Chapter 20
Jonah
“Are you sure I won’t look stupid?” I check, tugging at the shirt that I loved an hour ago but am rethinking now.
“JJ, you’re going to look adorable,” Lars assures me, pressing a kiss to my chin. “I’ve packed your hood and your hand and knee pads. I also detached the plug from the tail so you can wear it with that belt thingy it came with.”
“Thank you,” I breathe a little easier knowing he’s taking care of everything. Maybe it’s too soon for us to go to our first puppy event, but when Vale sent the email saying he thought we’d really enjoy it, I was so excited. Now, I think I might puke from nerves. This feels like my first day of med school all over again, standing in my bedroom, convinced I’d made a huge mistake, that I couldn’t possibly be smart enough or good enough to be a freaking doctor.
It had been a few years before Lars and I got together, but we were renting an apartment together. I’d barely heard him knock at my door over the sound of my heart pounding in my ears. As soon as he’d come in, I felt calmer. He’d sat me down and told me they wouldn’t have accepted me if I couldn’t hack it and that one day I was going to save lives, even if it was only one species.
I smile at the memory and lean into Lars. “Can I wear my collar? I think I’ll feel calmer if I have it on.”
“Anything you want,” he promises indulgently, and I wonder if I freak out enough if there’s anything he wouldn’t do for me. “I’ll get it for you, hold on.”
He opens the duffle bag with my other gear in it and pulls out the collar, returning to me and gesturing for me to lean down so he can reach to put it on. As soon as the weight is around my neck and the soft leather is brushing against my skin, my nerves dissipate.
I am owned and I am loved.
If we hate the puppy romp or I get uncomfortable, Lars will fix it; he’ll bring me home and do something else to make me happy, because he’s my Master and that’s his job.
“Feeling better, pup?”
“Much.”
I look in the mirror at my shirt again, and this time I love it like I did when I first put it on. It has a collar on it and the words Good Boy, and it’s absolutely perfect. Rather than a jockstrap tonight, I decided on a pair of short black shorts. I’m sure there will be guys there wearing far less or even nothing but their puppy things, but I’m nowhere near ready for that; I’m not sure if that part will ever be for me.
“Ready to go?” Lars asks, and I give a resolute nod, reaching for his hand and letting him lead me out of the house.
It takes about half an hour to get to the club, and when we do, Lars opens my car door for me and carries my bag as we head inside. I’m vibrating with excitement as we step through the door to the kink club where the event is being held. Coincidentally, or perhaps not so much so, it’s the same club I made my brief foray into BDSM back in college. Tonight, there’s a very different energy in the place though. It’s the same energy I noticed from the puppies at Pride, the same energy that drew me to them to begin with.
Puppies standing upright or on all fours are everywhere, barking, wrestling, running around. Some of them stay close to their handlers while others seem to be more or less on their own. As I suspected, some are completely naked, unashamed of their erections swinging in front of them as they jump and play, while others are dressed similar to me in t-shirts or tank tops and shorts.
“Do you want your hood and everything?” Lars offers, and I nod eagerly, feeling a buzz of excitement running along my skin. I want to make friends; I want to play.
Lars leads me over to a quiet corner so he can set the bag down. “Are you okay with getting ready quickly here, or would you rather find somewhere private where we can take a few minutes like we usually do?”
“I think here’s okay,” I answer, bouncing on my toes and looking over my shoulder at all the fun going on.
Lars chuckles. “Anxious to play?”
I nod again with enthusiasm and take the kneepads when he hands them to me. As I bend to slip each one on, it occurs to me that every other time we’ve played, Lars has dressed me in every single item. A small sense of loss fills me for having done part of it myself, so when he holds up the hood, instead of taking it myself, I get on my hands and knees and let him do it for me.
He does the rest for me as well, attaching the tail with the belt and then putting my mitts on my hands.
“What do you think, Lucky, ready to play?”
I let out a high yip, wiggling and feeling odd about not being able to feel my tail. I turn around to make sure it’s there, and when it wiggles with my movement, I bark again and try to catch it in my teeth just to see if I can.
