Chapter Fourteen
Trystan
Three days of heaven—that was what it had been. Dakota was the most responsive lover I’d ever had and I would be damned, but my Guppy was eager to try about anything at least once. After some serious begging and groveling, I’d convinced him to accompany me to the sex store for a shopping-palooza of epic proportions. It was so fucking strange—he was incredibly shy and demure out in public but get him alone with me in my apartment, and his shyness transformed into a freakiness that kept my cock hard around the clock, twenty-four, seven. When we’d first walked into the store, I’d been momentarily afraid that he was going to pass out from embarrassment. I would like to say he got into the groove of things after a few minutes of shopping, but that would make me a liar. He’d stayed hidden behind those beautiful bangs of his, eyes downcast and looking so fucking submissive that I’d nearly gotten into four different fights with alpha guys who had been drawn to him with the same lure that had sucked me in.
The leather necklace, or bracelet, or whatever the fuck it was supposed to be that my mother had given me rested seductively and possessively around his neck, marking him as mine, all mine. The thick black leather looked a lot like a dog collar only so much sexier. My football number, 24, designed from gold, hooked it together right below his Adam’s apple. I was one hundred percent sure it wasn’t what my mother had had in her mind when she’d given it to me, but I also knew she would be proud when she knew how happy it made me for him to wear i.
As we walked around the store, me selecting products I would like to try on him and him either approving with a barely noticeable nod or rejecting with one of his eye rolls, every guy in the place tracked his movements. I was used to being watched, he wasn’t. I didn’t think he liked it very much. I was still standing on the edge on how I felt about it. I was arrogantly proud that he was with me and wearing my jewelry, but on the other hand, I was pissed that they were looking at him like they wanted him for themselves.
I’d dropped over a thousand dollars but I was now the proud owner of several new hand-held toys, a sex swing that would have to be professionally installed, and a genuine fucking machine. He’d given me the eye roll with that baby, but I’d held my ground and he’d finally waffled enough that I knew he would be willing to give it a try. The look he’d shot in my direction silently asked ‘why would you need a fucking machine when you have a perfectly good cock to fuck me with’ but I’d just arched my brow like that was the dumbest silent question I had ever heard. I mean, in the first ten seconds following me spying that bad boy in the furniture room, I’d already envisioned me eating dinner…watching him being fucked with a giant dildo, strapped down nice and tight where there wouldn’t be a damned thing he could do but take it until I decided he’d taken enough. Me doing my nightly push-ups and sit-ups…watching him being fucked. Me taking a long hot bath…watching him being fucked. Me smoking a cigar and sipping brandy…watching him being fucked. That was just in the first ten seconds, imagine what I could come up with if given a significant amount of time.
Yes, as far as sex went, he was sheer perfection. The look of innocence about him lured you in, making you want to do all sorts of dirty things to him. Then, BAM, once he had you in his clutches, he introduced you to kinky boy and before you knew it, your cock was following him around like a kitten chasing a butterfly.
As far as roommates went, he was the best I’d ever had. Of course, he was the only roomie I had ever had, but I knew he would still be the best if my past had included all the men of Magic Mike and all the Playboy centerfolds living with me. He was neat and tidy, wanting everything in its place and didn’t hesitate to reprimand me for being a slob. The cleaning service was going to love him. When they showed up again, they would probably just sit around and watch my porn collection or try out the new swing. He definitely didn’t take up too much space, quite the opposite, to be honest. He had virtually…nothing. Maybe four or five different sweaters, three pairs of jeans, boots, underwear, and his swimming gear. There was a picture of his mom but he kept it tucked away instead of putting it on a table somewhere in the apartment. He had an old jacket and the gloves I’d given him. I thought it was pathetic and begged him to let me take him shopping because to be perfectly honest, I couldn’t imagine anything more enjoyable than watching him try on shit I picked out for him…and then fucking him in the dressing room when we were finished. When I’d first suggested it, I figured he would either take me up on the offer or get pissed and tell me to stop acting like such a pervert. Instead, he’d just looked at me, shook his head, and called me an arrogant, rich asshole. He wasn’t mad, just stated the facts. I still hadn’t gotten to take him shopping.
Or fuck him in a dressing room.
I wouldn’t actually call what he did studying, but he did work on research papers and projects for his classes. He was smart, that much was obvious, so he didn’t have to put much of his energy into schoolwork, yet he did. It reminded me more of a polite obedience to his teachers. I think he was pissed because I never did any homework…or attended any classes. At first, I teased him and told him that since I was a popular football player, I didn’t have to study like the rest of the campus rats. I’d followed that nugget of nonsense up with the lie that I hadn’t attended the first class since my freshman year. I meant it as a joke, but when a dark look passed over his features, I quickly back-pedaled and told him the truth. I already had enough credits for graduation two semesters ago, but had taken enough electives to keep me eligible for football. My attendance and participation in classes had been mandatory up until football season was over. What I didn’t tell him was that I would probably still be going to classes faithfully if he hadn’t walked into my life and totally taken over every one of my thoughts, dreams, and desires. How the hell was I supposed to focus on something that interested me very little and had absolutely nothing to do with my future? All I could think about was something that interested me so fucking much and had absolutely everything to do with my future? So, instead of attending classes, I worked out in the gym, met with my agent, and pretty much sat around waiting for Dakota to finish with his daily schedule. Sure it sounded pathetic and as Alex had suggested, just a bit stalkerish, but I wasn’t losing any sleep over it. I was good.
Dakota’s apparent dislike of football players getting special treatment had me wondering if something had happened that caused his feelings or if it was just the natural dislike that most folks felt toward those that received entitlement without earning it. In his defense, if you weren’t one of the football players benefiting from the “extras”, I could certainly see how irritating it could be. It hadn’t bothered me before but now I was feeling borderline icky—like maybe I should go back and pay for all the free booze the local liquor store had “donated” to the cause. Either way, I wouldn’t be accepting any special treatment going forward. Nosiree, I wasn’t intentionally doing anything that might lead to me having to sleep on the couch in my own apartment. Whatever he wanted, I was making sure he got it.
While I wasn’t into the BDSM stuff like Lincoln and Alex, my relationship with Dakota reminded me of the dynamics of a Dom/Sub partnership. I was in charge in the bedroom, dominating him in every way humanly possible…taking him in every animalistic way I could dream up, but he still held all the power. Anything. I would give him anything.
Soooo, that explained my past three days of heaven with Dakota—awesome sex and getting to know tidbits of information about him. It had also been three days of hell with Dakota. True to his word, I felt like he was offering me nothing more than the physical part of him. He had secrets. He had darkness. It was as if he would almost let me in, smiling at me with a softness that screamed to my heart that he cared, but then slammed the door shut before his emotions escaped.
Yes, I knew which spots on his body drove him wild but I didn’t know where he came from—where he lived before ending up at our school in the middle of his senior year. I knew that he liked me to talk dirty to him, explain in explicit detail what I was going to do to him, but I didn’t know his mother’s name or his favorite color, or when he knew he was gay, or…anything personal. I knew he enjoyed being physically dominated when sex was involved. I knew he loved me to fuck him hard, pushing his body past the point where others would have already demanded that I stop.
I knew he had a puckered scar on his taint and I knew he tried to act as if it wasn’t there—like maybe he hoped I didn’t notice it.
