Broken Vows (Domestic Discipline Romance) (27 page)

"You like him," Jenny finished.

"It's too soon," Mila whispered. "It has only been nine months."

"If you think it is, tell him," Jenny urged. "From what you told me, though, it is really more like two years. You got pregnant between tours. You and John were having problems. You were both thinking and talking divorce before he shipped out the last time. Don't put your life on hold. When something good comes along, jump on it."

Mila rolled her eyes.

"I didn't mean literally," teased Jenny. "If Kevin is right for you, you can take your time and be sure before you do any jumping. Don't toss him aside simply because the timing seems awkward. Do you want to come back to our place until he returns tonight?"

"No, I'm okay," said Mila. "You need private family time and I need thinking time."

* * *

Josh spent time playing with his children. Emmie would not leave his side for the first few hours until she felt assured he was back for good, and then she wandered off to play on her own. Adam was turning into a little speeding bullet. He had one speed, an awkward run. No matter how many times he fell, he was determined and back on his feet quickly. At sixteen-months-old, he was a happy child, putting together sentences of two or three words… more commands than sentences. 'Want cookie, Daddy!' 'Hungry, Mommy!' Then there was the helpful command: 'Wet!'

"How much longer before this guy is potty trained?" Josh asked after changing a diaper.

"It won't be long," Jenny replied. "He is aware of being wet and wanting to be changed. Verbalizing it is the first step. I want him to be a little steadier on his feet. Most mothers I talked with said potty training a girl is easier than with a boy. We will see."

"Make 'em eat those words, Adam," Josh advised his son as he snapped together the legs to his son's overalls. "When Kevin gets back, I am going over the schedule with him. He should be finishing the carpentry soon. I also have to balance the checkbooks. Do you have all your receipts?"

Jenny nodded and tapped an envelope stuck to the refrigerator with a magnet. "All here, except three and I don't know what happened to them."

"Jen," Josh said, his voice changing and going stern. "Are you over budget?"

She turned around looking worried. "A little bit, I ran out of cash and had to use the card. I will pay the bill out of the money I got for my art pieces," she promised.

"I don't want to be paid back. I want you to be more responsible upfront. I'll see what damage has been done."

Later in the evening, Josh pushed his desk chair back looking grimly at the computer screen. The missing receipts amounted to less than a couple hundred dollars, but the principal of the matter bothered him. Jenny had stayed on track and within budget since the debacle in Waterbury. He had been gone less than a week before she had regressed into her bad habits.

He had thought enough time had passed so he could trust her with an ATM debit card, but apparently not. He had given her the Visa charge card with strict instructions to use it only in case of an emergency. None of her purchases were remotely in the emergency category. All of them could have waited until they had discussed them to see if they fit into the budget and there was also the fact that they talked every day at least twice a day and she'd never said a word to him about being over budget.

The Christmas season was approaching fast. Josh did not want to be a Christmas Scrooge, but he also did not want Jenny to go as madly overboard as she had in the last few years while still under her mother's influence. He wanted to institute his parent's rule of six gifts per child, one of which the child had to give to another child in need. Parents did not need to overwhelm their children with presents. They needed to demonstrate that a few thoughtful gifts were more than enough, not to mention teaching their children about charity and giving.

As he shut down his computer, the phone rang.

"Hey, Tyrell," Josh said.

"Hey, Idiot," his brother returned. "Don't you answer your email?"

"Not today," Josh admitted. "I just got home from Montrose after being gone four days. I owed my family some quality time. I'll catch up on correspondence in the morning. I figured if it were important someone would call me. Why did you call?"

"I ought to make you wait until you do open your email," Tyrell grumbled. "DQ&H has officially settled. You had better stay on top of your taxes this year, little brother, because they are going to be something else."

"How much," Josh demanded.

Tyrell quoted a figure twice as high as Josh had expected on his second go round with Pugh and Barkley Designs.

"Great," Josh admitted. "It will pay for the rest of my property renovations. I heard a rumor David Pugh was going to be retired, is it true?"

"It's already happened. You set off an avalanche of disgruntled employees suing over his policies, which is insider information, by the way, so don't spread it around. I guess the corporate heads are letting him save face by announcing the phase-out of Pugh and Barkley. They have already issued a press release saying the 'Pugh and Barkley' name is history. As of the New Year, they will officially rebrand the subsidiary, as DQ&H. Pugh is toast along with his bad business ethics. Anyway, if you give me a routing number, I will have the money deposited into your account."

