On His Ranch by Dinah McLeod

Chapter 3

Piper had hardly taken three steps into the driveway and was trying to reorient herself when she heard a voice behind her.

“Goin’ somewhere?”

She screeched and jumped what felt like six feet into the air before whirling around. Of course. The cowboy had found her. She supposed she should be grateful it was him and not whoever had shot at them earlier, but seeing his handsome face become an angry mask made her wonder if she might have better odds with the gunman.

“I asked you a question,” he said, every syllable laced with impatience and a southern twang.

“I… I was just… my aunt’s that way.” She pointed, feeling ridiculous even as she did it.

“Uh-huh. That’s nice to know, but I seem to recall tellin’ you to stay put.”

“Well, ah, you did, but…” She reached up and brushed a hand over her blonde hair, trying to think of something to say that would stop him from looking like a bear who was about to make her his lunch.

“But?” he prompted, his brows drawing together as he folded his arms across his big, manly chest, his foot tapping ominously on the ground.

“I just thought… I mean, you seemed busy, so I… just wanted to get out of your hair.” She smiled weakly.

“Out of trouble is more like it.”

Well, she couldn’t deny that one, although it seemed that instead of getting out of it she’d only managed to dig herself in deeper.

“I didn’t mean to bother you. I’m not far from my aunt’s, so I’m just going to—”

“Not yet you’re not, young lady. You’re not going anywhere until you talk to the police.”

She could feel her tummy knotting itself in worry. “Because I was shot at? Listen, it was scary, sure, but you handled it. Um… I guess I should say thank you. So, thank you. But I’m fine. It’s really not necessary to call the police.”

“Wrong. Take a step inside with me, would you?” Even though he phrased it as a question, he was moving closer with every word and by the last, he’d grabbed hold of her upper arm. With firm fingers he pulled her along, back to the barn.

“But—”

“No buts. We’re gonna have ourselves a talk whether you like it or not.”

She didn’t like it as a matter of fact but his hold on her was firm and unyielding and it didn’t look like she had a choice.

When he stopped moving they were further into the barn, directly across from the shed she’d slept in the night before. It was no Holiday Inn, but she’d managed to get a few hours of sleep.

“See, what I haven’t been able to quite figure out here lately is why things keep disappearin’ around here.”

“Disappearing?” she repeated, her brow furrowed as she tried to figure out what he was getting at. “What do you mean?”

He released her and walked around to stand in front of her, his arms crossed over his chest in what seemed to be his favorite intimidating pose. She had to give it to him, it certainly worked on her. He was smiling, his lips quirked up in a smirk, but his eyes were hard and flat.

Piper felt a shiver run through her. He didn’t answer, and the silence around them felt ominous. She was the type who felt the need to cover a silence, even it meant babbling. It was an urge she couldn’t ignore when his eyes were on her like glittering daggers. “I have no idea why anyone would want anything from a barn. I mean, seriously, what would you take? A shovel?” She giggled. “How much do those cost? Like ten dollars? Who’d take something like that?”

“As a matter of fact, I’ve had equipment vanishing from all over the farm.”

There was an eerie glow in his eyes that made her belly flip in a way that was definitely not good. His next words confirmed it.

“And then lo and behold, I caught you red-handed this morning.”

Piper’s mouth dropped open and she took a step back, moving so quickly her sneaker squeaked across the barn floor. “You can’t be serious.”

His strong, burly arms unfurled and he reached a hand out toward her. “Your backpack.”

Her hands went to the straps and tightened around them. “That’s my private property.”

“Sure. Where you hid my private property.”

Her eyes widened. “You… you can’t be serious.”

The corners of his mouth quirked up again. “I don’t do jokes.”

She was about to say, what, who doesn’t joke every once in a while? But actually, where this man was concerned, she could see it.

“C’mon.” His fingers beckoned. “Hand it over.”

Stubbornness—a rare emotion for Piper—flared through her and her hands clenched around the straps so tightly they bit into her palms. She didn’t even notice the pain. “No.”

His brows shot up.

Not the answer you expected, huh? Well, good.

“I can take it from you, you know.”

“That’s stealing,” she protested.

