Mountain Devil (5 page)

“You there, Mr. Peters?”

“Yes, yes, thanks Randy,” Ed answered. “Keep me informed.”

Ella wasn’t in the kitchen when Ed returned. But the dirty dishes were waiting. Ed hurriedly cleaned up, resolving to find the girl afterward. Living in awkward silence for the next few days just wouldn’t do. Except in six days, Ella would be gone, and he’d be a whole lot richer. The idea of turning the girl over for reward money made his stomach turn, just as it had last night when he’d discovered the truth about Brandon Andrews.

Being a cop for twenty years had left Ed with little room for personal time, especially the time to forge a meaningful relationship. At the age forty-three, he was still a bachelor. While his feelings about Ella were conflicted, he wished to become better acquainted with the young lady.

Ed found her in the guest bedroom, staring out the window at the never-ending forest.

“Ella?”

Startled, she stood up anxiously. “Yes?” She brushed an errant strand of hair behind her ear.

Ed stared back, and longed to reach out and run his hands through that smooth brown hair. “I’m about to take a walk around the lake. Would you like to join me?”

For a moment, Ella’s eyes looked hopeful. But when she said, “No, thank you.”

Ed’s anger flared. “Suit yourself,” he said bitterly, and locked the door behind him.

A solitary jog around the lake might help clear his mind. The idea of accepting $15,000 or more for Ella’s safe return didn’t turn his stomach as much as it had moments ago.

Just as Ed reached the other side of the lake, his cell phone buzzed. It was the alarm company. The guest bedroom window alarm had been tripped. The spoiled brat
.
“Would you like us to inform the police?” the operator asked.

Ed suppressed a chuckle. “No thank you. My brother is staying with me right now,” he lied. “I’m sure it was just an accident. I’ll be home in about fifteen minutes to reset it.”

Ed Peters tucked his cell phone away and sprinted toward home. Ella had treated him coldly this morning, but he never imagined she would attempt escape while the alarm was set. Though the only window in the guest bedroom wasn’t nailed shut, Ella knew well enough not to open it. Ed figured she would be running blindly through the forest right now, trying to find a main road to
somewhere
.

The closer to home Ed got, the angrier he became.

Ella had broken their deal and set his alarm off in the process. If she wanted to get home so badly, he would’ve taken her there himself—and collected the $15,000. But by running off, she meant to cheat him out of the reward money.

It was time Ms. Emerson learned another lesson.

And when he caught the girl, he planned to teach her a very long and painful one—across his knee.

* * *

As Ella ran and ran, one thing became clear: Ed Peters really did live in the middle of nowhere.

Though she dared not run on the gravel road leading away from the house, she ran parallel to it inside the thick forest. Running in her hiking boots wasn’t easy.

What I wouldn’t give for a nice pair of tennis shoes, she thought, ignoring the pain in her ankles.

Mr. Peters’s driveway carried on for miles and miles it seemed, though Ella knew she probably hadn’t yet completed a full mile. She still had her wallet, so she had enough cash for a night or two in a hotel without having to use a credit card.

After that, she would have to face her family—

and Brandon Andrews, the fiancé she secretly despised.

Ella had planned to honor her deal with Ed Peters until simply being around the man had become unbearable. Last night, when he’d visited her in the guestroom, she’d been certain he was about to spank her. But to her delight, not only did he understand, he’d smiled a smile that had melted her heart—only to snap angrily at her before locking the door.

Breakfast this morning had been torture, silent torture.

But then he’d shown up in the guestroom with his demeanor changed yet again. Ella suspected Ed Peters was playing a mind game with her—from kindness to coldness to anger to kindness to silence to kindness again. It was all too much. Not only that, but Ella hated how this man’s moods seemed to affect her. Nothing made her happier than seeing him smile…but why?

Yes, he was handsome and a little mysterious.

OK, very mysterious. But their relationship had been nothing more than a business deal, she reminded herself. A business deal and
nothing more
. The thought of Ed Peters exchanging her for money in a few days made Ella want to scream.

Yes, Ed Peters was heartless. The devil. Worse than Brandon Andrews.

Ella’s sorrowful thoughts were interrupted by a noise; it was a shout. She slowed just long enough to glimpse Mr. Peters closing in on her. They crashed on the forest floor with a
thud
. After a brief struggle, Ella found herself pinned down face first, with her hands restrained—in handcuffs!

