Dino by Jaime Lewis

Chapter ELEVEN

The following day, Arianna decided to sleep in a little bit longer. It was Christmas Eve, after all, and she didn’t have anything too pressing to do, so she hit the snooze button when her alarm went off at seven. She had made sure that Nigel was okay and didn’t have to go outside. The loud snores coming from the bottom of the bed told her he was content, so she laid back down and fell back asleep for about another hour.

When the alarm went off the second time, she decided to get out of bed. Nigel also decided to climb out of bed, so she let him out in the backyard to do his business before going back upstairs to get ready for the day. Yesterday on the way home, she had stopped by the grocery store right near the house and picked up a small bag of food for Nigel. Her plans for today were to drive to the large pet store in Norfolk to pick up a larger bag of food for Nigel—something that would last longer than two days. She also wanted to stock up on some treats, pick out a few toys, and grab a few other things for him. There was a closer store in town, but she was trying to lay low until she surprised her dad. Being that she knew many people in town, there was a good possibility that she would run into someone she knew or her dad knew, and it would ruin the surprise.

Nigel, for the most part, had an excellent first night in his new home. The only battle she had with him was getting him to share the bed. Throughout the night, he tended to creep up the bed and sleep right up against her, which was fine at first. But as the night went on, he would start to stretch out his legs and keep kicking her in the back. At one point, he had pushed her so far over that she almost fell off the bed. After that, she moved him to a spot near the bottom of the bed. He seemed to be okay with that because he stayed and slept the rest of the night.

Once she was dressed and ready, she went downstairs and got Nigel leashed up since she was taking him along with her. As she left the house and made her way to the car, she noticed that Dino’s car still wasn’t in the driveway. It hadn’t been there when she went to bed last night either, which led her to believe that he had been shipped out.

She got Nigel into the car. She put him in the backseat, but just like yesterday, he climbed over the center console area and took the passenger seat up front. The look on his face made her chuckle. He acted as if she had committed a crime by putting him in the back seat. She glanced at her watch and saw it was already after nine. It would take about thirty to forty minutes to get there, depending on how bad traffic was. Being that it was Christmas Eve, she knew that many stores closed early, so she needed to get a move on.

Two and a half hours later, and her bank account almost three hundred dollars lighter, she and Nigel pulled into the driveway. She couldn’t believe how well-behaved Nigel had been inside the store, even with other dogs around. He stayed by her side the whole time, and never once tried to pull. When she would stop to look at something, he would sit down, or sometimes he lie down. She was already in love with the big beast.

Since she had a truckload of items, she walked Nigel to the front door and let him in while she went back to get the bags from the car. She’d need to find a cart or something to haul the bag of food in. It was too heavy for her to carry.

When she walked around to the back of the car and popped the trunk, she noticed that Dino’s garage door was open and a car was parked inside. Wonderful. She willfully thought to herself as she grabbed all the bags so she wouldn’t have to make a second trip. She still wasn’t ready to face him just yet. The sooner she got inside the house, the less of a chance she had of running into him. She felt so stupid for what she had done. She could only imagine what he probably thought of her.

Just as she pulled the last bag out of the trunk, she heard a door slam followed by heavy footsteps against the wood. Shit! She knew it was his house since he was the only house within hearing distance with a wooden porch. Everyone else had concrete. She closed her eyes and tried to stay hidden behind the car’s open trunk lid. Hopefully, he hadn’t seen her and would just get in his car and drive away.

Of course, luck wasn’t on her side when he called her name. Craptastic! She wondered how she should act. Should she acknowledge what happened between them, or should she pretend that he hadn’t given her the best orgasm of her life? Damn! She was screwed. She almost giggled. She was definitely screwed—by him. Finally, she took a deep breath, knowing she couldn’t avoid him any longer. She poked her head around the open trunk with a smile on her face.

“Hey there!” Okay, that was a little over the top, she thought to herself.

Dino grinned and stood next to her car with his hands shoved in the front pockets of his jeans that fit him like jeans were supposed to fit a man. Snug in the thighs and crotch. At least that was her preference. Realizing she was actually staring at his crotch; she redirected her eyes to the rest of him and almost rolled her eyes. Why did he have to look so good? The light blue long sleeve t-shirt he wore was loose-fitting, but she could still make out the outline of his muscles in certain spots. At least she had dressed more appropriately than she was the other night and had actually done her hair and put a little bit of eyeliner and mascara on.

