The Art of Discipline: Running Toward Trouble (The Mockingbird Chronicles) (2 page)

“How many more candy bars do you have hidden?”

“A few,” Dani reluctantly admitted.

“I see,” Emma frowned. “We talked about this in Chicago, but I can see we need to talk about this more later. For now though, I want you to sit here and think not only about the attitude, but why you are hiding candy as well, understand?”

Dani’s eyes were finally able to break free as she sought out the floor. “I understand.”

“Good,” Emma replied, before giving Dani a gentle kiss on the cheek. “I’ll be back soon. I expect to find you right here when I do.”

“Yes, Emma,” Dani replied with a frown. In a way she was mortified—left in timeout like a child, but in another way she was just confused. She knew that Emma didn’t like the fact that she’d had so much junk food in her condo back in Chicago. Emma had been watching her here in Fort Strymon, but that had only make Dani nervous. She didn’t mean to hide things, it just sort of happened. They’d been working on it, and although she was supposed to be honest with Emma, that was easier said than done.

Realizing that Emma hadn’t given her much choice, Dani decided that she didn’t want to think about it. Instead, she sat back and watched the people around her. After a while she flipped open her cell and sighed. She’d been sitting for fifteen minutes and Emma had yet to return. She craned her neck, trying to get a peek at how far Emma had progressed in line, when she suddenly caught something peculiar out of the corner of her eye. Squinting, she could just make out a man standing behind a display of pillows. He seemed to be taking pictures with his phone. As the man turned toward her, however, her blood went cold as she recognized him. It was none other than Emma’s father, Patrick Sampson.

She stood and started in his direction, but he saw her coming and disappeared down an aisle. She followed, dodging through the crowded store until she managed to corner him near the baking goods section.

“What the hell are you doing here, Sampson? And why are you taking pictures of Emma?” Dani demanded once she knew she had him.

“Can’t a father have a few pictures of his little girl?” he smirked. “Besides, she’s not the only one I have pictures of. Seems you and my daughter are quite an item, Ms. Ryan. Who would have thought?”

“What do you want?” Dani seethed, curling her fists into balls.

“I’m sure Emma told you. I just need my 50k, and I’ll be out of your hair,” Sampson replied as he managed to slip around the other side of a display of placemats.

Dodging around to the opposite side, Dani managed to stop him once again. “Give me the phone,” she demanded.

“Move,” he returned. “I don’t want to hurt you… yet.”

Blue eyes flashed. “What is that supposed to mean?”

Sampson didn’t answer, but lunged, managing to push Dani to the side long enough to scoot by her. He was almost successful, but Dani reacted out of instinct and twisted. She grabbed his arm and forced him to fall into a rack of pots. The resounding crash was deafening, as was the string of curses that Sampson let out.

Undaunted by the noise, Dani’s eyes traveled to the floor; somehow in the fall, Sampson had dropped his phone. She immediately made a grab for it. Sampson also moved toward it, but was hindered by the pile of pots and lids. Dani got to it first and held up her prize with a victorious smirk.

“Give me that!” he demanded, reaching for the phone, his green eyes flashing dangerously.

“You want it? Go and get it,” Dani announced before tossing the phone across the aisle and into a large garden fountain. “Aw…too bad phones aren’t waterproof,” she sneered as it sank into the base of the fountain.

“You bitch,” he shrieked as he grabbed for her.

Dani ducked, but pulled back and managed to make a solid connection of her fist with his nose.

His hands immediately went to his face. “You… you broke my nose,” he cried.

“You need to crawl back under the rock you came from, Sampson,” she hissed, advancing on him. “You need to leave Emma alone. There will be no money, and if I ever see your sorry ass again, I’ll make sure you rot in prison for the rest of your life.”

“Danielle!”

Dani suddenly froze at the sound of her name. She turned to flashing green eyes; Emma was just one of a large group of people who had gathered around them. Dani stammered for a moment, not sure what to say, but suddenly was pushed aside as Sampson made a break for it.

As she made a move to follow, Emma caught her arm. “Danielle, stop!” she ordered. “He’s already gone.”

Dani glared at her, but obeyed, as the store manager descended on the crowd and tried to put some order to the chaos.

