Spanking Sydney Read online

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  Sydney debated long and hard whether to hit the snooze button the next morning. The only thing that swayed her was knowing she’d be late if she did, and she’d already made a crappy enough impression on her new boss. With a groan, she shut off the alarm and forced herself to get out of bed.

  After a shower and a quick bowl of cereal, she put on her make-up and got dressed in record time. She even surprised herself by getting to work earlier than she’d ever done before. She still wasn’t on time, though, something Max noticed. The moment she walked in, he scowled at her.

  “You’re late.”

  Sydney flushed. “I…”

  He didn’t let her finish. “I read over the agenda after you left and found a ton of mistakes.”

  He tossed the stack of collated and stapled documents on her desk. She frowned when she saw the amount of corrections he’d made. And with a red pen, no less. She cringed. Maybe she should have proofread them more closely.

  “I’m sorry.”

  He slanted her a hard look. “Just get it fixed before the staff meeting.”

  Sydney sighed as he disappeared into his office and closed the door. “Good morning to you, too.”

  She hurriedly made the corrections, then ran off the copies. As it was, she barely got them to the conference room in time. Max was deep in conversation with another executive when she walked in, so she set them on the table, then went to get herself a desperately needed cup of coffee.

  To her surprise, the staff meeting took up the whole morning. When Ted had held them, they usually hadn’t lasted more than a half hour. By the time Max returned, it was almost noon. She looked up, startled as he stormed into the office.

  “When I asked you to get me the personnel files for everyone in the department, I meant everyone,” he growled.

  Sydney groaned inwardly. She’d been afraid she hadn’t pulled all the files. “I thought that was everyone.”

  His brows drew together. “Well, it wasn’t, and I ended up looking like a complete idiot in there. You’re supposed to be an executive assistant, dammit. Start acting like one.”

  Sydney’s face burned with embarrassment, but before she could say anything, her boss turned on his heel and strode into his office. She’d only been working for Max Daniels since yesterday and already she’d made two huge mistakes, not to mention a whole handful of smaller ones. He probably thought she was totally incompetent.

  “I’ll be lucky if he doesn’t fire me before the week is over,” she told Erika at lunch.

  “He isn’t going to fire you,” her friend assured her.

  Sydney wasn’t so sure. Which was why she made every effort to make sure she was back on time. Good thing since Max made a point of looking at his watch when she walked in. She glanced at her own watch. She was a few minutes late. Damn. She braced herself for another lecture, but though her boss frowned, he made no comment.

  “I want a report detailing the status of the government contract we’re working on, he said as she tossed her purse in the drawer.

  “Okay.” She pulled out her chair. “What kind of things do you want included in it?”

  “Everything. Department responsibilities. Budget and expenditures. Subcontractor listings. Work completion schedules.”

  He wasn’t kidding when he said everything. “I assume you want it by close of business?”

  He did.

  Another late night. Great.

  Sydney had graduated from college with degrees in both business and accounting, so she knew what a report like the one her boss wanted should look like. She’d also worked at the software firm long enough to be familiar with each department, as well as the subcontractors. It was just that she’d never been asked to do a report like this before, and with calls to make and telephones to answer in between, it took her the rest of the afternoon and most of the evening to get it finished.

  While it was hard work, she was kind of proud of the job she’d done. It’d been years since she’d used her college education, and it was nice to know it was still there. She’d almost forgotten how much she enjoyed crunching numbers. Pushing back her chair, she went into Max’s office.

  “If there’s nothing else you need, I thought I’d to go ahead and leave,” she said as she handed it to him.

  He glanced at the cover sheet, then up at her. “Actually, I’d like you to wait while I look this over.”

  Sydney stifled a groan. It was already after eight. Besides the apple she’d brought with her to snack on, she hadn’t eaten anything since lunch. She was starving. Not to mention exhausted.

  When Max frowned halfway through the report, she hoped it was because of the data and not her work. When that frown shifted to her, she knew better. Dammit. What had she done now?

  “Would you please close the door?” he asked.

  At that time of night, no one was in the building except the cleaning crew. Come to think of it, she was pretty sure they’d probably already left, too. She supposed he didn’t want to take a chance that anyone would hear the lecture he was almost certainly going to give her. Walking over to the door, she pushed it closed, then came back to stand before his desk.

  “How long have you been an executive assistant, Ms. Davis?” Max asked.

  She shifted nervously. Standing in front of his desk made her feel like she was in the principal’s office. “Eight years.”

  He lifted a brow. “Really? Well, I’m surprised to hear that, because your work is shoddy at best.”

  Her face colored. “I-I must have been in a hurry, I guess. My work is usually exemplary.”

  “You’d never know it. This report is terrible.” He tossed it down on the desk, his jaw tight. “Between your sloppy work and showing up late, I should fire you. The only reason I won’t is because HR says you have an outstanding personnel file.”

  Sydney stared at him. He’d been going to fire her? She knew she’d pissed him off, but she hadn’t even considered he might let her go. She owed whoever it was in Human Resources that had talked him out of it.

