Nathaniel’s face darkened further, and Cecily knew he was close to another outburst. Meanwhile, Lilian only glared at him provokingly, eager for even this kind of attention.
“Miss Osborne, take Lilian back to the nursery. There will be no outdoor play today,” Cecily ordered, praying that Nathaniel would not overrule her.
While he still seemed to be seething, and his deep blue eyes were now fixed intently on her, he let his daughter and governess retreat.
Despite complaining about unfairness, Lilian thankfully made no objection either and let her governess remove her from the scene.
“You may all go, except for my wife,” Nathaniel growled once the child was out of earshot. “Rogers, take my shoes and my brother’s and do what you can with them. Cecily, come with me now.”
Swallowing but keeping her head up, Cecily followed him into his study. One way or another, this was not going to be an easy conversation.
* * *
“Lilian only wanted your attention,” Cecily blurted out as soon as the study door closed, deciding to take an offensive rather than defensive approach. “You must not rise to her pranks. It will be punishment enough for her to stay indoors on a day like this.”
“Rise to her pranks? Am I not entitled to be angry when I find my shoes filled with eggs? Would you have me smile and walk around in them?”
She could see that Nathaniel was still very displeased, but the worst of his temper was spent.
“You might calm down for an hour and then go and talk to her about why this was wrong,” she returned. “I understand why you’re angry, but Lilian is a child, and you are not. These things sometimes happen in a house with children. They overhear and misunderstand.”
“You wanted to teach me a lesson, did you?” Nathaniel demanded. “Wasn’t that what my daughter overheard and misunderstood?”
“Yes, maybe I did say that I thought you should be taught a lesson,” Cecily admitted, her emotions also running high but thankfully under control. “In any case, the important thing here is that the idea came from me and not from Lilian. Aren’t you going to even ask me what lesson I thought you should be taught?”
His midnight-blue eyes were very intent upon her as he contemplated what she had said.
“No, but I have another question for you, Cecily,” he said slowly, his expression inscrutable. “If you are saying that all of this was actually your fault, isn’t it you who should be punished instead of Lilian?”
“If you like,” she answered, more lightly than the situation warranted.
At least poor Lilian was out of this conversation for now. It really would be far better to speak to her once everyone was calm and she’d had time to reflect on her actions.
“If I were going to spank anyone, for example, should it be you?” Nathaniel suggested, folding his arms and holding Cecily’s gaze.
“I beg your pardon?” she sputtered, her color rising and her heart skipping a beat. “Did you say spank?”
Nathaniel nodded.
For a moment, Cecily thought she saw the twitch of a smile at the corner of his mouth, but then it vanished.
“Since you are willing to take the punishment for this,” he said, apparently taking her silence for agreement, “go to my desk and bend over, Cecily.”
What was happening?
Cecily’s mind and heart were both caught in a whirlwind of confusion, shock, and strange curiosity.
Although Nathaniel’s hair was still tousled and his clothes as rumpled as ever, his face was very calm now, and there was neither anger nor threat in his stance. However, there was a strange authority that, in this moment, made her long to submit.
“You heard me, Cecily,” he prompted. “Only last week you stood at the altar and promised me your obedience. I want you bent over my desk this minute.”
No words came to her lips as her heart raced in her chest and her blood rushed in her veins. Despite her confusion, it seemed her body did know obedience.
Approaching the wooden desk, she stood before it breathless and bent forward.
“That’s right. Now, grip the wood with your hands,” Nathaniel instructed. “You are going to be spanked, Cecily. Not hard, but just the way you deserve. Do you understand?”
No, she understood nothing, but still she nodded.
