Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight

Warning: This story contains disciplinary spanking, so don't read or flame if this offends you.

A/N: Okay, so I've had a lot of people asking me to write about the Cullens seeing Bella again, but I don't plan on doing this. The Italy fiasco has to happen because I've already referred to it in Drunken Consequences (both versions) and Insomnia. As for the aftermath of those events, too many people have already written about it and I don't like writing about what others have already written. I like to write about areas that have yet to be explored or touched upon. Sorry to disappoint you all.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Chapter 12: Tough Love

Alice's POV:

It had been one week, one whole week since not only Jasper and me, but Dad as well had been taken to task. Originally Dad had told me that he'd take care of my fighting within a few days at most, but after the whipping Mom gave him, he had to put it off because he just wasn't able to sit without being in pain. One week later he was still hurting, but he was able to sit without too much trouble.

I was pain free as of two days ago, but unfortunately that was going to change soon. Today was the day. Today was the day I would pay for what I'd done to that cow, Cassie. Ugh, I had to stop thinking of her so negatively because that would only make me angry, and if I was angry and unrepentant when Dad was punishing me, then I'd be one very sore little girl.

I searched my visions for some glimpse of what awaited me, giving a frustrated sigh when I still saw nothing. The only reason I knew I was being punished today was because Dad had given me the heads up yesterday. If he'd made the decision though, I didn't understand why I wasn't able to see anything. I was anxious enough as it was, but not being able to know made it even worse. I was afraid he was hiding something from me, or that he was planning on using his belt again and just didn't want me to freak out before hand.

I wasn't the only one that was anxious though, Jasper was as well. Dad had apparently told him he would be facing punishment in a few days time, but like with me, it had been put off. He wasn't being spanked, so I wondered what punishment Dad had in mind that couldn't have been delivered before now. Dad had yet to tell him when he would be facing his punishment like he did with me, and this was just causing my husband further distress. I was currently trying to keep him from blowing up in our father's face and demanding to know what his punishment would be. I didn't need to be psychic to know that wouldn't end well.

Things had finally started to look up for this family after last week. Dad and Mom were nearly inseparable, once more being the loving, attentive parents I knew them to be. Dad and Mom had both talked to me separately and together about my past, assuring that I knew I wasn't at fault for anything that happened, and that most importantly I knew that they loved and cherished me and would never in a million years think of kicking me out of the family. I already knew this, but it had definitely been nice to hear. Unfortunately, learning of my past and all the teasing I'd put up with at school had temporarily caused me to have doubts, but that was old news. Dad had also apologized to both of us for how he'd acted these past several months...

Dad was leaning against a tree, looking away from us as he crossed and uncrossed his arms. Jasper and I exchanged concerned glances, and I wondered whether I should lend a hand in starting this conversation. I really wanted to tell him there was no need for this, but I knew this would be beneficial to him, so I said nothing.

"I know I have already apologized to the both of you, but I feel I must do so again," he began, finally turning serious eyes to us. "Esme insists I did not fail you all, but the truth of the matter is that I did. I completely and utterly failed at my duties and there is no excuse, and there never will be an excuse. I hurt all of you, I know I did, and I wish to God I could turn back time and take it all back, but that's not possible." Dad looked down now, a distressed, self-castigating expression on his face.

Dad looked up again and stared straight at me. "I am not saying this to make you angry with me, but I feel I must so that you know that I understand the full extent my decisions had on you. Alice, I noticed the day you returned from Mississippi that something was wrong. I knew there was more than you were telling me, but I let it go. I shouldn't have"-Dad paused, letting out a sigh before biting his bottom lip.

"This is an error I have made multiple times throughout the years, and I still fail to realize it until it's too late," he admitted, giving me a despairing look. "I'm so very sorry, angel. I should have confronted you sooner and more forcefully. You kids all have the same penchant of keeping things to yourselves when they become too much"-

I couldn't take this anymore, so I interrupted him with a pleading, "Dad, please stop." He did, giving me a sad look. "Please stop beating yourself up over this. The error isn't yours here, it's mine. I should have talked to you and Mom. I shouldn't have kept all this secret." Dad looked ready to interrupt me now, but I held up a hand, giving him a smile. "You see Dad, we could go back and forth here, each taking full blame when truthfully we are both at fault. You've already taken your punishment and I'm just waiting on the rest of mine. There's no more need for you to apologize to me because it's all in the past."

