he said.
“Yeah.” Polly looked around. “You do, Walt. But you seem determined to ignore the ones that matter most, even now.”
He looked up at her. “Polly...”
“No,” she said. “You have a choice. You can let the adults here handle some of the responsibility and take time to help your kids, or you can place more value on your reputation as a leader. You seem to think that the former is what is more important, and as a teacher who loves children, I will not stay another second in your house and watch you ignore Aidan and Kerry.”
“So you’re just going to leave them?”
Now she took an aggressive step forward. “No. I’m doing what Melissa did. I’m leaving you. Until you figure out what matters, I cannot respect you. You say you moved me in to protect me, but now I suspect you wanted someone in the house to fill a void in your kids life you were too busy to bother with.”
“Don’t say that,” he said, closing the small distance between them. He was opening and closing his hand.
“Or what? You’ll spank me?” She shook her head. “That’s something else Melissa and I would agree on. How can a man discipline his woman if he’s not man enough to care for his kids? You’d better believe that if you ever put me over your knee again, I’ll die before I’ll take a spanking from the likes of you. Before, when you spanked me over the radio, I deserved it. But I also thought you were a different man.”
“Polly!” he called after her, but she had turned away.
“Have my stuff brought back to my cabin,” she said, looking back as she walked. “If anyone asks, I’ll just tell them that I thought this was a better move for me.” She paused. “For now. But if I hear that you’ve lied about me, I will tell the truth about you.”
And with that, Polly walked away leaving the head of Pepper’s Hollow feeling more lost than he’d felt since his wife had departed from his life.
Chapter Nine
The hardest thing about leaving Walt’s cabin was saying goodbye to Kerry. The little girl was distraught, and being told that her teacher’s little stuffed dog was now hers did nothing to assuage the child’s distress.
Polly told her that her father would explain everything. She did not elaborate, or try to explain herself. It was time that Walt Springer stopped avoiding his kids’ needs. It was time for him to face up to the most important task of his life.
It was snowing again when she reached the new cabin. It felt quiet and lonely after her time at the Springers. Even with a couple of her older male students on hand to help her move and to build a fire, Polly had never felt colder or more alone in her life.
Threatening Walt Springer had put in the catbird seat. It was powerful leverage, her threat to go to the community with the truth of what had actually happened. If it was revealed that their leader had lied to the town’s teacher by stating they were the ones who wanted her to move in with him when the opposite was true, he may be overthrown. Would she have done it, if he’d not let her leave? The idea of throwing Pepper’s Hollow into turmoil during the height of the hardest winter in fifty years was not something she relished. She was glad that she’d not had to make that choice.
Polly wondered why having leverage over Walt Springer did not feel better. By society’s standards, he was a bully and a chauvinist. But then she thought of Melissa Springer and what had drawn her to him before he’d been drawn away from her by the demands of the community. He’d told her that spanking had been part of their dynamic, had been what they’d both wanted and that his no longer being an attentive disciplinarian had been part of the problem.
She thought back to the spankings he’d given her. In both cases she’d been so angry, but afterwards felt almost … Was grateful the word? In the case of the radio, it had been a very well-deserved punishment and now as she reflected on Walt
“Yeah.” Polly looked around. “You do, Walt. But you seem determined to ignore the ones that matter most, even now.”
He looked up at her. “Polly...”
“No,” she said. “You have a choice. You can let the adults here handle some of the responsibility and take time to help your kids, or you can place more value on your reputation as a leader. You seem to think that the former is what is more important, and as a teacher who loves children, I will not stay another second in your house and watch you ignore Aidan and Kerry.”
“So you’re just going to leave them?”
Now she took an aggressive step forward. “No. I’m doing what Melissa did. I’m leaving you. Until you figure out what matters, I cannot respect you. You say you moved me in to protect me, but now I suspect you wanted someone in the house to fill a void in your kids life you were too busy to bother with.”
“Don’t say that,” he said, closing the small distance between them. He was opening and closing his hand.
“Or what? You’ll spank me?” She shook her head. “That’s something else Melissa and I would agree on. How can a man discipline his woman if he’s not man enough to care for his kids? You’d better believe that if you ever put me over your knee again, I’ll die before I’ll take a spanking from the likes of you. Before, when you spanked me over the radio, I deserved it. But I also thought you were a different man.”
“Polly!” he called after her, but she had turned away.
“Have my stuff brought back to my cabin,” she said, looking back as she walked. “If anyone asks, I’ll just tell them that I thought this was a better move for me.” She paused. “For now. But if I hear that you’ve lied about me, I will tell the truth about you.”
And with that, Polly walked away leaving the head of Pepper’s Hollow feeling more lost than he’d felt since his wife had departed from his life.
Chapter Nine
The hardest thing about leaving Walt’s cabin was saying goodbye to Kerry. The little girl was distraught, and being told that her teacher’s little stuffed dog was now hers did nothing to assuage the child’s distress.
Polly told her that her father would explain everything. She did not elaborate, or try to explain herself. It was time that Walt Springer stopped avoiding his kids’ needs. It was time for him to face up to the most important task of his life.
It was snowing again when she reached the new cabin. It felt quiet and lonely after her time at the Springers. Even with a couple of her older male students on hand to help her move and to build a fire, Polly had never felt colder or more alone in her life.
Threatening Walt Springer had put in the catbird seat. It was powerful leverage, her threat to go to the community with the truth of what had actually happened. If it was revealed that their leader had lied to the town’s teacher by stating they were the ones who wanted her to move in with him when the opposite was true, he may be overthrown. Would she have done it, if he’d not let her leave? The idea of throwing Pepper’s Hollow into turmoil during the height of the hardest winter in fifty years was not something she relished. She was glad that she’d not had to make that choice.
Polly wondered why having leverage over Walt Springer did not feel better. By society’s standards, he was a bully and a chauvinist. But then she thought of Melissa Springer and what had drawn her to him before he’d been drawn away from her by the demands of the community. He’d told her that spanking had been part of their dynamic, had been what they’d both wanted and that his no longer being an attentive disciplinarian had been part of the problem.
She thought back to the spankings he’d given her. In both cases she’d been so angry, but afterwards felt almost … Was grateful the word? In the case of the radio, it had been a very well-deserved punishment and now as she reflected on Walt
Similar Books
