Molly's Cop (8 page)

"I--" Michael cut her off by placing a finger on her lips and going shhhh.

"This is a time to change the subject, Red." He smiled then and said, "Ma's ham is the best, don't you think so?"

Molly took a bite and agreed. The rest of the meal passed pleasantly enough, but Kathleen had very little to say. Like at most get-togethers, the women ended up in the kitchen, dealing with the leftover food and the dirty dishes that needed washing. Molly found herself working with Kathleen and Bridget as they tackled the dishes. The dishwasher was put to use, as well, but the good dishes had to be washed by hand, and Molly was doing it for the second time. She was glad to have something useful to do, and in a stationary place. Kathleen still wasn't saying much, and in her place, Molly knew she would be embarrassed to know the entire family knew she was to be spanked! Molly still had a problem accepting that spanking was a normal part of this family... They considered it an act of love... a firm expression of loving disapproval. Even so, she didn't like that she was the cause of Kathleen's present distress. She wanted to cry and tell the woman she was very sorry, but was pretty sure that Kathleen wouldn't believe her for one second.

Bridget kept them entertained with stories of her friends, and how they thought she was weird for wanting to be a Chef, but at the same time were always asking her to bake something for them to snack on. Kathleen told her to stick to her dreams and her passion, and to be her own woman. She also asked if Bridget had been looking at any schools in particular. Molly noticed that Mary turned to listen to her youngest child's answer and seemed surprised to learn that Molly had already started investigating different schools and had a mental list of pros and cons ready to share with her eldest sister.

"Honey, you are only a freshman this year. I want you to keep an open mind and concentrate on getting good grades."

"I know it is important, Mama. Culinary colleges check out grades and attendance, and all of the things that liberal arts colleges do. Community service is very important, and activities and clubs. I want to get in a great school, so I'm going to work my butt off now so I can get accepted when the time comes to apply."

"You have it all planned out already?" Rachel asked in disbelief.

"You are a junior, sister, dear. What are your plans?" Bridget demanded.

"Well, finally, someone asks me!" she retorted, letting the rest of them know she did not like being ignored. "I am planning to go to college right here in town, so I can keep my job at the preschool and live at home to keep my expenses down. I'm going to study early childhood education."

"That sounds wonderful, Rachel," Kathleen said with sincerity. "Has the preschool you work at offered you a job once you get your degree?"

"Yes. They are even going to pay for some of my classes," she said proudly.

"And when did you intend to share this with your father and I, young lady?" Mary asked, totally surprised.

"When you got around to asking if I had thought of my future," Rachel said with a grin and a shrug. "Admit it, Mama... You are shocked. You didn't think I cared at all, did you?"

"Honey, that is not true. I wasn't sure that you realized yet what you wanted to do. Your father and I will sit down with you and discuss all of this later tonight. I am so proud of you!" Mary added, giving Rachel a hug. "Goodness, all of my babies are growing up so fast that I am overwhelmed."

"I know what you mean, Mary," Jenny said tearfully, putting her arm around her sister and hugging her. "We have raised wonderful children, haven't we, dear?"

"Yes, we have," Mary agreed, smiling through her own tears.

"Don't cry, Mama. Rachel and I didn't mean to upset you," Bridget offered, stepping forward to hug her mother.

"I'm not upset, honey. I'm so proud I could burst!" Mary assured her, and then said, "Let's get this work done. I'm in the mood to play a long game of Monopoly."

"I would like that, too," Kathleen agreed, only to have Lloyd come into the kitchen not one minute later and ask her how much longer she would be. "We are planning a game of Monopoly, Lloyd," she answered.

He shook his head 'no'. "We will be leaving as soon as you are finished helping your Mother."

"Go on, dear," Mary said firmly. "We are almost finished."

Kathleen obviously did not wish to go, but she knew better than make a scene. Molly's eyes met hers in sympathy but Kathleen seemed to think the younger woman was mocking her. She stomped out of the kitchen without so much as saying goodbye to any of them.

"And what was that all about?" Jenny asked of Mary, who also appeared confused.

"Kathleen was rude to Molly," Linda spoke up. "Lloyd is going to punish her, and she darn well has it coming."

