Madison has zero self-discipline, especially around chocolate and the greasy blobs of heaven that are garlic knots. Exercise is for other people. Until at the advice of a friend, she signs up for sessions with Jacob, a personal trainer with some unsual motivational methods. Don't work hard enough during a work-out--Jacob administers a bare-bottom spanking (sometimes with a paddle or strap, if warranted).

From NO PAIN, NO GAIN:

“Have a seat. I need to get a little more info.” Jacob asked about medications I was taking and frowned a little when I rattled off my meds for controlling my blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol. “You’re young to be taking all these,” he commented. He glanced up at me, his gray eyes assessing. “It’s a good thing Amy convinced you to come in.” He tapped his pen on the desk. “So, shall we sign you up for a package?”

“Absolutely,” I told him, trying to sound cheerful and eager. I had to do this. I knew it. I just really didn’t want to. “Unless somebody’s invented a pill you can take instead of exercising.”

Trainer Jacob shook his head. “What it takes is commitment and discipline. Most of my clients come to me because they aren’t able to discipline themselves. I see part of my job as providing that discipline until they can. Before you sign up for sessions with me, you’ll need to give me permission to punish and motivate you as I see fit.”

Punish? That didn’t sound-- Oh, he meant like laps or extra sets of sit-ups. Well, I wouldn’t like it, but I was going to be paying him to push me. If he didn’t, what was the point?

“You’ve done great things for Amy,” I answered. “So I agree.”

“Amy is someone who responds well to positive reinforcement,” Jacob said. “In a few sessions, I’ll be able to figure out how to get you to give this program your all.” He pulled a long contract out of a folder. “This says that you’re agreeing to twelve sessions with me. If you choose to cancel one or all the sessions for any reason—other than illness or injury—your fee will not be refunded. Are we clear?”

I took the pen from his hand and signed without bothering to read the details. Amy was a fiend about examining the small print. If she had agreed to the terms, I knew they’d be fine. Jacob and I agreed to meet three times a week.

“So I’ll see you Monday,” I said. I stood up.

“There’s one more thing we need to do before you go,” Jacob told me. “You’ve agreed to submit to my discipline, and I believe it will motivate you to understand exactly what that entails. After every session, we’ll come up here for a short conversation about how you did. If I don’t think you performed to the best of your abilities, I’ll spank you.”

“What?” The word came out as a yelp.

“That was in the contract you just signed, young lady,” Trainer Jacob informed me. “The level of the spanking will be determined by your performance. The spankings can range from a basic hand spanking all the way to a strapping. But if you work hard for me, it shouldn’t come to that,” he added. “Have you ever had a spanking, Madison?” He asked it like it was just another routine question, and picked up his clipboard again to record my answer.

“I…once. When I was like three or something and I started running across the mall parking lot without waiting to hold my mom’s hand. She smacked me a few times, so I’d remember not to do it again,” I answered.

Jacob made a note. “Since that’s the case, I’m going to give you a spanking today. I think you need to know what’s going to happen if you don’t work as hard as I know you can.”

This short story is intended for adults over 18 years old. It is 15,400 words long.

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