Dad stared at me with an unreadable look before smiling and giving a shake of his head. "Why do you children turn all philosophical and wise on me only after you've been punished, or when I am in trouble?" I knew the question was rhetorical so all I could give him was a sheepish grin and a shrug.

Dad shook his head once more before turning towards my husband. Before he could even open his mouth though Jasper held up a hand and said, "Don't even try it, Papa, cuz it ain't necessary. I've felt your remorse and guilt and self-loathing and it's time to let it all go. You didn't need ta take a whippin' from Mama to gain my forgiveness," he informed him, "all it woulda taken was you fixin' this damage, and you've done a pretty fine job at that already. The only thing missin' now is my boneheaded brother and Bella."

Dad actually let out a short laugh at his words, giving us both grateful looks. "Thank you," he said, "for the trust you give me. I will endeavor to make sure I never make you doubt me, your place in this family, or my love for you ever again."

"See to it that you don't, Mister," I replied with a sassy grin...

Like I said, this hand't been necessary, but it had sure helped Dad forgive himself even more. Apart from a still sore backside, he was back to his old, reliable self.

When Mom wasn't occupied with Dad, she and I spent a lot of time together planning an extravagant shopping vacation for me, her, and Rosalie. During these times Dad spent time with Jasper, usually roughhousing, and my cowboy wasn't above using our father's 'injury' to his advantage. My man had been practically brimming with pride these past few days after having bested our father several times. Dad, for his part was a good sport just rolling his eyes at Jasper's antics, but I had a really good feeling he was just biding his time until he was fully healed before exacting revenge.

Due to everything that had happened, Dad took an extended leave of absence from work, wanting to spend all his free time with us. I certainly didn't mind. Jasper quit school, explaining that it held no interest for him at this time, and our parents were thankfully understanding. The best news of all though, was that Emmett and Rosalie were due back in two days. Dad had called them, offering profuse apologies for his behavior before politely requesting they come home. He needn't have bothered as they'd already been planning on returning before he'd called as I had already been in contact with them...

"Hello?" Emmett greeted, and I frowned, noticing the lack of joviality in his voice.

"Hi Emmett," I greeted back.

"What's up, Pixie?" he asked with much more enthusiasm. "It's been ages since I've heard from you, how you doin?"

"I'v got a lot to catch you guys up on, so is Rosalie there?" I asked, and I heard her say, "Yeah Alice, I'm here, what's going on? Is everything alright at home?"

"Well, it's getting there," I responded before informing them of everything that had occurred, down to mine, Jasper's, and Dad's punishments.

"Holy shit!" Emmett cried out at the end, "Dad actually asked for a whippin from Ma?"

"Yup," I answered.

"And she agreed?" Emmett asked in shock, and I rolled my eyes.

"Well, I wouldn't be saying it if it weren't true," I told him smartly. "Now, the reason I'm telling you this is because Dad should be calling you tomorrow and I don't want you guys giving him a hard time. He's already beaten himself up enough about this, and he's been through an awful whipping. The poor guy is gonna be sore for a while."

I heard no response for several minutes, only hearing that Emmett and Rosalie were having a whispered conversation. It was Rose who had the phone this time.

"Why is Dad going to be calling us?" she asked, dismally attempting to hide her hope behind a nonchalant tone.

"He's going to ask for your forgiveness before begging you to come home," I responded somberly.

There was another moment of silence before she said, "We're on our way. Don't tell anybody we're coming yet. We'll take Dad's call and let him think he convinced us. Thanks Alice, we gotta go."

"Bye Ali bear!" Emmett crowed before Rose hung up...

Dad had also begun a search for Edward's whereabouts, calling his phone multiple times every day in addition to getting in contact with old friends to see if any of them had spotted him. He had left my brother quite a few number of very stern voicemails, but through my visions I could tell that he wasn't bothering to listen to them. I was keeping more tabs on my mind-reading brother in the hopes that I could figure out where he was. As far as I'd been able to see, he was no longer in the United States. I saw him in a rainforest, but of course that really didn't narrow things down. We assumed he hadn't flown anywhere as his bank account was untouched and his passport had been left behind, which meant he was probably still in the western hemisphere. Again, not really much help, but it was something. At least we wouldn't be sending anyone overseas to search for the idiot.

All of us were growing quite worried for Edward, despite also being angry with him. Everybody knew that if Dad called then you picked up, no questions asked; and if you didn't pick up you better call back as soon as possible if you knew what was good for you. Every single one of us had learned that lesson the hard way, even Mom. That was one of the few times I'd ever seen Dad get really upset and stern with her. Anyways, we were all really worried about my brother, and I was starting to catch visions of Dad leaving to go search for him. Every day as we heard nothing from Edward the vision solidified. I almost felt sorry for Edward, because I knew that if Dad was forced to leave us to go track him down all over the Americas, then Edward was not going to be a happy camper when our dad got his hands on him.

