by Grey, S. R.
He loves that I’m so pumped, but since I haven’t mentioned what went down the other night with Sten, he’s naturally confused.
“What’s brought on this renewed interest in learning to fight, Chloe? You haven’t been to the gym for a while.”
We’re stepping into the boxing ring, and I’m already bouncing on my toes, taking pretend shots at my brother. “Nothing, dude,” I reply. “I’m just excited to get back at it.”
Graham crosses his arms over his massive chest and stares at me. “Don’t bullshit me, Chloe. Something triggered this.”
I quit juking and jiving, knowing it’s time to come clean.
“Okay, okay. There is something I need to tell you.”
I proceed to fill him in on everything that happened, sparing no detail.
“And you’re just telling me this now!” he exclaims once I’m finished. “You should’ve called me right away. In fact, you should’ve called me before the police arrived. I would’ve liked to have had a few minutes alone with that worthless ex of yours.”
“I’m sure you would have, Graham, but that would’ve ended with you in trouble too.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right.”
Pulling me in for a brotherly hug, he says softly, “I’m just happy you’re okay. That fucking Sten was the stalker, huh? I had a feeling. Thank Christ he’s off the streets. He can’t harm you ever again.”
I sigh and take a step back, not as confident on that last.
“He couldn’t make bail, so we’re good for now. Let’s just hope the judge throws the book at him.”
Graham assures me, “I’m here for you, Chloe. I’ll testify if you need me to.”
“I know that, Graham. And I really appreciate how you’re always here for me. You’re the best brother ever.”
He really is the best brother. And he’s an amazing teacher. I tell him as much, and I let him know that the moves he taught me helped me subdue Sten.
“They really do work,” I marvel.
“They sure do,” he agrees. “But there’s a lot more you can learn.”
I start bouncing again like a prizefighter, fists up.
“Well then, I guess we better get started.”
When I return from the gym, wow, am I ever sore! Graham did not go easy on me. But that’s good. I want to feel empowered, like I really did work out and learn something.
Dylan is still at practice, so I head upstairs to take a long, hot bath.
My phone buzzes on the way, and since I don’t recognize the number, I answer with a tentative, “Hello?”
A gruff voice inquires, “Is this Chloe Tettersaw?”
“Yes.”
“This is Officer Willet, ma’am.”
Ma’am? He makes me feel so old. Maybe it’s just police protocol, like a formality. But then again, maybe it means something more serious is afoot.
Suddenly worried that the charges against Sten are about to be dropped, or something equally awful, I ask, “Is everything okay?”
“All is fine,” he replies. “I’m not calling for any bad reason. I just have a question.”
“Oh, thank God,” I breathe out, relieved.
Clearing his throat, he says, “So I was back at your old apartment this morning, checking on some details for my report, and I came across a rather friendly creature.”
“A rabbit?” I question, hopeful.
“Yes.”
“That’s Jack!” I exclaim, thrilled and happy. “I was wondering what happened to him. He ran off the other night when all that bad stuff went down.”
“Ah, so he is yours,” Officer Willet murmurs. “I figured that was the case. You’ll be happy to hear then that I apprehended him for you.”
“Apprehended him?”
Laughing, he says, “Sorry, hazards of the job. What I meant to say is I caught your rabbit and brought him back to the station.”
“You caught Jack? You must be like the rabbit whisperer. He usually only comes up to me, and sometimes Dylan.”
“I don’t know about that rabbit whisperer part.” He laughs. “But maybe you’re onto something since catching him was really easy. I just picked up a carrot that was lying on the ground and held it out to the little guy. He hopped right on over.”
“Wow, I guess feeding him really has made him tame.”
Officer Willet sounds perplexed. “Made him tame?”
“Yes.”
But wait, maybe I’ve been right all along and Jack is a domesticated rabbit. Here’s my chance for a second opinion, and from a rabbit whisperer to boot.
