Rachel didn’t want to admit it – and it would have come as a terrible disappointment to her boyfriend – but she didn’t really want to go to dinner at Jeff’s house.

Bertie had been insisting on this visit for months, telling her how despondent Jeff had sounded since his much younger girlfriend (Read: sugar baby) had broken up with him the summer before. And while Rachel had enjoyed Mika’s company while it had lasted, she’d never really come to appreciate Jeff.

It wasn’t his age, or at least not just his age. Jeff was almost seventy, with the bald head and potbelly to show for it, but he was comfortable with his years and didn’t try to pretend otherwise. He did have extremely basic old-man hobbies like folk music and military history, but so did Bertie and he was thirty years his friend’s junior.

No, the issue she had with Jeff was that there was exactly one spicy detail about him, and whenever she and Bertie were around him, it was all he wanted to do or talk about, often at length. And while she enjoyed spanking as much as anyone in their group, she didn’t make it into her entire personality.

So when Bertie had put his foot down and said that they were at least going to check in with his kinky old friend, she expected a lot of beer-soaked complaints of how hard it was trying to date in one’s golden years, or at least fond reminiscences of the time he’d shared with a girl less than half of his age.

She did not expect upon arrival to be greeted by the sight of a young woman’s ruby-red bottom.

The penitent girl had been left facing the wall with her fingers wound together over her long curly hair, leaving her face hidden from view. The ties across her back and waist revealed that she was wearing an apron, although Rachel didn’t see any other concessions to modesty. Even with what little she could see, Rachel thought she looked familiar somehow…

“Ah, you’re here!” announced Jeff. “The young lady will join us in a little bit, she’s still in time-out for another five minutes.”

“We can come back later if you prefer,” said Bertie.

Much as he liked Jeff, her boyfriend had never been comfortable with his older friend’s openness with his lifestyle. He’d never taken much of a shine to Mika, either.

“Nonsense. Now, you know I like to eat out on the patio, but the weather’s been lousy of late so we’re going to have to eat in the kitchen. I hope you don’t mind eating standing up – I know Leanne would prefer it that way.”

Rachel froze. The girl’s familiarity suddenly made terrifying sense.

“Did you say ‘Leanne’?”

***

Once Jeff’s new ingénue had been given leave to go to the bedroom and change, Rachel pursued him into the kitchen, where he was removing a newly baked bruschetta from the oven.”

“Where did you meet?”

“I’m sorry, Rachel. I didn’t know she was your sister when I invited the two of you here. I’d introduced you as a couple who practiced mutual domestic discipline—“

“Where. Did you. Meet.”

Rachel could feel Bertie’s hand lightly settling on her shoulder, and she shrugged him off. Yes, she was probably overreacting, but she wasn’t doing anything she would have to apologize for later.

Yet.

“I’ve been trying my hand at meeting new friends online,” said Jeff softly, trying to assert some confidence over the situation. “A few different profiles. Some of which were vanilla, others were… decidedly not, if you get my drift.”

“Enlighten me.”

He sighed. “Leanne reached out looking for a daddy.”

It figured. And of all the May-December romances her younger sister could have sought out, she had to find the one kinkster that Rachel knew personally. She hadn’t even known that Leanne’s interests ran that way.

As if summoned, her sister materialized from the hallway in a loose hoodie and sweatpants, looking contrite.

Rachel snorted. “Hello, Leanne. You’re a little easier to recognize with all your clothes on.”

She understood why Jeff wouldn’t have guessed the relation – where Rachel was short and stocky, Leanne was tall and lithe. Leanne had been considered the prettier of the two when they were growing up, but at thirty-five those days had long ended. She’d kept her body in shape, but years of bad habits had taken their toll on her features. She looked even older than Rachel.

“Leanne, would you like to tell our guests why they found you like that?” asked Jeff.

She blushed, looking at the floor. “I told Daddy I’d help him clean up for your visit.”

