Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 91961 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 460(@200wpm)___ 368(@250wpm)___ 307(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91961 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 460(@200wpm)___ 368(@250wpm)___ 307(@300wpm)
Most of the pups in attendance have—hell, I don’t even know what they’re called—masters, here with them. It’s sort of beautiful though, the bond you see between them.
“Someone looks very interested,” Donovan says, pulling me out of my thoughts.
“No,” I reply. I’m not…am I? “It’s interesting to me. I’ve never paid much attention to puppy play before.”
A man stops in front of me, kneels and pets his pup. “That’s a good boy,” he says, rubbing him behind the ear.
The pup whines, nuzzles him and wags his tail enthusiastically before the pair walk away.
My eyes scan the room again and that’s when they land on a familiar ass in tight blue jeans making its way toward the door. “What the fuck?”
I jump off the stool, my heart thudding wildly. It can’t be, can it? Well, I guess it can. It’s not like none of us have ever been to the Eagle before, but is this where he’s meeting his date? “I’ll be right back.” I wave to Donovan without looking his way as I make my way through the mass of people. Each step I take, my pulse beats harder against my skin.
Before he gets to the door, a man stops Evan. He reaches out and rubs his head, which Evan shakes, and it’s like a wildfire surges through me. It only takes a second for me to realize it’s Z from Otterly. I know he’s a good guy, but what the fuck is he doing with his hand on Evan when Evan is shaking his head?
I can’t make sense of it all—what Evan’s doing here, and if Z is his date. All I know is, Evan’s uncomfortable. I see it in the curve of his spine and set of his jaw. “Hey. What the fuck’s going on?”
I step up beside Evan and feel him stiffen beside me. His eyes go wide as they take me in. “Frankie? I…what…”
“It’s okay. No need to be shy. Frankie here isn’t going to give you shit for being here, are you, Frankie?”
My head sort of spins in a weird way when Z reaches out and strokes Evan’s hair, which I have to admit, is kind of my thing. I manage to pull out enough sense to say, “No, of course not,” because that’s obviously a worry for Evan, but what I don’t get is—why he would worry about that from me? Is this something he’s interested in? I know damn well Z has pups so him being here with Evan is a big indication there’s something about my best friend I don’t know. I sure as shit don’t want him to feel bad about it, though.
“Hey, you okay?” I push Z’s hand away and cup Evan’s cheek.
“Yeah. I…God, I can’t believe I’m here. I don’t know what I was thinking. I can’t do this. Why do I want to do this?” he asks, and I can see the panic in him, the insecurity in being at PupStravaganza, but damned if I don’t see the want too. The desire and need.
Little pieces of a whole begin to form in my head. I think about what Donovan just said to me when he explained what puppy play is, about Evan liking his head in my lap and for me to rub it. The way he automatically nuzzled into my hand earlier when I cupped his cheek. How cuddly he is and the fact that he seeks approval.
“Hey.” I tilt his head up so he’s looking at me. “Do you want this? It’s okay to want this.”
Evan’s grip tightens on his bag, and I can’t help but wonder what’s inside.
“Is everything okay?” Donovan says. I hadn’t realized he’d approached us.
Evan’s eyes dart between Donovan and me, and I see the questions there, the worry that he just interrupted a hookup. “This is a friend of mine. You’re not interrupting anything exciting.” I wink at Evan, and he smiles.
“I think I’m going to go. I’m not ready for this…not yet.” I open my mouth to reply and he foresees my question before I ask it. “I’ll talk to you about it later, Frankie. It’s not you specifically I didn’t feel comfortable telling. It’s just…”
I realize we have both Z’s and Donovan’s eyes on us so I ask, “Can I go home with you?” I don’t want to intrude if he needs to be alone.
“You can if you want, but you don’t have to.”
“I want,” I reply.
Donovan nods in understanding. Z claps a hand on my shoulder, and then I grab Evan’s hand, walking out with him, trying to figure out what in the hell just happened here.
7
Evan
Frankie and I don’t talk on the Uber ride back to Metropolis.
I fidget nervously with my hands, trying to think of how to explain this to him.
I can’t believe he caught me heading out of the Eagle. At least I wasn’t wearing the hood.