He gave a bark of laughter. “We’ll see who the thief is here in a minute.” When she didn’t answer, he took a menacing step toward her. “Make this easier on yourself. If you fight me, it could lead somewhere you don’t want.”

She scowled. “You have no right to—”

“No right?” he echoed. “I guess I need to remind you that you trespassed on my property. But it’s like I told you—we can let the cops handle this.”

Suddenly, his words took on new meaning and Piper’s mouth gaped open. “Wait. You mean, you don’t want to call them because someone tried to shoot me, you want to call the cops on me?”

The cowboy’s expression remained as stoic as ever in the face of her indignant question.

Piper could feel herself starting to get angry, which was currently overriding her fear and her awe of his perfect body. After all, a jerk was still a jerk no matter what kind of window dressing there was.

“Look, I don’t know you, and I’m not gonna rest easy until I make sure nothing is missin’.”

She snorted. “What would I have taken? An apple? I mean, seriously, do I look like I have a hay bale up my shirt?” As soon the words were out, she had to bite down on her lip to keep from taking them back. She couldn’t believe her own daring. She wasn’t the type to rush head-on into conflict, but he’d accused her of stealing and that was taking it too far! She didn’t have much, but her integrity was still intact, dammit!

“Alright, that’s enough sass out of you.”

Whathad he just said to her? Who the hell did he think he was?

Just then, she saw the other, older cowboy out of the corner of her eye. She didn’t know when he’d arrived, but it was clear he’d been watching them unobtrusively from the doorway. Under normal circumstances she would have felt embarrassed, but there was nothing normal about this day.

“I’ma leave you to it then. Chase, I’ll be up at the house should you need me. Although,” he couldn’t seem to help himself from adding, his brown eyes sparkling, “seems to me you have things well in hand here.”

Chase. So that was his name. Piper ran it through her mind again and again as she observed the man himself as he turned and watched his grandfather walk away. She could see it now—the way their strides matched. Every movement was slow, deliberate, and yet somehow powerful at the same time.

“Alright, Senior. I’ll see you when I’ve cleaned things up here.”

Hmph.Piper scowled and propped a hand on her hip, blushing and humiliated. “Clean things up? What am I, some mess you have to tend to?”

If Chase noted her irritated tone, he didn’t seem to care. “That sounds about the size of it to me.”

The heat in her cheeks flared, right along with her temper. “I didn’t do anything!”

“Care to prove it?”

She stood her ground, glaring.

“Come on.” His voice softened ever so slightly. “If you’ve got nothing to hide, you shouldn’t be afraid to prove it.”

Piper hesitated. “You… you won’t call the cops? Not if I let you see my backpack?”

“Let’s just say I think we can work things out between us.”

She exhaled, and as she did the bulk of the tension left her body. “Okay.” The last thing she wanted was to hand over the only personal possessions she had for a stranger to rifle through, but what else could she do? She could try to make a break for it, but her chances of outrunning him were slim to none, and since she didn’t have a car at the moment, her options were down to one. Compliance wouldn’t have been her first inclination, but she was out of choices, and it seemed like she wasn’t the only one who knew it.

As she slid the backpack off her shoulders, she idly wondered if she wouldn’t be better off taking her chances with the cops.

* * *

Chase grabbed the strap of the backpack and pulled it toward him. He wasted no time in unzipping it and beginning his search.

“Okay, but please, be careful.”

He did not spare her a glance as his hand delved inside. He pulled out a crumpled denim shirt and tossed it.

“Hey! You’re going to get it dirty!”

He didn’t bother to reply as his hands moved other things aside. “I can’t see anything through all this,” he muttered to himself. He took out a couple of well-worn paperbacks. The covers were creased with use. He set them down on the stool next to him, but was too involved in his search to notice when one slid to the floor.

“Hey! Stop it!”

Chase was sorting through it when out of the corner of his eye he saw her coming toward him, hands grappling. His head jerked up and he tightened his grip on the backpack. “Just a minute now—you’ll get your things back when I’m through.”

“No!” Her face was red with fury. “Give it back!”

“Now that’s a guilty conscience if I ever heard one.”