“And did you?”

“No.”

“Which would have been enough to get your little butt spanked, but you kept telling your Daddy that you’d get to it in ‘just a moment’, right?”

“Yes, Daddy.”

Rachel had been uncomfortable enough with Mika using that name as a term of endearment. It sounded especially wrong coming out of her sister’s mouth.

Bertie, silent up until this point, decided to jump in.

“Leanne, Jeff was telling us the two of you met online?”

“Yeah. Weird story, I was just selling some old stuff on Kijiji and there was this lamp that I couldn’t make up my mind if I wanted to sell it or not. Daddy had put in an offer and was waiting to hear back from me, and in the meantime I started creeping him.” She took a bite of the bruschetta.

Jeff tagged in. “Since Mika left, I’ve been offering discreet services for young ladies in need of a firm paternal hand. It’s very hard to advertise on an open platform, but the algorithm is mostly keyword-based…”

“…So as long as you don’t say ‘spanking’ or ‘punishment’, you won’t get taken down,” Rachel finished, ignoring the wince she caught from Bertie beside her. “Leanne, what were you thinking?”

“I was thinking it had worked for you.”

Rachel’s jaw dropped open. Jeff took the opportunity to insert himself between the sisters with a conciliatory pitcher of sangria.

“Your sister’s on a program of assigned accountability. On Tuesdays, we meet at her place for dinner and we discuss her progress over the week. You’ve got quite a number of habits you need to address, don’t you, Leanne?”

“Yes, Daddy.” She didn’t elabourate, and Jeff poured a glass and moved on.

“We make notes, we set goals, and then meet here on Sundays to assess penalties.”

 “Also,” Leanne added, “I ended keeping the lamp. Just in case anyone’s interested in that part of the story.” She took a swig of her sangria. “I should have used the can after I got done changing – I’ll catch up with you all in a minute.”

As she left the kitchen, Jeff and Bertie started chatting about the upcoming CFL pre-season, a conversation to which Rachel wouldn’t have been able to pay attention even if she’d tried. Instead, her thoughts were still on the ‘arrangement’ that Jeff had agreed on with Leanne.

That Leanne had some bad habits was a joke in its understatement. The girl that Rachel remembered was a tempestuous, spoiled brat. Their parents had raised Leanne to believe that the only responsibilities she had were the ones she accepted, so she didn’t deign to accept any at all. Her mother had even privately admitted how much of mistake that had been.

So when had Leanne gone from that, to someone who’d meekly accept a spanking from Jeff of all people? This wasn’t a matter she was willing to leave as a mystery, so she told Bertie that she also needed to use the bathroom.

“You could wait until Leanne gets back…” he suggested, but saw the notion forming behind her eyes. “Rachel—“

But she was already gone.

Jeff’s house was a single-story bungalow that he’d built himself in preparation for retirement. Rachel didn’t have to search far to find the bathroom, and arrived just in time to catch Leanne on her way out.

“What did you mean, it worked for me?”

Leanne rolled her eyes. “I caught you after your boyfriend spanked you last year, remember? And don’t try to tell me it was the other way around, I know what I heard.”

Bertie had lied for her then – not convincingly enough, it seemed. But it didn’t really address what Rachel wanted to hear, and Leanne had to know that.

After a second, she balked. “I… I don’t want to be a fuck-up anymore. Mom and Dad were so proud of you, coming back after all those years like a functional adult and shit. Do you know how that made me feel?”

“You think this is how I learned to be a functional adult?”

Leanne sneered. “You’re so proud that you moved out on your own, but I know better.  You had no money, no job and you shacked up with some gross old man just so you wouldn’t have to go back home and admit that you failed.”

“That was twenty years ago, Leanne.” Everything in Rachel wanted to yell it at her sister, but she knew sound carried in the house. “Besides, it’s rich hearing you criticize me for dating an old man. I get why you call Jeff Daddy.”

