Leather and Lace Ch. 7
Spring Break Part 2: Pi Day and (No) Chill
By Shadowed Ember
TRIGGER/CONTENT WARNINGS:
Violence, Threats of SA, Excessive Drinking
March 14, 2014
Copper Kettle Family Diner - Evening
“Everything okay, hun?”
Leo felt a soft nudge in his side and blinked. Looking up from his phone and back to the beautiful chipmunk next to him, he nodded slowly, noting a light smirk playing at the corners of Holly’s mouth. “Oh, yeah. Sorry, gorgeous.”
“You sure? You’re distracted, and I’ve never seen you check your phone this much. I really hope you aren’t expecting a ‘call’ to ditch our date night,” she teased gently.
The wolf’s eyes went wide. “No! Not at all. I uh–” he stammered, before he cut himself off and let out a sigh. “I’m sorry, babe. I’m a little spaced. I just… I was just checking the time.”
His girlfriend raised an eyebrow. “What? Why? We aren’t running late. It's over an hour until the movie starts, and the theater is just across the street.” She rested a paw over his. “Relax.”
“It’s not that. Ugh. It’s just…” he groaned. “It’s ‘Pi day’.” He’d have chuckled at the blankness of the expression he got in response if his nerves didn't decide they were taking precedence. “You know, 3.14, circles and stuff, that pi?”
Holly slowly nodded, but confusion was still evident in her eyes. “So Greek pi, not food pie. Got it. But what does that have to do with you being distracted?”
“It’s a whole thing with MIT. They release their acceptance letters on Pi Day at uh…” Llyulf gaze dropped down to the table at the small smile returning to the corner of his girlfriend’s lips. “...Tau time.” He finished with a mumble. Sighing, he continued. “I feel… anxious, which I’m not really used to, and it’s making it hard to focus, and it feels like time is just passing slower every time I look. Hell, even if it’s a no, at this point I am just ready for any answer at all.” He felt her lean into him, and put his arm around her shoulders, kissing the top of her head and inhaling the lingering scent of jasmine in her hair. He hummed as the sweet scent and her closeness started to unknot some of the tension in his body.
“Well, when is Tau time?” she probed gently when he didn't elaborate. “I’m sure it's pretty safe to assume that’s also the Greek letter, not the Chinese philosophy?”
“6:28,” he muttered, embarrassed, into her hair. “It’s two times pi.”
Holly giggled softly as she shook her head, then checked her own watch. “We still have almost half an hour. You’re gonna be dead by then if you sit and spiral the whole time.” She nuzzled into his neck. “How about we talk about what happens if you do get into MIT, or one of the other local schools,” she suggested. “I really like you, and unless you’ve been hiding some deep dark secrets about yourself for the last couple months, I don’t see us hitting any sort of walls before the end of the school year. We really should have some sort of plan for where we go from here.” She planted a kiss on the soft underside of his chin, before wiggling out of his grasp to look more directly at him.
The wolf nodded in agreement, shifting so he could properly meet her gaze. “Yeah… We’ve dodged that question with your family long enough. It would be nice to actually have an answer. They're probably not going to stop asking.” He let out a nervous chuckle, chewing at the corner of his lip. “Well, let’s start with the obvious. We know the ‘elephant in the room’ for everyone has been you going to Europe. I would never want you not to go. You’ve been saving for so long…” He trailed off. “I guess now that I think about it… that’s probably one of the biggest questions for me. ‘How long will you be gone?’”
“Well, it’s going to depend a lot on how well I can budget, to be honest.” The chipmunk tucked her hair behind her ear. “I was talking to an old friend that came back to town recently. She’s been living over there for the last few years and she said she has some friends that might be up to backpacking with me. That could both make things a lot safer and be a bit more economical, especially when it comes to finding places to stay. She said she’s gonna see if she can go too, which would probably get my dad off my back. He was asking at one point if I was going to take you with me.”
“That would be… a kinda wild move,” Llyulf responded with a snort. “But as cool as that would be, I’d never be able to afford it, and I definitely wouldn’t be able to let you pay for it even if you wanted to. Even if I could afford it, I don’t think I would. Don’t get me wrong, I think it would be awesome to see the world with you,” he clarified quickly. “And I’d love to travel with you someday. But if I did get into MIT, and I can find a way to pay for it... I can’t imagine walking away from that kind of opportunity. It’s basically my dream school, and I get to stay in the area because it's only an hour outside of town.”
Holly poked at his belly playfully. “And I don’t think you should just walk away from it. You said you couldn’t tell me not to go on my trip, and I wouldn’t want you to waste the chance to go to a school like that. Even if it would be fun having you there with me.”
“I don’t know if I’d ever be able to appreciate it like you would. I’m sure I’d love how beautiful you are under a sunset no matter where we were, though.” The wolf poked her right back, humming. “But since I can’t…” the wolf prompted, trying to steer them back to the original question. “Any guesses at least on how long you think I’d be waiting for you to come back?”
“Oh, right. Um… I think…” She scratched at her temple. “I think I probably have enough to be gone for about three or four months. If we do end up meeting up with a group, everyone chips in, and we can get some good deals on shared spaces, I might be able to stretch it out to six?” Holly estimated. “It’s really hard to say. If the road gets rough, or we hit some snags, obviously I could run out of money and be back way sooner.”
“Six months?” Leo repeated thoughtfully. Silence fell between them, and the wolf grabbed at a now cold french fry from the long neglected plate in the center of the table. He popped it into his mouth, took his time chewing it, then spoke quietly. “Yeah, I could do that.”
His girlfriend frowned up at him. “You could do… what exactly?”
A soft breathy laugh escaped his muzzle. “I can wait six months or so for you to come back to me. You’re more than worth the wait. I l–”
He watched color creep into the chipmunk’s cheeks as she interrupted his thought, leaving him dangling on a precipice, heart pounding. “Leo, hearing that is really nice, but um… six months is a long time. Are you sure?” The beautiful golden eyes he’d fallen into so many times stared into his, filled with uncertainty, before they vanished from view as her chin and gaze dropped away.
His paw drifted to her cheek, lifting her chin and bringing her eyes back up to his own. “Of course I am.” His response was sure and steady, the conviction in his words irrefutable. But as he continued, his voice wavered and cracked ever so slightly. “There isn’t a doubt in my mind that I–” His breath caught for a moment, before his mind forced him over the edge, through the mental barrier. “–that I love you enough to wait.” He saw her eyes widen, practically felt her cheek grow warmer under his paw. He slid it around to the back of her head and pulled her forward, pressing his lips to her forehead before resting his head against hers. “I mean it. You could have said a year, and you’d still be worth waiting for.” He felt a small shiver from her as she let out a shaky breath.
“Leo, I—”
The wolf suddenly found Holly’s lips pressed firmly against his own instead of finishing her thought. Humming into the kiss, he returned it with matching fervor. He couldn’t really be sure if it was seconds or minutes that passed before they broke apart, and his eyes slid open to see those honey golden-brown pools that stared back into him. “I love you, Holly,” he murmured softly, barely above a whisper.
“I love you too, Llyulf,” she whispered back, and a little tingle coursed through him as somewhere in the back of his mind, he registered that she’d opted for his actual name. Something so small, but it felt so… weighty, deliberate. “And I can’t imagine any happier way to come home at the end of such a long trip, than knowing you’re here waiting for me.” Holly cuddled up closer to the wolf, holding onto his arm and resting her head on his shoulder. After a moment, she inhaled deeply, then– “Hoooo, I— I’m not even sure how I thought that conversation would go, but um…I think I'm pretty happy with how it went.” She gave his bicep a little squeeze. “Even aside from the little surprise you threw in there.”