He deserved it though, I couldn't help but think. He was the one who started this whole mess. Dad sure hadn't helped, but it was Edward's moronic idea that Bella would be better off without him and us that started this downward spiral. I hoped Dad would knock some sense into him when he was found.

"What're ya thinkin' about, doll face?" Jasper asked, no doubt having felt my changing emotions.

"Just about everything that's happened this past week," I answered, leaning in and landing a kiss on his lips. He hungrily returned the kiss, wrapping his arms around my waist. I was just about to push my hand up under his shirt when there was a knock on our door. We instantly broke apart, literally jumping until we were several feet from each other. I wasn't sure why we'd reacted as though we were just caught doing something naughty, so I smirked at my husband as I said, "Come in, Dad."

Dad opened the door and stepped in, narrowing his eyes slightly as he looked between us. I must admit, we did look terribly guilty, so I felt the need to speak up before he started getting the wrong idea.

"We were just, um, y'know," I said, raising my eyebrows at him, hoping he would understand what I was alluding to without having to actually say it. It seemed Jasper was the one with no filter today though as he crossed his arms, gave our father a stern look and muttered, "Ya just killed my mojo, Dad, I hope you're happy."

I couldn't help but laugh out loud, unsure of whether I was laughing at what he'd said or the taken aback, embarrassed look my father now sported.

"I, uh, sorry?" Dad phrased, beginning to sport an amused smile. I stifled my giggles before running over and throwing my arms around him.

"Hi Dad," I greeted with a smile, "what do you want to talk about?" I'd just caught the vision of him asking to speak to me alone, but not to punish me so I was brimming with curiosity. Jasper immediately tensed, his jaw muscles clenching and a dark look settling over his face, but he said nothing.

Dad smiled down at me, smoothing back my spiky hair before looking towards Jasper. "Son, I need you to get out of hearing range for half an hour so I can have a private talk with Alice, and before you begin to fret, I only want to talk to her."

Jasper relaxed instantly, although he was sporting a frown as he looked between our father and me. "Alright," he spoke, throwing me one last concerned look before departing. We waited a few minutes to make sure Jasper was far enough away to not hear before my dad spoke.

"Why don't you take a seat, Angel?" he suggested, gesturing towards my bed.

"You first," I couldn't help but tease, and he rolled his eyes good-naturedly before sitting himself down with only the slightest of grimaces.

"Happy?" he quipped, giving me a raised eyebrow.

"Always," I responded, promptly seating myself down next to him. "So, what's this about, Dad? You've been doing a great job at keeping me in the dark, and I don't like it. What do you want to talk to me about and why couldn't Jasper stay here for this?"

Dad gave me a small smile, but his eyes were troubled so I began to grow concerned. "Is this about my punishment?" I questioned, less curious and much more wary now.

"Yes," he responded, and I froze, giving a nervous swallow before asking, "Did you lie to Jasper? Are you going to be spanking me now?"

"No, of course not, I wouldn't lie like that," he immediately responded, and I let out a breath of relief.

Dad was looking down at his hands now and looking very reluctant to talk to me, and I was beginning to grow more and more concerned. So he wasn't spanking me, but then what did he want to talk about? Why was he looking like this? If he was reluctant then that meant he was going to do something he really, really didn't want to. Was he going to whip me again?

"Daddy, are you going to use the belt on me again?" I had to ask, and his eyes immediately widened and he shook his head once more.

"No, Alice, absolutely not," he stated emphatically. "I'm here to talk to you about not only your punishment, but Jasper's as well. I'm going to need your help with his."

I relaxed only minutely, feeling concern for my mate now. "What do you plan on doing to him?" I asked nervously. I was just starting to search my visions when Dad loudly snapped his fingers in front of my face.

"Don't Alice," he scolded lightly. "I want your mind in the present right now. I need you to hear me out before saying anything, alright?"

"Okay," I responded with a hesitant nod, anxious about what he was planning. He didn't seem to like this idea of his one bit, which did not bode well for Jasper at all.

"I have already made up my mind about what Jasper's punishment will be, but Ali, it will involve you, and you are not going to like this one bit," he began, turning his face to look me in the eyes. "I do not mean his punishment to be a punishment for you as well, but unfortunately it will be and for that I am sincerely sorry. I need you to understand though that I am doing this for him. He has this constant fear that you will be hurt during a spanking. He fears that I will lose control with you, whether on purpose or accidentally."

