The next afternoon, Dawn sat at the table, her fingers working the thread and needle through the shirt she was making for Rob. Her eyes, however, strayed between the shirt and the chessboard. She’d set it up on the table and was now playing both sides in an effort to see how she could improve her game.

She’d been quiet around Rob that morning, trying to make sure that she didn’t act like a servant. It was hard, though, since that was the way Hank had expected her to act for the past seventeen years.

She wasn’t sure what to do, exactly. She focused on how things had been when she was at home. Her mother, although she did the work around the house, had been happy and content. And her parents had been loving, teasing each other and their daughter.

After her marriage, she’d thought to ask her mother why things were different with Hank, but she’d been afraid of making him angry. So she’d kept her mouth shut and done what her husband said to do.

Breakfast had gone well this morning, and when the boys had sat down to eat, she’d done what Rob had told her to do yesterday. She’d made sure everything was done for the hands, then sat down at the table.

It had felt strange, but at the same time it had felt nice. She’d even teased Anthony about not eating his oatmeal, and he’d teased her back, making her smile.

After they’d left for school, she’d done the dishes and started work on Rob’s shirt, cutting out the material in quick fashion and now sewing, at the same time she was studying the chessboard. She was so intent on what she was doing that she didn’t hear the back door open.

When Rob cleared his throat, she jumped, pricking her finger on the needle and yelling, “Dang it!”

“Trying to figure out how to beat me?” The laughter in his voice was evident and she grinned.

“Yes.”

“Good luck. I’ve been at this a heck of a lot longer than you have.”

“You’re the one who told me I was smart.”

Rob, who had been talking a glass from the counter, turned to her.

“You’re right, I did. So do you think you’ve learned how to beat me?”

“Yes, I do.”

He sat down opposite from her. “Care to make a wager?”

“That depends on the stakes.” Her heart beat wildly, and she wondered exactly what he was talking about.

“If I win, you have to make your dress before you make everyone’s shirts.”

“I can’t do that. I want this shirt to be ready for when your brother comes on Saturday. That’s just a few days away.”

Rob ignored her and kept on talking. “If you win, you get to take the afternoon off and sit in a chair and read one of my mother’s books.”

“I’m sorry, I can’t make that bet.”

“Afraid you’ll lose?”

“Of course not, but both sides of the wager are beneficial to me. You get nothing out of them, and it’s not fair.”

“But I do get something out of them. I get to see you do something for yourself, or take a rest, something you haven’t done since you got here. I’d like both of those things very much.”

Dawn was at a loss of what to say. If she declined the wager because she was a ‘servant’, then she would be taken over Rob’s knee. She had no doubt of that. He’d made it perfectly clear last night that he expected her to act like a woman, not a beast of burden. But if she accepted it, then she would spend the afternoon lazing around the house, either reading, something she hadn’t done since she was in school, or sewing her own clothing when she should be working on sewing for the boys and for Rob.

“Can we change the wager to include something that would benefit you.”

“I already told you that I would enjoy either victory.” His eyes strayed to the board, then his fingers went to work moving pieces to their original positions.

“But it’s not…”

“Don’t argue with me.”

“I’m not.”

“No?” He grinned at her. “If I’m the man of the house, and I get to make the decisions, then I decide on the wager? If you say otherwise, then you’re arguing.”

“But last night you said…”

It dawned on her that he was teasing her, the same way he and his brother had teased each other in the store that day. She arched her eyebrows and cocked her head.

“Fine. I accept your wager.”

“Good, now let’s play.”

He watched her from the kitchen as she placed the material on the floor. She’d chosen the pretty print with roses for her dress, and he’d loved the way her eyes sparkled when she’d held it up to her neck after he’d beat her at chess.

It hadn’t been an easy win, though, proving exactly what he’d told her boys. Dawn was smart. Very smart. She’d studied the board and learned to watch his moves, countering with her own and anticipating what she thought his next move would be.

Partway into the game he’d realized that unless he played very close attention, she just might beat him. And she almost had. Only at the last minute did he realize that she’d not only snuck a rook across the board while distracting him with a bishop, but she’d moved a knight into position to capture his queen.

He’d barely made it through with the win intact.

She hadn’t argued about collecting her winnings. Instead, she’d taken the floral material and started to cut out her dress.

The look on her face was happy, and since he knew that dinner was already in the works, there was no need to call her back to work.