“Do you need some help?” He asked, nodding toward the bags in her hand.

She shook her head. “I think I got them, but thank you.” She reached up and pulled the trunk lid down.

They stood there awkwardly staring at each other. She wasn’t sure what to say. Should she thank him for getting her home the other night, or maybe thank him for the round of spontaneous and amazing sex? She almost rolled her eyes at her inner she-devil’s thoughts again.

Finally, he broke the awkward silence between them. He seemed a little unsure as well, and he reached behind his head and rubbed the back of his neck. “Look, about the other night.”

Her mouth fired before her brain, and she injected her thoughts before he could continue.

“I’m so sorry. I know it was a mistake, and I promise I won’t ever step foot on your property.”

He dropped his arm to his side and scrunched his eyebrows together. “You thought it was a mistake?” He asked, seeming insulted.

“You don’t?” She asked, not answering his question. Did he not think it was a mistake? Even though she felt mortified, she would definitely love to go another round with him.

He shook his head. “No, I don’t. We both said that we weren’t interested in a relationship, so I don’t see what the problem would be.”

“So, it doesn’t bother you that we had sex and we hardly know each other—not to mention we live next door to one another?”

“No,” he told her flatly. “Does it bother you?”

“Well, talking to you now and hearing that you’re okay with it, I guess it doesn’t bother me either. I’ve been a nervous wreck ever since I woke up yesterday morning wondering how you’d act. I wasn’t sure if I could or even wanted to face you.”

“Why?” He asked, stepping a little closer to her.

She shrugged her shoulders. “I guess because I was unsure how you’d think of me. I mean, I’ve never done something like that before. It wasn’t exactly the impression I had intended on giving my new neighbor.” Suddenly she felt a burst of sassiness hit her. She looked him in the eye. “But I won’t lie, it was fun.”

She watched as his lips curled into that sexy half-smirk she remembered from the night before last. He took a few more steps toward her until he stood directly in front of her. She shifted on her feet as her head tilted back so she could look up at him. She considered herself average height for a woman at five feet five, but he still towered over her. Having him that close to her made her insides flutter, and that heated sensation she had the other night re-emerged.

His large hands landed on her waist as their gazes locked. She was jealous because she wanted to touch him back. She wanted to run her hands up his back and feel the ripples of his muscles. But with her hands full of shopping bags, she was out of luck. He lowered his head, and her heart began to race. They were cheek to cheek. The warmth of his breath blew softly against her ear, causing goosebumps to emerge all over her skin. She closed her eyes. The feeling was intense and arousing.

“It was fun for me too.” His voice was low and deep as it resonated close to her ear. She felt flush, excited; hell, she was horny. It was erotic—it was hot, and it made her want him again. She clenched her legs together, trying to ward off that all-too-familiar feeling that was building below. Just as she was ready to chuck the bags aside, he dropped his hands and took a step. She almost whimpered, feeling the loss of his touch.

“I’ll see ya around,” he winked and flashed her his signature smirk, turned around, and marched himself back to his house, leaving her standing there melting in a puddle.

It was Nigel’s deep bark that pulled her from the fog in her head. Shaking the sexy images, she had floating around her head, she made her way up to the house. She kept asking herself one question—Would she be down with that considering what the consequences could be? With a smile a mile wide, she walked inside the house. Absolutely!

◆◆◆

After putting away everything that she had purchased, Arianna sat out on her back porch with Nigel. She was fiddling with a device that one of the sales associates at the pet store talked her into buying. She had noticed earlier in the morning when she let Nigel out that he liked to bark at anything that moved while outside. The last thing she wanted was to be the neighborhood nuisance with the dog who wouldn’t stop barking. While at the store, the saleswoman pointed out a device similar to the shock collars used on dogs to discourage them from barking. While she wasn’t a fan of the electric zapping bark collars, the saleswoman explained to her that there was another type of collar that, instead of shocking the animal, it would instead spray them with a short burst of citronella. It seemed easy to use and was humane, so she thought, why not try it out. The saleswoman said that if it didn’t work or she didn’t like it, she could always return it.

