Chapter 5
Chapter Five
Sienna startled as she awoke, confused about where she was for a few seconds before recognizing her surroundings. This wasn’t one of her visions. She really was in her mate’s home. He was holding her in his arms and smiling down at her.
It was hard to trust her reality, though. For days, she’d woken up to visions of Jayce’s house, jolted awake by being yanked into his home so she could watch him prepare her room, eat dinner, wander around the house, or relax on his back porch.
He’d seemed lonely every time she’d visited him. It had made her feel heavy and sad. Had he been waiting for her?
He didn’t look lonely now. He looked pleased. She pleased him.
For the first time in she wasn’t sure how long, she actually smiled. The movement reminded her there was something in her mouth.
Jayce reached to pop the pacifier out from between her lips, making her blush. Had she been sucking on that babyish nipple all this time? Apparently.
Now that it was gone, she felt…odd. Lost. She wanted it back, but she didn’t dare voice that. She shouldn’t crave a pacifier. What was wrong with her?
Nevertheless, a sense of restlessness consumed her. She could feel a ring around her lips caused by the plastic barrier of the pacifier. She must look ridiculous.
Jayce didn’t comment on that, though. He set the pacifier on the table next to him without breaking eye contact. “You slept so hard, Baby girl. I know you were exhausted. I couldn’t bring myself to put you down. I know I should have, but I wanted to hold you and watch you sleep.”
His cheeks turned as pink as hers felt. He was embarrassed from watching her sleep. It was sweet. Everything he did was endearing.
“You slept for three hours,” he continued. “You need to eat or take another bottle.” He gently lifted her into a seated position. “I bet you need to go potty, too.”
At the mention, her bladder made itself known. She did need to pee. Luckily not too badly yet.
“Can you lean forward, Little one? Let me unbutton this dress. It looks like it’s choking you.”
He was right. It was choking her, but she was used to the sensation. She’d been wearing dresses with a high neckline her entire life. Brown ugly ones that gave no indication of any person’s individuality.
Girls in the valley weren’t permitted to express themselves in very many ways.
They all wore the same ugly dresses. They all let their hair grow, only pinning it back.
They weren’t permitted to wear makeup or anything colorful before they were mated, and even then, they remained mostly modest for their entire lives.
Sienna knew more about the private lives of several Alpha Protectors and their mates than she did about any couple in the valley, including her own parents. She had no idea what sort of relationship her mom and dad had behind closed doors. They kept that part of themselves closely guarded.
She supposed she should be grateful she’d never been forced to witness anyone actually having sex in her visions.
That might have driven her to jump off a bridge.
But she had seen them playfully interacting in the evenings or early mornings.
She’d seen Alphas dressing and undressing their mates.
She’d watched them diapering and feeding them bottles.
She’d also seen them doling out spankings and watched their mates stand in the corner.
The recollection made her face heat all over again, and she was grateful when Jayce lifted her off his lap and stood her on her feet, facing away from him.
“Hold on to my thighs while I get the rest of these buttons, Little one,” he ordered softly.
She was quick to obey him, but it felt so intimate standing this close to him, touching his legs. Granted, it wasn’t as though he were naked. He still had on dress pants. Nevertheless, she was unnerved for so many reasons.
Before she could stop herself, she blurted out, “Are you going to punish me, Daddy?”
His fingers stopped moving. After a hesitation, he turned her around and cupped her face. “For what, Little one?”
She shrugged. Why had she asked such a ridiculous question?
His brow was furrowed for long seconds before it smoothed out. He switched to smiling. “Ah. You witnessed other mates getting disciplined, didn’t you, Baby girl?”
She lowered her gaze, embarrassed. “Yes, Sir.”
Jayce set a finger under her chin and lifted her face. “I will likely spank you in the near future, Sienna, but I suspect you don’t understand what you saw or why other mates were being punished.”
She stared at him. Of all the things she’d envisioned, seeing her peers getting spanked had been the most distressing.
Jayce slid his hands around her and pulled her closer, hugging her against him. She loved being near him, and an odd part of her wished he would remove her dress and his shirt so she could touch him skin-to-skin.
