Mallory McCallen climbed up into the loft of her family's old barn to bring down a litter of kittens. The momma cat had come down to eat and was too scared to go back up. Just as she was getting ready to grab the kittens, she heard a voice from her past, one she hadn't heard in three years. It was Jake Peterson, the one man she had no desire to see.

Growing up she had wanted nothing more than to be noticed by Jake, her brother's best friend. She spent the majority of her teen years following the two boys around the farm, hoping that one day he would realize she wasn't a little girl anymore. When she followed the boys on a dangerous ride through the woods, Mallory finally got her wish. Jake not only noticed her, but he turned her over his knee and spanked her! While she certainly wasn't happy about his hard-handed method of discipline, Mallory finally had a glimmer of hope that Jake cared about her.

...And then he left.

Two days later, without a goodbye or even a letter, Jake left for the Army. Mallory was sad and heartbroken, but most of all she was angry with him for not having the decency to tell her how he felt instead of just running away.

Now he was back, standing at the bottom of the rickety ladder glaring up at her. He didn't realize that Mallory wasn't the same teenage girl with stars in her eyes, or at least she didn't think she was.

Will Mallory and Jake reconcile their differences? Will she forgive him for leaving or will she turn away forever?

This is a short story of about 5,500 words.

This is the first installment in The Rancher and the Brat series.

**Please note: this book contains the spanking of adult women for discipline. If such material offends you, please do not buy this book.

Sign up now to get the most out of Books2Read

Discover something great at Books2Read.

Thanks for signing up for Books2Read notifications!