“Oh,” Jackie sighed. “I believe I know what—”
“I don’t mean to barge in.” Tyler said as he walked into the room. “But I thought you might need an extra set of hands.”
The elderly female’s eyes bugged right out of her skull and she made a squeaking noise that came from somewhere in the back of her throat.
There was a hitting noise and when he turned to where the dog was lying on her side, Tyler noticed that she was wagging her tail. Such a sweet dog.
Jackie’s mouth fell open in an all out gape. “What? Why?...Um…I’m not sure you…”
“I’m Tyler.” He threw a wide smile at the older female. Her eyes were wide and her skin was a tad pale.
“He’s visiting from out of town.” Jackie’s eyes were just as wide. “He flew in this morning actually. His…um…his…” She paused. “Bag…yes bag…got lost in transit. There was an accident and his clothes are being…um…washed.”
“Oh.” The elderly female nodded her head. “That would explain your attire or lack thereof.” Her cheeks heated.
The thumping noise grew louder. The dog was panting really hard.
“She”—Tyler gestured towards the dog—“wants to be left alone, but she’s really afraid so I don’t think it’s a good idea.” He looked at Jackie and then at the owner.
“Helen, this is Tyler. Tyler…this is Helen.” The elderly female nodded in his direction, then she frowned. “Do you speak dog or something? How do you know what she wants?”
“Tyler is a dog whisperer,” Jackie blurted. “He’s really good.” She widened her eyes at him, telling him to shut up.
He nodded. “Yep.”
Helen gave him a long, hard stare before her gaze finally softened. “What’s wrong with her?”
Tyler shrugged. “I’m not sure. All I know is that she is in pain and afraid at the same time, it’s like she’s meant to be this way because she’s resigned herself to it.”
“To what?” Helen clasped a hand to her neck. “She’s not dying is she?”
“No, Helen.” Jackie reached over and touched the other female on the arm. “She’s pregnant. She’s about to give birth. I could feel the pups when I examined her a minute ago. That’s why she’s in pain and wants to be left alone. It’s normal.”
The older female made a choking noise. “No. It’s impossible. Queen is only one year old. She’s too young to be a mother.”
“She is really young, but I assure you that she was more than capable of becoming pregnant.”
“Check her again.” Helen shook her head. “She hasn’t been anywhere near a male dog. It’s not possible I tell you.”
Queen whined, once again snapping at her flanks. Tyler could see how her belly was pulling tight.
“She’s having a contraction.” Jackie said, confirming what it was he was looking at. “These puppies are coming, Helen. Somewhere, somehow, a male got in with her. Look at the discharge on her vulva, as well as her nipples. They are pink and distended.”
“I thought she was eating too much. Her belly has been a bit big.” Helen let out a deep sigh. “I told Harold just the other day that we needed to put her on a diet.”
“Her belly is definitely rounded, but it’s not all that big. If you weren’t looking for the changes, then it would be normal to miss them.”
“We thought that she was maturing. We never dreamed…” She clasped both hands over her mouth.
“I’m going to fetch some towels. We need to get her more comfortable. I think that it’s best that we keep her here until the babies come. I don’t think we will have too much longer to wait.”
Tyler took a step forward. “I’ll get them. I saw them in the closet earlier.”
Jackie huffed out a breath and gave him a smile of gratitude. “Thanks.”
Chapter Seven
Helen crouched down in front of Queen, who growled. “Now, now, Queen.” She tried to pet her dog but Queen nipped at her. Helen yanked her hand away.
“She’s in a lot of pain and like Tyler said, she’s really scared right now. It’s probably best if we don’t try and touch her. She’s practically still a puppy herself.”
Helen nodded. Her frown deepened. “I can’t stand to see her like this. I’m worried. Will this be more difficult for her because of her age?”
“There is no need for worry. At this stage everything looks normal. Eighteen to twenty four months is more ideal but at one she is mature enough to handle it.” She gave what she hoped was a reassuring smile to the other woman just as Tyler walked in with his arms full. He had all the towels and an old blanket.
