Luke's First Bride Page 6

  She thought for sure that it would be the end of her spanking, but Luke wordlessly scooped her up, and unceremoniously plopped her back over his knee. He held one arm across her back, pinning her arms to keep her from being able to reach back and cover herself.

  Unable to fight with her arms, she used her legs. She kicked her legs up in a scissor motion, whining and crying. That didn't faze him either. He brought his leg up over the top of hers and she was effectively trapped. Unable to do anything else but submit to her spanking, she fell docile across his body and sobbed in earnest. She could have sworn she heard him mumble something to the effect of "Now we're getting somewhere."

  * * * * *

  It was killing Luke to spank Rosa as hard as he was. He had to compensate for her clothing, however. He could not spank her on the bare, it wasn't proper. She was a fighter too, but he supposed that was normal for a first timer, and her spunk made him smile through the tears that were threatening to spill. He knew he had to spank her to a certain point, or it would not be as effective. At least, that's what he had always been told.

  When she finally stopped fighting and fell limp across his lap, he breathed a sigh of relief, knowing he had made his point, and spanked her to tears. He gave two more swats for good measure, but his heart wasn't in it. He knew he hadn't been too harsh, but the experience had been hard on both of them.

  He made no move to right her, and instead let her cry it out, while he rubbed her back, whispering to her. "I'm finished baby, you did so well. I'm so proud of you." He just repeated himself over and over, until she was quiet enough that he knew she could actually hear him.

  Once she was calm, he helped her to a sitting position, and sat her upon his lap. He wiped her tears, and couldn't help but grin as she wiggled around trying to find a comfortable way to sit. "I don't think you'll have a very easy time sitting for a day or two," he told her trying to hold back a grin. He wasn't mean, she was just so darn adorable.

  She glared at him unconvincingly. "Well, you didn't have to be so hard on me!" she exclaimed with a pout.

  "Yeah, darling, I did. You dumped me in a mud puddle, and threw a fit worthy of a spoiled toddler. You're a grown woman, and you're about to be a married woman. Soon after that, you'll be a bishop's wife. You have to think before you act, no matter what. Your actions from now on, reflect on me, and my position in this community. I needed to make sure you had a good reminder of that in the future. Just remember these two things. If you behave like that again, I'll spank you on the bare, and tonight will seem like a cakewalk compared to what you'll have coming." He paused for a moment to let that sink in. Then he said, "And more importantly, I love you, and I cannot wait to marry you and make you my wife."

  Rosa didn't respond, just nested her head on his chest, and sighed happily.

  Chapter 8

  Rosa and Luke had settled into married life nicely, and had gotten along better than most newlyweds in a community of arranged marriages. They really did seem to be made for each other, Rosa thought happily as she worked on decorating the carriage house. She was slowly turning it into a home they could be proud of. They had been fixing it up as their budget allowed. They had gotten furniture and other necessities as wedding gifts, and now all that was left to add was those homey touches.

  Rosa had just picked some picture frames, a shower curtain, and a new rug at the market that morning and she was trying to getting wedding pictures hung before Luke came home. He was busy at the church most days, training with his father, and getting things set up for him to take over after the New Year. He had called earlier to let her know that he would be home late. She tried not to be upset. He was taking a very long weekend to spend time with her. She could hardly wait for the five full days they would have together!

  The knock at the back door startled her, even though she knew it would be sister, Beth Anne. Beth Anne was her only sister that was married so far besides herself, and they had gotten to be very close, especially just over the last few weeks. Beth Anne was pregnant, and even though she wasn't due until after Christmas, she was huge and looked as if she could give birth at any moment. It would be the first baby for Ben and Beth Anne, and Ben had insisted that Beth Anne quit her job at Green Valley Community School. Beth Anne hadn't been happy about it, but she had agreed, as per the arrangement her and Ben had put in place before they married. Beth Anne was a good sport, but she was nearly beside herself with boredom. That meant she was spending a lot of time at Rosa and Luke's house, especially now that the school year had started.

