Obediently Ever After Read online

  Although he would disagree with the sentiment, he did appreciate that she’d made him stash the box of his old high school memorabilia in the attic. He dug out his senior yearbook and headed to the kitchen to flip through it while drinking his coffee.

  He found Angel three pages in, a sweet, wide-eyed girl with thick curls and a bright smile, sitting for the drama club photo. She’d been in drama club.

  A smile touched his lips as he continued to look through until he reached the freshmen class photos. There she was.

  Angelica Giovanni. She had been beautiful even then. Looking years older than her age with her hair perfectly placed, clear skin, and vibrant life in her eyes.

  Giovanni. Why did that sound so familiar? It wasn’t an unpopular name, but her name, Angelica Giovanni. He’d heard it before.

  “Damien!”

  He sighed. Jaelynn and Hunter.

  “In the kitchen,” he called out. Jaelynn shouldn’t be yelling through the damn house.

  “It doesn’t matter. You know he doesn’t like it when you just barge in like that.” Hunter’s deep voice chastised his wife.

  “He only says that to get me in trouble.” Jaelynn appeared in the doorway as she spoke. “Oh, there you are.” She had the decency to blush when she met his gaze.

  “I don’t need to help you get in trouble.” He flicked his attention to Hunter. “Is something wrong with the phone?”

  Hunter laughed and gave Jaelynn a soft shove toward the table. “Nope. Works fine as far as I can tell. Jae needed the washroom, and your place was closer than home.”

  Jaelynn flushed then hurried off down the hall toward the restroom.

  “Too many iced teas this morning.” Hunter shrugged.

  “Or she just wanted to barge in here to bug me.” Damien sat back in his chair and gripped his mug. “I swear since I moved out of the estate, she finds all sorts of reasons to drop in.”

  Hunter laughed again, making his way to the table. “I think she misses arguing with you.”

  Damien sighed. He missed it, too. As much as the woman got under his skin with all her mischief, he found her as sweet and loving as Hunter had when he took her in.

  “What are you doing anyway? Lounging in your kitchen on a Sunday morning? What’s this you’re looking at?” Hunter pulled the book toward him. A dark shadow fell over his features as he traced Angelica’s photo with a finger. “Why are you looking at photographs of my cousin?”

  Damien’s chest tightened. “Your cousin?”

  “Yes. Angelica is my aunt’s daughter—making her my cousin. Why are you looking at her photo?”

  Damien flipped to the cover of the book. “It’s my high school yearbook. Apparently, she was a few grades below me.” What the hell was his cousin doing working at the Annex?

  “And you’re just walking down memory lane?” Hunter asked with as much suspicion as Damien would have had in his shoes.

  Damien wouldn’t lie, not to Hunter. Other than being his closest friend, Hunter was also his boss.

  “I met her last night. She mentioned we had gone to school together, but I couldn’t remember her, so I dragged out my yearbook.”

  Hunter’s hand flattened over the photo. “Go on.”

  Damien shook his head. “You aren’t going to like it. In fact, you’re going to lose your shit.” Not that he wasn’t close to losing his.

  “Where did you meet her?”

  “The Annex.” Damien pushed away from the table, making his way to the coffee maker. He would rather have a finger of whiskey, but caffeine would have to do.

  “What the fuck was she doing there?” Hunter rounded on him.

  “You’d have to ask her.” Damien forced a casual tone to his voice. “But I have a question for you. Her husband, how’d he pass away?”

  Hunter’s brow wrinkled. “Husband? Angelica has never been married.”

  Damien gripped his cup tighter. She’d lied.

  Hunter’s expression hardened. “Did you buy her last night?”

  Damien chose to avoid the question. “So, no husband.”

  “I want an answer,” Hunter demanded.

  Damien glanced at the clock on the coffee machine. “I think we can both get our answers in about half an hour. She’ll be here by then.”

  “What’s wrong?” Jaelyn stopped in the doorway and stared at them.

  “I’m not sure yet,” Hunter said, turning a softer look on his wife. “I know I promised to take you to the museum this morning, but we need to stay here for a little while. I need to straighten some things out.”

