by Avery Ford
“On the left side we have our cat quarantine rooms and our sick cat rooms. We’ve got a feline leukemia room, and an FIV room.”
“FIV?”
“Feline AIDS,” Celeste explained. “Most of the time it’s symptom-less, but it’s spread through saliva, so we have to keep cats with FIV separated from the others.”
She walked as she talked, heading further down the hall. Arthur followed. They reached a junction in the hallway. There was a short corridor leading to a door to the right, and beyond it, the hall they were already in stretched out far enough for one more room. There was an additional door at the very end of the hall, opposite the door they’d come in from.
“That door on the left.” Celeste said. “That’s where our new dogs and puppies are quarantined. The door at the end of the hall leads to the laundry room — we do a lot of laundry.”
“And the door at the end of the corridor to the right?” Arthur asked.
“That’s the door to the kennels.” Celeste grinned and nodded her head in its direction. “Let’s get going. Just so you know, as soon as I open the door, it’s going to get loud.”
“I’m ready,” Arthur said.
Celeste opened the door.
Arthur wasn’t ready.
The barking was instant, and it was frenzied. There had to be close to thirty dogs kept in the kennels beyond the door, and all of them were on high alert, feeding off each other’s nervous energy.
Arthur winced and held his hands to his ears. He followed Celeste through the door and prayed his ears would adjust soon.
“We sort ‘em by size,” Celeste called over the noise. “All the little guys are in the first few kennels, then the medium sized, then the bigger dogs. The aggressives are all the way at the end.”
The aggressive dogs weren’t the only thing at the end of the kennel. As Arthur’s ears adjusted to the noise and he stopped wincing, he noticed a man standing before one of the very last kennels. Tall, with dark hair and thick stubble, he kept his hands in his pockets casually and stood before the front of the kennel like he didn’t have a worry in the world.
Arthur watched as the chain link fence door shook and bulged as the dog within rammed itself against it, gnashing its teeth and snarling.
The man looked up as though he’d felt Arthur’s eyes on him, and for a second, their eyes met. A chill swept down Arthur’s spine.
The man was gorgeous.
A strong chin and full, but masculine, lips gave shape to his face. His eyes were dark, too, and they bored through Arthur like a corkscrew through cork.
“Who is that?” Arthur asked Celeste, mouth dry.
“That?” Celeste laughed. “Oh, that’s just Dmitri. I’m pretty sure there was something in the waiver about him, too. He never bites… hard.”
A knot rose in Arthur’s throat, and he felt heat rise in his cheeks along with it.
Dogs were definitely better for his heart than pizza, but if Dmitri was half as gorgeous on the inside as he was on the outside, maybe dogs weren’t going to be the best part about volunteering at the shelter.
He couldn’t help but wonder just how hard a man like Dmitri might bite.
Or where.
4
Dmitri
Nothing could have prepared Dmitri for the things those eyes did to him. Nothing.
Sapphire blue, they widened as they looked at him. Something a lot like awe and appreciation crossed the lips south of those stunning orbs, then the young man they belonged to smiled and ducked his gaze. The second he did, it felt like something snapped inside Dmitri. He took a small step back from the kennel door and turned to look at the newcomer in full.
Dmitri had been a volunteer at the shelter since he was ten years old. He knew a fresh face when he saw one.
Whoever the newcomer was, Celeste was with him. At the very least, it meant the kid was going to stay out of trouble.
Kid, Dmitri thought, because the young man with the mop of mousy brown hair at the other end of the hall looked like he might be fresh out of high school, in his early twenties at the latest. He had a pretty face, bright skin, and all the trappings of youth.
It was wrong to want him, Dmitri couldn’t help himself. The attraction was instant, and it was sweltering.
He’d been observing one of the aggressive dogs when Celeste and the newcomer had entered the room, but now he didn’t have a mind for watching for tells. Right now the only thing on his mind was finding out who the newcomer was and figuring out if he was gay.
