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“Go fetch the doctor, Phillip,” Johanna said, and the man was out the door before Mia could get enough control of her lips toprotest.
“Come on, we’ll get you warm and dry and then we can have a nice chat,” Alice said, maybe hoping to cheer her. But a nice chat wasn’t really how she wanted to spend her time before she was sunk to DaveyJones.
Chapter 22
“Stop dragging anchor, Mia,”Devin growled out as he waited for Mia to pull the shift over herhead.
“Devin, please,” she pleaded and sniffed. Her face still tear streaked from the long lecture, or perhaps more from the embarrassing fact her three closest friends, the Lovelaces, as well as her physician, all knew this was happening. “Please. I won’t do itagain.”
“You certainly won’t,” Devin snapped and whipped the thin branch through the air. “I have more than one switch Mia,” he informed her. “His Grace was good enough to cut three, and while I say the doctor’s is more like a cane in thickness, I can certainly try and wear it out on you as well.” He cut the air again with the whippy green branch. “One or four, because if I use them I’ll wear them out.” He rather hoped she believed him, so he wouldn’t be proven a liar. Her pathetic wail was a relief. He’d picked the second lightest of the proffered switches from the several he’d been offered by the men he’d found in his home when he returned rather late. And while Lady Alice and Lady Johanna tried to tell him it was only a simple mishap— Mia was well enough—Doctor Crane, Philip and Mr. Hong were far lessforgiving.
He saw the shift hit the floor and when he looked up it was to see Mia bending to untie her garter. “Leave them,” he told her and when she looked at him he actually saw a hint of lust in her eyes. “I’ll use them to ensure I don’t strike too low.” The lust died. “Remove thedrawers.”
“Captain, please,” Mia begged, a little hiccup in her voice. But she reached for the ties and when they fell, she stepped out. “Thebaby.”
“Now you’ve some concern for our child?” Devin managed to refrain from yelling, though the urge to strangle her was strong. “You seemed to have rather lack of such when you went out on the raft, didn’t you?” He tucked the branch under his arm, stepped up to the bed and pulled the long strip of linen from his pocket, the one he used when he tied Mia up for more pleasurablepurposes.
“Please, you don’t understand, you don’t,” she sobbed as he took hold of her arm and pulled her up to the bedpost. “I can’t bear to be so long on shore. I can’t. I only wanted a few minutes of the sea under me. Devin, pleaseunderstand.”
“I understand completely, Mia. I miss the sea as much as you.” He tied her wrist to the post, then pulling a second strip, took her other hand and stepped over to the other side and tied her there. He didn’t tie her tight, nor did he tie her feet. She’d be able to move to avoid some of the switching, but not much. “That is why I was arranging a sail for us when the weatherwarmed.”
“But you didn’t tell me,” she said as she tested herbonds.
“And you didn’t trust me to see to your needs,” he countered. “The same way I sent word to your friends that you needed company, I’ll always see to your needs. You need to trust me to doso.”
“I’m sorry,” she wailed even louder as he stepped back, cut the air twice more then stepped to her side and tapped the branch on herass.
“Well you will be if you’re not now,” he said and dragged the wicked little length of green wood down the swell of her ass. “Hold on and hold still, lest you get a cut in an unfortunate place.” With that he drew his arm back and laid down the firststroke.
Mia’s hiss turned into a cry as what Devin knew to be an itchy burn set in. After that first stroke he let fly, missing some and not catching her as hard on a good many while Mia danced around and away, tucked and twisted trying to avoid each landing. Still he landed a good number before the switch became so frayed it was useless. Her previously white flesh was crisscrossed with thin red lines, but there wasn’t a single one that appeared to swell or give any indication she was marked. Given how easily she did bruise, Devin wasn’t at all certain this was going to be much of a lesson. But it really didn’t need to be anything more than him showing her he wouldn’t let her behave recklessly because she carried his child. True he knew that was the aspect she’d been counting on when she decided against all sound advice to take the raftout.
He tossed the frayed stick on the bed with the fresh ones as he stepped up to Mia who, while crying, was hardly the sobbing mess she normally was after he disciplined her. “Now, Mrs. Winthrop,” he said softly as he took her chin and forced her to look him in the eye. “Do I need to use up the other three there on the bed or…” she shook her head wildly, “Or are you going to remember who is captain on thisship?”
“Aye, I will, I will,” she promised, still dancing about trying to ward off the effects of the switch. He untied her and her hands flew aft, rubbing at the sting. “Captain, Devin, please. It burns, it… it…” She reached lower, rubbing at the back of her thighs. He’d only caught her there a few times as his aim was fully on herstern.
“It itches?” he supplied and when she turned to look at him, he almost laughed. He distracted himself by gathering up the sticks and snapping them all in half before walking to the balcony and tossing them out into theyard.
“Aye,” her confusion was so clear. “Devin, please. Make itstop.”
“No, Mia mine,” he said, stopping to put out the lamp so the only light in the room was the moon. “It’ll hurt for a while. I won’t give you that relief tonight.” He pulled back the covers, made quick work of divesting himself of his robe and climbed in. “Come here,” he called holding out his hand and pushing up into a more comfortable sittingposition.
With a sniff she stepped to him and took his hand and he pulled her down so she lay cradled in his lap. “This is awful Devin,” she complained reaching back to rub more at herass.
“Aye, it can be,” he said capturing her wrist and preventing her from rubbing. “You shouldn’t like it if I applied a birch to you, and I will next time. Imagine twenty or thirty such switches all striking at once.” Mia shuddered and shook her head against him. His poor wife. She probably couldn’t imagine such a punishment or if she did she imagined it as a great monstrous thing. There were advantages to having a wife who’d never been physically punished. Just the telling of what would be done spilled the wind from hersails.
“Don’t do that to me, Captain,” she begged and curled againsthim.
“Don’t set courses that need to be corrected that way.” He took up rubbing where he’d forced her to stop. She sniffed again, shook her head, and then sighed as she let her legs fall open a bit more. Devin chuckled, but reached for the covers before she could tempt him to give her the relief and release she was asking for. The little siren huffed at the act, then sighed and a few minutes later Devin heard her softsnoring.
Poor Mia. That was truly the punishment for her. Pain without pleasure. But it was also the punishment for him. It was the ballast that kept them on an even keel. And they both depended on it to stay afloat even when someone put holesbroadside.
* * *
“Istill can’t believemy brother cut three,” Alice said with a sad shake of herhead.
“Your brotheralwayscuts three. I can’t believe Doctor Crane cutone,” Johanna said and again put her hand to her throat, but then all three of them burst outlaughing.
Mia buried her face in her hands. “It was awful. It…” Mia admitted, rather happy to have these women to commiserate with. She hadn’t wanted to see anyone today, but Mr. Hong either hadn’t been able to or wasn’t inclined to send them away like sheasked.