She paused, seemingly content to lean against him while she collected herself. “Hmmm. I guess I’ll have to keep you in the loop once plans start getting worked out for the trip, then. I really need to figure out how communicating with everyone back home is going to work. I don’t know if I’ll be able to call very much,” she explained. “I'm sure I'll have some sort of cell plan for the time over there, to keep in touch with the group, and for emergencies, but like, I don’t want to bury you or my family in international fees. Or me, for that matter.”
“I mean, that makes sense. How much you get to see depends on how efficiently you can manage your money. That said, I’m sure you’ll be able to hit some WiFi spots reasonably often,” he reasoned. “You know, coffee shops and the like.” He ran his paw over her shoulder, resting his head back against the wall and closing his eyes with a smile. “Even if it's not actually hearing your voice, emails to know you are safe, and where in the continent you are would be plenty for me, as long as I can actually hear from you from time to time.”
“Ooh, that is a great idea. I plan on taking a ton of pictures and videos to save. Probably won’t be able to send them every time, but I’m sure I can send some…”
“I’d love that,” he agreed enthusiastically. “Gonna do some sort of ‘memories’ project when you get back to set it up, like on a timeline or something? That would be pretty sick.”
“That’s something I’ve thought about, yes,” Holly confirmed. “Not totally sure on the details of how, but I think that’ll depend on what all I manage to get.” There was another brief pause. “Hey Leo?”
The wolf’s ears perked, and he turned to his girlfriend with his smile unabated. “Yes, gorgeous?” The look he was getting back was a little more serious than he expected, and a flash of anxiety raced over his skin. But her next words dispelled the worry something was wrong in an instant.
“Two minutes to Tau time.”
Which to be honest, was a little surprising… He didn’t feel the urge to immediately grab his phone. Sure, he could still feel his heart racing, and he still wanted the answer, but… the nagging force that plagued him earlier was gone. He leaned his head against the top of hers, and took a few steadying breaths before picking up his phone. Tapping in his pin, he swiped away his lock screen, and opened a browser window, working his way through the process to the portal where the decision would be listed with deliberate slowness. By the time he reached the penultimate page, it felt like the 7 on the time in the upper right corner of his phone had been there far too long, when it finally flashed to an 8.
“Good luck,” came the whisper from the chipmunk leaning against him, her eyes locked on his screen as well.
He tapped the link.
The response was a blank screen for agonizing seconds, followed by— Error loading the page.
He frowned and swiped down to refresh the page. Again, the little circle spun, but this time, the site loaded and his vision tunneled to the splash of color toward the middle of the screen.
DECISION STATUS: ACCEPTED
He stared, and felt Holly grab his free paw and squeeze it hard, but it was almost like his arm was barely attached to him. “I– I got in.” He turned to Holly with wide eyes. “I can’t— I mean, holy shit. This doesn’t even feel real.”
His girlfriend smirked. “Well, does this?” She pulled his head down to hers and kissed him softly, gently nipping at his lip and giggling as she broke away. “Guess I’ll be finding you in Boston when I get back, then. Good thing too, because I already have an acceptance letter to BU.”
“Wait, really?” Leo asked with a quirked eyebrow. “I wasn’t sure you’d applied anywhere yet since you were gonna be gone.”
“I still needed to apply, even if I defer to the Spring,” Holly pointed out. “It’s also good to always have a backup plan.”
The wolf nodded. “That's true. Hopefully some of the other schools get back to me soon, that way I have one, in case I can’t get into one of MIT’s work study programs.”
Holly’s phone buzzed, and she dismissed the notification with a roll of her eyes. “We should probably get going though, if the movie is at 7:15.”
“Oh, yeah, probably. Let me go run the ticket up to the counter, and I’ll meet you outside.”
*******
Fox Run Cinema 15
“That was really cute.”
Llyulf smiled as he pushed open the door ahead of Holly, paw resting on the small of her back. “Yeah, it wasn’t bad. The soundtrack was pretty good. Whoever was singing for Elsa has one hell of a voice. I’ll have to see if she’s done anything else.”
“Oh! She’s pretty big, she’s done a bunch of Broadway stuff,” the chipmunk replied, latching onto his arm as he came through the door behind her. “I know she was in Wicked.”
“Wicked? That’s the Wizard of Oz one ri–” Leo was cut off by a yelp from his girlfriend and felt his arm yanked, almost spinning him around.
“Well, well, well. If it isn’t the choir chick, and her useless virgin of a puppy.” The wolf’s hackles rose instantly. He could’ve recognized the voice alone even if he couldn’t make out the lumbering form that was Ryan Carlin in the dim lighting of the hallway. Behind Ryan in a matching lettermans jacket was a tall, lanky cheetah male leaning against the wall. The badger lifted the paw that was wrapped around Holly’s wrist while she struggled to pull away. “Fancy meeting you here, miss priss. I guess it’s no wonder your boy toy over there wasn’t worried about getting into your pants.”
“Let her go, Ryan, what the fuck is wrong with you?” the wolf growled, taking a step towards the larger badger.
“Or what, you little shit?” Ryan sneered. “Taking a girl to see some pansy-ass shit. Hell, I wouldn’t have offered you sex advice if I knew you didn’t even have a dick to wet. Wait, fuck, does that mean you bend over for that bat bitch frea— Oh, you fat little cunt,” The badger male hissed, grabbing his wrist where Holly had dug in her claws and spun away from him.
Leo quickly inserted himself in front of Holly, who was rubbing her own wrist while glaring daggers at the badger. “I’m not sure what your obsession is with Holly, Ryan, but fuck all the way off. She wants nothing to do with you, and I see that mirror breaker you call a face more than enough at school.”
Ryan smirked. “This face gets more pussy than you could drea–”
“Yeah, yeah, sure,” the wolf interrupted scathingly. “Midori gives hers out like candy, whatever.” Leo felt a soft paw on his shoulder blade, but his blood was boiling. “I didn’t think she’d trust your mouth to be able to do anything, though. Doesn’t that require some sort of skill?”
The badger’s expression contorted and he lunged forward toward the pair, snarling. Leo pushed Holly back to keep her out of the other male’s reach, though unfortunately it meant Ryan easily was able to snag the wolf by the collar of his jacket. The badger pulled Leo closer, Ryan's face filling the wolf's vision. “What do you know, bet you never even tasted one, bitch.”
The wolf wrinkled his nose at the badger’s reeking breath, knocked the other male’s paws away and shoved him hard. The bully’s mass meant the wolf ended up moving himself with the push more than the badger, and Leo had to stumble back to maintain his own balance. “Holly, go on ahead to the car,” Leo said over his shoulder as he recovered and settled into a wider stance.
“Oh, you wanna go? Don’t want her to see you get your ass kicked, huh? Nah, I think she should stay right here and watch.” A sinister grin slid onto Ryan’s face as he raised his fists and tried to step around to Leo’s left.
The wolf wasn’t having it. He sidestepped, making sure he stayed between Holly and the other male. He was somewhat surprised the cheetah hadn’t moved from his spot on the wall, and if anything was less engaged as he stared at his phone.