  “But while you might be staying on with the company, it won’t be as my assistant,” he continued. “I’ve asked HR to transfer you to one of the other departments. It probably won’t be an executive position, but at least you’ll still have a job. When you come in tomorrow, go see Patti and she’ll place you.”

  Max went back to reading the report, effectively dismissing her. Sydney stared at him, her stomach in a knot and her eyes burning with unshed tears. She couldn’t believe what she’d just heard. She was the executive assistant to the vice president of the company. Any other job would not only mean less money, but less prestige, too. She couldn’t let him demote her.

  She swallowed hard. “Mr. Daniels, please.”

  He looked up at her, his dark eyes cool. “I’ve already made my decision, Ms. Davis.”

  She took a step closer to the desk. “Couldn’t you just put a letter of reprimand in my file instead?”

  He was silent as he considered her words, but then shook his head. “A letter of reprimand won’t deal with the primary issue here, and that’s your work performance. Punishing you is only half of it. Besides, a letter of reprimand would go on your permanent record, and that would hurt your chances of getting promoted in the future. I think a transfer to a less demanding job would be best for everyone concerned.”

  Best for everyone concerned? How could getting transferred to a lower paying job be best for her? He might as well just go ahead and fire her right now.

  She took another step closer to the desk, pleading at him with her eyes. “Mr. Daniels, please. I really love this job and I don’t want to work in another department. I have the skills to do what you need. They’re just rusty because Mr. Willis didn’t require as much from me.” Hell, he hadn’t asked he to do more than get him coffee. “If I promise to work harder and do a better job, couldn’t you come up with some other form of punishment?”

  Max sat back and regarded her in silence. That
thing she’d said about feeling as if she was standing in front of the principal’s desk? This was way worse.

  He admitted he’d read her personnel file, so he knew she had the skills necessary to do the work. He just had to give her another chance. She’d pick up his dry cleaning every day for a month as punishment if she had to.

  “There is something” he finally said. “Human Resources wouldn’t consider it an approval discipline, though.”

  Relief coursed through her, and she nodded. “Then it will just stay between us.”

  Whatever it was she knew she would agree to it. She loved her job that much.

  He studied her for another long moment. The knot in Sydney’s stomach tightened. Please don’t let him change his mind.

  “Rather than have you transferred to another department, I could give you a spanking instead,” he said softly.

  Sydney blinked. She couldn’t have heard him right. “A sp-spanking?”

  Was he serious?

  He nodded. “In my experience, a spanking can be an excellent method for adjusting a poor attitude. But I’d only do it if you agreed to it, of course.”

  Sydney chewed on her lower lip. She’d gotten spanked a few times by an old boyfriend, but it had been during sex, so it had been fun. She didn’t think a spanking administered by her boss as a form of punishment would be very much fun at all. In fact, it would probably hurt like hell. Still, getting spanked would be better than getting demoted. It would also probably be a lot better than getting yelled at again, too. She cringed inwardly as she remembered how Max had shouted at her when he’d come back from the staff meeting that first morning. She really hated getting yelled at.

  Somewhere in the back of her mind, she wondered if his offer to spank her instead of demoting her could be considered sexual harassment. Probably. But a spanking was still a whole lot more acceptable than a pay cut, especially since her lousy performance justified the demotion.

  “Well, Ms. Davis?” Max prompted quietly. “What’s it to be—the transfer, or the spanking?”

  She swallowed hard. Lifting her chin, she met his gaze. “I-I’ll take the spanking.”

  “Are you sure?”

  She nodded. “Y-yes.”

  If Max was surprised by her answer, he gave no indication of it. Sydney thought she saw the corner of his mouth quirk, but it was gone before she could be sure.

  She watched nervously as he got to his feet and came around the desk. How did you get a punishment spanking? Having only been spanked during sex, she honestly had no idea.

  “Bend over and put your hands on the desk,” he instructed.

  His request sounded so polite Sydney almost smiled. But then she remembered what was about to happen, and sobered quickly enough. She’d agreed to this, she reminded herself as she bent over and put her hands on the desk. The position made her snug skirt cling to her bottom, and she blushed as she felt it ride up a little higher on her thighs to reveal even more of her legs than it already did. If she’d known she was going to be bending over for a spanking, she would have worn slacks.

  Sydney tensed as Max put a hand on the small of her back. They were really going to do this.

  “Are you ready?” he asked.

  What kind of question was that? Of course, she wasn’t. But she’d agreed to take this spanking, so she couldn’t very well change her mind. Telling herself it would just be better to get it over with, she nodded.

  Sydney held her breath, prepared for him to do his worst. But despite giving him permission, Max didn’t spank her right away. What the heck was he waiting for?

  She opened her mouth to ask, but all that came out was a startled gasp as his hand abruptly connected with her ass in a resounding smack.

  Damn, that stung. Sydney bit her lip as she waited for the next one. How many of those would he give her? She supposed one to each cheek would be too much to hope for.

  His hand came down on her other cheek, this time a little harder. She let out a yelp. Max didn’t even pause at her protest. He simply lifted his hand and smacked her on one cheek, then the other until her entire bottom was covered with stinging spanks.