"That's absurd!" I exclaimed, and Dad offered me the briefest of smiles before holding up a hand to remain silent.

"Thank you for the trust, Angel, I'm going to ask that you continue to trust me when I inform you of what I have in mind for our soldier," Dad responded, beginning to look quite sad and reluctant. "We made headway with Jasper last week, getting to the root of his overprotective problem concerning you. I truly believe he has what it takes to control himself, but Jasper does not. He is his own worst enemy and his lack of faith in himself will lead him to fail every time. What I am planning to do is not only to prove to him that you will never be harmed during a spanking, but that he really can control himself."

I nodded my head, thinking it was a good idea but not really understanding how…Oh…Oh…My eyes widened as I suddenly realized what he was planning. He couldn't. He wouldn't. This was insane.

"Daddy, you can't really be planning on forcing Jasper to watch me be punished, are you?" I questioned, still holding out the barest of hope that I was wrong. One look into his saddened yet determined eyes told me all I needed to know though.

"Ohhhh, no, no, no, no Dad, absolutely not!" I shouted as I jumped to my feet. "This is a horrible idea! How could you think of something like this? Do you know the pain you will put him through? How could you do something so cruel to Jasper? He has trouble controlling himself just hearing about me being punished, how in the hell do you think he's going to react when he actually sees it? Are you insane?! And what about me? Do you think I want him to see me in such a position getting my butt whooped? How is that fair?" I yelled angrily. "You're just going to be putting us both through a lot of unnecessary pain, and I won't stand for it!" I crossed my arms and glared angrily at my father, not at all pleased with him.

Dad's face was calm as he gazed back at me, and truthfully I was surprised. Dad didn't like getting yelled at by us kids, and he usually put a stop to our rants with a look or the palm of his hand. Right now though, he was just sitting there patiently waiting for me to stop talking.

"I understand what I am asking of the both of you," he said when I fell silent, and I knew he did by the look in his eyes, but I wasn't ready to give in. "Jasper fears I will hurt you when I spank you, so what better way to allay that fear than to show him? He fears he lacks control over his instincts and himself, so what better way to prove him wrong than to test that theory. I have the utmost faith in my son that he will not interfere during your punishment. It will hurt him greatly to watch you suffer, but this is something he needs. I will apologize to you Ali, because I am putting you in a horrible position. You will suffer along with him, but in the end I think Jasper will greatly benefit from this experience. He will learn to trust me."

I shook my head unhappily, still not liking this idea, but unfortunately I understood his reasoning. This would be good for Jasper. Maybe if he witnessed my punishment he would finally see that Dad wasn't abusing me, and hopefully he'd finally learn to get some control over those protective instincts of his. But my heart was already aching at the pain Jasper would suffer through at seeing me in pain and crying. I could all too easily imagine the situation in reverse as I had on a few occasions witnessed Jasper's spankings through visions. Hmmm. Thinking back I remembered those moments hurting, yes, but I also remember knowing that Dad and Mom only ever had Jasper's best interests at heart and that they would never harm him. I never flipped out, at least not overly so when I'd seen some of those visions, but then again I wasn't Jasper.

"How do you know that he won't attack you while you're punishing me?" I questioned concernedly. "Jasper was ready to attack you last week just because he heard you spanked me, how do you think he'll take it when he's actually witnessing it. His mind might understand that you're not hurting me, but the vampire in him will see you as a threat," I said, trying to get Dad to see reason.

Instead of seeing the light though, Dad actually responded by giving me a slight look of disappointment. "I would have thought out of everyone in the family that you would understand your husband's control better than anyone. Do you realize how much our family's doubt in Jasper has affected him? He's felt our fears concerning his control over his thirst and temper, and he's adopted those fears as his own nearly crippling himself. Jasper is stronger than any of us realize because he has not only been constantly fighting his own doubt, but ours as well."

I was taken aback by his words, shame welling up in me that I could possibly have led to Jasper's issues with his control.

"We forget that Jasper feels everything we do, and I'm not talking about just emotions. He struggles with not only his thirst, but ours as well, and he struggles not only with his own vampire instincts, but ours as well. I have no doubt he becomes overwhelmed at times, unable to distinguish whose instinct or emotion he's really feeling, ours or his own," Dad explained. "We've all, myself included, tried to push him into situations claiming to believe in him while at the same time failing to hide our doubt. Our soldier automatically latches onto those negative emotions. He feeds off of them and dwells on them, blocking out all other positive emotions. He thinks very little of himself, as I'm sure you've realized by now."