* * *

Dani shifted in the bedroom corner as Emma continued to pace behind her. “I can’t believe you didn’t just call the police, Danielle. He could have been caught and maybe be in jail by now.”

“He would have been gone before they even got there. I had to do something.”

Emma stopped pacing and turned Dani to face her. “You’re right, you were supposed to keep your butt on that bench until I came out. That’s the only thing you had to do.” Emma began pacing again. “You should have called the police, not tried to play hero.”

“I couldn’t let him bother you again,” Dani began. “He was taking pictures of you, for Christ’s sake. I wanted him to know that Uncle Sean may not be here, but I am; it’s my job to protect you, Emma.”

Emma stopped pacing once more before grabbing Dani by the arm and giving her a swat to her backside hard enough to make her own hand sting. “And who gave you that job, Danielle Ryan? Just who decided that you needed to step up and do something so… so…”

Dani stepped forward and took Emma into her arms, slowly sliding them both down the wall as Emma began to sob. Sitting on the floor, Dani pulled the smaller woman into her lap and began to rock her as Emma broke down.

“Damn it, Dani, you don’t know… you just don’t know. He’s dangerous… he’s, he’s…”

“He’s what? Tell me, Emma, let me help you.”

“Just promise me. Promise me you won’t ever confront him again,” Emma continued to sob.

“Alright, I promise. Next time I’ll call the police, I promise.” Those words seemed to help Emma calm and Dani continued to rock her and kiss the top of her head. “It’ll be okay, Emma, I promise,” she whispered as Emma sniffled.

Looking up at Dani, Emma once again placed her head under Dani’s chin, snuggling into the safety of her arms. “When I saw you standing over him like that…” Emma shuddered. “All I could think about was what if he pulls out a gun or a knife. I can’t lose you, Dani.”

Dani hugged Emma tighter. “I’m not going anywhere, Emma. I love you and I promise that I’m not going anywhere.”

* * *

Dani was unsuccessfully trying to rub the sting out of her backside. It had been a long day, and Emma had reached her breaking point. The confrontation with Sampson had really upset her, and then discovering that Dani had been hoarding junk food was the just proverbial icing on the cake. When Dani decided to add the attitude to the mix, Emma declared that she had enough, and had made her point clear with a not-so-gentle reminder from the hairbrush.

The spanking had been painful, but not really surprising. Dani had given herself over to Emma months ago and had accepted Emma’s dominance in their relationship. Emma was in control, and Dani accepted and even welcomed the stability that Emma offered her with it. Emma provided rules that were easy for Dani to live by. There were both consequences and rewards, and Dani embraced it all.

Before they met, Dani had no order in her life. She lived day to day, eating nothing but junk food and guzzling gallons of diet soda. She knew that wasn’t good for her. Nor were the endless hours she kept as owner of Ryan’s Events, her party planning business.

She used both the food and the business to hide. She used them as a shield to keep the world from knowing the real Danielle Ryan. The business was enormously successful, as she was the go-to gal for any of the rich, famous, and sometimes infamous of Chicago, but it was all for show. Emma was the first one in a long time to see through all that and discover the real Dani. Because of that, Dani knew she needed Emma like she needed air, but she also had her moments where she wished she could go back to hiding.

One of those moments was happening now, as Dani was making a pathetic attempt to get even for her smarting backside by glaring at Emma as she went through all her drawers, bags, boxes, and other personal effects. So far, Emma had managed to find every secret stash of candy, chips, and junk food that she’d smuggled into the apartment.

Feeling a weight on the bed, Dani slowly raised herself up and leaned back on her elbows. “I can’t believe you went through all my stuff.”

Emma sat on the bed and glared at her. “I can’t believe you had candy and chips stuffed inside your suit pockets and briefcase. Not to mention the things I found in those otherwise empty shoeboxes.”

“Those are emergency provisions,” Dani protested.

“These are contraband, Danielle. I thought we agreed that you wouldn’t hide things from me. It doesn’t bother me that you have them, just that you’re not being honest. That’s wrong, and they have earned you yet another consequence for your actions.”

“You’re really getting on my nerves, Emma,” Dani huffed.

Emma came forward, stopping so that she was nose to nose with Dani. “And you, young lady, are about to see what happens when my nerves are stepped on.”

Dani rolled her eyes. “Like I’m really scared.”

