Irritable (6 page)

"It's
all right, honey. I came. I heard you and I came," he said over and
over while she cried. "Are you injured? Did he cut you?" Cleve
asked, trying to examine her for injuries while keeping an eye on his
prisoner. He'd sent for the paramedics, too, for Pebbles; he didn't give
a damn how much the rapist suffered.

"I'm
okay," Kelsey whispered even though it hurt to talk. "Thank you."

"You
were so smart to blast that music, honey. You know my temper," he
grinned, and kissed her uninjured cheek carefully. "I love you, Pebbles
Sherwood," he said in wonder. "I really do love you."

Pebbles
squeezed his hand and held on tight. She was in terrible pain and felt
like she was going to be sick. Not a very romantic response when a man
says those words for the first time, she scolded herself. She was safe
and she knew she always would be with Cleve in her life. He came when she
needed him most.

Officers
arrived and Cleve took charge, giving orders right and left. He made sure
the paramedics saw to Pebbles first and after examining her, they insisted she
go to the hospital and be seen by doctors. Cleve told her he would be
there as soon as he could, and she squeezed his hand in answer. Cleve
kissed her again, unmindful of the others watching. He intended to make
Pebbles his wife and his fellow cops would need to get used to seeing him kiss
her when they were together.

Chapter Five

Kelsey
was not happy that the emergency room doctors were insisting she spend the
night at the hospital for observation. They gave her some medication to
help with the pain, and while nothing was broken, she had considerable bruising
and they wanted to keep an eye on her to make sure nothing else showed
up. Kelsey insisted she would be fine at home and was trying to get out
of bed and get dressed when Cleve walked into her room and settled the matter
in his own way... by giving her bottom a firm little swat and telling her to get
her fanny back in bed or he'd open her gown and spank her bare
tush
in front of the nice nurse. Kelsey wanted to be
indignant, but the young nurse's expression made her giggle instead. The
nurse left the room, half in a huff that a man dared to spank her patient and
relieved that he talked Kelsey into being cooperative and staying in bed.

"How
are you, honey?" Cleve asked, kissing her right cheek again. Her pretty
face was so bruised and swollen and had to be sore.

"They
gave me a pain shot and I feel great right now. They said it would make
me sleep, but I'm wide awake," she announced with a giggle. "Did you see
the nice nurse's face when you swatted me? Wasn't it funny?"

Cleve
smiled when she closed her eyes and went right to sleep. The shot was
working, but he knew she would feel like hell when it wore off. The man
inflicted a lot of pain on her, and she'd managed to get in a few good shots,
too, according to the paramedics that were charged with hauling him to the
ER. Cleve didn't give a damn and hoped the son of a bitch couldn't move
for days without hurting.

Cleve
glanced up a few minutes later when another man walked into the room wearing
sweats and said, "I'm Kelsey's Doctor, Paul Malone. You are?"

"Cleve
Blankenship, the man Pebbles is going to marry when I can convince her of it,"
Cleve stood and offered his hand.

To his
surprise the other man grinned and whispered, "I can't believe Kelsey lets you
get away with calling her that. She does seem to get a bit irritable at
times."

"I
have a good cure for that," Cleve said quietly, but didn't elaborate.
"How is she doing? I know you're not supposed to tell me without her
permission, but is she all right?"

"Her
tests were all good and we'll release her in the morning if she feels like
going home," Paul answered with a smile. "I came to see if she was still
in a lot of pain, but it seems as though the shot is working. She's going
to need some care over the next few days. Can you see to it without
setting off her temper?" he asked directly.

"Done."

Paul
looked at him speculatively, and then nodded. "I think you are exactly
the person Kelsey needs in her life."

"She's
the person I need in my life, too," Cleve replied. He spent the night in
the chair by her bed and when she woke in pain, he held her hand until she
drifted off again.

"I
don't like hospitals, Cleve. Will you call Dr. Paul and see if I can
leave now?" she asked at five AM.

"It's
too early, honey. Let the man sleep a couple more hours and I'm sure
he'll let you leave. If you wake him up right now he'll make you stay
another day or two to get even with you," Cleve teased her.

