Quarantined With the Cowboy Read online

  Quarantined With the Cowboy

  Kitty Jones

  Copyright 2020

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Author

  The Doctor’s Naughty Little

  Punishing the Babysitter

  Chapter One

  “Once upon a time, there was a little girl who went to sleep exactly when she was asked to. The end.” Meredith set the book down in her lap and looked pointedly at the little girl sitting up in her bed.

  “That’s not how the story goes,” Alice said pointedly.

  “How do you know?” Meredith blinked innocently at her charge. “You’ve never read it.”

  “I’ve read enough,” Alice mumbled.

  “Either way, it’s time for bed.” Meredith was firm. She didn’t want to be. Nobody wanted to be firm with a sweet little girl. That was her job, though. Alice’s father paid Meredith a lot of money to live at their ranch and to make sure things went smoothly. He was away a lot on business, and he was constantly working. As a single dad, he just didn’t have the time to offer Alice that she needed. That was where Meredith came in.

  Sometimes her job was very difficult, but most of the time, it was enjoyable enough. Alice was a good little girl, and despite the fact that she hated bedtime, Meredith really couldn’t blame her. After all, going to bed sucked.

  Period.

  Meredith in particular was quite bad about going to sleep on time. Even though Daniel, Alice’s father, tried to institute a strict everyone-goes-to-sleep-by-ten policy, that just didn’t work for Meredith. Like a naughty kitten, she was sneaky. Only, she didn’t sneak food or string. She sneaked books. Long after Meredith told her employer and his child she was going to bed, she’d lay in bed reading. She’d browse book after book on her Kindle and just let herself become totally immersed in imaginary worlds.

  And oh, she loved it.

  Meredith loved getting swept away in magical worlds where the Daddy Doms spanked their littles, where the service submissives were always rewarded, and where the Dommes always found true love in their submissives. She loved reading about secret underground BDSM clubs, and she loved touching herself to stories where good lovers were rewarded and naughty submissives were spanked.

  Okay, so maybe Meredith needed to get off of the ranch more often. She did, honestly. She went to coffee shops and playdates. She went to the store and she went to meetups with friends. Sometimes she even went to dinner by herself, but most of the time, she didn’t. She liked staying around the house. She loved it, even.

  There were so many wonderful things that she liked about being on the ranch, but sometimes, Meredith felt really lonely. Maybe she should start dating, but that would take time and energy she didn’t have.

  “I don’t want to go to bed,” Alice said again.

  “Sorry, kiddo.” Meredith pulled the covers up to Alice’s chin and tucked the blankets in around her.

  “It’s so early,” Alice yawned. “I’m not even tired.”

  “I know.”

  “It’s not fair,” Alice protested.

  “It’s Daddy’s rule,” Meredith pointed out, but Alice just frowned at her.

  “It’s a stupid rule,” she whispered, hissing the words.

  “Don’t let him hear you say that,” Meredith smirked, winking at Alice. Alice smiled back at her. Now it was like they had a little secret just for the two of them.

  Meredith knew exactly how the 8-year-old felt. She was frustrated with having to go to bed earlier than her friends, but it couldn’t be helped.

  Besides, Alice had to get up early for school the next day. Getting a good night’s rest was important.

  “It’s going to be fine,” Meredith told her.

  “Not likely,” Alice sighed. “You know how my dad is.”

  “Yeah,” Meredith agreed. “I know.”

  She left the room then and quietly closed the door. She paused in the hallway for a minute, listening to make sure Alice didn’t get out of bed and grab her tablet to start playing with it. Meredith really couldn’t blame her if she tried to sneak games after curfew, but it would be Meredith’s ass on the line if Alice stepped out and disobeyed.

  Once she was satisfied that Alice was actually in bed, Meredith went downstairs. She headed into the kitchen to make a snack before she, too, turned in for the night. Daniel wasn’t in yet, so she had the place to herself. It wasn’t unusual for him to work late nights, but on nights like tonight, Meredith worried more than she should.

  There were a few pretty bad cases ofa new virus going around. She didn’t want to be a worrier, but she was anxious. A few schools had shut down in other states, and she wondered if they were going to be next. It would be unfortunate if Alice had to stay home from school, even for a few days. Alice loved her classmates and her teacher was fantastic.

  There was a lot of talk on social media about everything that was happening, but Meredith couldn’t tell if she was worrying too much, too little, or just the right amount. She opened the fridge to see what was inside.

  “Turkey and cheese it is,” she said, pulling the ingredients from the fridge. She grabbed a couple of slices of white bread from a bag, put them on a plate, and carefully layered her cheese and turkey. One layer of cheese, one layer of turkey, and then she repeated that. It was something Meredith’s mom had always done when she was a kid, and Meredith had loved it.

  Loved it.

  Now, even after her mom was gone, Meredith liked finding ways to remember her. What better way to remember her mom than with her favorite treats and snacks?

  Meredith took her plate into the living room. Daniel still wasn’t back, so there was not going to be anyone to tell her she couldn’t eat on the fancy couch. It wasn’t that she was a huge rebel, but…

  Well, Meredith liked lounging around.

