Chapter 14
Lucrezia could still see the blinding morning sun through her closed lids. She squeezed them tighter, trying to fight the morning that would demand their attention.
If she could stay here in bed all day with Romero, she would in a heartbeat.
She felt his body beside her and heard the sound of his breathing, a comfort to her still in the weeks following their marriage.
He had not spent a single night away from her thus far and made a clear divide between his work and personal time, of which he devoted to her.
Lucrezia sleepily smiled, shifting her body to roll onto her side. When she did, a cramp hit her midsection.
She brought a hand to her belly through her thin night dress and winced when she pressed down.
Her fingers made contact with something warm and wet. Lucrezia”s eyes shot open.
Gently-but with haste-she removed the covers and found that her cycle had started some time in the night. It was staining her, the sheets, and some of the comforter on top of them.
No, no, no!She panicked inwardly, whipping her head toward Romero.
What do I do, what do I do?
She bit down on her lip to keep from sobbing in sheer humiliation.
Romero was still sound asleep.
If she could make it to the bathroom and clean herself up, he wouldn”t see what had happened. But there were still the sheets.
Oh, God, he would be livid. Those linens alone probably cost him a fortune.
She fisted the comforter as another cramp hit her, and she curled up in a ball.
Lucrezia, do something, damn you!
When the pain subsided, Lucrezia cast one more glance at her husband. Still asleep.
She rose ever so slowly and carefully from the bed, doing her best not to drag her body over the sheets, lest she smear more of her blood.
A load of good that did because she had stained more than initially expected when she was able to stand beside the bed and inspect the damage.
Panicked, she tiptoed to the bathroom, being sure to avoid the creakier spots of the floor.
Thank God she was light on her feet, a skill she learned from her childhood living with her parents when she wanted to sneak food from the kitchen without them knowing about it.
She shimmied through the small opening of the door, keeping one eye on Romero.
The door groaned slightly when she began to shut it, making her cringe.
Lucrezia turned the knob to the left to avoid the latch making any sound. Once it was shut, she turned it back in place and locked the door.
Moving with haste, she stripped herself of her blood-stained gown and slid on a robe.
Lucrezia tried rinsing the material under cold water in the sink, biting back the headache and horrendous back pain that usually accompanied her time of the month.
Tears rolled down her cheeks as the stain refused to budge.
Between her pain and fear of what Romero would say or do once he woke up, it all became too much.
Her cheeks puffed and reddened as she did her best not to uncontrollably sob.
Why hadn”t she remembered? She was usually right on schedule. Lucrezia always kept her overnight sanitary bloomers on hand once the time drew nearer. As she did the math in her head, she determined that it had come early, but since she had not been paying attention, it caught her completely by surprise.
Between the stress of wedding planning and the sudden change of her lifestyle, she should have known her cycle would change with it.
Lucrezia aggressively scrubbed and scrubbed until another cramp hit her. She audibly whimpered, clawing at the counter top.
Suddenly, she heard a knock.
”Lucrezia, are you all right?”
No, no, no! Not now!
She frantically began pulling open drawers to look for her sanitary belts, but they were nowhere to be found.
Then she remembered. They were in her vanity drawer.
She had elected to keep them there to spare Romero from seeing them, too embarrassed to put them with his things.
Her mother made it abundantly clear when she was younger.
”No husband should be made to deal with your feminine problems.”
When he heard her rifling through the drawers, the handle turned.
”Lucrezia, what”s going on in there? Why is this door locked?”
”I”m fine. Everything”s fine!” she called out.
”No, it”s not. Open this door, now.”
She began pacing back and forth, her gown still in the sink.
Lucrezia shut the water off and wrung it out.
No, not good enough. Still stained.
Lucrezia looked down at her feet, realizing there was blood dripping down her thigh, and a little got on the pearly white floors.
”Oh, God, no!”
Clearly having heard her, the door knob began frantically turning.
”Lucrezia! What”s going on? Open this door right now!”
”Romero, don”t come in!”
”I mean it, Lucrezia. Open up right now. I know something is wrong!” She listened to the sound of him trying to pull the door open.
A thud followed.
Was he actually launching his shoulder into the wood?
Her heart hurt at hearing her husband”s panic. More than anything, she wanted to fly in his arms, but she was too embarrassed to let herself be seen.
”Please, Romero, just leave me alone.” Lucrezia covered her face, wishing a black hole would open up in the floor and swallow her.
”I”m going to count down from five. If this door is not opened, then I will break it down. Don”t think I won”t.”
”Romero...”
”Five...four...”
