I watch as she winces slightly when she sits, and I stifle a smirk. Good. The little brat ought to feel a good sting when she sits down after the small, but firm, paddling I gave her. I’d taken it easy on her. Zack would’ve lectured the hell out of me for not reporting the vandalism. It had been an accident, sort of, but the deliberate disobedience hadn’t been. Still, after the last smack landed and I no longer saw red, I wondered how she’d react until she mouthed off.

Then, I was glad I’d spanked her ass.

I slide into the driver’s seat. Jesus, the sight of her belly-down over that bench, her gorgeous curves on display… if she were mine, I’d have done more than spank her fully-clothed ass.

“Where am I taking you to?”

“Hawthorne and Maine.” With a nod, I punch the address into the GPS, and pull onto the busy street.

“How’s your son?” I ask. I hope mentioning her son will maybe bring a little peace between us. I don’t expect her to look out the window and refuse to answer. I wonder if she heard me.

“Diana?”

“He’s… okay,” she whispers, her voice catching. “Fire alarm went off and it freaked him out, but the text was from a little while ago. Hopefully he’s settled now.”

I nod. Has to suck, knowing your kid was freaking out, and you weren’t there. But seriously, how’s a woman who looks that damn good old enough to have an eight-year-old kid, anyway? I figured the conversation was over, so it surprises me when she talks again.

“You have any kids?”

“No. Divorced, though, so I’ve been there, done that.”

She laughs mirthlessly. “Yep. Me, too. And maybe you think it’s weird I’m freaking out over an eight-year-old who’ll miss me if he wakes up, so I might as well just tell you, my son’s… got some issues.” Her voice catches at the end, but she clears her throat and squares her shoulders.

“Oh?” I take a left and slow as we near a stoplight.

“Yeah,” she whispers, turning to look back out the window. I won’t pry. “Understood.” I try to speak gently. Mamas are bears with their children, and I’ve seen how feisty she can be. I don’t want to push her away, or somehow discourage her from talking about what she obviously needs to talk about. As a dominant and owner of Verge, I’ve got some experience handling highly-charged situations. I’ll give her the space to talk as much or as little as she wants. “Got a nephew on the spectrum. Teen, now. Awesome kid. Makes killer calzones. But yeah, he’s had his fair share of challenges.”

“Yeah,” she whispers. “So has Chadwick.”

“Like, say, having a name like Chadwick?” As soon as I speak I wonder if I’ll touch a nerve, but she rolls with it.

“Hey!” She laughs, then groans.

“Just pullin’ your leg, babe.”

“No, it’s fine. It was the pretentious ex that named him. Turns out it was a family name, and it was expected we use it. So, whatever. I call him Chad. His father can call him Chadwick.”

I grin at her. “Atta girl.”

She shifts in her seat. “Thanks,” she says, the edge returning to her voice. She’s reserved and a little pissed-off again. Jesus, her moods swing like a fucking pendulum.

“How’s your ass?” I gently remind her of what her attitude can get her.

“Perfectly toned, thank you, Pilates.” She glares.

“Nice evasion.”

“I didn’t evade anything! You stretched me out on a spanking bench.”

“Annnnd we’re back to square one.”

“Here’s my apartment coming up, Tobias. Please pull over here. Thanks for the ride.”

I pull up in front of where she tells me to, a worn-down complex surrounded by tall buildings. Diana opens the door despite the fact that I’m opening mine at the same time. She doesn’t know how I like to do things, so I don’t blame her. I’m a little on the old-fashioned side, and I like to be the one to open the door for a woman who sits her ass in my passenger seat. But as she walks up the stairs near her home, I follow her. I need to make sure she’s okay before I leave, the memory of what Zack told me earlier haunting me.

Diana looks with surprise over her shoulder, her hazel eyes curious and something else. Pleased?

“Did I leave something in the car?”

I shake my head, feeling a little sheepish. Has she never had someone watch over her before? “No, just makin’ sure you get upstairs all right is all.”

“I’m fine, Tobias.” The ice returns to her voice then, as she puts her hand on the door knob to her home.

“No doubt you can handle yourself,” I reply. leaning back against the rail. “But you weren’t involved with the conversation I had with the NYPD tonight.”

Her eyes cloud and she shakes her head. “I did overhear a few things.”

“Let me walk you upstairs?” Her eyes shoot to the curb where my car sits before she turns back to me, and bites her lip.

Her eyes grow troubled, and she says nothing at first, as if she’s warring within herself, but then she shakes her head. “No, thank you. Good night, Tobias. Thank you for driving me, and for being so understanding about the… incident involving your car. I’ll be sure to contact you in the morning.” She opens the door to her apartment building, steps in, and shuts the door behind her, not giving me so much as a backward glance.

I inhale through my nose and exhale through my mouth once, twice, three times.

She damaged my car. She defied me and threw me sass. And yet, there’s something about her… something I can’t seem to ignore.

It’s the spanking you gave her, dumbass, I lecture myself as I walk back to my car, shaking my head. I’m conditioned to feel shit for women I dominate, to get hard making them squirm in pain, to protect them. I’m done with this chick, other than making sure she pays me what she owes me. And she will, or she’ll answer to me.