“A chat about what?” she asked. She didn’t move from her seat. This was an unexpected turn of events, and she didn’t like it.

“Get out of the car,” he said.

“But—” Something told her this stemmed from her refusal to play with herself while they were in town. He had sent those texts while they were at the stoplight. And afterward she’d gotten a lecture about doing as she was told.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I’ll behave from now on. I promise.” Unless I think I need to use my safe word.

“Get out of the car,” he said.

She hated it when he did that. She deserved answers, didn’t she? Of course, that’s not what she was trying for. She wanted to stall because she was very nervous about what he had planned next.

“I think we should go back to the lodge,” she said. “We can talk about things.”

“I’m not playing this game with you,” he said. “I’m in charge, and you agreed to that. Now, if you’ve changed your mind just say the word, or words in this case, and our sexual relationship is over. We’ll go back to the lodge, as you say, and we’ll discuss the search for the money, and the possibility there is a priceless necklace out there. But our physical relationship will be done. You decide.”

“It’s unfair,” she said.

“No, you’re trying to control the situation, and I won’t allow that,” he said. “I am the Dom, you are the sub. I do believe we’ve gone over this before. Now, what will it be, go forward, or stop the presses?”

He didn’t sound angry, just resigned to the fact that this was the situation, and she had to make the choice.

She wanted a little more time, but Autumn knew she didn’t have it. She was either all in, or this was the end of the game.

“Will you help me down?” she asked.

“I will,” he said.

When she was on the ground she looked up at him. “Now what?”

“Go over to the bench,” he said. “You’ll see a padded pillow on the end. Bend over it.”

Autumn fought back the words, “Here? Outside? Right off the road?” But she did as he asked. He was beside her in seconds, undoing the cuffs that kept her from lying flat on the bench. He attached her wrists to cuffs at the top of the bench, which meant her arms were above her. Then he attached her ankles to cuffs on the legs.

Once she was secured he pulled her panties down to bare her bottom. He was going to spank her, obviously. She could take that. In fact, she’d rather enjoyed what he’d done last night.

But what he did next surprised her. He opened a bag and she watched as he assembled a tent, or the semblance of one. He put it over her body, obviously to shield her from the sun. Then he opened another bag, took out a chair and, once it was set up, he sat in it and pulled out his phone.

At first, she thought he was taking pictures of her.

“You’re not going to post photos of me, are you?”

“I respect your privacy too much for that,” he said. “I’m reading a book. You have thirty minutes in what is my idea of time out. You will stay there, silently, until I say you’re done.”

“You’re not going to spank me?”

“What part of silently do you not understand?” he asked, and this time he sounded pissed off. “One more word, and I will end it. You need to at least make a show of following the rules.”

He lowered his gaze back to his phone. Autumn wiggled. Her position wasn’t that uncomfortable, but she wasn’t sure how she would feel after thirty minutes. The tarp was a nice touch, as it kept the sun from beating down on her back. But there was still the fact that she was on the side of the road, tied to a bench with her bare ass facing the road. Anyone who drove in and out would see her.

Of course, they wouldn’t see her face. But they would see Shawn, and they would see her with Shawn. She didn’t like the idea of being on display. She wiggled against her bonds.

“How close are we?”

“You just added ten minutes to your time,” he said.

“I didn’t know that rule!” She huffed in anger. “That’s not fair.

“Ten more.”

“Ugghh!” she cried in frustration.

“I’ll give that one five more,” he said.

Autumn internalized her next scream, knowing it would do nothing but add to the punishment he was meting out. After a few moments, she squirmed. Despite the cover it was getting hot. She wanted to say so, but she was afraid if she did he would add more time on her humiliation.

A honking horn made her stiffen.

“Hey,” Shawn said. She watched as he stood and walked toward the road. She heard another voice and knew instantly that Ethan was there. She didn’t recognize the other voice, so she figured it was Randy. She couldn’t quite make out all the words, but she picked out one loud and clear: hack.

What did that mean?

“Um, excuse me,” she said. “If this about the search I need to be let in on this conversation. I believe that’s in the contract.”

“She has a point,” Ethan said.

“She has seventeen more minutes,” Shawn said. “Go back to the lodge and we’ll be there in a little bit, as soon as she’s gotten her swats.”

Swats? “What? I mean, you’re talking now. Release me so I can take part.”

“See you there in a bit,” Shawn said.

Autumn turned her head to see Ethan and Randy walking back to their car. Shawn came and stood in front of her.

“I’ve been bad, again, right? Sir?”

He crouched down in front of her. “Yes, you were. But you were right, too. The guys said someone tried to hack into the reservations server last night and set up a reservation for themselves. As you know, we don’t make reservations for people until after they’ve been through a background check, unless they’re known to us.”