”Please, Romero, I don”t want you to see!”
”Three...”
Lucrezia raked her nails over her scalp, weighing the options in her mind.
”Two...”
She sighed and rubbed her cheeks dry, resigning herself to being disgusting to her husband from here on out.
”One!”
”All right, all right!”
She shakily unlocked the door, and Romero barrelled inside.
”What do you think you”re doing, locking the door? What happened? Are you hurt?”
Romero assessed her, checking her for obvious wounds. He was shirtless and only wearing his sleep pants hung low on his hips.
”Don”t touch me!” Lucrezia tried to push him away when his hands reached her abdomen.
”Lucrezia, what has gotten into you? Enough of these games! Talk to me!”
She skirted away from him, hugging herself when the pain in her lower stomach began again.
Romero”s eyes fell to the damp gown in the sink, then followed a trail of blood down her legs and on the floor.
He kept one hand on the door frame as he stretched out to examine the bed.
Lucrezia watched him piece it together in his mind, wanting to just die of shame.
Romero softened his approach, and he pulled her into his arms despite her resistance.
”Oh, baby, sweet perla. I understand, it”s okay.”
”No, don”t look at me, I”m disgusting!”
”Lucrezia, no. Don”t ever say that, do you hear me?”
He refused to let her go, but Lucrezia was sure she”d stain him as well.
”It hurts.” She pulled away from him, much to his grievance.
”Come on, I”ll run a hot bath for you.”
Despite her protests, he filled the tub for her and removed her robe. Then, he pinned her hair up.
Lucrezia crossed her thighs together, determined not to allow him to see the blood. She grimaced as she folded her arms over her aching midsection and attempted to step away from him.
”Perla, let me help you in. It’s just you and I here. Remember, you can trust Daddy.”
Tearfully, she allowed him to see her naked body and gently place her in the bath.
Romero lined up the necessary products, pushing her further down into the tub to encourage her to soak.
”Stay here, Daddy will take care of it.”
He offered her a kiss on the head.
Lucrezia began to say no as he turned his back.
When she heard rustling of the sheets, her eyes widened.
He was stripping the bedding!
”No, Daddy! Don”t! I”ll do that!”
Romero returned to the doorway when he heard the splashing of the water, assuming that she meant to get out.
”Don”t you dare get out of that tub, little girl.” He pointed his finger in warning.
She obeyed but stretched her neck to try and get a glimpse of what he was doing.
He passed the doorway, carrying the heap of stained blankets over his shoulder.
When he reentered the bathroom, he squeezed the remaining water out of her gown, much to her mortification.
”Don”t...” she begged, drawing her knees up to her chest and burying her face in them.
She heard his feet pad out of the bathroom. The door to their bedroom opened and shut, then he came to the bathroom again and began cleaning the floor.
Lucrezia”s body seized in another violent cramp, preventing her from trying to dissuade him from doing so.
Romero grimaced himself when he saw how much pain she was in.
He made quick work of cleaning the floor, removing any trace of her blood.
”It”s dirty. I”m dirty.”
Lucrezia mumbled as she turned away from him in the bath.
”First of all, that is false. Second of all, if I was bothered by a bit of blood, then I”m in the wrong business, sweetie.”
She frowned at the rightness of the second part of that statement, but she felt dirty all the same.
His hand dipped below the water to rub her stomach once he was done cleaning.
”Ow!” She flinched at the sharp pain.
”I know, perla. Daddy”s here. I”m going to help you.”
Romero began to wash her body, letting her have as much time as the hotness of the water allowed.
Lucrezia was forced to limply accept her husband”s care, giving him one limb at a time and sitting up when he instructed her to.
When he began cleaning between her legs, she turned her face away so she wouldn”t need to look at him.
If she did, the tears would fall.
”Lucrezia, don”t turn away from me. I”m your husband. My job is to care for you. That”s all I want to do.”
”But not...this! Anything but this!” She stubbornly crossed her arms.
Romero didn”t answer, only continuing to clean her body and letting her stay in the tub until her fingers began to prune.
He procured a fluffy towel, lifting her up and carrying her back to the bedroom.
She sat at her vanity being quickly dried before he began searching through the drawers.
Too embarrassed, Lucrezia chose to remain silent through the rest of the process.
How Romero knew how to pin the sanitary napkin in place with the belt, she would never know. But she was forced to hold on to his shoulders as he slid the garment up to her hips.
”Where else do you feel pain, perla?”
There would be no stonewalling him anymore, evident by how he cupped her chin and stared into her irises.
