The Art of Discipline: Running Toward Trouble (The Mockingbird Chronicles) (5 page)

Dani immediately started to cry, as Emma pulled down both her pajama bottoms and panties before helping her over her lap.

“Danielle, tell me why you are about to be spanked.”

Dani sniffed. “I lied to you about my journal.”

“And?”

“I was up in the middle of the night, and I gave you a hard time all day.”

“Hmmm, not quite what I was looking for.”

Dani looked over her shoulder, obviously confused by Emma’s statement.

Seeing the look, Emma gave it to her. “Yes, I’m upset that you were up in the middle of the night, again. We are going to need to redefine bedtime, I think. And I’m also upset that you lied about your journal, but did it occur to you that you not only lied to me, but also lied to yourself? By not admitting that you ate that candy bar, you were in a sense hoarding it. Danielle, are you allowed to hide junk food?”

“No,” Dani squeaked.

“No, you are not,” Emma echoed, driving her point home with a swat, causing Dani to jump.

“In addition, you decided to push me even further by slamming doors, something you know carries an automatic penalty,” Emma emphasized by a swift spank to her opposite cheek. “So, Danielle, tell me—was it worth it?” The question was punctuated by two more swats.

“I’m sorry, Emma,” Dani squirmed, blinking back more tears.

“Good,” Emma said, as she brought her hand down again, and then started to build a steady rhythm and heat as she moved from cheek to cheek. Dani squirmed and kicked, moaned, and pleaded, but the rhythm and pressure remained unchanged until Emma was satisfied with the desired healthy pink hue.

Stopping for a short break, Emma rubbed the now toasty backside as she explained the next step. “That was just the warm-up, Danielle. Now I’m going to deal with the door slamming. I promised you ten swats per slam, and that is exactly what you are going to get.”

Before Dani could react, Emma once again brought her hand up and down quickly. Dani’s protests, however, became louder and more pronounced as Emma switched tactics and swatted one cheek three times, before switching to the other and repeating the process. After the tenth round, and thirtieth promised swat, Emma again rested, letting her hand gently glide over Dani’s backside in gentle circles.

Giving Dani a minute to compose herself, she helped her to her feet before pulling her into her lap and a tight embrace. “Do you even have any idea how much I love you?” Emma scolded gently.

Dani sniffled. “I love you too, Emma.”

“I’m going to finish your punishment with the belt now, Danielle. I am going to have you stand, and then bend over the edge of the bed. I will put a pillow under your hips and give you another to hold, but once you are there, you will not get up until I give you permission. If you do, you will earn extra. Do you understand me, Danielle?”

Dani took a long moment to answer, but eventually nodded her head and was able to answer, “Yes, Emma, I understand.”

“Good girl,” Emma praised her. She gave Dani a gentle tap, and Dani scooted off Emma’s lap.

Dani followed Emma’s lead as Emma guided Dani into position. As promised, she also gave Dani a pillow under her hips and another to hold. As she picked up the belt, the buckle jingled, causing Dani to tense.

Emma took her time, putting the buckle in her hand, wrapping the leather around it before doubling it over. Happy with her grip, Emma tapped Dani gently with the belt twice, before explaining, “Danielle, this part of your punishment is for the journal and the lying.” Without any further comment, she pulled back the belt and let it fall solidly right across the middle of Dani’s backside.

Dani jumped and yelped in surprise, but managed not to break position. Nine more stripes appeared on her backside, each one from a solid strike of leather, and each one causing a few more tears than the last. Pausing, Emma rubbed her hand across each cheek, feeling the subtle welts that had formed from the edge of the strap. Dani was sobbing, but Emma wasn’t quiet done with her point yet.

“I’m going to give you the final two now. These especially, I want you to remember, Danielle. These ones, these are from each of us; the first from me, and the second from yourself. I want you to remember that when you lie about what you eat, it not only hurts me, but you also hurt yourself.”

Pulling back the belt once again, Emma let it fly, striking the meaty flesh just below the panty line at a slight angle. Not giving Dani time to react, she let the second strike fly, hitting the same spot, but adjusting the angle, effectively marking an ‘X’ right across her sit spot.

Giving Dani a moment to cry, Emma dropped the belt and crawled onto the bed next to her. Dani turned toward Emma, hugging her thigh, and soaking it with her tears. Emma rubbed her back and after a few more minutes, encouraged her to shift, so that she could curl up into the bed and use Emma’s lap as her pillow.

