It's Sunday's Six of the Best! Yay! And I'm sharing an excerpt from my new spanking novella in the Corbin's Bend series, Past Interference, the sequel to A Simple Misunderstanding. Past Interference was originally part of the Corbin's Bend Valentine's Day collection "Love in the Rockies," but is now being sold separately.
What she needed was the opposite of what she wanted.
In this scene, which occurs near the beginning of Chapter Three, Eleanor Benson (Elly) is six days away from getting married again, and her doubts are eating her alive. After suffering through a bout of stress-related migraines, she's finally gotten up enough courage to tell her husband-to-be that she's not sure she wants to get married. Jerry knows Elly is nervous, but believed he'd managed to convince her he is nothing at all like her first husband, Arthur, who abused her. Unfortunately, when he realizes Elly still thinks he will turn into an abusive monster once they're married, despite all his gentle reassurances, his hurt pride causes him to snap at her in anger before he returns to his vet clinic next door. Elly realizes she's made a serious mistake, but has no idea how to fix things between them, so she decides to go for a walk, hoping the crisp, winter air will help clear her head. As she tromps through the Colorado snow, her tiny toy poodle suddenly goes on guard. Uncertain if her situation constituted an emergency, Elly reaches for her phone and instinctively presses 1 for Jerry's office and puts the phone back in her pocket so the mouthpiece is exposed. Jerry and his receptionist are listening as Elly confronts her ex-husband, who isn't pleased she's planning to marry again, but tells her he wants to explain. Except Arthur's explanation sounds more like rationalization, and Elly is far from mollified by his attempt.
“I disagree.
Though I will accept most of the blame for the subsequent events —” He conceded as though he was doing her a favor
“Really? You
will? How magnanimous of you. The high and mighty Arthur Benson finally admits
he made a mistake. Quick, let me mark my calendar.” The distant whine of a
rotary motor caught her attention. Helicopters didn’t normally circle out here,
since there was no place for them to land.
“You always did
possess a sharp tongue, Eleanor, and I find it just as unattractive now as I
did when we were married.” He reached out to grip her chin, but she drew back
and stomped the heel of her boot on his toe. She doubted her assault did much
damage since he wore hiking boots, but his small grunt of pain gave her a
measure of satisfaction.
“Bitch,” he
murmured softly. “However, I did not risk jail by coming here today to make
threats or argue with you. What’s done is done. I actually came to offer you my
apologies. I should never have reacted the way I did, no matter how much you
and that wretched mutt of yours provoked me. And combined, you two can be most
provoking indeed, wife.”
“Ex-wife,” she
corrected, but he had a point. She’d managed to provoke Jerry, too, and he was
a saint in comparison to her ex-husband.”
“If you insist —
ex-wife. I never suspected you were pregnant, Eleanor. I would have found
another way to deal with ‘the matter’ if I’d known.” The whining sound grew
closer. Definitely a helicopter. A search party? The notion gave her
confidence.
“Neither my
unborn child nor I was a ‘matter’ to be dealt with, Arthur. I’m a human being
who deserves respect and love, not abuse. Your ‘corrections,’ as you called
them, were merely cruel devices meant to intimidate me into submission. You
didn’t want to help me; you wanted to hurt me. You enjoyed hearing me cry and
beg for mercy. Mercy which you never intended to show.”
M/F Domestic Discipline in Colorado.
Valentine's Day in Corbin's Bend. As Elly Benson readies herself for her second wedding, the doubts and misgivings of any new bride-to-be are exacerbated by the abuse she suffered during her first marriage.
Though she's lived with Jerry Douglas for four months now, and been subject to his discipline more than once, Elly's first husband had been kind and careful with her, too, until the day she vowed to love, honor and obey him. The lessons she's learned from the past make her doubt she can ever find happiness in the future.
Past Interference is available at the following locations.
I also have a page on my web site where I am offering a sample of the first two chapters. If you're interested, visit either the Spanking Romance or Past Interference page in the Over 18 section of my website.
Thanks for visiting. I hope you enjoyed this brief excerpt and want more. Please click the link below to continue your hop Sunday's Six of the Best. Wishing you a wonderful journey.
Great snippet Kathryn, love how Elly is standing up to Arthur.
ReplyDeleteHugs
Roz