Her eyes narrowed as she tried to pull the backpack away from him. When she was unsuccessful, she let out a screech and balled her hand into a fist, bringing it down on his arm once, twice, then a third time. When she realized how ineffectual her fists were she backed away, her fists clenched at her sides, nostrils flaring.

This time when he smiled, it was real. From the moment he’d laid eyes on her, his palm had itched. Now he was going to be able to fulfill his own wishes while teaching this little girl a lesson. “You shouldn’t have done that.”

The face she turned to him was a mask of defiance, and he was going to love paddling her butt until she admitted he was right.

He carelessly dropped the bag to the floor, ignoring her shrill protest. Then he closed the distance between them in two long-legged strides. She didn’t seem to realize her peril until he grabbed her by the wrist.

“Hey! What are you doing? Let me go!” She tugged at her wrist, trying to free it.

“I’m gonna teach you some manners is what.”

“Stop it! You can’t do this!”

Chase chuckled darkly. She had no idea what ‘this’ was, but she’d soon find out, bare-assed and bawling across his knee. And her next lesson would be that can’t wasn’t in his vocabulary.

He pulled her over to his workbench. Though it was plain plywood, he kept it clean and free of clutter. It was there that he stopped, using one hand on the small of her back to keep her where he wanted her while the other one grabbed her other hand. He trapped both of her wrists in one of his big, strong hands.

He almost felt sorry for her. She had no idea what was going on, but tried to fight, hissing and kicking what she could reach as she began to realize what situation she’d gotten herself into.

“Be still,” he ordered, using his free hand to deliver a loud, smarting spank to the back of her jeans. The sound reverberated through the barn and achieved his desired affect because the shock made her go still. He used it to his advantage and pulled her jeans down to her knees.

Her struggle renewed when she felt his thumbs in the band of her panties. “What… what are you going to do?” Though she yanked at her trapped wrists, her voice had lost its earlier fire. “Are you going to…” She swallowed hard.

Chase noticed not for the first time how pretty she was. She had honey-blonde hair that had shone in the sunlight, which perfectly complemented her light green eyes and cream complexion. She had a cute, pert nose and lips the color of ripe berries. Under different circumstances, he might be tempted to taste those lips to see if they were indeed sweet, but unfortunately for them both they had a more solemn conversation in store.

“I’m goin’ to teach you a lesson you won’t soon forget.” His free hand reached across the table for the wooden ruler he kept on his workbench. He’d made it himself—twelve inches of solid cherry wood. It had the inches marked off, and was three inches thick. It worked fine for measuring, and even better for paddling naughty bottoms.

As his hand moved back to her stark white bottom, his fingers curled around the ruler paddle, she craned her neck to look at him, her light green eyes wide and desperate. “Wait! Please, don’t!”

“It’s too late for please, little girl.” Something in her expression changed when he said that. He didn’t know what to make of it, but he wasn’t going to sit by idle and think on it, either. Not when he had work to do. The first smack rang out through the barn, the sound nice and full.

She echoed it with a sharp intake of breath.

“It’s got a mean sting, I reckon,” he observed before bringing it down again. As soon as he lifted the ruler, he saw the pink skin underneath. It would be several shades darker before he was through with her. For a few seconds, the only sound in the barn was the sound of hard, sound spanks being laid onto her full cheeks.

She’s takin’ it pretty well, I’ll give her that.

But as a few more swats landed, she began to struggle to pull away from him once more.

Chase tightened his grip on her wrists and pushed her down across the workbench with his other hand. Then he resumed paddling her cute posterior, the spanks harder than before.

Each one elicited a sharp gasp from her berry-colored lips.

Watching the hue of her bottom deepen made his pants feel uncomfortably tight. He pushed it to the back of his mind and delivered two swats in quick succession to her sit-spot.

“Ow!” she protested at the top of her voice, and he allowed himself a grin since her back was to him.

“That’s right, it hurts, doesn’t it? You’ll think twice about hittin’ me in the future, won’t ya? Or anyone else for that matter.” He punctuated this statement with a swat that went even lower to the back of her thighs.