He watched her for a few more minutes, until he felt his lower regions quicken. Then he knew that staying in the same room with her was a bad idea. She was far from ready for any relationship with him, and he didn’t want to push her.

He picked up an apple and left the house quickly, surprised when he saw her three boys enter the yard from the far pasture. He hadn’t realized it was that late in the day, and he didn’t want them to go inside and disrupt what he’d worked so hard to achieve.

“School over already?”

“Yes,” Frank said. “We’re going inside to get a snack.”

“There’s some jerky in the barn. I know that the men are looking forward to the three of you helping them out, so you could eat that on your way out.”

They readily agreed and moved toward the barn in a hurry.

Rob decided to go inside and let Dawn know that her boys were home, and going out to the fields to work. Inside the house he found her where he’d left her, in the living room with her sewing in hand.

But it wasn’t the dress she was working on, but the shirt that she was making for him. The dress sat forgotten by her feet as she worked on a seam for the shirt.

He shook his head and frowned. The minute his back was turned, she’d gone against the wager and again made herself a servant, making sure that everything was done for someone else before she did anything for herself.

There was obviously only one way to deal with the situation. He would have to punish her.

Dawn pulled the stitches tight and reached for the scissors. She didn’t have a great deal to finish on the outline for Rob’s shirt. When it was done, she could work into the night to get her dress done, after she’d finished the shirts for the boys.

She wasn’t used to doing things for herself first, and when he’d left the house, she’d immediately dropped the dress and started back to work on the shirt. She would make sure they were all done by Saturday, so they could all be worn, even if she had to work long into the night.

Rob wouldn’t know which one was finished first because she would keep them all in her room, and work on them there.

Since he was gone from the house right now, she could work on his shirt until it was almost done. Then start to work on the dress before he returned, which should be right around six. She glanced at the grandfather clock in the corner. It was almost half past four now, so she had a little bit of time.

A movement from the kitchen caught her eye. She turned to find an empty doorway. Still, her heart beat a little faster. Had someone been there, watching her? She doubted it, but then again, you never knew. She put her work down and walked to the kitchen window.

The room was empty, and when she looked out, no one was in the yard. Deciding it was just her imagination she went to the living room and went back to work on the shirt.

“That was really good, Ma,” Frank said, a smile on his face.

Dawn smiled back. Dinner had been good. The stew had been perfect, downright delicious, actually. The pie that she’d made for dessert had been good, too. She’d made the pies in the morning, before she’d spent the afternoon goofing off. But it had been worth it. She was almost done with Rob’s shirt. She’d start work on the boys’ clothing tonight, after everyone went to bed. Then she’d finish the dress. She would spend long hours sewing but it would be worth it for them all to have new clothes when Rob’s brother and his wife were here for dinner.

With all of them working, they quickly finished the dishes. Without asking, Frank went to the other room and pulled out the chessboard, setting it up on the kitchen table.

“Will you play me, Mr. MacAllister?”

“Sure, Frank,” Rob said, sitting down. “I think your mother wants to do some sewing, so it will be just us boys tonight. We can play several games and see how your skills are improving. Course, she can go and get it and bring it in here, so she can watch us play.”

Dawn bit her lip. She hadn’t anticipated this. If she brought the dress into the kitchen, then Rob would see that she’d done very little work on it, even though she’d been sewing all afternoon. He would guess that something was wrong, and he’d wonder what it was.

“I can work in the other room,” she said, turning toward him. Her face fell. She could tell from the look that he gave her that he already knew that she hadn’t worked on the dress that afternoon, that she’d gone against his wishes.

“Nonsense,” Rob said. “You want to be in here to watch the boys play. They’re getting better day by day, as are you. Your mother and I played a game this afternoon, boys. She almost beat me.”

“Well, I’m going to beat you first,” Frank said with a laugh. “It’s ready, so let’s start.”

Dawn stood in place; Rob’s gaze was locked on her face.

“Go get your sewing and come back,” he said softly.

“It’s too dark to sew,” she replied, just as softly.

“Nonsense. We’ll light another lamp. Anthony. Go to the living room and get another lamp for your mother.”

When he’d stood and started for the other room, Rob stopped him. “Get two lamps. That way there’ll be plenty of light for her to work by, and for us to see the board.”

“I, well, I need more space than there is here.” Her brain was in a frenzy, trying to think up excuses for why she couldn’t work on the dress right now.

“Why, it’s already cut out, isn’t it? You had all afternoon to sew.”

The boys had stopped what they were doing and were now watching their mother, and their mother’s new employer.

