"I am a grown woman and I can ride anywhere I please, and I do not need anyone's permission to do so."
"I take orders from your Pa, Miss Mandy, and if he tells me not to let you ride out alone, then you won't get past me... no matter how much it upsets the both of us." Whitey made his feelings absolutely clear so his boss' daughter would know she couldn't wheedle her way past him. He owed Matt Chambers his life, and he would do his very best to keep his daughter safe.
"I think you are just as bad as Papa and Rob!" Amanda flounced around him and stomped toward the house.
"The Boss is gonna tan her hide again if she don't settle down some."
"Miss Amanda will not be sitting a saddle any time soon," Rob told the other man, and he made his words perfectly clear by the way he held his hand. He handed Whitey his reins and headed for the house, his long strides easily keep up with her as she marched toward the back door that went in through the kitchen.
The first thing that Amanda noticed was that the kitchen was empty. Goldie was nowhere to be seen, and the kitchen was immaculate, proving that nothing was either on the stove or in the oven. She briefly wondered what her father had found to eat for breakfast, feeling a bit guilty that she hadn't offered to cook for him. Determined to appear busy and have an excuse to ignore Rob, Amanda put on some coffee. "I am home and safe now; you may leave."
"I am sure you would like for me to leave, but we have unfinished business between us, and that unfinished business has grown into a lesson you will not soon forget. I will give you one chance to make it easier on yourself, Mandy. Come over here and bend over the table and take down those pants. You will get a sound spanking for running off and for riding like a wild Indian. You will still get the promised strapping for refusing to obey me and stay in this house." He watched her eyes narrow and he could tell she was planning her escape. "If you run again, Mandy, I will chase you down and I will take my belt to you wherever I catch you, and no matter who is watching."
"You are being ridiculous!" she scolded. "I haven't done one thing to deserve a spanking, and of course I ran! You would run, too, if you were being treated unfairly!"
"You need a serious lesson, young lady," Rob said slowly, his voice deep. "I don't believe you have a clue how dangerous this situation is, but by the time I am through with you, you will give your promise to stay inside this house until you are told otherwise. Are you going to cooperate?" he asked.
"Rob, do you know how ridiculous you sound right now? I simply exercised my right to say what I please and make my own decisions about where I go and when. Yes, I was accosted by that horrible man, and he did threaten me, but I was able to get away from him."
"Only because my men came to your rescue."
"I would have handled it without their help if necessary," Amanda said with a lot more confidence than she felt. Amanda needed to be firm with Rob in order to convince him she did not need a strapping. "I am not helpless."
"You are tiny, and against a man like Sir Gregory Flockton you would not stand a chance, and you need to realize that. He would inflict so much pain on you that you would beg him to let you do anything to stop the torment. He is one sick bastard." Rob was through talking. He took Amanda's arm and easily pulled her over to the kitchen table and pushed her down.
"No, Rob! I do not deserve a spanking!" she cried out, struggling to get free.
"Wrong. You deserve several spankings, and you will have each one, Amanda. You need to admit that you were wrong, and this spanking will not stop until you do."
Amanda quickly realized that Rob was very serious as his hand fell repeatedly on the seat of her pants. The spanks were stinging and hard and it did not take long for him to set a fire inside her pants that was making her squirm in pain. "Please stop, Rob! Please...!"
"Are you ready to admit you have earned a good strapping?" Rob asked of her.
"But, I don't feel that I do! I simply told you that I wouldn't be confined to this house! You and Papa need to realize that I am an adult and I have the right to make my own choices."
"Not when it comes to your safety, and especially if you will not be reasonable," Rob told her and continued spanking, making sure he spanked even harder on her sit spots.
"Not there, Rob! Not there! It hurts so much!" she complained, wriggling as much as possible to evade the stinging spanks. It did her no good, however. Rob seemed to anticipate which way she would move, and he spanked until Amanda was sobbing and begging him to stop.
Rob's hand was on fire by the time he stopped spanking and pulled her to her feet so he could look into her tear-filled green eyes. "Are you ready to be serious about this situation?" he asked.
"Yes!" Amanda sobbed her reply.
"Take down your jeans," he shocked her by stating.
"What? I can't do that, Rob! It would be too embarrassing."
"That is the whole point. I want you to show me that you understand I am serious about your staying inside this house, and the way you will do that is to submit to the strapping you earned."
Amanda cried even harder at the prospect of another punishment, but she knew that if she didn't cooperate, Rob would continue to spank her sore bottom until she did as he said. Her trembling hands fumbled with the buttons, and eventually she managed to push the tight pants down over her throbbing backside.
"Farther," Rob ordered when she stopped, trying to keep her sit spots and upper thighs covered.
Reluctantly, Amanda pushed the pants down to the tops of her boots. Now the only thing protecting her delicate skin was her thin, cotton drawers. She was wearing the oldest pair she owned, and they were simple. There was no lace or ribbon to make them pretty, and while they were adequate to wear under a riding skirt or a pair of jeans, she was ashamed to have Rob see them. They were plain as could be, thin from so many launderings, and would provide no protection whatsoever from his leather belt.
Rob once again removed his belt and Amanda took a couple steps backward while he was doubling the leather and making sure that the buckle end was safely out of the way. He wanted to punish Mandy, not harm her. "Why are you backing away, little girl? I have warned you what would happen if you run from me again."
"Rob, I am already in so much pain I don't think I can handle a strapping. Besides, I am terrified. All I can think of is how Ted Fox beat me," she whispered, her eyes wide and full of fear. "I don't want you to use a belt on me," she begged. "Please don't! I will do as you say and stay in the house, but please don't beat me, Rob!"
Rob could see that she was shaking and he silently cursed himself for being such a fool. He understood now why Amanda ran from him; she was terrified that he would whip her like Ted Fox did, and put her in her bed, unable to move without pain for days. He dropped the belt on the floor and opened his arms. Amanda came to him immediately, sobbing as he held her close. Her body was shaking and he pulled out a chair, sat down, and held her on his lap until she quieted and he knew she could hear him. "I am sorry I frightened you so much, my dear. I should have realized that my belt would bring up memories best forgotten. I will never take off my belt again to use it as a punishment; you have my word on this."
"I know in my heart that you aren't like him," Amanda said as she snuggled closer. "The fear made me run from you," she explained. "I was trying to be brave, but all I could think of was how he beat me... You aren't like that, and I am so sorry I..."
"Shhhh." He stopped her. "There is no need for you to apologize for feelings you have. The belt was a poor choice, and I am the one who begs your forgiveness for deciding to use it to spank you. There are plenty of things that can be used to make a good point on your bottom."
"You aren't still planning to spank me again...?" She raised her head to look at him in disbelief. "Rob, noooooo!" she wailed when she looked into his dark eyes. They were filled with regret, but also with determination to follow through on what he promised.
"Amanda, I know you well. You gave your promise to stay inside this house because you were afraid of my belt. A promise given from fear will not hold up... and I have yet to change your mind. You are going to get the serious spanking I promised you, and I will brook no argument. Take off your boots and those horrid pants so you do not trip, and find a wooden spoon or a piece of kindling that can be used as a paddle. I do not want any arguments or protests. This spanking is going to happen and your cooperation will determine how long and how hard you are spanked." He gave her bottom a pat, but it was hard enough to make her jump.