Peppermint Sticks for Susie (8 page)

"What cowboy was it, lass? I'll see to it he's fired and sent away from here for good!" Angus was furious.

"It was Lefty Bridges." Jennifer started crying in earnest. "He was waving a knife around and trying to slash me. If Alex hadn't stayed here I would have been dead by now. Why would that horrid man blame me for what happened to Mort Smith? They were the ones who attacked me, and Alex saved me then, too. Why does Lefty think it is okay for him to treat me like that in the first place?"

"Now, lass, dinna fash yourself over it. You be safe now and your mon dealt with keepin' ye safe. Do ye want to take the afternoon off?" Angus asked, and when she shook her head 'no', he asked, "Are ye sure, hinny?"

"Yes! Alex will be even more upset with me now that he was proven right. I was supposed to wait on him to walk me here this morning, but I didn't want to be late, so I walked by myself. Alex is not happy with me for disobeying him."

"He's plannin' to skelp you, isna he?" Angus asked gently, and when she nodded, he said, "Well, dinna worry, lass. No one has ever died from a lesson. It only proves the mon cares about you."

Alex walked back into the store then, straight to Jenny, and pulled her close to hug and offer comfort. "He won't ever bother you again, sweetheart. I promise."

"I'm so sorry!" she insisted.

"For what?" he asked, tipping her face up so that he could look at her. "You didn't do anything wrong; in fact, I was impressed that you were able to fight him off until I got out here to help you. You are one brave little lady and I am proud of you, Jenny. You have nothing to be sorry for."

"I should have known you were right about Lefty and waited for you this morning," she tearfully admitted. "I was wrong."

"Yes, you were," Alex agreed, but held her tight. "We'll discuss that later. Would you like to go home now?"

"No!"

"The lass fears the skelping you promised her," Angus spoke up. "I think you should take her home and get the lesson over with. The dreading is worse than the actual spanking."

"Did you ask Mr. McGregor to protect you from me?" Alex asked, clearly unhappy at the idea.

"Nay, she dinna do that, Alex," Angus defended her. "Take her home now and deal gently with her. She has had a bad scare."

"I don't want to go home. I'm fine, honestly."

"I will bring you back later if you wish," Alex offered with a smile. He knew that she would not feel like returning after he gave her the switching she'd earned. It would be wrong to let her off when she was feeling so guilty, and this was the time to make sure she knew how he felt about disobedience.

"I can't just up and leave Mr. McGregor here alone!" she argued.

Angus came up behind her and handed her her purse and then he draped her shawl around her shoulders. "Go now, lassie. It's an order and I willna argue with ye."

And that was that, she realized. Alex took her arm and led her from the store and walked her in the opposite direction of the Beckley home. "Where are you taking me?"

"Somewhere we can be alone," was his reply.

"I don't want you to switch me," she tearfully proclaimed. "I know I was wrong this morning and I've already learned my lesson and I'm not likely to forget it, either. Please, Alex, spare me this one time!"

"I think you need this punishment even more than you realize, Jenny. Come along now and we'll make sure to deal with this and hopefully this will be the last time we need to deal with disobedience." She was feeling guilty as could be, and a switching would rid her of the guilt and make it easier for her to get past what just happened with Lefty Bridges. He rented a buggy, and helped her get seated before he climbed up, and sent the horse trotting on out of town. He knew precisely where they were going, too.

Jennifer was still sniffling, and she just knew that she was going to be very miserable by the time Alex brought her home. It was simply awful to wait for a switching, especially when she'd never experienced one before. She glanced over at Alex to see he was deep in thought. She feared that did not bode well for her and she didn't know what to do about it.

"Jenny, you do know that I love you, right?" he suddenly asked. "I thought I was going to go out of my mind when I walked out of the storage room and saw you trying to fend Lefty off. I knew in that instant that I would die if something happened to you. I would lose all reason for living; you've become that precious to me in just this short time. If I didn't love you, I would never do what I am preparing to do to you. Giving a spanking is an act of love, a firm expression of disapproval. Do you believe me when I tell you all that?" he asked, looking at her solemnly.

"I believe that you think you love me, but I am not sure you will still feel the same way a week from now," she replied truthfully.

