Our tale began here.

Roberta had felt the burn of Jake’s hand where her bottom met the saddle all the way home. Now she was in sight of the ranch and home her tummy twisted up some at the thought of what her father might say; what her father might do. Her awareness of her bottom became all the more intense with this last thought. She looked at Jake who smiled encouragingly.

“I’ll explain,” he said.

“That,” she replied pointedly, “Is what I am afraid of.”

Jake snorted in amusement but he didn’t say it. He didn’t say that she had been a reckless fool and only had herself to blame. Instead he smiled again and said, “I tell me about us too.”

Roberta sighed heavily and rolled her eyes. “But…”

Jake wasn’t listening and urged his horse forward. Within a few minutes they were at the house.

Robert Rand-Daly strode out to meet them. Today he was a man of purpose and his eyes were as deadly as guns.

“Good morning sir,” Jake said evenly and inclined his head politely.

“Jake Goodman I presume,” Robert shot back in a gravel voice.

“Mr Rand-Daly,” Jake acknowledged. “Had some trouble: pulled your daughter from the river,” he began.

“Daddy I couldn’t get home, Jake…” Roberta chimed in sounding less assertive even than she felt.

Roberta swung his hard gaze to his daughter and glared. “Get your tail over to the barn right now young lady, you and me are about to have a long, long talk.”

Roberta gasped and then blushed as she shot a glare at Jake, but she didn’t need telling twice and scurried away without meeting either man’s eyes.

“Sir, perhaps…” Jake put in, but then paused.

Robert swung around and looked the younger man up and down. Then his expression softened down to regular severe. “I have no doubt that you are an honourable man and I thank you for bringing my daughter home.”

Jake nodded. “Then you have no objection to me calling on her?”

Robert pursed his lips thoughtfully and then gave a small nod. “You can call here I guess, but you won’t be seeing her at your place for a while.”

Jake smiled and proffered his hand. “I understand Sir.”

Robert shot a glance in the direction of his daughter walking towards the barn with her nose in the air and then turned back to Jake and took his hand. “Look forward to seeing you Mr Goodman, but if you excuse me I have an unpleasant chore that needs attending to”

Jake nodded.

*

Roberta had finally stopped crying but her shame wasn’t over. For once instead of sending Roberta to her room to attend her ‘wounds’ he had ordered her to tuck her skirts and petticoats up to her waist and leave her draws at her ankles while she stood in the creosote-stinking corner of the barn.

Then he had left her with the command, “you can stay there a spell and think things over,” adding, “Else you and me will have another longer little talk.”

“Yes Sir,” she had sobbed, all the while wondering if she had any skin left on her bottom.

With her shiny red hiney on show to any of the hands passing by, the heat in face glowed just as hot and she stamped her foot in frustration. It had been years since she had been put to this shame. It was almost worse than the licking she had just gotten. Then she shuddered. No not quite, Daddy was mad this time.

He had taken no time to meet her in the barn.

“Reputation is everything,” he had snarled.

“Yes daddy,” she had whispered meekly in response, “But Jake knows…”

“Mr Goodman knows, I agree and if his intentions are honest… well we will see, but I don’t work on if, buts and maybes, not in this life. Nor will you.” Her father sighed.

“No Sir,” she had answered with a purse of her lips. She knew what was coming and this time the men were up and about and would hear everything. If not see, she realised in horror.

A minute later she had been bare bottom upwards over the rail while her father doubled up the strop.

“When I am done you will know what God gave you a tail end for,” he said sharply, “And any sass, back chat or anything at all that isn’t a ‘yes sir’ out of your mouth and I’ll send you to cut a switch when I am done and welts like worms on top of what you are getting.”

“Yes Sir,” she mumbled.

It had been bad, bottom-blazing wrath of heaven bad. Her seared sitting-skin had sung louder than she had, and still raged now so that it was all she could do not to dance around and stick her hiney out to any passing eyes. By convention and orders her hands were planted on her head and well away from rubbing her bottom. She absolutely dared not grab her tail; the switch was not to be considered. Especially if her father handled things the way her mother had: sent to cut it from the yard with her hiney already well-bared.

As it was her father left her to mull it over for over an hour, an hour that seemed more like a week by the time she was sent to her room.

*

Later that week Jake arrived for supper as arranged.

At first he seemed a dot on the horizon, then a fast moving silhouette across the grassland. Roberta, who had been standing vigil for his arrival for almost an hour, hugged the porch post in expectation as he her eyes scanned the approaching horseman to confirm his identity.

The butterflies in her tummy got more active now and she was aware of her own breath as if she had forgotten the basics of respiration.