“I guess your bitch doesn’t listen to ya,” the badger jeered, flicking his eyes to Holly. “Maybe after I’m done with you, I’ll take her out to the alley out back and teach ‘er to do what she’s told. Me and Cade’ll have plenty of fun with her.” He took a step forward, which Leo mirrored with a step back. “You’re out of your league, little pup. I’ve run right through guys twice your size.” Ryan chuckled, switching his attention back to Holly and calling out to her. “Don’t worry, choir slut. By the time he wakes up, you’ll know your place. Not that you’ll want to go back to him after you’ve felt what a real alpha is like, instead of his geek ass beta wolf bullshit.”
Leo’s pulse was racing, and he focused on the movements the badger was making over the slop he was spewing. So he saw when Ryan tensed before leaping forward, swinging a haymaker destined for the side of the wolf’s head. Instead of stumbling back, Llyulf planted his foot and ducked forward and left, eluding the badger’s swing and bringing his knee up into the badger’s stom— oh…oops.
Ryan’s snarl turned into an agonized, breathless groan as the knee Leo had ideally envisioned landing in the other male’s belly instead ended up driving squarely into the badger’s groin. Unfortunately for Ryan… he wasn’t on the football field for this cup check, so his family jewels took the full brunt of his own momentum added to the wolf’s.
With quickened breath and his heartbeat thundering in his ears, Leo pushed and toppled the rocking badger, stepping back as the fallen fur gasped for air. The wolf flicked his eyes back to the wall, where the cheetah was still on his phone, seemingly oblivious to the badger’s state. Leo returned his attention back to the now panting badger. “You know, you shouldn’t talk when you fight, right?” he muttered shakily in not-so-convincing bravado, before his brain reminded him he probably didn’t want to still be standing here when Ryan recovered.
Easily dodging a weak swipe at his ankle, Leo turned and took off, grabbing his girlfriend’s paw and hurrying out of the front doors of the theater without another word. They scrambled into his vehicle, and the moment he heard the click of her seatbelt, the SUV lurched forward out of the space, and sped out of the parking lot.
A pair of headlights followed them out.
*******
Thirsty Moose Tap House
Niall Kalayo was very done with today. Hell, it had been a fucking week. At least walking through those glass double doors meant both were over.
He’d stumbled on this place a few weeks ago, doing a quick light fixture replacement in their back office, only to realize when it was time to go home, it was barely a block from his condo. Since then, he’d enjoyed the establishment occasionally for a beer after work, and maybe a few more than that on Friday or Saturday nights.
The older black wolf dropped onto a barstool with a groan. “Ugh, Jax, any specials tonight?”
“Sorry, Niall, nothing on drafts tonight,” came a barking laugh from the hyena woman behind the bar. “Billy’s putting the harder stuff on so we can clear out for some new stock. Whiskeys, bourbons, rums and tequilas are two for one.”
“Well, then let me buy the boy his first round.”
Niall frowned and spun around to find the owner of the gruff voice behind him. As it turned out, it belonged to a rather large capybara male, face streaked with gray fur. “You ain’t gotta do that man. I–”
The other male clapped the wolf on the shoulder with a raucous chortle. “Nonsense, boy, it's free.” He turned his attention back to the bartender. “Two Jack and Cokes, make ‘em doubles.”
“You got it, Dom,” Jax rolled her eyes as she scooped up a couple glasses and a bottle behind her.
“Well thanks, I guess,” the wolf commented with a shrug. “So uh— your name is Dom?”
“‘Course it is. And you’d know that already if you stared at more’n the bottom of your mug, Niall.” The capybara snorted at the perplexed look on the wolf’s face. “Unlike you, I pay attention to the world around me when I’m at the bar, my boy. I’ve been drinking next to you the last two weeks.” He turned and offered his paw. “Dominic Marcsson.”
“Look, could ya not call me ‘boy’? I ain’t been young enough to be called that in over 20 years.” Niall awkwardly shook the other male’s paw, and nodded to the bartender as she dropped off a glass of dark nectar in front of him. “Thanks, Jax.” He took a tentative sip off the glass, before downing a full gulp. “Well fuck, that’s pretty good. I guess some thanks are in order, Mr. Dom.”
“Alright, alright, I’ll lay off ya, quit with that ‘Mister’ shit,” the capybara conceded. Dom raised his glass, grinning as Niall took the hint, and clinked them together before taking a swig himself. “I figured anyone that drops a full tab on just beer multiple weeks in a row with no variety either has no taste, or just hasn’t tried the right mixer for their liquor. If you ended up not liking it, I’d have just stolen it back from you.”
“Well, I gotta say, I do like it and I’ll be getting myself a couple more tonight,” the wolf responded. “Sorry if I’ve been pretty unpleasant company.” Niall scratched at the back of his neck. “I’m used to drinking alone.”
“Well, ‘unpleasant’ might be overstating it a bit. ‘Silent and broody’ sure, but you’d’ve learned my name long before now if you were being ‘unpleasant’,” the capybara emphasized with air quotes on one of his paws. “Unpleasant is when you start messing with other people’s fun. Like, I ribbed you for it, but if I’m honest, I wouldn’t’ve known your name from Adam if I hadn’t heard Jax tab you out last week.” Dom wrinkled his nose. “Drinkin’ alone s’no fun for anybody. That’s for the sad and angry days. You get that way, feel free to lay it on old Dom, we’ll see if we can’t liven you back up.”
“Careful what you ask for, old man,” the wolf snorted, making eye contact with the hyena and sliding his empty glass to the edge of the bar. “You might bite off more than you can chew, one of these days.”
Dom laughed aloud. “Man, nothing you got’s gon’ surprise me. I’ve heard it all. Been in and out of this bar since it opened 16 years ago, and the pub that came before it when it opened almost 30 years ago,” the capybara male bragged. “But shit, if you're going to be starting story time, I’m gonna need something drier. Hey Jaxy, mind pouring me a triple of the Envy?” he called down the bar.
“Sure thing, coming right up.” Seconds later, she dropped a new cocktail in front of the wolf, and a rocks glass in front of the capybara. “I’m hopping out for a smoke, you two be good now.”
Niall thanked her and nodded, before returning his focus to the other male. “Well, I guess if you really wanna listen…” he trailed off, until the capybara gestured for him to continue. “The best place to start is, we aren’t really from around here…”
*******
Back in Leo’s SUV
Leo turned into a dimly lit, empty grocery store lot, and pulled into a space. It wasn’t long after he threw the SUV in park that another vehicle pulled in, then with the headlights turned off, crossed to the opposite side of the lot. He couldn’t tell much about the car, it was just a black car with tinted windows. It had parked facing away from them, so maybe it was unrelated, but it sent off prickles on the back of his neck. If it was Ryan, he probably would’ve tried to block them in somewhere. Popping his seatbelt off, he hopped out and ran around to the passenger side of the SUV to pull Holly out and into a crushing hug. After a gasp and a moment of tense apprehension, he felt her relax into him. For him though… The relief he felt did little to calm him. He still felt like he’d downed 3 or 4 energy drinks in as many minutes.
Holly gave him a gentle squeeze. “You okay, hun?” she mumbled into his shoulder.
The wolf didn’t answer right away, choosing instead just to hold her tighter. Finally with a ragged sigh, he kissed the top of her head and let his arms drop from around her shoulders to her lower back. “I… I’m sorry.”
