The Billionaire's Daughter (9 page)

She
pondered her choices.
 
She could do
nothing and hope he’d call or come by, but patience was not one of her
virtues.
 
She could ask Cecil where
he lived and then drive over there, or search for his phone number in her
father’s office.
 
Neither idea
seemed very practical or desirable.
 

She
padded into the bathroom and flicked the light switch.
 
Laying on top of the laundry hamper
were the jeans and shirt Dante had discarded when she first brought him
in.
 
She picked them up and held
them to her nose, inhaling his unique scent.
 
She saw the red smear of her lipstick where he had wiped his
fingers after rubbing it off her lips. It brought a lump to her throat and she
absently touched her mouth.
 
She
had reapplied the lipstick and now she wished she hadn’t.
 
Sighing, she was about to place them back
on the hamper when she had a flash of inspiration.
 
There might be some kind of ID in one of his pockets.
 
Something with an address or phone
number.

There
was nothing in the back pocket of the jeans so she dove her hand into the
side.
 
It was deep, and she was
fishing around, all her attention focused on her search.

“Looking
for something young lady?”

Kate
jumped.
 
Spinning around she saw
Dante on crutches, standing in the doorway.
 
He did not look pleased.

CHAPTER FIVE

Kate’s
heart leapt in joy, then her face flushed with deep embarrassment.
 
Too stunned to speak she could only
watch as Dante limped towards her.
 
She was sure he would have been striding had he not been injured.
 
Gingerly she withdrew her fingers from
the pocket of his jeans.

“Always
go through other people’s things when they’re not around?” he demanded, yanking
them from her hand.

“Dante,”
she sputtered, “it’s not what you think.
 
Honestly.”

“What
I think is that you learned nothing this morning and it was a complete waste of
my time,” he said coolly, turning away from her.
 

She
watched him limp back into the bedroom frantically trying to think of what she
could say.
 
Heart pounding, she
waited until he was settled on the couch by the fire, his crutches on the
floor, then tentatively approached.

“Dante,”
she began demurely, “I was only looking for some way to contact you.
 
I wasn’t ---”

“Contact
me?
 
Why?” he asked brusquely.
 
“You could simply have waited for me to
return.”

“But
I didn’t think you were coming back,” she said urgently.
 
“I - uh - I really wanted to - needed
to - uh ...”

For
the first time in her life she was lost for words.
 
How could she explain all that she’d gone through in the few
short hours he’d been away, not to mention all that she was feeling now?
 

Dante
was watching her closely and it was evident she was struggling. It was almost
as if she was repentant.
 
Was it
possible?

“You
really wanted to what?” he pressed, intrigued by what she had to say.

“To
apologize,” she stammered.

“I
see,” he said, his voice softening.
 
“And just what is it you wanted to apologize for?”

Kate
felt herself near the brink of tears and felt supremely self conscious standing
in front of him.
 

“Everything,”
she whispered.
 
“Just everything.”

She
swallowed hard and stared at him, a burning lump growing in her throat.

“I
suggest,” he said slowly, “that if you’re sincere and really mean what you say,
you will take up the position you were in before you threw your childish
tantrum.”

Kate
thought back to the morning, which seemed like days ago, and recalled how
amazing it had felt kneeling before him.
 
She moved closer to him and dropped down.

“Hands
behind your back,” he instructed.

She
felt her nipples stiffen under the white silk top and tried to steady her
breathing.
 
Locking her fingers
together at the small of her back she waited anxiously, gazing up at him.

“So
what is it you have to say to me, Kate?”

“I
am very sorry for my - uh - how I got upset this morning when you told me to go
to the corner.
 
And for throwing
the clothes at you.
 
And yelling at
you...
 
just everything.”

She
looked at him with pleading eyes, begging for his understanding and
forgiveness.
 

He
had hoped all afternoon that she would come to her senses, and now that she was
clearly remorseful he said a silent prayer of gratitude.
 
There was light at the end of the
tunnel.

“Do
you remember what I said to you Kate, before you stormed out of here?”

“I
remember everything,” she whispered.
 
“You said I’d made a choice.”

“So
you’ve changed your mind?”

Kate
gulped.
 
How could she have been so
impulsive?

“I
didn’t realize I was making a choice,” she answered.
 
“I just sort of - reacted.”

“What
else did I say,” he pressed.

“That
I’d be very sorry,” she whimpered, “and I am.
 
I really am.”

Dante
fell silent and stared at the beautiful young woman kneeling before him.
 
Though she was spoiled and selfish and
completely self-centered, her eyes surrounded by an array of colored eye
shadow, her lips covered in the ghastly lipstick once again, he was convinced
Kate just needed to be given the discipline and guidance she needed, and then
an opportunity to shine.

The
silence fell heavy and Kate shifted on her knees, terrified he wouldn’t accept
her apology and give her another chance.
 
She knew she had behaved very badly and she wouldn’t blame him if he
decided she was too much trouble.
 