“Who tried to set up the reservation?”

“Mac Trucker,” he said, “with an address in Las Vegas, a fake one.”

“What are we going to do?” she asked as she wiggled against her bonds. Was she supposed to call him Sir now, while she was bound, but they were talking about the treasure hunt? This was a mixture of both sides and she wasn’t sure exactly what to do.

“Well, the first thing we’re going to do is give you the fifteen swats that come at the end of your confinement,” he said.

“You never said anything about swats, Sir,” she said.

“I don’t have to declare everything to you,” he said. “You’ll learn as time goes by that I don’t always give a heads up. But, let’s talk about you refusing to obey my orders.”

He stood and unbuckled his belt. He slowly pulled it free from its loops and then doubled it up and held it to his side.

Autumn swallowed, hard. The image of him slowly getting ready to punish her was sexy, but she had a feeling the spanking would not be. This one wouldn’t be fun, and there wouldn’t be a good fucking afterward, either.

“I’m sorry about questioning you,” she said. “I’m still not used to—all this.”

“I know,” he said. “I am trying to help you take baby steps, but sometimes I get a little carried away. I admit I’m not perfect.”

Autumn waited for him to put his belt away, but he didn’t.

“You’re still getting a spanking,” he said. “Fifteen swats, ones that will redden that pretty behind.”

He moved behind her. Autumn pulled on her wrists, which didn’t budge.

“Please don’t,” she said, right before he slapped the leather against her bottom. It wasn’t a hard swat and that calmed her a little. But the second one made her cry out. The third one came right on its heels, as did the fourth and fifth. Tears stung her eyes and she whimpered. That was only five. She had ten more to go.

But she didn’t have time to dwell on it, because he delivered the next ten swats hard and fast. She cried and wiggled and begged him to stop, even though she knew there was a set limit, and it wouldn’t last that long.

When he was done, he crouched in front of her and said, “I understand that you might not be comfortable with things I order you to do. But there is a proper way to do it, and that is to say, Sir, I am nervous about this. Can we discuss it.”

“But I didn’t know that at the time,” she said through her tears. “It’s hardly fair to punish me for something I didn’t know about.”

“It was a lesson, an easy one,” he said. “Despite your tears, I can tell you that spankings can, and will be, much worse than that. Now, let’s get you untied, pick up this stuff and go back and see what we’re going to do about our hacker.”

“You know,” Autumn said as she sniffled, “whoever tried to make the reservation had to use a credit card. You can trace the real person back to that number.”

Her ankles were free, and he was now working on her wrists. “Good point, apprentice. We’ll do that as soon as we get back.”

“That little weasel,” Autumn said. “I knew he was up to something. But how in the devil did he find out what we were looking for? I didn’t tell anyone, not my cousin or anyone else.”

She pulled her phone out of her pocket. “I’m going to call that little POS and give him a piece of my mind.”

Shawn took her phone out of her hands. “No, you’re not.” He put the phone on the table. “I think we should let him come.”

“Are you crazy?” Autumn stared at him in amazement. “Why? Brent Mach is a jerk, and if he has wind of the bank robbery money he’s going to try and get his hands on it.”

“Which means we need to do it first,” Shawn said. “Autumn and I will set out tonight, after dinner.”

“Why don’t we wait until the morning?” she asked.

“I’ve run the GPS coordinates,” Ethan said. “You should be able to find the site in a few hours. You can pitch a tent and be ready to start searching first thing in the morning. The sooner we get our hands on the money, the better things will be.”

“I’m not much of a camping girl,” Autumn said. “I’m a pee indoors kind of girl.”

All three of them laughed.

“I have a portable camping toilet,” Shawn said. “You’ll be fine.”

“Right,” Autumn said.

“I’ll send Ralph and Steve out to set up the tent,” Shawn said. “Everything will be ready when we get there.”

“Who are they?” Autumn asked.

“Employees,” Ethan said. “The equipment doesn’t clean itself, and the grounds don’t stay pristine by magic. We employ fifty people here between cooks, groundskeepers, waiters and waitresses, housekeepers, bookkeepers, desk clerks, investigators who run background checks on people who want to stay, and many other jobs. We’re not just playing games here.”

“Easy, Tiger,” Randy said. “You’ll have to excuse Ethan, he gets wound up when people question our facility.”

“I wasn’t questioning it, just the need for me to pee outdoors,” Autumn said.

Ethan opened his mouth, then closed it and left the room.

“He doesn’t like me,” Autumn said. “Why?”

“You’re a journalist,” Shawn said.

“Former,” she countered.

