Part 13
"You've been a bad girl, Penelope and you will be punished," Aaron barked, as soon as the two had stepped in the door coming home from dinner. "How dare you embarrass me!"
He'd already had this plan in mind as the two of them hadn't had a chance to play the game yet, at least not since they had been mated with everything that had been happening. They had played it about once a week when they had just been dating and both of them had enjoyed it immensely.
"I'm sorry for messing up," Penelope said trying to not look or sound eager, because she was well aware that she wasn't really going to be punished for she had not broken any rules that she was aware of. Aaron had made sure that she knew the rules that he expected her to abide by and since they were quite simple she would have no problem with obeying them. Really, they were just the basic rules that all Omegas needed to abide by whenever they became mated in order to avoid their alpha's wrath.
"You will go upstairs and remove all your clothing," Aaron ordered his voice a growl and very fiercely Alpha. "You will be on your hands and knees when I get there with your ass facing the door. I will be there shortly and you had better be there and ready or your punishment will be worse."
"Yes, sir," Penelope said trying to look like she was worried and contrite, but the Omega in her was jumping for joy and she barely kept that out of her body language, voice and expression. This was the first time they had played this game since they had been mated, although they had played it numerous times while they had been dating. She knew they had been busy ever since they had mated, but the Omega in her had begun to doubt that Aaron really loved her and now she knew that he did, because she was about to be punished, something she was looking forward to with eager anticipation. The few Alphas she had dated hardly ever punished her, sometimes not at all, which meant that she broke up with them fairly quickly. How could you develop feelings for someone if they didn't do what they were supposed to? Something that was essential to the happiness of an Alpha and Omega mated pair?"
Being punished, even if it was just in play was always part of the Alpha and Omega dynamics, even when you were only causally dating, as it was never going to turn into a serious relationship unless both Alpha and Omega did what was expected of them and was part of their very culture. Aaron had known this and had made sure she understood that it was going to be part of their relationship until they either broke up or mated and Penelope had eagerly agreed and knew it was a large part of the reason that she had fallen in love with him.
This was the first time that she would be punished ever since she and Aaron had mated though and she was definitely eagerly anticipating it.
Penelope rushed upstairs making sure to use the railing so that she wouldn't fall and when she reached her and Aaron's bedroom she undressed quickly and got on her hands and knees in the middle of the mattress near the end of the bed with her butt facing the door as ordered.
It seemed like forever before Aaron came in, but she knew it was likely less then five minutes.
"Good! I'm glad to see that you can follow orders!" Aaron growled sounding very ferocious, as he stalked into the room, his movements smooth and powerful. "I'm going to spank you now my mate and you will not utter a word of complaint or it'll will be much worse. Tell me verbally you understand!"
"Yes, sir, I understand," Penelope answered immediately, practically whimpering in anticipation. "I deserve to be punished, sir."
"Yes, you do and you won't forget the lesson I'm going to teach you anytime soon," Aaron said.
Aaron got undressed slowly making his mate wait longer for her punishment, to let the anticipation grow as much as possible.
Finally though, Aaron stood at the end of the bed and saw that his mate was perfectly positioned so that he could reach her easily, which he knew was deliberate on her part.
Finally Penelope felt Aaron's hand strike her butt hard enough to sting like the dickens, but not hard enough to cause any permanent damage. Penelope eagerly waited for the next slap and it came suddenly then the third and fourth in rapid succession and finally the fifth. By this time her butt was really stinging, but still the part of her that was Omega was jumping up and down in joy and happiness. Aaron's actions proved behind a shadow of a doubt that her mate still loved her, so she could stop worrying for a little while at least that Aaron really didn't love her at all.
"Have you learned your lesson my mate? You can speak up and tell me," Aaron said.
"Yes, sir, I've learned my lesson," Penelope promised, trying to sound contrite when she really wasn't. "I'll never do it again."
"You better not, but I suspect that there will be many more punishments in your future, as you don't seem the type to learn your lesson the first time," Aaron growled, even as the alpha in him was satisfied with his mate's pretended contriteness. "I suspect that I'll be punishing you for many years to come."
Penelope said nothing, but her expression told Aaron that she was looking forward to it, as she didn't even try to look upset or sorry and she shouldn't because she hadn't really done anything wrong after all. She had been the perfect companion at dinner, sparkling in the beautiful dress she had chosen and he had been very proud to have her as his mate. He had noticed other men looking at and admiring her and they certainly weren't making subtle nasty innuendos like so many had in the past. Those men knew she was beyond their reach though. Play punishing her was the perfect way to end the evening
"Lay on your stomach now," Aaron ordered his tone gentler, but still fully Alpha.