"Oh... Molly, I am so sorry! I hope Kathleen didn't upset you...?" Mary demanded at once. "That girl has a terrible temper, which I fear she got from her mother!"

"Don't worry, Mary. She knew nothing of me or my circumstances and she feared for you all and for Michael. Michael told her everything, and I wish Lloyd wasn't upset with her. I feel terrible about that."

"Don't you waste one second feeling guilty," Jenny advised. "Lloyd has been dealing with Kathleen's temper for years now. He knows when to let something slide and when to deal with it more forcefully. Kathleen is a nice girl, truly."

"She's a hothead, like I used to be," Mary stated calmly. "Dear, none of this is your fault. We are all used to Kathleen's temper and its sting. Lloyd will take a hairbrush to her bottom and she'll be fine the next time you see her."

It was evening before everyone left. The food had been reheated and served on paper plates the second time around. Michael made sure he spent time with every last person, but Molly could see he was relieved when the last of the guests finally walked out the door. "Thanks for the dinner, Ma and Pop. It was real nice."

"Everyone is proud of you, Michael," Mary said with one of her smiles as she stood on tiptoe and pulled him down for a kiss and a hug.

"Pop, Ma, I would like to have a private word with the two of you," Daniel interrupted the conversation to say.

"Molly and I are going out for a while, but I'll have her back before too late," Michael said, taking her hand in his. "Do you need your purse or a jacket? It's cool tonight," he added.

"I'll get my things," she said, wondering where Michael wanted to take her, and noticing that the others who lived at home were either going out or up to their rooms. She knew it was to give Daniel the privacy he requested.

She and Michael walked out of the house and he opened the car door for her before walking around to get in behind the steering wheel. "Where are we going?" she asked curiously.

"To meet your Gramma," he answered.

* * *

"I cannot see why we had to leave my parents' house so early today, Lloyd. You knew the children would be up all afternoon and evening! You were just being mean to me!" Kathleen heatedly accused. Her anger with her husband had been building since he insisted they leave Michael's dinner. The children were very unhappy, too, since they were having a lot of fun with their cousins.

"I removed you from your family because you upset them, Kathleen. You were rude to Molly, and you embarrassed Michael on his special day. How do you think he feels about you right now? How do you think Molly feels about you? You and Michael have always been very close. Of all your siblings, he is the one you favor most, and don't you dare deny it. I've watched you for years. You favor Michael and Bridget. You love the others, too, but those two are your kindred spirits. How are you going to handle it if you alienate Molly and she ends up married to Michael? What if she puts her foot down and refuses to have you in her home? What will you do if she denies you Michael's company?"

"She damn well wouldn't dare do that!" Kathleen was enraged at the very idea.

"Michael told you he recognized her. Doesn't that tell you something?" He wanted Kat to think. "You take yourself over to the corner and stand there and think how you would feel if the situation were reversed... and one of your siblings attacked me the way you attacked Molly today."

"You know I hate standing in the corner, Lloyd!" she wailed. "You know how it makes me feel! I don't want to do that!"

"Do it right now, and because of your tantrum and whining, you can push down your sleep pants and pull up your t-shirt so your bare butt is showing."

"Lloyd! Noooo!" He grabbed her arm, turned her around, and gave her several hard spanks over the flannel sleep pants. He then marched her to the corner, and spanked her several more times.

"Push down the pants, Kat!" She complied, sniffling. He reached out and pushed them a bit lower and then pushed up her cotton t-shirt. "You are going to stand her twice as long as I planned, young lady. It seems I have neglected you lady if you are able to argue with me when you are facing a punishment spanking." He walked away, changing into his own sleep pants and putting away his clothing. He padded barefoot down the hallway, looking in on their kids and making sure they were all in bed, and sleeping. The last thing he wanted was for one of them to overhear their Mommy being spanked, and she was going to be soundly spanked, and not just for the disgraceful way she treated Molly.

Kat was a workaholic, and too often she made excuses to put in twelve to sixteen hour days. Every so often he had to remind her that she was a wife and a mother, too. Their children deserved more time and attention from Kat, and he was going to impress that on her pretty backside with her hairbrush.