Queen’s tail wagged when she caught sight of him. He moved next to the dog and made a bed using the blanket, which he covered with towels. She was happy that he didn’t use all of them.
“Poor baby.” Tyler put his hand out to stroke her.
“No, I…” Jackie shut her mouth as Queen pushed her head into his hand. She whined softly before licking his fingers.
“Sheesh,” Helen huffed. “He sure does have a way with dogs.” She spoke more to herself so Jackie didn’t respond. She watched as Tyler carefully picked up the retriever, placing her on the makeshift bed. Tyler positioned himself at her head.
“She is going to start pushing now.” His golden eyes locked with hers and she lost the ability to talk for a half a second.
“Okay….that’s good,” she finally blurted. “I need to grab a few supplies.”
She jumped to her feet. First the basics, Jackie fetched some gloves, a bulb syringe and K-Y jelly as well as a pair of scissors. Next she grabbed a pair of forceps, a heat lamp and pad because sometimes a puppy needed a bit of extra help. She put the stuff down in close proximity to Queen before hurrying back to fetch calcium and glucose gel syringes. There was canine milk replacer if need be, but for now she would concentrate on a smooth delivery of the first puppy.
“Hey, Jackie,” Tyler called. “You might want to come over here. There is something happening down there.”
“It’s a balloon thingy!” Helen yelled. “A liquid filled balloon.”
Jackie quickly moved back towards the action. She slowed down as she neared, not wanting to startle Queen who was bearing down.
Jackie stayed back. Tyler gently stroked the fur on Queen’s neck and he made a soft growling noise.
As soon as Queen stopped pushing, the balloon moved back into the birth canal and Helen gave a frustrated gasp. Queen panted for a few beats before pushing hard.
“That’s it.” Tyler made another growling noise. He continued to stroke Queen, who whimpered. The sac slid clear.
“Oh…Oh my!” Helen yelped.
The retriever put her head back and began to lick at the puppy who was moving inside the sac. The bag broke with a gush of liquid. Queen began to eat the membrane. She gave the puppy regular hard licks before moving back to consume the sac.
It was better if Jackie didn’t intervene unless necessary. So far Queen was handling everything like a pro.
Helen giggled. “I can’t believe it. She really was pregnant. The puppy is so tiny. So cute.”
“Yes, he is.” Jackie couldn’t help but to smile as the little one made a crying noise as Queen moved away so that she could lick between her legs.
“It’s a little brindle…I think…” Helen leaned in a little. “The coloring reminds me of the little sausage dog from next door. Little Footlong has the most unusual…wait a minute…that little rascal. How the heck did he get into my yard? How the heck did he manage…” She left the sentence hanging.
Tyler chuckled. “Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Little Footlong obviously had a will of gigantic proportions.” He winked at Jackie and her stomach did an all-out summersault.
Jackie cleared her throat. Taking a deep breath before speaking. “You will be surprised. Dogs have been known to climb eight foot walls, to squeeze through ridiculous spaces. To dig under obstacles. Bitches in heat…” Her cheeks felt hot so she licked her lips b
efore carrying on. “Will crouch down on the ground if a male is much smaller.”
“She is having another contraction.” Jackie watched as ripples passed over Queen’s stomach. “She will birth the placenta soon. Then it could be hours before the next puppy is born. If you want to go home, Helen.”
The elderly lady shook her head. “Forget it. I’m staying right here even though I can see you both have things under control.” She frowned. “You aren’t going to charge me extra for the dog whisperer are you?”
Tyler laughed, the sound was rich and completely catching. She found herself laughing as well. “No. Don’t worry about that. No charge for the dog whisperer.”
“Oh,” Tyler growled. “There will be a charge…only…it won’t be on your account.” He winked at the old woman who swooned and clutched at her chest.
“I’ll bring cookies,” Helen gushed. “And my special Christmas cake.” She winked. “It has an extra dash of brandy.”
Tyler grinned. “Sounds delicious.”