“He hates journalists,” Shawn said. “We’ll discuss the reasons why later. Now, I’m going to ask Ralph and Steve to set up the tent near the silver mines. Kate told us she didn’t go with Jane and Dad when they buried it, that she stayed at the house, so she didn’t see the location. Dad just gave her the coordinates.”

“Make sure there are shovels in your truck,” Randy said. He stood and started toward the door. “Oh, by the way, Autumn, you have a nice ass. Just thought I’d let you know I’m jealous that I won’t be leaving any pretty marks like I’m sure Shawn put there earlier.”

Autumn stared after him as he left. “He just… he just what?”

“Told you he wished he’d seen you before me,” Shawn said. “His loss is my gain. Now, go to your cabin and make sure you take care of that little item we talked about earlier today. I’ll see you at dinner.”

When he was gone, Autumn looked out the window. Shaving her pussy. What a fun afternoon this should prove to be.

“I had Chef pack dinner for you, so you can get on your way.” Randy had met them at the back of the lodge. “Don’t think me presumptuous, but it’s getting late. The terrain next to the mines is uneven, you need to make it there before the sun goes down.”

“You’re right,” Shawn said. “Ralph came by and told me they’d set everything up. I’m going to take one of the resort vehicles. I don’t want to tear up my new wheels after only a few days.”

“Not a bad idea,” Randy said. “You two kids have fun.”

They took off on what Autumn would term as ruts rather than a road.

“Your friend Ethan has a big chip on his shoulder,” she said. “May I ask what his problem is? Or is it just me?”

“Ethan’s had a hard time lately,” he said. “Don’t take this wrong, but I’m not going to discuss it with you. He’s one of my best friends, and talking about his problems would feel like gossip.”

Autumn admired Shawn’s loyalty. Not many people would feel that way. Most people enjoyed gossip.

The truck bounced over the landscape.

“Did you do as I asked?”

Autumn looked out the window. “Yes.” She hated to admit it, and she’d thought long and hard before she had. She kept herself trimmed, but going bare was totally different.

“I’m looking forward to seeing your handiwork,” he said. “You should be careful and keep it shaved. Ingrown hairs can be painful.”

“Thanks for setting me up for that,” she said. “Is there some special reason why you didn’t want to spend the night in a wonderful, soft bed tonight? Peeing outside isn’t the only thing I’m not a fan of, you know.”

“I’m learning more and more about you every day,” he said. “I rather like sleeping out under the stars.”

“Under the stars?” She knew her voice was on edge, but she couldn’t scale it back. “I’m not sleeping under the stars. There are snakes, and scorpions and all sorts of creepy crawlies out here. If you’re planning on us sleeping outside in the literal sense of the word, turn the car around, now, please.”

“Trust me to take care of you,” he said. “The only snake in use tonight will be the one I control.”

Autumn burst into laughter. “That’s good. I hope you’re right, because if I see one snake, I’m running him over with this truck, and then, I’m driving it back to Silver Creek, whether you’re with me or not.”

“Duly noted,” he said.

The sun was starting to set, and, despite her apprehension about the creatures in the desert, she thought the landscape was beautiful. If she was an outdoor girl, she might enjoy sleeping out under the stars.

The truck bounced more as they came closer to the mines. She could see the range of foothills as they grew closer and closer.

“Seeing things like this makes me wonder about the people that originally discovered them,” she said. “Was one of those people a relative of yours?”

“Yeah, a great something or other,” he said. “Uncle, I think. My family has never been very good at genealogy.”

“But this land has stayed in our family for years,” she said. “Someone somewhere must have been close. Are there boxes of records? Diaries? Pictures?”

“And the journalist comes out,” he said with a laugh. “There are a few boxes of things in a closet of my cabin. I don’t know what’s in them, but you’re welcome to go through it when we get back.”

“You don’t wonder about things like that, I mean your relatives?” she asked. “You don’t wonder about what they did, how they lived? I have a very small family so there’s not much there to be curious about. But I do know my grandmother used to tell me about her life in the twenties. She was a flapper.”

Autumn wiggled her butt in her seat and laughed. “She still had a few of her outfits, and when I was a kid she would let me try them on. I asked her lots of questions about what life was like back then. You could say my grandmother was my first interview. I wrote stories about it.”

“Did you?” The truck hit a pothole and he grasped the wheel tighter. When the shaking stopped he said, “Do you still have those stories?”

“I don’t know, they might be in a box in my closet somewhere.”

“Much like there might be family stuff in my boxes,” he said. “Now, that you’ve mentioned it I’m thinking it might be interesting to see what’s in there. And I like the idea of you playing dress up with the flapper things. Did you like being a flapper?”

“It was interesting,” she said with a laugh. “I would love to write a—” Autumn cleared her throat. “How much longer do you think we have to go?”