As Dani’s sobs settled into sniffles and hiccups, Emma encouraged her to put her pajama bottoms back on, and eventually slide under the covers. Emma left her just long enough to change into her own pajamas before she once again became a human pillow. With Dani’s head safely tucked into Emma’s shoulder, they both fell into a dreamless, but peaceful sleep.

Chapter Three

Groaning, Emma looked at the bedside clock, noticing the bright red 3:53. Trying to figure out what had awakened her, the question was answered as she spied Dani lying on her stomach on the other side of the bed, mumbling incoherently to a computer tablet.

“Danielle Ryan, what on earth are you doing, and where did you get that tablet?” Emma demanded, causing Dani to jump.

“Geez, Emma, you scared me,” Dani chastised, looking over her shoulder. “I can’t sleep, so I’m playing a game.”

“Just where and when did you get that tablet, Danielle?”

Dani shrugged. “I ordered it a couple of weeks ago. It finally came in.”

“When you were supposed to be grounded, I bet,” Emma grumbled. “We’ll talk about this more in the morning,” she said, reaching over and taking the tablet from her lover.

“Hey!” Dani protested.

“Danielle,” Emma warned as she placed the tablet on her nightstand. “Go back to sleep.”

“But I can’t sleep,” Dani whined, moving to snuggle up against Emma once again.

“You need to try,” Emma encouraged as she kissed Dani gently on the forehead. “I just want you to relax, Dani. If you can’t sleep, that’s alright, but you are not to get out of bed for anything other than to use the bathroom.”

“But I wasn’t out of bed,” Dani whined.

“Danielle,” Emma warned once again, causing Dani to sigh.

“Goodnight, Emma,” Dani responded as she closed her eyes and suddenly felt her eyelids get heavy. Feeling Dani drift back to sleep, Emma yawned and, holding Dani tightly, soon joined her.

* * *

Dani slammed the books on the table and muttered once again to herself. Ignoring the people in the store, she reshelved a pile of books that customers had left out before picking up a stack of magazines and return them to their proper place as well.

“Seems like you and Dani must have had an interesting chat last night,” Stevie commented. The blonde handed Emma a cup of coffee and sat down next to her as they watched the store from the crow’s nest. Meeting like this was becoming a common activity and Emma had come to enjoy the time it gave her to collect her thoughts and bounce ideas off Stevie.

Emma chuckled and nodded her thanks for the coffee. “Oh, she’s not upset about last night’s discussion.”

“No?” Stevie winced as Dani shoved a chair back into a table with more force than necessary. “You could have fooled me.”

Turning, Emma grinned at the blonde. “She’s upset because of the one we had this morning.”

Snickering, Stevie shook her head. “Don’t tell me she managed to get into trouble between last night and this morning?”

Taking a sip of her coffee, Emma explained, “She’s not getting enough sleep, and we’ve been having issues with her staying in bed at night.” She paused and watched as Dani began to wipe down a table with a vengeance. “Last night I caught her at 3:53 on a computer tablet, playing a game. So that little tantrum down there is due to some new bedtime rules, the absence of chocolate from her diet for the next two days, and the fact that her new tablet, which she bought last week while she was grounded, is now mine for the rest of this week.”

Stevie’s grin soon turned into a low laugh. “And I thought I had my hands full with Anna.”

“You do,” Emma chuckled. “But Dani is still pushing, needing to make sure I’m going to do what I say.” She paused. ”Even though it feels like we’ve been together a long time, I have to remember that we’re still learning about each other. Not to mention that this is all new for Dani.”

Stevie took a sip of her coffee, agreeing, “It’s hard to find that peace sometimes.” She looked down at Dani again. “I imagine she’s still trying to wrap her head around the fact that this is now part of her life, and that she wants it to be a part of her life. I know it’s something that Anna and I sometimes still struggle with, even after all these years.”

Throwing her now empty coffee cup away, Emma sighed. “I think you’re right. She’s been pushing a lot more lately…” Emma trailed off.

Stevie’s cup soon joined Emma’s in the trash. She then put her arm around Emma’s shoulders and gave her a quick squeeze of encouragement. “Well, they all have to do this. Brats test us, we tan their bottoms. All in all, I’d say it’s a fair trade.”

