Page 18 of Papa's Captive
Chapter 10
Was it possible to die of shame?
Rosie sat on a chair in the chamber, fully dressed—thank God Papa had helped her get ready not long after he’d caught her stroking her kitty—as he stared down at her with his arms crossed, his handsome face drawn in lines of contemplation.
“We are to be married soon,” he began, “and it occurs to me that we must have a discussion about expectations and…rules.”
“Rules?” She straightened in her seat.
“Yes, my love, rules.” He tapped at his chin and narrowed his eyes. “First of all, a little girl’s pleasure belongs to her papa. You are not to touch your privates except in perfunctory matters. If I ever catch you stroking your own kitty again, without explicit permission from me, you will be severely punished. Is that understood?”
Severely punished. A phantom tingle raced across Rosie’s bottom cheeks and she had to resist the urge to squirm and press her thighs together. “I-I understand, Papa. And I am terribly sorry. I-I really thought you were sleeping.”
“Believing me asleep will not serve as a good defense in the future, young lady.”
“Of course, Papa.”
“As for the remainder of my rules for you—”
A shiver of excitement wound through her when he mentioned rules.
His dominance thrilled her on a visceral level.
This was a whole new side of Lord Caldwell and she found herself enthralled by it. Not only did her papa spank hard, but her papa was strict as well. If she wasn’t a good girl, she would end up over his knee for another disciplinary session. But perhaps next time, once they were married, he would strip off her clothing and punish her on the bare.
“I-I am a good girl, Papa,” she said. “Most of the time. Despite how naughty I was yesterday at Talcott House, I promise I rarely got in trouble there. And the few times I did, it was usually Daisy’s fault—she wasalwaystrying to drag me into her mischief. Honest. If you don’t believe me, just ask Miss Wickersham.”
“I believe you, Rosie, however keep in mind that I will always hold you accountable for your actions. Papa is always watching.”
She lowered her head a notch and waited for him to continue, all the while trying to ignore the heated pulses in her nether region. How frustrating it had been to lay awake in the early morning hours, her thoughts on her recent spanking from her papa, and not even find the relief she had been seeking. She’d stroked and stroked and stroked, but in the end, she hadn’t been able to assuage the desperate aching. Oh, how she hoped Papa knew how to make her aching feel better.
Arms and legs tangled under the bedcovers, they basked in the aftermath of their shared bliss, coming down from the precipice of ecstasy and satisfied longing.
Another passage from one of the romance novels Daisy had read aloud floated through her mind. That particular quote made her suspect she was doing something wrong when she touched herself. Or perhaps she would never be able to find relief unless Papa helped her. Heat suffused her face at the image of him caressing her kitty.
“Now,” Papa said, “I intend to take care of all your needs. As I have already told you, I will dress you, bathe you, put you down for naps, and get you ready for bed and tuck you in every night. You are not permitted to do any of those things for yourself unless I have given you permission.” He stared down at her, his dark eyes gleaming with pleasure. “It will bring me great satisfaction to take care of you in this way, my love.”
“I shall try to obey this rule, Papa,” she said with enthusiasm, though deep down her psyche reverberated with uncertainty. She was now used to taking care of herself in all these ways. No one had helped her dress or bathe since she’d had a lady’s maid. She tried not to think about Isabella, though it was difficult not to think about what had happened to the kind woman in the aftermath of her family home being burned to the ground. She had heard all the servants had survived, thank God, but all of them had had to scatter and make new lives for themselves and it hurt her heart to ponder it.
“Rosie? Are you paying attention?”
She sat up and met Papa’s gaze. “Sorry, Papa, I’m listening.”Stop thinking about the past. Keep pretending you’re someone else so Papa doesn’t find out.The last thing she wanted was to break his heart or bring shame down upon his good name. He was a decent man. More than decent, and more than she deserved given that she could never be completely honest with him.
“You may address me as Lord Caldwell while in public settings and in front of the servants, though in private you will call me Papa. However, if you slip up and accidently call me Papa in the company of others, I will not be cross with you.” He waggled his eyebrows. “I will simply call you Mama and let thetonthink we have gone mad.”
She giggled. “Yes, Papa.” She could very well imagine him doing such a thing and playing off any mistakes as a joke.
“Of course, if we spend time with—and I am sure we will—your friends from Talcott House who have married and have papas of their own now, you may call me ‘Papa’ in those settings.”
“Yes, Papa.” She was glad he was focusing on explaining his rules for her now, rather than interrogating her and demanding to know why she’d been touching herself. She hoped that particular topic didn’t arise again and she vowed to keep her hands to herself going forward, no matter how badly her kitty ached.
“We will spend about one month at my estate in Scotland before we return to London. I also have an estate in the countryside not far from Talcott House, though I think it best we return to London directly after your month as my captive in my castle.”
His captive.She shuddered with delight.
She liked being Papa’s captive.
“No matter which estate we are staying at, I will expect you to ask for permission before you leave the immediate grounds of the estate. That means no venturing beyond the gardens. I want to know where you are at all times. Your safety is important to me, Rosie.”
