Page 31 of Dark Holiday

Daniel

Why can’t that punk just leave her alone? Hell. Can’t John just wait until after she’s officially fired to make his move? Though, knowing him, being unemployed would be a huge dealbreaker. He likes his women as affluent as he is and hates the idea of getting stuck with a gold digger. I watch Cindy as she gets up from her desk. Something’s wrong. I can tell just by the slump of her shoulders. I wonder if it has anything to do with where she was all afternoon.

Throughout the meeting, my phone buzzed at me, alerting me to the fact that she had moved from the office. I thought I made it rather clear how I felt about her taking a cab. They just weren’t safe. What the hell was she thinking traipsing all over town in a death cab instead of working? If she doesn’t have a clear, rational answer for me, I’m firing her now and not letting her have the additional two weeks to find another job.

One way or another, she’ll learn, even if it’s the hard way. I open my door and pause, blinking. Each blink, I think the horrendous scene will disappear, but it doesn’t. In fact, it gets worse. It’s as if the North Pole threw up in my office. Boughs of holly and tinsel drape around every free corner of the room, hanging down on the walls. Any area that isn’t donned with green or silver sports ornaments. Hell, even the ceiling has icicles dripping down. Not one corner is left untouched.

Red clouds my vision, and this time, it’s not just from anger. Small lights twinkle from red to green to white, flooding the space in holiday coloring. “Cynthia Anne Lewis, you will go to your desk and not leave it until after every person has gone home. At that time, you will present yourself here in this office. Do you understand me?” I growl, doing everything in my power to keep my temper under control.

Her voice is soft, barely a whisper, and I wonder if I imagined it. A light thread of fear clouds the words “yes, Sir.” She should be frightened. She directly disobeyed me. I don’t care what we agreed on. I don’t care what she said. Tonight, Cindy Lewis will have a bottom that matches the red glow of the lights. What happens after that, I don’t care.

She leaves and closes the door behind her, leaving me alone in this mess. Luckily for both of us, five o’clock is almost here. Soon, she will answer for what she’s done and give me an explanation; though, it doesn’t really matter what it is. Her ass will be blistered either way. Lowering my hands, I skim my fingers across the shiny leather. If only I had my better belt. This one will sting, but it won’t curb her behaviors or correct her like the one I have at home.

That one is well used, worn from work and discipline, but this will have to do. Shoving aside as much Christmas crap as I can, I free my chair and sit behind my desk. There’s no use working, not when we’re this close to closing. Besides, with her galavanting across the town and desecrating my workspace, I’m sure she hasn’t had time to schedule things or reply to emails.

Pulling up the screen, my anger rises as I count the unread messages. True, she’s doing her best to go through them now, but that doesn’t change the fact that there shouldn’t be twenty-five messages sitting in my inbox. I yank my pad over to me and scribble the number down on the paper.

Next is to check the voicemails. Picking up the phone, I listen through the recording until I get to the number. Twenty. Twenty-five emails and twenty missed calls. In my business, that’s money just pouring down the drain. I write twenty under the twenty-five and fiddle around with figures until the five o’clock shows up on my phone.

Any minute now, her curvy form will darken my doorway. What happens after is all up to her. About five minutes later, she opens the door, her face red and blotchy. She’s already been crying. Her tears do nothing but spur me on. Obviously she feels awful about her actions, and what kind of a Daddy would I be if I let her sit and stew without offering a way to apologize? In fact, this is just the opportunity I’ve been hoping for. Maybe now we can put all this behind us and finally move forward.

“Come here.”

She flinches at my words but walks towards me. Her feet are bare, which is probably a good thing. I don’t need her flinging a heel at my face. “Look, Daniel, I’m -.”

“I will ask you one more time. Have you earned the right to call me Daniel?”

“No, Sir. But -.”

Sighing, I rub the bridge of my nose. “Again with the buts.” Walking around the desk, I move past her to lock the door. The last thing I need is some nosy coworker wandering in because they forgot something. “I want you to take a good look at this office. Go ahead. Look around. There’s a lot to take in.”

She doesn’t move.

“Don’t want to see your handiwork? Sure seems like a lot of time was put into this. Time that I’m sure could have been better spent elsewhere. What else could you possibly have been doing? Hmm? Oh! Wait. I know.” Storming over to my desk, I grab the pad and walk back over to her. “Let’s see now. That’s twenty missed calls and twenty-five unanswered emails. Trust me. I was being generous. Who knows how many emails you got through before I checked?”

She opens her mouth, no doubt to spew more lies at me, but I cut her off. “Turn around and put your nose in the corner.” Her mouth drops open as her eyes widen. “Do I need to convince you to obey me right now?” I slide my hands lower, fingering the belt buckle. God help me, but her look of shock morphs into heated arousal, and I nearly come on the spot.

Gripping her by the arm, I lead her over to the least decorated corner and shove her in, planting her nose against the wall. “As I’m sure you can tell, I'm very irate with you. So you will stand there while I talk, not making a sound. Am I clear? For every noise of protest I hear, I’m adding to your punishment.”

Cindy whips her head around, pinning me with a desperate look that almost melts me on the spot, but I can’t let that happen. She’s pushed and pushed, and now it’s time I give her what we both want and what she truly needs.

“No buts.” I put her head back in and skim my hands down her arms, relishing in the goosebumps that explode over her skin. “You’ve been very naughty today, haven’t you, Cindy? You’re allowed to either nod or shake your head.” A moment passes before she gives her head a nod.

“Ahh. That’s my good girl. Finally, telling the truth. Do you know what I do to naughty little girls?” Another moment and she shakes her head. “I punish them, Cindy. That’s what I do to girls that can’t follow the rules.”

Reaching down, I grab the hem of her skirt and draw it up, revealing the backs of her thighs, so creamy and smooth. If only I had my cane with me. “So then, where should we start?” She’s wearing the red set of panties today, the ones she teased me with that first day. Perfect. Soon her ass will match the color of those delectable strips crossing over her ass.

In a single, fluid movement, I tuck the hem into her panties, framing her ass for me. The best target I’ve ever had. “Let’s see. There’s the matter of decorating my office when I said no. There’s the matter of taking a cab when I said no.” She turns, her mouth open. “Shall I start punishing you now?” Turning back around, she buries her nose in the corner and shakes her head. “Where was I? Oh, that’s right. There’s the work you didn’t do after I specifically told you to do it, resulting in a large quantity of missed calls and emails.”

I move back a touch and turn one of my guest seats around to sit and watch her. Shaking my head, I glance around the room again, stunned at how much crap she managed to stuff into this space. It must have cost a fortune. Though she’s received a few paychecks by now, she really shouldn’t have spent her money on something so frivolous. It’s just like her to throw her money away while also being a brat.

“How much did this cost you? You’re allowed to answer.”

Her head whips around, pure panic lighting up her eyes. Damn. That much?

“Nothing…really.”

“When are you going to stop lying to me? We’re close to Christmas. Even on sale, this is a lot of crap. How. Much?”