Since she still had a couple of hours before she needed to be at her dad’s, she figured she’d open the package and see how it worked before she put it on, Nigel. She opened the package, put the battery in, and filled the small cylinder with the citronella mixture just like the instructions said. That was where she should’ve ended the so-called “test” phase and put the dang collar back in the bag to return.

She stood up on the back porch and started barking at the collar. When nothing happened, she barked again at it. Feeling like an idiot, she glanced around the yard, making sure that neither of her neighbors on each side of her was in their yards.

When she saw the coast was clear, she tried barking at it again. She even tried changing the pitch, but still, nothing happened. She made sure it was turned on, rechecked the fill level, and went through the “getting started” checklist one more time to make sure she hadn’t missed a step.  Once she was positive everything was a go, she barked. Again, nothing. She wasn’t sure what possessed her to do it, but she secured the collar around her neck. It was a little snug, so she went to adjust it but ended up tightening it too much, and she grunted. Well, apparently, the collar only worked if it felt a vibration, because she immediately received a blast of the citronella to her face.

She started coughing, which made the stupid collar pump out more citronella. She tried to inhale some clean air but kept coughing, which kept blasting her with citronella one right after another. Nigel sat there on the deck, looking at her with his head cocked to one side. She swore the animal was actually smiling at her as saying, “and you were going to put that on me?”

Between the coughing and cursing, she must’ve emptied over a dozen blasts of citronella to her face, all while trying to get the damn collar off, but she was in such a panic she couldn’t figure it out. She was beginning to think the damn thing had permanently attached to her neck. Her eyes had even started to burn, making it hard to see, which was why she didn’t see the damn chair and fell over it, landing hard on her left hip.

Laying on the ground, she continued to fight with the damn contraption until she finally loosened it enough to slide over her head. As soon as she was free, she flung it halfway across the yard. She never wanted to see that thing again. She got herself up and took a seat in one of the patio chairs.  She continued to take deep breaths, trying to get as much clean air as she could to get the god-awful scent out of her nose. It was beginning to make her sick.

What on earth had she been thinking? That had not been one of the brightest moments of her life, and a moment she would never forget.

She lifted her shirt and sniffed it. Jesus! It was even in her clothing. As she got up to head inside to take a shower, deep laughter from the right side of the yard got her attention.  When she turned in that direction, there stood Dino laughing hysterically. He was laughing so hard it looked like he couldn’t breathe. Once he finally calmed down and wiped his eyes, he said, “I was gonna come help, but every time I started to climb over the fence, you’d cough and set it off again, and then I would start laughing and I couldn’t make it.”

Her face felt like it was on fire. She was so embarrassed.  Feeling flustered and out of sorts, she didn’t know what to say or do, so she just flipped him the bird and stomped into the house to get a shower so she wouldn’t smell like a freaking Tiki Torch.

After she shed her clothes, she threw them into a separate pile to be burned because there was no way she would get the smell out of those things. As she stepped into the shower, she thought of some valuable lessons she learned. Number one, don’t fill the collar before trying to set it off—not that she would ever be trying that again. And number two, remember your neighbor is not a good source of help in a comedy crisis situation. On the plus side, she probably won’t have a mosquito problem for days!

She picked up her loofah and drizzled some of her candy apple body wash on it. After ten minutes of scrubbing, she still smelled the citronella. Or it could just be that the smell was now embedded in her nostrils. She wanted to vomit.

She went to wash the loofah out when it slipped from her hand and fell onto the floor. As she bent over to pick it up, the shower door flew open, and she screamed bloody murder. She had flashbacks of the original Psycho movie during the shower scene. Everything was a blur, and she tried to scramble away from Norman Bates, who was coming at her with a knife. She didn’t make it far because she ended up slipping on the damn loofah, she had been trying to pick up in the first place. She closed her eyes, waiting to feel the impact of the tile below her, but it never came. Seconds later, she realized the rock-solid arms holding her up had saved her from busting her ass a second time in the same day.

◆◆◆

After talking with Arianna earlier, Dino couldn’t get her off his mind. He thought doing some manual labor around the house might deflect some of the thoughts, so he headed out to the backyard to stack some firewood that had been delivered a few days ago. He was on the last few pieces when movement over in the yard next door caught his eye. He knew it was her—the woman who had become the lead role in his dreams at night.

