“The difference is, those occasions were either consensual or they were backed up by a safe word,” Mitch replied, the expression on his face a far cry from the cheerful, fun-loving guy she’d met a couple of days ago.
“Honestly, it’s nothing. And I can handle myself.”
“The point is, you shouldn’t have needed to,” Jed chipped in, obviously as pissed as the others.
“He was just a scrawny kid,” Beth said flippantly, thinking to lighten the tension that had sprung up in the room. “I could have taken care of him just by sitting my fat ass on him.”
She’d meant it in jest, but it was the wrong thing to say.
A low growl, which was nipple achingly hot, emanated from Sawyer’s direction. “Pretty sure you’ve been warned, more than once, what will happen if you keep putting yourself down.”
Beth's eyes widened in surprise. They’d all said that to her in the past, but how did they know each other had? She looked between the three of them. They’d discussed it?
The very idea flipped the wicked switch inside her brain.
“Ha! So, you keep threatening,” she goaded. As much as she’d like them to, she doubted they’d actually deliver on those consequences. “So far I’ve yet to see any evidence though.”
Before she could blink, Sawyer had her sprawled, face down, over his lap and was dishing out some surprisingly stinging swats to said, skirt-covered, ass.
“Hey!” Beth squeaked, the breath rushing out of her. “This is not fair!”
“Were you warned?” Her long, dark hair covered her face, but she knew that voice belonged to Jed.
“Yes, but…”
She didn’t get to finish.
“Do you want me to stop?” This from Sawyer, whose hand paused, poised above her ass.
To her mortification, Beth felt the loss of his spanking hand immediately, and wanted nothing more than for it to return. “No,” she whispered, hardly daring to breathe.
“Do you have a safe word?” That was from Mitch. She could just about see their shoes from her upside-down position with her wild hair obstructing her view.
“Yes, red,” she responded quickly, hope and anticipation blooming inside her like a sunrise, filling the dark places and the shadows that the events of the evening had thrown out.
“Use it if you need to, Bethy,” Sawyer growled.