I knew his body inside and out but I knew nothing about him.
It hurt. Shit, it hurt to the point that after I dropped him off for his classes this morning, I had to call mom. Yes, my mommy, not my dad, who I would normally discuss fucking with if I ever felt the need to discuss it at all. My mommy. Now that was pathetic.
My mom, being the way she was, laughed at me—literally died laughing for about two full minutes. I’d gotten so aggravated that I’d nearly hung up the phone, which would have been a colossal fuck-up because she would have flown straight into Tuscaloosa and kicked my ass if I would have. After her laughter died down, she’d told me how proud she was of me.
“You’re falling in love, Trystan! You’re finally falling in love. I couldn’t be happier for you and your young man. Is he pretty? I bet he is pretty. I can’t wait to tell your father. He’s going to want to fly in to meet him. Dear Lord, Trystan, I’m so excited. Should I be planning a wedding? We’ll have the biggest wedding the great state of Texas has ever seen!”
Okay, so she must have missed the part where I told her Dakota was full of secrets and refused to open up to me. She totally blew past the part where I admitted I wasn’t sure he wanted me for anything more than sex. Her mother’s mind ignored it when I shared that I was giving him my heart and he wasn’t acting as if he was interested in accepting it, much less offering his in return.
Just when I thought she wasn’t listening or didn’t understand, she summed it all up by telling me the universal words of all mothers around the world…and somehow that shit always worked when it came from the women who gave us life.
“Ah, baby, there is no way in the world he couldn’t be falling in love with you. Yes, he may be fighting it with every ounce of fight he has inside of him, for reasons that he can’t reveal to you yet, but he is simply wasting his time and energy. Trust me, coming from one speaking from experience when it comes to falling for the Matherly charm, there is no weapon strong enough. If he is the one you want, then he will be yours. Be patient. Prove to him your love and his will return.”
“Are you sure?” I’d asked. “I’m kind of an asshole at times.”
“Well, yes, you can be. That comes from your father’s side of the family,” she agreed. I could hear the smile in her voice. “Oh, and make sure you fuck him well and often, that will definitely do it!”
Leave it to my mom to go there. We’d talked for a few more minutes but then I’d told her I had to run, it was time for Dakota to finish with his last class. I felt better…invincible, actually. It was a mom’s super hero gift.
I was sitting outside of the marketing building, alternating between checking the time on my watch and checking the doorway where I knew he would exit through. I’d sat in this spot, waiting to catch a glimpse of him, more times than I cared to admit to anybody other than myself. Even before I’d started actively trying to pursue him, I’d found one excuse and then another to make sure I was positioned right in this spot. Every damned time, he’d walked out of the building with his head down and looking like he was totally oblivious to everyone around him, existing but not living. He never noticed me stalking him because he never looked up. I’d tried for stealth in the beginning, determined to catch a peek of his tight ass and pouty lips but not be caught doing it because that would be totally embarrassing. After a while, I’d realized there was no need for stealth. Anything short of tackling him and throwing him over my shoulder would have gone unnoticed. It had been strange, then irritating, then funny, and then I’d decided I wasn’t the type that enjoyed being ignored. To be perfectly honest, I’d been damned near close to resorting to the tackling and tossing scenario. Thank the fuck, he’d finally caved. Again, that could have been embarrassing and if I wasn’t mistaken, could have led to some jail time.
The door flung open, snapping me back to the present, and I pushed away from the wall I’d been leaning on. He was never the first out the door. Never the last. My Dakota was always flat out in the middle of the pack, trying to make himself as invisible as possible. Today probably wouldn’t be any different. The class had about one hundred students in it so I had about….
Holy shit! My Guppy was near the front of the pack. His green eyes, instead of studying his feet like normal, focused on me. The tiniest of smiles curved his sexy mouth and my stomach did something weird. At the bottom of the steps, his feet turned in my direction. He wasn’t exactly hurrying toward me, but for the first time ever, he turned right instead of left. I had no clue where in the hell left took him to, but the right brought him to me. Normally I chased him down, trying not to look desperate, but failing miserably. Today, I met him half way.
“Hey, Guppy,” I said in greeting and then took the toboggan I’d been clutching in my hands and put it on his head. He was always cold but never remembered to wear his gloves or something to cover his head. After I had the knitted cap snugly in place, I took the edges and tugged his face toward mine. When he didn’t put up a struggle, I placed a warm kiss on his puffy lips. “You forgot to wear this again today.”
His green eyes, even more beautiful in the bright sunlight, were focused solely on me. I could get lost in those fucking eyes. One minute I thought they were greener than a meadow in beautiful Ireland and in the next minute, I was convinced they were a seafoam green. His lashes were so long that I swore he had to be able to give the best butterfly kisses in the world.
“No, I don’t like wearing it. I look stupid,” he countered. “The only thing that looks more ridiculous than me in this stupid toboggan is when you put it on my head in front of everybody. You’re acting like my mommy.”
His eyes were dancing with mischief as he returned my gaze and he hadn’t made a move to take it off…or step away from my embrace. Our bodies were molded together. People were everywhere, staring and giggling. Shit like that usually bothered Dakota, but today he ignored them. My stomach did that weird thing again. I would like to say that I was overflowing with love or something sweet like that, but I was wondering if I could get away with bending him over the nearest anything and fucking him until my heart stopped fluttering like a god damned girl.
“Maybe I should do something that would prove to everybody that I’m your daddy instead,” I teased. Flashes of him draped over my knee while I spanked his ass floated through my head.
He choked back a laugh. “Nah, I don’t need to get suspended from college just so you can prove that you’re the top and I’m the bottom in this sexploration.” He leaned in and kissed me back. “Anyway, I think they already know.”
Sexploration—not relationship. Nice. Fighting back waves of disappointment, I tried to focus on what his body was saying instead of the shit tumbling from that sexy mouth. Those were just words—items of nonsense meant to protect him and keep me at arm’s length. Fuck that shit. It wasn’t going to work.
“I think you’re probably right, Guppy.” I chuckled and wrapped my arm around his trim waist, tugging him toward the parking lot. We had about four hours until his swim practice and I intended to remind him that if he was determined to pretend as if this was nothing more than sex, then it was the best damned sex he’d ever had in his life. “What did you do today? Have a good one?”
“I went to classes,” he answered dryly. “What did you do, fellow college student? Hit the books hard? Run from class to class so you wouldn’t be late? Take a few mind-boggling exams? Turn in a research paper?”
He was such a feisty tart. I couldn’t wait to put that mouth to better use than sassing me and my poor attendance and participation. He hadn’t noticed the other day, but I’d slipped a nice ball gag into the basket during our shopping trip. Instead of just the regular red ball in the middle, this one had a nice plump dildo that would keep his mouth stuffed while I stuffed him from the other end. Yep, that should keep Mr. Sassy Mouth nice and submissively quiet. Well, except for all those moans and husky whimpers he made when I fucked him. Those sweet sounds should still be able to slip past the gag. They damned well better be able to slip past the gag.
“Nah,” I finally answered. “I worked out for about three hours and then stalked you for the balance of my busy day.” My hand slipped down and squeezed one cheek of his firm ass. “Your ass looks fabulous in those jeans, Guppy. Just fabulous.”
