Vaughn
I keep thinking about the text message banter between Brooke and I last night. She’s so fun and easy to talk to, but I have a feeling she’s up to no good. Her final message to me last night was asking me if I can pick her up at four instead of six, and even after I told her that wasn’t a problem, she wouldn’t tell me why. I have a feeling she’s taking me to see this dog she’s so excited about, and I have to admit I’m nervous. What if I don’t think the dog is right for me? I don’t want to offend her. I feel like I’ll know when I see the right dog, and I hope she won’t be hurt if I say he’s not it. I take a few deep breaths, trying to calm down before I send myself into another panic attack. Once I have it under control, I check my watch. Shit. It’s three-fifteen.
I need to get going if I’m going to pick her up on time. I hate being late and I don’t want to give a bad first impression. I flip on the little lamp by my front door and grab my keys before locking up. There shouldn’t be a ton of traffic at this time of day, but I don’t want to chance it. When I start the car and turn on the radio, Charlie Puth rings out through the speakers, and it reminds me of the night we danced at the bar. She felt good swaying in my arms to the music, staring into each other’s eyes. My gut instinct kicks in, telling me this is going to be a great evening.
I arrive at her house ten minutes early, and in Army time, that’s perfect. If you’re not ten minutes early, you’re late, is our motto. I climb out of the car and the door opens before I can even finish climbing the steps. I’m greeted by her father. “Good evening, Dr. Bennett.”
“Good evening, Vaughn. You do know that Remy no longer lives here.” He has a hint of a smile on his face, telling me he’s busting my balls.
“Yes, sir. If it’s okay with you, I’m here to take your daughter out.”
Before he can even answer, I hear Brooke’s voice. “Oh Dad, stop messing with him and let him in.”
He steps to the side and allows me in the house, but not before he looks me dead in the eye. “I like you, Vaughn. Please don’t make my opinion of you change.”
“No, sir. I won’t, I promise.” I maintain eye contact. He nods and steps out of the way.
“I’m sorry, Vaughn. Dad’s having some issues with his big girl growing up. Especially now that he knows I’m looking for a place of my own.”
Mrs. Bennett comes over and gives me a hug. I kiss her on the cheek and bid her good evening. I’m trying to be a perfect gentleman because I know this family well, and as her father said, the last thing I want is their opinion of me to change. “Are you ready?” I slip my hand into hers. She nods and tells her parents she’ll be home late.
I can feel her father’s eyes staring at me as we walk down to my car. I’m trying hard not to turn around. I respect her father, but I don’t want to let on that he’s making me nervous. I open the door for Brooke and she slips herself inside. I run around the other side of the car and start it up, turning the air conditioning on to cool the car down. It’s quite warm today. “Okay, where to?”
She turns to me with a bashful smile. “You know where I want to go, don’t you?” She bites her lip to stifle her giggle.
“I have an idea, but I’m not sure which one.”
“Claremont Street.” She buckles her seatbelt and I pull out of her parents’ driveway. I knew it. She’s taking me to meet a dog. The shelter she’s referring to is well known in this area and has a great reputation. I know because when I started to investigate dogs, I did research on the local shelters. I glance over to see her staring out the window. “What’s wrong?” I place my hand on her knee and give it a gentle squeeze.
“You’re not mad that I set this up, are you?” she asks, her voice full of concern.
“No, not at all. I’m nervous, I’ll admit. I don’t want to hurt your feelings if I feel this dog isn’t right for me, but I’m not mad. Actually, I’m excited, and I appreciate the effort you’ve put in.” Her face lights up and I can see she visibly relaxes.
We pull up to the shelter and I can tell she’s excited because she jumps out of the car before I even take the keys from the ignition. She looks gorgeous in her white jean shorts. They hug her gorgeous round ass, and her pink top shows off her curves. She’s showing me just enough to make me want her. She takes my hand and pulls me into the shelter. There’s a counter in front of us where we’re greeted by a woman whose name tag tells me she’s Cindy. She clearly knows Brooke. “Brooke, how are you, darling?” She walks around the counter and gives Brooke a huge hug.
