Kitty's heart was pounding in her ears, her breath short and ragged, as she struggled to process Captain Prince's words. She knew objectively that this was an undesirable situation of dire jeopardy, so why was she so uselessly fixated on the sight of the scattered black hairs on his chest and the fabulous novelty of his scent? It was an aromatic intoxicant of musk, perspiration, leather and spices and it was shooting a starry path straight to the part of her brain that she desperately needed to function properly NOW if she was going to avoid something unpleasant happening. The warmth of his body radiated from him, transferring a little of his heat to her nude flesh. She liked that feeling. Her nipples were painfully hard and there was a dampness about her thighs. Why would he not draw back from her, why did he persist in breathing into her neck in this way? It was intolerable.
With a gargantuan effort, she pulled her thoughts back from the brink and stammered, "I....don't...agree."
"Hardly surprising, Kitty, as this seems to be the template of all our exchanges. I say something and you disagree." Captain Prince unravelled his spine and loomed above her once more, regarding her with taunting amusement. "I am unaccustomed to being disagreed with, wench; do you know why that is?"
Kitty shook her head dumbly, trapped in the charismatic beam of his attention.
"Because I am master of this ship and all who sail in her." He leaned down once again so that their eyes were level and enunciated distinctly. "Including you."
Kitty fumed impotently. She was a lady! She was Catherine Tremayne, the only child of Lord Tremayne of Templecombe. And this...ruffian...was a pirate! It was too topsy-turvy to be borne.
"Who the devil do you think you are, Sirrah!" she shrilled irately. "You can't speak to me like this."
The pirate captain laughed long and loud.
"And to think I was going to go easy on you," he chuckled into Kitty's livid face. "Thinking you were just some timid little chit who had bitten off more than she could chew. Well, let's see how ready you are to take that imperious tone after I've given you the sound spanking you have just asked for so eloquently."
"You've...WHAT?" spluttered Kitty, springing backwards violently, but not quickly enough to elude Captain Prince's bruising capture of her wrist.
"You heard," he said grimly, dragging her over to his chair by main force.
Kitty was beyond speech. Never in all her born days had she even been spoken to with less than reverence and respect. Her father had treated her as if she were made of rare porcelain and she had grown up more used to commanding staff than conversing on equal terms. She had always been given anything she desired immediately and had a perception of herself as some kind of Empress, designed to be adored and flattered. Spanking, or discipline of any kind had certainly never been a feature of her experience, and she had never expected it to be.
But now Captain Prince had her bent face-down over his knee, both her wrists encircled in a vice-like grip while she kicked and hollered her dissatisfaction with the scenario. In an effort to contain her lusty protestations, the corsair nipped her earlobe with his teeth and hissed, "You can behave yourself and submit to my hand, or continue your disobedience, in which case I will tie you down and use my strap. Which is it to be, Kitty?"
A final shriek of rage passed through Kitty's clenched teeth before she brought her writhing body to stillness, having no doubt that the Captain was a man of his word.
"Sensible girl," he said drily, running a rough-skinned hand across the smooth surface of her untouched bottom. "Peachy little arse, too," he noted. "Though I plan to paint it cherry red before I've done with you."
Kitty whimpered piteously, not quite able to bring herself to plead with him. If he was going to do this, she wished he would just hurry up and get it over with.
"I'm going to show you what happens to foolish girls who can't keep a civil tongue, Kitty," he promised, and suddenly the first stroke landed with an echoing smack that she was sure could be heard the length and breadth of the ship. It hurt. The imprint of his hand was sure to be visible on her backside, and this was just his opening blow. But she prided herself on her dignified demeanour and refused to shout or cry. He could do his worst; she would not give him the satisfaction of tears.
It was far from easy to keep this vow, though, as cracking smack after smack fell, sometimes rapidly and stingingly, sometimes weightily and hard, on her quivering behind. The Captain meant business, and she had the feeling he would not let up until he could see the evidence of her contrition. Damn him, he would get nothing of the kind from her. She bit her lip and squirmed for what seemed like a very long time, but his arm seemed not to tire in the slightest, and his hand was constituted of some impervious material that felt nothing despite its frequent harsh contact with her bottom.
The spanking itself might not be quite so bad if only he didn't feel the need to keep up a maddeningly patronising commentary throughout.
"Any regrets yet, Kitty? Hmmm? (Smack) Seeing the error of your ways? (Smack, smack, both sides) You will be addressing me with courtesy, young lady, if I have to spank you until daybreak (smack, smack, smack, smack, very fast and hard, drawing gasps of discomfort)." And so on.