I nodded my head, feeling a little overwhelmed by all he was telling me. If Dad was right, we'd been unknowingly hurting Jasper for years, and that really tore me up. How could I ever hope to make this right?

"Do you trust Jasper?" my dad asked, giving me a serious look. I stared back at him and then nodded my head.

"Yes, I do," I said with confidence.

"Good," Dad replied with a smile, "then let him know that. Let him not only hear your belief in him, but let him feel it to. Fill him with confidence so that he will begin to believe in himself."

I once more nodded my head, feeling determined to do everything I could to help Jasper. If this is what it would take, then so be it.

"I know I'm asking a lot of you, Alice, and that it really isn't fair of me to do this to you," Dad spoke, gently taking one of my hands in his, "but I truly feel this will help him. I'm going to need your help before your punishment convincing him to do this because I doubt he'll agree easily, but once the punishment starts I want you only to be focusing on what landed you in that position. You will leave Jasper to me. You can both comfort each other afterwards."

My stomach twisted, fear of my punishment and fear of how Jasper would handle this coursing through me. How Dad expected me to be thinking about anything other than Jasper while I was getting my bottom tanned was beyond me.

Dad stood up now and pulled me into his arms. "Everything will work out just fine, trust me," Dad whispered into my ear, and I nodded my head into his chest.

"Since I'm really getting a raw deal here, Daddy, does this mean you'll go easy on me?" I asked hopefully, and he gave me a sad smile as he shook his head.

"No, Alice," he replied. "You severely injured a human, nearly exposed us, and got yourself expelled. Any one of those acts would have earned you a spanking, so in truth I already am going easy on you by giving you only one spanking."

My heart sank before I felt the need to say, "I'm not going to be able to focus on any of that with Jasper in the room. I'm going to be worrying about him the whole time, so really you're spanking is going to be for naught, sooo…," I trailed off suddenly, not liking the look my dad was giving me.

"Believe me, angel, I will make sure your mind is where it should be, have no fear," Dad told me, giving me a reassuring smile that only made me sick to my stomach.

"Oh, that's wonderful," I grumbled quite sarcastically before tensing as I heard the very fast approach of my mate. It seemed he was eager to return and see for himself that Dad hadn't punished me while he was gone. It was less than a minute before he appeared at our doorway, rushing over and looking me over for any sign of discomfort or distress.

"What's wrong?" he asked, having felt my anxiety, worry, and sadness. He flicked his eyes to our dad, giving him a questioning look when I took too long to answer. Instead of explaining though, Dad just stated that we should take this discussion to his study. Jasper was really confused now, and I felt a good dose of worry come off him. I squeezed his hand, gave him a reassuring smile and led the way to Dad's office.

Once inside Jasper could remain silent no more. "What's going on, Dad? Have we done something wrong?"

Dad raised an eyebrow at him as he responded, "No, unless you count all the disrespect and defiance you displayed last week."

"Oh," Jasper muttered, partly in relief and partly in worry, "are you finally gonna tell me what my punishment is?"

"I am," Dad replied with a nod, and without even a bit of warning or anything he blurted out, "your punishment will be to sit at my desk and watch Alice receive her spanking."

I tightly grasped onto Jasper's hand, feeling as every muscle in his body just froze, the shock of our father's pronouncement coming off him in waves. Before it could wear off and turn to anger, Dad began to explain.

"Before you blow up in my face, son, I want you to take a breath and listen to me," Dad commanded, and I was really surprised when Jasper mechanically did as he said. I could feel his shock beginning to disappear, so I was hoping Dad would hurry up with his explanation. "You have a serious issue when it comes to Alice receiving discipline, Jasper, I don't feel I really need to expand on that. I'm tired, absolutely tired of having to argue, defend, and fight you off every time she's in trouble, and I intend for this punishment to put a stop to that. You told me you had a deep seated fear that Alice would be seriously harmed during her spanking. Well, today you will sit and watch every second of what she goes through so you can see for yourself that apart from a sore bottom, your mate will be perfectly safe in my hands."

I was avidly watching Jasper's face as Dad spoke, relieved that even though I could see anger in his eyes that he wasn't losing his temper, at least not yet.

