The Art of Discipline: Dani’s Discovery (The Mockingbird Chronicles) (26 page)

Emma leaned back and turned on the couch, pulling one leg under her. She took another sip of coffee before speaking. “So far, so good, actually.”

“You mean you aren’t done?” Stevie whistled. “I figured she wouldn’t be sitting for a week after those stunts she pulled.”

Emma chuckled. “Oh believe me, the thought did cross my mind, but after talking with her, I decided a three day event would be much more effective than a large one-time party.”

Taking a large drink of her bottled water, Stevie shook her head. “And you grounded her too? I must say, Emma, I might need to take lessons from you.”

Smirking, Emma added, “Yeah, you just might.”

* * *

“And one erector set. Thank you, yes, all of it should be delivered tomorrow afternoon at one-thirty. Right, the apartment above Ryan’s Books, addressed to Danielle Ryan. Thanks so much.” Hanging up the phone, Dani sighed in relief as Emma entered the office unannounced.

Quickly turning to her laptop, Dani began to type instructions to Morgan about the Johnson sweet sixteen, just as her cell phone rang. Checking the number, she answered it, “Yes, Olivia, go ahead and patch her through, I’m available.”

Winking at Emma, Dani shifted in her seat. “Danielle Ryan speaking. Hello, Mrs. Johnson. No, Mrs. Johnson, I’m sorry, but Shelby Stix is on tour in Europe, so she won’t be able to appear for Ashley’s party, but we are in negations with both of Ashley’s other two choices. As soon as we have more information, we will contact you. Yes, I promise you the sky writer came through, and the party favors will be just as you asked. Orange with brown stripes. Right, okay. Sure. Bye, Mrs. Johnson.”

Rolling her eyes, Dani put down her phone and stretched, “Are you sure I can’t have a pillow, Emma?” she asked before standing to stretch some more.

“No,” Emma smirked. “Part of the punishment.”

“Yeah, yeah, part of the punishment,” Dani smiled before walking the few steps to where Emma stood. Leaning down, she gently pulled her into a kiss. “Are you sure I can’t persuade you?” she grinned, pulling Emma into another kiss.

A single, stinging swat to her bottom answered the question for Emma. “No using your charms to try and persuade me, Danielle,” Emma laughed.

Dani gave Emma her best pout while rubbing her backside. She then let it fade back into a smile as she kissed Emma once more. “Can’t blame a girl for trying.”

“Or a brat,” Emma teased. “Are you almost done here?”

“Yeah, I just need to finish up a few things for the Johnson Sweet Sixteen and the Patil Wedding.”

“Alright, I just wanted to let you know that I set up an appointment for our first self-defense class. Monday morning.”

“Ah, nothing like starting the week with a good workout,” Dani grinned. “You talk to Master Roth?”

“I did, and he remembered you by the way. Said if you break any of his mirrors again, he’ll have you doing pushups until your arms fall off.”

Dani blushed. “That
so
wasn’t my fault. How was I supposed to know that the pile of mats could fall over?”

Emma wrinkled her nose. “How did a mat break a mirror?”

“Well, it wasn’t the mat, exactly. See, the mat fell, which knocked over a stack of chairs, which kinda knocked over a case full of trophies. One of the parents tried to catch the trophies as they were falling, but he tripped, and his shoe went flying… well, one thing led to another, and I ended up doing manual labor for the rest of the summer to pay for a new mirror.”

Emma’s chin dropped. “Seriously?”

Dani shrugged.

“Well, I can see now why he remembered you.” Emma shook her head.

“Yeah, that and how I helped him win a state championship when I was thirteen. Good times back then,” Dani smiled.

“Why do I have the feeling that I’m way over my head with this self-defense stuff? You seem to already have quite a history.”

“It’s been a long time, Emma. It’s important to me to help you stay safe.”

“I know, which is why I agreed. Just promise me you’ll take it easy on me,” Emma chuckled.

Dani’s blue eyes sparkled mischievously.

“Brat,” Emma intoned again, giving Dani a gentle shove. “Okay. I need to get back to work. Let me know when you’re finished, and I’ll walk you upstairs.”

Dani gave a mock salute with her left hand. “Aye, aye, captain!” she teased as Emma returned to the bookstore.

* * *

The afternoon and the next flew by both incredibly fast and too slowly at the same time. Dani wasn’t at all happy with her limitations and the grounding, but no matter how much Dani fought, Emma had held firm. As promised she’d spanked Dani the night before as well. They were both anticipating the third one later, but Dani wasn’t looking forward to it.