The hollowness inside him that had been aching and itching since the dog show stopped bothering him. Dmitri took it as a sign.
“Hey, Dmitri,” Celeste said brightly as he approached. She slapped the newcomer’s back. “Look, fresh meat.”
“Hi,” Dmitri said. He held out his hand. “I’m Dmitri. And you are…?”
“Arthur.” The newcomer grasped his hand and shook it, and when he did, chills ran down Dmitri’s arm and shot through his spine. “It’s um, it’s nice to meet you.”
“Likewise.”
“I…” Arthur seemed to be scrambling for words. He dropped his gaze, dodging Dmitri’s eye. “I didn’t know there were any people with Russian blood in Rollins.”
Dmitri held back a frown. Their hands parted, and he tucked his back into his pocket. “I’m actually more Irish than I am Russian. My last name’s O’Hannahan.”
“Oh.” The pitch of Arthur’s voice went up a half step. “So vodka and Guinness then, right? You’re all set.”
Dmitri’s enthusiasm soured. Arthur was his type, but he was still just a kid — probably a freshman in college, still obsessed with drinking and partying. That had never been Dmitri’s scene, and it never would be.
“I’m not much of a drinker.”
“Oh.” Arthur looked to Celeste for guidance, and Dmitri was glad. Physical attraction was one thing, but the kid seemed vapid beneath the surface. Dmitri needed someone with a little more substance than that no matter how much he ached for physical attention.
“You’re here today for a while longer, aren’t you, Dmitri?” Celeste asked. “I was wondering if you could show Arthur around. He’s signed up to take care of the dogs. Who better to show him what he’s going to be responsible for than the man who’s this kennel’s very best dog trainer?”
“You’re a dog trainer?” Arthur asked.
“I’m…” Dmitri sucked in a breath and held it. Getting into his life’s work while all the dogs in the shelter barked themselves hoarse wasn’t his idea of a good time. “Yes, I’m a dog trainer.”
“What do you think about taking Arthur here through the dogs we have, maybe getting him set up with a few and teaching him how to handle them?” Celeste asked. “I’ve got about fifty loads of laundry to do and some phone calls to make. The vet who’s supposed to be doing the next spaying and neutering session left me an ominous sounding email and I’ve got to make sure we’re still on.”
“I…” Dmitri looked Arthur over. When he wasn’t speaking, it was easy to imagine that he was the perfect fit for Dmitri’s life. The problem was the things that came out of Arthur’s mouth when he spoke. “I’m not supposed to be here for that much longer.”
“It’s going to take me like, fifteen minutes to get the laundry started and send out an ‘are we okay?’ email. Fifteen minutes? Please, Dmitri?” She pouted her bottom lip. “It’s not all that much to ask, is it?”
“Fifteen minutes, then. I’ll hold you to it.” Dmitri’s gaze flicked from Celeste to Arthur. He wondered what he should do. It looked like Arthur was another college kid straight out of Corcavia looking to spruce up his transcripts with some volunteer work. In Dmitri’s experience, college kids never invested their heart into their work — not like he did. Dmitri’s whole life had been devoted to canid wellbeing, and it always felt like an insult when someone who knew nothing about dogs waltzed in and acted like he owned the place.
Not that Arthur was doing that just yet, but Dmitri gave
it a few hours. The kid wouldn’t come back after his first shift. Dmitri could almost guarantee it.
“Okay, Celeste. Go start your laundry.”
Celeste clapped her hands together. “Wonderful. Thank you so much. I promise I won’t be long.”
Celeste left, but Arthur stayed behind. Dmitri looked him over like an AKC judge might consider a dog. Arthur was slender, probably a little underfed. It supported the college kid hypothesis. His hair was in need of a haircut, and he had a dreamy kind of look in his eyes that Dmitri couldn’t pin down. It might have been empty-headedness, but there was an equally good chance that it was poorly masked attraction.
“So,” Arthur said. “Are we going to get me acquainted with the dogs?”
