Page 33 of Claiming His Brat

He shook his head and pushed off the rails with a sense of determination. It was time to take both the horse and the girl in hand. Though with the horse he suspected it was going to be a little easier. He’d start by tiring Devil out with lunging and for that he’d need a lunge line and whip. As he was retrieving them from the tack room, it occurred to him that Charlie had a lot in common with the stubborn, spirited horse and maybe that’s why he was so reluctant to give up on Devil.

And maybe Charlie needed the same treatment, although unlike the horse she was actually going to feel the sting of leather on her skin. His eyes settled on an empty wooden saddle rack and an image of her bent over it sprang into his head. A slow smile crept onto his face as he decidedexactlyhow he was going to handle his untamed filly.

Chapter 10

Charlie watched him walk away with her mouth hanging open and a stunned look on her face. The urge to call after him was so strong, but what was there to say? He’d left her with a whole bundle of emotions to work through and on top of that the adrenaline from her adventures with Devil-horse over there was just starting to fade, leaving her with shaking legs and heart palpitations.

She made her way over to a stack of hay bales and flopped down before her legs gave out entirely. What thehellhad just happened?

She’d been mad at the way he’d dismissed her, so she decided to break one of his rules. The punishment coming due was fair enough and was exactly what she wanted—at least she thought she still wanted it. Too late to change her mind now, anyway.

She pushed those doubts aside because there were far more important things to make herself sick worrying over at the moment. Had he really just threatened to end their after-work activities and keep it strictly business if she didn’t give in? Could he even do that?

She knew how much he wanted her; it was in his eyes every time they looked her way. She wanted him just as much, but why did he have to put restrictions on it? Why was it necessary to make things formal instead of just…enjoying each other?

She slumped forward, letting her head hang down as she wrapped her arms around her legs. She’d been so excited when she’d returned from the woods. Ready to commit to him and give the whole relationship thing a try the way he wanted, but now there were ultimatums and those scared her.

She hadn’t even had a chance to talk to him about whether he was really down for a Daddy Dom type arrangement yet, and the more she thought about it the more she knew that she couldn’t do it without that component. Her younger, vulnerable side needed him to be a caretaker if it was going to work, and what if it had just been a one-night thing he’d played at?

No, no, no.This was all happening too fast and not at all the way she’d planned it. Instead of a relationship conversation she was going to be presented with a take it or leave it choice, and just after finally being punished too!

She could feel herself starting to hyperventilate and she had to force her mind out of the endless loop of fear and anxiety before she went into a full-blown panic attack on the spot. That was all she needed to add to her humiliation.

Slow the breathing.

Ground yourself.

Count the things.

How many times had those techniques come in handy since she’d returned home? She’d resisted the idea of therapy for years but when she started grad school, the bad dreams had finally made her check out the options. It turned out to be the smartest thing she’d ever done, and now two years later, she was able to cope with the anxiety that had haunted her since she was a little girl.

She worked through all of the exercises step by step and finally her heart slowed, and she felt the tightness in her chest loosening. There was an urge to get up and head home immediately. She felt far too fragile to be sitting there out in public, but a few minutes to recover were required before she finally straightened and brushed the hay off her jeans with deliberate casualness.

The walk back to the house was slow. She turned it into a stroll and forced herself to smile and wave at everyone she passed. She might be a wreck inside, but she wasn’t going to let anyone know it. What they’d already seen was enough, and just thinking aboutthatmade her cringe. She had no idea how much they’d heard when Sam was telling her off.

Did they know she was going to be punished later that night when they’d all gone home? She was just glad her dad had gotten rid of the bunkhouse when he’d taken over the ranch fromhisfather. If the hands still lived on-site, she knew it would only be a matter of time before they saw or heard something that clued them in to the nature of her relationship with Sam.

Wouldn’t that be a laugh—for them. She frowned as she wondered if they didn’t already have an idea about that after the blistering telling-off Sam had given her. There wasn’t anything she could do about it if theyhadheard, and she could only hope they’d think it was just talk. Sam threatened a lot of outrageous things when he was in a bad mood. For now, it was another thing to put out of her mind.

But once she closed the kitchen door behind her, she was faced with the same problem as earlier, not enough work to keep her busy so she wasn’t overthinking things. She’d learned her lesson about trying to paint when she was distracted. The mess just wasn’t worth it. She reluctantly fell back on the old stand-by of scrubbing the house.

There was something soothing and relaxing about the mindless physical work, and after a couple years of Jimmy living the bachelor life it needed it. He had been efficient when it came to the ranch, a stickler for keeping things organized over there, but good housekeeping hadn’t been in his skill set and it showed.

She’d already made progress since she’d been home, at least in the parts of the house she had the courage and energy to touch. His bedroom and study were high up on the list of places she was avoiding, though they probably needed cleaning more than any other spot.

The bathrooms always needed a good scrub though, and as gross as it was it did keep her mind off things for a while. By the time the second bathroom was finished, and she was ready to move onto the last, she was starting to sort things out in her head. Sam was going to demand a decision after her punishment, and she needed to be ready to deal with that.

The problem was that every time she tried to think pastpunishmentshe got stuck. Her ass clenched nervously, and she swallowed hard every single time she remembered what was coming. She’d asked for it,repeatedly, and now she was going to get it.

She just hoped she wouldn’t live to regret the choice. Or, well, in a weird way she hoped shedidregret it. Punishment was about regretting what you’d done after all, but she hoped it had been the right decision. The emotional aspects of it felt like a lot to sort out just then, but the weird thing was that she still found the idea of punishment hot.

Her panties were soaked, and she wondered if it would even work on her. If she was going to end up enjoying the whole thing it wouldn’t be much of a punishment, and while the bad girl getting disciplined theme was sexy, she just—she wanted more out of it than another turn-on. Until they actually went through with it, she just couldn’t know for sure how her body would react.

Right now, the arousal was adding another element of distraction to her day, but at least this one was a little more fun. As she bent and stretched to clean, she could feel the tingling as her clothes shifted, brushing lightly across her overly sensitive skin. Her nipples were hard little points inside of her bra and they kept attracting her attention whenever she moved.

Knowing what was coming made her body feel alive and she couldn’t deny that. If Sam hadn’t thrown all the emotional stuff on top, she’d be able to concentrate on that feeling of nervous waiting, which was a lot better than all the other anxiety that threatened to overwhelm her again.

She sat back on her heels holding a dripping scrub brush as she surveyed the bathroom floor. Another task done so at least her day could be chalked up as productive. She sighed and hauled the bucket to the sink to empty it. As the dirty suds were draining, she wished she had someone to talk to about all of this. It was so much to deal with on her own.

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