"Good deal," Josh agreed. "Are you and Violet still coming out in February?"

"We have been giving thought to the whole family coming out after Christmas," Tyrell said. "Will you have told Jenny about the inheritance by then?"

"I thought we were keeping it a secret," Josh exclaimed.

"Dad told Mom. Mom told Violet. Hank knows, I'm not sure of his source," Tyrell admitted. "Come on, Josh, you couldn't keep news like this a secret forever."

"Damn. At least, make sure they don't spread it outside the family. I don't need Denise Marsden hot on my heels."

"I will put the fear of God in them," Tyrell promised. "
You
need to get on the stick and tell Jenny."

"I'm planning on it," Josh admitted. "I was going to tell her Christmas morning."

Tyrell laughed. "It will be one hell of a Christmas present."

"That was the idea," Josh admitted. "I will talk with the rest of the family to nail down a timetable if they plan on coming for Christmas or directly afterward. After New Year's would be better for me as I am swamped until then.

After the call, Josh carefully reviewed his options. He had been planning to tell Jenny on Christmas, but first he had to attend to her recent credit issues. He returned to the guesthouse where he helped bathe Emmie and Adam and tuck them into bed. Jenny turned to go downstairs, but he caught her and steered her to their bedroom.

"Are we making an early night of it?" Jenny asked.

"Something like that," Josh said, turning on the stereo.

Jenny's eyes widened. They only played the music in their room when they wanted to drown out the sounds of lovemaking, or a discipline session.

"What's going on?"

"Maintenance," Josh said, guiding her to the bed.

"I hate maintenance," Jenny protested.

"You will really hate it today," Josh informed her. "You slipped up on our agreement to live within a budget, keep track of receipts, and pay cash. I gave you a credit card in case of an emergency. I was very clear, but you used it rather than readjust your purchases. Didn't I give you enough money for everything you would need while I was gone?"

"Yes," Jenny whispered, "but, it is so embarrassing to have to put something back!"

"Is staying within our budget more humiliating than declaring bankruptcy?" Josh asked.

She shook her head.

"Is it more humbling than taking money from my family to get ourselves out of debt?" Josh demanded. "It has only been a few months, Jenny. You couldn't have forgotten in such a short time what we went through in Waterbury."

"I haven't forgotten. I'm sorry," Jenny admitted.

"Maybe you are but you have slipped back into old patterns. You didn't have enough cash, so you borrowed it by using the credit card. I need you to maintain focus on your goals, Jenny. I don't want this behavior continuing or reappearing in our marriage. You didn't mention it to me once on the phone. If I had known you needed something, which would take you over budget, I might have agreed to it. You
lost
the receipts? That will not happen again. It is deceitful. I am not saying it can't happen, but it was a lie this time, wasn't it?"

Jenny nodded yes. "I'm sorry. I won't let it happen again."

"I'm giving you a firm reminder to not forget," Josh promised.

"We had such a great day yesterday," said Jenny softly.

"We will have a great night, tonight," Josh assured her. "Let's get this over and done with. It is only an attitude adjustment and a reminder I will not tolerate
little white lies
. Are we in agreement on this? This might be a harder than normal maintenance spanking, but you earned it."

Jenny swallowed, but she nodded agreement. She had accepted this role in their marriage from the beginning. If they were turning back the clock on the good parts of their lives, she had to expect the return of some of the things she disliked.

Josh cocked an eyebrow at her. She unsnapped her jeans and pulled them off. Her panties followed as did her top and bra. Josh's preference for her all the time was naked. This was the hardest part, submission to discipline when she had done something wrong. She draped herself across his knees. He handed her a pillow to muffle her cries.

The first strike of his hand was a stinger, and she yelped and jerked. He whacked her repeatedly increasing the sting by using more force. The sudden pain wasn't so bad, but the burning build-up was painful. She squirmed and yelped when he landed blows on the same spot.

"Will you continue this behavior?"

"No, no," Jenny cried as each of her answers was countered with another smack.

"Will you lie to me again?"

"No. No!" Jenny squealed as a particularly hard spank had her sucking in her breath. "I will remember. Honestly, I will remember."

