{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0\deflang1033{\fonttbl{\f0\fswiss\fcharset0 Arial;}{\f1\froman\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}} {\stylesheet{ Normal;}{\s1 heading 1;}} {\*\generator Msftedit 5.41.15.1503;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\keepn\s1\sb240\sa60\kerning32\b\f0\fs24 Lupine Dreams---Chapter 6 Author: Islador\par \pard\kerning0\b0\f1\par \par \pard\nowidctlpar\f0\fs20\par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj Pacing her truck down the mountain wasn\rquote t difficult for him. His sleek, gray form veered around the trees without disturbing a branch. There was something to be said for being an otherworldly monster with almost limitless strength and a speed that couldn\rquote t be matched by any animal on the planet. She wasn\rquote t driving as fast as she could, but she wasn\rquote t taking her time, so he didn\rquote t interfere. They made it down the mountain and turned southeast at the fork. \par \par They traveled for another few miles and had almost made it back to the main road when headlights appeared ahead of them. She slowed down as the other vehicle approached, trying to get off to the side so that the other vehicle could pass by on the narrow dirt road. When the approaching vehicle was about fifty yards in front of her truck, it swung sideways, blocking her path. She hit the brakes and laid into the horn. She managed to stop just a few yards short of the other truck. Two men jumped out, both were wearing holstered handguns. They approached her truck; one of them had a large flashlight and he turned it on, shining it into the cab and over the back of the truck.\par \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720 She rolled down her window and shouted, \par \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj\ldblquote Are you crazy? Who do you think you are?\rdblquote \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj The one with the flashlight didn\rquote t answer her, but turned to his buddy. \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj\ldblquote Hey, Bob! She fits the description but there ain\rquote t no wolf in that truck.\rdblquote\par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj\ldblquote What are you talking about? Of course, there\rquote s no wolf in my truck. Now, would you \i please\i0 get your truck out of my way?\rdblquote \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj The one with the flashlight still ignored her. \par \par \ldblquote What do you think, Bob?\rdblquote \par \par Bob was looking all around the truck and into the woods. Since he didn\rquote t have a flashlight, he really couldn\rquote t see much. He finally looked at his buddy. \par \par \ldblquote Fuck it, Tim. Let\rquote s get out of here. I don\rquote t like doing this. Screw Scott! That asshole! I think that shithead made up the whole story so we would help him stop her so he could fuck her. Screw that shit! Let\rquote s go back to the bar and get another beer.\rdblquote \par \par With that pronouncement, they got back in the truck, backed up and left the way they came. Nikki sat there, stunned at the idea that the ranger would have actually sent someone after her.\par \par \ldblquote Well, thank God for drunk stupid dickheads who couldn\rquote t find their own ass with a flashlight and a gun!\rdblquote\par \par She heard a rumble off to her left and she turned towards the noise. All she could see were two fiery red dots floating above the ground. They winked one at a time at her, and then disappeared. It gave her the shivers to think that those were the eyes of her lover. She rolled the window back up and started the truck down the road. She kept the truck at a fairly good speed, but she didn\rquote t want to leave Dagomarus behind. \par \par When she saw a flash of gray appear in the headlights several yards up in front of her, she knew she didn\rquote t have to worry about it anymore, so she sped up. She made it to Teton Canyon Rd. without any further interruptions; turning left she headed for Highway 89 and home. She kept a lookout for the other truck, but they must have turned down a different road. She didn\rquote t see any headlights or taillights in either direction. The rolling hills kept the sighting distances short, but at night it was always easy to see the twin beams of headlights as they approached the top of a hill. At one point, she looked in her right side view mirror and found that she had a passenger. There was Dagomarus in the back of her pickup with his head sticking out over the side, tongue flapping in the wind grinning ear to ear.