“Officer Willet, my boyfriend thinks Jack is a wild animal, a jackrabbit to be exact. That’s why I was saying we tamed him.”
He starts laughing and laughing. Once he calms, he says, “That rabbit isn’t wild by any means, and it doesn’t take a rabbit whisperer to know that. Your Jack is not a jackrabbit. He’s a domestic rabbit, Miss Tettersaw.”
“I knew it,” I state, feeling victorious. Wait till I gloat to Dylan.
“I always suspected he was abandoned,” I go on, “but Dylan kept insisting he was wild. I’d almost begun to believe it.”
“No, no, he was someone’s pet at one time.”
“Well, I’d really like to give him a home, if that’s okay.”
“Of course, Miss Tettersaw, I’d expect nothing less.”
We make arrangements for me to pick up Jack, and I’m so excited that once I’m off the phone I immediately text Dylan with the good news.
Jack is back! I write. And Officer Willet has him.
Great, he texts back. Is it okay for us to keep him then? I mean, even though he’s a wild animal.
And the gloating begins…
He’s not a wild animal. He’s a domestic bunny. I was right all along.
He is, huh? Guess I better stick to hockey.
Aw, worry. You’re still an expert on LOTS of other things, Dylan.
You bet I am. And I’m thinking maybe I need to demonstrate one particular area of expertise as soon as I get home.
Hell, I can’t pick up Jack and get back to the house fast enough.
Like Rabbits
Chloe and I decide that though the Wolves mascot is a wolf—no surprise there—our own personal mascot should be a rabbit. For one very specific reason—we go at it like bunnies all the time.
“It’s perfect,” I declare, after “going at it” in round two of today’s sex-a-thon. “A rabbit as our mascot totally fits.”
“For sure,” Chloe purrs as she’s lying next to me on the bed.
Slowly rolling over onto me, she starts rubbing our bodies together. “Mmm, maybe we should do it again. You know, to celebrate a rabbit being our mascot.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” I murmur as I trail my hand down to cup where she’s hot and always ready for me. “Fuck, Chloe. I can’t wait to get back inside you.”
“So do it now, Dylan.”
She lines up our bodies so I only need to thrust up into her.
Will I ever get sick of this woman? No chance in hell.
Reveling in how lucky I am that she’s mine, I possess her with my cock. I can’t get inside of her deep enough, though, so I flip her over onto her back and slam into her with abandon.
“Don’t stop,” she pants.
“Never,” I rasp.
When Chloe shatters around me, she brings me along with her. Afterward, I collapse onto her, and she holds me, rubbing my back. “I love you,” she whispers.
“I more than love you,” I reply, lifting my head so I can gaze into her gorgeous blues. “I worship you. You’re my life, my love, my Chloe.”
“Aw, Dylan”—she cups the side of my face—“you’re so sweet to me.”
“Always, my love, always.”
It’s true. I’m always going to love her. I know we’re in it for the long haul, and so does she. I will marry this woman, that’s a given. And I hope someday we have children, because if there’s one thing I want in this world, it’s to
be a father. My own dad passed away when I was so young. And the jerk who came after, my horrid stepdad, was a monster.
I just want my chance to be the best father I can be—or at least give it one hell of a shot.
“What are you thinking about?” Chloe asks.
I roll onto my back and rest my arm behind me on a pillow. “Just thinking about our future, is all.”
Teasingly, she asks, “Do you see it being long and bright?”
“Long, for sure.” I chuckle as I peer over at her. “And as for bright, I think as long as we have Area 51 in our lives, that’s a given.”
She swats my arm. “Dylan, you’re so bad.”
“Oh, but you love it, though.”
“I do.”
Clearing her throat, she blows out a breath and announces, “What I’d also love is some food. How long have we been up here in the bedroom, anyway?”
“A long time.” I laugh.
“Well, I’m starving.” Chloe gets out of bed to slip on a robe. “And Jack’s probably hungry too.”
She’s so caring and nurturing to that rabbit. I just know she’s going to make a great mom someday.
