I shrank in my seat, chagrined. I wasn't dumb. I hadn't sent it to just anyone. I'd sent it to him. Besides, it was barely a half a nipple. Hadn't there been any part of him that liked seeing it? "Sorry," I said, a tad sarcastically. Then I couldn't help but add, "No wonder no one likes being sent to the principal's office."
A quick smile flashed across his face at that. He tried to resume his serious expression, but there was a twinkle in his eye that he couldn't quite get rid of. "Take out your phone."
I did, and he moved up next to me, showing me his screen. As I watched, he deleted the picture of me. "Now you do the same."
I did, trying not to be hurt that he hadn't wanted to keep a copy. Part of me knew that he was trying to protect me, but another part of me was also disappointed. I mumbled something about needing to get back to work and headed out, feeling dejected. "I bet Great Uncle Auggie would have liked it," I said sullenly as I passed through the door.
"Get back in here," Nick snapped. Immediately I turned and hurried back in the room, standing in front of him. "I didn't say I didn't like it, I said it was stupid."
Shit, he was hot when he was being bossy. Despite having deleted that picture, I knew he was getting quite the view right now. I could feel my bare nipples pressing against my shirt.
"And you're right, I am a principal, and this is my office. So you'd better behave while you're in here."
"Or?" I said, and I stuck out my tongue. Okay, it was bratty, I knew that, but Nick's dominant side was bringing it out in me.
"Or you'll get punished," he said, and he plucked a wooden rule from a pencil case near his computer. Tossing it in the air, he caught it after one rotation. He shoved some papers out of the way and tapped the ruler on the cleared space on the desk. "Bend over."
Holy crap, really? But I hurried to comply before he changed his mind. My heart beat rapidly as I moved to the desk, pressing my abdomen against the edge. Then I bent at my hips, lowering my arms, head, and chest down to the flat surface. My legs weren't quite long enough, only my tiptoes touched the floor.
"Count," he ordered as untold numbers of sexy, dominant men had in the e-books I read.
Then then there was a sharp sting across my ass, making me yelp. "One."
Wow, that had hurt more than I thought. I wasn't wearing my usual jean shorts today. Instead, I'd opted for a thin white skirt as would almost anyone when visiting the home of a hot man who'd kissed her. I tried to imagine how high it had ridden, but I was pretty sure I was covered. It wasn't one of my shortest skirts. Unfortunately.
The next swat caught me off guard again. "Two," I gasped. I also gasped when I called out the third one, but that may have been because of the wicked thought that just occurred to me-would he flip my skirt up?
"Four!" I yelped when the ruler came down again. And then, "Five." Crap, that was really starting to sting, but it was hot. So hot. I couldn't help trying to grind myself against the table. The increased pressure against my clit sent shivers up and down my spine.
The ruler descended again. "Six! Please … please, Nick … "
"Had enough?"
"No, I just want … could you … use your bare palm?"
Total silence. Craning my neck, I looked back at him. He was staring at me in surprise. And then he caught my eye. Making sure I was watching, he tossed the ruler on the desk. Holy shit, he was hot. Squirming in anticipation, I rested my cheek against the smooth surface again.
This time, his large, warm palm smacked against my ass. It hurt more because it covered more territory, but it also turned me on more. "Seven!"
At ten, I squirmed again, and pleaded with him. "Oh, please … "
"Please what?"
"Please spank me on my bare ass."
I could practically feel him freeze behind me. Was he considering it? Please let him be considering it. It had been so long since I'd been so excited about a man. Since I'd wanted someone so badly. I hadn't felt this way about anyone in so long.
Finally, I felt his warm hand on my upper back. He bent over me, his groin pushed against my ass, and I swear, I almost came on the spot. "No," he said, disappointing me at the same time his warm breath tickled my ear. In retaliation for his rejection, I wiggled back against him, and there was no mistaking his erection. He could play calm and controlled, but he was as turned on as I was.
"Why not?"
"Because you don't make the rules in this office." He straightened up but didn't move away. "But since you're so into bare skin, let's try this. Put your wrists behind your back."
Was he going to bind them? I wasn't sure, but I did as he ordered.
"Good girl," he said, and those two syllables made my pulse pound between my legs. "Hold them there." Nick reached underneath me, sliding his fingertips up my sides. When he got to my breasts, he tugged the fabric of my top down, baring my breasts even if he couldn't see them.
"There," he said. "Mash your breasts against the desk while I give you your last five spanks."
I did so, grinding my chest against the table as he spanked me. He couldn't even see me, but it still made me wet. My tits were bare because he'd commanded it. That was hot. "Fifteen," I squealed, and his hand finally stilled on my ass. But when I pushed back against his touch, he removed his hand. Dammit.
Panting, I stayed still for a long moment. But then I straightened up and slowly turned. His eyes went wide at the site of my uncovered breasts, and I swear, I saw him start to reach up before he caught himself and returned his hands to his sides. He did want me. The look in his eyes and the bulge in his pants was proof enough of that.
But he didn't touch me. Instead, he let out a little sigh. "You sure are eager to jump into the deep end."
"Says the man who grabbed my ass the first day we met."
"Touché," he said, his eyes never leaving my tits. But then he reached up and adjusted my shirt. "See you on Thursday, Cassie."
And he ushered me out the door.
Chapter Eight
ON THURSDAY AFTER lunch, I was back at my usual spot at Nick's dining room table. I'd been a bit uneasy on my way over here. Last time, I'd been so brazen. That really wasn't like me. But I couldn't get Nick out of my mind. Not the way he moved. The way he talked. The confidence with which he approached everything in his life. Guys my age didn't have that confidence. Hell, I didn't have it, either. But he did. I loved the way he handled himself publicly, and privately as well.
Last time with the spanking had been so much fun, but I didn't know where we'd take things from there. Or if we'd take them anywhere. But I hoped we would.
Nick had surprised me today with a Thin Mint Frappuccino, but then he'd gone upstairs to his office pretty quickly. But maybe that was normal. We both had work to do.
I didn't bother to set up my laptop today. My main plan for the afternoon was to sort through some of the many letters and papers, seeing which were worth keeping, scanning, or transcribing. The rest I would present to Nick to go through. I suspected he'd pitch most of the stuff in that pile.
Just before I really got in the groove, I remembered it was my great grandfather's birthday today. Mom had told me that the best time to call him was around four before he left for dinner. They ate quite early in his retirement center. I set the alarm on my phone for four o'clock, but then figured I needed a backup. The battery had been doing weird things on my phone lately. So I pulled my e-reader out of my purse and set its alarm, too.
The afternoon passed quickly. I'd discovered a hand-printed cookbook that some of Nick's female relatives had made in the 1920s. I was planning to make it into an updated hardback book. My next step would be to retype the recipes, but today I spent time trying to match the handwriting in the cookbook to some of the letters and journals I'd already started to catalogue.
I was in the guest bathroom when the alarm on my phone went off. After washing up, I went outside and had a good conversation with Grandpa Jack. He was ninety-four years young today.
Back inside the entryway of Nick's huge house, my body froze even as my heart rate sped up. Nearly dropping my phone, I ran into the dining room, my ears straining. Had the alarm on my e-reader been going off the whole time I was on the phone?
But when I got to my workspace, it was quiet. And that meant … that meant that someone else had turned it off. I knew from experience that the alarm would go all day until silenced.
Sinking down into my chair, my mind reeled. Had Nick turned off the alarm? There was no one else around. But my e-reader was in approximately the same place I'd left it. Please, please let the alarm have somehow gone off on its own. Please.