by Desiree Holt
I do. And they examine me. And I mean, they examine everything. There is one awkward point where they, ah, measure me. For what, I don’t know. Maybe to see how well hung their new rhino is? I would laugh at the thought if I could.
But after another half hour of examinations and measurements, they give me the okay.
“You’re cleared,” Dr. Chin says. She glances at her watch. “And just in time too. The zoo will be opening its doors in ten minutes.” She beckons me forward. “This way.”
To my relief, they don’t put a leash on me. That would be the ultimate humiliation. Granted, I don’t know why they’d do that—it’s not like a leash would keep me from tearing the lab apart—but I didn’t want that to even be an option. There’s a fine line, I’m realizing, when it comes to being treated like a human and an animal. I’m discovering it, and being led around like a dog is one of them.
Leslie keeps pace with the group as they direct me to the enclosure. She isn’t saying anything, not micromanaging me or really even offering words of encouragement. I wonder what is going through her brain at the moment. Does it always start the same way for every shifter she recruits?
“Right here,” a different doctor says, one who hasn’t said anything up to this point.
We’re at a gray door, with a label stating, “DANGEROUS. RHINOCEROS ENCLOSURE” on it. We’re in the right place.
We wait a few minutes before opening the door. Dr. Chin says that it’s to distract all the rest of the rhinos and bring them to the other side of the enclosure while they’re bringing me in. I can hear my heart beating in my ears the entire time. Dreading this. Wondering what I’m going to see on the other side.
Finally, when Dr. Chin’s walkie talkie announces that they’re ready, one of the zookeepers undoes the padlock and the door swings open.
“Good luck,” Dr. Chin says.
I wish she hadn’t said that. I gulp and I step forward.
A feathery light touch stops me, and I twist my head to get a better look at who put their hand on me. Leslie’s standing next to me with an unreadable expression. This close to her, I realize how much my size dwarfs her. So far, she hasn’t really said anything to me.
But now, she speaks.
“I’ll be right here,” she says. “Just let out a long growl if you need anything, and head back towards this door. Then we’ll figure out how to help you.”
Right. Makes total sense. I realize, for the first time, that I’m terrified.
Finally, she smiles. “You’ll do fine.”
It’s on her words that I set foot in the enclosure. And when I step out, I see the glass where onlookers can see us down here. The other rhinos, curious by my entrance, start trotting over to me. There are six of them, and none of them are white rhinos. I didn’t realize how rare my kind was until just now.
I turn back to see the door close behind me.
I’m now on my own.
* * *
Being a rhinoceros full-time is actually…boring.
I don’t have any way of telling time, but five o’clock, when the zoo closes, comes way too slowly. Basically, all I did was roam around, sleep, and eat the proffered feed. I’m not sure how my stomach is going to react later when I’m a human, but it’s hard going this long without a snack, and I didn’t want to give in and ask for a lunch break.
I’m here to save Grandpa, so that’s exactly what I’m doing.
There’s a lot of people visiting the zoo. There has been a steady stream of people visiting the rhinoceros enclosure ever since it opened. I remember that they had told the public that they were renovating, so it would make sense that people would want to check out the new exhibit.
I just hadn’t been expecting the sheer number of people. Lots of photos, lots of screaming, and lots of people tapping on the glass. I realized after the first hour that I can’t stand the noise and that it causes me to grit my teeth.
That is going to be the worst part about this job.
The other rhinos basically ignore me. They recognize me as one of their own, but they also know that they’re slightly different, so while they don’t give me trouble, they aren’t going out of their way to make friends.
Which is fine by me.
When I hear the announcement for the zoo closing, I close my eyes and let out a huge sigh of relief. Day one down out of who knows how many.
I wince as I hear the pounding again, but this one is more metal, more methodical in its approach. All of the rhinos in the enclosure turn their heads towards the noise, and I see that the zookeepers are putting out dinner for us. I have half a mind to follow them, but then I hear another sound.