I’m not sure if it’s the dizziness or Lars’ warm laugh that distracts me from my mission to catch my tail, but once I stop, I realize there are a lot more interesting things to do here than chase my own tail.
“Let’s go see about making some friends.”
Lars
At the suggestion of making friends, Jonah bounds out of the corner and toward the fray while I hurry to keep up with him.
“Heel, Lucky,” I call, and he skids to a halt and then loops back to me, nudging the backs of my knees to get me to move faster.
When we near the activity, a small, pink pup comes bounding over to us. Not only is his hood pink, but his fluffy tail is pink and sparkly, as is his collar, knee pads, and hand mitts. He’s even wearing a pair of pink leather shorts. He barks excitedly, plopping down in a sit directly in front of me, and it’s not until I see his eyes that I realize it’s Adrian.
I bend over to pat his head, but a harsh voice stops me.
“It’s poor etiquette to pet a puppy without their Master’s permission.”
“Oh, sorry. We’re really new to this,” I apologize.
He makes an unimpressed sound in the back of his throat, crossing his arms over his broad chest. Jonah takes up a position at my feet, and I can feel the quiet rumble of him growling.
“It’s okay, Lucky; I didn’t know any better,” I say calmly, not letting on how big of a dick Adrian’s boyfriend…er, handler? Is he both? Seems to be. “I think our pups know each other. This is Lucky.”
“Diva,” he points at his puppy. “Nathan,” he points at himself.
“Can they play?”
“That’s fine.”
Mr. Congeniality, everyone.
“Go play, Lucky,” I command, and he gives a quick bark before he and Diva run off together.
I watch for a few minutes as they tussle and tumble around, other puppies joining in.
“If you’re new to this, I’ll give you a few tips,” Diva’s handler offers gruffly after a while. I’d forgotten that he was still standing there, actually; I was so engrossed in watching Jonah play.
“Sure, I always appreciate advice.”
“Puppies need a firm hand. If you let them get away with murder just because they’re cute, they won’t be happy. They like being told what to do and how to do it, it’s why they’re puppies.”
I try not to let the skepticism show on my face. Maybe that’s true for some pups, but it’s not exactly the general sense I’ve gotten and certainly not from Jonah. Sure, he likes that I’ve taken charge of certain things, but a firm hand certainly isn’t what he’s interested in.
“I thought they’re puppies because they like the escape and the care from their masters,” I respond as politely as I can manage.
He snorts a derisive laugh. “I can see yours already has you wrapped around his finger. It’ll end badly, letting him have free reign.”
“I appreciate the advice, and I may be new to puppies, but I’m not new to Jonah. So, thanks, but I think we’ll be just fine.”
Our puppies come running back over to us, out of breath but the glee shining in Jonah’s eyes is enough to make having to talk to Diva’s asshole handler worth it.
“Time to go, Diva,” Nathan commands, and Diva whines. “Knock it off, I told you one hour, no complaints.” Then he spins and starts walking away quickly, leaving his pup to scramble after him.
I stoop down to Jonah’s level and ruffle his hair.
“What a dick,” I mutter, and he lets out a huff of agreement. “Need some water or a break?” I check, and he gives a little growl and shake of his head. “Okay, then go keep playing. Love you, Lucky.” I give him a quick kiss on the snout and then a gentle slap on the butt to get him moving back to his playmates.
When we get back in the car a few hours later, Jonah’s flushed and smiling, gushing about how much fun he had and what it felt like to play with other puppies.
Reaching across the center console, I take his hand and lift it to my lips so I can kiss his knuckles. “I’m glad you had fun, JJ.”
“So much fun,” he confirms. “What about you, did you have a good time?”
“Watching you have fun was great, and after Nathan left with Diva, I had a chance to talk to a few other handlers who were a lot more agreeable.”
“Good. Thank you for taking me.”
“My pleasure,” I assure him. “Now, let’s go home, because you’re tired and in need of some cuddle time to relax before bed.”
“You always know exactly what I need,” he says with a happy sigh.
“I’m your Master; it’s my job.”