by Sotia Lazu
The dog nuzzled her palm.
“Maybe tomorrow too?”
He gave her puppy eyes.
“Okay, till the New Year tops, ’cause it’s the holidays, but on Friday we’ll start looking for your family.” He had to have a family, ’cause, seriously, who but a ten-year-old girl would name a dog Prince Charming?
He sniffed.
“I bet they miss you. I bet they’re out there looking for you as we speak.” She doubted that was the case. She could easily trace the dog’s ribcage under his thick coat. He was at least twenty pounds lighter than she’d initially estimated; he’d probably been eating poorly for months. Lost, wandering, searching for a place to call home. Alice felt sorry for both him and his people. Whoever had lost him had given up hope by now. “I’m going to take some beautiful pictures of you, and we’ll post them everywhere. Even if your family doesn’t see them, someone is bound to fall in love with you and give you a permanent home.”
She kept petting him until her arm began hurting. She looked at her wristwatch. It wasn’t even eleven yet, but she doubted she had it in her to stay up much longer. And she had to let the cat out.
Prince seemed to have drifted off and Ms. Thing had quieted down, so Alice opened the crate slowly. The feline looked around, then took an experimental step forward. Alice remained still while the cat crawled on her lap and extended her neck so she could sniff the dog.
Prince opened his eyes.
Ms. Thing hissed and arched her back. Before Alice could react, the cat leaped off the couch and up the ledge of the fireplace, scattering some picture frames on her way.
Prince closed his eyes again.
“Nothing fazes you, huh?” She thought the dog smiled. “I may be turning into crazy dog lady after all.”
Alice stayed where she was until Ms. Thing calmed down enough to approach them again. This time the dog didn’t move even when the cat set paw on his belly, and Alice was astounded when the cat curled up between his legs once she’d given his entire length a good sniff.
Alice yawned. “You are in a cuddly mood, I see.”
The memory of the last guy she’d slept with, the one Amanda said she walked in on her having sex with, surfaced to the forefront of Alice’s mind. The guy had been cute, and knew his way around the female body. She wouldn’t have minded cuddling up next to him, but cuddling would have been an odd follow-up to amazing yet meaningless sex.
Her beautiful stranger.
He’d said he’d call, but he never had. She couldn’t blame him. She’d picked him up in the elevator, fucked him on her living room floor—it had been before Amanda had bought her that cool sofa—and kitchen counter, and then walked him to the door, not even bothering to ask his name.
She made a face. Amanda had been right; Alice should have asked for his number. If nothing else, she could be having amazing yet meaningless sex again. On a regular basis, even. Heat flared up her chest and neck, to her cheeks, and her core burned at the memory of his skilled hands caressing her bare skin. He might have been able to pound some holiday spirit into her, if they’d kept in touch.
This was the holiday blues talking. She was the only single person she knew, and was clutching at straws, or in this case the ghost of the most recent guy to share sexy-times with her.
But she’d liked him at the time too. She’d used the elevator inordinately much in the weeks following their tryst, but hadn’t seen him again. And it wasn’t like she could go around asking people in her building if they knew someone matching his description.
It would have been good to fuck away the last few days of the year. Next time she had phenomenal sex, she’d definitely get the guy’s contact info.
If she ever had phenomenal sex again.
She needed to go to bed while she was still a step or two away from full-on self-pity.
Back when she’d still been planning on having a glass of wine and spending the night indulging her fantasies with the vibrator Becca had given her as a gag gift, she’d made her parents’ bed with silken sheets. It was supposed to have been a time of indulgence for her, and she deserved some fun…stimulation, even if she had to provide it herself.
She looked at the animals next to her. Nah, she’d spend the night in her own mini zoo. She wondered if it’d be the cat or the dog who’d have a harder time dealing with the smooth, slippery sheets. Her money was on the dog.
She turned out to be wrong. The moment she set the cat on the bed, the animal jumped to the ground.
“You sure you wanna sleep all alone?”
Ms. Thing didn’t even glance back as she made her way to the armchair by the foot of the bed.
“Suit yourself.”
Alice made sure there were no closed doors between the bedroom and the kitty litter, and then looked at Prince. “Should I take you for a walk?”
The dog shook his head.
Alice couldn’t believe her eyes. “Are you shitting me?”
Another headshake.
“Are you real?” She half expected him to nod, but he jumped on the bed. He spun around himself a couple times, bunching the sheets under him. When he finally lay down, he took up more than half the mattress.
“Oh, no, you don’t.” Alice pulled hard at the covers until she managed to dislodge them from under his big doggy butt, and made herself comfortable next to him. She barely managed to avoid another lick to the face when she cuddled up close and wrapped an arm around him. “Sweet dreams, Prince.”
The dog let out a soft woof in response.
Alice fell asleep with a smile on her face.
He held her to him, turned, and laid her on the pillows strewn around her coffee table. “Watch your head.” Thin laughter lines framed brown eyes so light, they were almost amber.
Her hands found their way between their bodies, to his fly. Blindly, she fumbled with his buttons while he rained kisses along her collarbone. His lips were full—fuller than hers—and soft.