“Yes, but, well, I didn’t exactly work on the dress.” There, she’d said it. She’d told him the truth and was now done with it.

“I see. Well, bring in whatever you were working on.” He smiled at her and she knew that smile meant that they’d discuss it later. Her chest tightened. Hank had never failed to scream at her in front of the boys, had never waited until they were gone to tell her that she was useless and stupid.

Was Rob’s plan to wait a good thing? It showed some respect for her, that was for sure. But what would happen when the boys were gone and they were alone together? She wasn’t sure, but she had a feeling that it involved exactly what he’d talked about last night.

Robert MacAllister wasn’t going to scream at her for breaking their deal, for going against his wishes. He was going to take her over his knee and spank her.

She tried as hard as she could to keep the boys at the house. Each time a game would end she’d suggest another one. Frank had played a good game against Rob, and had asked for another, but his brothers had put their food down, saying that they wanted a chance to play, too.

She’d watched the games with interest, working a little on Rob’s shirt, then taking a break to see who was ahead in the match.

Finally, when it was after ten, Rob shook his head.

“It’s late, and the boys have school tomorrow. They need to go to the bunkhouse and get some sleep. The day starts early, you know.”

Dawn nodded and said goodnight to her boys. When they were gone, she turned to Rob.

“You’re angry with me.”

“I’m disappointed. You deliberately broke our deal.”

“We didn’t have a deal, Rob.”

“But we did. We made a wager and I won. The minute I was gone from the room you stopped doing what I’d won in the bet, and started doing what you wanted to do. That’s breaking the deal.”

“I want to finish your shirt. Is it fair to be angry at me when I was doing something for you?”

“I told you, I’m not angry. But yes, it is fair. Our wager was that you would specifically take the afternoon off and either read, or work on your own dress. You didn’t do either. And I want you to realize that there is more to life than doing things for other people. You deserve things too, Dawn.”

She stared at him, her mouth open for several seconds. Finally, when the silence had stretched on, she bit her lower lip.

“How are you going to punish me?” Her lips quivered, fear overtaking her stomach and making her feel as if she would lose her dinner.

“I’m going to spank you, but not tonight, tomorrow morning, after the men have gone to the field and the boys have gone to school.”

“You’re going to beat me.”

“No. I’m going to spank you, there is a difference.” He shook his head. “You never did answer me when I asked if Hank beat you. Did he?”

“No.”

“But he did some…”

“It’s none of your business. Since I’m living under your roof, I’ll accept my punishment. I would like, however, to just do it now.”

“No. You went against our wager without thinking about it. I want you to think about your spanking. I’ll let you wear your bloomers, so you don’t have to worry about being naked.”

“Thank you.” She felt strange, thanking him for a planned punishment.

“We’ll do it in the living room, right after breakfast,” he said. “Good night, Dawn.”

She watched him walk away. Part of her was frightened, but a larger part of her was amazed. He was angry with her, yet he was giving her time to get used to the idea of punishment. Why?

Why would he let her stew over it, to make her more frightened? She shook her head. If he’d wanted her frightened, he would have screamed and hollered at her. Plus, hadn’t he said that he wasn’t angry, that he was disappointed in her?

The idea of him being disappointed amazed her. Anger would be the emotion she was used to seeing in a man.

Of course she didn’t have to take the discipline. He wasn’t her husband, or her lover. She could tell him no. But she knew that she wouldn’t do that, either. Rob had opened his home to her and her boys.

She owed him respect as the man of the house, and as such she would accept his punishment. At least he was letting her keep her bloomers on. This would be the last time he would have to spank her. From now on, she’d behave herself, from doing her chores to not breaking agreements, even when they were wagers.

Dawn woke early, gathered eggs and set about scrambling them for the workers. She put several pots of coffee on the stove to begin perking. She sliced bread and warmed it in the oven, slathering it with butter and jam before taking it to the outside eating area.

By the time she arrived, several of the hands were already there, smiling at her and offering to help carry out platters. It made her feel good that so many of them appreciated what she did and said thank you. She wondered if that was Rob’s influence, or if Hank had just been an oddity in the world.

She asked them to go inside and carry out pots of coffee and they gladly obliged. By the time her boys arrived for their meal, most of the workers had already finished and carried their plates inside.

She was a little concerned that Rob hadn’t shown himself yet. She was sure that he was up, but she’d yet to see him. Part of her wished that he would just forget the promised spanking, but she knew that wasn’t going to happen.