She
closed her eyes. "I think of my Mama when I have to be in one of these
places, and all she went through. I don't want to start crying and make a
fool of myself. So, I'll probably start getting real irritable and
snapping at everyone. I don't want to be like that. It's a habit I
got into to keep from crying."

"I'll
stop you, honey. Just hold my hand and we'll talk."

She
immediately took his hand. "Tell me what happened to him. Did you
realize he was the guy in the parking lot at the grocery? He admitted he
let the air out of my tire, and he was furious when you interrupted his plans
for me."

"He
found out where you live by following you. He had a complete list of
victims in his van," Cleve said, but he didn't mention that he claimed he'd
simply walked into Pebbles' home because the door was unlocked. He was
still trying to control his temper over that! The little fool...
She'd been so angry with him that she put her life in danger. What if she
had already been in bed instead of working so late? What if he had been
out in the living room watching television instead of in bed trying to sleep
when she pulled the cord to her headphones? He forced himself to remain
calm. They would discuss this later.

"It's
my fault he got inside the house so easily, Cleve," she confessed. "I was
angry and in a temper and I unlocked the doors just to spite you. How
stupid. How very, very stupid that was!"

"It
wasn't smart," Cleve agreed.

"I
know you're going to spank me." She looked at him and tried to pout.

"Oh,
you bet I'm going to spank you, young lady." He saw her eyes widen and he
quickly added, "But not until you're all better. Right now I just want to
baby you and take care of you and be thankful you weren't seriously
hurt." He'd read the reports and seen the pictures of his other
victims. Pebbles was luckier than she knew.

Cleve
was true to his word. He drove Pebbles home in his car and took care of
her for the next few days. He slept in the same bed and was there when
she had nightmares, and he was there when she gave her statement to the
detectives. He cooked soup and she didn't complain even once, swearing it
was delicious. Her bruises turned a rainbow of colors but each day saw an
improvement in the way she felt.

Kelsey
had butterflies in her stomach but she knew what she had to do and she was
determined to get it over with. When Cleve returned with their dinner she
had the table already set and glasses of soda poured to go with their pizza.

"You
look upset, honey. Are you in pain?" Cleve asked worriedly. "Were
you afraid while I was gone?"

"No.
I am doing all right, Cleve. If you must know, I am trying to work up my
courage to ask you to get my spanking over with tonight. I hate having it
hanging over my head," she explained when he looked at her in surprise.
"I feel so guilty, and I need to get past this once and for all so I can move
on and think about other things."

"I'm
not sure you're ready for a spanking, honey," Cleve answered her. "I
wouldn't want to hurt you, and I know you're still sore from fighting off that
bastard." She'd already told him that she'd fought hard in her office to
get away and thought if she could get upstairs to her room she could lock the
door and he would be held off until help could arrive.

"I'm
okay, Cleve. I need to have this over with so it's not hanging between
us. I am ready for us to make love, but it just won't seem right until
this is all settled. I shouldn't have acted like such a brat that
night. I was foolish to unlock those doors, especially when you warned me
that you felt I could be a target after what happened in the parking lot with
my tire. I was irritable and bad tempered because our dinner was ruined..."

"Which
you had every right to be," Cleve said regretfully. "I felt like an ass
when I saw the stove and saw your lovely dinner was ruined. I let my fear
for your safety control my actions, and I should have waited until I was
calmer... and definitely until after dinner. I'm sorry I ruined the meal
you worked so hard to prepare, honey. Forgive me?" he asked.

"Of
course. How could I not when it turns out you were right?" she crossed
her eyes. "I promise I won't ever ignore your instincts again,
Cleve. Forgive me?"

"I
forgave you days ago, Pebbles," he said truthfully. "Eat your pizza now
and I'll think about this. I'm not sure you're ready for a spanking...
especially for the spanking you're going to get, young lady."

