Country Mile

AN ABUNDANCE OF LOVE

Adam couldn't stop the lift of the left side of his mouth after hearing Genna's words.

"Don't hold back, huh?"

She shook her head. Though her voice trembled, she confidently walked over to a small bale of hay no taller than her knees.

"I know how bad this was. All of the.. the sneakiness leading up to it. And with all that could have gone wrong..." She bent down until her palms were flat upon it, and waited. "I know I messed up."

Adam wiped his mouth, dragging his hand down his stubbled chin as he took in the sight of his oldest daughter awaiting punishment without so much as a prompt to do so. He had purposely chosen to handle her last because he was expecting an even bigger fuss from her than what Delilah put up. He looked down at the belt in his hand as he spoke.

"I heard you tellin' Delilah 'bout the time I searched your room..."

Glancing up, he saw Genna lower her head. Dark brown hair cascaded over her shoulder like a curtain, hiding her guilt behind it's shades of chocolate and chestnut.

"I remember vividly our conversation from that day. I remember lookin' everywhere, and you promisin' me you had nothin' you shouldn't." He chuckled darkly at the memory. "Where'd ya hide 'em?"

Genna closed her eyes, contemplating whether or not to give up the secret hiding place her sister made. After a quick deliberation, she decided she could still keep the secret, but not tell a lie.

"Delilah had them at the time."

"I see," Adam nodded. "You remember what I told you." He stated, rather than asked.

"Yes, sir."

"You'll get 14 licks of my belt right now, and a good ole fashion spankin' every night for a week."

Genna nodded, feeling relieved the promise he had made all those months ago didn't change regardless of the current circumstances involving a different form of punishment.

Adam moved to stand beside her. He placed his hand upon the small of her back and spoke clearly. "Those spankin's start tonight, so if you got anything else you need to tell me, now's the time."

"All I have to say is, I'm sorry."

"Thank you for your apology." Adam said gently as he rubbed her back. "Alright then. Just so we're clear, this is for hidin' cigarettes, smokin' 'em, climbin' on the roof to do it, and sneakin' packages from your ex friend back in Boston."

Genna let out a breath that sounded an awful lot like a scoff to Adam's ears.

"It was one package," she stiffly corrected.

It was definitely a scoff.

Adam narrowed his eyes at the back of her head. "It was one too many," he snapped, griping the waist band of her leggings in a tight fist.

He raised his arm and let the belt fall. Thankfully after already dealing with Delilah, he knew exactly how much strength to use. The sound of the leather connecting with her bottom resonated throughout the empty barn. Genna sucked in a breath and immediately stood up straight, thrusting both hands behind her.

She shook her head vigorously. "I change my mind!"

"Put your hands—"

"Nope! Nope. No. You are not using that thing on me," Genna declared as she tried to do a sidestep around the small hay bale.

Adam gave a swift tug with the hand that held her leggings and pulled her back to him. He brought the belt down again which brought forth a yelp from Genna. She twisted her body but couldn't break his hold.