“Ryan! Ryan!”
I turn my head and see Leslie standing in the open doorway of the entrance to the enclosure, the entry point where I came in at eight o’clock. I realize, for a moment, just how vulnerable she is standing there. If one of the rhinos recognize that there’s a potential threat in their home, they may charge her.
And at that very thought, this insane, crazy overprotectiveness settles over me, of the need to keep her safe. It catches me off-guard and my throat is dry as I gulp back my challenge to the other rhinos, telling them who’s boss.
I quash it, remembering how she kicked me out of her apartment the morning after and how she’s only here because I’m apparently making her a lot of money. She’s only interested in me for that. Nothing more.
The thought makes my chest ache.
She’s gesturing for me to follow her, grinning widely on those sensuous lips that I remember kissing that night. Again, I need to stop thinking about that, it’s only going to cause heartache for me.
I cast one glance back at the rhinos who are eating, not caring that this petite woman is standing about fifty yards away from them.
Perfect time to run.
I trot back to Leslie, through the open door, and as soon as I cross the threshold, it closes with a loud clang. Dr. Chin and a zookeeper lock up the enclosure, and there’s a huge grin on the older woman’s face.
“How was it?” Dr. Chin asks.
As I’m a rhinoceros, I can only nod. So I do, and the doctor laughs, delighted.
“I’m sure you want to change back into a human,” she says. “Follow us and we’ll get you ready to go home. You did well out there.”
I’m not so sure what I did, other than hang around. But for what they’re paying me and how happy everyone seems, I’ll keep doing it. It would be better if I could get the kids to stop tapping on the glass though.
“You did good,” Leslie murmurs, stirring something inside me. Holy fuck, I turn into an animal, and all my hormones are raging about her and what I want to do to her. I imagine cold showers and wrinkly rhino pussies.
It does the trick. And when Leslie smiles again, it almost undoes my hard work.
* * *
“One day down,” Leslie calls as I emerge from the shower, toweling my wet hair. I have my clothes on, but I haven’t spent long trying to get ready. All I’m going to be doing is heading back to The Drinking Horn, and open up for later hours. It means I’ll be working sixteen-hour days.
Note to self: sleep as much as possible as a rhino.
Leslie appraises me with one side of her lips quirked up. “Not so bad, is it?”
“No,” I say, speaking for the first time since that morning. My voice is a bit rough from disuse.
“And it’s the easiest chunk of change you’ve ever made, I’m sure,” she says, gloating slightly. If it wasn’t to my benefit, I’d be irritated. But as I see it right now, she’s affirming why I’m here.
Do it for Grandpa. Do it for Grandpa.
“Well,” Leslie says, getting up from her spot on the couch, “have a good night, then, and I’ll see you at seven thirty, sharp.”
As she turns to leave, I have to stop her.
“Wait,” I croak, my voice still not warming up. I swallow and clear my throat. “Would you want to catch a drink? You know, to celebrate? It’ll be my
treat.”
“You’re trying to get me drunk? Again?”
I chuckle. “No. Maybe. I don’t know,” I say truthfully. That last part may have gone too far. It may have bared too much of me, even though she already saw me naked earlier today.
She raises an eyebrow, quietly considering my proposition. I’d be lying if I said that I’m not holding my breath for her answer. Then, a demure smile crosses her lips.
“Okay. Sounds good.”
Chapter Six
Leslie
“Definitely trying to get me drunk, you fucking liar,” I slur as I tip the empty margarita glass. That last one was yummy. Maybe one too many. But yummy nonetheless. Ryan knows how to make a cocktail, and he’s been drinking a few with me while he works, making him looser-lipped than normal.
Which I like.
“Maaaaaybe.”
Ryan grins at me with his gorgeous, lopsided grin. Really he should trademark that smile. He could sell it on shirts for tourists in Chinatown. Women and men would go crazy for it and shell out the money.
Hell, I’d wear it.