He snorted. “Wow, that sounds like a tough day, Mr. Skips-A lot. How do you manage?”
We reached my Hummer and he moved away to climb inside. Like the dirty pervert I proudly claimed to be, I watched his every graceful move. I was not kidding, his ass made my mouth water but it didn’t have a damned thing to do with those jeans and every damned thing to do with how bubbly-firm it was…and how well it took my cock.
He went to pull the door closed, but I stopped it with my hand. “Hey man, the struggle is real, don’t forget it. I work my ass off watching your ass.”
“You’re an idiot,” he countered and then shoved me away from the door so he could close it. As soon as he was inside, he tugged the knit cap off the top of his head and flipped me off through the window.
It might have bothered me, but the huge smile on his face told me he didn’t think there was anything at all idiotic about me watching his ass or making sure his ears stayed warm. He liked me watching. I liked watching. Mom was right, there was no way this thing would not work out.
Once I was inside and the Hummer roared to life, he turned and said, “You don’t have to pick me up, Trystan. I have a vehicle that will get me where I need to go. Drop me by and I’ll pick it up. That way you won’t have to squeeze stalking into your busy schedule.”
“Smart ass,” I grumbled. “Forget your Jeep, Guppy. I like having you at my mercy.” There was no way I was letting him drive that piece of shit when it was this freezing cold outside. Not only did it run the risk of dying in the middle of the road, he could die from hypothermia with all those damned spots where the cold air could creep in. On top of that, I was not sure I could ever let him get in that vehicle again—not after what almost happened. It made me sick to my stomach when I let myself picture how things could have gone so differently if I hadn’t gotten to his dorm when I did.
I would take him out and buy him a car right now but I knew he would have a shit fit if I even suggested it. Yes, it was my parent’s money but they wouldn’t say anything other than maybe just question what I was doing. Yes, I was a rich asshole that always had money to throw at any problem that might come my way. Did I want to change? Yes. Was I going to change? Probably not. Would I change for Dakota? I would try my damned best.
“When you tie me up the way you do, I’m pretty much at your mercy, with or without my Jeep. It’s not like I’m going to hop in my Jeep and make a run for it.” He snorted out a laugh and added, “I most likely wouldn’t get far, so I’ll just stay and take whatever you can dish out to me.”
His eyes issued a challenge there was no way I couldn’t accept. He was in a playful mood and who was I to deny a kid begging to go to the playground? I was just about to tell him what I had planned to do to him this afternoon when my cell rang loudly, interrupting my nasty thoughts and pretty much pissing me off at the same time. Around Dakota, I had a one-track mind and I didn’t like anything or anybody trying to get me to focus on anything else.
Growling in frustration, I hit the button that activated the Bluetooth. “What?” I snapped at whomever the poor fool was on the other end of the line. At Dakota’s frown, I felt guilty. When I heard the terrified unknown voice on the other end of the line, I felt even guiltier.
“Mr. Matherly?” The shy, feminine voice asked. Her voice quivered just a bit and that quivering echoed loudly throughout the vehicle, making Dakota’s frown turn even stormier.
Well, shit.
“Yes, this is Trystan Matherly. How can I help you?” I flashed him a big fat grin, hoping my sugary sweet voice would gain me a few brownie points of forgiveness.
“Oh…thank goodness, you scared me.” She drew a shaky voice, taking away any brownie points I might have earned, before continuing. “This is Megan Todd from Last Chance Pet Rescue. I just wanted to remind you of your appointment to look at some of our rescue animals.” She cleared her throat and added, “You’re kind of late. We expected you fifteen minutes ago.”
Well, double shit. I’d forgotten to cancel my appointment to meet with the rescue shelter. My plan to lure Dakota to me with a wiggly puppy, just like the witch lured Hansel and Gretel with breadcrumbs, would no longer be needed. Instead of having to adopt an animal, I’d used my animal magnetism…’cause I was a badass. Just as I opened my mouth to apologize for not cancelling earlier, the look on Dakota’s face caused the words to freeze and then scramble back down my throat.
His eyes were blazing with excitement and I swore to all that was holy, his ass was dancing in the seat like a six-year-old kid. “Are you adopting a pet? What are you going to get? Can I go with you? I can’t believe you like animals, you don’t exactly look the type. Cat or dog? Can I help you pick?”
The lady on the other end of the phone started giggling and Dakota blushed to his roots. His hand slapped over his mouth and his eyes grew wide. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have interrupted. Sorry. This isn’t any of my business.”
Well, triple shit. I still had to adopt a furry creature that would undoubtedly mess up my apartment and totally cramp my style. Visions of my mother’s three tiny ankle biters flashed through my mind and the threat of a panic attack loomed in my near future. They yapped continuously. They growled at me and tried to bite me when mom wasn’t looking. Yes, the devils were smart enough to manipulate my mother into believing they were the sweet and innocent victim and I was the bad guy when I shoved them away from me. Oh, fuck. Dad said they slept their spoiled asses right between him and mom every fucking night. When he wanted sex, he had to lock them out of the room and they scratched, whined, and yapped the entire time he was trying to get busy. He swore it really messed his groove up. I couldn’t have that. I didn’t need one damned thing between Dakota and me in the bed, especially a furry animal that I was already jealous of because I was one hundred percent certain he would like it more than he liked me.
“It is your business, babe. We live together. Of course, I want you to help me pick out our new pet. That was my plan the entire time,” I lied. The way I was justifying that one was that there were big lies and little lies—this was just an itsy-bitsy lie.
“We will be there in about ten minutes, Megan. Sorry to keep you waiting,” I told her and disconnected before she had the chance to tell him I’d made the appointment before he’d moved in with me…or talked to me.
He frowned again. “Are you sure about this, Trystan? You aren’t acting very excited. I don’t have to be involved. A pet is a big responsibility, something you’ll have in your life for a very long time if you’re lucky. Don’t let me intrude and fuck this up for you.”
It might have been more than an itsy-bitsy lie. Responsibility? In my life for a very long time? I was starting to feel queasy. Never in my life had I ever felt the desire to own a pet, including now. Especially now. His eyes were still blazing with excitement.
I was going to be a fucking pet owner. Whoopee.
“Promise me our new pet won’t sleep between us in the bed,” I demanded.
“What? Why would you say that?”
He was biting his bottom lip. I loved it when it bit his bottom lip. I wanted to bite it. I wasn’t going to get to bite it because I was on my way to adopt a pet. I thought I was going to go home and give the brand new fucking machine a maiden voyage with Dakota’s ass. Instead of that, I was going to the animal shelter. What could possibly go wrong with this scenario?
“It’s just a thing between my mom and dad. Her Yorkie pups sleep right in between them, forming an impenetrable line of dog. My dad swears it is the worst example of cockblocking he has ever witnessed in his life. Promise me,” I begged.
“I promise, Trystan. Does that make you feel better?” He asked with the sweetest of sweet smiles on his face. The look in his eyes was telling me I might not be the only one capable of itsy bitsy lies. Fuck. I had a feeling that before the night ended, a purse-puppy was going to be my cockblock.
I growled but turned the Hummer in the direction of the animal shelter anyway. I supposed it would be this point in my life that I realized I would never win a fight with Dakota. His happiness meant too much to me.
