“Good girl. You took your spanking so well. Ready for a snuggle?”
With her emotions still too raw from the spanking to risk speaking, she simply nodded.
He helped her stand before pulling her onto his lap and cuddling her close. Oh, how she’d missed this. Closing her eyes, she snuggled into his embrace and let out a quiet sigh.
One punishment down, no idea how many to go. Owen had been infuriatingly vague about what the weekend would entail, but if all her punishments were that short, she was certain she could make it through without breaking.
“Are you hungry, sweetheart? It’s about lunch time.”
Butterflies took flight in her stomach at the sweet, simple question, but she immediately squashed the unwelcome reaction. It didn't matter if Owen was the sexiest man she’d ever laid eyes on, this was a temporary arrangement, and letting her emotions get tangled up in him was a recipe for disaster. “Not really.”
“Well, we need to get something in that tummy. Little girls need their energy.”
Rolling her eyes, she pushed off his lap and bent to reach for her panties. An unexpected smack to her bare bottom had her shooting back up to glare at him.
“What was that for?”
The stern set of his jaw had those butterflies she thought she’d squished doing somersaults. “Keep rolling your eyes at me and you’ll be writing lines until you go to bed.”
“Sorry,” she mumbled, yanking her underwear up over her burning bottom before he found another reason to spank her. When she was fully covered again, she followed her Daddy-for-the-weekend into the kitchen.
“Have a seat.” He gestured to a small table in the corner of the spacious kitchen. “I’ll get you some veggies to munch on while I make sandwiches.”
“I could cook.” Her gaze traveled the sleek, almost professional-looking kitchen and longing filled her. She’d spent the last eighteen months in a chain restaurant, churning out the same recipes over and over. The job paid the bills, but it didn’t allow her the freedom and creativity she’d enjoyed as Connor’s sous chef. If Connor would just write her the damn recommendation letter for the job at The Majestic, one of the most exclusive restaurants in Montana, she could finally get back to doing what she really loved. Which, she silently reminded herself, was why she’d agreed to this weekend in the first place. She just had to get through whatever Owen had planned for her, and she could get that letter.
“Tell you what.” Tilting his head to the side, Owen studied her, a small smile playing on his lips. “I’ll let you earn the right to spend time in the kitchen. But you’ll have to prove to me you deserve to be here.”
“How?”
“Once I feel like you’ve actually accepted responsibility for your actions, and are truly repentant, you’ll be allowed to cook. Not much different than this weekend as a whole, really.”
“But I know I messed up! What more do you want from me?” Tears unexpectedly gathered in her eyes and, to her horror, she felt her bottom lip tremble.
Stepping closer, Owen cupped her face with his hands, stroking her cheekbones with his thumbs. “Repentance, Julia. It’s not enough for me to hear you say the words, I need to see that you really mean it. Once I see that, you can cook until your heart’s content. Deal?”
“Whatever,” she mumbled, lowering her eyes to stare at the patch of skin left bare by his partially unbuttoned dress shirt. Just that glimpse of tan skin, sprinkled with hair, was enough to make her mouth water. What was it about men in dress shirts with the buttons undone that was so damn sexy?
“And that answer tells me you’re nowhere near where you need to be. Sit, little one, and Daddy will make your lunch.”
Little one. Despite herself, her stomach did a slow roll at the new term of endearment. It felt so much more intimate than just “sweetheart” or “little girl”.
Sighing quietly, she dragged her feet across the kitchen to the little round table in the corner and plopped down in one of the chairs. A moment later, a small plate appeared in front of her, filled with baby carrots and raw broccoli, with a dollop of what she assumed was Ranch dip on the side.
“No, thank you,” she said politely, nudging the plate away. He hadn’t even bothered to arrange the vegetables in a cute pattern or anything. Hadn’t the man ever heard of presentation?
Zero stars.
“While I appreciate your manners, you still need to eat your veggies, Julia.” His tone took on that hard edge from earlier, when he’d been getting ready to punish her.
It was humiliating how her body instantly reacted, her pussy tingling with need even as her bottom clenched in anticipation of the spanking she was sure was coming. “No, thank you,” she repeated.
“Last chance, little one.”
Her throat seemed to close up at the threat, so she simply shook her head.
“All right. I’ll be back in a moment.”
Shit, shit, shit. What had she been thinking? Her butt was literally still throbbing from the spanking she’d just received. Why had she pushed him into punishing her again so soon? There was nothing wrong with vegetables and dip, and she wasn’t some bratty Little who refused to eat her veggies.