The scent of the coming spring was sharp in the air, as Matt cut a long switch from the hickory tree in the back yard. He knew from the movement of the upstairs curtain, that Katie was watching him. He ran his hand along the switch, it was smooth. He swiped at the air with it several times to test for flexibility. Satisfied with his choice, he closed his knife, slipped it back into his pant's pocket, and headed back towards the house. A soft breeze swept past him and he caught the subtle, sweet aroma from the field of daffodils on the other side of the river, mingled with the smells of the great salt marsh. For a moment his thoughts were suppressed by the exhilaration this fine morning brought to him. The feel of the hickory switch in his hand caused him to collect his thoughts and continue on towards the house. He wondered if Katie was nervous or a bit frightened by what lay in store for her. He made up his mind to walk slowly to give her more time to anticipate the event.

Inside the house, he purposely let his footsteps fall heavy as he made his way up the long staircase. In the bedroom he found Katie tucked under a heap of sheet and blanket on their large four poster bed. "You've been a very bad girl," he said as he stood in the doorway. "I know you are not asleep. Playing games with me will only make it worse for you."Katie bolted upright into a sitting position and held the sheet close to her chest. "I'm sorry, Matt," she said with a slight tremble in her voice. "I told you I didn't realize I had spent so much."

"And I told you I was going to spank you for it."

"I know."

Matt had to bite the side of his lip a little to maintain his authoritative aura, for Katie looked innocent and precious as a child. He seated himself at the foot of the bed and lay the switch on the floor. "Come down here, it's time."

There would be no argument. They had discussed beforehand exactly how much would be spent on Christmas presents for their family and friends. Katie had gone over that amount by three-hundred dollars, and had hidden the fact from Matt all these months. Her punishment for that break in the rules was to be an over the knee spanking for the excess money spent, to be followed by three strikes with a switch for keeping it from him all this time.

The sheet and blanket slipped away from Katie's naked body as she crawled down to the foot of the bed where Matt sat waiting for her. Wisps of her long auburn hair came spilling over each of her slender shoulders. Her ivory skin looked so smooth and soft. Her breasts set firm and high upon her chest, their rose coloured nipples stood out hard and erect. Matt wanted so to reach for them, suck them, to pull her into his arms and run his hands over every inch of her magnificent body. He wanted to fill his nostrils with the fresh, clean scent of her, and intoxicate himself even more on the honey sweet nectar he knew was flowing between her ample thighs. A more pressing matter had to be dealt with first.

Katie lay placid over Matt's lap. He could not help himself, her bottom looked too enticing, he just had to caress it. His touch obviously excited Katie, and she pressed her crotch firmly against Matt's muscular thigh. As he continued to rub and knead at her ass, she began to use her toes, pushed into the plush carpet, to rock herself back and forth to stimulate her clitoris.

Matt suddenly felt the warmth of her secretions seep through his trousers and onto his thigh. "Oh, no you don't," he said, and with that announcement he reared back his arm and brought his open palm down on her backside. He repeated this action several times before Katie suddenly began to resist. Matt had to stop to reposition her, placing her now over just one thigh while he placed his free leg over the backs of both of hers, trapping her into submission. He began again to spank her, now even harder.

She began to yell out, trying desperately to break away from his grip on her. She pleaded for him to stop, but the spanking continued. She placed her right arm behind her in an attempt to protect her ass, but Matt quickly took hold of it and held it against her back while he continued to spank her.

Katie must have tired of the struggle and went limp over Matt's lap and began to cry. Matt continued the spanking only a few moments longer before swooping her up into his arms and carrying her back to her original position on the bed. "Roll over for me now, like a good little girl so we can get this finished," he said. Matt walked back to the foot of the bed and scooped up the switch.

Katie had her knees pulled up to her chest and her face buried in her hands. She abruptly stopped crying and looked over to where Matt now stood, switch in hand. "You don't mean to use that on me too do ya?"

"You did a bad thing, baby. You know you did. You can roll yourself over or I will roll you over and give you one extra for my effort. I mean it now, so roll over, sweetheart."

Matt had to turn away from the pleading look he saw in her beautiful emerald green eyes. Katie stretched out her long, slender legs and with the grace of a ballerina, rolled over onto her stomach. Matt stood at the side of the bed and carefully placed the long switch over Katie's beet-red ass a couple of inches below her tailbone. He drew back and let swing, striking right on target. Katie screamed out. Matt watched as a nice straight welt began to raise across her lovely ass. He noted also that beads of sweat were forming on the small of Katie's back. He carefully placed the switch across her backside again, this time square across the middle of both buttocks. "Do not move," he warned her.