He tried to ignore her presence because he knew that he’d want to talk to her if he saw her. He stacked the last piece of wood before loading up his arms to take a few pieces in the house. When he turned to head inside, he couldn’t stop his wandering eyes, and what he saw her do next almost made him drop the load of firewood in his arms. She had a black choker or some type of collar in her hand, and as she placed it around her slender neck, he found himself unable to look away. At first, it turned him on, thinking she was into a bit of kink, but what happened next had him laughing so hard that he actually shed a tear.

Seeing that she was struggling with the gadget around her neck, he set the stack of wood down.  Just as he was about to hop over the fence, she coughed again, and the damn spray shot her in the face again, making her cough even more. It must’ve blinded her as well because then she tripped over the chair next to her and fell square on her ass. After struggling with the device, she finally got it off and tossed it out into the yard. He couldn’t hold back his amusement any longer and roared with laughter. He laughed so hard his stomach hurt, and his eyes filled with tears.

When he got himself under control and glanced back at her, she stood there glaring at him.

He couldn’t help the amusement he found in her misfortune. “I was gonna come help, but every time I started to climb over the fence, you’d set it off again, and then I’d start laughing and couldn’t make it.”

When she gave him the one-finger salute and stormed into the house, he almost lost it all over again, but when he saw her put her hand on her hip and rub it, he sobered pretty quickly, realizing that she could have hurt herself.

Amusement set aside, for the time being, he hopped over the fence and climbed the steps to the back porch. When he tried to open the sliding glass door, it wouldn’t budge. At least he knew she was careful about her safety. Although sliding glass doors weren’t the best type of door to have because all someone had to do was break the glass. Even with the latch in the locked position, the door itself was still penetrable. But in Anna’s case, she at least had a blocking bar in place at the bottom of the door.

He knocked on the glass but got no answer. He knocked again, and this time he was greeted by a large blueish-grey dog. When the dog barked, Dino took a step back from the door. The dog stopped barking, then sat down and stared at him with his tongue hanging out and his tail wagging. He didn’t know she had a dog. She never said anything about having one, nor had he ever seen it outside. He waited another minute or two, seeing if she would come to the door, especially hearing the dog bark. When she never showed Dino became even more worried that she could be hurt or sick.

He wasn’t about to break the glass, so he jogged around to the front of the house. He stopped at his car and pulled his lock, picking tools from his bag. He tried to be as quiet as he could as he made his way up the front steps to the front door.  Within seconds he had her piece of shit lock picked and slipped inside. He waited, listening for any sign that the dog had heard him.  The house had an open floor plan so he could see into the kitchen where the slider was, and he saw the dog’s tail. He chuckled to himself when it was still wagging.

Being careful to avoid being detected by Cujo, he cleared the main level. As he started up the stairs, he heard the tap of the nails on the tile floor, indicating that the dog was on the move. He double-timed it up the last few steps. There were four doors to choose from. One directly in front of him, which he could see was a bathroom, two doors to the left that were closed, and then a door to the right at the end of the hallway that was opened. He chose door number four, the opened one, and went to the right. He made it to the doorway and heard the shower running in the adjacent bathroom. He breathed a little sigh of relief, knowing she at least made it there, but then he heard her start coughing again, and then she gagged. Concerned, he walked into the bathroom and found her in the large walk-in shower. The room had already begun to fill with steam, but he could still make out her fully naked body through the glass side of the stall.

It was wrong, but he couldn’t help the aroused feeling seeing her curves as the water ran down her body. When she dropped her little purple scrubby puff and bent over and her ass pressed against the glass, he lost all control of his thought process. In two long strides, he was at the shower and yanked open the shower door. He wasn’t expecting the blood-curdling scream nor for her to lose her balance. She was headed for the shower floor when he rushed into the shower and snagged her around the waist, hoisting her up before she went all the way down.

She surprised him when she tried to throw a punch in his direction. Fortunately, he had good reflexes and was able to duck under her swing. He grabbed her arms and held them by her sides as he pressed his front against her backside.

“It’s just me, Anna,” he said as they both stood under the warm spray of water.

Slowly she turned in his arms, and when she tilted her head back, and he saw the fire in her eyes, he knew he was in a heap of trouble.

◆◆◆

Arianna was startled yet thankful for her savior’s timing. Hitting the tiled floor would have hurt like hell. Her left hip was already sore from her earlier debacle outside. Then the added embarrassment knowing he saw the whole thing and had laughed at her reignited the fire within her.