I blink at that thought. Ugh, here I am, getting too many warm fuzzies about a guy I shouldn’t have any interest in.
We’re back at The Drinking Horn. Not exactly a date, since it’s Ryan’s bar, but I like the quaintness of it and how it’s not pretentious like so many other bars in the area. Definitely not touristy, so I can see why it may be struggling, but it saddens me that it hasn’t found its place with the locals.
I look around and the bar is empty except for Ryan and me. But that also may be because it’s almost two in the morning.
Damn, we have an early call-time tomorrow and I am most likely going to be hungover. Again. Even though Elyse will be back at the office while I’m at the zoo making sure that Ryan is taken care of, she won’t be happy if she finds out. I always need to be a professional.
Except, the very first thing that Ryan and I did when we met was fuck. So I don’t know if I have a leg to stand on as far as professionalism.
“So,” Ryan says, wiping down the counter, “tell me how you got into the shifter-recruiting business.”
I shrug. “What is there to tell? I needed a job and they needed someone to do it.”
“What, they place want ads in the paper?” He looks alarmed and it takes me a moment to realize why: if there are want ads in the paper for “Shifters Unlimited”, that could raise quite a few eyebrows.
Good news is, we have our own cover ups.
“They do have them in the paper,” I giggle, “but you go through extensive screenings before you get the job.” At his skeptical look, I add, “We have our own front to cover up the business. ‘Shifters Unlimited’ proudly sells gear shifters for cars. Our receptionist has to deal with the orders that come in.”
He bursts out laughing, shaking his head, and I can’t help but wish that I could hear that laugh more often.
Get yourself together, Leslie. I apparently can’t trust myself with alcohol around him.
“So you’re not a shifter yourself?” Ryan asks when he’s quieted down.
I shake my head. “Never knew about them. Never knew they existed except in movies and in romance novels.”
He looks at me curiously. “So you read romance?”
“Not recently. Not since my ex cheated on me.”
And, that is the booze talking. Not that I wasn’t already, but I’ve stepped over that professional relationship with him. Again. And that could be very bad for working with him in the future.
And now there’s a sadness in his eyes, pity, and that makes me bite my lip. I don’t want his pity. Then again, I don’t know what I want from him.
“Was that the asshole that was moving out…that night?” Ryan asks quietly. “There were moving boxes at your house.”
I sigh and nod. “Yes. Blake…is all moved out now, thank fuck.”
“What happened?” He leans against the counter to hear me better. This close to me, I can smell his hair gel, his slight sheen of body sweat, and a hint of earthiness, which I don’t mind at all. In fact, I take a deeper breath to relish it longer.
“Blake slept with one of the shifters he recruited.”
“Your ex works at the same place you do?”
“Yeah.” I clip the one word as it hurts to admit it. “Sits about fifteen feet from me.”
“What kind of a shifter was she?”
The question catches me off-guard. As if that really mattered. “Uh, dolphin,” I say. “And it was a ‘he’, not a ‘she’.”
Again, Ryan chuckles. “Well, did you know that dolphins are one of a few mammals to not mate for life?” He winks at me. “So, he’ll get his.”
I don’t know if it’s the booze talking or if I find what he said sexy or if this attraction between us is something real. But I lean forward and kiss him, closing my eyes and swooning with the power of his kiss. My tongue sweeps his mouth and his own tongue entangles with mine. I moan against his lips.
Now that I’m not as drunk, I remember how great of a kisser he is.
The bar keeps the distance between us too great, and I have to break us apart, but not before I groan softly. Ryan watches me with a half-lidded, amused expression
“Really, I was trying to get you drunk,” he says. “And it seems to be working.”
“I figured that. Can we do another shot?”
He takes out two shot glasses and pours tequila to the top, and pulls out two limes. “Bottoms up,” he says, and then we throw them back.
The booze hits my bloodstream right away, and when I look up to see him, there’s a fuzziness to everything. So I’ve crossed that line now.