“We used to explore these mines when I was a kid, me and a few of my cousins,” Shawn said. “We’ve got about half an hour more.”

“How did you get out here when you were a kid?”

“Horseback,” he said as he slowed the vehicle. “It took much longer to get out here.”

“I can imagine,” she said.

“But let’s not think about that,” he said. “Let’s go back to what you would like to write.”

“What?”

“You said I would love to write, but then you stopped suddenly,” he said. “What would you like to write? About flappers? That would be intriguing, wouldn’t it?”

“I write non-fiction,” she said. “My editor, if I still have one, would question why I had a flapper in my story. But if it involved something like time travel, he might put it above the fold and I might be up for a Pulitzer. If—if—I was still a writer.”

“Tell me what happened to your writer job,” he said.

“The internet,” she said. “In case you haven’t noticed, print journalism is dead. I didn’t make the transition to digital.”

“Why not?”

She thought about it for a moment. “I’m a good writer, but my boss and I never quite got along. It wasn’t something either of us did, we just clashed. That happens with people sometimes, like with me and Ethan. I think he’d rather enjoyed the fact I was one of those who lost their jobs when the paper had layoffs.”

“In Pueblo?”

“Denver,” she said. “I moved to Pueblo to work for my cousin. It wasn’t exactly a welcome home for me. My mom didn’t want to share her house, so I got a little apartment, and I work for my cousin.”

“And you’re okay with that?”

Autumn looked out the window. “Finding a job is not easy. I have a degree, true, but a lot of the people I talked with said I was overqualified for what they were offering.”

“Do you still write?” he asked. “Have you tried your hand at fiction? Is that what you were going to say, that you wanted to write a story that featured flappers?”

“I’ve thought about it,” she said. “But I haven’t done it.”

“Or you could write a true crime story about people who rob a bank, bury the money and trigger a search for it a little more than fifty years later.”

She laughed, but then she looked at him and said, “You’re serious.”

“Very,” he said. “Depending on how this pans out, it might make an interesting story.”

“Most true crime stories are murder stories,” she said. “I don’t want that to happen in order for me to write a story.”

“True,” he said. He slowed again, and in front of them she saw a tent, a large one.

“I think that is bigger than my apartment,” she said.

“I told you I would take care of you,” he said. He parked and turned off the truck.

“There is the main room, and to the right there is the toilet.” He pointed to the area. “It’s in its own little tent.”

“Nice,” she said. “But I still have to go outside to get to it. Not liking that.”

“I figured that would come up, so I asked the guys to construct a little pass through, that means you don’t have to go outside.”

“Thanks.” Autumn put her hand on the door. “Shall we go inside?”

“It’s funny that we’ve talked about your writing,” he said. “One of the reasons I wanted to come out here tonight is because I have a little fantasy I want you to play out with me.”

“Really?” Warmth spread through her. “You mean something that involves BDSM.”

The look on his face said, “Maybe, maybe not.”

“The first time I saw you I was attracted to your tits,” he said. “They are rather spectacular.”

“Thank you,” she said. “So, this fantasy involves my tits?”

“I had X put together a harem girl costume for you,” he said. “It should accentuate what I’ve been dying to play with for a while now.”

“With your teeth, or hands?”

“Teeth, hands, cock,” he said. “So, here’s the plan for the evening. We’re going inside and you’re going to change into your outfit. I’m going to make myself comfortable on the bed that’s been set up.”

“And then, I’m going to tell you a story like Arabian nights?”

“Oh no, that’s been done to death,” he said. “I have an overwhelming desire to play with my harem girl.”

“Play how?”

“However, I want,” he said. He ran his finger down her arm. “We’ll see what sort of orgasm I can produce for you, tonight. We’ll see if we can send you soaring through the top of the tent.”

They went inside, and the first thing Autumn saw was the bench they’d used earlier in the day, at least she thought it was. This one had arm and leg attachments, though.

“I don’t think I like where this is going,” she said. “Isn’t there some sort of limit on the amount of times a person can be spanked in one day?”

“Remember what I said about you creating your own prison? He stepped closer to her. “You assume that I’m going to spank you. You need more imagination than that. You need to relax and let things flow. Now, go change your clothes.”

“Can I have a clue?”

“You can do as I say,” he said. “Or do you wish to negotiate?”

“Would that be bad?”

“Before you know what is happening, yes,” he said. “You’ll enjoy this, trust me. Now, get a move on, apprentice.”

“My bottom still hurts from earlier,” she said.

“If it didn’t, I wouldn’t have been doing my job right. Now, I won’t say it again.”

Autumn nodded. She went to the area where the clothes were set on a camp stand. She’d never been a harem girl before, she thought as she stripped out of her clothes. This was definitely something new.