Buried Treasure (Silver Creek Resort Book 1) Read online

  Her mouth opened, then closed before words could come out. He didn’t take kindly to smart remarks, so she needed to keep them to herself. She thought for a moment. It wasn’t in her nature to keep her mouth shut.

  “I’ve heard that when you do that it itches when it grows back, and you risk ingrown hairs,” she said. “I’m not a fan.”

  ‘It wasn’t a request,” he said. “I’ll get X to help you.”

  “I can do it on my own,” she spit out as quickly as she could. The idea of shaving herself for him wasn’t pleasant, but it was better to do it herself than have another person do it for her.

  “Are you working your clit?” he asked.

  “Yes,” she said, and quickly added, “Sir. Sorry, I’m still getting used to saying Sir. Which brings me to a question, am I supposed to call you Sir in public situations, or in private only?”

  “When it deals with you being submissive, then you use it,” he said. “You don’t when it’s not.”

  Since he didn’t expand on the difference she figured it was up to her to figure out the whys and hows of the different situations and when she should call him Sir, and when she should call him Shawn.

  “I never thought of myself as a submissive,” she said.

  “Don’t think of it as a bad thing,” he said. “Strong women sometimes need a strong partner in the bedroom. You haven’t had that yet. You’ve had wimps as lovers.”

  She quit moving her fingers. She wasn’t getting much out of it anyway. She would rather he touch her. “They weren’t wimps.”

  “You know what they said, you have to kiss a few frogs before you find your prince.”

  “So, you’re my prince?” They were entering Silver Creek now. She put her hand over her pussy, as if she could hide it from prying eyes.

  “Put your hands back in your panties,” he said.

  “But we’re in town,” she said.

  “Do as I say, apprentice,” he said.

  “No,” she said. “I can’t do it while we’re in town.”

  “Okay,” he said. They stopped at the light and he took out his phone and started texting.

  She worried about her being seen half-naked while they sat at the light, but she figured the SUV was up high enough that no one could see her lower half, unless they were in a building, or in a higher vehicle.

  “Back to what we were talking about,” he said as he dropped the phone into the cup holder and started forward again. “You never know if you’re a good match with someone until you give it a shot.”

  She didn’t want to talk about the possibility that he was her prince. “Just like that?” Well, that was easy. She supposed she really was able to turn down things he wanted to do, which made her feel better about things.

  “You miss the point about submission,” he said. “I’m not going to pull over and force you to masturbate. But it’s not ‘just like that’ as you say. We’ll come back to it later.

  “And we will,” he said. “But first, I want to remind you of our play so far. You want to say no to something, but you’ve loved every stroke, every thrust, every slap against your ass. How do you know you wouldn’t enjoy playing with your cunt while we were in town?”

  They were on the road to the resort now, going much slower than they had been. Why had he slowed down? He’d been enjoying testing the limits of his new vehicle.

  “I don’t think playing with myself in a car on a crowded street is taking it slow.”

  “You’re not writing the script for this, I am.”

  Yes, he was, which meant she wasn’t going to get away with her disobedience.

  The vehicle slowed down even more.

  “What, are we going to crawl back to the resort?” she asked. “I don’t think you’re even going the speed limit.”

  “This road is bad,” he said. “I don’t want to damage my new car.”

  “Bull hockey,” she said. He was up to something, which meant she wasn’t getting off so easy for telling him she wouldn’t play with herself while they were in town. A bad feeling started deep in her stomach and started to spread.

  “What’s happening?”

  He pulled up to the gate and pressed in his code.

  “What’s happening?” she repeated.

  He didn’t answer. Instead he drove around first one curve, then another. At the second one she saw a truck with two men standing outside it. As they drew nearer she could see the first man was Ethan. She imagined the other one was Randy, the partner she’d yet to meet. There was something else there, and as they drew closer she could see it was a bench of some sort.

  “What is that?” she asked.