Penelope obeyed instantly and Aaron disappeared into the bathroom to get the cream that he had bought before the first time they had played this game. He was back less than a minute later and climbed up on the bed squirting some of the cream onto Penelope's still stinging butt.
Penelope relaxed when she felt the cream land on her butt cheek as this was normal routine for after they had finished playing for the time being.
"So you understood what I was doing?" Aaron asked just like he did every time to make sure that Penelope understood that it was just play and not real punishment. It probably wasn't necessary because his mate was an intelligent lady and she knew that he would've torn her butt and likely her back up if she was really being punished and that she would be sore for at least a week. Still, it was better to err on the side of caution, just to make sure that his mate understood instead of assuming she did.
"Yes, Aaron I understand that we were just playing, just like Alphas and their Omegas have been doing through the centuries," Penelope told him.
"And how do you feel?" Aaron asked. "I know this is the first chance we've had to play this game since we got mated, so I want your honest opinion on how you're feeling."
"I feel very loved," Penelope said finally after sorting out her feelings. "The Omega in me was beginning to doubt that you really did love her, as she had been rejected so often because she wasn't pretty enough or slim enough or because she was to intelligent to be seriously considered as the mate of an Alpha. Now she knows that you do love her, because you took the time to play with her and now you're taking the time to make sure she understands the reason for the punishment and that it wasn't serious. Of course, I realize right now, I'm pregnant so my emotions are magnified and also a little out-of-kilter than normal which is why playing the game is even more important right now."
"Good, that's the way you should feel," Aaron said very pleased. "I'll make sure we play more often at least while you're pregnant, because I never want you or the Omega that's part of you to doubt that I do love you, so very much and I'll never stop as long as I'm alive."
"I know we've been busy this last week..." Penelope began.
"That's no reason for me to forget my duty, deny the Alpha part of me pleasure or the Omega that's part of you either," Aaron said cutting her off with a fierce kiss leaving her feeling rather dazed. "I don't ever want the Omega in you to doubt that I love her with everything I am, even if the woman in you understands that we have been very busy. We can't forget that the Omega is the animal part of you and while she is intelligent there are certain things that are expected when an Omega is mated to an Alpha. An Alpha has certain duties that he or she has to perform no matter how busy life gets and taking half an hour at least once, preferably twice a week to play punish you is not too much to ask no matter how busy we happen to be. If an Omega is unhappy she's much more likely to betray the Alpha then if she is happy and content and it is the Alpha's responsibility to keep her or him that way."
"Yes, you're right," Penelope agreed, since her mother had told her the same.
"I tried my best to keep Haley happy, but I failed," Aaron said. "She made her displeasure with me known, always in the home, so I didn't feel like I could seriously punish her because she behaved in public. We stopped playing the game just like the two of us did minutes ago, but things were already deteriorating rapidly before that."
"So why was Haley unhappy?" Penelope asked. "Sorry that question just came out of my mouth before I could stop it. I shouldn't ask, as it's not of my business and I don't want to hurt you by bringing up bad memories."
"Well, I'll tell you anyway, because you are my mate and you deserve an answer," Aaron said. "Dave was right when he said that honesty really is the best policy."
Aaron was silent for a moment seeming to gather his thoughts then begin to tell his mate exactly why he and Haley had argued so much.
"So basically, she wanted you to go into politics and you didn't want too, which is what caused her eventual betrayal," Penelope summarized.
"She wanted to be a politician's wife, have dinner parties and be the wife of an important man, which she should've made clear before we mated, because I never would have mated with her if I'd known that. I've never had any interest in politics and I have no intention of ever becoming a politician," Aaron said.
"Perhaps, Haley believed that she could change your mind," Penelope suggested. "Still, I do believe that the two of you should've talked about your hopes and dreams for each other just like we did."
"Yeah, we should have, but I was much younger and naïve back then or at least stupider when it came to woman and I believed that I loved Haley enough to last a lifetime. Who knows it might've worked out if only she hadn't gotten it into her head that I should go into politics, something I shall never do, as I know myself well enough to know that I'd only be miserable," Aaron said. "I'll be grateful for our relationship though, because it gave me Jack, Maddy, Suzy and Jamie."