\par \par She made it to Choteau with no other problems. She noticed Dagomarus wasn\rquote t letting his tongue flap in the wind anymore. He had laid flat in the bed of her truck so that any casual inspection of the truck would reveal nothing. She drove to her house on the east side of town. As she pulled into her driveway, she looked around at her neighbor\rquote s houses. Lights were on but nobody was outside. \par \par Choteau was one of those sleepy little towns where, after the sun went down, the residents were either at home watching TV or they were at one of the local bars soaking up a tomato beer with a dash of salt. Since the curtains were closed on both houses, she decided it was safe. She got out of the truck and pulled the backpack out with her. She casually walked to her front door, unlocked the deadbolt and pushed the door open wide. She stepped aside as if to check her mailbox on the side of the house, when she felt, rather than saw, Dagomarus shoot past her. \par \par She walked into the house and shut the door. She had a few small nightlights around the house, so she didn\rquote t have to flip on the overhead lights to see her way around. She set the backpack on the kitchen table and then walked over to the fridge. She opened it up and reached to get a beer, she really needed one tonight. She didn\rquote t drink all that often, but when she did, she liked the really good stuff. Grabbing a church key off the side of the fridge, she popped the top off her Brown Ale and took a long pull. She sighed, oh that was so good. She noticed she had someone at her elbow. She looked down and saw that Dagomarus was staring at her beer and sniffing. She chuckled.\par \par \ldblquote Would you like one too?\rdblquote\par \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720 He nodded his head rapidly and grinned. She pulled another Brown Ale out of the fridge and got a bowl out of the cupboard. She set the bowl on the kitchen table and poured it for him. He began to lap it up, and he didn\rquote t stop until it was all gone. He was chasing the bowl around the top of the table before she giggled and grabbed it from him. He sat down, looked up at her and let loose a belch that rattled the windows. She started laughing and trying to shush him at the same time. \par \par \ldblquote The neighbors will hear you!\rdblquote \par \par He looked at her and grinned. \par \par \ldblquote That figures, I bring a new guy home and the first thing he does is drink my beer and belch so loud the cops get called.\rdblquote \par \par Chuckling, she bent down and kissed the end of his nose.\par \par \ldblquote Come on, let\rquote s go get you settled into your new home.\rdblquote \par \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj He followed her out of the kitchen and down the hallway. She pointed to the door on her left. \par \par \ldblquote That\rquote s the bathroom. We\rquote ll have to figure out if you can use that or not.\rdblquote \par \par She walked a little further and turning to her right. \par \par \ldblquote This is \i our\i0 bedroom.\rdblquote \par \par He didn\rquote t miss the stressed word, but he was just a little leery about walking into her private bedroom. She stepped inside and motioned for him to come in. She walked over to the window, rolled the blinds shut and then turned the nightstand light on. When his eyes adjusted to the new brightness, he looked around the room. It was a fairly typical woman\rquote s bedroom. There were flowery prints on the wall, lacy drapes on the window, stuffed animals on the bed, and shoes lining the closet floor. Things haven\rquote t changed much in a hundred years, he observed. \par \par He walked over to her nightstand and sniffed at the drawer. He could smell HER inside the drawer. This confused him a little. He sniffed at it again. Yep, definitely her musky scent inside that drawer. He looked up at her and cocked an eyebrow. She looked at him with the same quizzical expression, until he pointedly sniffed the drawer front. Then her face went completely beet red. \par \par \ldblquote You can stay out of that drawer, pal. What\rquote s inside that drawer is mine. Besides, with you here now, I won\rquote t need that anymore anyway.\rdblquote \par \par He shrugged. He didn\rquote t open the drawer, but \lquote that?\rquote sure smelled good.\par \par He looked at the size of the bed and chuffed. He looked at her and then looked back at the bed. They weren\rquote t both going to fit on that thing. She realized what he was getting at. \par \par \ldblquote Yeah, I\rquote ll have to dip into the savings account and buy a bigger bed. I\rquote ll do that tomorrow during my lunch break at work.