Lucrezia pointed to her sore breasts, frowning when he neglected to pull a brassiere from her drawer.
Her eyes widened when he slid the chemise over her naked skin.
”You won”t be needing a brassiere today if you”re in pain. No corset, either. Today, there will only be bloomers and this.” He pinched the fabric of her chemise.
Her mouth gaped at his nerve, and Romero didn”t continue dressing her.
”You don”t expect me to walk around like this today, do you?”
Lucrezia dramatically waved her hands over her form.
”Of course, not. I”ll finish dressing you once you”ve been punished.” Romero crossed his arms and cocked his head toward the stripped bed.
”What? No!”
”Yes.”
”Why?” Lucrezia shrieked when he gently marched her to the bed.
”You didn”t wake me up when you needed help. Instead, you chose to sneak out of our bed, lock yourself in the bathroom, and refused to let me in. Why did you do that?”
Lucrezia whimpered as he positioned her atop a pillow. Unfortunately, it raised her bottom obscenely high, giving him an impeccable angle to perform his punishment.
”I didn”t want you to see! You”re not supposed to be burdened with...that! It”s unclean and embarrassing.” Lucrezia glared at him. How could he not see this?
”Says who? Hm? Is there some written law somewhere that states a husband can”t help his wife during her cycle?”
Lucrezia buried her face in her arms.
”Did you ever consider that maybe the idea that a woman is unclean when she bleeds was conjured up by some vastly over-confident man thousands of years ago as a way to control them?”
She raised her head, letting the thought sink in.
”Well...no.”
”And did you ever think that since literally every human being on Earth bleeds all the same, there”s absolutely nothing about a woman”s monthly blood that makes her in any way, shape, or form dirty or unclean?”
”Daddy...”
”No, I want you to think about it. If you were, God forbid, severely injured-say you cut yourself with a knife-would you scamper into hiding, lock yourself away, and still refuse my help?”
Lucrezia whined at his explanation.
Now, she felt ridiculous and foolish.
”No, I”d want you to help me,” she admitted.
”Exactly, because blood is blood all the same. You think my men recoil if one of them takes a bullet? Do you think I run screaming if I accidentally cut myself?”
”No...” Lucrezia felt his hand rub her lower back, massaging the soreness away.
”You will never do that again, la mia perla. You will never run from me, hide from me, or shut me away when you need me. I”m your husband. Your Daddy. I will always be here when you need me. Do you understand me?”
Tears began dripping again, falling down her nose and soaking the mattress beneath her.
”Yes, Daddy. I”m sorry.” She sniffled.
Anticipating his palm, her body relaxed into the mattress.
”Are you comfortable? How”s your pain now?”
Lucrezia concentrated on her body, realizing that the hot bath had soothed her cramping. Having the pillow beneath her provided some relief as well.
”It”s better now. Thank you for my bath, Daddy.”
He hummed, pleased with her for the time being.
”You”re very welcome, perla. I plan on doing that every month now, since it helped so much.”
Before she could argue with him, his hand came down on her bottom.
Lucrezia fisted the material of the pillow beneath her as Romero wasted no time in delivering her penance.
A few smacks in, he took a break and massaged her already sore mounds.
”Pain any worse, baby doll?”
”No.”
Smack!
”No, what?”
”No, Daddy! I”m sorry!”
She quickly corrected herself before he spanked her again.
”I think you should keep saying you”re sorry. But while you count. How would you like that, perla?”
Lucrezia pressed herself deeper into the pillow, averting his ever-present palm but also desperate for it. She wanted to feel nothing but him.
She found herself even craving his discipline now.
”I”d like it, Daddy.”
”Good girl. Begin then.”
Smack!
”One. I”m sorry, Daddy.”
Smack!
”Two. I”m sorry, Daddy.”
Smack!
”Three-e-e! I”m sorry, Daddy!”
Lucrezia wailed but never faltered.
She loved that he kept one tender hand on her body, stroking her hair or rubbing her shoulders, while the other did the necessary job of disciplining her.
By the time she got to twenty, her body was exhausted but strangely relaxed. The sting was briefly soothed by her husband, who bent down to kiss each sore cheek.
”You”re such a good girl. My good little girl. But there”s one last thing that I need to solidify this lesson, perla.” He draped his body over hers to groan this in her ear.
Lucrezia found herself pushing her bottom into him, loving how hard he had become.
Romero snapped his jaw around the shell of her ear before getting up and walking away.
A drawer opened. Then, the leathery sound of his belt reached her ears, and her body tensed.
His belt? How could she withstand his belt?
