Page 89 of Repentance and Absolution

I held his gaze and tried to convey how annoyed I was starting to feel. His tongue went back in his mouth, and he stood there, fidgeting with the end of the broom.

“Oscar.”

“What?”

“How sore is your ass from that spanking?”

“It’s…it’s a little sore.”

“Well, if you don’t start sweeping this floor in a minute, it’s gonna be even sorer.”

He laughed. “That ain’t the threat that you think it is.”

“Oh, I see. But what if I said I’d spank you up against the wall until you cried and didn’t let you spend. What then?”

He stared at me like he couldn’t believe what I’d said. Then he laughed, loud and genuine.

I put my hands on my hips. “What’s so goddamn funny?”

“You are. You should know by now that anythin’ involving spankin’ and cryin’ and keeping me from spendin’ is right up my alley. That ain’tnothreat, Jimmy.”He enunciated each of those last words distinctly.

I crossed my arms o’er my chest. “Is that a fact?”

“Yep.”

“Well then, I’ll just ignore you. Give me that.” I reached for the broom, and he hesitated before passing it to me. But then he did, watching me warily.

I took the broom and moved past him, nudging him out of the way as I got to work. I didn’t pay any attention to Oscar, just went about sweeping the floors. He was nice enough to get out of the way, at least, but I didn’t even care. I would have swept around him. I figured for a man that liked attention so much, this would be an effective way to punish him for being lazy and unhelpful.

This situation with the wolves had turned me into an old grump, ’tis true. But t’was about time Oscar helped out around here. We all had to do things we didn’t like once in a while. And I’d be damned if I was gonna do it all.

For a little while he sat on the bed and watched. Then he looked out of the window, pretending to ignore me. Then he tried to distract me by lolling about and trying to look fetching. He took off his shirt and rolled the sleeves of this union suit up, then unbuttoned the top few buttons. He fluffed up his hair and lounged about like a lady of leisure, stretching this way and that, trying to look provocative. And if I’d been in any other mood, I’d have surely attacked him. But I was determined to teach him a lesson.

So, I focused on my work. I swept the floors and loaded the stove with wood, then noticed the dirty dishes that we’d left, despite my best intentions. I went to the hand pump and filled the sink with water, then grabbed a rag and started washing. I whistled a bit to keep up my spirits as I worked, the well-water cold from the ground but still getting the dishes clean.

I had just about calmed myself down doing this repetitive, banal work, when I felt something brush my elbow. I looked up and Oscar was standing beside me with a dish towel.

“I guess I’ll dry,” he said in a chastened tone of voice. His cheeks were a little pink, as if he’d realized what a child he was being and was shamed by it.

Instead of thanking him, like he was doin’ me a favor and not his duty, I said, “Okay.”

He was quiet for another moment. Then he cleared his throat.

“I’m sorry.”

I nodded. “Okay.”

“I reckon these wolves have gotten to me, too. When do you suppose they’ll go?”

I looked out of the window and saw three of them lying there, all relaxed and lazy, as if they had all the time in the world.

“I don’t know. Soon, I hope.”

“I’m worried about Onyx.”

“The horses and Poke will be fine for a little longer, I reckon,” I said. “But we’ll need to tend to them by nightfall.”

While I was watching the wolves, all three stood and at the same time looked toward the barn, their ears perked up and their bodies on alert.