  She liked eating on the couch.

  She liked being busy and she liked working hard, but sometimes, at the end of a long, hard day, she didn’t want to worry about anything except just unwinding.

  She set her phone on the coffee table and pulled up her favorite news app. Instantly, a reporter started talking about new cases of the virus that had been popping up all around their state.

  “Shit,” she muttered, shaking her head. She bit into the sandwich as she stared at the news, mesmerized by it. She really couldn’t look away even though she wanted to. People in some places were fighting over things like toilet paper and hand sanitizer. Everyone wanted to get ahead of the virus. Everyone wanted to be one step ahead of everything.

  The news reporter started talking about ways to minimize the spread of infection. Things like handwashing and avoiding public events were supposed to be important. Despite the casual reassurances that everything was going to be okay, however, Meredith felt uncomfortable at everything that was happening. She wondered if they should try to go buy toilet paper, too.

  Maybe some bottled water?

  She’d never prepped for any sort of pandemic event before, so she didn’t even know where to start. Daniel was sort of a prepper. He had a pantry at the house and some supplies in the basement, but those were all for snowstorms.

  What were they supposed to do if they got sick?

  She bit into her sandwich and kept watching. A couple of crumbs dropped onto her lap, but she brushed them off. She could vacuum tomorrow. Daniel wasn’t going to be sitting down on the couch and hanging out when he got home from work. No, he’d do what he always did. He’d come inside, kick off his boots, and go upstairs to bed.

  It was unfortunate, really, that he never wanted to hang out. Not that she could blame him. After all, Meredith was just the help. She didn’t want to be, though. Nope.
Not at all. She wanted to be so much more than the help. She wanted to be wild and sexy and slutty for Daniel. She knew all about his bedroom activities, and that was part of the reason she’d started reading BDSM novels.

  She knew he was a Dominant.

  She knew that Daniel liked to tie women up and spank them and fuck them.

  The idea should be repulsive to Meredith, but it wasn’t. Instead, it made her feel…

  Excited.

  “You dropped a piece of turkey.”

  A deep voice sounded from behind Meredith, startling her, and she jumped, dropping her entire sandwich and the plate. The glass shattered as it hit the coffee table and then bounced to the floor. Slices of shredded turkey went…everywhere.

  It was him.

  Oh fuck.

  It was him.

  Why was he home now?

  Why hadn’t he gone to bed?

  And why, oh why, did Meredith suddenly wish he’d punish her for her bad behavior with a spanking?

  “Sorry,” she managed to get out. Somehow, it was the only word she could say, and it didn’t seem to be nearly good enough.

  Sorry.

  It was the type of word she knew was appropriate to use in a situation, but somehow, it didn’t seem to cover everything she ought to be saying.

  Sorry.

  “Sorry?” He asked, raising an eyebrow. Meredith let her eyes roam Daniel’s toned body. He was a cowboy through-and-through. There was no doubt about that, no question. He was wearing a flannel and jeans with a belt buckle as big as her hand. His feet were in socks. He’d obviously taken his boots off by the door to avoid tracking mud through the house.

  “Yes,” she whispered, looking back at his eyes. She wanted to lick her lips. Fuck, she wanted to, but she somehow managed to convince her body to listen to her, just this once.

  “Meredith, what’s the house policy on food in the living room?” He asked, raising an eyebrow, and she wondered what she was supposed to say now. He seemed to think that her transgression was a pretty big deal, and unfortunately, that didn’t bode well with her. She was a good employee and an incredible nanny. She was always doing everything he asked her to. In fact, she never took time off from her job. Raising Alice was her entire life, and she liked it that way.

  What more did he want from her?

  Was he really going to flip her shit because she’d gotten a couple of fucking crumbs on his carpet?

  It wasn’t like Daniel was going to be bending over backwards to clean up the living room, either, and there wasn’t some sort of live-in maid or anyone who dropped by to tidy up. Nope. All of those responsibilities fell to Meredith, and she never complained about it.

  Ever.

  Yet here he was, marching in after a long day and demanding that she be perfect.

  Well, fuck that.

  Meredith had been demure, and she’d been kind, and she’d – mostly – listened to his rules, but things were about to change. They had to. She was ready for them to.

  She stood up, ignoring the crumbs, and the spilled sandwich, and the broken plate, and she turned to him. She put her hands on her hips, and she felt her breasts bounce a little when she did. Sure enough, Daniel’s eyes flicked – just for a second – to her bosom.

  “What the fuck is your problem?” She snapped.

  Daniel looked stunned.

  She’d seen him angry with his workers, and he’d always been patient despite his frustrations. She’d seen him with his dates and she’d watched them disappear back into his “private quarters,” which she knew was a code for sex dungeon. She even had seen him when he was frustrated with his daughter, but she’d never seen him like this.

  She’d never seen him look quite this shocked.

  Not like this.

  His eyes narrowed quickly, though, and he moved swiftly to her, grabbed her ponytail, and yanked it backwards before she knew what was happening.

  “Ouch!” She cried out, but he didn’t let go. He just looked into her eyes, staring at her, and he watched her. His hold was tight and firm, and he didn’t show any signs of relenting.