  Jae turned her gaze to Damien and smiled. “Of course. That’s fine. Is he in trouble this time?”

  Hunter pointed at a chair. “No. Don’t start acting up, or we’ll just go home after we finish up here.”

  “I’m going to change,” Damien announced, deciding he needed to change his slacks to accommodate the thick leather belt he planned to use on Angel’s ass. Lying, and definitely hiding something—the belt for sure.

  Damien opened the front door after Angel’s soft knock announced her arrival. Just as the night before, her appearance took him back. She’d left her hair down. Soft, thick curls framed her face. Some makeup—a touch of mascara and lip gloss, but nothing like the night before. And her dress. She wore an emerald-green dress with half-length sleeves folded upward and secured with large black buttons that matched those trailing down the front.

  “Hi.” She smiled up at him, clutching her purse in front of her.

  “Angel.” He nodded and gestured for her to enter. He wasn’t happy, and he wouldn’t be playing any games to suggest otherwise. He wouldn’t trap her into confessing, either.

  “Angelica.” Hunter stepped into the hallway before Damien had a chance to ask her to close the door, much less speak to her.

  Angel’s expression blanked. The color drained from her face, and she took a small step back, bumping into Damien.

  “Hunter,” she whispered. “What are you doing here?”

  Damien slipped his hand into hers. “I work with your cousin. Come into the living room. I have questions for you. As does he, of course.” Damien tugged her along and brought her to a chair he’d put out for her. She gave little resistance, not pulling back on his hold, but her hand tensed beneath his touch.

  Jaelynn rose from the couch and went to greet Angelica, but Damien shook his head and pointed for her to sit back down.

  “If you’re going to stay in here, you stay quiet,” he said to her directly.

  “Damien, Angelica is a—”

  “Jae. If you can’t be still, you should go into the kitchen.” Hunter backed Damien up. Jaelyn pinched her lips together and glared but sat back down with her arms over her chest.

  “I don’t understand. What’s going on?” Angelica asked, sinking into the chair and pressing her hands into her knees.

  “What were you doing at the Annex last night?” Hunter demanded. “Does Ash know who you really are?”

  Damien regretted not having thrown Hunter out of the house before she arrived. He didn’t intend to bombard her with questions, or frighten her into self-incrimination.

  “No! Of course not. He wouldn’t have let me…” She blushed. “Why did you have to be here?” she demanded, bolting out of the chair and pacing the room.

  “What’s going on, Angel? Tell me everything. I want all the details right now. And the truth this time.” Damien captured her shoulders and stared into her eyes. “You’re in enough trouble already. Don’t make it worse with more lies.”

  Hunter, to Damien’s pleasure, remained silent.

  “Oh fuck!” Angel shoved his hands away and moved to put the couch between her and the two men glaring at her.

  Damien didn’t comment on her language, but he made a note to do so later.

  “I got into some trouble, and everything has completely rolled out of control. I was out with some friends. We went to a few bars, and I-I over indulged.” She shook her hand. “I shouldn’t ha
ve driven, but I did, and I got into an accident.”

  Damien stiffened at the image in his mind. She could have been hurt, or worse—killed.

  “Since you’re standing here, I’ll assume you were unharmed. Continue,” Damien said in a low, controlled manner. Flying off the handle wouldn’t serve any purpose. He felt Hunter move his glare from his cousin to him, but at least he stayed quiet.

  “I hit another car. No one was in it,” she rushed to say. “But the owner. He was coming out of the club himself, and he saw me.”

  “So, you needed money to fix the car? Why didn’t you just ask your father, or come to me?” Hunter pressed.

  She shook her head. “If it had been as easy as money, I could have asked my father, you’re right. But the owner, he didn’t just want the repair money.”

  Damien’s fists clenched. “Whose car did you hit?” A heavy sensation sank into the pit of his stomach.

  The muscles in her delicate throat worked as she swallowed. “Michael Bertucci.” She took a step toward Hunter with her hands raised. “He said he’d have me arrested for drunk driving. Said he’d have every reporter outside the jail when my father bailed me out.”

