Her Old-Fashioned Doctor (11 page)

Technically, she’d never been canoeing before, but she’d gone kayaking on a river once and done just fine. Hadn’t flipped over accidently or crashed into any rocks. The pond was calm with no current and definitely no rocks in sight. Really, there was no danger. She chewed her lip, wondering if perhaps she should call John and ask for permission first.

The woodshed loomed in her periphery vision, and her stomach flipped at the thought of being led there for a switching. But he’d made her promise not to go swimming alone. He hadn’t said a word about canoeing. The prospect of paddling to the center of the pond and floating while reading a book was too good to resist, and she tossed the paddle into the canoe and started dragging it toward the water. It was heavy and she was sweating from her exertions by the time she reached the pond, but she made it there without any troubles.

She rushed into the cabin to grab a book out of her suitcase, a weathered old romance novel she’d borrowed from her grandmother and never returned, and hurried back outside. Fast footsteps carried her to the canoe, and she tossed her book in and pushed it halfway into the water. Then she jumped in and grabbed the paddle, using it to push off from the shore.

The canoe drifted off and she smiled, surprised at how light and carefree she felt. Having grown up close to New York City, she had never really gotten to enjoy the quiet of nature. Even on family vacations she couldn’t ever seem to escape the noise and the people. Her parents liked to travel in style and the mere thought of going camping in the forest would probably give her father a heart condition and her mother a stress headache.

Lily pads with white flowers dotted the side of the pond nearest to the woodshed. Melissa gaze at them in fascination, certain that she’d never seen lily pads in person before. Only in pictures.

She breathed in and surveyed the surrounding woods, squinting as the sun reflected off the water rippling around the canoe. After a few minutes of taking it all in, she placed the paddle down and reached for her book. She read a few chapters, pausing occasionally when thoughts of John became louder than the story. The Viking hero in her novel suddenly took on the face of a certain doctor, and in each love scene she was the reluctant heroine being ravished by her new husband.

The warmth of her arousal combined with the sun’s heat to make her sweat, and she longed to go for a swim but dared not jump out of the canoe. She peered at the sky and tried to surmise the time based on the position of the sun, but failed miserably. Two O’clock? Three? She shook her head and wished she’d worn a watch.

She sat her book aside and picked up the paddle, ready to make her way back to shore. As she passed by the lily pads, she glanced at the house and noticed a figure in the back doorway. Her heart skipped a beat and she paddled faster, though her hands were suddenly shaking. She tried to remember his exact wording when he’d given her the rules concerning the pond. He’d definitely told her no swimming alone, but had he told her not to go near it too?

“Melissa!” His shout echoed through the trees, the panic in his voice making her stomach clench with dread.

She paddled faster and reached the shore just as he did. Firm hands pulled her from the canoe. Before she could even say hello, he tucked her into his side and landed three firm swats to her bottom.

“Hey! What’s the big deal?” She yanked out of his hold and spun to face him, rubbing her bottom. Her thin shorts hadn’t offered much protection from his punishing hand.

His livid expression and the anger radiating from him made her tummy do a flip. He stepped back a few paces and ran a hand through his hair and took a deep breath, as if he were trying to calm himself. Her hands trembled harder and a knot formed in her stomach and tightened with each passing moment. Finally, he spoke.

“You went out on the pond by yourself.” His cold tone sent a shiver up her spine. She’d never seen him so upset, and her spirits sank as she realized she was the cause of it.

“You said no swimming alone. I wasn’t swimming.”

“I said don’t go near the pond
and
no swimming alone.” He ran a hand through his hair again and spun to look at the canoe. “Not only did you disobey me, but you didn’t even have the good sense to wear a lifejacket.”

“I didn’t see one anywhere! I didn’t even think of it,” she said, feeling as if she were grasping for straws. “Besides, I’m a good swimmer. Really.”

“So you pushed the canoe into the water without even pausing to look for a lifejacket?”

“That’s right.”

