accept nothing in return.

There were reasons for that, Ivy knew, but those reasons had always stayed locked up tight in the vault that was Cordelia Summers’s past.

More secrets.

Guilt twisted in her gut at the uncharitable thought. Cordelia had promised to tell her everything, when she could. It was Ivy’s job to trust that, to lean on what they’d built together and believe in her woman.

A sharp pain in her breast jerked her out of her spiraling thoughts and back to the present, where Cordelia was staring up at her, one brow raised. She had one of Ivy’s nipples captured between her fingers. “Where are you, blossom? Because you're not here, with me.”

“I’m always with you.”

Cordelia’s expression softened. “I know, baby. But mentally, you’re a million miles away. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong. I’m being selfish again.”

Another quick, sharp pain. “Perhaps I didn’t spank you hard enough if you're already gunning for another trip over my knee.”

“No, Ma’am!” Ivy cried, fighting the urge to squirm in response to her Domme’s playful scolding

“No, I didn’t spank you hard enough?” Cordelia teased.

“You did, you did! I mean no, I don’t want another.”

“Then talk to me, baby. Tell me what’s wrong.”

“Nothing’s wrong . I was just thinking about how I want to taste you.” At the flicker in her woman’s eyes, Ivy rushed forward. “I’m sorry. I know that’s off the table and I know you have your reasons. It was stupid and selfish.”

“It was neither of those things, baby. I know it’s hard for you, and I love you more than I can say for accepting that I can’t give you that yet.

You’ve never tried to push me to give you more than I’m able in that regard, because you are the opposite of selfish, Ivy Mae. You’re my good, sweet girl.”

“I don’t feel good or sweet tonight.”

“I know. Which is why you’re going to let me prove it to you.”