Chapter Six

Molly was stunned when Michael told her they were going to go and visit her Grandmother. She normally did go to visit on the weekends, but this weekend had been hectic, and she'd decided to wait until after work the next day to pay her visit. Gram wouldn't care, and probably wouldn't miss her at all. She rarely recognized Molly these days. Once in a while there was a glimmer of recognition, but the last time was over two months ago now. "Gram probably won't recognize me, Michael," she shared.

"I remember your telling me that, Molly, but we will know we went, and I do want to meet her. It's a matter of showing respect."

Molly was warmly greeted by the nurses who cared for her Gram, but they informed her that her Grandmother was not very responsive that day. Molly felt sad, but she put a smile on her face and led the way to Gram's room. She introduced Michael, and was surprised when her Gram smiled. They did not stay long, but Molly promised she would come back soon for another visit, and then she kissed her goodbye. Michael held her hand for a moment and promised he would come back with Molly. Gram did not respond.

* * *

Kathleen hated standing in the corner. She was a very active person and standing still, facing the corner, with nothing to do but think, made her crazy! Lloyd knew this, but for some damned reason, he was torturing her. Why couldn't he just get the spanking over with and let her go on to bed? She had to be at work as soon as she got the kids off to school and daycare. She did not have time to stand around looking at the walls, which needed to be painted!

"Are you ready to discuss your behavior yet, Kat?" Lloyd asked, sensing she was about to explode for the second time that day.

"I just want to get this over with so I can get some sleep, Lloyd. You are pissing me off with this corner bullcrap!" she declared.

"What you need is a sound spanking so you can get serious about corner time, Kat. You can forget about going to bed anytime soon. And, you can forget about sitting with any comfort anytime soon. Come here!"

"You know I hate being put in the corner, Lloyd, so what did you expect? Me to fall all over you with remorse? The hell with that! Don't put me in the corner unless you want attitude. I don't do well with that, never have, and I, by God, never will! It makes me feel like I am less in some way, and if you think that spanking me is going to make me change my mind about being stuck in the corner, then you'd best think again. All you are doing is royally pissing me off!"

Kathleen was raging at Lloyd in a way that reminded him of when they were first dating. He had definitely ignored her lately and she was out of control. It was time to stop asking her to slow down and eat healthier and get more rest; it was time to put his hand to her pretty backside and get her attention for a good talking to. He knew that further conversation in the moment would only escalate her temper. It was time for action. He marched over to where she stood, defiantly facing him, and took her hand, pulling her over to the bed. He took a seat and dragged her down over his left thigh so that her upper body was resting on the bed itself. He knew Kat's temper well, and he quickly pinned her calves beneath his right leg, and he pulled her close to his body and pinned her right arm to her side while he held her down with an arm over her back. The position worked well to control an angry woman bent on escaping a hard spanking, and Kat wasn't getting up any time soon.

Kathleen cursed fluently when Lloyd's right hand landed on her left cheek with a loud smack. She was positive her creamy white skin was wearing a red handprint; Lloyd was very strong and he spanked hard. There was no such thing as a warm up to a spanking. He started full force, and spanked with a steady rhythm, setting one cheek on fire before moving to the right side and creating the same fire there. Once both sides of her bottom were a fiery red and she was crying, he paused to ask, "Do you think you can stand in the corner now and think about your behavior today?"

"I am not going to stand in the corner, damn it!" Her temper reared again. "This is enough of a punishment for what happened today," she added, crying harder. "I just want to go to sleep, Lloyd!" Kathleen was in pain, and she already knew that sitting down tomorrow was going to be very painful. It would make working on designs that much harder, and she had three proposals to make to local businesses; she had no choice but to sit at her desk and work on the plans to landscape their outdoor spaces.

"Kat, we haven't begun with the punishment for the way you behaved today, and we haven't discussed a few other things that need to be discussed. This spanking was because you were not making use of your time in the corner. You can either get your butt in the corner and do some serious thinking, or we can go round two with this spanking. Just remember, you are due a good dose of hairbrush, and your temper and attitude are going to make that punishment a good deal worse if you keep arguing with me." He gave her time to think, then asked, "Well? What is it going to be, Kat? Another spanking or some time in the corner to think about today?"