Taming Beasts | MxM | Petshop

Part 19

For the first time in years, I was wearing clothes. Leah had explained that if I wanted Vince to regard me as an equal human being, I needed to adjust my behaviour. It made sense – and I wasn't minding being considered less of an animal. I'd just never thought about how walking on all fours naked was compromising that. After all, I still possessed a very well-functioning brain like humans did, so it shouldn't be necessary. Still, Vince was apparently narrow-minded, and working on that issue was going to take too long.

We'd managed to agree on a black sleeveless shirt since anything covering more of my body had resulted in profound hyperthermia. I was also wearing loose linen pants that allowed my legs to breathe. Luckily, I'd gotten around putting on shoes because they would've needed to be customized given my paws. The clothes had been paid for using Vince' credit card, which Leah had for business reasons, she claimed.

After some asking around, Leah had found a restaurant that offered raw meat, then ordered a mixed plate for me and an unhealthy amount of ice cream for herself. When I reached for a tender piece of salmon, Leah was quick to point her spoon at me accusingly. "There's a fork for a reason, you know that?"

I growled disapprovingly but picked up this weird and very unnecessary device anyway, giving it a threatening glare. "Don't think Vince will like this."

"You using cutlery?" Leah asked, frowning.

I shrugged, then remembered that I was aiming to learn from her, so I needed to communicate more thoroughly. So when she raised her eyebrows, indicating that she was still waiting for an answer, I told her, "He likes feeding me – I think."

Her frown deepened. "Do I want to know what you mean by that?"

I shrugged once more before I enjoyed my salmon. The silence only lasted for a minute before Leah leaned in, too curious for her own good. "Are you saying he likes it when you eat from the palm of his hand? I mean, literally?"

"He, uh – I think so. He always smells like it?"

"Like what?"

"Like he likes it? A lot?" I offered, uncomfortable because of her intense stare.

Her blue eyes widened in shock. "No way. You can smell that?"

I nodded, and she chuckled nervously. "So when I was ogling that sales assistant back in the store..."

Another nod was enough to have her sink back in her chair, groaning. "Damn, that's so unfair. But doesn't that mean you notice every time someone gets aroused? That sounds exhausting – I really wouldn't want to know that – and you living with Vince of all people."

I smiled, feeling understood for a change. After all, Vince was pretty much aroused by the smallest things I did, except for when I slammed doors into his face. Nothing was making his arousal fade quicker than that.

Leah suddenly smiled deviously. "We can so use that against Vince. Like a hundred percent."

"We can?"

"Of course!" she said excitedly, then sucked up a spoonful of ice cream before she continued. "Honey, you just need to figure out what he likes, and then make him go crazy. He'll break within a day or two, he really doesn't have that much willpower to begin with."

I guessed it was worth a try, yet I suspected that playing such games was going to get me into trouble. After all, my body was instinctively reacting to his pheromones, and Vince enjoyed forcing himself onto me. I watched Leah annihilate her ice cream and debated voicing my concerns.

When she was done, she pushed the bowl away from her, sighing contentedly before she graced me with a tight-lipped smile. "Come on, tell me. You look like you're about to throw up."

"I think we'll just end up mating. – If I tease him, I mean."

"Mating? Oh, well if that happens, just roll with it. I'm not saying you shouldn't if you want to, just try to do it on your terms. Vince pretty much thinks that pets exist to serve human desires, so you have to teach him that he's wrong."

I pondered on that, asking myself if I was fine with mating with Vince. Obviously, it meant close to nothing to him while it was a big deal to me, so I was reluctant to even imagine it. After all, he was likely going to end up in bed with someone else soon after.

Then again, his touch felt incredibly good – and if I understood Leah correctly, I was supposed to be a bit more selfish. I concluded that it came down to whether I was willing to mate for pleasure without commitment. Though I suspected that it wasn't going to make me happy in the long run, I was curious.

I nibbled away at my meat.

"Anyway, regardless of how things go with Vince, I'd like to take you out on the weekend. I think you can use the change of scenery, and it doesn't hurt for Vince to know that you're capable of enjoying yourself without him, either. So win-win."

"Where to?" I asked suspiciously, weary of another shopping trip.

"I've got this cousin – long story short, he's got a veiltail goldfish pet that doesn't like talking much either – and he's got this big house in the mountain – it's only an hour's flight away, you know? – And there's a big lake, and a forest, and I guess what I'm saying is that I think you'll like it, and it might be good for you to see that there can be a loving, respectful relationship between a pet and a human?"

I still doubted her intentions. "Why?"

"It's going to piss Vince off," she snorted, then waved her hand dismissively. "No, that's not it. I mean – okay, he's probably going to be sulking big time, so maybe you don't want to go because he might do something stupid, but yeah – I honestly think you'd like it. And my cousin's been bugging me to visit since last Christmas, so I'm pretty much overdue."

I was certainly amazed by the number of words she amassed in response to a simple why, but I figured that was part of her charm – because I was interested in accompanying her despite the prospect of Vince doing something stupid. Then again, I doubted that staying locked up in the apartment was going to entice him to not do that eventually anyway.

"You think he'll let me?"

Leah rolled her eyes. "Honey, haven't you realized how persuasive I am? Besides, I don't accept no as an answer, and Vince knows that. I've been working for him for what – eight years now? God, that's way too long. But you know, it's got its perks, one of them being that Vince pretty much lets me run all over him. I'm managing his time table, his bank account, I order his food – he's not even taking a potty break without my permission."

Seriously, the woman was amazing.

-

I think if Leah was a Leo, then I'd have to worry about the ship.

XOXO

T.