“Let me go!” she howled, shooting up off the table and arching her back.

He should have been prepared for it, but was momentarily caught off guard. That was the only reason she was able to break away from him and make a run for it.

Unfortunately for her, she’d forgotten that her pants and panties were bunched around her knees and they were her downfall—quite literally—when she fell over them just before reaching the barn’s open doorway.

Chase was hot on her heels and pulled her up by her elbow. “You’ll regret that,” he growled before sitting on the cold, hard floor and pulling her over his lap.

“Wait! No, don’t! I’m sorry!” she wailed.

But he wasn’t convinced. “Not yet you’re not,” he snapped, steel in his voice. Then he really went to work, using his hand to spank her pink cheeks to a deeper shade of red. Each one was a hearty smack and while he’d spanked in a pattern when using the ruler, he abandoned that plan and let his hand fall where it would while she squirmed and protested with moans and shrieks. He delivered hard, heavy-handed spanks one after the other until she began to cry and went still over his lap.

Chase smiled to himself. Got her right where I want her.

* * *

Piper kicked her feet as hot, angry swats landed on her poor, defenseless bare bottom. She couldn’t believe this was happening. But there was nothing she could do—she was powerless to make it stop, and she knew it.

Almost as though he’d read her mind, the cowboy threw a leg across hers, trapping them. She tried for a second to free herself, but his strength was nothing she could match.

As though that wasn’t bad enough, his hard, tireless hand had never stopped smacking her, not even for a second. There was nothing she could do, except accept that she had to take this punishment for as long as he intended to give it to her.

She went limp, mad at herself for giving up, but relieved at the same time. There was something else… some other emotion under the pain she was experiencing from his blistering hand and the humiliation she felt being at his mercy.

Piper could smell her own arousal, and it wasn’t long before it occurred to her that maybe he could, too. The thought made her blush so that her face was almost as hot as her bottom cheeks. Almost, because he hadn’t let up for a second and was still delivering sharp, quick wallops while she bucked over his lap with each one.

“Please!” she couldn’t help but cry out, even though none of her pleas had been successful so far.

“Are you going to be a good girl now?” he barked at her, punctuating the question with a quick smack to the bottom of each of her cheeks.

She winced at the pain. “Yes! Yes, I promise.”

“I make it a habit of never trusting the word of bad girls,” he remarked, his voice heavy with amusement and skepticism.

“I’m a good girl! Really, I am!”

“Hmmm. Good girls don’t hit strangers.”

She opened her mouth, but quickly decided not to argue. “Yes, sir.”

This must not have been the answer he’d expected, because she felt his leg move, and then he pulled her up.

She cringed as her bare bottom hit the stone floor. She looked away from the cowboy’s smirking face.

“Are you a good girl?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Alright, I reckon I’ll give you a shot to prove it.”

Her eyes flew back to his face. What did that mean?

“What’s your name, little girl?”

She flushed at the question. No, not at the question, at being called little girl, because she’d learned the first time he’d done it that it made her body flush with a weird warmth that made no sense to her. “Piper… sir.”

He arched a dark brow. “Hmm,” he weighed her answer, but she got no clue what else he thought of it. “Alright, Piper. Be a good girl and hand me your backpack.”

Sniffling, she blinked up at him. Was he actually going to let her up? Tentatively, she pushed herself up, waiting. When he didn’t say anything, she moved slowly toward her discarded backpack. She snatched it off the floor and was about to pull up her pants when he stopped her.

“Leave them,” he commanded.

Piper obeyed instantly, making her way back to him and offering the backpack.

He indicated with his pointer finger that he wanted her to sit again.

“So. You can be a good girl,” he purred, his voice velvet. Though she could still detect the steel behind it. He took his time looking and she let him, her eyes darting away and back again.

I should run. He’s distracted now…But if her aunt would be shocked to see her, she’d be even more so to find Piper without a single possession, and with blotchy skin and red eyes. Besides which, she wouldn’t get far. She’d known without question that he was strong just from looking at him, but now that she’d been held captive by nothing more than a single hand, or his leg enclosing both of hers, she knew the man was tougher than any she’d ever met, and it wasn’t just his strength, either. There was something about him… he had a commanding presence that demanded unquestioned obedience.