  Rosa greeted her sister with a hug, then reached down and rubbed Beth Anne's growing belly.

  Beth Anne smiled. "She's a busy bee today, all over the place!"

  "Aw, I can't wait to meet her," Rosa cooed. "What is it now, four more weeks?"

  "If she waits that long," Beth Anne said. "I can wait though! We still have a few more things to do. Molly's painting the nursery right now, and she kicked me out of the house because of the fumes. I told her we could just open all the windows and I would be fine, but she said I was crazy, and I better go, or she was going to call Ben to tattle on me. Not that I was doing anything I could get in trouble for, but after the spanking I got last night, I wasn't taking any chances!" Beth Anne exclaimed rubbing her bottom ruefully.

  "You got spanked last night? You poor thing, what did you do?" Rosa helped Beth Anne over to the sofa and sat down beside her, watching in disbelief as her sister shifted uncomfortably. Rosa herself had not been spanked since that one time before they were married. She was both curious and dreading what it would be like to be spanked as a married woman.

  "Well, I may have gone a little tiny bit over my allowance when shopping for baby things." Beth Anne admitted.

  "You have an allowance? That's a thing? But, Ben makes a lot of money!"

  "Yes, he does, but that doesn't mean I need to spend it all," Beth Anne told her sensibly. "Especially now that I'm not working, we need to be more careful about how we budget as a growing family with just one income."

  Rosa nodded. It made sense, but it still seemed unfair. "But you're going to need things for the baby! You have to buy them. The baby can't just go without."

  "Yes, but I already have a lot of things. It turns out, Mollie is much better at knitting than she is at sewing, and she has already made me several beautiful blankets, as well as some hats, booties, and even an outfit. Mama made me a quilt and nursery bedding, and Papa made me that beautiful cradle. Plus, we haven't had the shower yet. That's next week, and I was supposed to wait until after the shower, and then he was going to give me some money to pick up whatever else we still needed."

  Rosa nodded. It made sense, now that she knew all the details. "What was your monthly allowance?" she wondered.

  "It's supposed to be $150 for incidentals and fun stuff. That is more than fair, and if something comes up, I can always ask Ben for more, and he will usually give it to me."

  Rosa was getting nervous as she listened, and beginning to feel more than a little guilty. She had spent more than that this morning, and she and Luke didn't have anywhere near the income Ben and Beth Anne had. "How much did you go over," Rosa asked. She felt a lump in her throat, as her apprehension over her morning purchases grew.

  "Nearly fifty dollars over my monthly allowance and it's only the tenth of the month." Beth Anne looked miserable.

  "Can't you afford it just this once?"

  "Oh, I'm sure we can, but that's not the point. My allowance is more than generous, and if I would have asked, or waited, he wouldn't have complained. He's great like that. But the point is we have a family budget and if one person is selfish, and doesn't abide by it, it affects everyone else. Ben sticks to the same allowance that he gives me and Molly, so he knows it's a completely fair and reasonable amount. He told me that if I would have asked, he would have given me some from his own pocket money, because it's his baby too. But, I was selfish and didn't ask. So, now I get fifty less next month, and I got paddled. Trust me, I l
earned my lesson. I won't do that again. I hate it when Ben is disappointed in me."

  Rosa nodded, but she was zoned in on the one word she hadn't thought of. "He paddled you? Like, with an actual paddle? He doesn't just use his hand?" Rosa was incredulous. Her one spanking with just Luke's hand had hurt like the dickens, and that was over her clothing. It had not occurred to her that other husbands might use something else to conduct a spanking. Idly she wondered if Luke owned a paddle.

  "I'm sure Luke has a paddle," Beth Anne told her.

  Rosa blushed. She hadn't realized she had said that aloud.

  "His father probably gave him one when you married," Beth Anne added. "I'm pretty sure that's where Ben got ours."

