02 Madoc Read Free Page A

hard, but still didn’t do as he told her. “You’ve got the wrong person,” she insisted.
    The Marshal clenched his jaw. “I’m not going to tell you again,” he warned her. “Drop what you’re holding and get your hands in the air.”
    Shayna didn’t move. She couldn’t let him arrest her. Running had only made her look more guilty, and if she went back to jail, they weren’t likely to let her out on bail this time. The thought alone was enough to make her stomach churn.
    Her gaze darted to the door and she wondered if she could somehow get past the Marshal. Apparently, he must have read her mind because he started toward her even as she tensed to make a run for it. Shayna’s hand tightened on the bookend and before she even realized what she was doing, she drew back her arm and threw it at him.
    Shayna just had enough time to see the Marshal’s eyes go wide before he ducked. Knowing she would only get one chance at escape, she immediately ran for the door. But she didn’t get more than a few feet before a strong hand closed over her arm and spun her around. With a cry that was half frustration, half rage, Shayna balled her hand into a fist and took a swing at the Marshal.
    “What the...?!” he began, catching her arm before her fist could connect. “Dammit, take it easy!”
    But Shayna wasn’t about to take it easy. If she didn’t get away from him, she was going to be spending a very long time in prison, maybe even the rest of her life. With that horrific thought motivating her, Shayna savagely tried to jerk free of the Marshal’s hold.
    “Stop it!” he ordered her, his grip tightening on her arms. “Dammit, I don’t want to hurt you!”
    “Then let me go!” she shot back, still struggling against him.
    But it was obvious that the Marshal wasn’t going to let her go, and Shayna fought him wildly. Once she even managed to get her arm free long enough to try to scratch his face, but he quickly captured her wrist in his hand again.
    Frustrated, Shayna tried to shove him away from her. To her surprise, she actually managed to catch the Marshal off balance long enough to knock him back onto the bed. She didn’t catch him that unaware, however, because instead of releasing her like she hoped he would do, he tightened his grip on her wrists and pulled her down with him.
    Ending up sprawled across his lap, Shayna was so stunned for a moment that she didn’t even realize the Marshal had let go of her arms sometime during their fall onto the bed. As soon as she did, though, she immediately tried to push herself upright, but a strong hand on her back pushed her down again. She started struggling as hard as she could, anything to keep him from grabbing her arms again. She knew the moment he did, she would end up in handcuffs.
    But Shayna was surprised when the Marshal didn’t even try to jerk her arms behind her back so that he could handcuff her. She thought for a moment that she might actually have a chance to get away, only to gasp in surprise when she felt his free hand come down hard on her jean-clad bottom. She stilled, her eyes going wide.
    Had he actually just spanked her? What the hell did he think he was doing?
    Before she could say anything though, he brought his hand down again on her other cheek, harder this time, and she yelped.
    Her face flaming from embarrassment and anger, Shayna tried to push herself off his lap again, to no avail. “Let me up, you jerk!” she demanded.
    The Marshal gave her ass another hard smack. “Not until you agree to behave yourself,” he growled.
    Shayna cried out as his hand connected with her bottom yet again. “Owwwww! You have no right to spank me!” she told him.
    “If you had just come quietly like I told you to, then I wouldn’t be forced to do this,” he retorted, punctuating each word with a sharp slap to her derriere. “But you leave me no choice. Trust me; spanking you into submission is a lot better than the alternative.”
    Shayna didn’t