Page 10 of Rory: His to Discipline

“No, I don’t think so, but what can they do? They love them.”

“I am trying to understand this, Bridget. Molly, she too lets Patrick spank her?”

“I know. That’s the hardest to understand for me too. Molly is so kind and gentle and Patrick is so loving. It’s hard to imagine Patrick doing … that to Molly. Plus, she’s the only one who would see it coming and have time to get away, at least till he calmed down. I tell you Tess, I just don’t get it and when I get ready to start seriously looking for a husband I plan to look far away from here,” she finished with a delicate shudder.

“I see,” Tess said quietly, her hands folded in her lap.

“What I’m trying to warn you about is … if you think you could live that kind of lifestyle, domestic discipline, it’s called, then you should stick around and see if your feelings for Rory grow stronger. If not, girl you better run like hell, because I think my brother has feelings for you as well and I’ll tell you now I’ll bet he would be the strictest of them all.”

Tess swallowed with difficulty. She had been asking herself these same questions. The spanking in the park could have been an isolated incident, based on Rory’s fear that she had put herself in danger. Now, that she had two spankings under her belt, she didn’t think so. The way he spoke to her about defying him, the words that were a natural part of his speech, such as misbehaving and minding him, obeying him. These led her to believe he really saw the world that way and he had a very clear vision of her place in it as submissive to him. If it could include something as simple as a haircut, then it meant he wanted her submission in all things. Could she do that? Could she be the woman he wanted, obedient?

Tess did not think so, although she certainly had been submissive this morning, she thought, as heat flooded her face. That was different. It had not been by choice. He demanded it and she had been helpless in her desire to stop him. The fire he ignited in her body was a mystery to her. A couple of boyfriends, clumsy lovers all, had not prepared her for Rory. It seemed as though he knew the secrets of her body better than she did. How could this be? She read stories of this kind of lover, but she had not believed a man like that really existed. They had not truly even made love yet, although she knew they were headed there if she did not do something quickly. Tess was not prepared for full possession from a man like Rory. Instinctively she knew she would never be the same again. He was too powerful and skilled for her to resist, she knew that also. He would not need force. If he put his hands on her body, she would melt like an ice cube over a flame, giving him everything he demanded. She never considered herself a hot-blooded Latina, a stereotype in her opinion that did not describe her at all.

Most of her life she had been afraid, afraid of being abandoned, afraid of being poor, homeless, helpless. She learned to depend on herself alone, but she was not brave. Living with the O’Malleys had shown her a different kind of life. You could be outspoken, you could argue, even fight for what you believed in and still be loved. Still be part of something bigger than yourself. Still have people ready to take your side, even if you were wrong, and they would tell you too. Not during the crisis, no then they had your back, but after, when things calmed down. This was a life Tess wanted, probably could have if she played her cards right, but ironically Rory brought out the fire in her blood. He frequently made her so mad she could literally brain him with whatever was within reach. How sad that the one man who could send her body and her spirit soaring was also the man who would put her in a box and never let her fly.

* * *

At dinner, Tess tried to keep her eyes on her plate and not stare. Seated next to Rory, she had a perfect opportunity to observe both couples, Patrick and Molly and Colleen and Noah. Maggie and Nick were off on a short honeymoon, as they wanted to be around when Rebecca and Mason had their baby, so she could not watch those two couples. Try as she might, Tess could not see any cruelty in either of the men. Yes, they were both much bigger than their wives, but not in an intimidating way. They appeared loving and kind to Tess and she could not imagine the twinkle-eyed Patrick ever doing anything to cause Molly pain. Noah was a little harder to read. Quiet and soft-spoken, it just did not fit with her idea of what a professor would do. She had to admit Colleen was a little pushy at times, but surely nothing so bad it would earn her a punishment. Molly caught her eye several times during the meal, but Tess looked away quickly in embarrassment. The usual conversation and teasing flew back and forth at the table and no one seemed to notice her silence except Rory; Rory, who never missed anything.

“Babe, I think we need to talk,” he told her quietly in the midst of a heated discussion about whether the NY Giants were headed to the Super Bowl this year.

Tess nodded as she pushed the food around on her plate. She needed to make a plan.

Chapter Four

“Anyone see Tess?” Rory asked; his hands deep in the pockets of his jeans as he leaned against the kitchen door frame.

Maeve looked up and glanced absently around the kitchen. Bridget was drying supper dishes and Colleen was searching through her mother’s recipe book.

