Page 27 of The Arianna Arrangement

Now so many of his men being in the room made sense. He also expected them to put up a fight, which means he always planned this to be my punishment.

“A spanking? Seriously, Lucian?” I could feel the anger radiating off Apollo from where he sat on my right, even if his tone sounded bored.

“I will concede to Tucker being the one to dole out the punishment since she is his intended. But because I, respectfully, feel the boy is soft, I want it done here, now, so I can make sure he follows through and the punishment is thorough.”

Tucker stiffened beside me. “My family does not agree with raising a hand to a woman so spanking her goes against our families beliefs.”

My father’s jaw ticked and I knew he was pissed that Tucker was not only defying him, but he’d just basically offended him since my father made no attempts to hide his abuse of my mother.

“Make no mistake, boy. Arianna is still under my control, so she will get the punishment I decide is best, when I decide on it. If you’re not man enough to step up and get your woman under control,” he waved his hand to showcase the other men around the room, “I’m sure I’d have no trouble finding a volunteer to carry out the task.”

I swear to God, Tucker actually growled at that statement. “No other man will touch what is mine.”

Something must be seriously wrong with me, because that growl and possession had my pussy dripping for him.

My father lifted an eyebrow and steepled his fingers in front of his face. “Then get on with her punishment so we can eat.”

Tucker scooted his chair back and I got up without prompting. He was struggling and I wasn’t going to make this any harder on him than it had to be. Bending over his lap, he smoothed down my dress, making sure I was completely covered.

“Dress up, panties down. Skin to skin is most effective.” My father’s voice came out a little breathy, like he was turned on, which was seriously fucked up.

I could feel the muscles in Tucker’s body stiffen. “I will not bare her to this entire fucking room. You may still be in control of her until our wedding, but I will not let other men look at the pussy that I’m to own.”

This was definitely going to get ugly, fast, if my father wanted to push the issue. From the possessive tone in Tucker’s words, I felt sure he’d go head to head with my father, and that would only end poorly. I didn’t want that. I loved Tucker with all my heart. But I was also so fucking glad he wasn’t going to pull my panties down so the whole room could see how turned on I was right now.

As I watched my father from this embarrassing as fuck position, I saw the moment he conceded. “Fine. I actually respect the backbone you’re showing right now, son. Maybe I was wrong about you. The panties can stay on, but the dress must come up. Two layers of clothing as a buffer is unacceptable.”

The bottom of my dress was pulled up, barely, and soon, Tucker’s hand was colliding with my ass. Hard.

When I’d first laid over his lap, I’d thought that maybe spanking was a kink of mine. Not in front of all these people, but as wet as I was, it was one I wanted to explore after we got married.

But now… now I felt certain it wasn’t. He didn’t alternate cheeks, just repeatedly hit the exact same spot with more force than I thought he would and I hated that my father was watching on as tears formed in my eyes. I blinked them back, but one slipped free.

“That’s enough.” My father looked at Tucker and smiled. “Very good, son. You did better than I expected.”

I flipped my dress back down and returned to my chair, sitting on the one side that wasn’t burning, embarrassed as hell and wishing I’d now be sent to my room instead of having to sit in the room with the witnesses to my humiliation.

When Tucker’s hand landed on my knee, an offer of comfort and support, my whole body stiffened. It wasn’t his fault he’d had to do that. My father wasn’t bluffing when he said he’d have someone else do it.

But it didn’t make the ache in my chest hurt any less.

Chapter 11

Arianna

My mother talked non-stop all the way to the caterer’s. We were going to be doing a tasting of the wedding menu and then picking out our cake. Thankfully, Tucker got to come with us for this portion, but I knew that didn’t really matter. Whatever my mother wanted, my mother would get. Apparently, this was also part of my fathers punishment for me running off with Leyla. Originally, the menu was completely up to me and Tuck, but not anymore.

When the car finally came to a stop, I was relieved to finally be there. Getting out of the car and a little space from my mother was greatly needed. Ever since the dress debacle, I hadn’t been allowed to make any choices about my wedding, instead just being told by her what she’d decided.

I was kind of surprised that I was allowed to come to this. But again, she couldn’t very well just bring Tucker and leave me at home.

When we walked in, we were greeted by a woman that seemed to be in her fifties with her jet black hair pulled high in a bun, a few strands escaping to frame her face. “Welcome. My name is Gina, I’m the owner of Velluto Events. If you’ll follow me, we’ll get you started on today’s tastings.”

Tucker’s stomach growled at the mention of food, making me chuckle, but my mother shot us both dirty looks.

Gina led us to a small room with a table set for three. There were tables lining the walls that held sample appetizers. “We’ve got all of the hors d'oeuvres labeled so you know what each one is. There are note cards and pens on the table by the door for you to take notes if you want on which items you like best. My team will be in with the entreés shortly.”

“Thank you.” Gina gave my mother a bow of the head, then headed out of the room, probably to make sure everything was going well in the kitchen. “Alright. We can taste one of each of the items, but make sure to not fill up here. We have to make sure we pick the perfect entreé for your perfect day.”