Katie gripped the pillow under her head tightly. She sniffled into it. Matt brought the switch up and thrust it down with force enough to cause Katie's whole body to jump up for a second.

She let out an anguished cry and pleaded for him to stop. "Just one more my sweet, one more," he said, placing the switch now directly across both cheeks of her ass.

The last stroke finally over, Katie broke down into loud sobs. She rolled to her side drawing her knees up to her chest, assuming a foetal position.

Matt went downstairs, broke the switch to pieces and threw it in the kitchen trash bin. He grabbed a beer from the fridge, popped it open and went to the living room to sit in his recliner. He could still hear his lovely wife's cries. He reached for the remote and turned the television on. He flipped through channels but did not pay attention to what was on. All he could think of was Katie. He wondered if he had been too severe. He couldn't get the image of those large welts out of his mind. He began to think of going to her, taking her into his arms and begging her to forgive him, but that was not what the spanking plan had stated.

Matt had met Katie after responding to a personal ad she had placed on a spanking web site. They had e-mailed each other for several weeks before finally meeting. From the moment he lay eyes on her, he felt he knew exactly how Adam must have felt when he saw Eve for the very first time. Katie was beautiful and possessed that sweet southern charm that made her even more endearing to him. Exactly two months after their first meeting they married.

For the first couple of years, Matt's spanking of Katie was part of their foreplay. He'd place her over his lap and use his open palm to turn her milky white ass a rosy pink.

One day she had surprised him by handing him a small ping pong paddle and requesting he use it on her. She lay across their bed on her stomach and played with herself as he paddled her. She called out for him to do it harder. He had brought the paddle down with some force but still controlled. She demanded he do it even harder. He had felt like he would explode with his stiff, hard erection as he spanked her bottom crimson red. She came in spasms more intense than he had ever seen before. He had quickly shoved a pillow under her belly and entered her dripping wet pussy from behind. He could feel the heat radiating from her hot ass as he pumped himself into her, eager to explode into spasmodic waves of his own.

They had lain exhausted in each other's arms. Their bodies drenched in sweat and the juices of their lovemaking. "Why did you want me to use that paddle on you?" He had asked.

Katie hid her face in the crook of Matt's arm and began to mumble something he could not make out. He pulled her up enough so he could better hear what she was saying. Her face was flushed somewhat. "I can't hear you, babe," he said.

"I came across this spanking plan on the net. It was written some time ago by a couple who used it as a form of discipline when one of them was annoyed with the other's behaviour. Oh, I can't explain it, but it kinda aroused me and made sense too. I feel embarrassed talking about it."

"Don't be embarrassed. We should never be embarrassed to tell each other anything. You know that. I love you. Talk to me."

Katie cleared her throat and made a sigh. Her face was still rather flushed. "I printed it out. It's in your night stand. There is even a contract that both spouses must fill out and sign. If you want you can read it while I go make us some coffee."

Matt sat up and took the papers out from his night stand. He leaned back against the headboard and began to read the document while Katie got up from the bed and went over to her chest of drawers to retrieve a night gown to slip on. Matt looked up in time to see her bent over and rummaging through the drawer. At first glance he felt alarm when he noted how still very red her lovely ass was, but suddenly began to once again feel himself becoming aroused as she stood back up to ease the gown over her head. The contrast of her bright red bottom against the rest of her pale skin was like a work of art, her bottom had been his canvas.

Matt stopped recollecting and noted that Katie's loud sobs had now become muffled whimpers. "Fuck the plan," he said out loud as he started to come up out of his chair to go to her. He sat himself back down when he heard her soft footsteps coming down the stairs.

She was wearing a ruffley set of baby doll pyjamas. Her hair was tousled and long strands clung to her tear stained face. She slowly walked over to him and sat herself gingerly on to his lap and lay her head on his chest. He put his arms tightly around her, and for several moments they both sat like that in silence.

Without looking up at him, Katie said, "I love you Matt. Thank you."

Matt reached under her chin and gently tilted her face up so he could look at her. Her eyes were swollen from crying and her nose was red. He kissed her tenderly on the lips, brushing away from her face the strands of damp hair with a delicate touch from his hand. Their kissing became more passionate and he ran his other hand freely up and down her petite body. When he touched her bottom he could feel the heat coming through the thin cotton covering.

"Ouch," she said, "it still really smarts."