"Also you basically went without sex for almost three years, because you didn't want to cheat on Haley, but she wasn't willing to accommodate you and that right there could be considered a betrayal," Penelope said shaking her head. "I don't know how you held out, as I know very well that Alphas need to have sex often whether or not that's with a mate. I want to still be having sex with you, even when I'm 200."
"That's the plan," Aaron grinned pleased. "Alphas and Omegas don't stop making love like humans often do once they get old. We might move slower once we're old, but we'll still be having plenty of sex and also playing the game. As for the holding out it was very difficult, but spending time with my children helped and I was also very busy at work, but it certainly wasn't easy. I'll be grateful for Jack, Maddy, Suzy and Jamie as they kept me sane, during that time."
"Well, right now, we are still young and I don't intend to get old anytime soon," Penelope grinned. "The two of us still have plenty of good years left in us and I'm not going to worry about getting old."
"We'll raise our family and once they are out of the house I can retire and we can do some traveling," Aaron mused.
"Sounds wonderful," Penelope said. "I grew up in California as you know and I do go back to visit my family sometimes, but I haven't been many other places."
"Well then, we'll simply do some traveling, mostly after we retire, but I'm sure we'll take family vacations," Aaron said.
"That's a rather difficult prospect considering how many children we're going to have," said Penelope.
"It can be done with a lot of organization," Aaron said. "That's something to worry about for later though perhaps, we can take a vacation before you get too far along with Jack, Maddy, Suzy and Jamie."
"That would be wonderful. I think the four of them are old enough to behave and enjoy themselves. We could go somewhere like Disney World," Penelope said
"We've never been because Haley and I believed they weren't old enough," Aaron said. "They were quite a bit younger when our relationship started to go sour, so that's a very good idea. As soon as some of the firms associates get back from vacation I'll arrange my own. They should be back sometime in the next few days and then I won't feel guilty for taking my own vacation, which will really surprise my boss as I've always been something of a workaholic. At first I was just trying to get established in my career and then after that I worked so much because Haley was causing so many arguments that I wanted to avoid going home. Now that I have you though things are going to change. I'm certainly not going to be the workaholic that I was before because I was so unhappy. Now I think it's time for bed."
Seeing the gleam in Aaron's eyes made sure that Penelope knew what was coming and so nodded eagerly.
The two of them got up from the bed and went into the bathroom to brush their teeth and use the toilet together, before climbing into bed. Aaron made love to his gorgeous mate before they finally drifted off to sleep content.
~~~Healed Hearts~~~
"It's so nice to meet you at last little one," Penelope said, as she cuddled one of JJ's triplets in her arms.
JJ had given birth quite easily just a few days ago and Dave had insisted that she rest afterwards. That she get as much sleep as she could because she hadn't been sleeping well for the last few weeks at least and it had really been longer than that. JJ had not argued knowing she wouldn't change Dave's mind and she probably did need the sleep, as running such a large household took a lot of energy and being pregnant hadn't helped. The only time she was allowed out of bed was to use the bathroom and to take a shower. When Dave ordered total bed rest he meant it and always brought the triplets to her so they could feed at her breasts. He also brought her, her meals and often ate with her. JJ admitted that she had slept more than she believed possible in the last three days of forced bed rest, so Dave had been right again, which could occasionally be annoying. It was only this morning that Dave had finally allowed out of bed for more than using the facilities and JJ could now admit that she felt much better and wasn't tired at all. She felt ready to get back to her routine.
JJ had immediately suggested that they invite Aaron and Penny over to meet their godchildren, two boys and girl. JJ had been hoping to have all boys since she had all girls last time, but still, at least she had gotten two and now she had four boys and four girls, so that she had an equal number of each, so that was something anyway.
"All three of them are so cute," Penelope said and Aaron agreed, as he held the only little girl.
"So I'm assuming you picked out names by now?" Aaron asked.
"Of course, Jennifer and I picked out names months ago once we learned what sexes we were having," Dave said. "We decided on Jana for our little girl and Jasper and Julian for our two sons."
"I see they all start with the same letter again," Aaron said.
"A lot of times multiple baby names rhyme or at least sound similar, they even start with the same letter a lot of times," JJ said.
"In this case we agreed that they could start with the same letter, but that's as far as we were willing to go," Dave added. "Since our species has multiple as a normal rule it would be impossible to find names that rhymed or sounded the same for every multiple pregnancy, so why bother?"
"If humans want to find names that rhyme or sound similar, well, that's their prerogative, but then they don't have multiples as often as we do," JJ added.
"We simply pick out names we like that start with the same letter and don't care if they do sound similar or not," Dave said.