“I’m well, how are you?”
“I’m great.” She turns to me. “You must be Vaughn.” She holds her hand out to me.
“Yes, ma’am.” We shake and she tells me to follow her.
“Now listen, Brody is a great dog, and I think he’s the perfect age for a new dog owner, but you have to feel like he’s right for you. If he isn’t a good fit, don’t let guilt lead you to adopt him.” I nod and we walk through a room lined with kennels. There’s probably about twenty to twenty-five dogs in total here. She opens another door and says, “Wait here, I’ll bring him in.” She exits the room and we both sit quietly.
The door opens again a minute later and in comes this gorgeous Golden Retriever. He’s so happy and full of life. I squat down in front of him, hold my hand out for him to sniff, and he instantly jumps on me and starts licking my face, causing me to burst into laughter. I pet his face and body trying to calm him down. “Wow, he really likes you.” Brooke squats down beside me.
“Brody is being incredibly shy with those who have thought about adopting him. They say the pet chooses the owner, and I think he’s chosen you. I’ll leave you two to visit with him for a bit.”
“Thank you, Cindy,” Brooke tells the woman as she scoots out the door.
I’m sitting on the floor with the dog lying before me. “You want to come home with me?” My voice has gone from grown man to a silly baby voice in two seconds flat. Brody barks his answer and I’m already in love with him. “I’ll take that as a yes.”
We spend the next few minutes playing with him and getting to know him. “I want to thank you for asking me to help you with this. I know you think I was blowing you off when you first asked me, but I wasn’t. I truly wanted to help you and I’m sorry I had to ask you to wait.”
“Again, you don’t owe me an apology, Brooke.”
“Maybe not, but I need you to understand where I was coming from.” Brody puts his head on Brooke’s lap. “I dated a guy not too long ago. Remy didn’t like him and tried to warn me, but I didn’t listen. He became a distraction. He would get mad at me if I told him I couldn’t go out because I had to study. I had to work hard to get into vet school and I didn’t want to chance not getting in because of my grades. He didn’t take my decision to go to school seriously, and it caused problems between us. I didn’t want that for us. I really like you.”
I smile happily that she shared her past with me. “Thank you for that. I really like you too, and I’d like to see where things go between us, if you’re good with that.”
A smile spreads across her gorgeous face and there’s a twinkle in her eye. “I’d really like that.” I lean in to give her a gentle kiss and our moment is interrupted by Cindy’s return. She starts telling us about the dog. He already knows basic commands and responds to my voice. “Brody, sit.” He sits and wags his tail against the floor. She tells me about Brody’s previous owner, an elderly man who was ill. His children couldn’t be around to care for him all the time, so they got him the dog, who they trained to press the button on an emergency machine if his owner was in distress. He did as he was taught, but his owner didn’t make it. He was too old and didn’t have any fight left. Cindy’s voice is a bit sad and Brody whimpers as if he knows we’re talking about the man.
“Come here, boy.” His ears perk up and he comes running to me, practically knocking me over. “What do you say we blow this joint?” Brody again barks his answer. “What paperwork do I need to fill out in order to take him home?”
“Come on. I’ll show you.” We all make our way out to the front. Brody is on his leash and Brooke takes care of him while I fill out the paperwork. I’m lucky I have the email on my phone stating I’m allowed to have a dog, or she wasn’t going to let me take him home today. I pay the adoption fee and turn to my new buddy with a smile on my face. “You’re all mine, buddy. Let’s go get you some stuff from the store.” I take his leash from Brooke and walk him out to the car. I open the back door and he jumps right in.
“The closest pet store is up around the corner on Coldwell Ave.” I pull out of the spot and she instructs me on how to get there. She’s right…it’s literally up the street.
I take his leash and walk him into the store. “Now, since he’s already pretty trained, you won’t need a crate for him, or puppy pads, or anything like that. We need to get good dog food, a dog bed, and maybe some toys for him.”
“What about treats?” I see a counter with dog bones, and it makes me realize I want to reward him for being a good boy.