It certainly wouldn’t be the first time her temper had shot her in the
foot.
 

“You
may be sorry now, Kate, but I suspect you’ll be even sorrier in a little
while.”

Kate
shivered, having already experienced how he communicated his displeasure.
 

“This
morning I was going to send you to the corner for 15 minutes to think.
 
We had talked about some of the very
bad things you’ve done and I asked you if you wanted to continue to spend time
with me.
 
Do you remember?”

“Yes,
Dante,” she replied, recalling how she’d become so righteously indignant.

“Yes,
Sir,” Dante reminded her.

“Yes,
Sir,” she replied, embracing the title, and hoping against hope it meant he was
going to forgive her.

“Now
you will do just that, except it will be for 30 minutes.
 
And you will crawl to the corner, not
walk.
 
Once there you’ll kneel up,
lift your skirt at the back and keep it raised.
 
Your head will remained bowed and you’ll stare at the
floor.
 
Once you’ve considered your
behavior in the past, you’ll consider your temper today.
 
You’ll consider what might be a
suitable punishment for such an impulsive, childish tantrum.
 
Any questions?”

Kate
swallowed, nervous but happy.
 
There was a chance.

“No,
Sir.”

“Go
on then.
 
And I don’t want to hear
a peep from you.”

“Yes,
Sir,” she replied, and immediately dropped on all fours and began crawling to
the corner.
 
It was odd and
humiliating but felt strangely appropriate.
 

Dante
watched her cute derriere, tight against the very short blue skirt.
 
It was so short her white panty clad
bottom was clearly visible.
 
Had he
not been impaired he would have followed her across the room smacking her on
her way to the corner.
 
He could
hardly believe she ran around in such scandalous attire.
 

Poor Bill,
he thought, t
o have a daughter so out of control.
 

Once
in position she lifted her skirt and wondered if her bottom bore signs of her
earlier spanking.
 
She stared down
at the floor and began to think back to her years in high school.
 
She’d been the ring leader of all kinds
of mischief.
 
Countless letters had
been sent home and her parents had been summoned on more than one occasion,
stating she’d been difficult and completely self centered, and could not
control her temper.
 
But more often
than not they were out of town.
 
It
was Cecil who would accompany her and report back to her father. Kneeling
there, thinking back, she realized it was all true.
 
That she graduated was a small miracle.

Her
mind wandered to the events that morning.
 
The way she felt when she first laid eyes on Dante as he stumbled in the
door, drenched and injured. The deep, passionate kiss and the bath - the bath
---

 
She wanted to peek over her shoulder and
look at him but resisted the temptation.
 
He was casting a spell on her, the likes of which she’d never
encountered.
 
And it happened in
just one short day.
 
But she knew
the spell had been upon her for a very long time.

She
remembered clearly how she would wander down to the garden where he was working
and purposely be naughty just to get his attention.
 
With the other staff on the estate she could get away with
murder, but not him.
 
She wondered
how he knew about all her escapades as a teenager.
 
He’d been away at college during those years and only there
in the summer. The minutes ticked by.

“Time’s
up.”

His
voice startled her and she jumped.

“Crawl
back to me,” he instructed, sternly.

She
dropped down on her hands and found her knees a little sore.
 
She was surprised she’d not been aware
of them when she’d been kneeling there all that time.
 
Tentatively she scrabbled forward and when she reached him
she stayed as she was, looking up at him expectantly.
 
He smiled down at her.
 
A rush moved through her body, his smile washing over her like warm,
sudsy water.

“So,
young lady, kneel up, hands behind your back.
 
What do you have to say for yourself?”

She
rose up and locked her fingers behind her.
 
It was strange to feel so acquiescent.
 

“You
were right.
 
I did need time.
 
When I think of all the trouble I
caused - I don’t know what to say,” she stammered, a wave of shame moving
through her.
 
“I guess I was a bit
of handful.”

“Hmmmm,”
he mumbled.
 
“And your punishment
for your outrageous display of temper?” he asked.

Kate
swallowed.
 
She recalled vividly
the stinging smart of his hand on her backside, and though she dreaded the
thought of a repeat performance she could already feel the scintillating sparks
heating her sex.

“Perhaps
you should - uh - spank me again,” she whispered.

“Perhaps
I should.
 
Perhaps I should tan
your pretty bottom every morning to make sure you behave,” he agreed.

Kate
felt her eyes widen and her face flush.

“But,”
he continued, “I think perhaps something else might be appropriate.
 
You suffer from lack of patience and
tolerance, don’t you Kate?”

Kate
nodded, and tried to calm her quickening pulse.
 
Unsuccessfully.

“So
along with obedience and respect I need to teach you patience.
 
That is, if you want me to.
 
Do you want me to, Kate?”

Kate
nodded her head fervently, though she couldn’t imagine what he might have in
mind.
 
And whatever it was, she
wasn’t sure she wanted to find out.

“Have
you had anything to eat?” he asked.