Man, the future is really on my mind. And frankly, I can’t wait for it to get started.
Jack Has a Surprise
Soon I am completely settled into my new home. And I find myself in full nesting mode.
But I’m not the only one feeling that way—it seems Jack’s in nesting mode too.
It’s adorable, actually. Dylan has built him a cute little hutch out back, and Jack freaking loves it.
Our rabbit also apparently loves to eat.
“I don’t recall him chowing down on this much at my old place,” I remark one afternoon when Dylan and I are out back with our sweet little pet.
I don’t mention that I’ve also been eating more than my fair share lately. I guess feeling happy and contented makes a person hungrier than usual.
And with that, I take a big bite out of the chocolate candy bar I’ve been working on. But before Dylan notices and starts teasing me about my increased appetite, I quickly stuff the evidence back into the big pocket on the front of my hoodie.
I don’t know why I bother being sly, though. Dylan is preoccupied with adding more straw to Jack’s hutch and not even looking at me.
“Yeah, he is eating a lot more,” he murmurs distractedly.
Walking over to the hutch, I ask, “Hey, what’s up? Why do you keep staring into Jack’s new home?”
Pointing to back in the inside corner, he says, “Check this out.”
I have to step over Jack to see into the hutch, as he’s munching away on grass and makes no move to get out of my way.
Silly bunny.
As I peer into the hutch, I say to Dylan, “I’m not sure what I’m looking for. It just looks like a typical rabbit home.”
“No, no, in the very back, Chloe, look there. Jack’s made a nest with all the straw I’ve been putting in every day.”
“Hmm, there sure is a lot of it,” I murmur as I peer in.
And then I see what Dylan is referring to—behind all the new straw he just added is a comfy-looking mound of straw and grass that has a distinct indented center.
“Aw, it does look like a nest,” I muse, glancing down at Jack, who is still eating. “Wait, do you think Jack looks different in any way?”
“How do you mean?” Dylan asks.
“Is he chubbier than he was, say, even a few days ago?”
Dylan rubs at the scruff on his chin. “Hmm, now that you mention, I think his belly is definitely bigger.”
“Oh, crap, Dylan.”
“What?”
Softly, like the rabbit might hear and somehow understand me, I murmur, “Do you think Jack could be pregnant?”
Dylan starts laughing. “Need I remind you that Jack is a boy?”
“Unless…”
Our eyes meet, and his widen. “Whoa, you think Jack could be a girl?”
“I do. There’s a good possibility we’ve been wrong all along. Our Jack could very well be a Jackie. We never checked, you know?”
“Do we even know how?”
I look down at our rabbit. “Um, maybe we could lift up his little tail and have a peek?”
“Okay, I’ll do it. But what am I looking for?” Dylan asks as he crouches down.
“I guess balls.”
“Are they big on a bunny?”
“Guess we’ll find out.”
But we find out nothing. It’s like Jack knows what we’re up to, and after eyeing up Dylan suspiciously, he hops away.
“Catch him,” I say.
“I’m trying.”
Seems our rabbit, chubby or not, is evasive when he needs to be.
“He has better moves than our top line forwards,” Dylan remarks as he makes an unsuccessful grab for Jack.
The slippery bunny takes cover under a clump of decorative grasses, and I throw my hands up in the air.
“Oh, hell, just give it up for now. He’s too upset.”
“That went well,” Dylan deadpans as he stands and straightens his rumpled T-shirt and cargo shorts.
I roll my eyes. “Maybe we should let a professional handle this.”
“Like a vet?” he asks.
“No,” I laugh. “I meant me.”
He waves his hand in the direction of the grass clump Jack is under and says, “Go for it, babe. Good luck.”
I try to lure Jack out with carrots, but he’s not falling for it. He hops away. But he has to cross a stone path to get to the next hiding place, a thorny shrub.
“Got you now,” I declare when I try to cut him off at the pass.