The chipmunk put her paws on his chest and pushed him back a little so she could meet his eyes with a frown. “Wha– why are you apologizing?”
“He shouldn’t have been able to touch you,” Leo muttered, looking down. “I should have been paying more attention. Then he wouldn’t have been able to grab you.”
“Leo, stop that. We had no idea he would be there. Neither of us heard him–”
“I should have been looking,” he argued, cutting her off. “If he’d hurt you—”
Except it was her turn to interrupt his spiraling train of thought. “But he didn’t, hun. There’s nothing you can do to predict what stupid people are going to do. What matters is I’m okay, and hopefully you are too.”
“Yeah, no, I’ll be fine, I’m just— trying to come down.” The wolf pulled her back to his chest, resting his chin on the top of her head. The car on the other side of the lot was still there, and that left him with an uneasy feeling. That had to be paranoia, at this point, right? Or just the chill in the air. Maybe that. It was only barely above freezing… Ugh. If someone was going to mess with them, there wasn’t really a more isolated place for them to be right now than a nearly empty parking lot. They’d have already done it, right?
It made sense… So why was he still so put off by a random car nowhere near them?
“Your heart sounds like it's trying to beat out of your chest, Leo. Do you need me to drive back to the house so you have a second to relax?”
Her question snapped him out of his reverie, and he shook his head. “No, no, I can drive. Can I just hold you for a little longer, though?” When she nodded he turned so that his back was against the side of the car, and leaned his head back and stared up at the inky black sky, feeling a gentle bump as her head rested against his chest. He couldn’t see any stars, but that wasn’t the point. What he needed was to defocus… and the blank, dark canvas above him helped. As his heart rate finally started to slow, he felt a soft tap on his sternum.
“Hun?”
Leo brought his gaze back down to the girl in his arms. “Yes, love?”
She leaned more into him, hiding her face away. “I’m… conflicted.”
Conflicted? “What do you mean? What about?” he asked with a frown.
Holly sighed. “Well… don’t get me wrong, Ryan is totally an ass,” she said into his chest. “I wouldn’t wish– what you did– on anyone normally, but if anyone deserved it, he did.”
Leo squeezed. “Yeah, I’m not crazy about that whole uh– thing– either. I wasn’t even trying to kick him there.” He let out a short half-laugh. “I was aiming for his stomach. I’ve never been in a fight, though. Shocker, I know. Still, listening to him talk about you like that had me seeing red. He could’ve said whatever he wanted about me and I don’t think anything would have gotten me that hot. But you…” He felt her nod against him.
“That’s why I’m conflicted. You were… I generally abhor violence. But… I’ve played the whole situation back through in my head so many times now.”
“And?”
She buried her face further into his chest. He heard her mumble something into it, but he couldn’t make it out. “Come again? I have no idea what you said, gorgeous.”
“Mmm, damnit.” she cursed softly, turning her head to the side.
Well, I heard that.
She leaned back to look up into his face, cheeks flushed. “I said, ‘And I’m soaking wet right now.”’
Oh. Oh. The wolf’s eyes went wide, and Holly pressed her face back into his jacket.
“I– If we were somewhere else—” he heard her grumble, though if she finished the thought, he didn’t catch it.
His brain was already off to the races. Wherever that somewhere else was, he wanted to be there. He was unfortunately also painfully aware of the cold all around them. That still wasn’t doing anything to quell the stiffening in his jeans. “M-maybe we should uh— get you home then.” The wolf silently swore to himself. She was basically telling him that he had a chance for things to get a little hot and heavy right now, and his first suggestion was to take her back to the house filled with her family?! He felt her shift, and had to prevent himself from swearing aloud as she started to pull away.
Then she reached up and pulled his head down into a passionate kiss. He felt her press herself against him, almost pinning him to the vehicle as she rose up on her toes, both paws wrapped around the back of his head. One of his own paws found purchase in the small of her back, squeezing as if she could be drawn any closer, and the other buried itself in her hair. By the time they finally separated, both of them were practically panting for breath.
“Ugh, you’re probably right,” she begrudgingly admitted, collapsing against him with her eyes closed. He felt a slight shudder from her, but couldn’t really tell if it was from the temperature, or exertion. She was quiet for a few more moments as they both puffed out clouds of fog, before a small grin worked its way onto her face. Her eyes slid open, and a rising flush of color made a return call on her cheeks. She reached up to lightly tap his nose. “I, um, I appreciate that you didn’t suggest we just hop into your backseat in the middle of this parking lot. I’ll… remember that for later.”
Later? Remember what? Leo let out a nervous chuckle. “As a uh… good thing, I hope?”
“Oh, it's definitely a good thing,” she confirmed, squeezing him tightly. “Your first instinct wasn’t to try to push me, even if you probably could have. That said, after the fact, I don’t think I’d have appreciated having my first time with you being… you know, here.” She gestured to the empty asphalt lot, then rose up to kiss the bottom of his chin. A very sudden, but very obvious shiver poofed out her tail like a bottlebrush and she quickly popped open her passenger door. “Okay, yeah, I’m getting back in. The cold isn’t that bad, but it is starting to work through my jacket and my fur.”
The wolf snickered as he made his way back to the driver’s side, stopping with his paw on the handle. His ear flicked. In the icy air of the empty asphalt plain, there was nothing to obscure the sound of an engine turning over on the far side of the lot.
*******
Thirsty Moose Tap House
“Sounds like she was a right piece of work,” commented the grizzled capybara. “Least you got out, and it sounds like your boy is growing up fine. Some girls’ll just never be satisfied.”
“That’s one way to put it,” Niall grumbled, swirling the diminished cubes at the bottom of his glass. Tossing the cup back, he scooped out one of the bits of ice with his tongue and crunched it between his teeth. “Just pisses me off, ya know? We were comfortable, but I’m not home enough. Go out of my way to be home for the family, and she bitches when she can’t run up the credit cards.” He slid his empty glass to the end of the bar, where it clinked into another pair of empties. “Now it’s just hard to wade back into the pool after so long,” he muttered, a slim fennec fox over the shoulder of the older fur catching his eye. She had a flowy, long-sleeved pink top and black slacks that clung tightly to her figure.
Dominic cut his eyes back over his shoulder, and snorted. “Cat, bird, or fox?”
The wolf blinked, returning his attention to his new drinking buddy, who was grinning at him over the rim of his glass. It took him a moment to parse that the capybara was referring to the fennec’s companions, a tigress and a robin that were standing opposite to the fox that he hadn’t even noticed. He coughed. “Oh, uh, fox, I guess.”
“Well shit. Can’t help you with that one,” Dom admitted. “The bird and the cat are here once a week. Feathers likes to tease, but I’ve never seen her actually walk out with anyone. Stripes is a bit of a mixed bag. She’ll drink half the guys in here under the table, but she’s just as liable to slap you silly as walk out on your arm. Trust me, I’ve seen both in the same night. Same guy, even.” He chuckled, before taking another discreet peek. “The fox is new. Cute though.”
“Oh, I wasn’t–”
“Well why the fuck not?” the capybara demanded. “Did the miss take your nards in the divorce? Or are you swinging for a different team now? Because if that’s the case, I’m sure Randy over there in the corner would be happy to—”
Niall threw up his paws in front of him. “Holy shit, pipe down, old man. I’m not gay!”