\rdblquote \par \par He turned to her when she said the last and raised an eyebrow. \par \par \ldblquote Yep, I have to work for a living, fuzzy-face. Somehow, I don\rquote t think anybody in town would hire you.\rdblquote \par \par He shook his head. This was very different. Women working at jobs? Somehow he just couldn\rquote t picture her slaving over a stove or up in front of a classroom. Those were the only things women had been allowed to do the last time he had been around civilization. He looked up at her, giving her that quizzical expression again. \par \par \ldblquote I work at the local newspaper, the Acantha.\rdblquote \par \par That seemed to satisfy his curiosity for the moment. She watched as he walked back down the hallway and entered the living room. Seeing the large fluffy couch, he walked over to it and plopped himself down. Stretching out his entire length, his nose hung off one end and his tail the other. She walked in behind him just in time to see him do that. \par \par \ldblquote Are you going to shed all over my nice clean couch?\rdblquote \par \par He opened one eye and looked at her, then nodded. \par \par \ldblquote I guess I\rquote ll be buying more vacuum cleaner bags too.\rdblquote\par \par He relaxed into the cushions of the couch, luxuriating in the feel of the softness. This was a damn sight better than a bunch of pine needles or a damp dirt floor in a hole. She watched him settle in. \par \par \ldblquote You go ahead and rest there for a little while. I\rquote m going to take a shower and get ready for bed. It\rquote s been a long day and I do have to go to work tomorrow.\rdblquote \par \par He grunted but didn\rquote t open his eyes. She turned and walked back down the hallway. A few minutes later she was under the spray of the hot water, letting the stress and the grit of the day wash off. When she finished and had toweled off, she slipped an extra large men\rquote s t-shirt over her head and walked back out into the living room. She could hear him snoring. Well, he must really be relaxed for him to be making any noise at all. \par \par She tiptoed over to him and bent over next to his head. Just before she was going to say something, the eye closest to her opened up and looked at her. The snoring didn\rquote t change pitch or speed. She smiled at him. \par \par \ldblquote Come on, fuzzy-face. I know it\rquote ll be a tight fit, but you\rquote re sleeping with me tonight.\rdblquote \par \par He grunted and rumbled. He wondered if she had really meant to say it the way he took it. When her face turned red and she tweaked his ear, he had his answer. \par \par \ldblquote You, mister, have a one track mind. Now come on, I need to get some sleep.\rdblquote \par \par She stood up and he slipped off the couch, following her to the bedroom.\par \par He stood in the doorway while she turned the sheets down and crawled into bed. He got a flash of her bare backside as her shirt rode up when she slipped under the covers. She flipped the covers back and patted the mattress. \par \par \ldblquote Come on, fuzzy-face. I want you next to me tonight.\rdblquote \par \par He grinned and walked up to the bed. He looked at it and tried to decide how best to accomplish this. He put his front paws up on the bed and scooted forward until his head was up next to hers. When that was semi-comfortable, he lifted his rear legs and curled them up over the top of her legs. He shifted a few times, and finally found a position where she wouldn\rquote t be crushed by his weight, and he could still put his head up by hers. She lay back on the pillow and turned out the light. \par \par \ldblquote Good night, fuzzy-face.\rdblquote \par \par She kissed the end of his nose and closed her eyes. He snuggled up to her and put his muzzle against her neck, his hot breath fluffing her hair. She felt the warmth of his body next to hers and she could smell his unique odor. She found this comforting and the smile on her face stayed as she drifted off to sleep.\par \par \tab\tab\tab\tab ******\par \par The buzzing wouldn\rquote t stop. \par \par \ldblquote NHMMMMmmmmm.