“What are you doing in here? How did you even get into my house?” She fired the two questions off, ignoring the fact that she was naked as a jaybird.

She’d give him some credit. At least his eyes never wavered from hers. Most guys in his shoes would be looking at anything but her eyes.

He snorted a laugh. “I’ll be buying you a new lock for your front door. I had that thing picked in no time.”

“That doesn’t answer my question. Why are you here?”

His facial expression softened, and his body pressed closer. He moved his hands and placed them against the wall on both sides of her head. She felt like a lioness being caged in.

“I felt awful for laughing at you. After you went inside, I realized you could’ve been seriously hurt. I came over to check on you, but you didn’t answer the door when I knocked, and I got worried.”

She stared up into his eyes, trying to determine if he was telling the truth. How could she be mad at him when he came and checked on her because he was worried? She wanted to be angry, but was it for the wrong reason? Could it be because she actually felt something for him, and that was what she didn’t want to happen, so she was making excuses?

“Anna?” He said, pulling her out of her head. She still didn’t correct him on her name. She looked at him.  “Are you okay?” He asked as his hand traveled down her body to her hip that she had fallen on outside. He gently caressed her skin as he waited for her to answer.

His touch was distracting in a good way. Why she felt utterly comfortable standing before him naked confused her; was it because, for the last two years, she was used to having to do wardrobe changes in front of strangers? Or was it because he made her feel that way? She never had a one-night stand before. But she had always assumed that with encounters as such, the two people involved didn’t have much interaction, if any, afterward. In her opinion, it would seem awkward. But with Dino, she felt anything but awkward or uncomfortable. In fact, she was very comfortable standing in his arms in her birthday suit. And that brought her back to the original question—why?

She shook her head, and he chuckled low. “You don’t know if you’re, okay?” He asked, his voice laced with amusement.

“I think I’m okay, but I don’t know if I can get the smell off of me.”

“Let’s see what we can do about that.” His mischievous eyes held hers. “Do you trust me?” He asked.

For some unknown reason, she knew he was someone she could trust, and she nodded.

“Turn around and close your eyes,” he ordered.

She raised one of her eyebrows in question, and he raised one of his in return. Remembering she had told him that she trusted him, she turned slowly and faced the tiled wall. As she took a deep breath, she closed her eyes. It felt like an eternity before she felt his large hands sweep over her shoulders, making her body shudder. He continued down her back, following her spine and then back up, stopping at her shoulder blades. Using his thumbs, he kneaded the tight muscles. She wasn’t sure how this would help her get rid of the smell, but she’d take a massage any day of the week. He increased the pressure, and she began to feel the tension leave her body. Feeling more relaxed, she placed her hands against the wall in front of her and let her head drop forward. His masculine hands moved down her body until they reached her calves. He took his time massaging each leg, moving higher until reaching her upper thighs. By then, she was not only relaxed but stimulated. The sexual intensity was building inside her. The moment his firm hands touched her inner thighs, she thought she might detonate. She tried holding her breath, but it was no use. She couldn’t take the torture any longer.

“Dino,” she said, keeping her eyes closed. He dropped his hands from her legs and she felt the instant loss. Just as she thought the moment was over, she felt his warm breath against her neck.

“What do you want?” He whispered. His voice sounded sexy. It was deep, low, and dominant, and it sent tingles all through her body.

Oh hell! She thought to herself, and she squeezed her thighs together. Her body started to tremble because she was on the brink of exploding.

She didn’t answer right away as she tried to ward off the sensations taking hold of her. His hands gripped her shoulders, and he began to turn her around. She kept her eyes closed and her head down. She heard him chuckle softly before he used his finger to lift her chin.

“Look at me, Anna.”

Her eyes opened slowly. His dark blue eyes were more pronounced as they bored into hers.

“Tell me what you want,” he asked her again.

She lifted her hands to his chest. When she felt the skin and the slight dusting of hair beneath her fingertips, it had surprised her. When had he removed his clothes? She took a quick peek and was happy to see he was on the same thought process as her as she admired his unclothed body. He wasn’t built like a bodybuilder. His form was more lean, similar to a swimmer’s body type.

Her eyes traveled back up his body, which was met with that sexy smirk that drove her nuts. Her traitorous hands went right to his abs. She ran her fingers over the dips and peaks of the muscles up his chest to his shoulders before she cupped his cheeks.