”Daddy?” She moved but was put right back into position when he returned to her.
”I”m here, baby. I”m right here.” His fingers brushed over her hair, followed by his lips.
He ran the cool material over her warmed flesh through her bloomers, making her squirm to get away from it.
”Ah, ah, ah, you need this, baby. This is how a little girl of mine learns that she doesn”t hide from her Daddy and keep him away when she needs help.”
Lucrezia whined as he teased the leather over the mounds, knowing he was right.
She needed his discipline and structure. It was a foolish thing, what she had done.
Lucrezia supposed that had the roles been reversed, and he shut her away, she would be scared. Broken, even.
Recognizing that her husband needed this as much as she, Lucrezia offered her wrists behind her back, silently pleading with her eyes.
He held them at her upper back with a growl, taking her submission as if it were his life force. The sting of his belt came down on her ass through her thin undergarments, making her head shoot up.
She clenched her teeth with a hiss.
”Five, baby. Then you”re all done. You can do it. Keep counting.”
Lucrezia obeyed through a fresh set of tears, by now making a small puddle beneath her head.
The pain from his belt was reminiscent of her days in school, being made to hold on to the wall while the nuns delivered punishment. She wailed then like she was wailing now.
The only difference was the deliverer of said punishment loved and cherished her, doing it for her own good and kissing her tears away afterward. Not only that, but she offered her submission to him.
While she counted down and apologized, she felt free.
When the fiery burn of the belt came down the final time, it cemented her submission.
”One! I”m sorry, Daddy-y-y!!”
Lucrezia”s body was wracked with sobs when Romero finally threw his implement of punishment away
He peeled her exhausted body from the bed and sat back against the headboard, pulling her between his legs and allowing her to release all of her emotions.
She found herself continuing to apologize as she sobbed into his chest, clinging to him.
Her husband and Daddy soothed her to a state of calm in Italian, further proclaiming his love for her and how proud of her he was for taking her punishment.
When her sniffles had grown further apart, he carried her back to the bathroom, wet a cloth, and began cleaning her face.
Lucrezia obediently submitted to his further care, allowing him to complete dressing her in a simple navy blue dress.
She passed him a glance, thankful he chose a dark color, should she stain the fabric. However, he still did not allow her a brassiere or her usual rayon stockings that required her garters.
She was going to protest before Romero held up her knit ones. When she reached out to take them, he pulled back with a tut.
”No, perla. Daddy will do this. Just lift your skirt for me a little. That”s a girl. Hold on to my shoulders.”
Lucrezia lifted her foot for him and watched as he knelt down and rolled the warm stockings up to just above her knee, tying it in place with a ribbon. He repeated on the other side, placing a kiss to her thigh just above the fabric.
”That tickles.” Lucrezia giggled at the feel of his stubble.
He grasped behind her knee to keep her from going anywhere.
”Hmm. Maybe I should grow it out.” He rubbed his day old stubble on her sensitive skin.
”No, I like your smooth face. Beards hurt! I wouldn”t let you kiss me.” She shook her head, teasing him.
Romero raised a brow and stood to his full height, pulling her into his arms. He kissed her with a fiery intensity as he picked her up and whirled their bodies in a circle, like a true Prince Charming.
Maybe a short beard on her Daddy wouldn”t be so bad after all.
”You couldn”t resist my kisses if you tried, little girl.”
He helped her with some simple shoes and set about readying himself for the day, letting her do her hair at her vanity.
Romero kept the bathroom door open, further driving home that there would no longer be barriers between them.
Lucrezia bit her lip as she spied on him through her mirror. The muscles of his body rippled as he moved. She counted his scars; tell tale round wheels in varying shades of pink.
She wanted to kiss every single one of them.
Lucrezia finished off her hair by letting it hang free down her back but held together with a pearl white ribbon.
Romero came back to her fully dressed and putting on his cufflinks.
”Beautiful.” He pressed a kiss to the top of her head and took her hand, ready for the day.
They passed the bunch of stained sheets outside the door, making her cheeks hot.
”I don”t want you to worry about that anymore. It”s all over. The maids will wash them and put new ones on for us. And don’t think I’ll forget; you’ll be taken care of every month. I’ll even put it on my calendar.”
Lucrezia gaped, still hand-in-hand with him as they made their way to the dining table.
”You already take care of me so much!”
”Yes, but I also know you need a little more special attention a few days out of the month, perla. As your husband, and your Daddy, I think it”s not just my job but also my privilege.”
Lucrezia smiled as he pressed a kiss to her knuckles, finding nothing but genuine love behind his eyes.