Dom shrugged and turned to face the bar, masking a snicker by taking another sip from his rocks glass. “Hey, hey, I don’t judge. Different strokes for different folks. All I can say is if you’ve been out of the water for a while, sometimes it’s better just to jump in the deep end.”
The wolf frowned. Why not indeed… He looked back to the table of women, where the fennec sipped from a martini glass. “Fuck it, you’re right, Dom,” he concluded, sliding off his stool. A moment of panic shot through him as the floor felt like it shifted underneath him, but a steadying paw on his shoulder, coupled with his own paw on the bar kept him upright.
“Whoa there, you good?” the capybara asked, voice tinged with concern. “Maybe you should—”
Niall shook his head to try to clear it a little. “Nah, I’m good, dude. Just landed funny is all.” He straightened up to his full height and pulled out his wallet, tossing a bill on the counter. His first step was a little unsteady, but shit, he’d had way more drinks before. He was fine. He worked his way toward the table in an arc, catching the attention of the avian woman at the table first. He just didn’t want to startle the fox by coming up behind her. “Hey there, ladies.”
The fennec’s large ears swiveled in his direction before her head followed, setting a pair of piercing blue eyes on the wolf. He could feel the gazes of the tigress and the robin on him as well, and took the time to smile at them both.
“Sorry to bother y’all, and you’re more than welcome to tell me to get lost if tonight just ain’t it, but I’d be a fool not to tell your friend here she’s shining pretty bright, even at a table of beauties,” he remarked. “If y’all want one, I’d be happy to buy y’all a round of something.” He winced internally as the robin crossed her arms and let out a huff.
“What the fuck, Sienna,” the avian swore, flicking her eyes to the tigress. “Of course the one week I offer to drive for the night, and this guy shows up offering free drinks. Rude.”
“Your loss. ‘Sides, it’s not your birthday, Val,” the tigress retorted, draining the remnants of a pale cocktail from her glass, then double tapping the bottom against the table. “Not mine either, even if it feels like it now. I’ll take you up on your offer, on three conditions.”
Niall chuckled. “I’m listening.”
“First, my ‘shining’ friend would need to agree to putting up with you, since it is her birthday,” the feline stated with a pointed look at her fennec friend.
“His compliments are a little over the top, but he seems tolerable for now,” the fox piped up with a titter. “Though I am very curious about these other terms of yours.”
“I’m getting there, sunshine. Second, nothing against you, but we’re also not naive schoolgirls. You’re cute, but to be safe, the bartender brings the round. Lastly, whatever we take, you have to take with us,” the tigress, Sienna, rattled off.
“Fair enough, I think,” the wolf conceded, turning to the fennec. “I’m Niall, by the way. What can I get for you, uh—” he introduced himself, leaving his question floating in the air.
She gave him a small smile in return, offering a paw. “Lena. Nice to meet you, Niall.” Lena flicked her eyes over to her feline friend, raising an eyebrow. “Did you have something in mind?”
“Tequila shots,” was the decisive response from the tigress.
Well, you agreed, jackass. Niall chided himself as he grasped the extended paw. “Tequila shots it is, then. And happy birthday to you, Lena.”
“Lucky bitches,” the robin grumbled on the other side of the table, throwing dirty looks at both of her friends.
“Oh hush, you. I’ll buy you a couple shots next week,” the feline scowled, before turning to the wolf. “So how long are you planning to make the birthday girl wait, hm?”
“Alright, alright,” Niall laughed. “I’m going.”
*******
Leo frowned into his rearview mirror as he pulled out of the parking lot. The car wasn’t in the spot across the way anymore that he could see, but he also couldn’t see it at all anymore. He debated with himself for a few moments before finally deciding to speak up. The wolf had a paw resting on Holly’s leg, so he gave it a gentle squeeze before pulling his paw back. “Uh… hey, gorgeous?” He flicked his eyes over in time to see her look up from her phone.
“Yeah? What’s up, hun?”
The wolf rubbed the back of his neck. “I uh— well, I might just be a little paranoid because of earlier, but… can you let me know if a black car with a tinted windshield ends up following us? I saw one not long after we pulled out of the theater, and it pulled into the same lot we did, even though there wasn’t anywhere for them to go. I heard the car start up as we were getting ready to leave, but I lost sight of them as we were leaving. If we don’t see it again, that’s fine, but… I don’t wanna be looking over my shoulder and not focusing on the road, but I can’t shake this feeling that something isn’t right.” Llyulf stared at the road straight ahead of them. “Sorry if that sounds a little crazy.”
“I mean, sure, I can watch out for one.” Holly placed her paw over his and returned his earlier squeeze. “We’ve had an… interesting night, and that’s putting it mildly. You focus on driving and I’ll—” The chipmunk stopped short. “Um, Leo…?”
As soon as her tone changed, the wolf's eyes shot to the mirror. Who the fuck… “Okay, shit. I am going to turn around and head towards my place, since it's in the complete opposite direction. There can’t be that many black sedans with a tinted windshield, that’s like— it’s not normal right?”
“I… I don’t know. I don’t really pay that much attention to cars, but like… My dad’s car has it, but that’s definitely not him. Why would someone want to follow us?”
Leo could hear the worry creeping into her voice, and long story short, he hated it. “I don’t know what’s so interesting about us, but I think we can find out how intent they are pretty quick. If they end up behind us again, once I get to my place, I’ll pull into our parking garage. We’ll wait a few minutes, then pull back out. If they pull into the garage, there are cameras, I can just go see what the hell they want with us. If they don’t, either they leave, or they wait for us to come back out. If they’re persistent enough to start following us back to your place, we call the cops. Did you already let your parents know we were on our way back?”
“Yeah, Momma said she was up with Alle. Not sure if Dad is in bed or not.”
“Let them know we are gonna be a little later. I wouldn’t worry them just yet, but I don’t want them to get the wrong idea, either, if we take too long,” he reasoned, hanging a quick right, then another.
“You’re probably right.” The chipmunk’s claws tapped away on her phone. She peeked in her passenger mirror and let out a quiet hiss. “What the heck, why?”
A growl emanated from the wolf male as he spotted the tail again, this time a couple cars back. “I don’t know why, but I’m discovering that I’m really not a fan of being stalked.”
Rather than try to lose the car by taking advantage of the web of streets downtown, Leo took the most direct route to the little parking garage for his dad’s condo. He pulled in, eyeing the rearview as the SUV crawled forward to see if the car they’d been watching would go by. Sure enough, after a bright yellow VW Bug, there was that sedan again. The side windows were tinted too, hiding whoever was driving from view. Damn. He backed into the first available spot, and sighed, resting his head on the steering wheel. The wolf tensed instinctively as he felt her paw brush his shoulder, but immediately relaxed into it. “Sorry, gorgeous, I’m not used to being on edge like this. I’m sorry about tonight. When I asked you to dinner and a movie, I was hoping for something a little more… normal.”
Holly continued running her paw in small circles over his leather clad back. “Well, it’s more excitement than I was expecting from ‘dinner and a movie’, that’s for sure.” She let out a soft snort. “But I don’t think you have done anything wrong tonight, especially not worth apologizing for,” she added.
The wolf nodded without lifting his head. “I think I’d take another night on your family dock, at this point.” He reached up to grab her paw from his shoulder and brought it in front of him to his lips. “Karaoke night should still be fun though. I had lunch with Megan yesterday. Shi’s really excited to be singing again.”