They both began to laugh as he swept her up in his arms and carried her back to their bed where he lay her down and slid in bed at her side. He carefully slipped the top of the pyjamas over her head. He kissed her mouth and then moved down to her throat, kissing her from ear to ear. He moved to her breasts and spent several moments licking and sucking her hardened nipples while his hands gently explored each. As he moved down her body, he planted little kisses all over her belly and eased the bottoms of her pyjamas down just far enough so he could kiss along the beginning of her pubic line before gently rolling her over. He had pulled the pants down to where just the hint of the crack of her bottom was visible. He ran his tongue from that point, slowly up her spine until he could kiss each shoulder blade and run his tongue down her spine back her bottom where as he lapped at her deliciousness, he pulled the pyjamas inch by inch down over her crimson red and welted behind. He trailed his tongue up and down the entire crack of her ass, freed her legs from the confines of the pyjama bottoms and spread the cheeks of her ass enough to give himself ample room to devour her anus. He darted his tongue in as far as it would go.

Katie placed her hands under her and began to rub herself as Matt continued to tongue-fuck her ass. He put two fingers in her dripping wet pussy and carefully eased them in and out. As Katie came, her buttocks tightened around Matt's face. He could feel each spasm quiver from her body. When she finally relaxed, he shoved a pillow underneath her belly, straddled himself above her and took the bottle of their almond massage oil from the top of the night stand, poured some in his hand and quickly spread it over his rock hard penis. He then used one of his oily fingers to lubricate Katie's anus externally and internally. Katie continued to manually manipulate herself as Matt slowly eased himself into her. From his position, Matt had an excellent view of her red hot ass with the three deeper coloured red welts that went from one side of her round bottom to the other. He pumped her harder, and when he could hold back no longer, he flattened himself on top of her. The immense heat from her ass against his belly created a sensation he had never before experienced. They came together in a volcanic explosion.

The next morning Matt put on the coffee while Katie made cheese omelettes and toast for their breakfast. Katie had to be at the hospital by seven and Matt had to be at the high school, where he taught biology, by seven fifteen. Katie worked as a registered nurse in the intensive care unit at the only hospital in their small town.

They lived in a nice, comfortable village of two and three story townhouses along a Carolina sea bank. Not yet able to buy their home, they leased it with option to purchase and that option would soon be up, thus making and saving money had become a top priority with them. Katie worked several hours of overtime each week, and Matt did some tutoring on Saturday afternoons. At the rate they were going, purchasing the house was going to be a breeze. They were so confidant of it that they had already commenced on some major work projects for their back yard.

Working outside had enabled them both to make acquaintances with their neighbours, especially Sam and Lydia Montgomery, who lived directly beside them. The two couples were close in age and shared a lot of the same interests. Sam had a small boat he kept attached to the dock located down the bank in front of the line of townhouses. From their viewpoint, they could see the shrimpers as they set out, now that springtime was near, towards the marshlands where the shrimp came to spawn. The two couples often drank their coffee together standing outside, just before sunrise, to watch the sight of the shrimping fleet moving out.

Sam and Matt often went out together on Sam's boat to do a little of their own shrimping and some fishing, enough to keep their freezers fairly well stocked. Some evenings they'd take the boat into town and dock it and frequent a bar, shoot some pool for a couple of hours and chatter with some other friends of theirs.

They never stayed out very late. They generally were always home by midnight. Though, they did at times dock the boat and just sit in it to drink another beer or two and watch the lanterns of night fisherman in the starry darkness. Lydia and Katie frequently walked down to the river and out onto the dock to join them.

Both, Matt and Katie had been born and raised in big cities, Katie in the South, Matt in the north. Neither had been particularly fond of city life and found this little village a more than welcome peace in their lives. Everything seemed to just fall in their laps once they were married; finding this town, getting jobs right away, and best of all, lucking out on the house, for it was rare to locate a rental in this specific area, especially one with option to buy. Katie liked to think of it as being preordained or destiny that had brought them together and to where they were now. Her romantic notions amused Matt and made him love her all the more.

One night, after being out with Sam, Matt came stumbling drunk into the house and tried to creep into bed without waking Katie. Though it was still spring, the humid air hung like moss, making it difficult for anyone to sleep. Katie was not in the bed, but was sitting in the old over-stuffed chair beside the open window. "Matt, for Christ's sake, it's four in the morning. Where have you been?"

"Huh, what?" Matt said, alarmed she wasn't asleep in bed.

"You heard me," Katie said as she pulled the little chain down to turn on the floor lamp that stood behind the chair where she sat.

Matt quickly pulled the sheet over his face to ward off the sudden exposure to light. "Come to bed, honey, I'll tell you about it in the morning." Matt knew his speech was slurred.

