Learning the Ropes, Part III

This was the week we were originally going to travel to Arizona for the winter.  A couple of weeks ago, Ray noticed some funny looking things on his skin.  Long story short, they are more squamos cell spots that need surgery.  He had one procedure last Wedensday and another one on the 25th.  Hopefully, this will go as well as the last bunch, but it is something he is going to have to be very conscious of for the rest of his life.  They can pop up anywhere and as long as there on the outside it's a good thing.

This is the conclusion of the story that began here on AR last Monday and then continued on New Beginnings last Friday.  Hope you are enjoying the story.

PART THREE

The arriving guests were a husband, wife and two children and two girls who looked to be in their twenties. Sadie introduced herself and Paula.  The two children were so cute; you could feel their excitement and hear it in their voices as they asked all kinds of questions about cowboys and horses.  Their folks tried to settle them down as Sadie explained about their accommodations.  The two girls were more interested in the cowboys than anything Sadie had to say.  One of them was already flirting with Jace as he came over to assist with the luggage.  The other gal was ogling Caleb.  Jace and Caleb acted as gentlemen, but they were all business.  She knew Caleb would act this way; he was a married man. However, she now knew that Jace liked her and was treating her as just another guest.  She felt like a teenager.

She helped Kate and Jerry Jensen, and the kids settle into their cabin.  “There are all kinds of activities for the children.  I don’t know if you want to do anything this afternoon,  if so, we can arrange something.”

Kate Jensen said they had an early start and thought it would be best if they rested the remainder of the afternoon and put the activities on hold until the next day. 

“Well then, dinner is at 6:00 at the main house, and everyone usually gathers on the front porch around 5:30 for conversation and cocktails.  Settle in, and I’ll see you later. Don’t hesitate to pick up the phone, if there is anything you need.”

As she reached for the door, she saw Jace swiftly walking away from the girl’s cabin.  Caleb was still at the door, and she heard him say that he appreciated the invitation, but he was married and perhaps another of the ranch hands could take them to in town and to show them the hot spots.

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The Jensens, the Hawkins Men and Paula were sitting on the front porch when the two girls, Darla Meacham and Leah Hanson arrived.  All the gentlemen stood as they arrived and the girls just twittered.  They were dressed in full Hollywood-style western attire, sparkly western cut shirts tied at the waist, creased jeans that were so tight Paula wasn’t sure how they were going to sit down, and the requisite cowboy boots, no doubt newly purchased for this trip.  She giggled to herself as she watched Jace roll his eyes.

“You smell good,” little Chris Jensen told Darla.

“Why thank you.  I hope some of the bigger boys think so too.”

Paula introduced herself and the others, and she was getting to Caleb as Carrie walked out with another tray of crackers. He put his arm around her waist and brought her close to him.  “This here is my wife, Carrie.  Carrie meet Darla and Leah.  I think you’ve already met the Jensens.”  Paul chuckled to herself.  Caleb was letting the girls know, in no uncertain terms, that he was taken; leaving poor Jace and Josh as fair game.  When Sadie came out to announce that dinner was ready, the girls hooked their arms in Jace and Josh and asked if they would escort them into dinner. 

“Miss Jensen, will you do me the honor of allowing me to escort you into dinner?”  Jack Hawkins asked little Carly Jensen.  Jerry Jensen escorted his wife leaving young Chris Jensen and Paula.

“I guess that leaves you and me partner,” Paula said to little Chris.

“I guess so.”  Paula could see his disappointment that he didn’t get to escort one of the prettier girls. Once in the dining room, Jace lifted her spirits by holding a chair for her next to him.  He still had one of the ‘newbies’ on his other side, but at least she had part of him.

Dinner was great, and the conversation was lively.  Jack knew how to stir the pot and Sadie knew how to put the lid on when it got a little too much for the Jensens.  Darla and Leah asked Josh and Jace if they would take them into town. The boys knew their mother expected them to be cordial to the guests.

“I already have a date.” Jace told them.  Josh raised his eyebrow as if he didn’t believe him. Knowing that Sadie expected the boys to be cordial and show the guests a good time, he suggested that Jace and his date join them.

“Paula and I are going riding.  Maybe you would like to join us?”

Leah spoke up.  “What kind of riding?”

“Horseback riding, of course, this is a ranch.”  Jace’s voice dripped with sarcasm.