“I want you.”

“I want you too,” he declared and wrapped his arms around her waist.

She focused on his eyes. During her time undercover, she had learned to read people by their eye movements. The way Dino’s eyes held hers told her that he was thinking something else, and that nagged at her.

“What aren’t you saying?” She found herself asking.

“Anna, you seem like a really great woman with a lot of great qualities. Qualities that I would most definitely look for if I were in the market for a steady girlfriend. But I’m not looking for that. I don’t want to lead you on, and ultimately you get hurt.”

She loved his honesty and understood completely what he was saying as she felt the same. She still had the mess back at the agency she had to get through, and until she knew more about the outcome stemming from that, she wasn’t even sure what the future held for her.

“It’s obvious we’re both comfortable with one another, although I find that strange, seeing as we’ve only known each other for three days. But life can throw curveballs at any given time, so it is what it is. We both want the same thing—company with no strings attached. Why can’t we just be friends with benefits? Or in our unique case, neighbors with benefits?”

“Are you sure?” He asked with a serious expression.

“Positive.”

“If we agree to this, we both need to promise that we’ll be honest with each other if either of our feelings changes in any way?”

She smiled softly and pulled him snugly against her body before she kissed his chin, then his neck, and ending at his ear. “Understood.”

Arianna wasn’t sure how he managed it, but one second her feet were on the floor, and the next, she was hoisted into the air. She straddled his waist as he pressed her back against the shower wall and swooped in and kissed her deeply. She ran her fingers through his thick, black hair as she kissed him back, trying to ease the hunger within her.

“I need you now,” he told her as he dipped his head and licked across her breasts.

“Take me,” she pleaded, then she kissed his neck.

He reached between her thighs, and she anticipated his penetration. Before she could take her next breath, he plunged into her, filling her.  She closed her eyes and laid her head back against the wall as she let him work his magic on her. She was just along for the ride, and damn, was it a good ride.

“Jesus, you feel amazing,” he admitted as he stroked into her, alternating his pace from quick to slow.

Her thighs began to quiver, and her breasts started to tingle as the water splashed between their bodies. She was strung so tight. She felt her climax start to build. She wanted—needed him deeper, and she began to counterthrust.

“Oh, God. Please, Dino. Don’t stop,” she panted and moaned.

“So, fucking good,” he called out before he buried his head in her neck. He increased the speed of his thrusts and penetrated her deeper, making her lose her breath.

She felt him start to tighten up. His moans grew louder, his pace quickened, and she felt that familiar flutter sensation hit her belly and knew she was there. He reached between them and pinched her nipple at the same time he slammed into her, and she flew off the edge like a bird taking flight. She felt like she was floating. Her eyes closed, and she relished in the aftermath. Dino soon followed, squeezing her tight as he rode out his release.

He kissed her neck and cheeks before moving them both under the water as they calmed their breathing. She clung to him, not wanting the moment to end.

Suddenly she felt him tighten up, and he quickly pulled out of her and lowered her feet to the floor.

“Shit!”

“What?” She asked, looking around, wondering what was wrong.

“I’m sorry,” he admitted and gave her a deadpan look.

“Sorry about what?” She asked, now believing that something was indeed wrong.

“No condom.”

“Oh!” Her eyes widened.

“Fuck!”

She took hands and held him still. “Dino, look at me.”  When she looked up into his eyes, she could see the remorse and worry. “It’s fine—” she started to say, but he cut her off.

“It’s not fine, dammit. That was irresponsible of me.”

She gave him a soft smile. “First, it was both of our faults, and second, if you had let me finish, I have an IUD. I’m clean, considering before we had sex the other night, I haven’t been with anybody in about three years.”

The look he gave her almost made her laugh.

“You’re joking. The part about not being with a man in three years.” That was all he said, and that time she did snicker.

“No joke. I’m assuming since you’re in the military, you’re tested often.”

He nodded, but she could still see the concern in his expression, and she respected him for that. Like he had told her, Dino himself had many qualities that she looked for in a guy. It really was a shame, but she knew this situation was only temporary. That was what they had both agreed to. Part of her knew this arrangement could come back to bite her in the ass, but taking one look at his roped body, she’d take her chances—her feelings be damned. She would deal with any consequences later.