“You’ve learned things about our way of life out of order, Baby girl. For that, I’m sorry. You must be extremely confused.”
She didn’t respond. He was right.
“Getting spanked is something most Little girls look forward to.”
She frowned.
He chuckled. “I’m serious. They do naughty things on purpose because they enjoy having their bottoms swatted regularly.”
“That makes no sense.”
“It will eventually. I promise. When you’re ready, I’ll take you over my knees and show you.”
She shivered. “I’ll be good, Daddy. I promise. I don’t even know how to misbehave. It wasn’t allowed. My parents raised me to obey you at all times.”
His smile seemed so incongruent with their conversation.
“It’s impossible for you to grasp until you’ve experienced it, but a spanking can be very cathartic.
It helps Little girls purge themselves of big feelings.
I suspect in the near future, you’ll find yourself faced with responsibilities you never expected.
As you hone your visions, you’ll be invaluable to the pack.
You’ll be called upon to help protect and serve.
It will be stressful and intense. When such an event is over, you’ll want an outlet for all that nervous energy, and the best way to center yourself will be from a firm spanking.
Not a few swats on the bottom but hard slaps that make you cry.
Afterward, Daddy will hold you, rock you, and take care of your every need so you can rest and recharge.
You’ll be grateful for the bottles and diapers.
You’ll be happy to let me take the reins.
There will come a day when you’ll come to me and ask me to please spank you. ”
She gasped. He was out of his mind. Wasn’t he?
Jayce pulled her closer and nuzzled her neck. With the top half of the buttons undone, he was able to push the tight lace aside and kiss her where her shoulder met her neck. It sent chills down her spine and caused her to whimper.
“Trust me, Baby girl. Trust your Daddy to know what you need.”
Most of his words made no sense, but she didn’t argue with him.
Gripping one of her shoulders, he lowered his other hand to her bottom and squeezed her cheek through the layers before patting her there.
Sienna’s breath hitched, and she pressed her thighs together. Something strange spread through her. She didn’t understand it. A longing. For him to spank her? Surely not. It was something more.
He nibbled on her earlobe. “You’re intrigued, Sienna. I can scent it on you.” He patted her butt again. “You’re scared, but a part of you wants to know what it will feel like to have this pretty bottom spanked.”
She gasped and shook her head.
“No reason to deny it, Little one. Daddy will always know what you need and what you can handle. You can’t hide your scent from me, Baby girl.” He gripped her cheek again.
Her scent… Shoot. Was she filling the room with her pheromones? She knew a wolf shifter’s scent was recognized and detected by her mate, but could he discern more than she’d thought?
He kissed her ear again before whispering, “Turn back around so I can finish with these buttons.”
She obeyed him, once again placing her palms on his thighs.
He was so much bigger than she was, and it was extremely obvious as she stood between his legs.
It put her at eye level. He draped her hair over her shoulders, and she could feel his breath on her neck as he continued down the long row of buttons.
“Why do mothers in the valley think it’s a good idea to present their daughters in such elaborate dresses with so many buttons?” he teased.
“I don’t think she really expected you to remove it,” Sienna muttered.
Jayce hesitated. “What?”
She shrugged. “The dress.”
He must have been done because he slid his palms through the opening and around to her stomach on top of her shifts.
It felt so intimate even though he wasn’t actually touching her bare skin.
His lips came to her neck again, sending a shiver down her spine.
“Your mother didn’t think I would take your dress off? ” He sounded confused.
“Umm. She said it wouldn’t be necessary.”
Jayce removed his hands and turned her around to face him yet again. He wore that odd frown of confusion, too. “Did you think we would consummate our union while you still wore layers of clothing?”
“Yes,” she whispered. “I mean, I guess eventually you would have to help me by unbuttoning it, but not for, uh… Not for that reason.”
He stared at her. It was unnerving. She felt exposed even though she still wasn’t exposed at all. The only thing that had changed was that the back of her dress was unbuttoned, allowing her to breathe better, like he’d said.
Jayce brought his hands to her shoulders and lowered the material down, exposing her arms. “Sienna, I’m going to worship every inch of your body when you’re ready. There won’t be a stitch of clothing between us when I do. Never.”