  “Try again, princess,” he said.

  “Try what again?”

  “Try speaking to me again. This time, be polite.”

  “Okay, what the fuck is your problem, sir?” She hissed at him. She added the sir as a sort of jab. He wasn’t her Dominant. She didn’t have one of those. She knew all about them, though, from her books and her stories and her fantasies. She spent most of her nights fantasizing about the men and women from the books she read, but she was embarrassed to admit that Daniel was the star of most of her fantasies.

  At least, the ones that got her off were all starring him.

  Before she could register what was happening, he was on the couch and pulled her over his lap. Then he started spanking her on the ass swiftly and sharply.

  “Ouch!” She shrieked, and she wiggled to get away, but he placed his hand on her back and held her there. Her think tank top barely covered her breasts or tummy and her pajama pants did nothing to protect her bottom from his fierce hand.

  He ignored her protests and he spanked her over and over until she stopped fighting him, relaxed against his legs, and started to quietly cry.

  Why had she mouthed off against him?

  She shouldn’t have.

  She should have been a good girl and been polite to him. After all, it wasn’t that big of a deal, right? It was a broken plate and a spilled meal. She could easily clean it up and put it away. She should have just apologized for real, cleaned it up, and gone to bed, but she hadn’t. She’d been irritated about the news of the virus spreading throughout the country, and she’d taken that anger out on Daniel.

  “You were rude to me,” he said, spanking her over and over. Although his voice sounded forced and tough, she was lucid enough to realize that his spanking was controlled and methodical. He had a rhythm set in the way that he spanked her. He paddled her like it didn’t bother him. He wasn’t upset about this. Judging by the way his hard cock was poking into her tummy, she’d say that he was actually enjoying it.

  “I’m sorry,” she said, but it came out messy and sloppy because she was crying.

  Oh, she didn’t want to sob.

  Not now: not for him.

  She didn’t want to offer Daniel her tears, but apparently, that was a huge problem because he was taking them, anyway. He was spanking her like nothing else mattered at the moment, and she knew that it didn’t.

  He had nowhere to be. He had all night, in fact, so Meredith just closed her eyes and let the spanking come.

  Chapter Two

  He hadn’t been expecting the demure little nanny to sass him, but Daniel wasn’t exactly sorry that she had. He wasn’t sure what had come over him when he decided to spank her, but he recognized bratty behavior for what it was, and he instantly knew that Meredith needed – and wanted – some firm boundaries in place.

  He’d instituted a lot of rules for her so that she knew exactly where the lines were in their relationship. He had given her a bedtime and he had strict rules for how she spent her days, but he’d done that because Meredith was the type of person who flourished under a routine.

  She needed that, and even though he wasn’t her Dom, he’d given her a routine that she liked, and she’d done wonderfully with it.

  But lately, she’d been agitated.

  He thought he knew why. Everyone had been agitated. Hell, the entire world had been agitated. People had been frustrated with the government’s lack of response to the viral outbreaks happening across the country. He was frustrated, too. Everyone was.

  But he also knew something that Meredith didn’t: something that was going to change everything.

  He stopped spanking her when he felt she was finished. Her body had relaxed against his lap, and she’d finally started to cry. Good. Some submissives needed that release, and he knew perfectly well that she was, indeed, a submissive. She had to be. He knew what naughty books she’d be
en reading and he knew that she stayed up late and read them. She probably touched herself to the stories. He didn’t have any proof of that, but he suspected.

  He knew about her reading habits because he’d seen the books on her Kindle once. She’d handed him the Kindle, passing it out of the way while she was clearing off a table, and he’d glanced down at it. He hadn’t meant to snoop or pry, but he’d been surprised when he’d spotted a device full of books by Tara Crescent, Golden Angel, Sophie Stern, Cherise Sinclair, and Lexi Blake. There had even been a couple of Renee Rose spanking romances on there.

  Hot stuff, he knew, and he was more than a little turned on knowing that Meredith liked that sort of thing.

  He pulled her up to a sitting position, but kept Meredith on his lap. She looked up at him, blinking. Her face was wet: covered with tears and slobber from her crying.

  “Why were you mouthy with me?” He asked.

  “I’m sorry,” she whispered, closing her eyes.

  He cupped her chin and tilted it up. She opened her eyes and looked right into his.

  “Not what I asked.”

  “But I apologized.”

  “Meredith, I want to know why you were short with me.”

  She looked like she might lie. She looked like she might make something up: like she might tell him a story that wasn’t exactly completely true. If she did that, he’d be disappointed because it would mean punishing her again and oh, he really, really didn’t want to spend any time punishing this submissive.

  He wanted to spend his time playing with her.

  It would be wildly inappropriate, he knew: a cowboy and a nanny, but it would be fine. It would be more than fine, actually: it would be great. He’d had a crush on her for the longest time, but he’d never worked up the nerve to approach her about starting a relationship. Oh, he suspected that she might be open to the BDSM elements of his life, but he’d never been ready to cross that boundary.

  Until tonight.

  Until tonight when she mouthed off to him and made it clear that she was willing to change everything.