She needed a job, he needed a personal assistant. It seemed like a match made in heaven until he laid out the rules he expected her to follow.
It's release week, and I wanted to share a few things about this book. First of all, I want to thank several people who helped me bring Pam and Rob's story to life. Kate Richards for her editorial guidance, Celeste Jones for her valuable input and Staci Taylor for overseeing the project to completion.
Next, I'd like to add that Lessons in Love, like most of my books, has a serious side to it, and it's one I'm personally familiar with. Everyone deals with stress in their own way. When I was in college, I didn't handle it well at all, so I started to hurt myself in order to find relief. I realize now that causing yourself pain to relieve stress sounds contradictory if not paradoxical, but a mind in deep depression often seeks resolutions that a saner mind would reject. In Lessons in Love, Rob ensures Pam understands that causing herself injury in any way, for any reason, is not an acceptable course of action. If she has a desire to feel pain, he'll provide her with whatever she needs.
"Lessons in Love" centers around a wealthy business owner who believes in helping his executive admins using politically incorrect, H.R.unapproved, and therefore clandestine, Domestic Discipline techniques. Since DD isn't for everyone, he does tend to go through admins rather frequently. However, he also makes sure if they choose not to work for him because of his unorthodox management style, that they are given another suitable position in his company if they wish to stay, or a handsome severance package if they choose to leave.
This excerpt takes place after Pam purposefully cuts herself to ease her tense frustration over Rob's high-handed decision to move all her things to his place without her permission. Though Rob apologizes for not discussing the matter over with Pam earlier, he insists that her cutting is far too serious for him to dismiss without a consequence. He needs her to fully accept that if she needs to feel pain, he'll provide it.
Pam slipped into a short pink nightie with a fringe of lace
at her neck, arms and hips, sat down as instructed, and waited while her
stomach twisted itself into knots. He didn't keep her waiting long, thank
goodness. However, when he returned, he laid three objects at the foot of her
bed then straightened and faced her.
"I debated for several minutes about this. I don't want
you to fear what we'll do together, but cutting yourself is far too serious for
a simple hand spanking."
Pam blinked while a small voice in her head urged her to run
away as fast as she could. Those objects looked like they would hurt. A lot.
Holding out a hand, Rob said, "Come here, and we'll
discuss the pros and cons of each of these implements. Since you are so new to
this, I decided to let you select the one I'll use."
Pam remained seated. "What if I choose none of
them?"
"Not an option I'm offering, tonight."
"But it still remains an alternative, doesn't it? Or
would you force me to submit to this?"
He crossed his arms over his chest. "No. I wouldn't force you. At least not this
time."
Her head snapped up at his statement. "But in the
future, you might?"
"I prefer to think of it as determined persuasion,
rather than force. But I'm sure there'll be times when I think you need a
spanking, and you'll disagree. Refusal won't be a choice then, either."
Frowning, she shook her head. "I'd fight you."
"Yes. I suspect you would."
Though he didn't voice it, his warning was implied. If she
tried to struggle, she'd lose. Pam rubbed her arms, suddenly chilled. He had
conditions. If she didn't agree with them, she could leave his employ. Her
choices were relatively simple. Allow him to take a paddle to her, or end their
relationship. Turning away, she blinked back her traitorous tears.
Pam Weston didn't have many choices as far as employment went. Her prison sentence saw to that. With limited secretarial skills, and an even more limited budget, she never considered herself executive material. So, when she was ordered to report to the CEO of her company as his new personal assistant, she fully expected to be checking out the "Help Wanted" section of the paper before the day was over.
Robert Peterson knew his management style was not HR approved, but he believed in using the stick as well as the carrot. Employing the tenets of domestic discipline, he helped mold his personal assistants into confident women who recognized their own self-worth. Even so, his unorthodox methods were only one of the reasons many considered the position of his assistant to be a revolving door. To Rob's mind, Pamela Weston was perfect for his purposes, though given her past he expected convincing her would be a challenge.
M/F, DD on the executive floor.
If you're 18 or older, you can read the first three chapters at Lessons in Love
Buy the book directly from Blushing Books, Amazon
Thanks for visiting. I hope readers enjoy Pam's journey of discovery. Though it is a fantasy, and takes place in an incredibly short period of time (part of the fantasy), the characters seem very real to me, and I'm in love with Rob who has a perfect combination of sternness combined with understanding, and he likes to cuddle.
Congratulations on the release Kathryn, this is definitely on my list!
ReplyDeleteGreat snippet. Oh gosh, she has some decisions to make doesn't she? As for choosing the implement...eek lol.
Hugs
Roz