“I think I’d rather go into town.”

“Of course, you would.  Well, Josh maybe you could round up one of the other guys to help you out.” Jace answered.

                                         __________________________

Bucky and Jody jumped at the chance to accompany Josh and the girls into town.  Josh tried getting out of it altogether but Sadie said they needed a chaperone, at least on their first night.  They all piled into the pick-up with Leah making sure to sit right next to Josh. He spent the night dodging her advances, and by the time they got back to the ranch, he was ready to go to San Diego just to get away from her. 

“Josh, are you sure you want to call it a night.”

“Yes Leah, I’m sure.  I have put in a long day, and I’m tired.” She reached down and grabbed his gonads.  “Are you really sure.”

“Leah, yes I’m sure and don’t do that again.”

“Why, don’t you like it.”

“No, I don’t.”

“Are you sure?” and she grabbed him again.  Josh wanted to put her over his knee and spank the daylights out of her, but she was a guest and he had to control himself.  He wanted this night to be over and started walking away.  She ran ahead of him and instead of grabbing his gonads, she locked her lips onto him.  He extricated himself from her embrace.

“Leah, if you touch me again I swear I’m going to paddle you.  I’m not interested in you; save your attentions for someone who is.”  He turned her back toward her cabin and gave her a little shove, when what he really wanted to do was swat her backside.  He practically ran to the house and up to his room, not trusting her, not to follow him. 

                                               _______________________

Meanwhile, Jace wasn’t having the same problem.  He liked Paula, and he found out the feelings were reciprocal.  Their ride was at a slow meandering pace, over the pasture and down toward the creek.  He hobbled the horses and pulled out a blanket, and they lay on the sweet grass.  They listened to the sounds of the night, the creek rippling over the rocks, the frogs and cicadas singing their mating calls.  A gentle breeze cooled the warm air and kept the mosquitos at bay. 

“I can’t believe how many stars are in the sky. It’s as if you could walk from one to another.”

“That’s what getting away from the city lights will do for you.  Here’s something else getting away from the lights will do” as he reached over a placed a gentle kiss.  Her lips were warm and inviting as she beckoned him in. 

They drifted off to sleep and when they awoke, they were snuggled together with the blanket both under and over them.  Covered in dew with the faintest trace of daylight could be seen in the eastern sky, Paula was a little embarrassed as she reached for her panties and jeans.  Jace told her how beautiful she looked, and it immediately put her at ease.  She kissed him, and saw his response and moved in closer. She shivered.

"Are you cold?"

"A little"

"I can take care of that." and he lay her down and covered her body with his. He nipped her nipple while his hands caressed her torso and reached around to cup her bottom.  The next thing she knew he was totally beneath the blanket and she wasn't chilly any more.  She tried to reciprocate.

“I like it better knowing you owe me.  Don’t worry, I plan on collecting but right now I  have to get back to the ranch.  There are chores with my name on them and these horses are not to happy with me right now.”

“I’m sorry I detained you.”

“I’m not and don’t even think it.  If you say it again, I might have to spank you. Understand?”  She nodded and started getting dressed.

Paula thought they managed to make it back to the ranch house without anybody being any the wiser.  She was wrong.   Sadie watched as Jace kissed her before leaving and heading to the barn to take care of the horses.  She smiled her mother’s smile and knew this was going to be a good day.  She made herself a mental not to speak with Jace, but he was a big boy and she didn’t think Paula would cause any trouble.

There weren’t many at breakfast – only the Jensen’s, Leah, Darla and Sadie.  The men were doing ranching chores, and Sadie figured Paula was sleeping in after her night with Jace.  The girls said they would just hang out, but the Jensen’s were excited to find out about ranch life and had scheduled a horseback tour and picnic for later in the morning.

After last night with Jace, Paula had trouble going back to sleep.  She allowed herself get involved and lost her professional perspective.  There is no way she would be able to write a story that wasn’t clouded by her feelings for Jace and his family.  The story she would write now was not what her editor expected.  She was going to have to call him and see if he wanted her to continue.

Paula dreaded making the call but she didn’t want to put it off any longer.  She typed out a memo explaining the situation and asked for further instructions. She planned on e-mailing it but their internet was down so she went to the house to use the fax.  While she waited for a response she told Sadie the situation and said she may be leaving sooner.

“What about you and Jace?  I saw you this morning, there’s something there.”