“Why?” She trembled. Her question was serious. She understood the basics of sex, but what did her clothing have to do with it?
“Baby girl…” He smiled as he stroked her biceps. The sleeves were tight enough that the material was bunched up below her elbows. He was going to need to tug it from her wrists to get it off. “You don’t understand the bond between us yet, Little one,” he added gently.
Shifting his attention to her hands, he lifted one and slid his fingers under the lace just enough to pull it down her arm.
She watched, mesmerized as he repeated the action on the other arm, letting the intricate dress fall to the floor around her feet.
Lifting her right arm, he turned it over and glanced down at her marked wrist. “It’s so nice to finally see the mark that so perfectly matches mine.” After lifting his gaze back to hers, he brought her wrist to his lips and kissed the mark.
Sienna gasped. A zing of electricity shot through her body as if she’d been shocked. Not the simple kind of shock a person gets from shuffling across carpet. This was more of a jolt. And now parts of her were tingling, namely her nipples and something between her legs.
Panting, she looked at him. “Daddy…” The endearment slid out easier now. She felt a strange new connection to him. And she wanted to feel more.
He kissed her wrist again, not taking his eyes off hers, lingering so that his lips grazed over her skin.
Sienna clenched her legs together. There was an odd pressure building between them. It scared her.
“When we touch each other with our marks, we’ll be drawn closer together, Little one.”
She swallowed.
“Eventually, I’ll thread our fingers together, line up our two marks and press them against each other. The result will be powerful and irresistible.”
Sienna licked her lips. Her knees were shaking, threatening to give out. “Daddy…” She wasn’t even sure what to ask him.
He lowered her arm and brought his lips to her cheek. “Shhh. What you’re feeling is normal, Baby girl, and I’m going to make you feel so much better.”
With one hand behind her back, holding her in place between his legs, he used the other to trail his pointer down from her neck to her chest. Her layers of shifts were sleeveless and held up by about three inches of material at her shoulders.
The neckline was a circle that reached high enough to cover her chest, keeping her modest.
Jayce danced his finger lower. He brought it to one breast over the top of the shifts and drew a wide circle around her nipple. It was so intimate that she flinched. “Daddy…”
“That’s quickly becoming my favorite word in the English language.” He drew another circle and another, making each one smaller until he finally flicked his knuckle over her nipple.
Sienna jerked in his embrace, her body on fire, her brain confused by a bombardment of sensations. What was happening to her?
Jayce held her in place, not letting her back up while he grazed her nipple over and over before switching to do the same to her other swollen bud. “Let it feel good, Baby girl.”
It felt amazing and frightening at the same time. She was losing control. Her brain wasn’t functioning as if all the blood had left her head. She knew where it had gone, too. Her private parts between her legs were pulsing.
Sienna grabbed his thighs, swaying toward him if that was even possible. She wanted to climb him, straddle him, wrap her arms around his neck. If she weren’t still wearing the long shifts, she would do so. She was hampered by all the material.
Jayce threaded his fingers in the back of her hair, held her head steady, and brought his lips to hers.
Every brain cell left her body the second their mouths touched. All she knew was a floaty sense of bliss as he kissed her. His lips were soft and warm. Gentle and then demanding. He licked the seam of her mouth, causing her instinctively to open for him.
When his tongue slid into her, she whimpered. This connection between them was powerful and growing just as he’d said it would. She let her tongue join his, tasting him, learning how to kiss as he guided her.
She’d seen her parents kiss on rare occasions, but those kisses had been nothing more than pecks on the lips. Nothing like this. This…was earthshaking.
Jayce growled as he tipped her head to one side and molded their mouths together even closer. Still gripping her neck with one hand, he slid the other down to her breast and cupped it through the layers.
Sienna cried out into her mate’s mouth when he pinched her nipple. A rush of need raced through her.
Jayce suddenly jerked his hand away from her breast and released her lips. Panting, his eyes were wide. He looked frightened. “Shit, Sienna. I’m sorry. I got carried away. I didn’t mean to maul you without your permission.”
She frowned. Permission? Her chest rose and fell rapidly as she tried to reorient herself with where they were. The room was spinning.