Emma narrowed her eyes. “Perhaps your backside isn’t sore enough?”

Dani snorted. “Really, you’re going to spank me again?”

Emma studied her for a moment, before suddenly pulling back. “You know, no, I’m not. Not tonight, and not for this.”

“Tomorrow?” Dani asked, her voice wavering slightly.

Emma sighed before looking at the clock, and then grabbed the bags containing Dani’s hidden food. “Come on, Dani, I’m hungry and I bet you are too. We can finish our conversation after dinner.”

Feeling uneasy at Emma’s sudden change in mood, Dani slowly stood and followed her to the kitchen. Sitting down gingerly, she waited while Emma pulled items out of the refrigerator, and then shifted nervously as Emma placed a glass of water in front of her along with a small plate. “What is this?”

“Your dinner,” Emma responded, taking a bite of her pasta salad.

“But it’s a candy bar and a bag of chips.”

“It is. I figured if you felt the need to hide so many of them, then you really must need them,
bon appetit
.”

Dani looked at her plate again and then over to Emma’s. “What are you having?”

“Leftover chicken and pasta salad,” Emma answered, holding back her smile.

“Oh,” Dani still looked confused, but the candy bar on the plate was calling her name. She opened it and took a large bite, savoring the chocolatey goodness inside. Her second bite was every bit as tasty, but her eyes wandered to Emma’s plate. That pasta salad looked good too. Emma had even put bits of pepperoni in it for her. After the third bite, she put the remaining bar back onto her plate.

Maybe the chips would be better; after all, they were extra cheddar, her favorite. Pulling the bag open, she popped one in her mouth. It tasted dull, and the nacho party her tongue was supposed to be having just wasn’t happening tonight.

“What’s the matter?” Emma asked.

“Ah, nothing, guess I’m just not as hungry as I thought. Can I be excused?”

“Sure, honey. I think it’s time you get ready for bed anyway. I’ll be in shortly.”

“Do you want me to wait in the corner?”

Emma shook her head. “No, I already told you I’m not going to spank you tonight, but I do want to talk to you. So, go ahead and get ready.”

* * *

Dani’s face fell and Emma almost felt sorry for her as Dani dragged herself down the hallway. She had never seen Dani so disappointed at not being sent to the corner. Waiting until she knew Dani had reached the bedroom, she grabbed her keys and quietly slipped out the front door. She had something specific in mind for Dani, but needed to go down to the store, their store, to get it.

It seemed like a lifetime ago, but it had only been a few months since Dani had entered her life. Sean, her boss, her friend, and her honorary ‘uncle’ had passed from a sudden heart attack. He’d left his bookstore to both Emma and his niece, Dani, asking Emma to watch over them both.

Dani had been difficult from the beginning. Emma immediately saw her as a spoiled, rich brat who thought she was better than everyone else, but she had quickly learned that Dani’s behavior was a façade. Dani only used that image to keep people at bay. Once Emma saw her for the frightened little girl that was really deep inside, however, everything changed. Emma had not only become Dani’s friend, but her lover, and at times her disciplinarian. That frightened little girl needed guidance, and Emma loved her enough to make sure she received it.

This was one of those times. Dani was pushing her. She was looking for a reaction, and so far Emma had disappointed her. Emma had made her feel vulnerable, taking away her hidden comforts, but they both knew that it wasn’t healthy for Dani to return to her old habits. That was about to change. There were ways to get Dani to reflect on her behavior other than a trip over Emma’s knee, and it was about time Emma expanded Dani’s understanding.

Making her way down the back stairs, Emma was again thankful that she and Dani lived in one of the two upstairs apartments. It was convenient, especially at times like this where Emma needed something special. Making her selection quickly, she grabbed a paper sack from under the counter to hide her gift before making her way back up to the apartment.

As Emma reentered the apartment, she dropped her keys and headed straight to the bedroom, only to find Dani in pajamas curled up on the bed. She was facing away from her, and Emma couldn’t help but smile at how cute she was in her pink cartoon-kitty pajamas.

The outfit brought back memories. Emma had purchased it for Dani to use when she was being punished and it was childish on purpose, but sometimes Dani wore it voluntarily. This was one of those times, when Dani was feeling like a little girl and used the pajamas as an indication of that.