"Jenny, I love you for life. It is that simple."

"Oh, Alex...! I want to believe you; I don't want to end up with my heart broken."

He smiled. "You are starting to feel the same way, aren't you?" he wanted to know.

"Yes," she admitted. "I dreamed of you last night, and when you didn't come for me this morning I was very disappointed."

"I always do as I say I will do, sweetheart. You'll know that soon."

When he turned off the road Jennifer looked at him as if he'd taken leave of his senses. "Are you crazy, Alex?! I cannot believe you brought me back here! We don't belong here!"

"Kieran O'Malley invited us back, honey. You heard him as well as I did. I don't think he is going to object to my cutting a switch and striping your lovely backside. Besides, I really like this ranch. It's a great place, and with a good cleaning and some paint, the house and buildings will be useable. I am thinking of buying it for us," he revealed.

"What? Oh no! Alex, please be serious! You--"

"Hush." He cut her off. I know I'm thinking ahead and you aren't ready to hear this yet, but I want you to know that I'm truthfully checking out the place. I'm not trespassing, either. I have permission from the Sheriff."

"Oh my!"

All too soon, he reached a spot where he could park the buggy. Jennifer shook her head 'no' when he held out his hand to help her down. She crossed her arms over her chest, not about to climb off the buggy. Alex's answer was to pull her off the seat and put her over his shoulder to carry her to a tree in the front yard. He reached into his pocket to get out a knife and then he eased the pouting Jennifer to the ground to stand in front of him. "Here is my knife, Jenny. You pick the switch, cut it, and then peel it. Just remember... this is a punishment. I will not be amused if you cut a twig that will snap with one swipe, and I won't be happy if you pick something that would scar you. The longer it takes you to find and prepare a switch is how long the switching will last. So, I would work quickly if I were you."

Jennifer wanted to stomp her foot and refuse, but she didn't want a long switching. She looked for just the right switch, preferably one that wouldn't hurt too much! It was awful to have to choose, but she did, and she peeled it so quickly that Alex warned her to slow down before she sliced a finger open. She simply did not want the switching to last very long.

"That was fast," he told her, approval shining in his eyes. Let's go inside and straight into the kitchen. You can take up your skirts and remove your drawers and bend over the table."

"Bare...!" She gasped.

"It wouldn't work if I left your drawers on. You are going to get a true switching, and that means bare. No more fussing, Jennifer, or you'll start earning extras. You don't want that, now do you?"

"No. I don't want the original switching, either!"

Alex chuckled, but then said, "Do what you can to make it easy for yourself, Jenny. Do as you are told." He took her hand and pulled her inside, and right out into the kitchen. He immediately saw that the chairs had been moved again, and as far as he was concerned he had confirmation that the rustlers were using the ranch to move the stolen cattle and split up the money. "I think you should take off your shawl, Jenny. It would only be in the way."

Jennifer did as he asked. There was no breeze inside the house and she did not need it. When he told her to pull up her skirts she wanted to have a fit, but he'd made it so clear that she would regret arguing with him. She slowly pulled up her skirt and her petticoats, and all she was left with was her drawers. "Please, Alex. We aren't married; I'm too embarrassed to remove my undergarment. Please don't ask me to do that. I don't think I can."

"You can, Jenny, and you will. It will go easier on you if you do it yourself, but if I have to pull down your drawers, I will give you twenty-five extras on your sit spots for putting me to the trouble. Now, what is it going to be?" he demanded, hands on his hips as he looked down at her.

Chapter Six

Jennifer looked down at the floor in dismay. She did not feel that the ultimatum that Alex issued her was very fair. She was not the kind of woman who took her virtue lightly and what he was insisting she do was inappropriate. In fact, she did not feel she deserved a punishment at all! "Alex, why are you being so mean to me? You are the one who was late this morning, and while I probably should have waited for you, you do not know Angus MacGregor's temper. I cannot afford to lose my job, and he would have fired me. And, beast that you are to go ahead with a switching, you expect me to bare myself, which you should know is something that I cannot do. I am a chaste woman and we are not wed. It is improper for you to ask me to bare myself, and it is mean for you to insist on switching me when it was your fault I left by myself."