The punishment had been forefront in her mind most of the night and had kept her from sleeping for a few hours. Her mother had spanked her a few times as a child, always using a switch, which had hurt like the dickens.

Dawn had thought long and hard about what Rob would use for his spanking. Would he use his hand? Or would he use something else.

A horrible feeling crept up the back of her neck. Had he not shown himself this morning because he was out cutting a switch? Was he searching for just the right one? The idea made her shiver and she hurried back inside the house.

Even over her bloomers, a switch would hurt something fierce. If he showed up with one in his hand, she’d have to run. There was no doubt about it.

She rushed through the back door, coming to a quick stop when she saw him sitting at the kitchen table, a cup of coffee in one hand and a toasted slice of bread in the other.

“You forgot the bread that was in the oven,” he said with a twinkle in his eye. “I rescued it for you.”

“Land sakes, I can’t believe I forgot it.”

When he chuckled, she shook her head.

“It’s not funny. I could have burned the house down.”

“Hardly. It was just a few slices of bread, and you would have smelled them before they caught fire. It’s not a big thing.”

For the second time in as many days, she was reminded that Rob MacAllister was not Hank Richardson. If she’d left food in the oven to burn, Hank would have screamed at her until she was cowering in the corner.

“Burning food’s not a big thing, but working on your shirt is?”

“When you were supposed to be doing something for yourself, yes. Where are the boys?”

“They ate outside with the hands today.”

“I see. How are you feeling this morning?”

“Are you serious? I’m about to be beaten and you ask how I’m feeling?” She could hear the rise in her voice. She would never have spoken to Hank that way. Fear of the cellar, and of his wicked tongue, would have kept her in check.

“I’m not going to beat you,” he said. “I thought we’d established that fact already.”

“A spanking is a beating.”

“Hardly. A spanking is discipline.”

Emboldened by the fact that he was talking with her calmly, she put her hands on her hips.

“What are you planning on spanking me with?”

“My hand.”

That gave her pause. She thought she could handle it better if he’d actually gone out and cut a switch.

“What if I say no. Will you fire me?”

“No, I won’t fire you.”

That brought her up short. If he wasn’t going to fire her, then why should she bother to allow herself to be spanked? They could just go on living like they had been.

“Very well, then I say no. I apologize for breaking the bargain we made, and I won’t do it again. How’s that?”

“I won’t fire you for saying no. That doesn’t mean that I will let you out of your spanking. You may not want it, but you’re going to get it.”

“You’re going to force me?” Why was she talking to him like this? All she was doing was egging him on. Or was she? He seemed so calm, so certain of himself. So different than what she was used to.

“I won’t have to. You know what you did yesterday was wrong. That’s why you tried to hide it from me last night. You didn’t want me to know. Discipline can be a good thing in a person’s life. It helps them focus on the aspects of their lives that need to change, and do just that. Change them.”

“So, you think that I’m going to willingly go across your lap and allow you to spank me, and that the whole time I’m going to be thinking about what needs to be changed in my life? That’s absurd.”

Rob took a sip of his coffee. “Why did you break our bargain yesterday? And tell me the truth. Don’t tell me what you think I want to hear.”

She gave him a puzzled look, and then thought about why she’d done it.

“I told you. I wanted to finish the shirts for you and the boys first.”

“Why? Because you wanted us to have the shirts, or because you don’t think you needed a new dress?”

“I told you that I didn’t need one.”

“But I thought you did. It was time for you to do something for yourself, and by going against our bargain, you basically told me that you can’t do things for yourself. I want to change that.”

“Why is it important to you?” The words were almost a whisper, she barely heard them herself.

“Because I like you, Dawn. Because I want you to be happy here and stay for a while. And I want to see you smile.”

“You think I’m going to smile when you spank me?”

“No. But I hope it will make you think twice before you break an agreement between us again.”

“Maybe. Or it could just make me so angry that I pack up my things, take my boys and leave.”

“If you do, then so be it. But I don’t think that you will.”

He was right. She wouldn’t do that. She needed this job, needed the money that it provided and needed the roof over her sons’ heads.

“I get to keep my bloomers?”

“Yes, I’ve already told you that.”

“Then let’s get it over with. I have work to do.”

He stood and held his arm out toward the living room. “It’s an over the lap spanking, Dawn, until I think you’ve learned your lesson. Understand?”

She nodded, not trusting her voice to shake.

“Very well, let’s go in the other room.”