He used his teeth to lower one strap of her top. She hadn’t worn a bra today, and had felt self-conscious when she’d reached the frozen goods section at the supermarket. Now she was glad she didn’t have to wait for his mouth to find her nipple.
He rolled his tongue around it until it ached, his fingers mapping her body except for the part of her that burned for him. He caressed, fondled, licked, and nipped every inch of skin he exposed. He’d only touched her fleetingly below the waist, yet she was bursting with sensation.
She moaned and arched against him at the same time she pushed his jeans down his hips. “I need you inside me.”
He straightened, pulled his jeans back up, and fished his wallet out of the back pocket, before letting them drape around his thighs again.
Alice looked at his cock, jutting long and thick from the opening of his boxer shorts. She reached for him, but he pulled away. “Protection.”
She watched as he ripped the packet open and rolled the condom on his length.
“You know, I can do that using only my mouth,” she said, waggling her eyebrows. This man, this nameless man, made her feel more at ease than she ever remembered being.
“I’ll have to see that to believe it. Maybe…”
She caught herself hoping he’d say, ‘Maybe next time?’ but he didn’t finish his question. Instead, he knelt between her legs.
She thought he’d pull her panties off, but he bunched them in his fist and tugged them to the side, pressing his thumb against her clit.
She gasped.
He smiled.
Silk glided against her naked skin. Alice raised both arms over her head and took pleasure in the luxurious sensation. Feather light caresses of silk down her breasts, her belly, her thighs. Her entire body felt a-tingle, her skin breaking in goose bumps, alive under the soft material.
Her eyelids fluttered open, and for a fraction of a second, she was sure she made out the outline of a man stretched out next to her, one arm folded under his head. He was completely nude, his cock hard and thick
.
She reached out for him, inexplicably unafraid, but found fur instead of the smooth expanse of his chest.
She woke up again, this time for real. She was fully dressed in her pink flannel pajamas, and the only one sharing her bed was Prince, who panted happily when she rubbed his sides.
A dream. One more vivid than she’d ever had before.
“I’m in serious need of a good fuck,” Alice muttered to herself.
Chapter Four
What had just happened?
For a moment, before Alice petted him, he’d been a…man again. Quinn again. Naked and wanting her again.
Again.
How was that…
What triggered it? He needed to know, if he were to repeat it. He was Quinn and he’d been with Alice once, in her apartment. They’d had one of those meet-cutes you saw in movies, only they hadn’t gone for coffee. He’d been balls deep inside her not half an hour after offering to help with her groceries, and he’d decided he wanted to make a habit of it.
But first he had to come clean.
The images in his mind suddenly lost their crispness. Became fuzzy around the edges. He could no longer taste the saltiness at the hollow of her neck—if he ever had. The sensitive skin of his stomach stopped tingling from the touch of her fingertips.
His stomach was covered in a coat of soft fur again, because he was a dog. Nothing more. Memories faded.
Except for Alice.
“Good morning, Prince.” She scratched him behind one ear.
He woofed, leaving behind all thoughts of Quinn.
He was here, with Alice, and he was happy.
Happier still when they went downstairs and she treated him to a ham and cheese sandwich.
“I should get you some doggie food,” she said, filling a big basin with water.
She wouldn’t have said that if she weren’t keeping him.
“Gonna spoil you for the next few days.”
That sounded less promising. He felt like pouting. Did dogs pout? He should know; he was one.
Quinn. He was Quinn. He needed to remember that, hold on to it, if he were to—
That he expected the headache didn’t make it any less painful. White stars burst behind his eyelids, and sharp nails drove into the base of his skull.
An image of a woman’s face, slim and beautiful, with high cheekbones and blue eyes dark as the night flashed through his mind.
It was her.
Who?
The pain intensified. Became all consuming. All he needed to do to keep it at bay was be happy. Be happy and be Prince.
He whimpered.
“What’s the matter, boy? Want more?” Alice sank her teeth in her own sandwich. Behind her, the cat worried her own food, one tiny nibble at a time.
Prince licked his chops and nodded. More food sounded good.
“Eat up, and then you’ll have to go outside to do your business. Hmmm… We’ll need a leash. Unless you can just walk by my side?”
He could do that. Not like he’d willingly wander off, now he’d found her.
He nodded.
Alice laughed. “You’re scary smart, you know that?”
He nodded again, and she snorted tea out of her nose. He loved making her laugh.
She was ticklish. He ghosted his fingertips down her sides, and she let out the most adorably girlish giggle. It was weird of him to find her adorable when he was about to fuck her, but he did. Maybe he should get her digits. Call her up and ask her on a proper date.
There he went, getting confused again. He wolfed down his second helping, wagging his tail the entire time, then went to the front door and waited patiently for Alice to put on her coat and boots.
It was cold outside, but the skies were clear. The rain from the night before had formed frozen puddles that made Alice nearly lose her footing more than once. He walked alongside her, providing support when she needed it. She patted his head and thanked him, and he enjoyed listening to her making plans for the next couple days. Ms. Thing, the cat, would be going home the next day, and then maybe Alice could borrow her sister’s car and drive them to the park.