“I know but it’s too soon.  We’ll just have to wait and see.”

Later that afternoon, Paula received a response from her editor.  He agreed the story wasn’t what was planned but wanted to see her notes before he made any decisions. That evening, she spoke with Jace and confessed why she really came to the ranch and that now she wasn’t sure how much longer she would be able to stay.

“I guess we’ll have to make good use of the time we have.”

“I was hoping you would say that and not be too angry with me because I lied about being here.”

“Oh, make no mistake that good use, is going to include a backside paddling for lying, just so you know.”

“What, are you kidding me?”

“I’m not kidding.  Now I don’t have to make up an excuse to get that cute little ass over my knee. There're all kinds of spankings you know.”

“No, I don’t know. To me, a spanking is a spanking.”

“I guess you have some lessons to learn.  I hate that I’m going to have to start off with a discipline spanking, first off, but lying is never acceptable.  It erodes trust.”

Paula didn’t know how to react to this conversation.  She experienced a sudden wetness in her jeans when he said he was going to spank her but then logic took over.  Where would he do it, when?  These were all questions to which she wanted answers. Now that her fantasy was about to become a reality, she wasn’t so sure about anything. She saw the look on his face and started to back away from him.

“Jace,” 

“Paula, it’s only a spanking, nothing more.”

He took her hand in his and started walking toward her cabin.  Now that she no longer had a roommate, privacy wasn’t and issue.  The cabin’s location was far enough away from the others, and because it was at the end of the trail, there wasn’t any foot traffic.

“I know you are nervous. Would you rather we not do this?”

“Do I have a choice?”

“There’s always a choice and it’s yours.  The thing is I think we have something going here, and if we’re going to have a long-standing relationship, I think it’s important to set up parameters from the very beginning.”

“Okay, so how does this happen?”

“First, I take you in my arms and tell you how much your doing this means to me.  When you’re ready, I will tell you why I am going to spank you, ask you if you understand, and if you have anything to say for yourself.  Once we get through those things, since  this first time I will not ask you to disrobe,  then I’ll ask you to lay across my lap and make you as comfortable as possible and then...

“and then you start to spank me.  Do I get to say when I’ve had enough?”

“Not in this instance.  You can choose a safe word if you think it would be necessary.  If you use that safe word, I will immediately stop the spanking.  Bear in mind though, using that word has meanings beyond just saying stop, it…

“This is all sounds too damn clinical and contrived. Just do it and get it over with.” 

By this time, they reached the cabin. Jace followed Paula in, closed and locked the door.  He took her in his arms, kissed her and led her over to the bed.  Sitting down, he took her between his legs and looked at her and held her hands.  When she looked away, he pulled her over his lap and began massaging her back. He rested his hand on her cheeks for a moment.  He heard Paula sigh.

“You ready,” he asked.

“As ready as I’ll ever be, let’s get on with it.”

His hand came down hard on her jean clad tush.  She was surprised how much it hurt and could just imagine how much more it would hurt if she was bare assed.  She only had a second to process the sting before the next smack came down just as hard.  He stopped, rubbed and asked if she was okay.

“Damn it, Jace.  Get on with it.”

“I don’t think that’s a good attitude when you’re over my knee.  You asked for it.”

With that he began a flurry of hard spanks that peppered every inch of her bottom.  She tried putting her hands back to stop the barrage only to have him take her hand in his and hold it behind her.  It didn’t break his rhythm for a second.  She was finding it hard to catch her breath and just when she thought she could take any more; he stopped.  He rubbed her back, then rested his hand on her punished back end. 

‘Okay, pretty girl.  Get up and let me give you some loving.”

“Suppose I don’t want to.”

“Come on, sweetie, it’s as significant as the spanking itself.  It’s important to know the situation is resolved, and we start anew. Let’s cuddle.”

He pulled her down to lay next to him on the bed and she blended into him, placing her head in the crook of his shoulder.  He gently ran his fingers through her hair and listened for the change in her breathing.

“I’m sorry Jace.”

“Shh sweet girl.  It’s over.  Tomorrow is a new day.  We’ll take it one step at a time and figure out a way to be together.” He kissed the top of her head.

“I’d like that.”

"It's all part of learning the ropes."

 Bear Creek Ranch, Meredith Meets Her Match and Destiny Takes a Hand are all available now.

See you later for more Aimless Ramblings.