◆◆◆

Dino kept wondering what was going through Anna’s mind as she looked his body over.  He was in shape.  He had to be for the sake of his job.  But he also took care of his body. He tried to eat healthy when he could and stayed away from junk food for the most part.

He turned the water off and grabbed a towel off the hook, and handed it to her before grabbing one for himself. As they stepped out of the shower and started to head toward the bedroom, he stopped her and turned her to face him.

Using his thumb, he caressed her lower lip then placed a kiss on her forehead.

Her smile was infectious. “You’re pretty good at making a woman feel special.”

“Growing up, I was taught to respect a woman.”

He bent down and grabbed his wet clothes from the floor. “Can I use your dryer?”

“Sure. I can make us something to eat while they’re drying. That is if you don’t have any plans.”

“That sounds nice. I don’t have anywhere to be until later.”

After they both dried off and changed, Arianna whipped up some burgers and onion rings. Thankfully he didn’t have to sit around in a towel until his clothes dried. Arianna had found one of her dad’s old t-shirts and a pair of sweat pants. She hadn’t a clue how she had them, but all that mattered was that they fit him. At first, he felt awkward wearing her dad’s clothes when his were wet because he had fucked his daughter in the shower.

At least she was happy now that she no longer smelled like a walking mosquito repellent. When she told him the whole story about the collar, he laughed all over again.

They sat at the island that separated the kitchen from the living room. Dino took the last bite of his burger then looked down at the large animal sitting between him and Arianna.

“What is that thing?”  He finally asked.

“That ‘thing’ is Nigel, and he is a mixed breed. They think he’s a crossbreed of Great Dane and Lab.”

She scratched the pooch behind his large ears while making kissy noises.  “Nigel is such a good boy, aren’t you, buddy?”

For the first time in his life, he wished he were a dog. Shaking that thought from his brain, he asked, “What made you want a dog?”

“I don’t know.  The house felt lonely, and I always wanted one.”

“Where did you find him?”

“That shelter just across town.  There’s a vet clinic there as well.”

Dino wondered if that was the same clinic and shelter that his buddy Stitch’s wife Mia had just purchased.

“What’s the name of the place?”

“I can’t remember, but I think the vet’s name is Dr. Chambers.”

“Yeah, okay, I know that place. That’s my buddy’s wife’s place.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. She just bought it a few weeks ago.”

“Small world. Grace, the manager of the shelter, said that there had been a recent change in ownership.”

Dino took her plate and his to the sink and rinsed them off. “Do you have any plans tonight for Christmas Eve?”

“I do. I’m spending it with my dad.”

That surprised Dino. “Your dad lives in town?”

“Yeah. It’ll be a surprise. He was under the impression I wasn’t going to be home until a few more days. What about you? Any plans?”

“Not tonight. Tomorrow I’m hanging out at a friend’s house.”

“That’s cool. At least you won’t be alone. I know it’s hard for those in the military to make it home for holidays. There were a lot of holidays and birthdays that my dad missed.”

“Yeah. It can be tough.” Though in Dino’s position, he didn’t have to worry about if he’d make it home for the holidays since he rarely spoke to his family.

Dino glanced at his watch and noted the time. He had promised Diego, he’d give him a hand hanging some drywall at his house.

She got up and walked around the island and started to clean up pans from cooking.

“Do you need help?” He asked, and she smiled as she looked over her shoulder. “I got it, but thank you. Your clothes should be dry if you want to grab them.”

He walked to the laundry room just off the kitchen. His jeans were still a little damp, but that was fine since he was just going next door. He quickly changed then headed back out to the kitchen. Arianna was finishing up washing the rest of the dishes.

“You heading home?” She asked, and he nodded.

“Yeah, I promised a friend I’d help him out today.”

She grinned. “Dino, you don’t have to explain why you need to leave.”

“Right.”

He didn’t want to just walk out with a wave. He met her by the sink and pulled her into a hug.

“Remember, you need to find that asinine collar thing and throw it in the trash.”

She snorted a laugh and rolled her eyes. “I don’t even know where it landed when I threw it out into the yard. Remember, we both promised never to mention that again.”

He grinned. He did promise her that, but he wasn’t sure he could keep it a secret forever. It was too funny of a story not to share, at some point.”

He gave her one last squeeze. “If I don’t see you around, Merry Christmas,” he told her.

“Same to you.”