Now Piper knew what the or else gleam in his eyes meant. Her bottom throbbed mercilessly to remind her if she should forget. It wasn’t pleasant, her sore ass pressed against the stone floor, but she bit her lip and remained silent while he took his time pawing through her possessions.

When his hand emerged from the backpack, fingers pinched around a thick cream flyer, her stomach dropped.

“Put it back,” she rasped out.

Chase looked up at her. “What is it?”

“It’s… it’s nothing that you would care about. I promise. Please, put it back,” she whispered, knots of dread in her stomach as she waited. She didn’t want to be even further humiliated in front of this man than she had already been.

He locked gazes with her, seeming to look inside her.

She held her breath and waited, unnerved for more reasons than one. When he shrugged a shoulder and put it back in the backpack without turning it around and reading it, she let out the breath she’d been holding.

When he set the backpack down, frustration at being put in this situation mingled with relief and it took all the self-control she possessed not to snarl, “Satisfied?” and grab it back from him. He must have seen it on her face, though, because he smirked at her. “Empty out your pockets.”

She reached down and put her hands in, pulling the fabric so that the pockets were inside-out. A single dime chimed as it fell to the floor.

“You really are a good girl,” he observed, his eyes lingering on her face and making her blush hotter. “Even good girls need spankin’ from time to time.”

Her entire body flushed and she wasn’t sure why—from the mentioned spanking, or hearing him call her a good girl.

He set her backpack down. “Over my lap.”

Piper blanched and her eyes widened. “What?”

“Don’t make me repeat myself, Piper.”

This time when heat spread over her limbs, she knew exactly the reason. He hadn’t called her by her name before—hell, no one had ever said her name like that before. Her thighs began to quiver as she watched, horrified, praying he didn’t notice. Damn it, of all the times to be turned on, this had to be the worst!

“But… you already spanked me.”

“That was for running away. I still owe you a spankin’ for hittin’ me earlier.”

Her brow furrowed. “But… you already did that.”

“I have a rule, and if I have to restart the spankin’ we do the whole thing over, right from the beginning.”

Her mouth gaped open. “But—”

“I’m not a patient man, Piper. I’m givin’ you ten extras for arguing, and if you don’t want more where that came from, you’ll do as you’re told.”

* * *

He had to admit, he was liking Piper more and more. Of course, it didn’t hurt she’d proven herself to be honest. When he’d thought she was the thief they’d been keeping an eye out for, it had been hard to acknowledge his attraction to her. Now, though… it was all he could do to ignore the throbbing in his cock as she laid herself back over his knees, her movements hesitant and awkward.

She’d done it, though. That was what counted.

He shifted her a bit so that her ass was in the center and easily in range. His eyes drifted along her orbs, and he grinned to see that her perfectly white, unblemished globes were now a deep pink with darker splotches of red in place. They would be red before he was through.

“Hittin’ other people is not somethin’ we tolerate ‘round here,” he began to scold.

Piper craned her head around to look at him. “But aren’t you hitting me for hitting you?”

The ruler smacked down on her thighs three times in quick succession.

“Yow!” she cried out, pain mingled with surprise.

“That’s enough of your sass.”

Her eyes narrowed into a glare, but she turned back around and lay down across his lap with further comment.

“You are bein’ punished for violence. This is not violence, it’s called consequences. Maybe next time you feel the urge to assault someone you’ll remember this is where you’ll end up.” With that, he brought the ruler down, starting first with the top of her bottom, spanking that spot two times before moving down just slightly and putting more spanks there. He worked his way down her bottom, spanking methodically, watching the soft pink give way to a brighter hue. Chase did all this while ignoring her groans that turned into cries and his own cock, which had hardened past the point of painful.

“Pl-ea-se,” she choked out in a sob. “Stop, please. I’ll d-do an-any-thing!”

“You’re right,” he agreed, spanking without losing his rhythm. “You’ll take the lickin’ you’ve earned.”

Piper’s only response was to dissolve into tears. Her shoulders shook and her face must be covered with tears because her cheek was pressed against his jeans and the fabric was wet enough for him to feel it.

