Today is National Give Someone a Cupcake Day, which is a story that appears in the May volume of Holiday Heat. Here’s an excerpt:

It only took about thirty swats or so for Catherine’s face to feel like it was crumpling in on itself. She started to cry, burying her face in her forearm, other hand clutching tight to the bedspread. She didn’t want to risk reaching back — and after all this time the instinct was still there — because that would only make it worse.

Of course, Andy didn’t stop there, or at fifty, or even one hundred. It was maybe two hundred spanks before they paused, leaning over Catherine. She sniffed hard and wiped her eyes and nose, but the throbbing in her bottom was too much and the tears just kept trickling out. Small favors, she knew, but at least they’d focused on her backside, avoiding her thighs.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I’m sorry, Andy.”

“I know.” They smoothed her hair back from her forehead, which was damp with sweat. “But you know I’m not done with you.”

She nodded. “I know.” A pause. “I love you. I love that you take care of me. Even when it hurts.”

They kissed her, a gentle brush of lips against hers, and then stood back up. She tucked her face back into her sleeve and waited.

She heard the sound of a drawer opening and closing, and then the sensation of Andy’s body behind hers, and a little to the left.

For the first few times Andy and Catherine had met for spankings, they’d stuck to their hand and a belt — and to her surprise the hand had hurt much worse. But then they’d introduced implements, and though they’d started out gently — so to speak — before too long she was often pleading for them to only use their hand.

It never worked. Especially now that she got punished by them too.

So when the wooden hairbrush smashed her backside with a tremendous pop, Angie didn’t even try to change her partner’s mind.

Besides, the pain left her in no condition to do anything but start crying in earnest.

And Andy didn’t let up, or go easy on her. This was a punishment as well as a [centering], and that meant it was supposed to be unpleasant.

The hairbrush was pretty awful, especially for something that only cost ten dollars at Target. It was about the same size as Andy’s palm, not including the handle, and it weighed almost nothing at all. But each time they spanked her with it, it was twice as bad as their hand. And, to make matters worse, they were spanking her entire bottom — top to thighs, side to side. She could already feel marks rising, marks that would cover her backside for at least a couple of days.

All of those thoughts fitted themselves in place around the sobbing and wailing Catherine was doing. She was crying harder than she had in a long time, and while she knew that Andy hated to punish her, she also knew that they wouldn’t stop until they were sure she was done.

At some point, Andy switched back to their hand, but by then Catherine was so sore as to feel almost numb. That meant when she stood up all of the agony would come rushing back like a tsunami.

And that was when Andy stopped, sat down on the bed, and pulled Catherine into their arms. She rested her head against their chest, Andy holding her while she finished crying. They ran their hand over her hair and shushed her even as she sobbed out apology after apology.

Soon enough, when she could speak again, Catherine looked up at Andy. “I’m sorry I was so bitchy.” She swallowed hard, her voice rough from crying. “I’ll try to ask for help after I say how I’m feeling.”

“Good girl.” They leaned down and kissed her forehead, her cheeks, and finally her lips.

If only she could concentrate on it. But now that they were no longer spanking her, there was nothing overloading the pain receptors in her backside and they all seemed to switch back on at full force, all at once. She moaned against their mouth and held tight to their upper arms so she wouldn’t try to touch her bottom. That would have been bad.

If you want to see what led up to this, you’ll need to get yourself a copy of Holiday Heat: May. Now would be an excellent time to do that.