Cockblocked by my own pet.
That I didn’t want.
Fuck.
Dakota
I couldn’t believe he was getting a dog. I loved dogs. Hell, I loved any kind of animal as long as they were furry and cuddly. I’d always loved them but after my episode, my stint at rehabilitation had involved a dog and I swore to this day that he was the only reason I was still alive. My therapist had used words and medicine to try to heal my heart but both had been a fucking waste of time. The only time I’d felt any sort of peace was when I’d looked into the chocolate brown eyes of the lab assigned to me. He might not have been able to use words, but those damned eyes had understood my pain and had tried so desperately hard to try to soothe the storm inside of me.
I was so excited that I thought there was a good chance the seat was bouncing from my vibrations. Searching my mind, I tried to remember another time when I’d felt this kind of anticipation and the best I could come up with was when we had our pool installed at the house when I’d been six years old. I’d always loved swimming and waiting for the workers to dig out the massive hole and then design the elaborate pool had nearly caused me to lose my six-year-old cookies. I couldn’t understand why they didn’t have it finished after the first day. It had taken them nearly four damned weeks. My mother said they could have done it in three if I had not had harassed them so much. They’d called me the absolute worst supervisor they’d ever worked under in their life. I couldn’t help it, I’d been so damned excited.
That was how I was feeling now.
It was going to take every ounce of my willpower to try not to takeover Trystan’s adoption. I was going to want, want, want.
Trystan’s cursing jerked me from my happy thoughts.
“Son of a bitch! Look at this shitshow,” he hissed as the Hummer roared into the parking lot of the small shelter. His fist slammed against the steering wheel and I felt my entire body jerk in shock…and fear.
There was a small television van set up in the parking lot and several reporters and other people were milling about with cameras. As soon as they noticed Trystan’s Hummer, they started taking pictures and a few people clapped and whistled. Inside our vehicle, Trystan seethed. I wasn’t sure why, but he was thoroughly pissed off. Hell, I wasn’t sure why reporters would be at the animal shelter and they definitely weren’t surprised to see him there. I mean, he wasn’t exactly a celebrity, even if his parents might be, but he was the local football hero and, apparently, that entailed having his privacy stolen away. I would have thought he would be used to it by now.
“It’s just cameras, Trystan. What’s the big deal?” I asked. “Don’t they usually follow you guys around? Especially with the upcoming draft and all that…football stuff?” I didn’t have a clue what football stuff was other than the small amount I’d picked up during my brief stint as running back but, hopefully, he wouldn’t catch on. After a while, I’d just learned to block it out with Evan. Of course, he’d always just been bragging on himself, not really talking about the game or the logistics of it.
His eyes cut around toward me and instead of looking irritated or mad at me for asking, the gray orbs were once again twinkling with fun. Sure, there was still some irritated anger lingering, but it was mostly a…softness when he looked at me. “Football stuff? Do you even have a clue about what I do for a living, Guppy?”
I blinked at him. Was he serious? “Yes, Trystan, I do. You skip class, work out, wait for me to get out of class, and fuck me.” I smiled. “I think that pretty much sums it up.”
He looked offended. “I feed you, too. Don’t forget that part. Remember me getting my ass out of bed at the butt crack of dawn to bring you one of those weird drinks you like from Starbucks? Remember that?”
“Yes, I remember that, Your Royal Highness. I appreciated it very much. I take everything back, you’re a very busy man.” I could not believe someone as powerfully muscular as Trystan could also look so fucking cute and playful. When he was fucking me, he was all alpha dominant, using those muscles to pound me into submission. Any other time, he was as playful as a kitten.
“Good,” he huffed. “Now that we’ve got that out of the way, back to me being pissed about the camera crew. I should have known something was wrong when she made me make an appointment. I thought you usually just walked into one of these places, but did I get to? Nooooo, I had to make an appointment. She had to schedule a photo op. That shit just is not right. Why the hell would she do that?” He asked as his eyes cut around the parking lot to rest on the poor girl watching us, wringing her hands in a nervous gesture that told me she was terrified to face Trystan after what she’d done. “I would say she just wanted some attention, get her picture flashed across the newspapers, but she sure the hell didn’t fix herself up any. She’s got more hair out of that nasty old-lady bun than she has in it.” He squinted. “And I’m pretty sure that might be a shit stain on the front of her shirt.”
He was probably right. I had volunteered at many animal shelters in the past and heaven knew there was plenty of shit-cleaning that went on. It was virtually impossible to not have it on you somewhere before your shift ended. My eyes narrowed as I studied the girl’s shirt. Yep, her somewhere happened to be on the front of her shirt today. Poor chick. It made me fall in love with her instantly. This girl didn’t give a fuck about TV cameras or photographers for herself, she needed the exposure for her shelter and she’d been willing to use Trystan to get it. While I might not agree with the sneakiness of it, I had to admire her effort and her brass balls.
“Are you mad at her, Trystan? Don’t be mad,” I begged. If he drove away without adopting a pet, I might kick his ass myself.
“How can I not be mad, Guppy? She used me for her own benefit. That’s just shitty.”
I frowned at him. Megan still stood there, probably freezing half to death in the ice-cold weather. “I’m sure she did it as a way to try and get some exposure for the shelter, Trystan. Private donations and the small fees they collect from adoptions fund most of these places. They get more animals than they do money and when that happens, something really bad happens. It costs a lot of money and time to try to run a shelter and I’m pretty certain there isn’t any appreciation from anybody except from the poor animals she rescues. Give her a break. Please.” I could tell he was starting to cave. “Let’s be honest, Trystan. When kids see your pretty mug on the local news tonight, adopting a pet from Megan’s rescue shelter, good things are going to happen. The poor kids will be breaking open their piggy banks and begging their parents to let them adopt a dog or cat because Trystan Matherly, football great of the world, did. The rich kids will be busy convincing their parents that rescuing a pet is much more politically correct than paying hundreds of dollars for the rare breeds they usually get.”
He studied me, a confused look on his handsome face. Finally, he said, “Oh…I didn’t know that.” His frown deepened. “What’s the really bad thing that happens?”
He truly had led a sheltered life. Wouldn’t it be nice if everybody had enough money to shelter them from the ugliness of the real world? “When there gets to be too many animals at the shelter and they don’t have enough kennels, volunteers, and food, then they end up having to put perfectly healthy animals to sleep.”
“Shit. I was afraid that’s what you were going to say.”
“Yeah, shit,” I answered. “I don’t agree with her methods, but I understand why she did it, Trystan. She’s probably desperate.” The people gathered in the parking lot were starting to get antsy. Megan looked resigned to the fact that she’d made a colossal mistake and Trystan was going to drive away. “You’re so good at influencing people to do things they wouldn’t normally do, maybe you should get the cheerleading team to do a carwash in the parking lot here. Tits and ass usually draws a big crowd and a big crowd means more people become aware of the shelter. If you can get them to come to a boring swim meet, you can surely get them to do a carwash here.”
He grinned and shook his head. “Man, the cheerleading coach is still threatening to get me suspended for that one,” he laughed. “Something about there being rules, regulations, and the need to be fair to all the other athletes. She was royally pissed for going around her and wants me gone…as in dead, but I think she’ll settle for suspension.”
Clearly, he was not at all concerned.