  Common sense told her that her skirt should offer some protection, but it sure didn’t seem like it. She wasn’t sure why she did it, but she reached back with one to cup her stinging bottom. Maybe to shield it from more punishment. Maybe to see if it was throbbing as much as she thought.

  Regardless, Max didn’t like it. “Please keep your hands on the desk, Ms. Davis.”

  She quickly obeyed. “Sorry.”

  Her boss picked up where he’d let off as if he’d never been interrupted at all. Sydney tried not to protest any more, but after the tenth smack—or was it the twelfth?—she gave up and cried out after each and every one. Thank God everyone had already left for the day, or they’d be getting an earful.

  She didn’t know how many smacks he gave her—it was hard to keep count while she was squealing—but when he finally let her up, all she could do was stand there and cup her ass cheeks in both hands. It wasn’t throbbing, but it stung like crazy. She hadn’t expected him to spank her quite so hard. It was still better than getting demoted, though. And she supposed she had deserved it. Like he’d said, her work had been shoddy.

  Max folded his arms over his broad chest. “That should be enough to get you to improve your work habits, I hope.”

  Sydney nodded mutely.

  “Then I’ll see you tomorrow,” he said, then added, “On time, for a change.”

  The promise of what he would do if she weren’t hung in the air, and Sydney felt herself blush hotly as she hurried from the room.

  * * *

  What the hell had he been thinking?

  Max stared at door Sydney had just practically run out. He’d be lucky if she didn’t go to Human Resources tomorrow and report his ass. Dammit, but the dom in him came out at the worst times.

  He ran his hand through his hair. He hadn’t meant to spank Sydney. But when she’d asked if there was some other way he could punish her, the words were out of his mouth before he’d realized what he’d said. He sure as hell hadn’t expected her to agree. And when she’d bent over the desk and presented her perfectly rounded ass for her punishment? He must have stood there a full minute before he remembered he was supposed to spank her. Because if he had a type, Sydney Davis would be it. Tall and slender with curves in all the right places, the bluest eyes he’d ever seen and full lips just begging to be kissed, she was perfection in a tight skirt and a pair of high heels. And—if he didn’t miss his guess—a natural submissive.

  He stifled a groan as his cock went hard inside his pants. And tomorrow, he’d find out if giving in to his inner dom and spanking her was going to get him fired.

  Chapter Two

  Sydney was on time for work the next day.

  Once she’d gotten home and over the embarrassment, she’d realized getting her bottom warmed hadn’t been that big of a deal. Sure, it had been unorthodox, and yes, it had stung, but it hadn’t really hurt. Most importantly, she still had her job. Besides, she’d practically forced Max into giving her that spanking when she’d begged him to come up with an alternative form of punishment. It was a one-time thing, she was sure.

  She still found it difficult to meet Max’s gaze when she walked into the office. Every time she tried, all she could think about was him spanking her. It wasn’t like getting spanked by your boss was common practice in the business world. In fact, she was pretty sure it wasn’t common practice in any world.

  Max, however, acted like nothing happened, and by afternoon, Sydney forgot about it, too. Well, not completely, of course, but enough so that she could concentrate on work. And now that she was putting more effort into it, she didn’t make nearly as many mistakes, which made working for Max much easier.

  Sydney had to admit she was impressed with her new boss. Not only did he have incredible business sense, but also a firm grasp of the intricacies of contract accounting as well. That mad
e sense. He’d been brought in to analyze why the company was so over budget on the new software for the government contract. He wasn’t afraid of putting in the hours, either. On the down side, that meant she had more work to do, too. She was a little flustered by all the stuff he threw at her in the beginning—she’d never even done half of the things he wanted her to do—but she did them, and did them surprisingly well. And since most of what she did involved working closely with Max, she got to spend a lot of time with handsome boss. Admittedly, being in such close proximity to him made it that much more difficult to concentrate, but the perks were definitely worth it.

  If Sydney thought Max was intriguing before he’d spanked her, that was nothing compared to how drawn to him she was now. Sometimes she’d get a whiff of his cologne while they were working, and she’d find herself leaning in closer. Other times, her gaze would stray to his strong hands, and she’d remember how expertly he’d administered the spanking he’d given her. And would again if she needed one.

  Sydney blushed as she set a stack of mail on his desk. Getting spanked during sex was one thing; getting spanked by her boss was another. She couldn’t understand why the thought of him warming her ass made her pussy spasm. There’d been nothing even remotely sexual about the spanking he’d given her the other night. Now that she thought about it, Max had been all business. He’d had her bend over the desk, spanked her bottom soundly, scolded her about her behavior, then dismissed her. Absolutely nothing sexual about it. Then why did she have to fight the urge to slide her hand under her skirt and touch herself every time she thought about it?

  Because it’s been way too long since you had sex with a guy, that’s why.

  Which was why she jumped at the chance to go out for a drink with Erika after work Friday night when the other girl asked. If she were lucky, she’d meet some totally hot guy who would make her forget all about this crazy obsession she had with her new boss and the spanking he’d given her.