Emma, though, was hoping that maybe if Dani were miserable enough, it would cause her to think twice before repeating her mistakes. Even though Dani hadn’t fought her about the spanking the night before, she knew that Dani was still pushing her and hoped that this latest reaction would allow Dani to settle down.

Unlocking the door to the apartment, however, Emma realized that Dani wasn’t quite done with her testing yet, as she nearly tripped over a set of building blocks that were left by the front door. Coming fully into the apartment, Emma’s chin dropped in shock. In the middle of the living room there was a large village made from snap blocks, a car made from metal building parts, and even a log cabin—complete with a barn and water tower—adorning the coffee table. The kitchen table was covered with a half-completed puzzle on one side and a bead kit on the other. She shook her head as she noticed half the beads had rolled onto the floor.

Being careful not to step on any of the blocks or various pieces of other toys, she slowly followed a long wooden train track down the hallway and into Uncle Sean’s study. Stopping short when she crossed the threshold, she took in a deep breath. Dani was sitting on the floor, an art easel in front of her and covered in finger paint. Tubs of colored clay were left open to one side of her, while the other side was covered by a large roll of paper and a pile of crayons.

“Danielle.” Emma’s voice was low, and Dani turned, immediately grinning. She had a streak of bright green paint in her hair, and a rainbow of colors graced her face, arms, and hands. Her t-shirt was covered in fingerprints and various splashes of color where Dani had let the paint touch her.

“Do you like my painting, Emma?” Dani asked, moving aside so Emma could get a better look.

Emma crouched, staring at the colorful lines on the page. It looked as if a drunken monkey had painted it, but Dani’s excitement was a little contagious, and she couldn’t help but smile. “It’s interesting, Dani,” she said slowly. “But may I ask just what you’re doing?” Standing again, she watched as Dani wiped her hands off on her long legs and stood.

“I’m painting,” Dani pointed out the obvious.

“I see that. Did you forget you’re grounded?”

Dani shook her head. “Of course not. Do you see any electronic games or toys here?” Smiling, she brushed her hand across her forehead, transferring more paint to her body.

“Danielle, I think it should be obvious that being grounded means no toys.”

Dani shifted a moment, noticing the bright orange paint on her bare feet and letting her lip pop up in a little pout. “You never said no toys, and you didn’t take away the puzzle cube I had last night.”

“My puzzle cube,” Emma gently corrected her with a roll of her eyes. “Technically, no, but where did you get all this stuff? I’m pretty sure you didn’t go anywhere, and I do believe I was clear that you aren’t allowed to use the phone unless it’s business-related.”

“But it is business-related,” Dani protested. She knew that Emma probably wouldn’t like the mess she’d made, but at the same time, she’d gotten a little too into it. She’d actually been enjoying herself and was rather proud of the cover story she’d come up with. “I’m doing research for a birthday party for one of my clients.”

“Research?” Emma put her hands on her hips, raising that eyebrow. “What type of research?”

“For what types of games and toys should be at a birthday party for six-year-old twins.” Dani smirked. “The Maloys have boy and girl twins and couldn’t decide on a party theme, so I thought if we had a variety of toys and games, it’d be a hit for everyone.”

Emma looked around the room once more as well as at her paint-covered girlfriend. “Do you always do research like this?”

“Well,” Dani scrunched her nose, “maybe I got a little carried away.”

“You think?” Emma teased. “Either way, I’d say you did enough research today. Now, it’s time to get the apartment cleaned up, and then I think you need a bath.”

Dani giggled. “I do?” she teased, looking down at her sticky fingers. “You mean you don’t want to paint with me?” she asked, advancing on the redhead.

“Hey, now. Dani, what are you doing?” Emma’s eyes went wide as she backed up, bumping into the desk.

Seeing her prey trapped, Dani smirked and reached out, putting a dash of green paint right on the end of Emma’s nose. “There, much better.”

“Danielle,” Emma threatened as Dani tried to move around her.

“Yes?” Dani responded, adding another smear of paint to Emma’s cheek.

Successfully scooting around Dani, Emma was now backing away toward the center of the room. “Don’t forget, I still owe you a spanking tonight,” Emma threatened the still advancing Dani.

“Yes, I remember. No matter if I’m good or not,” Dani’s eyes twinkled.