  He pulled up next to them and stopped the SUV. “Stay here.”

  He got out, talked to the two men and they got in their truck and drove off. Shawn came to her side of the car and opened the door.

  “Out,” he said.

  “What’s happening?” she asked.

  “We need to have a little chat,” he said. “Get out of the car.”

  Chapter 13

  “A chat about what?” she asked. She didn’t move from her seat. This was an unexpected turn of events, and she didn’t like it.

  “Get out of the car,” he said.

  “But—” Something told her this stemmed from her refusal to play with herself while they were in town. He had sent those texts while they were at the stoplight. And afterward she’d gotten a lecture about doing as she was told.

  “I’m sorry,” she said. “I’ll behave from now on. I promise.” Unless I think I need to use my safe word.

  “Get out of the car,” he said.

  She hated it when he did that. She deserved answers, didn’t she? Of course, that’s not what she was trying for. She wanted to stall because she was very nervous about what he had planned next.

  “I think we should go back to the lodge,” she said. “We can talk about things.”

  “I’m not playing this game with you,” he said. “I’m in charge, and you agreed to that. Now, if you’ve changed your mind just say the word, or words in this case, and our sexual relationship is over. We’ll go back to the lodge, as you say, and we’ll discuss the search for the money, and the possibility there is a priceless necklace out there. But our physical relationship will be done. You decide.”

  “It’s unfair,” she said.

  “No, you’re trying to control the situation, and I won’t allow that,” he said. “I am the Dom, you are the sub. I do believe we’ve gone over this before. Now, what will it be, go forward, or stop the presses?”

  He didn’t sound angry, just resigned to the fact that this was the situation, and she had to make the choice.

  She wanted a little more time, but Autumn knew she didn’t have it. She was either all in, or this was the end of the game.

  “Will you help me down?” she asked.

  “I will,” he said.

  When she was on the ground she looked up at him. “Now what?”

  “Go over to the bench,” he said. “You’ll see a padded pillow on the end. Bend over it.”

  Autumn fought back the words, “Here? Outside? Right off the road?” But she did as he asked. He was beside her in seconds, undoing the cuffs that kept her from lying flat on the bench. He attached her wrists to cuffs at the top of the bench, which meant her arms were above her. Then he attached her ankles to cuffs on the legs.

  Once she was secured he pulled her panties down to bare her bottom. He was going to spank her, obviously. She could take that. In fact, she’d rather enjoyed what he’d done last night.

  But what he did next surprised her. He opened a bag and she watched as he assembled a tent, or the semblance of one. He put it over her body, obviously to shield her from the sun. Then he opened another bag, took out a chair and, once it was set up, he sat in it and pulled out his phone.

  At first, she thought he was taking pictures of her.

  “You’re not going to post photos of me, are you?”

  “I respe
ct your privacy too much for that,” he said. “I’m reading a book. You have thirty minutes in what is my idea of time out. You will stay there, silently, until I say you’re done.”

  “You’re not going to spank me?”

  “What part of silently do you not understand?” he asked, and this time he sounded pissed off. “One more word, and I will end it. You need to at least make a show of following the rules.”

  He lowered his gaze back to his phone. Autumn wiggled. Her position wasn’t that uncomfortable, but she wasn’t sure how she would feel after thirty minutes. The tarp was a nice touch, as it kept the sun from beating down on her back. But there was still the fact that she was on the side of the road, tied to a bench with her bare ass facing the road. Anyone who drove in and out would see her.

  Of course, they wouldn’t see her face. But they would see Shawn, and they would see her with Shawn. She didn’t like the idea of being on display. She wiggled against her bonds.

  “How close are we?”

  “You just added ten minutes to your time,” he said.

  “I didn’t know that rule!” She huffed in anger. “That’s not fair.

  “Ten more.”

  “Ugghh!” she cried in frustration.

  “I’ll give that one five more,” he said.

