And now, shut away in the office once more while dinner prep was in full swing, the ache between her thighs seemed to be all she could focus on. But she didn’t dare touch herself again. There was still a small glimmer of hope that her Daddy would allow her to come during her punishment later, but even that glimmer would disappear if he caught her again.
As if thinking of him somehow conjured him, the door to the office opened and Connor filled the space. “Ready to go home, kitty?”
Popping up onto her knees, Hayleigh nodded vigorously. Even though she was enjoying her kitty-time, she was more than ready for her punishment to be over and to know her Daddy truly forgave her.
With her leash in hand again, he led her out of the office. But instead of cutting through the kitchen and out the side door like usual, he guided her toward the dining room. She stopped just in front of the swinging doors, but one look from her Daddy had her moving forward again. Her cheeks felt like they were on fire. It was one thing to be a kitty in the safety of her Daddy’s kitchen, but this was so… public.
They drew a few curious glances, but nothing malicious or mean-spirited, and she started to relax as they wound their way through the maze of tables and booths. Somewhere along the way she’d forgotten that living on a BDSM Ranch meant most of the population wouldn’t even bat an eye at, well, pretty much anything.
By the time they stopped in front of one of the tables in the middle of the room, she was actually beginning to enjoy the attention. That was, until she realized who was seated at the table.
As soon as she looked up and saw Master Derek looking down at her, his face set in stern, unforgiving lines, she moved behind Connor’s legs.
“Naughty kitty,” Connor said, stepping aside and pulling on the leash so she couldn’t move without the collar tightening around her neck. “I’m letting you off your restriction now, so you can apologize to Master Derek.”
Oh God. As if she wasn’t humiliated enough, now she had to apologize here, in front of the entire resort? Looking up, she gave Connor her best pout, but he just raised an eyebrow at her.
“Do I need to count, Hayleigh Anne?”
“N-no, sir.” She coughed to clear her throat, which felt oddly rough from not speaking all day. With a quiet sigh, she turned back to Master Derek, who was watching her expectantly. “I’m very, very sorry for starting a food fight, sir. It will never happen again, I promise.”
“I have no doubt your Daddy has made this a very memorable punishment for you. Thank you for the apology, Hayleigh. Consider our slate wiped clean.”
“Thank you, sir.” Looking around, she frowned when she realized someone was missing from his table. “Where is Sadie?”
“At the big house. She’s grounded. I would have eaten dinner with her tonight, but your Daddy asked me to come down and speak with you.”
Guilt erased all of the fuzzy, happy feelings. Here she was, actually enjoying parts of her punishment, and poor Sadie couldn’t even leave her house!
“Don’t worry, sweetheart. She’ll be joining you for the Halloween party. And maybe you two can have a sleepover soon. If that’s all right with your Daddy.”
Bouncing happily on her knees, she looked up at Connor. “Please, Daddy? Pretty please?”
“We can talk about it, jellybean. For now, I need to get you home so we can finish your punishment and get you to bed.”
It was on the tip of her tongue to argue that she’d learned her lesson and didn’t need any more punishment, but she wasn’t willing to risk a very public spanking on top of what she already had coming. So, she nodded and dropped back onto all fours and crawled out of the restaurant.
“All right, jellybean. You can walk the rest of the way.”
She stumbled a bit when she stood. “I think my legs forgot how to walk.”
“We’ll take it slow so they can remember.” A strong arm slid around her waist and she leaned into him with a sigh. “I’m really proud of you, baby. You were the picture of grace and obedience today and I couldn’t have asked for more.”
“Even though I was a little naughty?” she asked sheepishly.
“Yes,” he assured her with a laugh. “I can’t really blame you. I’ve been hard as a rock all day, watching you in that skimpy little outfit with that adorable tail in your ass. I kept imagining it was my cock instead. That’s part of why I ducked out early. I decided I couldn’t wait any longer to claim your last little hole.”
The simmering arousal flared to life and became an inferno. If he didn’t take her soon, it was liable to burn her alive.
They didn’t speak again until he closed the front door of his cozy little house behind them. Pulling her into his arms, he lifted a hand to cup her cheek. “My naughty little girl,” he murmured. “Ready for the last part of your punishment?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
“Go in the bedroom and take off your costume. You can leave the tail.”
With a quick nod, she hurried off to get ready. Taking the costume off felt a little like losing a part of herself, but maybe he’d let her play with it every now and again. It would be fun to be a kitty again, just for play and not because she was in trouble. When everything but the tail had been removed and was piled neatly on the nightstand, she waited by the bed for him.
She didn’t have to wait long. No sooner had she folded her hands behind her back than she heard his low growl, “Good girl.”