"You will remember what?" Josh demanded.

"I will keep better track, I will," she cried.

The burn continued to build. Jenny knew this spanking would be with her for a while. Josh was peppering her bottom all over. When he moved down to her sit spots, she gripped the pillow and hung on.

When the last wallop landed, Jenny knew it was over. She always knew when it was the last spank, she didn't know how she knew, but she always did. Perhaps because the last smack was always the hardest and left the worst sting behind.

She was crying, Josh gathered her into his arms and rocked her. This was the only part of a maintenance spanking she liked. Discipline spankings did not allow for comforting immediately after. This spanking might have gone a little beyond maintenance level, but he was holding and comforting her. He laid her down on the bed, went into the bathroom, and came out with a cold washcloth and a tube of cream.

He rubbed her reddened bottom, caressing it gently as he applied lotion, then he pulled her into his arms, kissed her temple, and held her tight to him.

Jenny liked this part. She lay in the comfort of her husband's arms, feeling secure and relieved of the guilt she had been carrying. She knew it was wrong as soon as she pulled the credit card out of her wallet. She did not want to repeat her mistakes of the past. She wanted Josh to trust her again. She realized belatedly it would now take her husband longer to trust her again. She burst into tears, but he was there, soothing her and telling her they were okay. They were in this together.

Hours later, Jenny woke to her husband lying beside her. She nuzzled into him. Josh opened his eyes, "Feeling better?"

"Much," Jenny said. "Show me you love me."

Josh's eyes went dark as he reached for her. "I did show you I love you earlier, it was in a different way. Now I will show you in my favorite way."

Mila knocked on the window in the door and Jenny raced to turn off the alarm off and let her sister inside.

"That thing is a royal pain in the ass," Mila complained removing her coat. She was carrying Davy in a baby sling, "So is mine."

"I know, but the men have agreed we only have to use them when they aren't here, and at night," Jenny exclaimed in total agreement.

"Aunt Mila," Emmie tugged at her Aunt's arm.

"What honey?"

"Daddy says we are going to get a Christmas tree," Emmie said, all smiles and dimples.

"I know, but he said tomorrow," Mila reminded her. "Today, Mommy is baking cookies to decorate and hang on the tree. I'll bet yours will be the prettiest."

"Come down," Emmie ordered. "I want to kiss Little Kevin."

Mila obediently bent down and Emmie buzzed the baby's head with a kiss. "He smells good," was her verdict.

"He smells good now," Mila said as her niece ran off to play. "Twenty minutes ago, he was a poopy mess."

Jenny smiled unhooking her sister from the sling and cradling the baby in her arms. "There's nothing better than new baby smell. When are you going to decide on a name for this little fellow?"

"
I
decided a long time ago," exclaimed Mila. "It's that obstinate man who keeps calling him
Little Kevin
."

"He's proud of him," Jenny said, nuzzling the baby.

"I know, but now I am calling him Little Kevin! Big Kevin—Little Kevin… what happens if
Big
Kevin goes away?"

Jenny looked at her sister. "Do you think he will? I thought, well I hoped, you two were getting along."

"We do get along," Mila said, putting the baby in the port-a-crib and following her sister to the kitchen. "I'm just not sure where we stand. I had a baby a month ago and sex is off the table for another few weeks. He comes over, and we watch movies and eat popcorn. Sometimes he acts like a friend, sometimes a boyfriend, and sometimes like a friggin husband. Now, he is acting like some macho Neanderthal. He came in a little while ago and jumped all over me for working out to a video."

"It is too soon for you to be working out," Jenny admonished.

"I hate this flabby stomach," Mila complained. "Besides, it was an easy workout."

"Did you check first with your doctor?"

Mila plopped down on a barstool. "No, that was why he was yelling. The obnoxious cretin whacked me on the ass three times!"

Jenny giggled and turned her back on her sister, although she could not disguise her laughter.

"What?" Mila demanded.

"I thought I recognized the signs. Kevin has all the characteristics of an HOH even though he is not married. He probably believes in domestic discipline."

"I've heard of that, it's spanking!" Mila exclaimed. "What is an HOH?"