“OH! You didn’t tell me that, but it’ll be great to see hir without all the casts and stuff,” Holly agreed, giggling from the silly kiss to her paw. “Do we know when shi will be done with the boot?”
“Not yet. It’s only supposed to be a precaution for a couple weeks, I think, while shi does some physical therapy.”
He pushed up off the steering wheel, wiggling back into his seat, staring out at the exit. “Ya know what, I think we’ve waited long enough. If we see them again, they have to be tailing us.”
It took all of two whole minutes headed towards Holly’s house for the culprit to rear its ugly head again in the rearview. “Fuckers,” Llyulf muttered under his breath. “Alright, love. Call the station. Tell them what we are driving, the car that’s following us, and where we are headed.”
*******
Giacomo Estate - Late Night
“Wait, what do you mean they ‘took off’?” a very exasperated wolf asked the officer. “You’re telling me they followed us for who knows how long, from the movie theater, to my apartment, and almost all the way here before you guys chased them past us, and you didn’t get them?”
“Look son, we chased them, but once they got on the interstate, there’s a limit to how far and how aggressively we can pursue them without good reason,” the bobcat responded. “We should be able to pull a good view of the plates from the cruiser, though.”
“With all due respect, sir, isn’t ignoring a traffic stop cause enough?” Leo argued. Or stalking and harassment for that matter? His audible irritation dissipated a little at the mention of license plates. “Oh, have you run them yet?”
“The images from the cruiser were sent over to the station once the deputy pulled over, and they are working on it now.”
“And when might we expect that information, Officer Goodman?”
Leo looked over his shoulder at an approaching Nicolo, as Holly released the wolf’s arm to wrap her own arms tightly around her father. While the older chipmunk male returned his daughter’s hug, he kept his eyes focused on the uniformed male.
“I don’t appreciate my family being made to feel unsafe, Officer. You understand, I am sure,” Holly’s dad continued.
“Of course, sir. As soon as we have information available, the department will be happy to– Oh, just one moment,” the bobcat reassured them, before holding up a paw and stepping away as the radio on his shoulder crackled to life.
Nicolo turned to Llyulf and beckoned him over. “Tell me about this car that you say was following you, Leo. I have heard some things from Lenora about my daughter's texts, but I would much rather hear from you two firsthand.”
The chipmunk male listened intently as the pair explained the repeated encounters with the black sedan. When they finished, he nodded. “Other than wishing you would have told us sooner that you suspected you were being followed, I can find little to complain about with your actions. It is nice to know you don’t seem to panic under pressure, young man.” Nicolo rested his paw on the wolf’s shoulder. “Thank you for keeping my Holly safe.”
Leo shook his head. “I can’t say I would never panic, but this is the first time I’ve been in a situation anything like this. I don’t know, panic just didn’t really make much sense. Whoever it was didn’t seem to be trying to talk to us, just follow us. If they wanted to do something, they could have boxed us in at my apartment, or stopped next to us at a light. At least,” the wolf qualified, “that’s how it went in my head.”
His girlfriend tugged on his arm to get his attention, and Leo turned to see the officer returning with a distinctly less– positive– look on his face than he’d left with.
“So… that was the station getting back to me about those plates. I know I said we’d share what information we got when we got it but—”
“Oh great, there’s a ‘but’ now,” the wolf scowled irritably. “Let me guess, you’re gonna tell me there’s some active investigation and you can’t disclose anything yet, am I right?”
“Let him speak, young man,” Nicolo chided the younger male. “I am sure he has a perfectly reasonable explanation for needing to withhold information. Do continue, Officer Goodman.”
The bobcat chuckled nervously. “Um, actually, it’s not that we want to withhold any information from you guys. We, uh, we actually don’t have anything to share—”
The wolf’s eyes threatened to bulge out of his head, while both chipmunks silently frowned. When no one else spoke, the officer continued awkwardly.
“—because the plates that were on the car were apparently fakes. Not stolen, just complete fabrications. No records came up in any state for that plate number, let alone Pennsylvania, which is what was listed on the plate. We sent a copy of it, along with a description and images from the cruiser to all of our neighboring jurisdictions to be on the lookout.”
Nicolo’s eyes narrowed. “I see. I guess I will have some feedback for the department at the next Council meeting.”
“And we absolutely welcome it, Mr. Giacomo,” the bobcat jumped in hurriedly. “I am going to go ahead and get all of the reports submitted tonight, and make sure that all of the jurisdictions we have contacts with are notified. I promise if we hear anything, you will be the first to know.”
Holly’s father cleared his throat. “I appreciate that. You have a good night then, Officer Goodman.”
Leo bit his tongue as the officer went back to his car, and pulled off down the driveway. Much like panicking earlier didn’t make much sense as a response, lashing out at a cop wouldn’t help anything either. What was done was done. Whoever it was at least was being watched for. What mattered most was that Holly was home now, and safe, and if the person following them had truly been chased outside of city limits, at least they shouldn’t be bothering him again tonight. After everything that went on… the prevailing feeling he was having now was just, well, exhaustion. He followed Nicolo and Holly into the house, but stopped short at the foyer.
Holly turned to find him further behind, and closed the gap, sliding her arms around his torso. “You know, I don’t think my parents would mind if you stuck around a little longer. Papa’s gone off to his office, so he’ll probably be up a while—”
The wolf hummed as he wrapped his arms around her and leaned down to give her a soft kiss on the bridge of her nose. “As much as I would love that, gorgeous, I think if I sit down on your couch, I’m not going to be able to get back up to make it home tonight. I feel like I’m running on fumes already. All the adrenaline is gone.” He chuckled softly at a short lived pout on her face, leaning in and nipping lightly at her protruding lip. “I love you, Holly,” he murmured as he softly brushed his nose against hers.
She giggled and scrunched at his light touches. “I love you too, Leo. If you are gonna leave now, please, please, drive safe getting home.” She squeezed him tightly around his midsection, burying her face into his chest. “And let me know when you make it there?”
“Of course. I’ll shoot you a text as soon as I park, and before I put my phone on the charger, so you know I made it up the steps,” he teased.
“You better, mister.”
*******
Holly laid on her back across her bed, staring at the ceiling from under the arm that rested on her forehead. Her phone rested atop her chest, screen dimmed but still displaying the text from her adorable wolf of a boyfriend saying he’d made it home safely. After the night they’d had, that wasn’t something she was at all taking for granted.
So much had happened, it almost felt like she’d stumbled into someone’s movie script. For all the wild turns the night had taken, though, overall it hadn’t been a bad night. Things really only took a turn for the worse after the movie. The actual date had gone well enough. She thought back to their conversation at dinner, and her cheeks tingled.
I love you enough to wait.
I love you, Holly.
His words echoed in her head, over and over. The clarity, the frankness of the first ‘I love you’. The husky, intimate near-whisper of the second was so quiet in the moment, but in her head played so much louder. Her eyelids slid shut, and she could see him looking down at her. The sparkle in his dark ruby eyes, his playful smirk. She thought about every time she’d buried her face into his chest that night, the warmth she felt every time she slipped her arms into his open jacket. The scent—
Holly bit at the corner of her lip. She could practically smell the spicy, warm fragrance he wore that melded so perfectly with the earthiness of the leather of his jacket. Her mind flashed back to the low growl that came from him when Ryan had grabbed her, and how quickly Leo had thrown himself between the badger and her. How he’d managed to focus under the vitriolic onslaught from the other male, and never let him even get close to her again. Then how abruptly the badger’s filthy tirade had stopped, crumpling to the ground after taking a swing at Leo. Her wolf may have said that he missed his intended target, but it didn’t change the fact he’d looked pretty smooth doing it. Then he’d pulled her out to the SUV, and took off as soon as he was sure she was safely belted in. And the abrupt veer into an empty parking lot, only to be dragged back out of the vehicle into a vice-like embrace.