  Rosa's heart dropped into her stomach. She vowed that as soon as Beth Anne left, she would take everything but a picture frame or two back to the store, before Luke could find out. She would tell him herself, but only after she had done the right thing. It wasn't like they had any rules in place about a budget or allowance, and Rosa hadn't thought it was a big deal at the time. She could see now from talking to Beth Anne that it was, and she felt terrible. They had the rest of their lives to fix up the carriage house, and they had only lived there a few weeks.

  Rosa was lost in her thoughts when Beth Anne's stomach growled, startling her out of her reverie.

  Beth Anne looked sheepish. "She's hungry. I left the house without eating lunch and I skipped breakfast because I was feeling ill. Do you have anything to eat? It's okay if you don't. I would offer to take you out to lunch, but I'm broke, so I will just have to go home and eat."

  Rosa smiled. "It's okay, I can make us some sandwiches. I haven't eaten yet either."

  * * * * *

  Luke had gotten off early when his father had to go to the hospital unexpectedly to be with a family whose child needed an emergency appendectomy. He was excited for the next five days with Rosa, and he planned on using the little extra money he had over from his paltry paycheck to do something special for her. He had thought about flowers, but had decided to surprise her with something for the house instead. He could buy the set of dishes he knew she had her eye on, and still have a little left over to take her out for pizza or a simple dinner at the café.

  He stopped by the bank to deposit his check before going home, and what he found at the bank made him see red.

  Before his check was deposited, they had been overdrawn by almost two hundred dollars. He asked the teller about the last charge, suspecting fraudulent activity, but the charge was from the department store here in town. Instantly, Luke knew what had happened.

  He couldn't believe it. Rosa must have assumed he had deposited his check earlier in the day, and used the opportunity to treat herself to a shopping spree. Now, they barely had enough money for bills and food for the next few weeks. What had she been thinking?

  Luke was conflicted. They didn't actually have any rules in place regarding a budget or an allowance, but Rosa knew they were on a tight budget. Discussing major purchases with each other was a common courtesy as far as he was concerned. He never would have spent such a large sum without discussing it with her. Still, unless she lied about it when asked, it wasn't a spankable offense.

  He drove around a little bit before going home, working through the situation in his mind. Obviously, they needed to revisit their house rules. He decided he couldn't spank her, but he was going to have to find a way to punish her for her irresponsibility. Obviously, she would have to return whatever she had purchased if they were to have money to live on, and he would have to employ some form of non-spanking punishment. That part he would play by ear. Feeling better, he turned toward home.

  Rosa and Beth Anne were leaving the house as he pulled up, and Rosa's arms were laden with shopping bags. The sight made Luke angry all over again. He exited the truck in a hurry- and caught Rosa by the arm just as she was about to jump in Beth Anne's car.

  "In the house, now," he said as forcefully as possible.

  He saw her exchange a panicked look with Beth Anne, but she obeyed and followed him into the house. She dropped the bags by the door, and sat down on the couch.

  He was too agitated to sit. He wanted to spank her so badly, but he knew it was not the right thing. "Where were you and Beth Anne headed?" he barked.

  "She was taking me to the market because—"

  "The market? Really?" Luke cut her off, incredulously. "Don't you think you've done enough damage at the market today?"

  "Luke, I… what happened?"

  "What happened? What happened! What happened is I went to the bank to deposit my check so I could surprise you with the dishes you wanted, and I found out that we were overdrawn by almost two hundred and fifty dollars!"

  Rosa gulped and looked at the floor. "Luke, I can explain. I know I made a mistake, I wasn't thinking!"

  "You certainly weren't," he agreed, thankful she hadn't lied or attempted to excuse her actions. "Rosa, we barely have enough money for bills now, and we still have to make it through the next two weeks until I get paid again. Do you know how stupid I felt at the bank when I deposited my check and found out that I was overdrawn by such a huge amount? Do you know how embarrassing that was? Christ, Rosa, I'm about to be the bishop of this community. How do you think it makes me look when I don't have control of my own finances? How will people believe that I can run an entire county?"