  “He’d humiliate you to send a message to Uncle Elliot.” Hunter’s voice lowered.

  She nodded.

  “That doesn’t explain the Annex,” Jaelyn said softly from the couch.

  “That was his idea. Having me there could be used as leverage or something with Ash. I don’t know what he meant by that.”

  “It means he wants a cut of his business. And if Bertucci finds you working there, and he points it out to Ash, he’ll try to blackmail Ash into letting him have shares in the Annex,” Hunter explained.

  “In order to keep Uncle Elliot from acting against Ashland for having his niece play whore in his house.” Angel’s shoulders slumped.

  “Right. Except it wouldn’t work. Ash would never get involved with any of the old families again,” Hunter said. “He’s going to use you to embarrass the family. Ash will stay out of it, and all that will happen is Uncle Elliot will need to retaliate.”

  “What do I do now?” Angel asked softly, finally moving her gaze to Damien.

  “Right now, you’re going to go upstairs, turn right, and go into the second bedroom on the left and wait for me. You are not to come back down or do anything else. You sit there and wait,” Damien ordered without blinking.

  “Damien—” Jaelynn was cut off by Hunter’s glare.

  “I’m sorry I lied to you.” She blinked back tears, but Damien wouldn’t be swayed.

  “Upstairs. Now, Angelica.” He said her full name, knowing that it would get through to her how much trouble she was actually in.

  She nodded, and after only a short glance at Hunter, she hurried out of the room and up the stairs.

  “What are you doing exactly with my cousin?” Hunter asked.

  Damien looked at Jaelyn on the couch then at Hunter. “Taking care of her.”

  Hunter’s jaw clenched, and he remained silent for a long moment before he finally gave a staunch nod.

  “I’m going to head over to Ash’s and tell him what’s going on. She’s not going back there.” Hunter pointed a finger at Damien.

  “Obviously.” Damien gave a hard stare back at his boss. Like he’d ever let her set foot back at the Annex anyway. “She’s going to stay here until we get everything resolved.”

  Jaelynn rose from the couch and placed a hand on Hunter’s arm. “Damien will protect her. She’s safe here.” Jaelynn’s voice was soft.

  “I’ll meet with my uncle this afternoon. She could have started a fucking war with all this.” Hunter’s anger was obvious, and Damien felt it brewing inside him as well.

  “I’m going to deal with her.” Damien nodded.

  “She’s my cousin. I should—”

  “You aren’t taking her out of here.” Damien widened his stance.

  Hunter gave another curt nod. “No. She’s safer here. I’ll call you tonight once I know more.”

  “If your uncle is coming over, I’m staying here,” Jaelyn said firmly.

  Damien touched his belt when he looked at her. “You’re free to share everything Angelica is going to have this afternoon.”

  “You’re not going to see him. You’re going to spend the afternoon upstairs in our bedroom napping.” Hunter snagged her hand and tugged her to his side.

  “I’ll wait for your call, then.” Damien walked them to the front door.

  “I don’t want a nap,” Jaelyn whined as they walked down the front steps of the townhouse.

  “Little girls who stay up past their bedtimes take long naps,” Hunter said quietly, squeezing his wife’s ass, and led her to their car.

  Damien shut the door with a shake of his head.

  Looking up the stairs, he took a deep breath. So many transgressions. He hooked his thumb into his belt and climbed the stairs.

  Chapter 5

  If his anger hadn’t already subsided enough to deliver the harsh spanking coming her way, the look of dread in Angel’s eyes as she approached would have wiped it all away.

  He reminded himself she’d never been properly punished before. The spanking he’d given her at the Annex had been play, some fun for the night, but this was going to be hard, and painful. For both of them.

  Once she was close enough, he grabbed her hand and helped her get settled over his knee. Her torso rested on the bed while her feet were still pressed to the floor. She’d be kicking soon enough. He would take care of that when it happened, but he wouldn’t scare her more than she already was.