“Yeah, I think I can arrange that. Cheerleaders in this parking lot, nearly naked and spraying themselves with water. Consider it done.”
No, he was not at all concerned. Hell, Trystan probably looked at her temper tantrum as a challenge he gladly accepted.
“You’re so evil,” I praised.
“Okay, stop with the compliments already. I don’t need to have an inflated ego when I face my loyal subjects.”
“Evil ass. I meant to say evil ass.”
On that note, he opened the car door and hopped out. I started to exit from my side, but not before noticing the look of utter relief that passed over Megan’s features the minute she saw Trystan’s door open. She’d been terrified he was going to leave her holding the bag. By the time I made it around the Hummer and joined Trystan, Megan was already there and they were in the middle of introductions. I stumbled when I heard Trystan’s end of the conversation.
“Nice to meet you, Megan. I’m Trystan and this is my love slave, Dakota. I appreciate you scheduling me an appointment.”
“Trystan!” I hissed and punched his arm. I glanced around the parking lot, hoping nobody had been close enough to hear what he’d said. Thankfully, they loitered about, patiently waiting for Trystan to give them a photo op.
“What? I could have said you’re my boyfriend, but I can’t get you to commit to me.” He flashed me a wicked grin and then turned to Megan. “Tell him he ought to at least consider being my boyfriend, Megan. I’m a good guy. I’m getting him a fur baby, aren’t I?
She bit back a grin. He’d won yet another person over into his corner. I guess I could be a bastard and tell her how furious he was a few minutes ago, but doing that really would make me a bastard. Plus, it might interfere with me getting that fur baby he was referring to. See, I could be obedient in more places than the bedroom.
“You really should agree to be his boyfriend, Dakota. He is clearly smitten with you. Give the poor guy a shot.” She shrugged. “It might be bad but surely it couldn’t be worse than being his love slave.”
“Hey!” Trystan barked. “I thought you were going to be on my side. What’s with this Switzerland shit? You can’t flip flop like that, I’m sure it breaks all sorts of rules of war.”
“I may have shit stains on my shirt, look a hot mess, and haven’t slept for three days, but I’m not an idiot—I’m keeping my options open and won’t hesitate to use both of you if it benefits my rescues in any way. Anyway, you guys are fun. If I wasn’t wallowing in credit card bills and unwanted animals, I’d love to hang out.”
Suddenly a bright stain painted both her cheeks, making her look even more adorable. She quickly amended, “Oh, and if I was in the popular crowd. I know I’m not in your league or anything,” she stuttered and her blush deepened. “I wasn’t saying that. I just meant…hell, I’m not used to talking to humans so I just flat out fucked it up. Sorry.” She finished with a disgusted shake of her head.
Trystan was looking at her strangely, as if it had never occurred to him that people might not feel worthy of hanging out with him. Yeah, he knew he was ridiculously popular, but I didn’t think he realized how intimidating that popularity could appear to us ‘unpopular’ people. On the other hand, I knew exactly how Megan felt, so I tried to dive in with a rescue. “He’s the popular one, Megan. I’m just the love slave. We can hang out any time you would like. I’ve also volunteered at our local shelter back home so after swim season is over and I have a little more time, I’d love to help out here. You know, if you need any help.” Shit, I sounded about as unsure of myself as she did. It wasn’t like I’d asked to go club hopping—it was volunteering, for fuck’s sake.
“Awesome! I could always use extra help…or any help. Where are you from? I might be familiar with the shelter in that area?”
It was an innocent question, not meant to be nosy or invasive, but I felt the air punch right out of my lungs just the same. My eyes darted to Trystan and the look on his face dared me to answer. The look also said that he knew whatever my answer would be, it would be a lie. Thank the fuck some of the photographers started yelling Trystan’s name, saving me from having to tell yet another lie about my past.
Megan giggled nervously. “Yeah…uh…I might have called some folks from the local paper and news station. Please don’t kill me. The shelter desperately needs the publicity. Apparently, the only folks that know we’re here are the ones wanting to drop off strays or family pets that turned out to be too much for them to handle. Everybody wants to drop off but nobody wants to pick up.”
“It’s not a problem at all,” Trystan assured her.
Talk about a flip-flop. He was suddenly the King of Switzerland.
“Let’s give them a few photo shots and then we’ll go inside and look over the, er, merchandise.”
He stumbled on what to call them, making me wonder yet again why he was adopting a pet. Whatever the reason was, I was just thankful. I was also not going anywhere near those photographers. One picture in the wrong hands and I was in serious trouble with the long arm of the law.
“I’m gonna head on inside.” Turning to Megan, I asked, “Is that okay? I won’t touch anything, just look around at the merchandise.”
She smiled and nodded. Yeah, she hadn’t understood the merchandise comment either.
“Don’t you want to…?”
“Nope, I’m not very photogenic. This is all you, football star. I’ll meet you inside.” I walked away before he could argue. Keeping my head down, I tried to ignore the odd looks I received when I passed the photographer’s gauntlet. There were some whispered comments, but I moved fast enough that I would not be able to hear them. I’d been on the wrong end of the camera enough times to last me a lifetime…even if I knew all that shit would start up again the minute I was forced to return home and face the music. It probably was not fair for me to spend time with Trystan like I was because I knew sticking around wasn’t an option. Hell, he wouldn’t want me to stick around when he found out what I’d done. The thing was, I knew staying with him at his apartment, sleeping with him in his bed, and basking in his sunlight was only going to make it harder on me when I had to walk away, but I just could not find the strength to fight off my desire to court heartbreak the way Trystan courted arrogance. Five months and I had to walk away and when I did, I was sure he would quickly learn about my past and probably be thankful I was gone.
Living without him in my life would kill me eventually but if I was completely honest with myself, my life hadn’t really been worth living until he’d waltzed into it. Once you’d experienced life with Trystan, there would be no going back. I was also pretty damned sure that the short time I would have with him would be worth the fall.
The bell above the door jingled when I opened it and then a wave of barks and howls followed right behind it. There was a small area in the front with two chairs and a desk to conduct the necessary paperwork but the rest of the space housed some of the smaller kennels. From the look of it, most of these cages held cats or kittens. Through a set of swinging double doors was a long hallway with large cages on either side. Two dogs occupied each cage, testifying to the hardship Megan was facing. I wandered past each cage, my heart breaking with each step. They watched me closely, silently pleading for somebody to show them some affection. How in the hell was anybody supposed to choose? All of these animals desperately needed homes and since I was pretty damned sure Trystan didn’t really want a pet, or at least wasn’t nearly as excited about it as he should have been, he was probably only going to adopt one. That meant we would be leaving about thirty behind, still waiting for somebody to come in and save their lives.
“Hello! Is that you, Meg?” A cheerful voice called from the room down the hall. “I warned you the asshole wouldn’t show up. I could tell by his voice on the initial phone call that he was not serious about adopting. Don’t be too upset. We’ll still manage to get by without his publicity shit.”
I finally made it to the doorway where the voice was coming from. The girl bashing Trystan was fighting a battle with a cat as she tried to give it a bath. She was losing, the cat was totally kicking her ass. She still hadn’t looked in my direction but even from just a side view, I knew she had to be Megan’s sister, probably her twin sister.
