I can’t let it go even though I know I should. Natalie was trying to help her friend, but it wasn’t her place to tell Aileen about Kristian’s sexual preferences. Trust is a critical element of our lifestyle, especially in light of who we are to the rest of the world. Natalie knew she could trust Aileen, and Kristian doesn’t mind that she told her. But that might not always be the case, and I have to make sure she understands the critical need for discretion.

I find her in our home office on the computer, probably tending to foundation business. She’s been an absolute godsend as the director of the foundation I started to aid the cause of childhood hunger. The carnival fundraiser we’re holding at a private estate is coming up in a few short weeks, and she’s been frantically busy seeing to the details.

“Hey,” she says, smiling up at me. “I didn’t hear you come in.”

That’s because I didn’t want her to hear me come in. She expects me to go around the desk to kiss her the way I normally would, but that’s not going to happen.

“I want you in the bedroom prepared to serve your master in five minutes.” After delivering my order, I turn and leave the room, but not before I catch the stunned expression on her face. Nope, she didn’t see that coming. Excellent.

In the nearly six months we’ve been married, she hasn’t given me reason to discipline her, so I’m giddy with excitement over my plans for the evening. Any time I get to spend with her is the best time I’ve ever spent with anyone, no matter what we’re doing. But knowing she gets me, that she understands my needs and isn’t hesitant about tending to them, makes me love her that much more fiercely.

I go into the living room and fix myself a drink, my favorite Bowmore whisky burning a path through me, heating me up from the inside and killing the last of the fury I felt after Natalie told me what she did. At breakfast, she admitted to feeling guilty about spilling the beans to Aileen about Kristian’s sexual preferences.

I’d never touch her in anger. Ever. She’s everything to me. If you’d told me a year ago that I’d be so slavishly devoted to any woman, I would’ve scoffed. Not me. No way. I was determined to preserve and protect my freedom, until that fateful frozen day in Greenwich Village when her demon dog, Fluff, “attacked” me during a shoot, changing both our lives forever. Since then, I’ve experienced the kind of happiness I thought only existed in the romantic movies we churn out in Hollywood.

It pains me to wait fifteen minutes, but I want her wondering what’s up. Not that it’s unusual for me to order her into position. We have some sort of sex, often kinky, every day. But it is unusual for me to come home from work and order her into the bedroom without any preliminaries. By now, she’s on edge, trying to figure out what’s going on. That’s right where I want her.

I’m euphoric with anticipation as I secure Fluff—I’ve learned the hard way, with teeth in my ass, not to allow her anywhere near us when we’re having sex—and head for the master bedroom.

Natalie is right where she’s supposed to be, beautifully nude and on her knees at the foot of the bed, her head bent in supplication that makes me immediately hard. She’s so fucking beautiful and all mine for the rest of our lives. How did I ever get so lucky? I ask myself that every day.

“You need to be punished, my love. Do you know why?”

“N-no. Sir.” She quickly adds that second word.

The slight stammer makes me even harder, as does the sight of her tight nipples. She might be unnerved, but she’s also excited.

“Look at me.”

She lifts her head and shows me the gorgeous green eyes she used to hide behind brown contacts. That was before the whole world knew her story. Now she has no need to hide from anyone, least of all me. “Did you talk to Aileen about something that’s none of your business?”

Her lips part on a gasp, and her big eyes get even bigger. She’s so damned cute that I want to say to hell with the punishment. But I can’t do that. It’s my job as her husband and her Dom to teach her about our lifestyle and correct her when she makes mistakes. So far she’s taken to it like the proverbial duck to water. This is the first time she’s stepped outside the lines, and even though it was for a good cause, I can’t let it go. “Answer me, Natalie. Did you tell Aileen something that’s none of your business?”

“Y-yes… But—”

I hold up my hand to stop her from continuing. “Please stand and bend over with your elbows on the bed.”

“Flynn—”

“Is that my name here?”

“Sir, please… Let me explain.”

“You already explained why you did it. Now you have to take your punishment.”

“Wh-what is my punishment?”

“A sound spanking. I think twenty is a good number, don’t you?”

“N-no, Sir. It’s not a good number.”

“Thirty?”

“No!”

“Twenty it is, then. Hurry up. I’d hate to have to add more because you’re not moving fast enough.”

She scurries from her knees into position over the bed, casting a nervous glance at me over her shoulder.

“What’s your safe word?”

“Fluff.”

“And when should you use it?”

“Any time it gets to be too much.”

“What happens if you use it?”

“Everything stops.”

“That’s right.” I caress her soft, supple backside, loving the tremble that rocks her body. Her responsiveness to my touch is such a huge turn-on. “Tell me why you’re being punished.”

“B-because I told Aileen about Kristian’s kink.”

“And why shouldn’t you have done that?”

“It’s n-not my business.”

“Exactly.” I deliver the first of twenty spanks to the lower part of her right cheek.

She cries out in surprise and then moans when I rub the spot, turning pain into desire.

“Count for me.”

“One,” she says through gritted teeth.

The second one lands on the exact same spot, which will hurt, but this is about punishment after all. “Two.”

“Tell me you understand why we expect you to keep our secrets.”

“I do,” she says, sniffing. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have—”

The third spank comes down on the lower part of her left cheek. “Th-three.”

“No, you really shouldn’t have, sweetheart.” I rub the spot and watch closely as she squirms, trying to find some relief from the ache between her legs. “Do you need your safe word?”

“No.”

I deliver ten more in rapid succession, not giving her time to react before the next one lands. “Are you losing count, sweetheart? Do we need to start over?”

“No! That’s thirteen.”

“More than halfway there.”

A sob erupts from her, and I’m tempted to stop.