\rdblquote\par \par Monday morning. Work. She rolled over and hit the snooze bar on her alarm. She slowly opened her eyes and looked at the ceiling. Was it a dream? She was alone in her bed. No, it couldn\rquote t have been a dream. It was too real. Then she heard the toilet flush. Dagomarus? She flipped the covers back, and padded over to the doorway. When she peeked around the corner she watched Dagomarus step out of the bathroom door. He turned and saw her peeking at him around the door jam. Her looked back into the bathroom and then to her and shook his head. He stepped into the hallway, stuck his nose inside the door, and pulled the door shut. He then turned to her and gave her an apologetic expression. Well, she thought, at least he tried. I guess this wouldn\rquote t be the first boyfriend I\rquote ve ever had to clean up after.\par \par She stepped into the hallway and walked to him. When she got to the bathroom door, the smell hit her. Nothing smells as bad as a high protein diet predator in the morning. She wrinkled her nose, opened the door just enough to reach in and hit the fan switch. \par \par \ldblquote Is there a mess?\rdblquote \par \par He shook his head. \par \par \ldblquote So, it\rquote s just the smell?\rdblquote \par \par He nodded. \par \par \ldblquote Okay, I guess I can live with that, just hit the second switch \i before\i0 going the next time and it won\rquote t be as bad.\rdblquote \par \par He nodded again. \par \par \ldblquote I don\rquote t want to kill my appetite, so let\rquote s move this conversation to the kitchen.\rdblquote \par \par He spun around and headed for the kitchen, with her right behind him. He padded over to the table and pushed one of the chairs over to the corner, sat down and waited for her. She started the coffee maker and pulling a bowl from the cupboard, fixed herself some cereal. He watched her go through her morning routine. He managed to not drool on the table when she bent over to pick up a flake of cereal she had dropped, her pale white cheeks peeking out from under the shirt. She felt the stare and turned to look at him. \par \par \ldblquote Not this morning, fuzzy-face. I have to make it to work \i not\i0 smelling like sex.\rdblquote \par \par She gave him a kiss on his nose and sat down next to him. \par \par \ldblquote Are you hungry? What can I get you to eat?\rdblquote \par \par He shook his head. He got up and went to the kitchen sink. He jumped up, putting his paws on the counter top. Turning the cold tap on with his nose, he started lapping at the water. When he was done, he turned the water off and came back to sit next to her. \par \par \ldblquote You are slick. Okay, so you can do some things around the house for yourself.\rdblquote \par \par She went back to eating her cereal and drinking her coffee. She put the dishes in the sink and went back to the bedroom to get dressed.\par \par While she was getting ready for work, he went into the living room and stretched out on the couch. I am going to like living in here, he thought to himself. When she came back out, her hair was up in a bun and she had a suit on. He turned to look at her when she stepped into the room. The difference in her appearance was shocking to him; he sniffed in her direction to make sure it was still really her under that get up. She smiled. \par \par \ldblquote Yeah, I know. Everybody body says the same thing the first time they see me on the weekends after I dress like this all week.\rdblquote \par \par She went to him and kissed him on the end of his nose. \par \par \ldblquote Now, behave yourself today while I\rquote m at work. You can\rquote t eat the vacuum cleaner salesman for a snack.\rdblquote \par \par He grinned. \par \par \ldblquote Seriously, if someone starts poking around, hide in the basemen; the door is at the far end of the hallway.\rdblquote \par \par He nodded. She kissed him again and went out the door.\par \par He watched her truck disappear down the street. He decided he wanted to know everything he could about this lovely woman. He started going through all the rooms and, when possible, some of the drawers. He did open the nightstand drawer, even though she had asked him not to, but that smell, so intoxicating, drew him like a magnet. He slowly pulled it open and looking inside, couldn\rquote t help but laugh. No wonder she was embarrassed, the women he had known in the past would have never openly admitted to having something like that, well, most of them anyway. \par \par He gently nosed the drawer closed so as to not disturb the contents. After a couple hours of nosing around the house, he figured out she was just a single woman who was very ordinary. Nothing dangerous or illicit in the house. The photographs of people intrigued him; he could tell that most of them were of family. The facial features told him that much. He wondered what she would tell them about him, hopefully nothing, but he knew it was only a matter of time before someone discovered she was housing a giant wolf.