Emma chuckled lightly. “True, and thanks again, Stevie,” she replied, thanking her for much more than just the coffee.

* * *

Dani watched as Jason checked out a customer. Narrowing her eyes slightly, she wondered what it was about him that bothered her. He seemed friendly, but there was something off about him. He was obviously intelligent, and he’d never said or done anything to her inappropriately, but for some reason he just made her uncomfortable. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but he was still having problems with simple tasks—like remembering where the different sections of the store were—and that made her wonder. He was still new though, so maybe he just needed more time. Shrugging it off, she flipped open her phone and groaned. She still had two hours before she could retreat upstairs and get away from everyone.

Jumping slightly as the phone suddenly vibrated, Dani moved to a quiet corner before answering, “Danielle Ryan.”

“Ms. Ryan, my name is Frankie Zitti. You arranged my niece Carmella Adinolfi’s wedding last year.”

Dani gave a slight frown, wondering how this man got her direct number instead of going through her office, but shook it off as she replied, “I remember Carmella. She’s a sweet girl. What can I do for you, Mr. Zitti?”

“I want you to plan my daughter’s coming-out party and I’d like to meet with you this week to discuss it.”

“I’m not in Chicago right now, Mr. Zitti, but you could meet with my assistant…”

“No, Ms. Ryan,” the man cut her off. “I want to meet with you. After all, you are the Ryan in Ryan’s Events.”

Dani shook her head, thinking quickly. “Okay, I guess I could get away later this week. I’m not currently near my calendar, but if you’ll give me a call-back number, I’ll phone you with my available dates.”

“I’ll call you tonight at 7:00, Ms. Ryan; let me know then.” The line went dead and Dani stood staring at her phone. Letting out a deep breath, she headed toward Emma’s office, wondering how her lover would feel about an impromptu trip to Chicago later that week.

Dani stood at Emma’s door for a few moments before softly clearing her throat and drawing her attention.

Emma gave her a soft smile before responding, “What’s up, honey?”

“I just got a call from a client and he wants to meet with me this week, in Chicago.”

Emma let out a long breath. “It’s really not a good time. You can’t put him off?”

“You don’t put off Frankie Zitti, Emma.”

“Frankie Zitti? What the hell are you doing taking a job from him?”

“Calm down, I organized his niece’s wedding last year and now he wants me to plan his daughter’s coming-out party. It’s legitimate, honest work, Emma.”

“I don’t like it, Dani. You shouldn’t be working with the mob in any capacity.”

“I’m not. I’m working for his daughter to make this a great coming-out party for her. It’s not like it’s the first time I’ve worked with ‘the family’ before. Relax, it will all work out.”

Emma eyed Dani for a moment, before she slowly admitted, “I don’t like it, but I can’t tell you how to run your business. Just promise me you’ll be careful?” Getting a nod, Emma sighed. “Okay then, since we’ve hired Jason, I think we can manage a day or two without you.”

Dani frowned. “Aren’t you coming with me? I thought maybe we could make a long weekend out of it.”

Emma looked up, frowning slightly as she seemed to mull over Dani’s suggestion. “I don’t know if that’s a good idea. We’d have to get someone else to cover for us on Sunday, and the quarterly taxes are coming up. I really need to focus on them.”

Dani bit her lip gently, hoping this just wasn’t Emma’s way to get away from her for a while. She’d been a lot of trouble lately, and maybe Emma wanted a break.

“I’m sorry, honey,” Emma said as she stood. “I’d love to come, but I just don’t think it’s going to work this time.” Standing and crossing to the other side of the desk, Emma kissed Dani on the cheek. “It’s only a couple of days, right?”

“Yeah, right,” Dani agreed with a frown. “I better get back out there. Will’s in the back so Jason is out there alone.”

“Sure, we’ll talk more tonight, okay?” she emphasized, giving Dani a hug.

Dani released Emma and echoed, “Okay.” She never looked back as she left the office and shut the door quietly behind her.

Grabbing her purse, Dani approached Jason. “Hey, I’m heading out for a bit. Emma’s in her office, but is busy. Will is in the stock room if you need anything. I’ll be back later.”

Nodding, Jason grinned at her. “Sure thing, boss lady. I think I can handle it.” He gave her a mock salute before turning back toward the stack of books he was reshelving.