“Well,” Ryan says, his voice sounding really close to my ear, “if you’re recently single, I imagine you aren’t looking for anything much romantically.” His words are starting to slur too.
“Hell no,” I say, shaking my head, even though every fiber of my being is wanting me to scream, “YES, I WANT SOMEONE TO LOVE.”
But I’m a wreck. I don’t need to rebound into another relationship.
Wait, how did we get on this topic again?
“You and me, both,” Ryan says, crossing his arms. “Because I’m not really looking for anyone right now. Between Grandpa being sick, the bar, and this whole rhino-shifter thing, I don’t think I’ll really have time for myself.”
I blink furiously at him. “Where are you going with this?”
His cheeks redden at my question. “Well,” he says slowly, “for one, we’re both unattached. And for two, we already know that we can both have a good time…”
“Uh-huh?”
He runs a hand through his hair uncomfortably. “I guess, what I’m saying is, I can keep this relationship professional if you can.”
“And what?” My heart is pounding in my chest.
Our eyes meet, and I feel the heat passing between us, the tension and sparks that have been there since the moment I stepped into this bar a few nights ago. The sex was good—no, great—and I know that nothing can happen between me and him, so there really should be nothing holding us back. We’ve already crossed that line, and we already know we like it. It would be a shame not to follow through with it.
“Just sex,” he whispers. “No strings attached.”
It would be a shame not to have some fun. And terminate Blake’s betrayal with one huge zap.
“I can do that,” I whisper, my heart pounding in my chest.
“Can you?”
“Yeah. Definitely.” Because I’d be an idiot to turn him down. Because there’s no way we’d work out, but I need this like I need the air I breathe. “I can’t get into a relationship now. But I want…this…”
He raises an eyebrow. “So that, what, would make us fuck-colleagues?”
I laugh. “I’m your recruiter and your handler. You more or less work for me.”
His eyes sparkle. “I can handle that.”
“Good.”
“Well, let’s ge
t started then.” He comes around behind the counter, to the front of the bar and twists the blinds and turns the OPEN sign around to say CLOSED.
“Wait, what?” I ask, taken aback by his forwardness.
What the fuck did we just agree to?
Ryan casts a sidelong glance back my way. “I’ve had a long day. Been outside for most of it. Tends to be what happens when you work as a rhino at the zoo.” I giggle at that. “What I’m saying is, I could really use a quickie.”
The space between my legs melts from the heat. Oh my God, how could that be so fucking hot?
I nod. “All right.”
He crosses the room, cups my cheeks and kisses me, long and hard. I succumb to him, letting him guide this crazy thing that we’re doing. I can keep my heart out of this, and enjoy it for what it is. For what it has to be.
His tongue is in my mouth and his hands sear my face from the heat of them. My entire body feels like it’s on fire. It wants him in me. I want him in me.
Actions take over any inhibitions I have—never had sex in a bar before, this is a new one—and I start undoing the button on his jeans. His hands go underneath my collar and remove my blazer. My hand finally finds his length and I give a gentle tug. He groans.
“Fuck, that feels good.”
I tug again, and he lets out another groan. I’m glad that I have this power over him. That I can make him want me like nothing else.
Without any further reserve, he takes my blouse and tears it open without bothering to undo the buttons. Buttons fly everywhere and I think I hear the distinct plop of it landing in a glass that’s soaking in the sink.
I don’t mind, because shortly thereafter, he’s undone my bra and has taken one of my nipples in his mouth. I lean back against the bar, giving him full access to me, which he takes greedily.
“So fucking perfect,” he says.
I’m impressed that I could impress a man as gorgeous as himself. “You’re perfect too,” I whisper. “For a rhino.”
Our eyes connect, and the electricity between us is palpable. I want to kiss him but he’s too far away, and, based on the curve of his lips, he knows this. He goes back towards my nipples and makes me cry out when he gives a gentle nibble.