"The second reason behind this punishment is to prove to you that you do have the necessary ability to control this protective instinct," Dad continued. "I am not asking you to smother it or rid yourself of it. What I am asking is that you acknowledge what you are feeling, without letting those feelings take over. You are in charge of your feelings and your body, not the other way around. You control your instincts."

Jasper was still frozen when Dad fell silent. He was giving him time to process and react now, and I quickly searched our future, giving an internal groan as I watched him shouting at Dad. Time for me to work my magic, I thought.

I gave a quick look to Dad telling him to not interfere before grabbing hold of my husband's face and turning it so that he was looking at me and not Dad.

"Jasper," I spoke calmly, "there is no need for you to get angry." Jasper gave me an incredulous look before finally speaking. "Did you not hear what he's asking of me? He wants me to sit here and watch you gettin' yer ass beat, and he has the audacity to expect I'll be able to do this calmly!"

I narrowed my eyes at his words, dragging him further away from our dad for a little more sense of privacy before saying, "Dad will not be beating my ass and you know it, Jasper, so how dare you say such an awful thing!" I made sure he felt my disappointment because I was tired too of all the mean things he'd say about Dad anytime I'd get punished. It was as though he forgot who the man was and everything he'd done for us.

I was glad when I saw Jasper's expression turned abashed, his anger abating as he looked down momentarily. "I think this punishment is the best thing for you, Jasper, I really do," I then told him. "You'll finally be able to see that Dad isn't causing me any permanent damage, and that he never will."

He was sighing heavily now, running a hand through his blonde curls before saying, "Look, I know Dad would neva hurt you, Ali, I don't need to witness this to know that."

"Stop lying to yourself," I retorted gently yet firmly as I wrapped my arms around his waist and pulled him close. "You admitted to both our parents last week that you did."

Jasper groaned in response, his face turning pained as he then said, "I don't wanna see you get punished, Alice. It'll kill me, I won't be able to take it hearing you yell and cry out knowin' that I won't be able to intervene. And that's assuming I can control myself. What's more likely to happen is that I'll lose control and try to take Dad's head off before I realize what I'm doin'."

"No you won't," I responded. "I have the utmost confidence in your control, so it's about time you did too. You are so much stronger than you think, and if you'd only open your eyes a little then you'd see that too."

Jasper's golden eyes stared deep into my face, searching to see if I really meant what I said. I stared right back, using my expression and feelings to convey my complete faith in him.

"Do you trust me?" I asked him, and he immediately nodded his head, giving me a look as though to ask how dare I think any differently.

"Of course I do!" he assured me, and I gave him a beautiful smile.

"Well then, trust me when I say this is the best thing for you and that I know you'll be just fine," I stated, and I saw as his resolve crumbled. "This won't be easy for either one of us," I added, wanting him to realize that I understood what I was asking of him. "I know you hate seeing me suffer, but what you have to do is remind yourself that I need this punishment to learn a lesson and to let go of my guilt. Would you prefer Dad not spank me and I have to suffer through my guilt alone, or will you allow me to receive absolution?"

"Alice," he groaned softly, burying his head into my hair. He understood what I was saying, but he certainly wasn't happy about it. That was alright though because as long as he understood that was all that mattered. I certainly wasn't going to expect him to be smiling at the thought of me getting a spanking, but if anyone understood the need for punishment, he would.

"Remember, Jazz, Dad loves me and he loves you," I told him. "The only reason he ever spanks us is because he loves us and wants to see us better ourselves. You know this," I declared, poking him in the chest with each word to emphasize my point.

"I know," he replied softly, giving me a saddened look. "I don't like this one bit, Alice, not one bit, but if you and Dad really think this'll help me, then I will endure. I won't let you down, darling, I promise."

I gave him a brilliant smile, full of pride and love, and had to really resist from jumping him at this second. I didn't think Dad would appreciate us having an intense make-out session at this moment. Jasper received my message though and he sent me a large dose of love in return.

Alright, I thought, time to face the music. My stomach was fluttering with nerves now as Jasper and me turned towards Dad. He had such a look of deep pride on in his face that I couldn't help but smile. I noticed Jasper smiling too before he then looked down in embarrassment.

Dad walked over to us, placed a hand on each one of our shoulders and gave it a comforting squeeze. "Let's not put this off any longer," he remarked calmly before looking at me. "Alice, please go stand over by the couch." I promptly did as told, watching as he guided my cowboy over to his chair behind the desk.

A/N: Bwahahaha! I know, this is a wicked place to end it, but it was the only logical place. Originally this was a really long chapter, but I decided to split it into two and this was the best place to do it.