"Ma'am, can I talk to you?" Alex asked, crawling up onto the bed on her knees. She knew she had to get her feelings out of her system before she ended up acting out and getting a spanking.
"Of course, my love. Come here." Olivia looked up from her paperwork, set it aside, and opened her arms for her sweet little submissive.
Michaela was already asleep in her bed after a long day of training, and Olivia and Alex had retired to their bedroom for the evening. Alex willingly snuggled into her Mistress's arms and relished her time alone with her Mistress as Olivia gently ran her fingers through Alex's long blonde hair the way Alex liked.
"Do you love Michaela more than me, Ma'am?" tears filled her eyes as the words left her mouth.
To say that Olivia was shocked was an understatement. She recognized that Michaela had been taking up a lot of her time since she arrived, and she had been trying to give Alex plenty of extra cuddles and love to make up for it.
"How many people live in this apartment, baby?" Olivia asked, kissing Alex's forehead.
"Three, Ma'am."
"Good girl. I have two beautiful girls living in this apartment with me, and I love both of them more than anything. You have been with me for almost twenty years. You were my first baby girl. Michaela has only been here for a few weeks. I know that I have been spending a lot of time with her since she got here, but I have to give her all the same training I gave you and that is rather time consuming, as I'm sure you remember. I am very sorry if you've felt neglected, angel. What can I do to make it up to you? How about you and me have a lunch date when Michaela goes to therapy tomorrow afternoon?"
"Thank you, Ma'am," Alex smiled, "I don't mean to sound selfish or be a brat, but it's hard sharing you." Alex pouted cutely, and Olivia laughed.
"You, my darling, are neither selfish nor a brat. I am so proud of how helpful and kind you've been for the past two and a half months. And thank you for coming to talk to me about how you were feeling. Good girl. Go to the kitchen and open the pantry. Behind the flour, I've hidden a box of lemon bars." Olivia winked and smiled as Alex excitedly got out of bed and hurried toward the kitchen, quickly returning with the unexpected treat and climbing back into bed, handing the lemon bar over to her Mistress and settling back in Olivia's arms.
"Bite." Olivia ordered kindly, holding the lemon bar up to Alex's lips. Alex bit off a small bite and chewed it carefully.
The next afternoon, Olivia drove Michaela to therapy.
"I'll be back to pick you up in an hour, princess. Just wait for me on the bench as usual." Olivia kissed Michaela's forehead before she got out of the car.
"Yes, Ma'am." Michaela responded. So far, Olivia had always come back for her when she left her at the therapist's office, but Michaela was still bracing herself for the day when she would be dropped off and Olivia never came back.
Olivia took Alex to her favorite restaurant and let her order whatever she wanted. The two laughed and joked over lunch. Alex was giggling happily when suddenly there was an angry voice coming from another table.
"Shut up! Slaves are to be seen and not heard!"
Olivia's head snapped up to see who had attacked her baby, and came face to face with the Mistress of the submissive that Alex had gotten into a fight with a while back.
"Excuse me, we are just enjoying a nice lunch out, the same as you are. I made a joke and she was laughing at it. There is nothing wrong with that. If you have a problem with something that my girl is doing, then I would appreciate it if you would address me and not her." Olivia's brown eyes flashed dangerously. She was extremely protective of her property.
Effectively silenced, the other Mistress huffed angrily as she paid for her food and left the restaurant with her submissive trailing behind her. Olivia rolled her eyes. She appreciated that every Dominant had their own philosophy about what a submissive should and shouldn't be allowed to do and how they should be treated, but she was not going to let someone else attack one of her girls and get away with it.
"Are you okay, sweetie?" Olivia carefully searched Alex's blue eyes for any signs of emotional distress.
"Yes, Ma'am." Alex gave a little smile.
A few days later, Michaela earned her first real spanking. She had earned reminder swats before, but this was to be her first true punishment. Olivia brought her to the bedroom where all spankings took place and closed the door behind them to give them privacy, but she knew that she couldn't spank Michaela while she was so hysterical. Olivia sat down on the bed and brought Michaela to sit down on her lap, cuddling her distraught submissive close to her heart.
"Calm down, my love. Take a deep breath and calm down. You're safe and nothing is going to happen until we talk about this." Olivia comforted her, rocking slowly.
Michaela clung to Olivia as tightly as she could as she sobbed and cried. She had disobeyed a direct order, and now she was going to be beaten and thrown out. Nobody wanted a disobedient submissive who couldn't follow orders. Olivia had been so kind to her, and now with one mistake Michaela was certain that she had thrown it all away. It took several minutes, but Michaela finally calmed down to the point where she was still crying, but she was no longer sobbing. Olivia waited a few extra minutes to make sure that Michaela would remain calm.
"Kneel in front of me, honey." Olivia ordered kindly, pointing to a spot on the floor at her feet. Michaela obediently slid from Olivia's lap to the floor. Maybe if she fully cooperated, the beating wouldn't be too bad and maybe Olivia would at least find her a decent home instead of throwing her out into the street. She couldn't survive out on the street again. She would meet her death in a matter of weeks.
"That's my good girl. You don't have to be afraid, angel. I am disappointed in your behavior, but I am not angry with you. You disobeyed me and there are going to be consequences, but I still love you. You are one of my girls and nothing you do could ever make me stop loving you."
"I'm sorry, Ma'am." Michaela apologized tearfully, not truly believing the things that Olivia was telling her.
"I know you are, and you are forgiven."
Michaela just stared at Olivia in shock. Never, ever had she been told she was forgiven for screwing up. Olivia lectured Michaela on the importance of obedience, and Michaela continued to stare in shock. She was clearly being scolded, but she didn't understand why Olivia wasn't screaming at her.
"Stand up, sweetie." Olivia ordered kindly once the lecture was over. Michaela obeyed.
"Okay, now, you know you've earned a spanking, baby girl. I'm going to pull your shorts and panties down, and spank your bare bottom with my hand. It is going to hurt, and you can cry as much as you want. After your spanking is over, I will hold you and comfort you for as long as you want. Alex usually likes to lay down for a nap after a spanking, and if you want, you can too. This is your first spanking, so I am only going to use my hand today. If you ever disobey me again, I will have to use an implement like the hairbrush or the paddle. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Ma'am." Michaela's lower lip trembled. She was not used to Dominants being so calm while doling out punishments, and she was waiting for the shit to hit the fan. She remained still while Olivia pulled down her khaki shorts and panties to her knees, and then guided her across her lap into the proper position.
Never having been spanked before, Michaela was unfamiliar with the 'over-the-knee' position and didn't understand how Olivia was going to be able to beat her in this position. She also didn't understand why Olivia hadn't removed her shirt and bra as well. Submissives didn't deserve to have any clothing to protect them during a beating.
Michaela jumped in surprise when she felt a hard swat on her bottom, followed by another, and another.