  Autumn internalized her next scream, knowing it would do nothing but add to the punishment he was meting out. After a few moments, she squirmed. Despite the cover it was getting hot. She wanted to say so, but she was afraid if she did he would add more time on her humiliation.

  A honking horn made her stiffen.

  “Hey,” Shawn said. She watched as he stood and walked toward the road. She heard another voice and knew instantly that Ethan was there. She didn’t recognize the other voice, so she figured it was Randy. She couldn’t quite make out all the words, but she picked out one loud and clear: hack.

  What did that mean?

  “Um, excuse me,” she said. “If this about the search I need to be let in on this conversation. I believe that’s in the contract.”

  “She has a point,” Ethan said.

  “She has seventeen more minutes,” Shawn said. “Go back to the lodge and we’ll be there in a little bit, as soon as she’s gotten her swats.”

  Swats? “What? I mean, you’re talking now. Release me so I can take part.”

  “See you there in a bit,” Shawn said.

  Autumn turned her head to see Ethan and Randy walking back to their car. Shawn came and stood in front of her.

  “I’ve been bad, again, right? Sir?”

  He crouched down in front of her. “Yes, you were. But you were right, too. The guys said someone tried to hack into the reservations server last night and set up a reservation for themselves. As you know, we don’t make reservations for people until after they’ve been through a background check, unless they’re known to us.”

  “Who tried to set up the reservation?”

  “Mac Trucker,” he said, “with an address in Las Vegas, a fake one.”

  “What are we going to do?” she asked as she wiggled against her bonds. Was she supposed to call him Sir now, while she was bound, but they were talking about the treasure hunt? This was a mixture of both sides and she wasn’t sure exactly what to do.

  “Well, the first thing we’re going to do is give you the fifteen swats that come at the end of your confinement,” he said.

  “You never said anything about swats, Sir,” she said.

  “I don’t have to declare everything to you,” he said. “You’ll learn as time goes by that I don’t always give a heads up. But, let’s talk about you refusing to obey my orders.”

  He stood and unbuckled his belt. He slowly pulled it free from its loops and then doubled it up and held it to his side.

  Autumn swallowed, hard. The image of him slowly getting ready to punish her was sexy, but she had a feeling the spanking would not be. This one wouldn’t be fun, and there wouldn’t be a good fucking afterward, either.

  “I’m sorry about questioning you,” she said. “I’m still not used to—all this.”

  “I know,” he said. “I am trying to help you take baby steps, but sometimes I get a little carried away. I admit I’m not perfect.”

  Autumn waited for him to put his belt away, but he didn’t.

  “You’re still getting a spanking,” he said. “Fifteen swats, ones that will redden that pretty behind.”

  He moved behind her. Autumn pulled on her wrists, which didn’t budge.

  “Please don’t,” she said, right before he slapped the leather against her bottom. It wasn’t a hard swat and that calmed her a little. But the second one made her cry out. The third one came right on its heels, as did the fourth and fifth. Tears stung her eyes and she whimpered. That was only five. She had ten more to go.

  But she didn’t have time to dwell on it, because he delivered the next ten swats hard and fast. She cried and wiggled and begged him to stop, even though she knew there was a set limit, and it wouldn’t last that long.

  When he was done, he crouched in front of her and said, “I understand that you might not be comfortable with things I order you to do. But there is a proper way to do it, and that is to say, Sir, I am nervous about this. Can we discuss it.”

  “But I didn’t know that at the time,” she said through her tears. “It’s hardly fair to punish me for something I didn’t know about.”

  “It was a lesson, an easy one,” he said. “Despite your tears, I can tell you that spankings can, and will be, much worse than that. Now, let’s get you untied, pick up this stuff and go back and see what we’re going to do about our hacker.”

  “You know,” Autumn said as she sniffled, “whoever tried to make the reservation had to use a credit card. You can trace the real person back to that number.”