Oh shit. With all the commotion, Jackie hadn’t fed him anything. Tyler was probably starving. The festival was due to start soon. “You don’t have to stay. I know you had plans for this evening.”
“You would be right,” he growled.
Her heart sank so quick that she was sure it made a clunking noise in her chest.
“The festival is not one of them though since my plans have changed. I’ve spelled them out to you. Do you need me to go over them with you again…just for clarity sake?”
Jackie swallowed hard. He had mentioned something about making her come a few times before having sex with her. Then there was something about a nap and even better sex. “Um…” She choked. “You don’t have to. I think I remember.”
“Good, because I’m looking forward to it.” Tyler put his hand to his nose. He smiled, keeping his eyes locked with hers. Oh god! She almost fainted as she realized what he was doing. He was actually sniffing the fingers that he’d used to touch her…intimately.
****
Four hours and two more puppies later…
Queen had given birth to the last puppy exactly two hours ago. After the first puppy, the placenta had followed and then another puppy directly after. Then after one hour and forty-five minutes, she’d delivered puppy number three. Two males and one female. The males were brindle and the little female was not only bigger but golden just like her mother. They were all strong and healthy. Once they dried up and fluffed out, it was clear to see that the males were little Dachshund replicas, just like their father. Footlong from next door had been a busy boy indeed. Jackie shook her head while looking down at Queen and her brood, who were sleeping peacefully, as was Helen.
“I think she’s done.” Jackie tried to suppress a yawn and failed.
“I told you that an hour ago.” Tyler turned his gaze to her. His eyes sparkled with amusement.
“We should scan her just to be sure. It’s perfectly normal to wait hours between births.”
“She’s done.” Tyler moved over to her, taking her hand in his. “I’m a dog whisperer, I know these things.”
Jackie had to smile, she shook her head. “Dog whisperer. We should hire you, your skills would go a long way. Do you know how often I have wished to be able to understand what animals were trying to tell me?”
“I don’t know…” He squeezed her hand. “You seemed to understand just fine. You knew Queen was scared and in pain. You knew she wanted her space. You didn’t try and reprimand her for her abnormal behavior. I think you did just great.”
“Thanks.” Something inside her warmed.
“You also did a good job of calming me down enough to be able to change back earlier today.”
Jackie giggled, careful to keep her voice down so as not to wake Helen. “You were laying there half dead. I hardly had to calm you down.”
His eyes narrowed on hers. “Adrenaline was pumping. My beast wanted to run. I was working hard to try and calm down. It wasn’t working. I was on the verge of tearing off when you spoke to me. Your voice was soothing. My wolf liked it enough to want to stick around.” His eyes darkened. “If I had run, I wouldn’t have stopped till I collapsed. I may have done serious damage to myself. Maybe you are more of a dog whisperer than you think…or in my case…” He leaned in and kissed her. Soft and sweet. Pulling back almost immediately. “A wolf whisperer.”
Helen stirred and Tyler pulled away.
“Is she having another one?” She wiped her eyes.
“No,” Jackie said. “She’s done. Three healthy babies. They are doing great.”
Helen gave a sleepy smile. The one side of her hair was mussed. “We need to get home.”
“I think that maybe Queen should stay. You can pick her up in the morning.”
Helen looked like she wanted to argue but then nodded. “I won’t come by too early.” She glanced at Tyler and then back at Jackie and gave a knowing smile which made Jackie blush.
“Call me if need be.” Helen smiled. “I’ll keep my phone next to the bed.”
“I’ll keep a close eye on them.” Jackie smiled back.
“I know you will.” Helen smiled even more. They said their goodbyes and Jackie locked the door behind her. Then she went and first double checked that Queen was still okay and that the food and water she had put down earlier were still adequate and in close proximity to the bitch. There were no drafts from open windows. Jackie turned the heat up on the thermostat by a few degrees because the weather report still called for snow. With the puppies snuggled with their mother, there was no need for an additional heat source though.