I leaned against the door and watched her work. The cat was scratching her arms every time she tried to make a swipe with her soapy rag but she never once lost her temper with the terrified animal. Hell, it was as if she barely noticed being mauled alive. She just kept cooing to it as if it was the most well behaved cat in the world.
“Don’t worry, Meg. Something good is going to come our way but until it does, we will keep conjuring up miracles to keep Mr. Slobbers alive. I swear to you that even if I have to rob a bank, we will not put this dog down. I know how much he means to you, how much he means to both of us.” She swiped at her cheek and continued, “I’m not looking at you because I know you’re crying. Please don’t cry, Meg. I can’t handle it when you cry.”
A movement to my left drew my eyes away from the epic battle taking place in the sink. I nearly gasped in shock when I focused on what had caused the movement. It was the biggest fucking dog I’d ever seen in my life. Ever. Fucking huge. He looked like a mix between a Mastiff and a Grizzly Bear, heavy on the Grizzly Bear genes. He lumbered to his feet and then shook wildly, sending sprays of slobber going in every direction. Ah, Mr. Slobbers. As he started in my direction, I hoped and prayed he was a vegetarian because if he wasn’t, I was probably his next meal…or appetizer. Yeah, I would just be an appetizer for a dog this size. For a second, I considered running, maybe running while screaming like a five-year old girl. I think it was fear that kept my feet frozen in place. When people read about him eating me alive in the paper, I hoped they would say I stood my ground instead of telling everybody I was just too afraid to run.
“Hey, can you grab me that towel? I think I’ve done about all the good I can do on cleaning this feisty gal up. Either that or I’ve lost all the blood I can afford to lose before passing out.”
My eyes stayed glued to the dog. He was not charging me. No, he was stalking me. I was pretty sure he was feeding on my fear, laughing at me, and probably wondering if I would taste like chicken.
“Meg! I need a little help here!” The voice called out, sounding a bit irritated for the first time since I’d stumbled upon her tiny portion of hell.
I needed a little help, too.
“Oh, my God! Who are you?” The voice screeched. “Please tell me you aren’t Trystan Matherly. Please, please, please tell me you aren’t.”
“Is he going to eat me?” I asked, nodding toward Mr. Slobbers. No, I didn’t nod. I merely moved my eyes in his direction—still too afraid to move.
“Mr. Slobbers?” She asked with a laugh that I didn’t find at all funny. “He might lick you to death, but he won’t eat you.” I heard her trying to shove the wet cat into a small kennel. It sounded like she was losing that battle as well. “I can’t believe he got out of his bed to come visit you. He usually won’t get up for anybody. He must really like you.”
She was standing next to me now, scrubbing her hands and arms on a white towel, leaving red streaks of blood with each swipe. “I’m Mallary.” She stuck out her still damp hand. “Megan’s twin sister.” I shook her hand but my eyes kept darting back to Mr. Slobbers. “Seriously, Hot Stuff, he’s harmless. I’ve never known him to even step on a spider, much less nibble at a person’s ankles.”
It was not my ankles that worried me. He finally made it across the room and was only about a foot away from me when he sat back on his haunches and looked up at my face. He had the biggest brown eyes, it was the eyes that got me every damned time. When I didn’t move to pet him fast enough to suit him, he leaned in and nudged at my hand, leaving a trail of doggie wetness across my hand. It was ridiculous to think or admit, but with that one swipe and blink of his eyes, the giant dog owned me—just like Trystan had when he’d flashed me that first smile…the one that had told me I wasn’t invisible after all.
Since he came to my waist, there was no reason to squat in order to pet him or introduce myself. “Hey there, big boy. You scared the shit out of me,” I murmured as my hand played with the spot behind his ears. There was enough extra skin on him to make yourself another dog if you wanted to. He was all wrinkles, slobbers, and brown eyes. I wanted him.
Trystan would never go for this. I half expected him to walk away with a hamster.
“Yeah, that’s his biggest problem,” Mallary whispered. “His size is going to eventually be the death of him.” She reached in and started flopping his ears from side to side and he started moaning in ecstasy. His right hind leg started thumping wildly.
“What do you mean?” Sure, he was scary at first glance, but it didn’t take long to prove his friendliness. Suddenly the horror of what she’d said slammed into me. “You don’t mean you might have to put him to sleep, do you?” I could not imagine snuffing the life out of something so beautiful.
“We’re trying our best, but it isn’t looking good. We pretty much gave up on anybody adopting him two years ago. He is too big and looks menacing to most folks. Parents don’t want him near their kids and I guess I understand their concerns since they don’t really have time to see how gentle he truly is.” She squatted and wrapped him in a hug, causing his eyes to roll back in his head. “We’ve had a few inquiries on him but with a little bit of investigation on our end, it was easy to see they wanted him for the wrong reasons. You know? Too many pit bulls that have suspiciously died while in their care? Dog fighting pricks. I’d like to kill each one of them but then I’d go to jail and leave all this luxury to Megan,” she teased. At least she was teasing about the luxury part. I think she would like to kill the people that participated in dog fighting.
“You would get slaughtered in a dog fight, wouldn’t ya, big boy?” She kissed him smack on the tip of his nose. “Unless you could sit on them or drown them in your oozie goozie ample amount of mucus.”
Since she was so clearly smitten, my next question made perfect sense to me. “So you guys are probably going to have to end up keeping him? I think he is in love with you. It would probably kill him to go to a new family anyway.”
She looked up at me with pleading eyes. “We can’t afford to keep him, Trystan. He eats in one day almost as much as we feed the rest of the animals at the shelter.” She turned her attention back to the dog. “But our hearts won’t let us do the other either. We have almost reached the point that it is either keep him or close the shelter. Let’s be honest, the donations aren’t exactly rolling in. I would like to say we’re barely keeping our heads above water, but that would be total bullshit. We’ve been submerged so long I’m beginning to think we’re growing gills.” She stood up and swiped her hands down the front of her pants. “Anyway, enough about our problems. I guess I owe you an apology. I should not have said that shit about you earlier. That was rude and unacceptable. Megan will probably put me on poop detail for the rest of my life. I don’t suppose there’s any chance I could convince you not to rat me out, is there?” She frowned. “Where is sister dearest, anyway? Still dealing with the paparazzi shitshow she created?”
“No need to apologize, I’m not Trystan. Your secret is safe with me. I left Trystan and your sister out in the parking lot to deal with the shitshow that your sister created and that Trystan basks in. His ego is bigger than Mr. Slobbers, so I’m pretty sure he’ll be fine with the extra publicity. He’ll be happy to help.” Just one tiny lie—surely that would not get me purged from Heaven, would it?
“Oh, thank the fuck. I really would have been on poop detail forever.” Her eyes, a strange color of amber, widened and then looked me up and down. Then up and down again. A huge smile transformed her face into something angelic…and devilish at the same time.
If I’d been straight or ever even contemplated being straight, this might have been the gal for me. As it was, she didn’t have nearly enough muscles or a cock and balls, so it would never work. Not detecting any anti-gay vibes at all allowed me to stand there and accept her thorough inspection and wait for a totally inappropriate comment to tumble from her mouth. She didn’t keep me waiting long.