She expected Leanne to take a swing at her. When they’d last lived together at home, a younger Leanne wouldn’t have thought twice of it. But from the crestfallen look that came over her sister, Rachel realized she’d struck a different nerve.

“It’s my kid, Rach.”

Their mother had whispered something to Rachel on their last visit, that she shouldn’t judge Leanne too harshly, that Leanne was already suffering the consequences of her own actions.

And that she had a son who she didn’t see anymore.

“Social Services took him four years ago, they said that I was an unfit parent. Somehow they missed us back in the day, but they came for him.”

“I’m sorry…”

“The worst part was that I couldn’t even argue with what they said about me. At least Mom and Dad had each other. I was trying to raise him as a single mom, and I fucked it up. So yeah – I saw that you got spanked, and how you turned out…”

“And you thought, it can’t hurt to try? It does, though.”

“I know, right?” Leanne threw up her hands. “I’ve had to go to work with bruises on my ass every Monday for the last month. Daddy doesn’t let me get away with anything, and I don’t want him to.”

Rachel wasn’t sure what she was supposed to say at this moment. She settled for leaning in and giving her sister a hug. She realized it was probably the first comforting gesture she’d made to Leanne in twenty years.

“Now that we’re in the open…” Leanne whispered, “How do you get off on this? You get off on this, right?”

“It’s complicated,” said Rachel.

“Huh. You’re weirder than I thought.”

***

Once the tension between the sisters had dissipated, they were able to go back to the kitchen and enjoy their dinner. The conversation turned happily away from sports and fetish, and for a couple of hours it was just a comfortable sit-down (Or stand-up, in this case) with family and friends.

But the night had one more surprise in store for Rachel.

The sky outside having long grown dark, Jeff glanced at his watch.

“Well kids, I think we need to call it a night. I suspect all of you have to work in the morning – and this young lady and I have some further business to attend to.”

Despite the euphemism, it was no secret what that business entailed. Rachel could only imagine Leanne’s embarrassment – but what was she supposed to do? Leanne had made her choice.

“Daddy?” asked Leanne, her voice wavering, “Can Rachel stay? She’s my sister, and she’s worried about me. I just want to put her mind at ease.”

Silence followed.

Jeff shrugged. “Suits me fine, but don’t think I’m going to take it easy on you just because your sister’s here.” He’d spoken the words to Leanne, but Rachel understood the message was intended for her as well.

“I understand,” she replied. “Bertie—“

Leanne shook her head. It was a subtle gesture, but clear in its meaning.

“—Can you maybe wait in the car? I’ll be out in ten minutes or so.”

She couldn’t tell if her boyfriend’s expression was annoyance or relief. But Bertie was an only child, and this was a matter for siblings. He wouldn’t understand.

With Bertie gone, the group proceeded to Jeff’s living room. Like most of his house, it was small, only ever intended for a single elderly occupant. Apart from an easy chair and some bookshelves underlining the large picture window, Rachel didn’t see any furniture.

“Leanne, I’ll have you retrieve the bad chair, please,” she heard Jeff say.

Leanne gulped and opened what Rachel had assumed was a linen closet. Instead it turned out instead to be a pantry, its shelves dedicated to cleaning chemicals and furniture polish… and underneath those was an armless straight-backed wooden chair. She had no doubt that Jeff, a former carpenter and contractor, had made the thing itself, maybe even for this purpose.

Withdrawing the chair from its stable, Leanne took it to the middle of the room, its back toward the window. She stepped aside, and Jeff took his seat.

“Do you have your journal, little girl?”

Rachel hadn’t even seen the book that Leanne passed to Jeff, but suddenly it was in his hands. Jeff made a show of putting on his reading glasses and examining the pages.

“Can you tell me why you’re being punished today?”

She whined and looked to Rachel. “Daddy…”

“You wanted her to be here, Leanne. Now tell me why you’re being punished.”

