Heart Song Anthology, Carolyn Faulkner [simple ebook reader .TXT] 📗

by one the other members of the staff cleared out, and I went about my duties, helping to clean and make the kitchen ready for lunch prep in the morning. Finally, it was just Cody and me left behind and I knew that he was nearly finished with the business end of our service.

He appeared just as I finished mopping the kitchen floor. The kitchen was immaculate; we kept it that way all the time. Cody was a stickler for keeping up with all the health regulations. He said it would devastate him if anyone ever got sick from food cooked in his restaurant, and it was one more reason that I loved him. I knew that he would inspect everything before he left for the night; I’d seen him re-clean an oven, or another appliance if he felt it wasn’t up to his standards, and then he stood over the errant chef and instructed him or her on how to properly clean a kitchen. The chef either followed his instructions or looked for a new job.

“The floor looks great. It was a big mess after tonight’s service, and now we could serve off of it.” Cody smiled at me and then took my arm and led me into his office, which was also neat as could be. He sat me down on the chair beside his desk. It was where I sat when he interviewed me for a position, and where I sat when he wanted to talk to me about something he found exceptional, or when he thought I could improve in some area. Cody was never cruel, just matter-of-fact, and I wished with all my heart he would pay some attention to me as a person. I didn’t think I was ugly, and while I wasn’t model thin, I was at a healthy weight. I was clean, and I tried to be pleasant and smile. We shared an amazing interest in food and cooking, and darn it, I was tired of being ignored. “We need to talk, Jenn. Have you given the matter any more thought since we talked this afternoon?”

“Put yourself in my place, Cody. Wouldn’t you do the same thing?” I asked, trying to get him on my side.

“No, Jennifer, I would not. What I can’t understand is why you think it is acceptable to lie, and when that lie involves me, it doesn’t make me very happy. I didn’t give you away to your mom, but I think you deserve consequences for lying to her.”

“You aren’t going to fire me, are you?” I was crestfallen at the idea and found it difficult to breathe. If Cody fired me I would simply die. I didn’t just like my job, I loved my job. “Please don’t fire me, Cody.” I felt my eyes fill with tears and I tried to blink them away. I already knew how Cody felt about tears in the kitchen. He didn’t put up with temperamental chefs for very long. He wanted a smooth, well-run kitchen. Of course, there were minor issues at times. None of us are saints, but the dramatics were kept to a minimum. I was on the verge of panic as Cody leveled his eyes on me.

“I don’t intend to fire you, Jenn, at least not in the way you mean.”

I looked at him curiously. I had a feeling he was going to say something else, and I held my breath in anticipation.

“I’m going to set fire to your butt, something that your parents should have done a few times when you were growing up. Lying is wrong, young lady, and it carries a consequence. I guess you know that you can refuse to accept a spanking from me; I can’t force your compliance. But then, I will have no choice but to let you go, Jennifer. I won’t permit you to use me to lie to your mother.”

“I’m sorry, Cody. I never looked at it from your point of view. I was only trying to prevent Mom from setting up a blind date. I had no idea she would call and scold you. I’m embarrassed and ashamed.” I was also afraid this incident was going to put me in a bad light with Cody. “I should have faced her like a grown woman and told her I wouldn’t go out with any blind dates she set up.”

“Yes, you should have. Now then, are you ready to accept the consequences of your actions?”

He looked so stern, just like in my fantasies. I pinched myself to make sure I was really awake and not dreaming. I had waited my entire life to find a man like Cody, a man who was a real man.

“Jennifer, I am waiting for an answer.”

“I’m embarrassed, Cody,” I whispered. I could feel my cheeks burning. I was truly embarrassed now that my fantasy was about to come true. “I will accept a spanking,” I managed to say. “I’ve never done this before,” I told him. I’d read about it, looked at some websites that supported domestic discipline and spanking, but I’d never worked up the courage to actually seek a real spanking. It was a very intimate act, and I was a virgin – in every way. “I’m really scared,” I whispered. “I don’t know what you expect of me.”

“I expect you to do as I tell you, Jenn,” he said. Then he pushed his chair back from his desk and said firmly, “Stand up, young lady.”

I wasn’t stupid; I did as I was told. The last thing I wanted to do was to make him any angrier than he already was.

“I need to move the chair you were sitting on.” His tone was matter-of-fact; as were the hands he put on my shoulders to gently move me aside so that he could get to the chair. Cody picked it up as if it were weightless and moved it out into the center of the floor before turning around and sitting down. “I moved