"Will, I am sorry, and I know I deserved that spanking. Thank you for caring enough to do it!" she said in embarrassment, afraid he would make fun of her.
"I do care, honey, and I assure you if you ever do something this foolish again, you’ll get the same!" The words were not
threatening, but more of a comforting promise, and Bridget found
herself feeling content and loved.
It was all her fault, he fumed as he watched the redheaded man
and the pretty blonde walk up the path to the house. Soon, she
would be his, and he’d made her pay.
Chapter Six
"I just don’t think it was fair of your father to give Katie
another spanking on top of the one Patrick gave her," she
said with a frown, putting the letter from her sister-in-law
on the kitchen table. "Especially after Patrick made her
leave the next morning just as planned. I don’t know how
she managed the ride into town, much less the stage coach
ride home."
"Pa doesn’t tolerate this type of behavior, Bridget, and
Katie knew it before she decided to come here to rescue me
from you!" Will chuckled, sipping his coffee and looking at
his wife over the rim of the cup. "She got exactly what was
coming to her."
"At least your father approves of Patrick," Bridget changed the subject, knowing full well she’d never be able to
change Will’s mind.
"He will approve of you, too," Will smiled reassuringly, but Bridget didn’t answer. She just got to her feet and started
clearing the table. He’d been patient, waiting for her to
recover from the punishment he’d given her two weeks
ago, but so far she hadn’t said one more thing about making
their marriage real. He couldn’t help but wonder if she felt
he was too hard on her, and had changed her mind about
wanting to become his wife in the bedroom, too. It hadn’t
helped matters any when he’d had to take Patrick’s side,
and insist his little sister travel on a sore bottom. Bridget
had been furious with Patrick… and consequently with
him… stating that it simply wasn’t fair to expect Katie to
sit for hours on a stagecoach when Patrick had done a
thorough job of making it impossible for the blonde to sit!
And the letter his little sister sent to Bridget upon arrival
hadn’t helped matters any.
"He will probably want to take a switch to me, too!"
Bridget fumed under her breath.
"Pa wouldn’t do that, Bridget!" Will replied softly, standing right behind her.
"He shouldn’t have done it to Katie, either!" she stated firmly.
"It’s really none of your business, young lady," Will felt his temper rise a bit. They’d discussed this to death and he was
sick of defending his father’s right to enforce discipline in
his own home. To Will’s way of thinking, Miss Bridget
could have done with a great deal more of the same type of
discipline from her father!
"I beg to disagree! Your sister is engaged to my brother!
That alone makes it my business!" she replied testily.
"Don’t you have something else to do besides stand here
and aggravate me?"
"As a matter of fact, I do!" he replied sharply, then headed for the kitchen door. He turned as he prepared to shut the
door, "Remember to keep your nose right inside this house,
young lady!"
"You can’t keep me cooped up forever, Will Bishop!" she
protested. "Those Indians are long gone by now! No one
has had a bit of trouble and I want to go riding!"
"No. And that’s the end of it, Bridget. Not another word
unless you have a hankering to feel the flat of my hand on
your bottom!" Will glared at her to see if she was going to
get lippy with him, but when she merely turned her back to
him and started washing the dishes, he closed the door and
went outside. The little termagant was making him crazy,
he decided as he mounted King and set off at a brisk pace.
The nerve of the man! Bridget fumed, then threw her
dishrag into the pan of soapy water, not caring a whit that it
splashed water all over. She wanted to go for a ride, and
that is exactly what she was going to do! She hadn’t seen
her father since that night two weeks ago, and Bridget
decided it was past time to go and make peace with him.
She changed into a riding skirt, then cursed under her
breath and ripped it off and put on her worn pants. She’d be
damned if she’d let Will Bishop dictate to her!!! If he
didn’t care enough for her to make her his wife in more
than name, then she sure as hell wasn’t going to obey him!
He had no right to ask it of her!
She wrote a carefully penned note, telling him that she was
visiting her father, and might possibly stay for a few days.
There, that should give him something to think about!
Bridget took another minute to strap on her gun, and pick
up her rifle, and then hurried to saddle Sampson. In another
few minutes she was on her way to her father’s ranch.
*****
He was going to make the redhead pay for every goddamn
insult he’d suffered since she married Bishop! He’d take
her to the tiny cabin that wasn’t fit for a pig to live in, and
while they were waiting for her rich daddy to pay the
ransom he was planning to ask for, he would teach her a
few manners. By the time he finished with her, Will Bishop
wouldn’t want her back! Stealthily, he followed close,
waiting for the opportunity to present itself.