"Next time we have any Dave and I will decide on what letter of the alphabet to use and will pick out names that starts with that letter," JJ said.
"Well, it's a rather sensible system," Penelope decided. "I doubt that Aaron and I will do the same thing, but to each his own."
"We could, but we probably won't," Aaron agreed.
"So do you know what sexes you're having yet?" Dave asked curiously.
"Yes, we do said you can find out in just four weeks with our kind," Penelope answered.
"And there was no way we were going to be surprised considering that these are our firsts," Aaron grinned.
"I definitely agree with that," Dave said smiling. "JJ and I just had to find out what sex we were having whether it was girls or boys or both. You can't pick baby names if you don't know the sexes after all."
"So are you going to relieve our curiosity?" JJ asked, trying not to let on how curious she really was.
"Maybe we should keep it to ourselves until after they're here," Penelope suggested to Aaron not really serious, as she had seen the curiosity in her friend's expression and knew she was dying to know.
JJ looked rather pained, but didn't argue.
"There is no reason to keep it a secret," Aaron told Penelope, "so we might as well assuage Dave and JJ's curiosity. Besides, they might decide to keep the same information from us next time JJ gets pregnant and I know you'll want to know what the sexes are and all because you decided it was a good idea to pull a prank on your friend."
"I would do it too," JJ told Penelope with a serious expression.
"I wasn't really serious," Penelope said looking horrified. Aaron simply squeezed her hand running his thumb over her knuckles.
"Well then?" Dave asked keeping his expression neutral, although on the inside he was chuckling at the byplay
"Fine," Penelope pretended to huff in annoyance. "We're having both as you might expect, considering I'm carrying quads. Two of each."
"Which I kind of half expected considering both sets of our twins were boy/girl," Aaron said, smiling.
"Unfortunately, we still have awhile to wait before they here."
"Yeah, nearly 4 months," Penelope sighed. "Still, I can't complain, because I'm finally having children of my own, even if I wish they were already here. I love Jack, Maddy Suzy and Jamie, as much as if they were my own, but still I can hardly wait for my own children to arrive."
"No one can blame you for that as these are the first children you've ever had," Aaron said. "As much as you love my children from a previous relationship, they're not technically yours, even if you've adopted them as your own."
"I think I should adopt them legally, just in case something happens that no one can expect," said Penelope.
"That's a good idea, I know you'll look after them if anything were to happen to me. I'm not predicting anything," Aaron promised Dave and JJ. "I'm just saying that things could happen that no one can expect. What if I'm in a car accident and get several broken bones for example or end up in a coma?"
"I did the same thing as you never know what life will bring," Dave said. "After all, JJ was seriously injured due to Carolyn and there's no way that Henry and Michael would've been left with me without me adopting them legally, because I'm not a blood relation. It's possible that they would've been put with Sandy and I could've visited them regularly, taken them on outings, but it wouldn't've been the same. It's more likely though that child services would have given them to Will, since he's their father."
"But Will has children of his own and I don't think he or his mate could afford to take Henry and Michael as well, so they probably would've ended up with mom after all," JJ pointed out logically. "She certainly would be the next logical option after Will."
"Discussing all this is a mute point since nothing's going to happen to any of us, but still it makes good logical sense for Penelope to adopt my children just in case," Aaron said. "So many stepparents have been denied access to their children because they're not blood related and since I'm an attorney to me it makes sense to let Penelope adopt my four. I'll get the paperwork together as soon as possible and hire a lawyer that does adoptions."
"I can give you some names if you need any recommendations," Dave said. "I can tell you who handled my adoption of Henry and Michael, but then you're an attorney, so you probably don't need any help, since you run in the same circles, even if you don't handle adoptions."
"No, I know just to I'm going to hire," Aaron said, "but thanks anyway."
"You're welcome," Dave said. "We're friends after all and I wouldn't want your children to go to someone else in your family just because Penelope didn't adopt them, if something were happen to you."
Aaron nodded his thanks and the subject was changed.
"It's about time I get these three fed," JJ said rising to her feet.
"Before you go we wanted to ask you to be the godparents when these four are born," Aaron said tenderly stroking Penelope's belly.
"We couldn't think of anyone better and since we are going to be the godparents of your three it only seems right to return the favor. We know you'll look after them if anything what happened to Aaron and I, not that's too likely but you never know, because even though I don't like to think about it there are many ways to die. A simple car accident for example," Penelope said.