“Oh yeah, you can get him some treats, but don’t overdo it or he’ll gain too much weight.” She pushes a cart through the store while I walk with the dog. He’s sniffing other dogs wagging his tail happily. I can’t stop smiling and I’ve only had him for ten minutes. We get to the dog food aisle and Brody begins sniffing the bags while Brooke tells me about the different types of food available. Of course, knowing nothing about dogs or their food, I pick the one she recommends. I buy a small bag to start in case he doesn’t like it and refuses to eat it. If that’s the case, I’ll donate it to the clinic or the shelter and move onto another bag. She also makes treat recommendations. We let him pick a toy, and when I say we let him, I mean that we were in the aisle and he picked one up in his mouth, making it his. We both burst into laughter and agreed that he should get to pick, since it’s his.
Brooke’s stomach growls and I realize that between the shelter and being here, it’s starting to get late. “Well, I was going to take you out for dinner, but given this is his first night in my home, it’s probably not a good idea for me to simply leave him there. What do you say we take him to my place, get him settled, and we’ll order some takeout?”
“Sounds perfect. Trust me, I knew if you fell for him, we wouldn’t be going out tonight, so I’m perfectly fine with that.” She runs her hand down my chest.
When we get to the checkout, she takes the leash from me so I can take care of my purchase. We’ve bought a ton of stuff and I’m excited to get his bed set up in my room, along with all his other stuff. I haul all Brody’s stuff outside and load it into the trunk of my car while she gets Brody settled in the back. I can’t help but notice my car is already covered in dog hair. “I should have gotten a blanket for the back of the car.” I watch my new buddy snuggle up on the backseat.
“You can order them cheaper online. You have the necessities for today.” She pats my leg.
We pull up to my place about forty-five minutes later. “Can you grab Brody? I’ll get the bags from the trunk.” She nods and opens the back of the car, grabbing his leash. I open the door and he practically drags Brooke inside, excited to check out his new surroundings. I laugh at her reaction because she really didn’t expect it.
My place isn’t huge, but I have a two bedroom apartment with two bathrooms, one in the master, and one in the hallway. It’s a pretty open layout. My kitchen is a decent size with a small dining area off to the side, and the living room big enough to comfortably seat five people. The master bedroom is pretty big and has a large walk-in closet, where the second bedroom has a smaller double door closet. It’s not my ideal living conditions, but it’s home.
“Sit, Brody,” Brooke calls to him and he listens, but I can tell he’s excited and struggling to stay still.
“Good boy, Brody.” She drops his leash and walks away. His bum starts to come off the floor, but I look at him and hold up my hand, telling him to stay, and he does. After a few minutes of him sitting, he lays down and relaxes a bit. I’m proud of my buddy already. I place his dog bowls down in the kitchen by the back door while Brooke grabs his bed.
“Where do you want this?” She holds it up.
I shrug. “My room?” It’s more of a question than an answer, but she does as I ask without trying to change my mind.
We really got a lot of stuff. I have a dog brush, shampoo, treats, food, toys—lots of toys—and a basket to put them in. I toss a few of them on the floor near him and he begins chewing on the one he chose, while I put the remainder in the basket in a corner of the living room.
Brooke comes back into the kitchen. “You have a nice place.”
“Thank you. It’s small, but it works for now.” I toss the bags into the trash and try to figure out where I’ll store his food.
“You’re really going to want to get him on a feeding schedule. What time do you leave in the morning?” She leans on my counter top.
I go through the morning routine I’ve created with Callen. She’s happy to hear about our run, she tells me it’ll be good for him. He’s a high energy job. She tells me to feed him as soon as I get home from our run and take him out right before I leave. That should eliminate any accidents during the day, since he’s already trained…or at least I’m hoping. Then I need to feed him again as soon as I get home. Grabbing a cup from the cabinet, I give him the amount of food she recommends and fill his bowl with water.
“Now, what would you like to eat?” I ask, pinning her to the counter top she’s leaning against.