Obviously, running parallel to the driveway hadn’t been smart. Shouting obscenities up at Ed Peters probably wasn’t very smart either, but that didn’t keep Ella from vocally cursing his soul to the depths of hell. Oh, she hated the man! The bounty hunter…the devil…the man more heartless than Brandon Andrews.

“Let me go, asshole!” Ella screeched as she writhed beneath Ed on the forest floor. Pine needles and dirt and weeds stuck to her body. Fallen twigs scratched at her legs as she continued to struggle.

“Not a chance,” Ed said into her ear. He smelled of sweat and anger.

“Get the fuck off me!” she screamed, unsuccessfully attempting to kick her legs up.

“We are going back to the house now,” Ed said, his voice cold and furious. “Are you going to walk, or should I throw you over my shoulder?” The thought of being carried over Ed Peters’s shoulder angered Ella to no end. “I’ll walk myself,” she hissed, and stood up with Ed’s help. He made no move to remove the handcuffs. Ella tried to shake the forest floor from her face, but it was no use. With her hands secured, she headed for the house with Ed trailing behind. It was humiliating.

As the house came into sight, Ella’s anger gave way to a deep-rooted fear. She’d attempted escape, set the alarm off, and Ed would accuse her of trying to cheat him out of the reward money.

Her stomach flipped.

Ed Peters would
teach her a lesson
once they got inside. And her bottom was still sore from yesterday’s
lesson
. The thought of being spanked by Ed now terrified her more than it had yesterday. It would hurt terribly. She would surely die of humiliation.

When the door closed, Ella turned to face Ed with her head held high. Hopefully her fear was hidden.

She had no desire to give him the satisfaction of seeing her tremble. In fact, she resolved not to cry at all.

But being brave was easier said than done. Ed Peters loomed over her like an angry giant, his blue eyes smoldering with untamed rage.

“Why did you open the window?” he demanded, grabbing her by both arms, shaking her lightly.

“Why do you think?” she retorted, lifting her chin higher.

His eyes flashed, and his grip tightened. “We had a deal!” The volume of his voice caused Ella to flinch.

“I don’t care,” she said, finally looking away.

“Attempting escape was a very foolish thing to do, Ella,” he said. “The nearest house is five miles away. It’s an hour-long drive to the nearest town. If you trip the alarm while I’m out, I know about it. If you want to go home, FINE. But I’m not about to let you cheat me out of the reward money. A deal is a deal, young lady.”

Of course, it was about the money, she thought, and her heart broke. Worse than Brandon Andrews.

Ella found herself being dragged toward the guestroom. When Ed removed the handcuffs and pushed her inside only to linger in the doorway, she was confused. Didn’t he intend to spank her? To
teach
her a lesson
?

“I need to clean up. I suggest you do the same,” he said. “But know this, Ella Emerson: the spanking you received yesterday won’t hold a candle to the one you’ll be getting soon.”

And with that, he was gone and the door bolted shut. Ella stood frozen, terrified beyond words.

Yesterday’s
lesson
was still fresh in her mind and Ed intended to surpass it in intensity.

When she finally snapped out of her trance, Ella hastily jumped into the shower to wash away the remnants of the forest floor. Pine needles and dirt pooled at the bottom of the tub as she scrubbed herself down. If she wasn’t cleaned up by the time Ed returned, she feared his reaction.

When she visualized being bent over Ed’s lap, an unexpected tremor of arousal pulsed between her thighs. She would be at his mercy, and his hands would be touching a very private area on her body.

Being punished by Ed seemed like an act as intimate as making love, a thought that scared her just as much as the fear of impending pain and humiliation.

What was wrong with her? She didn’t really want to do this.

Did she?

Before Ella could put her conflicted thoughts in order, she heard a noise on the other side of the door as she dried herself off. Ed had returned.
Damn
. Her duffle bag of clothes was on the bed. All she had to cover herself was the towel. Ed was about to see her bare bottom, there was no stopping that. But she didn’t wish for him to see anything else.

“You have thirty seconds, Ella,” Ed called through the door.

Panicking, Ella cursed herself for not bringing her clothes in the bathroom. “Um, Mr. Peters?”

“What is it?” He did not sound amused.

“Could you please pass me the duffle bag that’s on the bed?” she asked.

