“Wait! Please let me speak,” she said, reaching back.
“I don’t want words. I want flushed cheeks and your obedience. Move your hand.”
She slid her hand away, leaving her ass defenseless. And in that moment, it felt right to surrender. She dropped her head and forced her arms to relax.
Then his hand came down again with a hard crack, and she sucked in a breath.
“Not so hard! You know I’m sorry.”
“Do I?” he asked, pinning her arm to her lower back when she tried to protect herself again.
She struggled. “Larsinc!”
“Be still,” he said, trapping her legs with his. He spanked her again and again with heavy thuds that stole her breath.
Her bottom felt warm and swollen, and she ached between her legs. She squirmed, panting and struggling as the discomfort worsened. She tried to kick her legs, but couldn’t. His hand fell in a steady rhythm, mercilessly.
“Please!” she shrieked, the shirt falling down to cover her head and sweep through the sand. Now her back and breasts were exposed to his view. Was he looking? And would that drive things even farther? A part of her hoped so.
The sharp cracks intensified, but he paused occasionally to rub her wounded ass and to play between her legs, like she was his toy, or his pet. His possessive handling of her made her feel more flustered and ashamed. Why were her feelings so confused? She should hate him. Maybe a part of her did. But the rest of her? No, not hate.
“That’s enough!” A burst of defiance made her twist and thrash until he let her fall from his lap onto the sand. She wiped away the tears dotting her lashes and then rubbed her aching ass. She needed to do more to check his impulses to dominate her. They weren’t married or even planning to be. She must remember that.
His gaze was steady on her face. “Still rebellious.” A faint smile tugged at his lips. “Let’s try a different kind of lesson.”
Her eyes widened and her hands thrust out in a protective gesture of protest. “No, I just couldn’t take anymore and—”
“Don’t try to lie to me,” he said, his tone hardening. “You weren’t at the end of your endurance. We both know I’ve seen you take much more without such a dramatic protest. You’re testing my resolve, to see what I’ll let you get away with.”
She bit her lip, knowing it was true. “No, really—” she began, but then trailed off weakly, afraid if she persisted in lying, he’d get angry, and rightfully so. “Can you blame me?”
“No, I blame myself. If a pet isn’t properly trained, that’s the master’s failing.”
“I’m not a pet!”
“You are what I decide you are,” he said with finality as he walked away.
Where was he going? She thought he planned to continue punishing her?
* * *
Linc delighted in her curiosity, wit, and flirtations with him, but he couldn’t let that factor into the way he handled Giss’s dangerous behavior or her lying. Larsinc would break her of trying to run wild in the night with no protection. He would also break her of her inclination to lie to avoid the consequences of her actions. This was not Orius, and he was not a corrupt magistrate. Linc had more than proven she could trust him to protect her from real harm.
Linc cut a smooth cylinder of ginger that was as thick as a pair of his overlapping fingers. His heart thumped with aroused anticipation. Peeling it, he returned to the beach.
Busying herself with net-weaving, Giss only glanced up for a moment.
“Go and get a cushion,” Larsinc said, sitting on the bench.
“Why?”
“To give your face something to rest on.”
“I don’t understand.”
“You will soon enough. Go.”
After a brief delay, she hurried off. Her nervousness was apparent when she returned because she stayed out of reach, a questioning look on her face.