  Her ankles were free, and he was now working on her wrists. “Good point, apprentice. We’ll do that as soon as we get back.”

  “That little weasel,” Autumn said. “I knew he was up to something. But how in the devil did he find out what we were looking for? I didn’t tell anyone, not my cousin or anyone else.”

  She pulled her phone out of her pocket. “I’m going to call that little POS and give him a piece of my mind.”

  Shawn took her phone out of her hands. “No, you’re not.” He put the phone on the table. “I think we should let him come.”

  “Are you crazy?” Autumn stared at him in amazement. “Why? Brent Mach is a jerk, and if he has wind of the bank robbery money he’s going to try and get his hands on it.”

  “Which means we need to do it first,” Shawn said. “Autumn and I will set out tonight, after dinner.”

  “Why don’t we wait until the morning?” she asked.

  “I’ve run the GPS coordinates,” Ethan said. “You should be able to find the site in a few hours. You can pitch a tent and be ready to start searching first thing in the morning. The sooner we get our hands on the money, the better things will be.”

  “I’m not much of a camping girl,” Autumn said. “I’m a pee indoors kind of girl.”

  All three of them laughed.

  “I have a portable camping toilet,” Shawn said. “You’ll be fine.”

  “Right,” Autumn said.

  “I’ll send Ralph and Steve out to set up the tent,” Shawn said. “Everything will be ready when we get there.”

  “Who are they?” Autumn asked.

  “Employees,” Ethan said. “The equipment doesn’t clean itself, and the grounds don’t stay pristine by magic. We employ fifty people here between cooks, groundskeepers, waiters and waitresses, housekeepers, bookkeepers, desk clerks, investigators who run background checks on people who want to stay, and many other jobs. We’re not just playing games here.”

  “Easy, Tiger,” Randy said. “You’ll have to excuse Ethan, he gets wound up when people question our facility.”

  “I wasn’t questioning it, just the need for me to pee outdoors,” Autumn said.


  Ethan opened his mouth, then closed it and left the room.

  “He doesn’t like me,” Autumn said. “Why?”

  “You’re a journalist,” Shawn said.

  “Former,” she countered.

  “He hates journalists,” Shawn said. “We’ll discuss the reasons why later. Now, I’m going to ask Ralph and Steve to set up the tent near the silver mines. Kate told us she didn’t go with Jane and Dad when they buried it, that she stayed at the house, so she didn’t see the location. Dad just gave her the coordinates.”

  “Make sure there are shovels in your truck,” Randy said. He stood and started toward the door. “Oh, by the way, Autumn, you have a nice ass. Just thought I’d let you know I’m jealous that I won’t be leaving any pretty marks like I’m sure Shawn put there earlier.”

  Autumn stared after him as he left. “He just… he just what?”

  “Told you he wished he’d seen you before me,” Shawn said. “His loss is my gain. Now, go to your cabin and make sure you take care of that little item we talked about earlier today. I’ll see you at dinner.”

  When he was gone, Autumn looked out the window. Shaving her pussy. What a fun afternoon this should prove to be.

  “I had Chef pack dinner for you, so you can get on your way.” Randy had met them at the back of the lodge. “Don’t think me presumptuous, but it’s getting late. The terrain next to the mines is uneven, you need to make it there before the sun goes down.”

  “You’re right,” Shawn said. “Ralph came by and told me they’d set everything up. I’m going to take one of the resort vehicles. I don’t want to tear up my new wheels after only a few days.”

  “Not a bad idea,” Randy said. “You two kids have fun.”

  They took off on what Autumn would term as ruts rather than a road.

  “Your friend Ethan has a big chip on his shoulder,” she said. “May I ask what his problem is? Or is it just me?”

  “Ethan’s had a hard time lately,” he said. “Don’t take this wrong, but I’m not going to discuss it with you. He’s one of my best friends, and talking about his problems would feel like gossip.”