  Damien grabbed the hem of her dress and hauled it up to her hips, snagging her slip with it, and tucked both into the belt of the garment. She wore white satin panties beneath a pair of stockings.

  “Punishments always happen on the bare,” he announced and hooked his fingers into the elastic of the stockings and panties, dragging them down to her knees.

  Her cheeks clenched together in anticipation. He’d stop her from doing that later, too, but for now he let her have the small hope she’d be able to stave off the discomfort.

  Placing his hand on the curve of her ass, he could feel the satin texture of her skin.

  “Tell me, Angel, why are you here, lying over my lap, waiting for a spanking?” He knew she could probably feel his erection against her hip, but it didn’t matter. They both were aroused by the idea of the punishment, but neither of them would be rewarded with any release. It’s what made the punishment so much worse for her, and not at all pleasant for him.

  She sniffled and let out a soft moan. Verbalizing the crime added to her humiliation. She’d gone through a lot already but still had quite a way to go.

  “I was extremely reckless driving after I had been drinking. I lied to you, on my application for the Annex, and to my family. I tried to get out of a mess myself and ended up helping my uncle’s enemy.”

  Not quite his enemy, but definitely his adversary. Damien didn’t see the need to correct her about it though. He had something else to discuss.

  “Getting out of trouble on your own isn’t a problem, Angel. You’re a grown, capable woman. It’s the way you went about it that has you perched over my knee right now.” He ran his hand over her ass, warming up the flesh for the beginning of her spanking.

  “Will it help if I say I’m sorry?” she asked, twisting and looking at him over her shoulder. Hope filled her expression.

  “I would hope you regret your actions already, but no, that doesn’t change the consequence,” he said.

  She let out a disheartened sigh and turned back around, pressing her head into the mattress.

  He lifted his hand and brought it down hard on her thigh. She cried out and immediately tried to buck up, but he wrapped his left arm around her waist and focused on the beautiful round ass before him.

  “Oh! Ow! Wait!” Her hand flailed back, but he was too skilled to allow such a trick. He grabbed her wrist and held onto it while he co
ntinued to spank her. Methodically, he spread the swats around her entire ass, making his way down her thighs and back up again, varying the intensity.

  “Oh my god! No! Ow!” She wiggled, but he held her to him.

  “Take your spanking, Angelica,” he demanded while increasing the force of his hand. Her legs kicked up next, bending at the knee. Her shoe flew off, nearly hitting him before it fell onto her back and rolled to the floor.

  He stopped spanking her, removed the second shoe, and dropped it as well. Trapping her legs with his own, he readjusted his grip around her waist.

  “Naughty girls get spankings, don’t they, Angelica?” he asked, rubbing her already-warm ass with his hands.

  “Yes.” She nodded, sounding miserable.

  “Do you think next time you’ll call a cab if you’ve had too much to drink?” he asked the back of her head. Her curls bobbed with another nod. “Answer me,” he said with a hard smack to her left thigh.

  “Yes!” she called out.

  “Good. Then we can move on to the lying portion of your punishment.” He didn’t delay another second and went about peppering her ass with harder smacks, concentrating on the delicate spot where her thighs met her ass.

  “No! No!” She threw herself forward, and to the side, but he held her to him.

  “The more you resist, the longer the spanking takes,” he admonished her and delivered three hard swats to the same spot.

  She gasped for air and moaned. “No. Please. I already said I’m sorry.”

  “And I already told you that doesn’t change the consequence.” He continued to sprinkle her ass until the slight pink darkened to a nice crimson.

  She stopped fighting against him, not that it was working anyway. He could hear soft sobs escaping her, feel tension start to give way in her.

  “You’ll take ten with my belt, and then you’ll spend ten minutes in the corner,” he announced after landing a hard smack to her thigh.

  “The belt?” she cried. “I don’t think—”

  “That’s the problem, Angel, you didn’t think. Hopefully, after you finish with the belt, you’ll remember to think before acting. Think before lying. Think how your actions have consequences. Because if you ever lie to me again, or I find out you lied to anyone else, you’ll be getting a hell of a lot more than ten with my belt. Am I understood?”