“Hey, wait, sweetheart.” He was being a bad dom. He took her stiff form into his arms. “I forgive you. It’s over, okay?” He felt her melt into his arms and cry, and he was torn between the desire to comfort her and the more pressing need to get them all to safety. He kissed her forehead, patted her ass, and gave her a gentle shove towards the packs. “You get the gear. I’ll get your brother.”
They got moving quickly, just as the flurries started.
JILLIAN
Jillian couldn’t believe that big… animal had spanked her. No, she sighed. She deserved it. He had saved Jake and her from wolves and had even offered to take them back to his place to give him medical attention. Cutting him and threatening him was definitely not the right way to thank him. She would make it up to him, somehow.
She looked at the large, brooding man, his face furrowed in thought. Was he angry about something? Or was her brother getting heavy? They had realized pretty quickly thatthe unconscious man was not going to stay on the horse, so Bertram decided to carry him. Her bottom ached as she bounced on top of his horse. The hard saddle was not something she was accustomed to using as she usually rode Banbury bareback.
“How much farther?” she whined, regretting it when he gave her that look.
“It will take longer if we have to stop and warm up your bottom again.” He raised his eyebrow.
She couldn’t stop the heat that crept to her cheeks. The memory of being over his lap did weird things to her tummy. “So, Bertram, what do you do for a living?”
“I own a specialty shop and lodge. You’ll find it interesting, I’m sure.”
He must have misread her surprise as fear because he continued, “You and your brother will be safe, I assure you.”
“I wasn’t worried,” she scoffed and looked nervously at his large hands. They might be safe, but would her bottom?
He grunted and shifted Jake in his arms. “So, where were you two heading before your unfortunate… ahem, accident?”
“We were going to Grimmberg to meet the matchmaker.” She looked at the ground and mumbled. “Neither of us has had much luck finding mates in our village, so a friend suggested the matchmaker.”
“Interesting.” He nodded. “Why?”
“Why what?” she asked, confused.
“Why do you have problems finding suitable mates? You’re a beautiful woman.”
She rolled her eyes at him and grumbled. “Thanks. Honestly, Jake says I’m too, um, temperamental.”
“High maintenance? Feisty? Often in need of a good long spanking?” He chuckled at her shocked gasp. “I can see that. You need to find the right man. Seems to me you need a man as strong-willed as you are.”
A man like Bertram?She clenched the saddle tighter between her legs, remembering exactly what his strength had felt like on her bare bottom. But he had not been cruel or malicious when he took her over his knee, and he had even comforted her afterwards. He was much different than the men in her village. Her previous suitor was too… “Henpecked” was the word she liked to use to describe him. He would never have thought of doing something as barbaric as spanking her. Luckily, Jake had pointed out his deficiencies, and Jillian sent the man crying back to his mother.
But her final suitor was a lord who was dark, vile, and mean. She saw his anger and the power that he loved to exert over the rest of the villagers. The pig of a man only cared for his possessions and had made it abundantly clear that Jillian was to be one. He had even grabbed her breast and kissed her without permission.
Jake had been furious when he caught her angrily tearing up the lord’s flower beds and throwing rocks toward the windows. She missed most of them, unfortunately. Jake packed up their meager belongings, prepared Banbury, and dragged her onto the long road to the matchmaker.
So what kind of man was Bertram? He was most definitely not a henpecked mother’s boy. That only left power-hungry lord, right? Only time would tell. She shrugged her shoulders, feeling uncomfortable and sad, and decided to change the subject.
“So what about you, Bertram? Wife, kids?”
His face turned stony, then softened again. “Fiancée left a few years ago for some village idiot in another town.”
“I’m so sorry,” she gasped.
“It’s all right,” he smirked. “I took the money I saved in hair products to build my place and am living happily with my…” he paused, “little. We get a lot of visitors, so we don’t get lonely.”
He slowed his walk and met her gaze kindly. “I know you feel badly about your brother. Don’t worry, we’ll get him fixed up.”
Tears filled her eyes, and she nodded, thankful he understood.
“All right. The lodge is around the bend. You are both welcome to stay as long as you like, as long as you obey the rules.”
She opened her mouth to ask him what rules he meant when they turned the corner and the lodge came into view. Mansion was more like it. It was huge. Bigger than five houses put together. And it was beautiful and brightly lit with torches and lights, a huge sign at the front.