“Yeah.” Dmitri turned and gestured with a nod of his head toward the first kennel. The toy breeds were kept there. Most of them were mutts, but there was a small, elderly Shih Tzu amongst them who’d likely only been abandoned because she’d grown too old to make purebred puppies. Cases like hers broke Dmitri’s heart. There were a lot of terrible breeders in the world, and he was proud not to be one of them. “We’ll start you here.”
“Here?” Arthur sounded disappointed. Dmitri didn’t turn to look at him. “They’re all so tiny.”
“Did you come here to help take care of dogs, or did you come here to buff up your college applications?” Dmitri spoke the words more harshly than he should have, but he knew he couldn’t take back what he’d said. Really, it didn’t matter. After today, he’d never see the kid again.
Arthur hesitated before he spoke. “I came to take care of dogs,” he said.
“Really?”
“I don’t know why you’re doubting me.” Arthur stepped around so Dmitri could see him from the corner of his eye. “I’m here to help. This place needs volunteers, doesn’t it? All I want to do is be useful.”
“Then you’re going to start with the toy breeds until you’re familiar enough around dogs that you could take it if an eighty pound German Shepherd took off at full speed while you’ve got him on a leash.”
Dmitri unlocked the kennel door. The dogs on the other side barked and jumped, but did not cross the barrier. They knew better when Dmitri was around. He’d worked on obedience with each of them, and he knew that even when they were excited, they would obey.
“Come in,” Dmitri instructed. “Don’t pay them any attention when you do. Act like you’re not there. You only want to reward them when they calm down so they associate being calm around you with rewards.”
“I don’t have anything to give them,” Arthur said as he stepped through the kennel door.
“Your attention is gift enough for some dogs. Don’t give it until they settle down.”
Dmitri closed and latched the door, then turned to examine the space as the dogs discovered Arthur. At the back of the room opposite the door was a doggy door leading to a small, fenced enclosure where the dogs could go outside to do their business. Small dog beds, hardly bigger than pillows, were scattered across the floor to give the dogs somewhere soft and warm to sleep. There were a few toys, but not nearly enough.
“What do you want me to do with the dogs when they calm down?” Arthur asked.
“All of them need to be walked.” Dmitri watched Arthur and the dogs from the corner of his eye. Arthur listened to instructions and didn’t acknowledge any of the dogs. Gradually, they started losing interest. “You can probably take two of them at a time. When Celeste gets back, she can explain the path we usually take them on. There are a few we use and switch up from time to time in order to keep the dogs engaged.”
“I can do that.”
“I hope you can.”
Arthur said nothing. When the dogs quieted down, he knelt and reached out to pet them. Dmitri relaxed his posture and watched. What Arthur was doing wasn’t wrong, but it wasn’t the best course of action, either.
“When it comes to the bigger or more skittish dogs, you’re going to want to always approach the dogs from the chest level.” Still, watching Arthur lavish the toy breed dogs with affection was a lot more adorable than Dmitri wanted to admit. “Most dogs don’t like to have their heads or faces touched. They learn to tolerate it thanks to human socialization, but they much prefer having their chests stroked.”
“Like this?” Arthur rubbed a Chihuahua right at the sweet spot near the base of his neck.
“Perfect.”
“I can do this,” Arthur declared. “Where can I find the leashes?”
It was a lot of confidence for someone who didn’t seem to know all that much about dogs. Dmitri shook his head. “Stay here.”
“Okay.”
The dogs clustered around Arthur, all eager to be loved. While they did, Dmitri let himself out of the kennel and made his way back to the front of the room. There was a freestanding storage closet near the door heading to the main hall, and he opened it and freed three slip leashes from inside. Once he had the leashes in hand, he returned to the first kennel and handed two of the leashes to Arthur.
“Who do I take out first?” Arthur asked.
“Doesn’t matter. All of them need it the same, and none of the toys fight that I’m aware of. We generally are pretty good about splitting fighting dogs up. Never bring out two dogs from different kennels together unless you have permission.”