"It is morning. I haven't slept. I've been up worrying about you. I've called Lydia several times during the night to see if she had heard from Sam. I've walked up and down the river bank looking for any sign of the boat. Where the hell were you guys?"

Matt tried to pull himself up in bed but the effort was just too much in his drunken condition. "Please, Katie, just come to bed. I'm fine, Sam's fine, the whole fuckin' peachy world is just fine."

Katie rose from the chair and pulled the chain again this time to shut off the light. She climbed into bed, deliberately placing a good distance between herself and Matt. "You reek of alcohol," was all she said before turning her back away from him.

"I know, honey, I know," were Matt's final words before passing out.

It was Sunday and neither Matt nor Katie had to work. Matt was still in bed hours after Katie had gotten up. She was outside pulling weeds from the flower bed as Matt sat down at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee that had grown strong from sitting in the pot too long. He didn't mind the bitter coffee as he felt like shit anyway. His head throbbed and his gut churned. Instead of reading the Sunday paper as was his custom, he stared out the window at his beautiful wife kneeling on the ground. She looked so fine in her tight fitting cut off shorts and skimpy pink tank top. Her thick long hair hung in a ponytail that dangled halfway down her back. A large straw hat shaded her lovely face from the sun. She was a queen in Matt's eyes, how was he ever to tell her what he had done last night.

Matt's thoughts were suddenly interrupted when he saw Lydia come through the back gate and head towards where Katie still knelt weeding the flowers. Lydia was a very attractive woman in her own right, with dark hair and eyes, and a glowing smile that set off her nice white teeth. She was amply figured with large breasts and a nice plump wide ass. Matt really liked her, but today he wondered how much Sam had told her and would she reveal what she knew to Katie. He jumped up from the table and raced out the back door to greet both women before they had a chance to speak to each other.

"Well, good morning my lovely goddesses," he said, trying to make himself sound charming.

"Morning? It's half past noon," Katie said, as she stood up and slipped off a glove and ran her hand over her forehead to wipe away some sweat from her brow. She looked over to Lydia. "Hi there, Kiddo. Any idea what our men folk were up to last night? Mine came sneaking in at four this morning smelling like a brewery. How about yours?"

Lydia shot a quick glance towards Matt before returning her gaze on Katie.

With that one quick look, Matt knew that Lydia knew something.

"Mine's still sleeping it off. Though how he can with the boys screaming and hollering is beyond me. I was upstairs making the boys beds when I spotted you outside and thought I'd come by and see how you are." Again Lydia glanced over to Matt.

Matt swallowed hard and walked closer to where the two women stood. "Well, looks like I'm going to be in the dog house for a while, but otherwise we are just fine, just fine." He put his arm around Katie and kissed her cheek.

"Oh!" Katie exclaimed, wrinkling up her nose. "Go brush your teeth. You still reek of booze."

"Will do, my lady fair," Matt said mocking a salute and turning on his heels.

"And use plenty of mouthwash," Katie bellowed after him.

Once inside the house, Matt peeked out of the window, noted the women exchange a few words and watched as Lydia left the yard and Katie start towards the house. He ran upstairs to quickly brush his teeth and get in the shower.

When he came back down, Katie had lunch ready on the table. They ate in silence for a few moments.

"Well," Katie said, "I'm waiting."

Matt, who had been only toying with his food, set his sandwich down on the plate. "I guess you want an explanation about why I was so late last night."

"That, and why you were so drunk. Getting that wasted is not like you."

Matt began to look mournful and tears welled up in his eyes.

"Matt, what's wrong? What happened?"

The look of alarm on Katie's face was the breaking point for him. He dropped his head as he could not bear to look her in the eyes. Katie had always placed so much trust and faith in him. If he lost her over this he would not wish to live, but he had to tell her and he had to do it now. Slowly he raised his face. Katie reached out and placed her hand over his forearm. "Please," she said, "you're scaring me."

"Listen, baby, I know it was very wrong of me and I can't even begin to tell you how sorry I am, but I did something crazy and foolish."

"You slept with another woman?"

"No, no, no, worse than that."

"Worse than sleeping with another woman? Matt, what could be worse than that?"

"Sam and I started drinking and we got in a poker game. Sam quit after a few plays, but I didn't. I was winning and felt so lucky. Sam warned me to quit while I was ahead, but I guess the booze clouded my judgment and I wouldn't listen to him."

"How much did you loose?"

"Four thousand dollars. I thought..." Sam tried to continue speaking but his voice was too shaky.