They spent the day lazing out in front of the television, munching on snacks. Prince enjoyed listening to Alice yelling at the people on the screen, laughing at something he didn’t get, and once tearing up. She petted him or squeezed his paw affectionately, and life couldn’t get any better.
* * * *
The elevator doors were sliding shut behind him, when he heard a woman say, “Shit!”
The voice was deep and throaty, and Quinn—who’d never met a woman he wasn’t interested in—couldn’t resist checking out its owner.
His hand automatically flew to the door hold button, as he turned and took in the tall brunette. Her arms were laden with two large grocery bags, filled to the point of tearing. Dark sunglasses covered her eyes, but the rest of what he could see was rather sparsely dressed. Her shoulders were bare, but for a pair of thin straps he assumed meant she went braless under her top, and a pair of tiny shorts revealed long, toned legs.
“See anything you like?”
His gaze traveled back up her body, to the crooked smile that curved her lips. He matched it with one of his own—the one she had deemed panty-melting. “Just thought you might need some help with these.” He indicated the oversized paper bags.
Her smile widened. “Why, thank you, kind stranger.” She handed her shopping over and used a free hand to take off her sunglasses and place them on her head. The green of her eyes was mesmerizing. A less jaded man could get lost in them.
“Helping damsels in distress is my calling in life.” Especially when said damsels had perfect tits, like the ones stretching the fabric of her flimsy top. Yup, she was braless all right.
“Lucky me, then.” She narrowed her eyes slightly. “Do you live here? I don’t think I’ve seen you before.”
“Nah. Just visiting a friend.”
An hour later he was still with her, enjoying her taste and the way her body opened up to receive him.
“Can I call you?” he asked when she walked him to her door.
“If you want.” She said the words in a flippant manner, but he noticed the blush that colored her cheeks. Odd, after all they’d done together.
“I want. I definitely want.” He stole one last lingering kiss and saved her digits on his phone. For a rainy day, he told himself at the same time he knew he’d call before the day was over. “But what do I call you?”
“Alice.”
“I’m—”
“Till you call, you’re my beautiful stranger.”
Eyes closed, he skimmed his palm along the silken sheets until his fingers met bare skin. He traced the angle of a shoulder blade, the length of her spine, the curve of a taut buttock.
She moaned and spread her legs so he could dip his fingers between them. She was wet for him. Inviting. He slid a finger inside her, felt her contract around it. Her body was greedy. It wanted more.
He pushed in a second finger and began pumping them slowly, absorbing every little hint of a response. Her breath came out in short little puffs. Her back arched incrementally, as if she didn’t want to show him how much she craved his ministrations.
He could tell. He felt it in the angling of her hips, allowing him better access.
He opened his eyes and looked at her. She was on her stomach, face turned his way, eyes screwed shut, as if she stubbornly refused to look at him.
“Open your eyes,” he whispered. “Look at me, Alice.”
The moment her green gaze met his face, he stopped touching her—and not because he wanted to.
He no longer had fingers, and his paws were folded neatly under him. He was a dog, curled up next to a woman who was no longer naked. He’d never touched her. He was a dog, who dreamed of being a man.
But why was Alice so flushed? She looked bewildered. Could she have shared his dream?
What dream?
He was Prince, the dog.
<
br /> And he was running out of time.
Chapter Five
Alice caught herself humming “Jingle Bells” and snorted. She would not give in to the stupid holiday spirit, no matter how contagious it was or how unexpectedly upbeat her mood was.
Two nights in a row he’d come to her.
The same man. It had been the same both times. Even if she hadn’t been able to discern his face, she’d recognized his touch.
She always would.
The rough fingers that had driven her crazy with the lightest of caresses. The lines of his body—wide chest, broad shoulders, muscular thighs. But most of all, his scent: dark and musky, full of promise, it made her think of long nights by the sea.
Or one short afternoon in her apartment.
Right now, the room smelled only of dog. Prince was watching her, tongue lolling out of his mouth as he huffed short breaths right in her face.
“Eww. Do they make toothpaste for dogs? We should look into that if you’re gonna be sticking around.” It was swiftly becoming a possibility. He seemed so smart, she wouldn’t put it past him to manage to stay under the radar in her apartment building.
Prince wagged his tail and gave her a doggie smile. It was worth the doggie breath.
The morning passed in a blur, until Becca showed up a little before one.
“Oh my God! Who’s this adorable guy?” Becca shrieked when Alice got the door, Prince next to her.
“I think he’s my Christmas present.” Alice had meant it as a joke, but she realized it was sort of the truth. Ms. Thing had kept her company too, but with Prince around the house, Alice had forgotten to feel lonely. She’d nearly forgotten to hate the holidays.
“Present? From whom?” Mindless of her short skirt, Becca knelt in front of the dog with surprising ease. “Aren’t you precious?” She scratched his ears with both hands, and Prince seemed completely enamored with her. Curvy, bubbly, and straightforward, Becca always had that effect on males—of all species, apparently.
“The universe? I think it finally decided to make up for all the crap it’s been throwing my way.”