Still, he spanked until he reached her sit-spot, enjoying being able to see the results of his hard work. “Are you going to be a good girl from now on?” he asked. At first, he thought she was crying too hard to hear his question, but just as he was ready to ask again, she spoke through her sobs.

“Y-y-yes.”

The ruler smacked down hard, once, twice, making her skin bloom an angry, bright red. “Yes, what?”

“Y-yes, s-sir!” she hiccupped.

“Good.” He let his other, empty hand caress her bottom. She whimpered, but didn’t protest further. Good. She’s learning. There were small, raised bumps along her sit-spot and he didn’t envy Piper attempting to sit throughout the rest of the day. “We’re almost done here,” he told her.

Piper’s body lurched at the announcement. “No,” she wailed. “No, please, sir. No more. I’ll be a g-good girl. I pr-promise.”

“I’m sure you mean it now,” he replied, keeping his voice stern. “But you need a reminder so that you don’t forget.”

She began crying again, her sobs soft and resigned.

Verygood. He moved the ruler just above her sit-spot and repeated the process, spanking every inch of skin, losing himself in the steady rhythm of the smack of the ruler against skin. She cried and bucked, but Piper made no move to stop him.

When Chase had reached the top crest of her cheeks once more, he paused for a moment. He set the ruler down and rubbed her back. “We’re done with that. Shhh, you’re okay. It’ll sting for a bit, and sittin’ is gonna be hard, but there’s no permanent damage done.”

This did not seem to reassure Piper who kept crying.

He let her for another moment before he ordered her up. As soon as she shifted off his lap he stood and offered her a hand.

She took it, her lip quivering as he pulled her up.

“Spread your legs.”

Wide green eyes stared back at him and she hesitated.

Chase chuckled. “Don’t worry, that’s one thing I won’t do. Well,” he gave her a wolfish smile, “at least not until you can admit you want me to. We have the extras you earned to tend to.”

“Oh, no.” She covered her mouth, but it did not stop him from hearing her sob. “Please, no. Please, I’m begging you. Don’t.”

He shook his head, and for once, he truly was regretful. “I wish I could let you off the hook, but you earned ‘em. And if you earn extras, I’ll always deliver. Now, spread your legs.”

Sniffling and clearly fighting back sobs, Piper obeyed.

“Wider,” he ordered, kinder than he’d been earlier.

She obliged and he took a moment to notice how beautiful they were. Slim, unblemished thighs that he wouldn’t mind exploring in a different way another time, should the opportunity present itself.

Focus, man. “Let’s get this over with.”

Piper, biting down on her bottom lip, nodded.

With quick, thorough precision he spanked the ruler down the inside of her tender thighs. Six spanks on the left, then six on the right while Piper howled her protests.

By the time he was through, Piper had given up trying to hold back her tears. In fact, as soon as he set the ruler down she did a hopping, screeching dance that threatened to make him lose his composure.

“Ow!” she yelled at the top of her voice, her thighs pressed together to hide her pussy even though it must burn to keep them that way. “Owww!”

As much as Chase knew she’d earned the punishment, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of sympathy for the pain he knew she must be in. On top of that, she was adorable doing her post-spanking dance and it was hard for him not to smile. But he knew if she saw him do that, it would take away from his authority.

Funny—he couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt sorry for a woman after a well-deserved punishment. Not to mention finding her antics cute.

“Come here,” he invited, the words popping out before he was even aware he was going to issue the invitation.

Her head jerked up, her eyes wide and surprised. She then shimmied over to him, hesitating right in front of him.

Chase gently took her by the wrist and pulled her to him, wiping the tears from her eyes.

“Thank you,” she murmured in a breathy, little-girl voice.

He allowed his smile to show. She really was precious. He reached down and pulled her pants back up over her swollen cheeks. “You can keep them up now—so long as you keep behavin’ like a good girl,” he warned. Her cheeks turned almost as bright as her bottom had been, and his cock pressed against the zipper.

Suddenly he knew that even though he hadn’t caught her taking anything, she was still trouble. With a capital T.