******
"Papa! I can’t believe you’re all cooped up inside here on
such a nice day!" Bridget declared as she entered her
father’s study to find him bent over the ledgers on his desk.
"Girl, a good bit of ranching is nothing but paperwork,"
Flynn said in disgust, throwing his pencil on the desk, and
leaning back to look at her, his green eyes studying her
thoroughly. "Did that husband of yours give you a good
tanning, or am I going to have to take care of it myself?" he asked solemnly, then smiled when her green eyes filled
with shock. "I did warn you, Girl. And I’ll have the truth of it right now. Did Will give you a lesson?"
"Yes, Papa," she quickly replied, then added for good
measure, "Today is the first I’ve been able to sit my
saddle."
"That bad, huh?" he didn’t look happy.
"It was a bad one, yes." She wasn’t about to defend Will and admit she’d deserved the punishment. She was
unhappy with the man, and would love nothing more than
to move back home… at least until Will came to his senses.
"Speak what’s on your mind, Girl. I can see something’s
worrying at you…"
"I’d like to stay a few days, Papa. Will and I are not getting along…"
"Told you that I wouldn’t interfere between the two of you,
Bridget. You disobey the man, and you take the
consequences. You deserved that spanking, and if he hadn’t
given you a good one, I would have!"
"It’s not about that, Papa… Will doesn’t…" she felt her
cheeks turn a flaming red as they flushed with
embarrassment. "Will does
n’t want me as his wife."
"He don’t? He send you home to me?" Flynn was instantly
incensed.
"No… I left him a note telling him where to find me if he’s
interested… but given the fact we’ve been married for over
a month now, and he’s not touched me, I think that speaks
for itself," she confessed, her eyes filling with tears of
unhappiness.
Flynn got up and came around the desk to hug her. "Are
you telling me he hasn’t consummated the vows, honey?"
he asked in a shocked whisper. "Why the hell not?"
"I don’t know, Papa. I told him I was willing… but he got
so angry with me over being captured by the Indians… and
he just ignores me. It hurts too much to live like that, Papa.
Please, may I stay here?" she asked softly.
"Well, sure you can, honey. I don’t rightly know what to
make of this, but if he don’t want you, then we’ll get this
marriage annulled."
Bridget nodded, feeling her eyes fill with tears. "I’ll give
him until the end of the week, Papa. If he doesn’t come for
me by then, I’ll know it’s over…"
*****
Will crumpled the paper in his hand. She’d left him. Pure
and simple. Spanking her the last time had been a big
mistake. He’d let his fear for her safety cause him to be
harsh with her when he should have let it go with a few
swats. He was going to have the devil’s own time in
convincing her to come home with him, but he had to try.
He couldn’t imagine a life without Bridget in it. Resolutely,
Will mounted King and set off for the O’Riley Ranch. He
was going to be more understanding... even if it killed him.
*****
"This is really good cooking, Girl. Nice of you to help
Consuela," Flynn praised Bridget, trying to find a way to
cheer her up. She was pushing her food around on her
plate, and not eating a thing. Damn it, where were the boys
when he needed them? "Honey, do you want me to ride
over and have a little talk with Will?" he offered again.
"No, Papa. If Will wants me, he’ll come. If he doesn’t
come, then I won’t have you begging him to take me
back!"
"Honey, it ain’t like that! You ain’t been here but a couple
hours now. Wouldn’t do no harm for your Pa to have a
talk…."
"No, Papa! Please!" she gave him a look full of wounded
pride, and Flynn felt helpless.
"You need to try these potatoes, Girl. They’re real good!"
He was going to ride over there and bounce that son-in-law
of his on his ornery head a few times, Flynn decided. He
was a man of action, and he wasn’t going to sit by and do
nothing while his little girl suffered.
"Something smells good," Will said tentatively from the
doorway of the dining room. His dark eyes didn’t miss the
look of surprise on Bridget’s face, and the flush that
colored her pretty cheeks a bright pink.
"I made plenty, Will," she said. "I’ll get you a plate…" she jumped to her feet, and immediately gasped as she
remembered she was wearing pants. She glanced at Will,
and saw his jaw clench in disapproval, but all he did was
nod and take a seat at the table. She filled a plate for him,
and poured coffee, and then returned to her seat, trying to
force herself to breathe. Why wasn’t he saying anything?
"Mmmmm. You made these, Bridget," Will smiled at her.
"They’re really good."
"Thanks," she replied automatically.
"Yea, they are good, son. I was just telling her that. Hope
you don’t mind that she came and cooked for her Pa?"
Flynn was trying to gauge the younger man’s mood.