Mmm, what I would give to be wrapped in it right now…
She’d heard his heart pounding, and somehow the first thing the silly wolf did was apologize… As if she wasn’t fully enamored already, locked in the safety of his arms, and he was worried he hadn’t done enough to protect her?
The chipmunk’s knees subconsciously slid against each other.
Then… her admission. She wasn’t just conflicted about the situation with Ryan. She was at war with herself about how it made her feel… what it made her feel. She knew she was turned on, and the realization that if they had instead been alone in a room at that moment— what she wanted was equal parts exciting… and scary. Her body hadn’t left her any room for doubt about what she wanted. And once she’d said it out loud, there went his heart again, thundering away, with hers running along with it. She was pretty sure she’d felt something growing between them too…
Holly let out a soft groan, and her eyes popped open.
As her room came back into focus, three things were immediately apparent:
1) She felt very, very warm.
2)One of her paws was being squeezed between her thighs.
3)She could feel how wet she was through her panties.
The poor chipmunk girl huffed. There was no way she was going to bed like… well, like this. She rolled until she was seated on the edge of her mattress, and her eyes drifted to the door of her closet. She knew what was in there…
And I still haven’t had a chance to try it out yet...
Quietly, she rose and poked her head out of her room, looking down both sides of the hall. To her right, almost directly across the hall was Bianca’s room. The door was cracked, but dark. To her left, Anna’s room. And right next to the bathroom, Alle’s. Both of their lights were off, from what she could tell. Holly dipped back into her room, hurrying over to her closet to grab a towel… and the item she’d buried in the stack of them a couple weeks ago…
Slipping out of her room, the chipmunk carefully closed the bathroom door so it wouldn’t make too much noise, clicking the lock behind her. Unwrapping the toy, she hung her towel on the rack next to the large tile shower. She took a peek at the smooth, soft surface of the silicone, frowning at the dusting of cotton fibers that clung to it. Fortunately, it wasn’t something that couldn’t be fixed by a rubdown with water from the sink. Once the cleansing was complete, she rested it on its wide base, pointing skyward. It might have been comical if the little sway when she released it didn’t send her mind spiraling as she watched.
Tearing her eyes away from the imitation shaft, she crouched and pulled open the cabinet under the sink, paw darting in to grab a rather hefty little tub with a white screw on lid. She put it in one of the alcoves in the shower wall, then stepped back out of the shower to give the chrome handle under the showerhead a twist, releasing the familiar hiss and splatter of water against the tile. She made quick work of stripping out of her clothes, shivering a little as they fell away in the cool air. Steam quickly started to pool and roil around on the other side of the lightly frosted glass door.
Grabbing the toy from the counter, she held it in both paws as she stepped under the heated flow, gasping as it soaked into her hair and fur, warmth rolling like a wave down the curves of her body, though it did nothing to dispel the tingle of anticipation she felt. She pressed the base of the toy into the floor just outside the radius of the falling spray, flinching a little at the unexpected squelch as it sealed firmly against the tile. She straightened back up, and scooped up the tub she’d snagged earlier from under the sink. Spinning off the lid in a corner away from the stream, she scooped out some of the soft but thick, milky white liquid, smiling as the light aroma of coconut rapidly suffused the air. Thankfully, a little research had indicated a substance she occasionally used as a natural hair conditioning product also doubled as a safe and natural lubricant as well. She still was interested in getting a proper lube for the toy, but at least she didn’t need to worry about discreetly acquiring anything special right away.
She capped and returned the vessel to the shelf, letting the oil soften and melt in her palm, maneuvering to keep water away from the slick substance as she knelt next to the toy. She slathered it liberally over the surface, then lifted her leg over to straddle the shaft. Holly flinched and let out a soft gasp amidst the shuffling as the toy bumped against her mons.
Biting her lip, she sat on her ankles and scooted forward, reaching down to grab the tip of the toy and press the length of the shaft against her slit. She shuddered at the coolness of the silicone against the sensitive flesh, but as she rolled her hips to grind against the top of where the shaft flared out into the knot, she was glad the oil seemed to be doing its job pretty well. A flash of apprehension shot up her spine as she leaned forward, rising to all fours, then reached back to position the head of the toy beneath her entrance.
A quiet moan escaped before she could stifle it as the tapered tip slid against her folds, missing its target. Huffing, she took a deep breath of steamy air and pushed herself back up, steadying herself with a paw against the wall as she hovered over the tip for another attempt.
She sank down slowly, this time angling the toy a little further back. She trembled as it flexed slightly and shifted. She dropped a little further than she meant to, only just choking back a yelp as she speared herself on the tip.
O-oh my g–
Holly gritted her teeth, wincing as she felt herself stretched over the smooth surface of the shaft. Her fingers had never spread her apart like this. She paused for a few juddering breaths, trying (and failing) to quell the quiver in her legs. Instead, she closed her eyes and let herself imagine a black wolf with dark red eyes beneath her as she slid slowly down onto the— no— his knotted cock.
The chipmunk barely managed to control her descent, shuddering and fighting through twinges of mixed not-quite-pain and pleasure, panting as her folds split wide over his shaft. By the time she reached the knot, she was seated firmly on her ankles. It was a good thing too; she wasn’t sure she could have held herself suspended much longer. Holly wiggled her hips above him, giving herself a little time to adjust to the sensation of having him so deep inside her.
He’s so much bigger than the hairbrush…
His knot… that scared her though. Already she felt more full, more stretched… how could she even…
Mmmmm…
She reached down between her thighs and whimpered as a spasm ripped through her when the tips of her fingers brushed against her clit. She didn’t need to worry about the knot right now. She put her other palm on the floor, and began to raise herself up, then lower herself back down with a little tempo. Then she started to move her fingers in time with her hips, drawing little circles with her digits around her clit. This was… so much… more.
Oh god, Leo—
She had no grasp on how long she had been in the shower, but what she did know was it couldn’t have been that long, and she could already feel the pressure building, one she normally had to work for. But here, soaked head to toe, drenched, dripping, riding him, she was fully his. It was so much… felt so good… it came so much easier, so much faster, faster, faster, and she—
—came… Hard…
Her hips dropped, her pleasure button sandwiched between her fingers and his knot. Waves of ecstasy wracked her frame. Shudders that nearly stole her breath away coursed through her, sending her back into an arch. Her paw clamped down hard over her mouth, barely able to suppress the low moan with her palm. Every shake and tremble jostled her on the toy, sending more flashes of bliss through her. Her palms smacked the wet tile as she collapsed forward onto all fours, the rain of water drumming into her back from above.
She hadn’t even taken his knot, but he’d done so much more than she’d expected without it. She wasn’t sure how long she sat under the steaming stream, panting, basking in the afterglow with him still so deep inside her. At some point through the haze, a thought poked at the back of her mind… the water soaking through her fur was no longer hot. And then very suddenly… it wasn’t just ‘not hot’. It was cold.