“Do you need your safe word?”

She shakes her head.

“Words, sweetheart. Give me words.”

“No, Sir.”

I’m so damned proud of her. She’s strong and determined and all mine. I give her five more spanks. Her bottom is now a fiery pink, and the scent of her desire makes me crazy, especially when I notice that her inner thighs are wet. “Two more and then we’re done.”

She grasps the quilt and drops her head. Moving her hair out of the way, I stroke her neck and down her back, drawing out the suspense that much longer. She’s quivering madly when I deliver number nineteen, rubbing the spot until I hear her moan.

“I think my baby might be enjoying her punishment a little too much.” To make my point, I slide my fingers through the flood of moisture between her legs. “Ah-ha! I thought so.”

She makes a noise that can’t be called a groan or a grunt. It’s somewhere in between. I love her like this, submissive to me, allowing me to control her pleasure and her pain. It’s the greatest feeling, the highest of highs, to know she trusts me so implicitly.

I grasp my cock and push into her. “Don’t come. Not yet.”

Despite the flood of moisture, we’re always a tight fit, and I’m careful not to hurt her. It takes a good ten minutes before I’m fully inside her—my favorite place to be. Reaching under her, I cup her gorgeous breasts and toy with her nipples. Her inner muscles clamp down on me and I count backward from a hundred to hold off the orgasm that wants out—right now. But I’m not finished with her. Not yet.

I slow the pace, knowing it will make her crazy, and I’m not disappointed.

She raises her hips, looking for more, but I don’t give it to her.

“Flynn!”

“Is that my name in here?” I deliver the twentieth and final spank, and she ignites, coming so hard, she takes me with her, even though I’m nowhere near ready. “Did I tell you to come?” I ask her when I catch my breath and my head stops spinning.

“It’s not my fault.” Under me, her body is soft and relaxed even as her pussy twitches with strong contractions that make me hard all over again.

“Whose fault is it?”

“Yours.”

I take a gentle bite out of the back of her shoulder, making her startle and then laugh. I want to see her gorgeous face, so I withdraw from her and stretch out next to her on the bed, running my fingers through her long silky dark hair. Her lips are curved into a small, satisfied smile that pleases me.

Resting my hand on her pink ass, I gently caress her. “Do you understand why I had to punish you?”

She opens her eyes, meets my gaze, and a punch of emotion hits me, as if it’s the first time all over again. “I’m sorry I told Aileen about Kristian. I was only trying to help them along. Is he really mad?”

“Not at all. He said you did him a favor.”

“Then why…”

“Why did I punish you?”

She nods and rolls her bottom lip between her teeth. She’s so adorable, I almost forget what I was going to say.

“You can’t tell people about us. Even people you know well and trust. I need to know it won’t happen again, Nat. That’s really important to me.”

“It won’t happen again. I’m sorry I stepped out of line. I just want them to be as happy as we are.”

“I know, honey, and I get why you did it. Your intentions were good. But—”

She lays a finger over my lips. “It’s okay. You don’t have to say it. I know why I can’t tell anyone, and I hope you know I’d never tell anyone who could hurt you or the others. Aileen loves us all. The information is safe with her. But I won’t do it again. I promise.”

“Thank you.” I kiss her softly, wanting to give her sweetness after her punishment. I twirl a length of her hair around my finger. “How was your day?”

“Now you ask,” she says with a teasing grin. “It was busy. Things are coming together for the fundraiser. I also had an appointment with Dr. Breslow.”

I freeze with shock. She hates doctors, especially gynecologists, after the trauma of her rape exam years ago. “Why did you go there without me?”

“I have to go alone at some point. Why not now?”

“You don’t ever have to go alone, Nat. Is something wrong?” The thought of something being wrong with her terrifies me.

“Nope.” She flashes a mysterious smile. “In fact, in about eight months, our duo is going to become a trio.”

I’m stunned speechless. Nothing in my life could’ve prepared me for this moment. My brain goes completely blank, and my heart… My heart feels like it’s going to explode from the blast of joy that overtakes me. And then I remember the punishment, the rough sex, and I’m appalled and terrified. “Did I… I didn’t… Are you hurt? What we did…”

Still smiling, she places her hand on my chest, on top of my wildly beating heart. “I’m completely fine, Flynn. If anything hurt, I would’ve stopped it.”

“I can’t… We can’t… You…”

Laughing now, she wraps her arms around me and brings my head to rest on her shoulder. “It’s a baby, not a bomb, and I swear I’m completely fine. Nothing has to change between us.”

“This changes everything. No more rough stuff.”

“I love your rough stuff. You wouldn’t deny me, would you?”

“Don’t do that.”

“What am I doing?”

“You’re trying to manipulate me. As long as you’re pregnant, the most you’re getting from me is good old-fashioned gentle missionary.”

“Then I’ll have to hit the club to find someone who can take care of my needs.”

My hand comes down on her ass before I remember I just put a stop to such things for the foreseeable future.

Natalie laughs right in my face. “Please tell me you’re not going to turn into a crazy lunatic while your wife is pregnant.”

“Define ‘crazy lunatic.’”

“Withholding sex and treating me like I’m fragile or breakable. If you do that, our baby will be an only child.”

“Our baby,” I whisper. My eyes flood with tears. I’m going to be a dad. Natalie and I are going to be parents. I never thought I’d get married again, let alone fall madly in love with the perfect woman for me. And now, a baby, too…

She brushes away my tears with her fingertips. “Are you happy?”

“You have to ask?”

“I just want to be sure.”

“I had no idea this kind of happy was possible until I found you.”

“Until Fluff found you.”

“Thank God for her.” I kiss my wife, the mother of my child, my one true love.