"Yes, D/D is spanking," said Jenny patiently. "HOH means the husband is the
Head of Household
, and his wife agrees to discipline if she breaks any rules of their relationship. If Kevin feels proprietary towards you, he is resorting to what comes naturally."

"Wow, talk about setting the clock back sixty or seventy years. Who in their right mind would agree to this? It sets feminism back to the beginning of time."

"Not necessarily. It doesn't mean a wife can't work or be a successful adult. A husband can support and be proud of his wife's accomplishments and career, and still be an HOH. I know many women in D/D relationships who have high-profile careers. It simply means she has agreed to the arrangement with her husband, so she does not have the same level of stress in her home life. Being the HOH puts a lot of responsibility on the husband. He handles nearly everything involved in the care and support of his family's well-being and happiness. It takes a selfless person to vow to
always
put his family members, and what is best for them, above his personal needs and preferences."

Mila looked at her sister critically. "Are you in such a relationship with Josh?"

Jenny looked intently at her sister for a long moment before nodding yes. "You can't breathe a word of this. It is personal and private. If you do not understand or agree, fine, but don't discuss it with anyone! This was a private decision made between my husband and me. It is no one else's business. We don't need your approval or disapproval.

"Josh's entire family believes in and practices domestic discipline. I don't have details on how it works for the individual couples as it is a private agreement between each husband and wife. The men were raised that way and consider it perfectly normal. Somehow, they have found spouses who agree to the lifestyle. Personally, I thank God every day for bringing Josh into my life. Until I met him, I thought a normal relationship was impersonal, hypercritical, and as emotional, and loving as an ice cube. Josh and his family showed me what a loving, supportive family is supposed to be like."

"I haven't met his family," Mila said taking in this information. "Does he hit you?" she whispered.

"Josh and I have a consensual agreement," Jenny said quietly. "He only spanks me on my bottom, and the severity depends on what I have done wrong."

Mila stared at her sister. "You allow Josh to spank you? Is this sexual?"

Jenny grinned. "Sometimes. Sometimes it is discipline."

"I can't wrap my mind around this," Mila exclaimed. "You agreed to let him do this!"

"Yes," Jenny said calmly. "Mila, with Mom's help and interference, letting her control me through guilt, I almost destroyed my marriage. I put us deeply in debt with nothing to show for it except a failing marriage. Six months ago, Josh and I were on the verge of a divorce. We started our marriage twelve years ago as a D/D relationship. We had moved away from those principles and it was destroying us. Since he reasserted himself as HOH, we have turned things around.

"Yes, Josh nearly blistered my ass for ruining our credit and lying to him about it. However, in a single spanking, we resolved years of my bad behavior. I deserved it and I accepted it. It relieved me of the guilt I was carrying. It was a new beginning for us, which has gotten better every day since. Please don't dismiss what you don't understand. Everyone is different. What works for us might not work for you. All I know is we have a good marriage and we know where we stand with each other all the time. It's worth it to me.

"I would suggest before you get involved with Kevin, you have an open discussion with him. He does show signs of being a dominant man. If he's already spanking you, he is setting a precedent."

Mila frowned at her words skeptically. "I'm going back to my place. I want to research this D/D stuff. Is this a religious thing?"

"It can be. I don't believe it was with Josh's family, although they are religious. Leave Little Kevin here, I'll take care of him."

Mila nodded. "Call when he gets hungry. Don't forget to set the idiot alarm after I leave."

* * *

Josh was on the highway running errands. He stopped by the bank for cash as they were doing Christmas shopping on Saturday. He had planned to give Jenny the second credit card he carried in his wallet, but her backsliding in the matter of their finances disappointed him. Now, he would have to delay giving her full access to their checking account. In addition to the maintenance spanking, they had a lengthy discussion about their money situation.

Josh had invested most of the proceeds from his first settlement with Pugh and Barkley into Peak Designs. He gave a part of the proceeds to his Dad to cover half of what he had given them to get out of debt. It had been a tough negotiation with his Dad, but all those years of living with a politician paid off. They had both made concessions during that long, drawn-out argument. The proceeds from the second settlement were in the bank, where they would stay in interest-bearing accounts. It would repay what they had lost in investments, retirement, and education funds for their children.

Even if Peak Designs won the contract for the Richfield Project, it would be two years before their fledgling company reaped the full benefits of the contract and they could expect a profit.