Katie said nothing. She stood up, picked up the two plates and took them to the sink where she stood, gazing out the window with her back to Matt. After what seemed an eternity to Matt, she began to speak, still gazing out the window. "The sun is really beating down on the plants. There's a brown pelican in the yard. Good thing we won't be putting in a lily pond and stocking it with goldfish, as the pelicans would have probably feasted on them. All those stones piled against the shed, how much work that was dragging them up from the beach. We were going to have the perfect garden. A place we could retreat to after a hard days work. A haven. Our sanctuary." Her voice sounded so flat and distant, not like she was speaking to Matt at all.

"Katie, you must forgive me. If you leave me I'll go crazy. I can't live without you. I'm so very, very sorry. Please, please, baby don't leave me." Matt let his head dropped to the table. He was sobbing now.

"I'm not going to leave you, Matt." Katie had turned around and was now leaning against the sink. "But you will pay for your error and you will pay dearly. Now quit your blubbering and get upstairs. Get naked and lie face down on the bed. Now!"

The sudden authoritative tone in his wife's voice shocked Matt. He rose and without speaking a word, went upstairs and did exactly as Katie had commanded him to do. It was a good half hour before she entered the room. His thoughts while waiting for her had been of guilt and shame, coupled with the fear of what was going to happen.

Katie came into the room carrying a shoe box. From the box she removed four small dog collars and four lengths of chain where each had a metal snap hook attached at one end. She laced each collar through one end of each chain and then proceeded to fasten the collars one around each of Matt's wrists and ankles. She used the snap end of the chain to secure him, spread eagled, to a brass spoke on the head and foot boards of the bed. Matt said nothing. Next, she went to their closet and pulled down a long stick of some kind from the top shelf.

"I bought these things a month ago. This my darling, is a rattan cane made especially for the purpose I intend to use it for." She swung the cane in the air. It made a swishing sound. The cane was about twenty-four inches long and about a quarter inch thick. "Seeing as I received three strikes with the switch for spending three-hundred dollars at Christmas time, I think you should receive forty strikes with the cane for loosing four thousand of our savings towards this house. Do you agree?"

"I'll take anything from you, baby."

"All right then."

Katie made the first twenty or so lashes mild enough to be a warm-up. They stung like the dickens but nothing Matt couldn't tolerate. She whipped him like a mother might do a wayward child. Suddenly a strike came down with great force and Matt jumped in surprise. The pain searing through his backside like it had hit bone. Katie hesitated briefly before administering another of the same quality. The first had not eased at all when the second came down. As manly as he tried to be, the next three strokes had Matt sweating and unconsciously pulling at the restraints on his wrists.

Though Katie waited several seconds in between strokes and went from one side of the bed to the other, Matt began to writhe in agony, biting down hard on the pillow under his head to keep from yelling out. The muscles deep in his buttocks burned and throbbed. He felt as if his flesh were being ripped open. The burning sensation became unbelievable. As more strokes followed Matt could no longer contain himself and fought the restraints in earnest. He attempted to raise his buttocks and even shift himself from side to side, but he was totally helpless.

Finally it was over. Matt lay completely spent and in amazing pain.

"Your ass is welted everywhere. In several places the skin has broken open. I need to get the antibiotic ointment from the bathroom and put it on you." Katie left the room but quickly returned.

Her touch applying the ointment was not soothing in the least. Nothing could ease the pain he was in. When she was done, she quietly left the room leaving Matt still restrained to the bed. An hour had passed before she returned to unfasten him.

Matt sat on pillows for days around the house. At school he did most of his teaching standing up. Every night after his shower Katie would again treat his bottom with the ointment. It wasn't long before the open areas closed and healed nicely, but the muscles remained sore for quite a bit longer.

Matt felt a surge of sadness in the pit of his stomach as he stood in the front yard watching until he could no longer see the little red truck as it made it's way down the street towards it's new home. It was like saying good bye to a dear old friend.

Inside the house he found Katie bent over, basting the ham that was in the oven. She was wearing nothing but a bibbed floral apron that framed her voluptuous round ass. He came up behind her and slipped his arms up and under the sides of the apron so he could feel her firm yet soft breasts with his hands. She raised up and leaned her body into his, resting her head on his chest.

"Who was at the door?"

"Oh, just the guy who bought my truck."

"Your truck! What in heavens are you talking about?"

"I sold the truck to get back the money I lost."

Katie turned around to face Matt. "But you loved that old truck. It had been your father's."

"But I love you more, and I want us to be happy. I can't let us loose our home."

"Oh, Matt, I would be happy anywhere as long as we're together. You should know that."

"And I would be happy anywhere with you, and we have been happy here, and I want us to continue to be happy right here. This house is part of our destiny, remember?"