"Are you through making excuses, Miss Jenny?" Alex asked quietly.

"I'm not making excuses," she denied, her lovely green eyes filling with tears. "I am serious and would like to discuss this with you. Is that so wrong?"

"When there is a punishment on the table it is not wise to try and talk me out of it. It appears like you are arguing to escape your due," he explained.

"I just don't understand why you feel so strongly about this. I wish I would have waited for you this morning, but Angus MacGregor would have fired me if I was late. I have my livelihood to consider. It wasn't my fault you were late. I don't know you all that well yet, Alex. When you weren't there and it was late, I was afraid something came up with the rustlers and you couldn't make it, or even worse, that you'd changed your mind about me..." Her lower lip trembled. "I couldn't afford to lose my job, Alex. Don't you understand? I did not disobey you with disobeying you in mind; I did it because I was afraid of losing my job at the store. If Mr. MacGregor let me go I would find it impossible to get another job here in town. Mrs. Neely would have made sure of it, and if she didn't, Jeffrey would have!"

Alex decided that Jennifer had absolutely no idea how adorable she looked standing there with her skirts pulled up to show off her pretty, lace-trimmed drawers. Her green eyes were shimmering with tears and her lower lip was trembling. The amazing thing was that some women would be using such tactics to try and dissuade him, knowing that they looked sexy as could be. Miss Jenny didn't have a clue; she was simply confused and seeking answers. How he handled this situation would have an effect on the rest of their lives.

"Jennifer, did I not tell you that I love you and wish to marry you?" She nodded. "Do I seem like the kind of man who would say that to a woman and then simply disappear?" To her credit, she shook her head 'no', and it pleased him very much. "Thank you for admitting that. It means a lot to me, honey. The reason you are going to get a switching now is because I love you and as your future husband you are entitled to my protection. I've been a lawman for quite a few years, and I have made some enemies along the way. When I give you an order regarding your safety, I expect you to trust my judgment and obey me without question. You did not do that this morning, and that is why I am going to switch you. I want you to have something to remember in case there is ever another situation in which I have to restrict you in some way for safety reasons."

"Don't you think that Lefty's trying to kill me is an effective enough reason?" she asked. From someone else Alex would think it a sarcastic question. From Jenny it was serious. She wanted an answer.

"No. I think he scared you plenty, and you saw the foolishness of not obeying me. Correct?"

"Yes, Alex. I realized how foolish I was, and I promised myself right then that I would never make that mistake again. Isn't that enough?"

"No, honey. You disobeyed me, and the consequence for that is a switching, given by me. I want you to know that I will always give you consequences for disobedience... whether it is for a safety issue or for buying a hat I told you not to buy. I am a man who expects to be the head of his household. I will always hear your opinions and I will try to make you as happy as possible. I am not a tightwad, and would never refuse you something we can afford, but I also wouldn't tolerate irresponsible spending. Just as I wouldn't tolerate running all over town gossiping and not tending to our home. I'm not saying you would do those things, just that disobedience is something I won't take lightly. Do you understand now?" he asked quietly.

"I just didn't trust that you were actually coming, Alex. I didn't dare lose my job."

"I understand why you felt you needed to disobey me, but that bucket won't hold water, honey. Losing your job is minor when compared to losing your life." When she didn't say anything he asked, "Do you agree?"

Jennifer felt as though she was putting the final nail in her coffin, but Alex was right. "You are right, Alex. I'm sorry."

"I know you are, so let's get this switching over with so we can spend the rest of the day making up."

"May I please keep my drawers? Taking them down simply wouldn't be right! I may have earned a spanking, but the drawers need to stay put."

"You would accept twenty-five extra cuts with the switch on your sit spots just to keep your modesty?" he asked in disbelief. She nodded, and he shook his head. "No. I need the drawers down, honey, for your own safety. I don't want to harm you, just give you a lesson you will remember for a couple of days every time you try to sit down. If I give you that many without being able to see your skin, I could hurt you, and that isn't going to happen. Bend over the table, untie your drawers, and push them down to your knees. If I do it, you will receive extras, and I guarantee you won't like them." He wouldn't dare switch her that many times in one spot. With her sensitive skin she would start bleeding. He wasn't cruel.