“You’re asking for it,” Emma threatened, shaking a mocking finger. “Besides, you should know better than to leave the paint sitting open like this,” she said, looking down and then quickly snatching up a bottle of purple paint.

“Uh-oh,” Dani teased, but then jumped back, as the now armed redhead switched roles and started advancing on her instead.

Sticking her fingers in the paint, Emma managed to pin Dani against the desk as she used a finger to draw a purple ‘x’ on each of Dani’s cheeks. “There, I’ve marked you now.”

“So you have,” Dani smiled. “I suppose I should return the favor.” Laughing, Dani put a hand on each side of Emma’s face before bringing her in for a deep kiss. Stepping back, she giggled at the handprints on Emma’s face. “Ah, sorry about that. Guess I am a bit messy,” she joked.

“Uh-huh, you certainly are, young lady,” Emma agreed before grabbing Dani and pinning her back down for another deep kiss. Finally breaking the kiss, Emma’s eyes sparkled. “I think I might have to return the favor and leave a couple of handprints on you later.”

“Is that a promise?”

“You know it is.”

“No matter if I’m good or not?” Dani’s eyes were twinkling.

“Oh yeah.”

“Then I guess I have nothing to lose,” Dani smirked as she grabbed Emma’s arm, spun her around, and left a colorful swat on the seat of her pants.

“Danielle!” Emma sputtered in shock at the quickly retreating and giggling brunette. “You are so gonna get it!”

“You have to catch me first,” Dani called from down the hall.

“Oh, you just wait, Danielle Ryan. I’m gonna catch you.” Emma started off after the taunting woman. She managed to get to the threshold of the bedroom when she paused, not seeing a sign of her partner anywhere. Stepping into the room cautiously, she called out, “Dani?”

“Yes?” a deep voice answered from behind her.

Emma spun around, catching Dani coming out from the space between the wall and the open door. Dani took a step closer, causing Emma to step deeper into the room.

“So, who is going to catch whom, Ms. Gray?” Dani teased.

Emma swallowed, her throat becoming dry. Suddenly, she felt the back of her knees bump into the bed. She then felt a shiver as Dani bent and gently kissed her neck. Reaching up, she wrapped her arms around Dani’s neck and pulled her into a much deeper kiss. “We should get cleaned up,” Emma muttered.

“I think it’ll be more fun to stay dirty,” Dani returned.

“We’re gonna get paint all over…”

“Everything,” Dani interrupted with a grin.

“You are so gonna get it,” Emma threatened, kissing Dani’s neck as Dani gently pushed her down on the bed.

The next few minutes were both a blur and an eternity at the same time. Before Emma knew it, she was panting and lying completely naked on the bed. Dani, also naked, was lying next to her, tracing the now dry streaks of green and purple paint that had affixed themselves to Emma’s belly with her finger.

“What are you doing,” Emma giggled as Dani happened upon a ticklish spot.

“Admiring fine art,” Dani returned, looking up into green eyes. “You, Emma Gray, are the most beautiful thing I have ever seen.”

Emma blushed. “And you are so still gonna get it.” She moaned as Dani’s fingers found a spot that wasn’t so ticklish.

“I think I already did,” Dani teased as she propped herself up and began to kiss Emma’s belly, slowing following the trail her fingers had just blazed.

Emma couldn’t help squirming and letting out a little squeal as Dani continued to explore. Moaning, she gave in and allowed Dani to work her magic. She’d never look at finger painting the same way again.

Another moment of eternity led to a moment of stillness as Emma found herself wrapped around Dani, totally exhausted. The last thing she wanted to do was move, but she knew they both had to eat, and she still had a promise to keep. “Dani, are you awake?”

“No,” came the muttered reply from the naked body that had happily curled itself around her.

Emma patted Dani’s arm. “Come on, honey, we haven’t even had dinner yet.”

“Don’t care,” Dani mumbled. “Don’t wanna move.”

Emma managed to twist around so that she was facing Dani. Tilting her head up a little, she kissed her on the nose. “Come on, Dani. I need you to get up.”

One blue eye opened. “Why?”

A single eyebrow rose. “Because we need to get cleaned up.”

“No, we don’t.” The blue eye closed again.

“Danielle Elizabeth!”

“What?” Blue eyes opened again, only to be caught by slightly narrowed green.

“I’m going to take a shower.” Emma smiled as Dani stuck out her lip. “Thought you might want to join me.”