"No, I don’t mind, Sir. I know she’s missed you the last
couple of weeks, and I should have offered to bring her
over. I was afraid to let her come alone because of the
Indians," Will offered an explanation.
"Haven’t seen any sign of them, son, and the boys have
been keeping an eye out. I think it’s safe enough now, as
long as she don’t ride after dark," Flynn added the last with a look of warning at his squirming daughter.
"She won’t be doing that again," Will replied, and then
wanted to bite his tongue. He was here to bring her home,
not fuss at her and remind her that he’d whipped her too
damned hard and long! "I’ll make sure to bring her over
more often," he quickly added.
Will wanted her to come home! Bridget felt her heart sing.
Even if she got spanked for riding after he told her not to,
and for wearing the pants, it would be worth it. He had to
have feelings for her, or he wouldn’t be sitting here, would
he? She looked at him, and was shocked to find him staring
at her intently.
The two men talked about ranching, and Bridget kept
refilling their coffee cups. Finally, Flynn got to his feet, and
when he stood, Will did too. "Bridget, are you coming
home with me?" he asked gently, and she was shocked by
the look of doubt in his dark eyes.
"Yes," she replied simply, then smiled when he grinned at her. She knew that she was in for a good spanking, but was
relieved that he wasn’t going to do it right here in front of
protective of her and would let her defiance pass? No…
he’d never let the pants pass!
Will watched the emotions play over Bridget’s lovely face.
She looked happy, then frightened, then bit her lower lip.
He was going to do everything possible to make her feel
safe with him. Even if that meant letting her wear those
damned tight pants!
"Don’t you worry about these dishes, Girl. I’ll clear the
table," Flynn offered, and Will almost laughed out loud at
the look of shock on Bridget’s face. "You get on home with
your husband, and put on a pretty dress!" he advised,
giving her a meaningful look.
Bridget felt herself blush, but she stood on tiptoe and gave
her father a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks, Papa. I will," she replied dutifully. She wouldn’t have a choice in the matter
once Will finished "setting fire to the seat of her pants".
To her utter and complete surprise, Will didn’t comment on
the pants, nor the fact she’d defied him by riding out after
he forbade it. He didn’t even scold about the mess she’d
left in the kitchen. He kept the conversation light all the
way back to their ranch, then told her almost formally that
he was happy she’d come home with him.
Will followed Bridget into the kitchen, and reached for the
small whip hanging on the hook beside the door. He heard
her gasp, and felt like kicking himself. "I’m throwing this
damned thing away, Bridget!" he announced, then marched
outside and tossed it on the woodpile.
She watched as he went to the corral and started working
with one of the new fillies, and finally decided that he was
giving her time to change into a dress and avoid a
punishment. She hurried into the bedroom, and made
herself
presentable, then straightened the room. Tying an
apron around her waist, she dumped the cold dishwater,
and then filled the dishpan with hot water from the
reservoir. Soon the kitchen was spotless, and Bridget
glanced outside to see if Will was still working in the
corral. He was, so she busied herself making noodles, and
while they were drying, she rolled out pie dough and soon
had an apple pie in the oven.
Will approached the house warily. He didn’t want to see a
look of fear on Bridget’s face ever again. He wanted her
warm and willing in his bed, and he was going to try and be
nice… and understanding! Even if she was still wearing
those damned pants! To his surprise, the lovely redhead
was dressed in one of his favorite dresses, and she smiled at
him shyly when he came inside. "You have plenty of time
to wash up before supper, Will," she suggested.
"I know I’m sweaty and dirty, Bridget," he agreed, and then headed for the bedroom. To his surprise, there was warm
water waiting for him. Maybe there is still some hope for
this to work! he told himself as he looked in the mirror to
shave his face.
Bridget smiled when Will entered the kitchen. He’d shaved,
and looked so handsome. His long hair was tied back, and
he was wearing his white shirt… the one that made his
shoulders look so broad. He’d rolled the sleeves up a
couple of times, and she couldn’t help but notice his hands.
She wondered if he would touch her tonight? Surely he
wanted her? He’d come after her… and he hadn’t said one
scolding word.
"Thanks for the hot water, Bridget," Will remembered his manners. "You look pretty this evening."
"Thank you, kind Sir," she replied with a curtsy. When he chuckled appreciatively, she asked, "Are you hungry? I
made chicken and noodles… and an apple pie!"
"I’m always hungry for your cooking," he replied. Bridget served him, and then herself, and the meal passed quickly,
discussing Patrick and Katie’s plans to wed, and Bridget
was delighted when Will promised they would be attending
the wedding. "I want the folks to meet you," he said simply, and was pleased when she didn’t protest.
"I want to meet them, too, Will. Do you honestly think they