“Are you guys lovers? Cause if you’re, I wanna watch that shit happening. Either of you ever consider spectator sports? I would be nice and quiet, no interrupting or critiquing, I promise.” She took a breath and rattled on. “What does Trystan look like? I’m probably the only person in this town that doesn’t know but I have to admit I’m clueless. Megan says he is totally hot and if he’s with you, I bet she is dead-on right. Do you top or bottom?”
Normally, invasive questions tended to piss me off but I was pretty sure this girl could say anything and I would be okay with it. I’d already witnessed her heart of gold with the bathing beauty and the gentle giant. “I don’t think you’re supposed to ask me that,” I told her with a smile.
“Should I ask Trystan?” She sassed back, clearly possessing no filters or politically correct training.
I barked out a laugh. “Yeah, Trystan would probably answer. He’s about as unfiltered and non-private as a person can get. And your sister was right, he’s hot. Really, really hot. Oozes sex appeal. Drips money when he walks. All those things that are usually a turn off to me but when you pack them into Trystan, I’m more than turned on.”
Fuck, I couldn’t believe I just said that. Old me would have said something like that, new me…well, new me didn’t say much of anything.
“Good to know.”
The sly smile on Mallary’s face told me she was picturing me being fucked. After a few blissful seconds, her face turned somber. “Is there any chance Trystan might have been interested in adopting a big giant dog that eats more than the average person can earn in a week? You said he drips money when he walks, he would be the perfect new owner for Mr. Slobbers.”
There was absolutely a zero chance that Trystan was interested in adopting a dog like Mr. Slobbers. That didn’t mean I wasn’t going to try to convince him otherwise, though. I was pretty sure I was wasting my time, but I had to try. “I don’t think he was looking for an animal quite so big,” I told her. “Hell, I don’t know what he’s looking for. I’m still shocked he was looking to adopt. I’ve only known him a few weeks but he hasn’t sent out the pet vibe, not even once.” I looked down at Mr. Slobbers. He looked up at me. “I’m going to try and convince him though.” I turned and looked at Mallary. “Let’s just not refer to him as Mr. Slobbers though. Trystan may be a neat freak. There’s a cleaning service that comes in several times a week to clean up after him.”
“What should we call him?” She whispered. I was pretty sure she was going to be on board with me trying to manipulate Trystan into adopting Slobbers.
I studied the dog, trying to come up with something appealing to Trystan. Other than tits or ass, I was coming up blank and I didn’t think those were appropriate names. What did he like other than sex? Football, of course. Football was a stupid name for a dog. “Cowboy,” I told her. “He’s a big Dallas Cowboy fan and his mom was a cheerleader there and his dad was some kind of super hero on the team. Yeah, I think that beats Mr. Slobbers.”
“Cowboy. Got it. We can do this,” she answered. “They’ve been in for a while now. I heard him and Megan talking in the front office.” She grabbed my hand. “Let’s do this, Sugar Smacks. Offer him all kinds of kinky sex stuff you would never consider doing without some bribery on his part.”
“I already do everything,” I answered before I could stop myself. I wasn’t sure what in the hell it was about this girl that made me talk when I should shut up, but whatever it was, she must be oozing with it.
“Yummmmmmy,” she praised. “Now, let’s do this.”
She tugged me out of the room and we started down the hall. When I noticed that Cowboy had turned away and went back into the room, I pulled her to a stop. “He isn’t following us.”
A sad expression fell across her face. “Yeah, he never does anymore. I think he got depressed because no one ever adopted him. He usually just stays in the washroom and waits to be fed. Don’t be offended, he fell in love with you at first sniff. If you can convince loverboy to adopt him, Slobbers, uh, I mean Cowboy will be on board with it.”
“Oh, okay. We’ll just bring Trystan back here to see him.” I was not sure I could lure Trystan all the way down the hall.
“Holy shit. I don’t believe it,” Mallary said, staring past me, toward the door of the washroom.
I turned around and there stood Cowboy, a big giant-assed bowl in his mouth. He was blinking at me with sad eyes. Pleading. Well, shit.
“That’s his food bowl. It is all he owns in this world. We could not find a dog bed big enough for him. Well, not one that we could afford anyway. Meg is going to cry when she sees this.” Turning to me, she said, “Let’s not take him out there. When your loverboy doesn’t adopt him, I’m going to be left holding a sobbing Megan and trust me, she’s an ugly crier. I can’t deal with it, not when my own heart will be broken.” She let go of my hand. “Just wait here, let me lock him in there so he doesn’t follow us.”
“No! Let him come. I’ll take care of this, I promise.”
I had no clue how in the hell I was going to take care of this. I didn’t have my own place. I didn’t have my own money or at least any extra money to pay for rent and the upkeep of a pet. I didn’t have friends I could turn to and there was no way I could put any more pressure on my mom. She had enough to deal with because of me. It was wrong of me to make Mallary think otherwise.
With every step that led me back down the hall, Cowboy’s food bowl nuzzling the back of my leg as he followed me, I became more and more convinced I’d really fucked this one up. When I got close enough to get Trystan’s attention and he turned around to face me, my heart plummeted. Sitting on his broad shoulder was the tiniest kitten I’d ever seen in my life. Hell, it gave the hamster I suspected he would adopt a tight race. From its perch, the arrogant little pussy glared at me as if it immediately knew I was the enemy—the bastard trying to steal away its forever home before it even got a chance to take a walk on the rich side. From behind me, Cowboy’s food bowl dropped to the floor with a disappointed thud.
Trystan had been smiling when he’d turned to look at me. Now he was staring at Cowboy with an expression on his face that could only be described as horrified.
“What the fuck is that?” He asked me, his eyes still wide with shock.
Mallary was standing next to me and she gave me a pinch to my ass to try to get me to open my mouth and plead Cowboy’s case. She was waiting on me to woo him with my sex charms and convince him to do whatever I wanted. When the pinch didn’t work, she cleared her throat loud enough to make Trystan’s kitten hiss at her.
I countered with the first thing that came to mind. “What the fuck is that?” I sent a chin nod in the kitten’s direction, praying it would forgive me. I loved kittens, they were squishy and furry. They were playful, like Trystan.
“Nu uh, boys,” Mallary interrupted in her singsong voice. “No hissing, only kissing. On top of that, we have a swear jar and the F word calls for a whole dollar. The way I’m seeing things, you pretty boys should just hang out for a few hours, pay the swear jar at the end of the day, and mine and Meg’s money worries would be over.”
Megan was glaring at Mallary, but the wetness in her eyes was taking away most of the bite of her anger. “Why did you bring him out here, Mal? You know he gets his feelings hurt when…nothing happens. You shouldn’t have done that.”
“Cowboy is out here because he’s the dog that Dakota wants,” Mallary supplied, sending a wink in my direction. I was not feeling nearly as confident as she was.
Trystan burst out laughing. “He wants that dog? You’ve got to be kidding me!” He continued laughing at me, stroking his kitten like some kind of evil Disney villain.
Mallary’s eyes narrowed. “Yes, it’s the dog he wants and to be perfectly honest with you Trystan Matherly, with an ass as tight as his, I would assume you spend most of your time chasing him around, trying to keep him happy and, more importantly, satisfied. Does he look happy or satisfied right now, famous quarterback? No, he does not, does he. Whose fault is that? I’m pretty sure it’s your fault.” Her hand landed a firm swat right across my ass when she’d finished her tirade directed at Trystan. I couldn’t believe she’d just said that to him and I definitely couldn’t believe she’d pinched and spanked my ass in less than four minutes.