When she turned around, Tyler was standing in the doorway of her office. He was so big that he took up the whole space. He held the door jamb above his head, he was so tall that his arms were still bent at the elbows between his hands. She swallowed hard as she realized that a sprig of mistletoe was directly above his head. She had avoided being under it with any of her clients, just in case any of them tried to take advantage.
Her scrubs looked obscenely good on him, even though they were way too small. They pulled tight on his thighs and around his—big gulp—package. His abs and chest were ridiculous. His knowing smile was cocky as hell.
Oops!
He’d so caught her checking him out. Jackie took a deep breath, not sure what to do or say. She took a step towards him. The mistletoe seemed to scream at her above his head.
“So…” She said, sounding like a complete loser. “You can still go to the festival if you want.” She blurted while taking another step towards him.
His eyes darkened and his brow creased. “I told you what I want.” He let go of the jamb, letting his arms fall at his sides. Tyler pulled his bottom lip between his teeth. It was full and so kissable that her eyes became glued to the spot. His teeth dented his flesh there.
Jackie closed the rest of the distance between them, putting her hands on his chest and looking up at the mistletoe. “It is Christmas Eve,” she mumbled.
He narrowed his eyes and gave her a half smile before following her gaze to the mistletoe. “What are you looking at? And what does Christmas have to do with anything?”
“That’s mistletoe. It’s a Christmas tradition to kiss someone if you are both under it at the same time.”
His eyes narrowed on hers. “And do you make it a habit of putting up mistletoe and kissing people under it?” There was a gruff edge to his voice. If she didn’t know better, she would say that he looked a little upset, jealous maybe.
Jackie smiled. “Actually, it was my boss who put up the decorations. I had nothing to do with it.”
His gaze darkened up a whole lot more and she felt him tense under her hands. “Did he do it with the intention of getting you under this door so that he could kiss you?”
Jackie had to laugh. “Not hardly. My boss is a woman and she happens to be happily married. This is the first time I’ve stepped under the mistletoe with anyone…ever.”
Tyler grinned. H
is dimples were obscene they were so attractive. “Oh, well then. In that case…” He cupped her ass and brought his lips down to hers in a crushing kiss that had her panting in under ten seconds.
Tyler growled as he broke the kiss. “About those plans we talked about earlier…” His mouth was so close, her lips tingled as he spoke.
“Wait,” she sighed the word. “Aren’t you hungry?…I mean…you must be starving.”
“Yeah, I am,” he growled. “I’m going to feast on your pussy.”
Just like that, she felt her clit throb and her panties go wet. Tyler’s nostrils flared. “I can’t fucking wait.” He picked her up and she put her legs around his hips, rubbing herself against him shamelessly. By the time he lay her down on the bed, she was half way to orgasm and panting hard. “You’re overdressed,” he all but snarled. His eyes were so golden that they seemed to glow.
Jackie pulled her sweater over her head while Tyler unbuttoned her jeans. He growled as she unclasped her bra. “Fucking hell. You are perfect.”
Okay. Freaky. His eyes were definitely glowing. They were also filled with hunger like she’d never seen before. She pulled off her glasses and set them on the table next to the bed.
Her panties were still on but Tyler pushed her down on the bed, using his wide shoulders to hold her legs apart and to keep her down. He shoved the cotton aside. “So fucking wet.” Another low growl, so deep she could barely understand him. It turned her on even more.
His hot breath hit her clit a moment before his tongue laved her. Her back came off the bed and her eyes rolled. It had been so long since she was intimate with someone. His hot mouth closed over her sensitive nub and she all out mewled, trying to move away from the suction. Then his tongue laved her in steady insistent strokes.
“Oh…oh…oh hell.” Her voice was so high pitched that she didn’t recognize it. Her back bowed but his bulk kept her butt pinned in place. The sensation all the more pronounced because she was unable to move.
His mouth closed over her clit for a second time as two fingers breached her opening. They hit the right spot from the word go and the coiling sensation became a tight pull as everything seemed to stop for a split second. She was sure that her heart missed a beat. That everything in her paused, just before the rush of her orgasm hit. She moaned. The sound raw and untethered. His hand continued to pump, his mouth to suck.
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