  "I'm sorry!" Rosa was sobbing, big crocodile tears running down her cheeks, and Luke immediately felt guilty. He hadn't even heard her side of the story yet, and he had immediately jumped down her throat. He felt like a tool.

  He forced himself to stop pacing and took a seat in the oversized recliner opposite her. "Rosa, don't cry. I shouldn't have yelled like that. I'm sorry."

  "Yes, you should have, Luke," she insisted. "I messed up! I acted selfishly without thinking about our future or our finances or your feelings! But, I already realized that, talking to Beth Anne, and we were on our way to return everything but the picture frame!" She cried gesturing to a large framed wedding photo hung over the mantle.

  His mouth dropped open. "That's what you were planning to do at the market? Return everything?"

  "Yes, I'm so sorry! I just love our little house, and I want it to be perfect. But it's not important, I didn't think! "

  "No, you didn't," Luke agreed, feeling much calmer, now that he knew she had already realized the error of her ways. "And, I will admit, I am very disappointed that you would spend such a large amount of money without having the consideration to consult me first. However, we don't have any rules in place regarding finances, and you came to the conclusion on your own to do the right thing, so I am very proud of you for that."

  "Am I still in trouble?" Rosa asked climbing into his lap.

  "We are going to have a very long conversation about rules, and consequences, and you will be returning everything. In addition, you will be helping me with some chores at the church this weekend to pay off the bank fees we can't get back. But, because you did not break any of the rules we had in place, and because you were doing the right thing on your own, I will not be punishing you further than that."

  Rosa sighed audibly and buried her head into his chest. She was silent for so long, Luke didn't know what to think. Finally she lifted her head, and looked at him.

  "Lucas, I feel awful. I was so terrible and inconsiderate, and I made you look bad at the bank. You're so kind and forgiving and fair. I'm so lucky to have you as a husband. But, you're not so lucky to have me as a wife. I messed up, and I deserve to be punished. Please spank me, Lucas."

  Lucas was floored by Rosa's request that he spank her, and he almost refused. He was the head of the house, and when he made a decision, it should stick.

  But, he remembered something from his domestic discipline counseling with his dad. If your wife asked for a spanking, you should indulge her, unless you had a very good reason not to. Usually, it meant the guilt from whatever the offense seemed too overwhelming, and she needed the releas
e of a spanking that she wouldn't get from alternative punishments. Admittedly, Lucas knew if it was up to him, it would have been a spankable offense anyway. But he had tried to be fair.

  However, if Rosa felt she needed this, he would certainly oblige her, and use the time she was over his knee to reinforce some things.

  "You want me to spank you? You're sure?"

  "Yes, Lucas. I'm sure. Give me my first spanking as a married woman."

  "Okay then, no backing out now," he told her, and waited for her nod of understanding. "Go to the bedroom and remove your clothing down to your bra and panties, and wait for me in the corner."

  "Yes, Lucas… I mean, Yes, Sir," she said, scrambling to obey his instructions.

  He smiled. She really was a good girl, and he was a lucky man. He tinkered around the living room for a while, no purpose in mind other than to make her wait. Anticipation was an important part of punishment, after all.

  After an appropriate amount of time had passed, he joined her in the bedroom. His breath caught at the sight of her standing in the corner in only her pale pink underwear set. She really was a stunning beauty. He stood for just a moment admiring the view. It wasn't the first time he had seen her in a state of undress, they had been married for a few weeks now, but she was usually embarrassed and rushing to cover up after they made love. Staring at her, he imagined her standing naked from the waist down, with her bottom tinged a lovely pink from his hand.

  Hmmm, he may need to begin implementing post punishment corner time. The idea had merit.

  He crossed to the bed and sat, calling her over to stand before him. "Are you ready?"

  Rosa nodded shyly, and he saw no sense in drawing it out. He positioned her over one knee, so that her top half was on the bed, and her legs were not. With one swift flick of his wrist, her panties were around her knees and her cute little bottom was right where he wanted it. He rubbed her white flesh, thinking that it wouldn't be white for long as he intended to make this a well and thorough spanking.