“Is that your young man?” Her father chuckled from behind her, as if it could be anyone else out here.

“He is not my…” Roberta flushed and then the irritated glare to her father softened and turned to a shy smile.

Her father smiled back and winked.

At that moment the residual tenderness in her bottom from the licking her father had given her just days before reasserted herself and with a strange nostalgia she guessed that was the last spanking her daddy would ever give her.

“Do you like him?” she whispered.

“I guess I do,” Robert Rand-Daly said decisively.

The horseman closed quickly now and suddenly Jake was in the yard grinning as he wheeled the horse. No one commented on the fact that he was wearing his Sunday best as he dismounted.

“Good evening sir,” he said, adding politely, “Ma’am,” As he tipped his hat.

“Oh Jake,” Roberta joshed him and trotted forward to hug him.

“Come in Jake,” Robert smiled broadly, “Let’s get you a drink.”

“Don’t mind if I do sir,” Jake responded while still holding on to Roberta for a second too long.

“Robert, call me Robert,” Robert said and led the way into the house.

*

In the weeks that followed Jake called more and more often until he was given to riding over for dinner without a specific invitation. On one of these visits Jake and Robert found themselves smoking on the porch together while Roberta did the dishes.

“I expect you are working yourself up to ask me something,” Robert said as he sucked on his pipe.

Jake frowned for a second but caught the older man nodding his head in the direction of his daughter in the kitchen. He sighed, “I reckon I am,” Jake said.

“I own twice as much land as you do, but reckon that isn’t your interest right now,” Robert continued.

“No Sir,” Jake agreed. “Do I have permission to ask Robert for her hand in marriage?” He didn’t know how else to put it now that the subject had been raised.

“Finally,” Robert chuckled.

There was an uncomfortable silence as they both took a drag on their pipes. Jake waited on edge for an answer.

Instead Robert looked thoughtful. “Roberta needs pretty firm handling, if you know what I mean?”

“I do sir,” Jake agreed.

“Do you? My Alice didn’t, not really. She was always the sensible one. Oh I had cause to put her across my knee from time to time, I mean all women need that… leastways my Alice did and told me so.” Robert blew a smoke ring. “No a spanking is one thing, but Roberta is headstrong. She will need a trip to the barn or woodshed more often than you might think. Hell you will probably wear out more leather and tree switches long before you wear her out.”

Jake frowned and wondered if he should argue. “My business surely,” he said at last.

Robert laughed.

“Jake Goodman don’t you think you should ask a girl before you talk about such things?” Roberta snarled angrily as she came on to the porch.

Robert frowned. “See what I mean? Someone has been eavesdropping.”

“I think I am beginning to,” Jake chuckled.

Robert tapped out his pipe and smiled indulgently. “Reckon I’ll step inside for a spell and let you two talk,” he said.

Roberta stood with pursed lips watching as her father retreated before turning to Jake. “Well?”

Jake opened his mouth to reply and then closed it again in a firm line.

“Did you ask him?” she pressed him. “Did he say yes?”

“I guess so,” Jake realised he hadn’t exactly had a straight answer. “He said…”

He was cut off by his future wife rushing at him and kissing him in a clumsy embrace as if the world would end.

“W-wait,” Jake pushed her away, but he was grinning.  Then he knelt.

Roberta hugged herself and could not help dancing up and down like a child waiting for candy.

Jake cocked a warning eyebrow and she settled down to a more composed demure stance.

“Roberta Rand-Daly… will you do me the honour of being my wife?” he said in a serious voice.

Roberta sighed and pursed her lips. “Well… maybe,” she teased, “About this spanking you are supposed to give me…”

Jake studied her with a hard stare.

“Oh yes….” She squealed and they were embracing again.

Finally they broke away and Roberta walked to the edge of the porch to take in the sunset with a faraway gaze.

“Well I guess… maybe we should tell your Pa…?” Jake grinned.

“Not so fast,” Roberta said thoughtfully. “I heard what daddy said… I guess he is right, I do need a spanking… very occasionally you understand…” she whirled around to look at him. “But as for taking me to the barn for a good licking… I mean… I think we should talk about that…”

Jake smiled a smile that only reached his eyes as a hint. “Oh we’ll talk alright and I’ll spank you too, often, but if you ever go crossing wild rivers or anything like it again I’ll build a whole barn just for you and when we have done ‘talking’ you won’t sit down for a month.”

Roberta pouted and unconscious hands strayed to her behind. “Are all you ranching men the same?”

“Probably,” Jake chuckled.

Roberta took his arm and they both gazed out towards the wild Red River where it all began.

Ends.