“Got it.” Arthur nodded. He slipped one leash onto the Chihuahua he’d been loving on, and the other onto the old, senile Shih Tzu. “What’s the third leash for?”
“I’m taking someone home today.” Dmitri realized a little too late how suggestive that sounded. Arthur blushed. “I do work rehabilitating the aggressive dogs here. There’s one I need to work with so he can go home with his forever family.”
“Oh, um, okay. Do you need me to wait around while you do that, or um, should I wait here and wait for Celeste to come back?”
Conversation between them was so awkward. Dmitri wanted nothing more than to leave so he could get Arthur out of his head. No matter what his body wanted, his head didn’t agree. Arthur wasn’t the one he was looking for.
“Wait here. Celeste will come collect you when she’s done with her email. I need to make sure there are no other dogs when I bring Soldier out.”
“Soldier?”
“The dog I’m going to work with.” Dmitri gestured further into the kennel. “He’s fear aggressive, a little unpredictable around other dogs. I don’t want any accidents.”
“Gotcha.”
Dmitri didn’t think Arthur got him at all, but that was okay. He’d take Soldier home, work with him a little, then pass out and forget today had ever happened. In a few days, he’d forget that Arthur even existed.
Hopefully.
“It was nice meeting you,” Arthur said. He sounded sincere. “Thank you for your help.”
“You’re welcome.” Dmitri let himself out and latched the kennel door behind him. He looked through the chain link at Arthur, and their eyes met again. The same chilling thrill shot down Dmitri’s spine. “Just listen to what everyone here tells you and you won’t have anything to worry about.”
Arthur nodded. His bottom lip parted slightly from his top lip, and for a split second, Dmitri was stunned by how kissable those lips looked.
No. I don’t want anything to do with someone like him. Get Soldier and get out.
So Dmitri did.
He left Locust Hills Animal Shelter behind, but nothing he could do could wrest Arthur from his thoughts.
5
Arthur
Arthur watched Dmitri pass by with a burly looking short-haired black dog. Both man and dog were sleek and powerful, toned and bred for greatness. Arthur had never seen a man as captivating as Dmitri.
But he’d never met one as surly, either.
A few minutes after Dmitri left, Celeste came back. She looked in at him through the kennel door, then barked a laugh. “Did Dmitri seriously kennel you?”
“No.” Arthur’s cheeks heated. “He just told me to wait
here while he took Soldier out. He said that Soldier was fear aggressive and unpredictable around other dogs, so he wanted to make sure I stayed put until you came back.”
“That man.” Celeste tutted as she opened the kennel door. “C’mon now. Out with you. Some of the other volunteers have shown up, so I’m going to go out on your walk with you while they hold down the fort. You take Bear and Poopsie and wait for me by the door, okay?”
“I get a feeling I’m going to be doing a lot of waiting here,” Arthur said as he did as instructed.
“Nah. It’s just your first day. You’ll warm up to us eventually.”
Celeste retrieved two more slip leashes, then selected two of the dogs from the kennel. Only two remained behind — a tiny runt of a terrier and a wiry haired dog Arthur didn’t recognize. Celeste had two Chihuahuas with her. It looked like they were a popularly abandoned dog.
“There’s a back door entrance here,” Celeste said, pointing at a spot by the last of the kennels. “Most of the time we don’t use it when we’re walking the smaller dogs because we’ve got to go past the aggressive dogs to get to it. But just so you know, in case you ever need it.”
“Thanks.” Arthur followed her down the hall and back into the lobby. There were more bodies there now. A girl sat behind the desk, sorting papers and tending to clerical matters. Another cleaned up the lobby.
“Fresh meat?” one of them asked.
“You know it. This is Arthur.” Celeste smiled. “Arthur, Jessica is the one behind the counter, and Nikki is the one cleaning. They’re good people.”
“Don’t let Celeste scare you off,” Nikki said. “Locust Hills is actually a really fun place to volunteer once you can get past the adjustment period.”