“I’m not a picky eater.” She looks up at me, biting her lip. I stare into her eyes, thinking about how much I’ve wanted to bite that lip. I slowly lower my lips to hers, pausing as our noses are about to touch. My intentions clear, she releases her lip from her teeth, closes her eyes, and I gently press my lips to hers. I glide my tongue across the seam of her soft, full lips and she instantly opens for me. Our tongues collide, meeting for the first time. She tastes heavenly. I run my hands up her arms and into her hair, tipping her head just enough for me to deepen the kiss.
We suddenly feel a tail smacking us in the leg, breaking our moment. I press my forehead to hers and chuckle. “I think someone’s already jealous.”
“I think you’re right.” I rub my nose on hers and gently kiss her one last time before I step away to pet Brody.
“There are take-out menus in the drawer right beside you.” She pulls them out and we flip through them, deciding to share a pizza and some breadsticks. We both typically eat pretty healthy, but agree we deserve the splurge from time to time.
While we’re waiting, I send off an email to the apartment management office, letting them know that I did, in fact, get a dog, and that I’ll be by on Monday with his papers and the check for the deposit.
A short time later the doorbell rings. It’s the pizza guy. Brody starts barking and I tell him to calm down, it’s okay. He answers the door with me, tail wagging. Brooke grabs his collar to control him while I pay the guy.
“That’s some attack dog you have there,” the guy pokes fun.
“Scared the shit out of you.” The guy chuckles handing off the pizza and runs down the porch. “Good boy.” I pet him and he runs back into the living room with us.
I set the box down on the kitchen counter while we get plates. “There’s water and beer in the fridge.”
She opens the refrigerator door. “I’m going to have water. What do you want?”
“Water is good. I have to bring you home later.”
She pulls two bottles of water from the fridge while I place pizza and breadsticks on some plates for us.
We take a seat on the couch to eat while we watch some TV. Brody lies at my feet, calm and relaxed. We begin talking about shows we enjoy and different things we like to do. We learn that neither of us watch TV much and would rather be out doing stuff. I put my plate on the coffee table when I’m done. I’ve left a piece of crust there that I was too full to eat.
“Bad idea,” she warns. “Dogs are quick. Always keep food out of his reach. The last thing you want is for him to get used to people food.”
“I wasn’t even thinking.”
“Having a dog around takes getting used to, but you don’t want him to eat something that could make him sick.” She’s right. I take both our plates and scrape them into the trash. When I get back, she’s petting him while he relaxes in the same spot he was in when I left. I take a seat next to her.
She leans in close. “Thank you for dinner.” She presses her lips to mine.
“Thank you for finding me the perfect dog.” I slip my hand into her hair and kiss her again. This time our tongues meet and the kiss becomes more intimate. She climbs onto my lap. My hands run up her back under her shirt, feeling her silky soft skin.
“You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting for this.” She grinds her pussy against my cock. I didn’t realize she has wanted me as much as I’ve wanted her, and she doesn’t give me the opportunity to question it. Her mouth crashes back down on mine. I flip her so she’s beneath me on the couch. I rub my hard cock against her squeezing her breast through her bra. She moans into my mouth. Trailing kisses along her jaw toward her ear, I bite down gently on her earlobe. This time she whimpers, and it causes a reaction from Brody, who jumps up and puts his front paws on my ass.
I turn to my dog. “What? She’s fine. Look.” He licks her face and she bursts into laughter.
I sit up, pulling her with me. “Is this what my life is going to be like now? You interrupting my time with Brooke?” I pet his head. “Go lay down,” I tell him but he doesn’t budge. He sits there staring at me like I’m crazy.
“It’s getting late. Maybe I should head home. What are you doing tomorrow?”
“Nothing. I’ll be with this crazy guy trying to adjust.”
“How about I show you two a really great dog park not too far from here.” She looks so excited and I think it’s fucking adorable.
“That sounds good to me.” I look at the dog. “What do you think, buddy? Should we go to the dog park with Brooke?” I lower my head and pet his face. He licks me, full of excitement. “Well, I guess that makes it a date.” I hook his leash back onto his collar and we all head out to take Brooke home.