\par \par He slept most of the day on the couch. He just couldn\rquote t get over how nice it was to sink into something so soft after all those years in the wild. When the postman delivered the mail, he watched through the curtains. Nothing odd about the man\rquote s behavior, just doing his job. Okay, so maybe that ranger didn\rquote t blab it all over, or hopefully everybody thought he was nuts and just ignored him. He wondered when Nikki was going to come home. He knew from the past that some jobs lasted most of the day and into the night. Maybe she was lucky and didn\rquote t have to work long hours. That brought up another thought, money. He hadn\rquote t thought about that concept for a very long time. Civilization ran on money, he knew that much; it hadn\rquote t changed since Caesar\rquote s time, so why would it be different now?\par \par Something kept floating around just outside his consciousness when he thought about money. What was it? Had he done something to insure he would always have money if he needed it? Why? He loved roaming the countryside, not caring about the humans and their dirty cities. It gave him a headache trying so hard to remember. Maybe I\rquote ll take another nap and it\rquote ll come to me. So, he lay down on the couch again and slept.\par \par \tab\tab\tab\tab *******\par \pard\f1\fs24\par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj\f0\fs20 Nikki didn\rquote t really mind going into work today, even though it was tough getting up this morning, she really needed to go in. Since she worked at the Acantha, the weekly newspaper in town, she\rquote d have access to any \lquote news\rquote of the weekend\rquote s events. She wasn\rquote t a reporter, but she talked to the one person who was. There were only seven people who worked at the paper, and she was the typesetter. That gave her access to everything that was going to go into this week\rquote s issue. She also took care of the paper\rquote s \lquote other\rquote business, the print shop. To supplement the paper\rquote s income and serve a needed niche in the small community, they printed business cards, letterhead, and pamphlets.\par \par Luckily, the paper had modernized a few years ago, so she didn\rquote t have to do the 11\rdblquote x 14\rdblquote negative\rquote s and acid wash aluminum drum plates to print anymore. They had computers and a modern printing press, and although used, it was still much better than handling those smelly chemicals all day. The one caveat to the modern process, her hours got cut. Since she also handled customers\rquote work from the print shop side, she was almost back to forty hours.\par \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720 She parked around the back and went in to see if there was going to be any immediate fallout from the weekend. Dave, the photographer and printer, was just getting himself a cup of coffee when she walked in. He turned and smiled.\par \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj\ldblquote Hey, Nikki! How was your weekend? Didn\rquote t you go camping up into Lewis & Clark?\rdblquote\par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj Her inner fears immediately flowed through her. If Dave hadn\rquote t heard a thing yet, maybe she would be okay. Her relief must have shone on her face because Dave gave her a funny look. \par \par \ldblquote Oh, I went camping, but it didn\rquote t go as well as I had planned.\rdblquote \par \par She decided to head off any screwy stories by putting her own spin on the events before anyone else had a chance.\par \par \ldblquote What happened?\rdblquote \par \par He had a concerned look on his face. She liked Dave, even if he was a little strange. That guy never went anywhere without a camera, and she suspected that he took a lot of photos of things he really shouldn\rquote t.\par \par \ldblquote Well, my campsite got ravaged by a grizzly bear.\rdblquote\par \par \ldblquote Oh my god, Nikki! Are you all right? You don\rquote t look hurt; how\rquote d you get away?\rdblquote\par \par \ldblquote I think that there were two of them and they started fighting over who would get to eat me first and I slipped out the back of my tent and ran for my truck.\rdblquote \par \par She wanted to get this out into the air fast. She had to have the two bear story to explain the carcass left by Dagomarus. She knew that once Dave found out about it, he\rquote d jump into his truck and go take photos of it. Something like this didn\rquote t happen very often on the Front Range. It was almost unheard of to see a grizzly in the Lewis & Clark National Park, let alone two.