His face reddened and his eyes turned steely. “You are in big trouble, little girl.” He approached her and grasped her arm, then began leading her around the pond and toward the woodshed.

“John?” Fear sliced through her and her heart picked up, beating so fast she was certain it would burst from her chest. His threats of cutting a switch resurfaced and she struggled against him, no longer as turned on by those threats now that they’d become reality. Her bottom tingled as she imagined a switch swooshing through the air and landing with a sharp sting across her ass cheeks. “Please, John. I didn’t think. I’m sorry. Next time I’ll look for a lifejacket.”

He guided her through the doorway of the woodshed and pointed to the wall. Two orange lifejackets hung on hooks, and beneath them rested two extra canoe paddles. The world spun for a few seconds and she forced herself to meet John’s hard gaze.

“If you had worn a lifejacket, young lady, you would only be getting a scolding and a few swats with my hand. What were you thinking?” He held her out by her shoulders and glared down at her, his stare dark and intense. She felt very, very sorry for disobeying him. She’d known he wouldn’t be happy about her venturing out on the pond alone.

“I-I didn’t think I would flip over or anything, and I planned to be done by the time you got home. You’re early.”

“Ah, so you planned to lie to me today too?”

She felt the blood drain from her face. “N-not exactly. I just wasn’t going to tell you I went on the pond. I wasn’t going to lie to your face. I’m telling you the truth now, aren’t I?”

“An omission of truth is just as bad as a lie, Melissa. I am very disappointed that you disobeyed me and risked your safety by not even attempting to find a lifejacket.” He released her shoulders and pointed at an empty corner behind a stack of split wood. “Go stand in that corner.”

She lowered her head and rushed to the corner, thankful to be out from under his scrutiny. Tears burned in her eyes and she was certain if he’d looked at her for a second longer she would’ve burst into tears.

“Pull your shorts and panties down, Melissa. I want your bottom on display while you stand there and think about your transgressions. You were very naughty and you will be punished severely. Breaking a safety rule and then planning to lie about it is a serious offense.”

Guilt washed through her, making her feel sick with remorse and also with dread. She bent slightly to push her shorts and panties down over her hips, and when she straightened the garments pooled around her ankles. A sense of vulnerability swept through her and she clasped her hands in front of her, not sure what to do with them.

“Hands on your head, lace your fingers together. Good. Now spread your legs a bit. Good. Now, Melissa, I want you to stand there like the naughty girl you are and think about what you did, how you could’ve gotten hurt, and how it hurts me that you disobeyed and planned to lie. I will be back in a few minutes with several freshly cut switches, and I promise you that by the time I’m through striping your bottom with those switches, you will never, ever think about lying or risking your safety again.”

“Yes, sir,” she managed through a shaky exhale. She heard his footsteps leaving and then she was left alone with nothing but her thoughts. And her guilt. What
had
she been thinking? Well, the truth of the matter is, she hadn’t. She’d wanted to go canoeing and so she’d done it, deciding that it wasn’t so dangerous because it was better than swimming.

But he had a point. What if the canoe had flipped over? Would she have been too startled to make it to shore? She felt ridiculous for not even thinking about a lifejacket.

Her heart ached and the tears burning in her eyes escaped down her cheeks. She remained in position with her hands clasped behind her head, her bare bottom on display, and her legs slightly parted, as she listened for John’s return. Her stomach threatened to bottom out and her nerves went into overdrive. He’d said he planned to cut several switches but she didn’t understand why. Did he really intend to use them all on her? A shudder ran through her and the tremor made her aware of the heated ache between her thighs. She lowered her head in shame, so embarrassed that once again her body didn’t seem to understand this was real punishment and not a fun, sexy game.

The sound of footsteps deepened her anxiety, and her shaking legs nearly gave out beneath her. He cleared his throat and she lifted her head a notch, but didn’t dare turn around without his explicit permission.

“Keep your hands on your head, but you can turn around, young lady.”