Holly’s eyes flew open with a strangled gasp, and she scrabbled forward on all fours, eliciting needy mewl as the toy left her depths empty. The shower wasn’t giving her body the time to lament the loss, instead pushing her staggering to her feet, leaning against the wall for support as she turned off the frigid flow. Shivering, the chipmunk popped open the shower door, ripping the towel off the rack and wrapping it around her shoulders, as the steam that still permeated the room poured into the shower. She leaned back against the wall, back of her head to the tile, and stared up at the ceiling while she regained her breath. Once her heart was no longer threatening to escape the confines of her chest, her gaze dropped to the other side of the shower where the knotted dildo still stood at attention, firmly stuck to the floor.
As much as the thought of another round on it tickled her mind, she could feel her body responding clearly in stark protest. Her knees ached a little from the unforgiving tile, and her palms stung a bit, now that she’d mostly come down from her blissful peak. Her limbs and movement felt sluggish and heavy. Guess the rest of the night is finally catching up…
She groaned as she looked around. Using a toy left a lot more to be dealt with than her fingers did…
*******
Holly took her time cleaning up and rinsing away the oil from both the toy and the shower, making sure she didn’t leave any trace of her escapade behind. She really didn’t want to be responsible for one of her sisters falling later on the slick tile. Content she had done everything she reasonably could, and exhaustion weighing heavy on her, she wrapped her toy in her top from earlier. Quickly donning her nightwear, she scooped up the rest of her bundle of clothes and her towels, and slinked out of the bathroom.
She hadn’t counted on Alle’s light being on when she stepped out, or on the soft voice that called from the hybrid’s cracked door.
“You okay, sis? From what Mamma said, your night was a little rough. Do you need anything? You were in there for a while…”
Holly stared blankly at the doorway for a moment, before shuffling over to poke her head into Alle’s room, slowly registering a look of concern on her sister’s face. It dissipated somewhat when Holly shook her head.
“No, thanks though. Just needed a shower to try and relax, and now that I have, I feel like I’m carrying a ton of bricks.”
The squirrel/chipmunk hybrid nodded. “I get it. You should get some sleep. Hopefully tomorrow will be less eventful.”
Holly mumbled a good night, then shambled back to her room. After hanging up her damp towels, she stowed the toy back in her stack of fresh ones in the closet. Collapsing into her bed, the chipmunk wormed her way beneath her sheets, wrapped her arms around her pillow and in record time, vanished from the conscious world.
*******
March 15, 2014
Thirsty Moose Tap House - Just Past Midnight
“Alright, LAST CALL, heathens,” the bartender called out over the din of the bar. “Don’t need to go home, but you can’t stay. Get your rides called; it's cold outside. I don’t wanna throw you out there, but this yeen is ready for bed, so at the very least, you gotta get the hell out of here.”
Niall was a little… okay, maybe he was more than a little buzzed, but even if he was pretty sure he’d have to take some extra care on his walk home, at least he felt fine enough leaning on the table. It conveniently brought him closer to Lena’s height, which was nice. She was now sporting a bedazzled plastic tiara with a little ‘34’ in the center, and was content to stand shoulder to shoulder with the wolf, the tips of her ears tickling his cheek as she rambled on with Sienna. It had to have been the best Friday night he could remember having since he moved. One tequila shot had turned into three plus a couple cocktails around the table, and his new ‘friends’ had turned out to be pretty nice. Even the robin, Valencia (though she only went by Val), had discarded her disgruntled attitude for the most part at being the designated driver for the night, especially once the mini cupcakes had come out. At the call from Jax, though, a collective sigh issued from everyone at the table.
“Ugh, guess that’s our cue, girls,” the tiger lamented. “You got a ride already, you dirty howler?”
“Sierra!” the fennec admonished. “You can’t just offer rides, you aren’t driving!”
The wolf shook his head. “I’m just—” he started, before the tigress spoke over him.
“Hey, I can offer rides to this,” she argued, sliding her paws down her sides with a little wiggle of her hips and a deadpan look, “to anyone I want. Even if I know I’m not the tail he’s chasin’.” She couldn’t hold the blank expression for long though before a grin broke out on her face. “Fine, fine, Val, think the wolf can bum—”
“Actually girls,” Niall interrupted, “I live just down the block, so really I’ll be fine getting home. You ain’t gotta worry about me.”
“There we go, problem solved,” Lena giggled. She pushed off of the wolf’s arm, catching herself on the table as she swayed a little too far. “Whooooo, wow. Not sure I needed that last piña colada.”
“I can help you out to the car, if you need, Lena,” he offered.
“Damn, what a gentleman. Hell, if you actually needed a ride, I might’ve considered it,” Val remarked, digging through her purse. “Which is saying something, I don’t like strangers in my car.”
“That’s very fair. I don’t blame ya,” Niall agreed, offering his arm to the fennec fox.
“C’mon, stranger feels a bit harsh, don't you think? He’s been a real sweetie aaaaaall night.” Lena latched onto the wolf’s arm, grateful for the support.
The wolf shook his head as he gestured for the other pair to lead the way out into the chilly night air. “Nah, it's still true. Though I think I’d like becoming well—ya know— not a stranger to you girls.”
“Sure, sure, us girls,” Sierra snickered. “Gimme a break. You’ve only had eyes for the ‘foxy’ lady all night.” She walked around the passenger side of a bright red Nissan Rogue. “Unless you are implying you could handle all of us. Now that would be quite the claim,” she challenged, leaning against the window while the robin tapped the fob.
The male blanched. “I wasn’t– I didn’t say—”
“Ha! Hey, easy there, buddy. It’s a joke,” she smirked. “Besides… I’d totally break you,” she commented nonchalantly with a wink, before popping open her door and sliding into the vehicle.
Niall’s mouth moved, but no sound came out as his mental auto-pilot carried him through the motions of getting open the passenger door behind the driver for Lena, who dissolved into a fit of giggles at the look on his face. She pulled him towards her as she spun around to face him, holding onto the open door for balance. “Thanks for being good company on my birthday, Niall. You really are very sweet.”
“Maybe if you aren’t busy next weekend, we can get together for lunch or dinner or something?” the wolf offered.
A pair of ‘ooooooooooooooohs’ came from the vehicle, leading a blushing fox to poke her head inside. “Oh hush, you two. Val, do you have a pen in your purse I can steal?”
“You can’t steal it, but sure.” The avian passed the requested item back over the headrest, and the fennec scribbled on the back of a scrap from her own bag, before passing it off to the wolf, who stowed it in the pocket of his jeans after a quick peek at its contents.
“When I get home, I’ll send you a text so you’ll have my number too, then give you a call next week.” The wolf dipped his head down and lightly pecked Lena’s cheek.
The fennec fox froze.
Alarm bells started to go off in Niall’s mind. Oh no… FUCK! Stupid, stupid, stupid. He was just about to apologize, before the fox reached up to run her fingers through her hair, and he spotted a soft smile growing slowly over her muzzle. “Bold move there, cowboy.” she muttered softly, eyes glinting mischievously as they found his. “I look forward to your phone call, Niall.”
The wolf just stood there as the door thudded shut, and the robin pulled away. A little shiver ran through him as he zipped up the jacket a little higher, and he stuffed his paws in his pockets and turned in the direction of the condo.
Imma definitely need to thank Dominic for the liquid courage and the chat, holy shit. What a night!
As he made his way down the sidewalk, he chuckled to himself. For once, he was gonna have the story to tell his son at the breakfast table in the morning…
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