\par \par \ldblquote Jesus! That was lucky. Well, not lucky about your campsite, but at least you got away. Hey! Draw me a map and I\rquote ll go take some shots of the campsite. This\rquote ll liven up this week\rquote s edition for sure! I can see Faith\rquote s headline now, \lquote Local Escapes Mauling\rquote .\rdblquote\par \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\ldblquote Yeah, yeah, I know. Sure, I\rquote ll draw you a map.\rdblquote \par \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj Yep, that was predictable Dave. He\rquote d be gone for the rest of the day. She knew the next round of fun would be Faith, the one and only reporter they had. She was the perfect person for the job. She was a terrible gossip and had to know everything everyone else was doing. She was tenacious when she thought she should know something and you wouldn\rquote t tell her.\par \par Nikki drew the map for Dave and after grabbing his cameras and some extra rolls of film; he went out the door. Faith came out of her little office to see what all the commotion was about. She saw Dave scoot out the door and turned to Nikki to get an explanation. \par \par \ldblquote What was all that about? Where\rquote s he going so soon on a Monday morning?\rdblquote\par \par \ldblquote He\rquote s off to shoot some pictures of my ruined campsite from this weekend.\rdblquote \par \par She dreaded the next hour, because she knew Faith wouldn\rquote t stop her questioning until she thought she had every juicy detail.\par \par \ldblquote Why? What happened to your campsite?\rdblquote \par \par Faith\rquote s eyes sparkled and Nikki could almost see the drool start. Here we go, she thought to herself. Nikki went into her prepared story of the two bears and even included a bit about some \lquote sexual harassment\rquote from Ranger Scott. When she was done, Faith\rquote s eyes were the size of saucers and her mouth was hanging open. \par \par \ldblquote He actually tried to get you to have sex with him?\rdblquote\par \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\ldblquote Yep, the creep even got his buddies to try and help stop me when I was leaving the mountains.\rdblquote \par \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj She went on to tell of her run in with Tim and Bob and the crazy story of a giant wolf they were supposed to be looking for.\par \par \ldblquote Giant wolf? What giant wolf? You didn\rquote t say anything about a giant wolf attacking you.\rdblquote\par \par Just like a pit bull, Faith wasn\rquote t going to stop chewing into this until she had everything. Nikki knew she had to explain this part carefully.\par \par \ldblquote I didn\rquote t see any giant wolf, Faith. That\rquote s the point. Evidently that creepy Ranger Scott told his buddies that I had some giant wolf and to stop me from getting out of the Park with it. These guys were drunk and they had guns. I was more afraid of them and what they might do, than I ever was when those grizzlies were fighting in my campsite. They really freaked me out.\rdblquote\par \par \ldblquote What did you do? You didn\rquote t have a gun, did you?\rdblquote \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj Faith was on a roll now.\par \par \ldblquote No, I didn\rquote t have a gun. You know as well as I do, you can\rquote t have firearms in a national park.\rdblquote \par \par Nikki said this with a straight face. The locals carried guns into the parks sometimes, not really against the chance of bears, but crazy tourists and the occasional freak that was up there, trying to get away from it all. You just hoped you didn\rquote t get caught with it.\par \par \ldblquote What did you do?\rdblquote \par \par Faith was almost ready to fall off the front of her chair as she leaned towards Nikki to get the next part of the story.\par \par \ldblquote Well, once the two drunks figured out that I didn\rquote t have a giant wolf in the truck and that Scott had told them a big one to get their help, they packed up and must have gone back to the bar for another beer. I drove home without seeing them or Scott again.\rdblquote\par \par \ldblquote I am so going to get that creep fired from his job for what he did to you. The park service is going to go ape when they read about this. I\rquote m going to have the whole front page this week on this story alone! Your attack and escape and corrupt park rangers trying to take advantage of a woman in need! OHHHH!