Josh's Bentley inheritance was more than both of them could spend in a lifetime, but Josh was not ready yet to divulge it to Jenny. He had considered telling her on Christmas, now he was thinking of putting it off until he was sure Jenny was stable enough to handle access to millions of dollars. He was not sure
he
was stable enough to handle millions. It was mind boggling sometimes.

The members of his family had spread the word among themselves, and he had given them hell. The family had decided not to disrupt Josh and Jenny's family plans over the Christmas or New Year's holiday. They would wait to converge at the chalet in Vail in February. This gave him six weeks before he had to spill the news to his wife.

The only money he had spent from the huge Bentley pot was for the renovation costs. He had heard the old saying '
you had to have money to make money.'
Josh was beginning to believe it. He had barely skimmed the surface of his inherited investments, yet the continued growth in the accounts each month shocked and amazed him.

He pulled into the parking lot of the Home Secure Company in Farmington, New Mexico. He had decided to take Kevin Carter's advice and not use a local Durango firm. Farmington was only fifty miles south, but the city was three times the size of Durango. He wanted perimeter camera surveillance for the property installed now since it would take months to finish all the fencing. The alarm systems Kevin installed in the guest and housekeeper's houses were only a temporary fix. Josh wanted a professional security system for the entire property, especially in the main house where his family would be living by spring.

Josh outlined what he wanted from the security firm who explained what they could do to meet his requirements. It was more involved than alarms and triggering devices. He wanted a system in place to provide twenty-four-hour surveillance. It might be overkill, but Josh left the firm's offices feeling more
secure
about what he planned. There could be no breach of privacy for his family. Jenny and his kids would be safe, as would Mila and her baby.

He headed home after stopping at a mall to do some personal Christmas shopping for his wife.

* * *

When Josh arrived home, it smelled like freshly baked cookies… for a good reason. There were dozens of cookies spread out over the kitchen counters, the table, and every other flat surface. Adam sat in the high chair with his face covered with colored sugar crystals. Emmie's face was a combination of sugar and icing.

"This is a Santa cookie, Daddy," Emmie said, waving a red cookie.

"Yum," Josh said, kissing his daughter. "You taste good, too. I may have to eat you," he teased.

Emmie giggled happily. "These are for the Christmas tree. Mommy says we are going to make blue and red and green popcorn, too!"

"We can afford to buy lights and ornaments," Josh said, giving Jenny a kiss.

"Maybe lights," Jenny said with a shrug. "We still have all our old Christmas decorations in storage for other years. This is more fun, anyway." She popped a cookie into his mouth.

"These are good, but what is to keep us from eating all the decorations?"

"That is the fun part," Jenny admitted. "If we eat them, we make more."

"I like this plan," Josh admitted. "Where's Mila?"

"She's in the library sorting and packing books. She says there are only two types of reading there, classics and garbage. We will donate the classics to libraries or churches. She doesn't know what you want to do with the
garbage
books."

"What does she consider garbage?" Josh asked.

"Books such as
Confessions of a Werewolf
,
The Book of Tractors
, and
Current Decorating Tips 1982
," Jenny quoted.

"Those definitely sound like charity giveaways," Josh agreed. "Do you need help here, or is it okay if I go to my office to get online with our boss to discuss your latest decorating and furnishing decisions."

"I have my assistant cookie decorator," Jenny declared. "Yes, try to get some decisions from him if you can. I will come over to work on my latest piece as soon as Mila gets back. You do realize most of the weekend will be a bust, right? Tomorrow we decorate the tree. We might be able to squeeze in a bit of Christmas shopping. I hope to get to Julia's place to look for unique gifts for your Mom and sister."

"There is a big tree-lighting ceremony and snow festival in town on Saturday afternoon and evening," Josh said. "I saw the banners strung across the road this morning. We should take Emmie and Adam."

"If it's not snowing," Jenny said, slipping over to kiss her husband.

"What was that for?"

"I love living here," Jenny exclaimed. "This is the best thing that could have happened to us."

Josh was smiling to himself as he entered the main house. He swung by the library to say hello to Mila and tell her he agreed with her sorting decisions. He saw she had set aside only a small pile of books she thought worthy of keeping. He and Jenny had loads of books in storage, but not enough to populate all the available shelves. It looked as if they would have to buy more.