With awkward movements, she turned to face him, shuffling with slow steps because her panties and shorts were still tangled around her ankles. She gasped at the sight. He stood just inside the doorway, his stance confident and the set of his jaw firm. A bundle of thin, long branches dangled from his hand, and she stared at them, realizing he must have stripped all the leaves off them. She counted at least five and gulped, then met his eyes.

“I am so sorry,” she said, her voice shaking as much as her insides. She studied him for a moment and was relieved to see that even though he didn’t look pleased, he no longer appeared livid with her. He was in control, and even though he would punish her severely and no doubt make her cry, he wouldn’t really hurt her. Warmth spread through her chest as the magnitude of her trust in him became evident, and she sniffled and blinked back more tears.

“Come here, Melissa.” He pulled a chair out from against the wall and placed it in the center of woodshed. “Come here, bend over, and place your hands flat on the seat of the chair.”

With small steps, she approached the chair and did as he asked, arching her bottom up when he pressed against the small of her back. She closed her eyes and steadied herself for the first searing blow. He placed all but one of the switches on the chair in front of her hands. She opened her mouth, ready to ask why he needed so many, but the first streak of pain lashed across her bottom and her question became a garbled scream.

“Please remain still, Melissa. You know you were naughty and I mean to teach you a lesson. You will never, ever, go out in the canoe again without taking the proper safety precautions.” He struck her twice more, the blows crisscrossing the first one.

“John, please! I’m so sorry!”

He ignored her apologies and swung the switch against her bottom once more. A blast of agony took her breath away. She closed her eyes and focused on keeping her hands on the chair as the blows rained down. When he paused and reached for one of the switches on the chair, she peered over her shoulder and realized it was because the first switch had broken. She gulped. He intended to use all five of them on her bottom.

She endured the second switch and the lecture that went with it, and though he didn’t hit her any harder than with the first one, it broke after only a few strikes. She tensed in anticipation of the third switch landing upon her ass, and a shudder ran through her as he moved the implement slightly over her bottom, preparing his aim. She was sure her butt was completely inflamed and she wouldn’t be sitting comfortably for at least a week.

Tears ran down her face and sobs shook her whole body. She was so sorry she’d worried him and broken his rule about the pond. She knew the water, though calm and probably not very deep, made him nervous because of his first wife’s scuba diving accident. The connection of his wife’s passing with his rules concerning the pond suddenly made sense, and she cried harder, the remorse over her actions breaking her ability to hold a single tear at bay.

She gasped when he paused. Her gaze sought out the remaining two switches. But instead of reaching for the fourth switch, John tossed the one in his hand aside and commenced rubbing her tender bottom. From her periphery vision, she noted that the third switch hadn’t broken yet. Would he retrieve it from the floor in a few moments and continue thrashing her? She let out a shuddering breath and waited, thankful at least for his gentle touch and reassurance during her punishment.

“It’s over, darlin’. Shh. Hush now.” He continued rubbing her throbbing cheeks.

She glanced over her shoulder. “But the other switches…” She couldn’t complete the sentence.

With a tenderness that seemed to cocoon her soul, he lifted her up and wrapped his arms around her, pressing her head against his chest. He stroked her hair and held her tight. “I think you’ve had enough, little girl. I don’t plan to use the other two switches. I can tell you’ve learned your lesson, and I’m sorry if the number of them I brought back frightened you.”

* * *

John scooped Melissa up and carried her into the house. He took her to his bedroom and placed her on the bed, stomach down, then pulled off the panties and shorts that were still tangled around her ankles, as well as her sandals. His heart had stopped when he came home early to spot her drifting on the canoe in the middle of the pond. Though he’d told her to stay away from the water and definitely not to go swimming alone, he wouldn’t have been as angry as he was if she’d only thought to wear a lifejacket. He might not have even punished her. But instead she hadn’t even looked for a lifejacket, and she’d planned to conceal her afternoon activities from him. He certainly couldn’t allow her to get away with such blatant disregard for her safety, nor could he overlook her intention to lie to him.

He pressed a tissue to her face to dry up her lingering tears. She sniffled and peered up at him with a small smile.

“Thanks, John.”