\rdblquote \par \par Faith was really worked up now. Nikki hadn\rquote t thought about getting the guy fired as part of her plan. She had just wanted her version out first before Scott could start trouble for her. Maybe this would be better. She did feel guilty about the guy getting into trouble over this, but damn it, he had tried to capture or maybe even kill her lover. Those two guys did have guns and they had looked like they were ready to shoot something if it jumped out at them.\par \par Faith started typing on her computer furiously, getting all the details of the weekend\rquote s events into the system as fast as she could. She had Nikki repeat some parts of her story for clarification. After another hour of Faith\rquote s questions, she was finally allowed to get back to her work. Nikki was surprised that nobody had come in looking for her while she had sat talking to Faith. When she walked out of Faith\rquote s office she spotted Steve, the manager and publisher of the paper, her boss, standing outside his office door waiting for her.\par \par \ldblquote I overheard most of your story. Anything you want to talk about? Anything I can do?\rdblquote\par \par She could see that Steve really cared. He was a good boss, a genuine nice guy. She knew why he cared; Steve had a mild crush on her, but was too much of a gentleman and honorable man to ever hit on her. He was her boss and his integrity wouldn\rquote t allow him to \lquote make a move\rquote on her while she worked for him. Besides, he was married. Getting involved with a married man in a small town would be inviting disaster.\par \par \ldblquote No, I\rquote m fine. Thanks for asking though. Please tell me you heard enough so I don\rquote t have to retell it again?\rdblquote \par \par Nikki tried the sympathy card, which she occasionally played on him to get something. She didn\rquote t do often, so it normally worked. Steve laughed at her discomfort; he knew what a pain Faith could be when she got onto a story. \par \par \ldblquote No, I won\rquote t make you retell it again. I\rquote ll read all about it when Faith is done. Go ahead and finish that order of pamphlets for the Stage Stop Inn, someone is supposed to come by later today to pick them up.\rdblquote\par \par \ldblquote Okay. I think I can have them ready by lunchtime. Oh, speaking of lunch time, I need to run an errand, so I\rquote ll need to take a full hour today if that\rquote s okay.\rdblquote\par \par \ldblquote As long as the pamphlets are done, you can take as long as you need for lunch. How\rquote s that?\rdblquote \par \par He might be a nice guy, but work came first with him. If you promised a customer that something would be done by a certain time, it had better be done by that time. Nikki thought about how much was left on the project, and even though it might be tight, she knew she could do it by 1 o\rquote clock.\par \par \ldblquote Yeah, that\rquote d be great, Steve. I can have it all done by one and then take my lunch hour.\rdblquote\par \par Steve nodded his okay and went back into his office. She went to her computer desk and brought up the graphics program. She wasn\rquote t high enough on the food chain in this small paper to have an office. There simply wasn\rquote t enough floor space in the tiny building to have that many offices. At least her desk had a window view. Granted, it was just Main Street, but at least she didn\rquote t have to stare at a wall all day.\par \par \tab\tab\tab\tab ******* \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720 \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj He felt warm lips on his nose. He opened one eye and looked into the face of a smiling angel. His love was home!! \par \par \ldblquote Hey, fuzzy-face. Have a good nap?\rdblquote \par \par He stretched out as far as he could, listening to the joints pop and the muscles creak. He sucked in a deep breath, filling his nostrils with her scent. He held it for a few seconds and then let it out slowly. He snaked his tongue out and circled her lips with the tip. He opened both eyes and looked at her. \par \par \ldblquote Well! If you aren\rquote t the prime example of a couch potato!!\rdblquote \par \par She chuckled and then hugged him. He rumbled his pleasure to have her so close. She pulled back and smiled.\par \par \ldblquote Let me get out of these clothes and we\rquote ll figure out what to do for dinner.\rdblquote \par \par With that she got up and went to her bedroom.