Puppy Love

Part 10

The rain poured down on the Jeep as Shawn slowly drove to the dog training centre, windshield wipers trying their best to make the road visible. He was forced to park a little far, so the two of you had to squeeze beneath a tiny umbrella as you ran to the front doors and prayed the dogs wouldn't have to stop and pee. Of course they did.

You'd made it on time, the class a little emptier than usual due to the weather. Your hair was slightly dampened, but you'd managed to stay relatively dry on the way in.

"Shawn, you're back!" Linda called from the front of the room, shooting him a little wave.

He smiled back, trying his best to stay close to you but not make things too obvious.

"I want to try something today," Linda said as the clock struck seven, prompting her to begin the class. "Each of your dogs knows you and seems to be obeying you pretty well, so I think it makes sense to test if they'll listen to other people. Everyone find a partner and switch puppies, and we'll go from there!"

Shawn was at your side and prying Chloe's leash out of your hands before you even had a chance to process what was going on. His hands brushed yours and latched on, giving a little squeeze before you handed over the leash. Geoff was jumping at your ankles, clearly eager to spend some time with you as her tail wagged rapidly.

"Someone's excited to go to her Mummy," Shawn smiled, completely oblivious to what he'd just said. You looked up at him and met his twinkly gaze. His face was completely lit up and he looked incredibly happy, and your heart swelled at the thought of him regarding you as such a big part of his life. His face fell as you looked at him involuntarily quizzically, unsure if he meant to say what he had.

"Oh, uh, I-I didn't mean that, um," he trailed off as he brought a hand to the base of his neck and ran his fingers through his hair. You giggled, leaning in a little closer to meet his eyes.

"S'okay," you smirked, craning your neck to make sure no one was watching as you gave his cheeky bum a squeeze, "I just hope this doesn't mean I have to start calling you 'Daddy,' Mr. Mendes."

His mouth fell agape as he looked at you with wild eyes, unsure if you meant what you were insinuating. You raised an eyebrow at him as you ran the tip of your tongue along your upper lip, breaking into a sultry smile. His hands rested on his hips as you turned on your heel and walked to the opposite end of the room to begin your training exercises with Geoff.

"Hear about the thunderstorm warning?" you overheard Dave say to Morgan.

"Yeah, wind sure is whipping out there. Trees'll be down, I bet," she replied bluntly as they switched dogs. You feared for your power wires but went on with the activity, prompting Geoff to sit for you.

"Good girl!" you smiled when she sat and gave a paw, something Shawn could never get her to do properly. Your eyes flickered across the room to see Shawn scratching Chloe's pink belly, a wide smile etched across his face. He looked up and met your gaze, eyes crinkled as he flashed his pearly whites and shot you a nod of approval.

His face was the last thing you saw before everything went dark.

Panic surged through your veins as you felt for Geoff's collar and scooped her up, trying your best to calm her down. You could hear Chloe let out a few high-pitched barks, followed by Shawn's soothing voice hushing her. He sounded as if he were getting closer, and it wasn't long before you felt a familiar hand searching for yours.

"It's alright, everyone! Power must be out. I'm gonna go check with the front desk," Linda called from the front of the dark room, trying her best to make her way out to the foyer. Your eyes began adjusting with the small amount of grey light from the sky spilling through the small windows, but not much was visible.