"We'd be happy to," Dave said and JJ nodded enthusiastically. "They undoubtably wouldn't live with us if anything happened to you, because you have plenty of other relatives, but we would visit frequently."
"Yes, we are honored," JJ agreed. "In a way this makes us real family."
"Yes, it does," Penelope said.
"Who knows maybe one day we really will be family," Dave said.
"It's certainly possible," Aaron said. "In the meantime, we will be related because we are the godparents to each other's children."
"I better go or these three are going to start wailing," JJ said, smiling.
"Here, I'll help you, as I need to practice," Penelope offered. "You at least had the practice because of Henry and Michael."
"I'll be glad of the help because three are a lot to handle all on my own. Dave's been helping me a lot and he's really good at it. I would be even more exhausted and tired if I had to do it all myself," JJ said.
"There's no way you could handle eight children all on your own, even if Henry and Michael and our triplets are past the bottle feeding stage. They are all eating real food, but our oldest triplets are barely at the stage where they can hold a spoon by themselves, much less get it in their mouths. There's no way I would leave you to deal with it all yourself, not even with Ruth's and Sandy's help. You'd go insane in a very short amount of time trying to deal with eight small children. It takes all of us to get the children's fed and dressed now and it will only get worse when we have more. I think I'm going to hire another nanny to help out, because these are not the last we're going to have."
"I think I'm going to do the same to give Sheila a break, which she will be grateful for, to have someone to share the workload, though Penelope's certainly been helping with the Jack, Maddy, Suzy and Jamie. Still, we need someone else," Aaron decided. "The house my parents had built has plenty of room for a dozen nannies."
"We should be grateful that infants not being able to feed themselves doesn't last more than a couple of years, but then you have other battles to fight," JJ said
"Getting them to eat their vegetables for example," Dave said. "I well remember how much trouble I had getting one of my much younger sister to eat her vegetables like broccoli."
"Oh, yes, I remember that stage very well," Aaron said, smiling as little as he remembered.
JJ and Penelope finally left, because they knew the triplets needed to be fed then changed before they started crying.
"Congratulations on your mating, Aaron," Dave said toasting him with his cup of tea. "You are a lucky man."
"Yes, I am and I'm grateful for that lecture you gave me. The one where you backed me into a corner," Aaron said smiling, as he remembered that conversation that hadn't been too long ago.
"Perhaps, I shouldn't have interfered, but I didn't want to see you miserable for the rest of your life, especially since our kind can live a long time, " Dave said. "I'm glad that you and Penny got together and that both of you are happy, so I'm glad I finally got you to see that you couldn't let your ex-mate control your life. It might not have seemed that way, but you were the one that didn't date after you and Haley basically divorced because you were afraid of what would happen if you did take a second mate. There's no way you could have gone the next hundred years only having one night stands."
"I was lonely, but it was you that made me see that I couldn't let my fear of what Haley might do rule me," Aaron admitted. "I know I have some contacts in the Police Department keeping an eye on her but still..."
"She could try something," Dave finished.
"That she hasn't is probably only because she likely doesn't know about me taking Penelope as my mate, since it only happened a couple of months ago," Aaron said. "If she comes anywhere near Penelope or the quads once they are born, I will show her absolutely no mercy."
Aaron's voice was now a growl and his eyes had turned fierce and totally alpha.
"She would be stupid to try anything, because while she doesn't have much of a life at least she's alive," Dave said.
"I know, but people in general do stupid things all the time, especially if they feel that they've been betrayed or that they need to get revenge for a wrong done them," Aaron said. "I'm actually surprised that Haley hasn't decided taking her life as I never guessed that her will was that strong. It's not like she's living very well, as she barely has enough to put food on the table and to rent a small apartment in a bad part of town much less for any creature comforts as I threw her out with only the clothes on back and donated the rest."
"It's only been a little over three years it could happen at any time and then you won't have to worry about her anymore," Dave said.
"I'm actually hoping for that solution, because that means that technically, I wouldn't've been responsible for her death," Aaron sighed and watched as JJ and Penelope came back, without the children.
"We put them to bed after feeding and changing them, which Ruth helped with," JJ told Dave who nodded.
"Yeah, they just conked right out," Penelope smiled her expression tender and it was clear she couldn't wait until the birth of her own children.
"What do you expect when their bellies are full?" Dave asked amused. "They'll be out for at least two, three hours now."
Now that the babies were taken care of the four spent the next hour just chatting cordially and enjoying a relaxing afternoon in each other's company.
~~~Healed Hearts~~~