“No, darlin’, I haven’t seen her since dinner. Do either of you girls know where Tess is?” she asked, not really concerned. Both women looked his way and shook their heads no, but Rory noticed that Bridget did not meet his eyes. “Have you checked her room? She was lookin’ a wee bit peaked today. Maybe she’s not feelin’ well,” Maeve suggested.

“I did,” Rory answered. “She’s not there. Bridget, do you know where Tess is?” Rory asked again, walking into the kitchen to stand directly in front of his sister. “Bridget!”

“Geeze, Rory, no. I don’t know where she is. I didn’t know it was my turn to watch her,” Bridget finished sarcastically, still not meeting his eyes.

Rory ground his teeth in frustration. He’d wanted to talk to Tess all afternoon, but had never been able to get her alone. A couple of hours ago he got involved watching the football game with his Da and brother and the time slipped away. Now she was nowhere to be found. Bridget was lying, of that he was absolutely certain, but why?

“Bridget, I’m not playing games here, if you know where she is you better tell me,” he insisted, his blue eyes fixed directly on her.

“Rory, darlin’, Bridget says she doesn’t know where Tess is,” Maeve scolded him gently. “Why don’t you go find Molly? Tess went to the store with her a while ago; maybe she knows what her plans were.”

Rory was fuming as he left the kitchen and began looking for Molly. He told Tess they needed to have a talk and she managed to avoid him all afternoon. It was time to make some decisions. Their relationship was headed into much more intimate territory and he would not make love to her under his mother’s roof. He’d like Tess to agree to move in with him or at least move into her own place. Now that she worked most of the day at Nick’s law office and late afternoons at Maggie’s helping out with the house and the kids, she should be in a much better financial position. If he couldn’t talk her into moving in with him, which is what he would prefer, and his mother would hate, he was certainly able to help her out with expenses. Finding a suitable apartment in a good neighborhood shouldn’t be too hard. Rory knew just about everyone on the City Council. Surely someone would know of something decent and available. The most delicate problem would be getting Tess to agree. Rory could be very diplomatic, when he wasn’t rock hard with lust. His gut told him to go upstairs and pack her clothes, throw her over his shoulder when he found her and cart her off to his place, but unless he wanted his fifty-seven-year-old mother whacking him with a broom and telling him he was going to "hell in a hand basket," that wouldn’t work.

So, he decided he would win her the old-fashioned way; he would plot and scheme to make her his. If all else failed, he could always go back to plan one and wear a thick leather jacket to minimize the damage. But first he had to find her.

Heading back up to her room, Rory took the stairs two at a time. Tess would know exactly how pissed off and worried he was when he got his hands on her. She could bring the whole house running with her screams; it wouldn’t stop him from paddling her ass.

Everything looked pretty much normal. Tess didn’t have a lot and from what he could guess she never had. The knick-knacks around the room were all still in place, but they were there before she came. A sinking feeling made him make his way to her closet. Throwing open the door he stood there staring, feeling gut-punched. Her clothes were gone. Walking to her dresser, he pulled the drawers open: nothing, not a damn thing. Cosmetics were still scattered on the top of the vanity, but they could be Bridget’s. Tess wasn’t much for make-up. Stumbling to the bed he sat down. For the first time in his life, he wasn’t sure what to do. Indecision wasn’t part of his nature, nor was fear. Rory was a full-steam-ahead kind of guy. With his incredible strength and sharp mind, he could usually make things go his way. If that wasn’t enough, the force of his will was the kicker. Rory didn’t give up, not on anything. He’d be damned if he let Tess be the first. No half-pint woman, with no more sense than to sleep on a park bench, was going to take him down even if she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever known, and even if he did want her more than he’d ever wanted anyone else.

Rory grabbed her pillow and threw it across the room. How dare she take off without a word? His mother would be hurt, the girls too. He got up and snatched the pillow off the floor to replace it and saw the pink envelope for the first time. She must have hidden it under the pillow for his mother to find. Tearing open the envelope he sat down and began to read.

Dear O’Malley Family,

I cannot thank you enough for all you have done for me. I finally got to know what it was like to live with a real family. You took me into your home and treated me with love and kindness. I will never forget you and hope I will see you soon. I am sorry to leave this way, but I did not want to fight with ‘you know who’. I will still be working for Mr. Nick and Maggie, so I will stay in touch. I cannot tell you where I will be living, but I have made temporary arrangements.

Please do not be angry with me, I love you all so very much. Someday I hope to have a large wonderful family of my own.

Theresa Elena Martinez