“I’m not the quarterback,” Trystan answered flatly.
His gray eyes were locked with mine, studying me with a blank expression. Was he pissed? I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen him pissed…at least not at me. No, he didn’t exactly look pissed. He looked like he was plotting something. Maybe he was going to kick me out for overstepping. I’d told him I wouldn’t interfere. I hadn’t meant to interfere. I loved all animals. I’d been one hundred percent certain I would have been happily satisfied with whatever pet he chose. As usual, I’d been wrong.
“Fine…goalie. Whatever position you play on the court. My point is your boy toy isn’t getting his way and when boy toys don’t get their way, they don’t let you use toys on their boys.”
I had no clue what language she was speaking, but I was pretty sure it was inappropriate and she was referring to my balls and sex toys. I was also pretty sure Trystan was not entertained by her forwardness. Megan looked like she was about to shrivel up and melt into a puddle of tears. She was switching from wringing her hands to sending daggers in Mallary’s direction.
The room was silent as everybody waited on Trystan to put Mallary in her place, kick my ass to the curb, and probably ruin the future of the shelter with a few negative comments dropped into the right ears. Tick tock. My mouth was still frozen shut. Mallary’s foot was tapping. Megan had already collapsed into one of the chairs in their tiny lobby and was massaging her forehead. Her chin was resting against her chest in defeat, right about where the shit stain was.
“Fuck,” Trystan spat angrily.
Oh, shit. It was going to be worse than I’d expected.
“Is that true, Dakota?” He barked at me, making me jump in shock.
“Is…is what true?” I asked. Evan would have already hit me. No, Evan wouldn’t have been out in public with me. Evan wouldn’t have adopted a pet—he killed animals for sport and his own entertainment…or ways to punish wayward boyfriends for not doing what they were told.
“That you won’t let me use toys on your boys if I don’t adopt that drool covered fur beast,” he answered. He was trying to frown at me but the corners of his sexy lips were struggling to keep from curving upward. How in the hell was he always so happy? Nothing rolled him.
“Uh…well…no, that’s not true. This is your decision, Trystan. I shouldn’t have interfered.” There were four people in the room, two of them were girls but I was the only one blushing.
If you could hear someone’s eyes rolling, I would have heard Mallary’s from across the street. There was no doubt about it, she was disgusted with my negotiating skills.
A very naughty grin spread across Trystan’s face as he slowly stalked across the room. I would have backed away if Cowboy hadn’t been blocking my retreat. When he was only inches from me, he swiped his tongue across his lips and winked at me.
“Do you really want that dog, Guppy?” Another step closer. “He’s the one you picked out?” Another step and his heat invaded my oxygen. When I gulped in a breath, the movement caused our chests to bump one another. His hands snaked around to cup my ass and then he yanked me forward the last inch, pushing his cock up against mine. Even through our jeans, the burning outline of his cock branded me possessively. “Will taking that monster dog home cause that sexy smile to come back out of hiding? The one that makes smart boys turn dumb.”
I was sure the twins were watching. Hell, there were probably some people still in the parking lot, taking pictures through the small window to my left. All eyes were on us, but it was still as if we were the only ones in the room. His eyes were making promises that I fucking knew his body could and would keep. My body’s desire to submit to him almost caused me to do something ridiculously embarrassing in front of total strangers.
His lower half bumped against mine and he asked, “Well, is he the one you want?”
“Yeah,” I answered, hating how breathless I sounded but loving how he made me feel.
“No,” he answered and then turned away from me.
Mallary gasped in surprise and then hissed in outrage. Megan practically sobbed. The blood drained from my face. Trystan had never been intentionally mean to me…hell, to anybody, for that matter. I was humiliated.
Only for a second, though.
He took a step and then turned back to me, his sneaky smile back in place. “Well, maybe we could work something out, if you were interested in negotiating, of course.”
The twinkling in his eyes would eventually be the death of me. “What did you want?” I asked him, suddenly feeling very brave and confident. He could do that to me—give me a confidence in myself that I’d thought was lost forever. One minute I was feeling lower than dirt but with only one wink or smile, he handed the power straight into my hands.
“What are you offering?” He countered with a sultry smirk.
“He told me he did anything,” Mallary piped in, back to liking Trystan again.
“Did he now?” Trystan asked as he stroked his chin and looked me up and down. “Anything? Absolutely anything?”
“Anything,” I answered boldly.
He tapped his chin. The kitten purred. I was sure that behind me, Cowboy was drooling…because he was always drooling.
He moved closer and then whispered in my ear, “The fucking machine and edging. Tonight. For as long as I want.”
I had no idea what the fuck edging was, but it didn’t matter. With or without Cowboy going home with us, Trystan could do whatever he wanted to my body. He already had that kind of control over me and for the first time in my life, I wasn’t afraid of forfeiting it to someone.
I grinned. “You had me at fuck machine, Mr. Matherly.”
“Hells, yeah,” he whooped and placed a rough kiss across my lips. “Let’s sign us some paperwork, ladies. I’ve got a night from heaven planned for my Guppy.”
A horrible thought stomped on my feeling of elation. “Uh, what are you doing about the kitten, Trystan? It’s still on your shoulder.” I felt like shit for snatching the tiny kitten’s chance at a forever home away. She was tiny and cute. Surely somebody would adopt her quickly? Yeah, I still felt like shit.
He frowned. “What do you mean?” His big hand automatically went up to his shoulder to stroke the tiny ball of fur and a tiny motor sound rumbled in her chest.
“Are you taking the kitten, too?” I asked in disbelief. Trystan’s affection to the purr-ball and his acceptance of Cowboy was totally knocking me on my ass, proving just how much I didn’t know about him. I’d been pretty sure I’d learned to read the expressions on his face, mainly because his emotions were mainly limited to playful, arrogant, sexy-as-fuck, and dominant alpha male, but I’d been proven wrong yet again. It was just another slice of Trystan that made him even more appealing and for a flash, a wave of sadness washed over me as I realized how differently things could have been if I’d met him a long time ago…before Evan.
I wouldn’t be damaged.
I would be capable of letting my defenses down, capable of love.
I wouldn’t have to disappear from his life in a few short months.
Things could have been so fucking…perfect.
“Of course, I’m taking Binx with me, too. While you and Megan look-a-like were back there discussing what you would or would not do in the bedroom, I was up here, tending to business. I made commitments to this little gal and I’m a man of my word.” He grinned. “Anyway, Megan says she poops and pees in a tiny box of pebbles. That’s low maintenance. I like low maintenance.”
“Am I low maintenance?” I asked, trying to be as playful as he was, trying to force the sad thoughts of what could-have-been and never-would-be from my mind. Focus on the present. Enjoy what I had for as long as I could hold on to it.
“If I recall the last swipe of my credit card, I’d have to say you’re definitely not low maintenance, Guppy,” he teased, referring to the sex store purchase, I was sure.
“That shit was for you, too,” I argued.
“Why, yes, it was,” his eyes glimmered. “And I plan on cashing in on it in a few short hours.”
“Promises, promises.”