Her mouth opened and shut, surprise flitting across her face. Apparently he'd rendered her speechless. Something that he hadn't thought possible. The carriage rocked as she looked back out the window, her brow creased in thought at his revelat
ion. Her face was closed, impassive again, and he couldn't read what she was thinking. It nagged at him, even as he recognized the irony, considering that many among the ton called him "Stone Face" for the same reason.
Alex knew that many of his desires were improbable. He wanted his younger wife back, the trusting young woman whose expression had always been open, whose moments of bitterness were constantly turned to lightness at the drop of the hat. There had always been a bit of a dark core to Grace, behind her laughing face. Alex assumed her father was somewhat responsible for that; the man hadn't cared overmuch for his daughter, before or after her marriage. If it hadn't been for Alex's intervention, the Duke would have had her ostracized once she separated from Alex.
But the man had respected Alex's wishes when it came to dealing with his wife.
However badly he'd gone about doing it. Now was the time to fix that though. He'd seen the marriages his friends had procured for themselves; remarkably similar to the marriage he'd once thought to have. The main difference, it seemed, was that they spanked their wives when the women became unreasonable or acted inappropriately. If Alex had given Grace time to calm down the very first time that she’d first ranted at him, if he’d swallowed his foolish pride and actually followed her and spanked her until she talked to him about whatever the problem was, maybe they could have avoided the misery that they'd made of their marriage.
It was by no means entirely her fault, but nor was it his. Still, he assumed the burden of responsibility. After all, he was older, should have been wiser, and was the head of the household. It was past time to start making up for their mistakes and establish a new world order. He’d originally come to London this year hoping to speak with her, hoping to end the stalemate, and then he’d seen his friends’ marriages and he’d begun to realize what he needed to do. Now it was time to put their advice and suggestions into action.
"Grace..." His voice trailed off and then firmed as she ignored him. "Grace, look at me." He could see the reluctance in her as she turned her head to face him once again. At least she'd obeyed, even if the eyes that met his were entirely devoid of sparkle. They were practically doll's eyes, dead and empty. "I'm not going to hold your lovers against you. I want a fresh start for both of us. Our marriage needs to move forward, not dwell in the past."
The suggestion sparked an immediate response, but not at all the one he was expecting. Honestly, he'd thought that she'd be relieved he was being so reasonable, that she would at least grudgingly agree to such a tactic. Instead, her eyes came to life with fiery anger, her lip curling in a gorgeous, derisive sneer. She was suddenly so much more alive, as if his words had lit a flame inside of her.
"Your mistresses don't concern me," she spat the words out, showing them for the lie they were. "But I have no interest in starting anew with you. Why won't you just leave me alone?"
Alex felt his expression harden, knew it was turning into the dark, rock-like features for which he was known. It was the easiest way for him to hide his emotions. "Because you're my wife."
"Well, I don't want to be anymore! Honestly, how dense do you have to be? A rock has more capacity for both emotions and intelligence than you do!"
That was it. While he was willing to make some allowances for her anger, since she was obviously still holding a grudge, outright disrespect he would not tolerate. If starting fresh wasn't acceptable to her, then he would have to impose himself on her life until she came to realize that he wasn't going away and that he also wasn't going to tolerate rude behavior on her part. While he couldn't control how she felt about him, he could at least control how she treated him.
He'd seen how his friends curbed their wives' behavior, and how effective it was. He'd allowed Grace to run amok for far too long, showing no outright interest in how she behaved. Perhaps she thought he didn't care, the way a spoiled child would run rampant, trying to find boundaries. Well, Alex was going to set some. Starting now.
Quick as a snake, he grabbed Grace's hand and used the momentum of the carriage to pull her across the dividing space and over his lap. Her shriek of shock and outrage didn't detract from the rush of pleasure that he got from touching her. Especially once she was pressed against him, her bottom high in the air.
THUMP!
The layers of her skirt were definitely in the way. Alex immediately understood why Hugh had insisted on a bare bottom spanking. It was obvious that, while she was frozen with shock, the blow had barely touched her through all those layers of skirt.
"Alex, what the hell?!"
Insults and now cursing, which was not at all befitting of a lady. Grace wriggled on his lap, trying to squirm away, and igniting a response that she probably wouldn't have expected. Then again, just being near her aroused him, actually having her softness pressed against his lap and cock would have tried a saint.
"I told you Grace, we're starting our marriage over. While I understand that you may still be angry about some things, and I accept that, I will no longer tolerate certain behavior from you. Insults and cursing are both included in that." Ignoring her squeal and the way her nails were digging into his leg, through his pants, he flipped her skirts up.
She was wearing pantaloons beneath, but that was fine. The fabric was thin. He'd allow her some small protection, since this was the first time, and he knew that he was already pushing her quite a bit.
SMACK!
The sound of his hand impacting her flesh through one layer of fabric was much more satisfying than through her skirts. Grace cried out, struggling wildly now. Holding her firmly, his arm resting on her back and his hand gripping the far side of her waist, Alex started to spank her, doing his best to keep the blows evenly spaced across her bottom.
"There will be no more insults."
SMACK!
"There will be no more cursing."
SMACK!
"You will be civil if nothing else."
SMACK!
"We will work out our issues in private."
SMACK!"