Kelsey
swallowed hard. She was so close to chickening out, and she had a feeling
that if she said she was truly sorry and begged off the spanking, Cleve would
let her off the hook completely. The problem was that she felt so
guilty. Her darn temper was always getting her into trouble... And if ever
she deserved a spanking, this was it... for sure. She tried to imagine what
Steven would have said, but after ten years it was getting more difficult for her
to feel like his wife. She was older now, and she should have learned not
to do spiteful things. She wasn't going to beg off... not this time.

Cleve
could see that his lovely Pebbles was doing some serious thinking and it was
plain to see that while she was dreading the punishment she also needed it in
order to forgive herself. She wanted consequences that would leave her
feeling that she'd atoned in some way for her foolishness in letting her temper
control her actions. She needed for someone she loved, and who loved her
in return, to punish her physically and give her to know her behavior was
unacceptable because it nearly caused serious harm. Cleve might want to
continue babying her and pampering her, but he needed to get past his own
feelings over the situation and spank the woman he loved. Once it was all
over, he could hold her and make it all better.

They
chatted about the news on television and enjoyed the veggie pizza. Cleve
cleaned up the mess and then sat beside Pebbles for a while, giving their meal time
to digest before he turned to her and asked, "Are you sure you are ready for
this spanking, young lady? Once I start, I won't be stopping until you
have one very sore backside. By leaving those doors unlocked you put your
life in danger. I'm not happy... and this spanking is going to show you
that I love you and won't tolerate your behaving with out and out defiance just
because you're angry over something foolish that I did. Are you sure
you're up to spending the next hour across my lap?" he demanded in a stern tone
of voice.

"An
hour!" Kelsey's voice squeaked. "Oh Cleve!" She looked at him in
dismay, but then nodded. "I want to have it done, please. Just
remember that I am truly sorry and I've given you my word I won't ever leave a
door unlocked again. I promise." Kelsey had to try to mitigate the
punishment a bit.

Cleve
said, "I'm sure you won't." He patted his upper thigh. Take down
your shorts and panties, honey, and lie across my lap. We'll take care of
this spanking right here where you can stretch over the sofa and be comfortable
while this is happening." When she giggled, he asked, "You think this is
funny?"

"It's
funny that you want me to be comfortable while you are making one part of me
hurt like crazy!" she nervously explained, removing her shorts and
panties. She was left wearing a tee shirt over her bra. "This is so
embarrassing, Cleve. It's one thing to be undressed to make love, but
it's extremely embarrassing to remove clothing for a spanking."

"It's
part of the punishment, Pebbles. So is getting into position for a
spanking on your own. It is difficult for you to do, but it signifies
that you know you earned the punishment and you accept it. I treasure
your acceptance, Pebbles."

Kelsey
nodded and even though it was extremely hard for her to do, she put herself
over his lap, making sure her bottom was right where he wanted it.

Cleve
made her slide forward another few inches and then he said, "You are going to
keep your hands in front of you while I spank you, Pebbles. You are not
to reach back to try and protect yourself, and if you do you will get extras at
the end of this spanking with my belt. I expect you to control yourself
and your reactions. This spanking is going to be long and it won't stop
until I am satisfied you will never do this again. Do you have any
questions at all?"

"No...
But I don't want you to use your belt!" she exclaimed. "I don't think I
could handle that, Cleve!" She remembered all of her Mama's horror
stories from her childhood!

"Then
keep your hands where they are right now. Hold onto a pillow and don't
reach back. It is completely up to you whether or not you earn licks with
my belt."

Kelsey
learned that he was through talking. Cleve started spanking and it hurt,
right from the very first spank on her delicate skin. She wanted to ask
him not to spank so hard, but she was pretty darn sure it would only earn her
harder spanks, or perhaps a lick from his belt, and she was going to avoid that
at all costs. Over and over he deliberately spanked her rounded cheeks
until she was a scalding red and then Cleve spanked her upper thighs until they
matched. It hurt and she cried. Her sit spots were next, and it was
nearly unbearable. She caught herself time and time again starting to
reach back to protect her burning bottom but managed to stop just in
time. She had no way of judging how long Cleve had spanked her, but she
was positive it had been at least an hour based on the way her backside felt.