Ah, but he’s a wily rabbit. He hops to the left, jumps to the right. I try to keep up with him, but land on my ass. “Ouch.”
I haven’t fallen like this since my ice-skating lesson, and as Dylan helps me up, I rub my sore bottom.
“That hurt worse than falling on the ice,” I mutter.
“Poor Chloe, I can always kiss it and make it better.”
“Mmm, maybe later,” I purr.
We ultimately give up on catching Jack to see if he has balls or not. I just end up making an appointment to take him to the vet the next morning.
I do check on Dylan’s balls later, but that’s a whole other story. It involves licking and sucking, and reminding him that he made a promise to kiss my sore ass and make it feel better. He doesn’t spend much time on my butt cheeks, but he does a lot of kissing in a nearby area.
Yeah, we just can’t get enough of each other. Sigh.
The next day, the vet appointment looms. But Dylan can’t go with me because he has practice.
I load Jack into the pet carrier on my own, and then I’m off.
I’m informed rather quickly at the vet’s office that our rabbit is definitely a girl.
And then there’s more—she is indeed pregnant!
“Oh my God, are you sure?” I ask the vet.
He prints out an ultrasound image—yes, they can do that for bunnies—and hands it to me.
“Look there,” he says.
“It’s hard to make out,” I remark as I turn the image this way and that. “But it looks like there are four in there. Is that right?”
“That’s correct,” the vet confirms. “Four little bunnies are on their way.”
“Wow.”
Jack is officially christened Jackie before I leave the vet’s office.
I ask her if she likes her new name as I place her carrier into the car, but she just wiggles her nose at me.
“I’m going to take that as a yes,” I state.
There is one thing bothering me, though. How in the hell did Jackie get pregnant? I never noticed any other rabbits around my old apartment. In fact, I never even saw any others in the entire neighborhood.
Ah, but then I remember—my girl was once in police custody.
“That has to be where you were defiled,” I murmur as I fasten my seatbelt.
&n
bsp; Jackie makes a little sneezing noise, like a dissent, and I peer over at her and say, “Hmm, sounds like you wanted it just as much. Guess bunnies need love too.”
On my way home, I call Officer Willet to get to the bottom of the paternity mystery. He’ll know if Jackie was ever in the presence of other rabbits while in lockup.
After I’m paged through, I get to the point of my call right away. “Was my rabbit in solitary confinement at the station?”
Officer Willet laughs. I think he likes me using police lingo like he does.
“No,” he replies, “yours was in a room with another rabbit that day.”
Somewhat incredulous—really, what are the chances—I ask, “Are there really that many convict rabbits on the loose?”
Chuckling, he says, “Usually, no. We’re generally not even in the animal control business, but that day was unusual. An officer happened to find a rabbit at a crime scene and removed it till it could be retrieved by a humane officer. Since we’re short on space here at the station, we didn’t see any harm in placing the two rabbits together. If I recall, they seemed to like each other quite a bit.”
“That would be a severe understatement,” I murmur.
“Miss Tettersaw, has something come up with your rabbit? A problem of some sort?”
“I should say so,” I exclaim. “That convict crime scene bunny you put in with mine knocked her up.”
“Wait, I thought your rabbit was a male?”
“Clearly, she is not.”
Trying, not very successfully, to stifle a chuckle, he says, “I am so sorry, Miss Tettersaw. We really had no idea.”
“I should sue the city for bunny support!”
“Hell, don’t do that.”
“I’m just kidding,” I assure him.
“Actually,” he begins, sounding like he just thought of something, “this may work out.”
“In what way?”
“Well, my daughter just turned twelve, and she’s been bugging me and the wife for a pet of some sort. A rabbit would work out better than a dog or cat, so if it’s okay with you I’d like to adopt one of the babies once they’re weaned.”
I’m thrilled to have a home for one bunny already, especially with the rabbit whisperer.
“Wow, thanks, Officer Willet. That’d be amazing.”