“Why?”

Her heart pounded. Was he really that dense?

“Because I don’t have any clothes in here.” To her horror, he opened the door enough to toss a tank top inside. A tank top and nothing else!

“Please, Mr. Peters, could I have the whole duffle bag?”

“You won’t need anything else, Ella. I suggest you put the shirt on before I change my mind and take
it
away,” he replied, much to Ella’s continued horror.

With tears in her eyes, she slipped into the tank top and smoothed her hair back. Never in her life had she felt so naked…so exposed.

“Time’s up!” Ed called, and the door flung open.

Ella gasped and held the towel around her waist.

Yes, Ed would get a good view of her bottom again, just as he had during yesterday’s spanking. But the idea of him seeing her sex was terrifying. He’s the enemy…he’s the devil…worse than Brandon Andrews. She called him a number of things in her head as she wrapped the towel tight as he closed in.

“Please…” Ella began, but Ed snatched the towel away. She fumbled for another one to cover the soft mound between her legs, but Ed was quick to deliver a warning slap to her bottom. She pressed back against the wall, attempting to use her hands as cover.

“Ms. Emerson, I can assure you that after this spanking, you won’t be sitting comfortably for quite some time.” He advanced, pulling her back into the bedroom. Ella struggled, but it was fruitless.

The spanking began the moment Ed positioned her over his knee on the bed. And true to Ed Peters’s word, it truly didn’t hold a candle to her first experience. The slaps rained down and down, swiftly across Ella’s bottom and thighs without mercy. It wasn’t long before her backside was flaming though Ed kept on smacking.

Ella concentrated on not crying. She concentrated on how much she hated Ed Peters. She concentrated on anything and everything she could think of to escape the pain. But each time her mind wandered a firm slap would bring reality crashing back full force.

When Ed paused, Ella hoped the end was finally in sight. But to her dismay, he boldly rubbed her bottom and leaned down to whisper, “The next time you attempt escape, Ms. Emerson, I’ll be taking my belt to you.”

She shuddered and gasped as his hand crashed down again, this time a fury of slaps landing across the bottom curve of her backside. It was the worst pain yet, and it managed to bring Ella to tears. She hated Ed Peters all the more for finally breaking her resolve not to cry. Damn him, damn him, damn him.

He paused again, lightly tracing her bottom with his punishing hand, far too near her intimate folds. “I should’ve known a rich, spoiled brat like you would only try to cheat me. You’ll be spending the rest of the week locked in this room with the window nailed shut, Ms. Emerson.”

Her heart sank low, lower than it ever had before.

Why did Ed Peters’s words hurt so deeply? They hurt worse than any childhood taunt, worse than stupid girlie gossip, worse than Jon Walters breaking her heart in the sixth grade, and worse than any of Brandon Andrews’s sly insults. Her cries turned to full sobs, and her shoulders heaved under the weight of despair.

“Please…please, Mr. Peters…I’m sorry I tried to run away. I’m sorry I tried to cheat you.” It was the truth. And if her
lesson
wasn’t over yet, Ella resolved to accept it without struggle. Ed Peters wasn’t a ray of sunshine, but he seemed an honorable man—and she’d broken their deal. Maybe…maybe she deserved this spanking.

“Are you really sorry?” he asked. “Or do you just want
this
,” he slapped her bottom again, “to end?”

“I tried to cheat you, and I’m sorry,” Ella replied.

“If you think I deserve a longer spanking, I’ll accept it.” She couldn’t believe the words falling from her lips—nor could she believe the truth of them.

Yesterday, she’d been outraged when Mr. Peters had spanked her. But now her heart was changing—

changing and breaking and changing some more.

Hating someone she didn’t
really
hate was impossible.

“Tell me
why
you tried to escape? The truth.” To her relief, his hand rested on the curve of her reddened, stinging bottom, still too near those intimate folds.

“I…I…I was angry with you. Last night when you came to my room, you were so nice to me…until the very end when you slammed the door and locked me in. And this morning you seemed so cold and distant…I couldn’t stand it…I…” Ella couldn’t continue, so she cried quietly as Ed gently rubbed her bottom. It felt nice, but it was completely terrifying to be touched so tenderly by the man. Try as she might, there was no denying the growing feelings she harbored for Ed Peters—the bounty hunter who would exchange her for money in six days.