“Because I bought junk food instead of groceries on Monday, and because I didn’t call you back when you called on Wednesday. Because I didn’t help with cleaning up for company today when you asked.”

“We’ve already taken care of that one. And…”

“That’s everything, Daddy, I swear.”

“’I swear’, is right, Leanne. I heard you and Rachel talking outside the bathroom, and you used some words that I don’t approve of in this house. Hands on your head.”

Leanne winced, but followed the command as Jeff reached for her waist and lowered her sweatpants down to her ankles. The angry red marks on her butt had faded to a dull pink in the last couple of hours, but Rachel knew from experience how tender her sister must still feel.

As Jeff lowered Leanne over his knees, Rachel was suddenly unsure where she should be. She was here as a witness, but it felt wrong to watch from Jeff’s easy chair, too comfortable for what was about to happen. She knelt on the floor instead, grasping her sister’s hands in her own for support.

“It’s good to accept responsibility, isn’t it?” asked Jeff, his hand stroking Leanne’s curls. “To grow, and to make better choices?”

“Yes, Daddy,” she murmured.

Jeff raised his hand. It was lined, calloused from years of labour, and Rachel began to think that she’d underestimated him. Ever since she’d known him, he’d put his efforts into trying to get Bertie and herself to join him in his playing with his ex-girlfriend – she couldn’t even recall him spanking Mika in earnest in that time.

The figure above her suddenly didn’t seem so much like a silly, dirty old man.

His hand moved, and Leanne grimaced as it left behind a fresh print. It wasn’t a harsh blow, but nor did it need to be. Jeff was just getting started.

“I hope you learn a lesson from this, young lady.”

“Ouch! Yes, Daddy!”

“We’re not going to have this same discussion next week, are we?”

“No, Daddy! Owww!”

“So what am I going to see in your refrigerator when I visit on Tuesday?”

Rachel could only stare in astonishment as Leanne wiggled and whined, trying to recite a grocery list as Jeff set a percussive fire to her backside.

In some dark corner of her mind, Rachel had hoped to feel some satisfaction at seeing her bratty younger sibling finally taken to task. But the Leanne in front of her wasn’t the entitled teenager she remembered. She wanted to overcome her upbringing and history of bad decisions, and she’d picked the most painful and humiliating way to do so.

From her position on the floor, she couldn’t see what kind of effect Jeff’s palm was having, but she believed Leanne’s claim that there would be bruises tomorrow.

Jeff wiped his forehead. “I think that settles the matter of the groceries, don’t you? Now we’re going to discuss your not calling me back.”

“Please, Daddy. My ass hurts already…”

“Your ‘ass’?”

Rachel saw the terror on Leanne’s face as she realized her mistake. Too late, as Jeff’s hard hand resumed its work.

“I don’t think that’s the kind of language a young lady should use casually, do you?”

“Ow! No, Daddy! Ow!”

“I see we’re going to come back to this a few more times, aren’t we?”

“No, Daddy, I promise! I promise!”

Jeff’s voice was gentle, but his judgment was harsh. Leanne begged and yelled and kicked, but nothing seemed to affect him. Only when her struggles finally quit, so too did his arm.

“It’s over,” he announced, rubbing her back. “You took your punishment well.”

She sniffled. “Thank you, Daddy.”

He lifted her up into his arms and kissed her forehead. It didn’t seem to matter that she was a grown woman, or that she was butt naked from waist to feet. For the moment, she was his little girl and he her Daddy. Rachel was almost jealous.

“I think Bertie’s still waiting for you outside,” said Jeff.

She turned to go. She remembered being in the same place as Leanne, not that long ago. That despite the agony of punishment, that there was something irreplaceable about being safe and content in the arms of her confessor. She’d told Bertie that she didn’t feel that need anymore, but maybe…

Leanne shifted in her seat, and Rachel saw what had become of her backside. No, she decided. Some things were better left in the past.