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shoulders. She winced as it brushed against her buttocks. She slipped her arms into the sleeves and knotted the tie, still unable to meet his gaze.
    “I wish I hadn’t had to spank you,” Jared’s voice rumbled in her ear. “I expected more from you than to sneak behind my back. If you had a problem with my request, you should have discussed it with me.”
    “I’m sorry,” she whispered, her head still bowed. “I’m sorry for going against your…wishes and buying the shoes.” She could see how spoiled and immature she’d acted, but how did a spanking solve anything?
    He raised his hand as if to touch her, but let it drop. Relief and disappointment warred within her. She wanted to crawl away, to be alone with her thoughts, but perversely, she wanted Jared to hug her, show her with his touch their marriage would endure.
    “It’s over now, Melania,” he said gently. “It won’t be an issue again.”
    She knew he meant her disobedience and dishonesty. Those “issues” might be settled for him, but for her, the “issue” had just begun. The spanking upended everything she thought she believed, thought she wanted in her marriage. She’d vowed to love, honor, and obey for better or for worse, but she’d never considered the worse part. She needed space and time to figure out her next steps. She had to get away to think.
    “You’d better fix your face and finish getting ready. Our guests will arrive soon.”
    She left her husband’s study, her bottom throbbing so much, she hardly noticed the pumps rubbing her blistered feet.
    * * *
    Melania entered the master bedroom and kicked off the nasty shoes that had initiated the end of her blissful ignorance. She would donate them to charity; she didn’t want them anymore. She moved as quickly as her aching ass would allow and retrieved a suitcase from the closet. She didn’t have much time; Jared could appear at any moment.
    She heaved the bag onto their king-size, four-poster bed and tossed items into it, not bothering to fold anything. She grabbed a handful of underwear from a drawer and yanked shirts and pants off hangers in the closet. She threw in some shoes without noticing if she got the mates. She added pj’s and some toilet articles and zipped up the suitcase. She hauled it off the bed and shoved it underneath so Jared wouldn’t see it, but where she could retrieve it easily and move it to her car when she had an opportunity. She couldn’t ask Jared to carry it out for her.
    She picked up the bedside phone and dialed her parents’ number. She watched the bedroom door, her heart hammering a frantic rhythm as she waited for her parents to pick up. She hoped her father would answer. Her mother would offer sympathy, but she needed her father’s permission to return home.
    She didn’t know if her separation from Jared would be temporary or permanent, only that she had to have the space to figure out if she wanted to stay married to a man who would not only demand but enforce her compliance to his “wishes.”
    Her father’s recorded message answered. “You’ve reached the Jackson residence . We’re not available to take your call right now, but if you leave a message, we’ll get back to you.” Beep.
    Tears of frustration welled in her eyes. Her bottom lip quivered.
    She remembered now that her parents were vacationing in France, taking a break after planning her lavish wedding to the man she still loved but was no longer certain she could stay married to. It wasn’t only her bottom that hurt. Her heart ached at the cloudiness of her future.
    “Hello, Daddy? I have something important I need to discuss with you. Would you call me, please?” Melania set the phone down and inhaled a calming breath. She’d have to figure out something else until her parents returned.
    She dropped onto the wooden bench at the foot of the bed and leaped up with a yelp as pain seared her buttocks. She caught sight of herself in the two tall standing mirrors. Smeared