\par \par A few minutes later she was back and the change was remarkable. Instead of that sexless suit she had been wearing, now she was in a sleeveless t-shirt, shorts and her hair cascaded down her shoulders. He chuffed and nodded, approving the change. She smiled and did a little pirouette, finishing with her hands on her hips with her chest pushed out. He couldn\rquote t resist; he stuck his nose up in the air and softly howled. This really made her smile and giggle.\par \par \ldblquote Now that\rquote s what I call a real wolf-whistle!\rdblquote \par \par He shifted his position on the couch and pointed to a spot with his nose. She came over and sat down. She leaned back onto the arm of the couch and stretched her legs out lengthwise along his body. He hooked her legs with his front paw and pulled them up to his chest. Shifting slightly, he maneuvered her feet so that they were right in front of his mouth. She watched this with a bemused grin on her face. He slowly rubbed his muzzle along her arches; then proceeded to lick her feet and toes.\par \par Her head tilted back and she moaned. \par \par \ldblquote Ohhhh, that feels so good! I could definitely get used to this after each day at work.\rdblquote \par \par He didn\rquote t hurry or make it overtly sexual, he just massaged her feet with his tongue. Her occasional moans let him know he was doing it right. After twenty minutes had passed and he showed no signs of stopping, she looked over at him. \par \par \ldblquote You really like my feet don\rquote t you?\rdblquote \par \par He stopped long enough to return her gaze and then went back to licking her toes. If you only knew, he thought. When he started running his tongue between each toe, her moans became more frequent and deeper in tone. He caught the faint whiff of her excitement, causing him to increase his ministrations on her slender toes and the soft skin of her arches.\par \par Suddenly, she pulled her feet back and jumped off the couch. Not saying anything or even looking at him, she closed the drapes, and pulled her shorts down. She grabbed one of the pillows off the couch and lay down on the floor in front of him. With her head propped up and her legs spread before him, she looked into his eyes. \par \par \ldblquote Why don\rquote t you show me how much you like this as well!\rdblquote \par \par He grinned and nodded. Slipping his long body off the couch and onto the floor between her legs, he complied with her wishes. He slipped his tongue out and circled the treasure before him, catching the first few drops of moisture that had started to leak out between her lips. The moan she let out came from her belly, deep and long. \par \par \ldblquote YESSSS! I have waited all day for this.\rdblquote\par \par This time he wasn\rquote t going to shoot her to the moon in a few seconds, this time he wanted to savor the experience and her flavor. He rolled the fleshy thick lips along his tongue, occasionally dipping the tip just inside her opening to catch the juices that were beginning to flow more rapidly. He flattened out his tongue and pushed into her clit, pushing it against her pubic bone, and then he rolled his tongue side to side, feeling the hard nub shift under the pressure. Rolling the entire length of his tongue down against her clit, he reversed its direction, hooking the end and slid the entire length inside of her. \par \par She shuddered and moaned, her breath shooting out of her mouth with force. She clenched her legs against his flanks, curling her toes into the softness of his fur. He swirled the tip of his tongue around her cervix several times, causing her to have the first small orgasm. He could feel her vaginal muscles squeezing his tongue and the amount of fluid running out of her was almost enough to satisfy his thirst.\par \par He started to push his tongue in and out of her tunnel, effectively fucking her with it. He made sure that he swirled her cervix a couple of times before retracting it and repeating the process again. She arched her back, thrusting her hips against the pressure. He noticed the fine tremors start in her thighs. After every fifth or sixth plunge, as he pulled back; he would flatten his tongue out and roll it against her lips and clit. She had several more small orgasms when he did that. \par \par When her level of excitement had reached to point that he didn\rquote t think she could take much more, he went for the moon. He pushed his tongue into her as far as it would go, pushing and swirling the tip against her cervix. She began to go up that really big slope this time. He just kept building her up and building her up, flexing and rolling his tongue inside her. \par \par When she was on the edge, her breathing coming in short pants and her whole body shaking with need, he hooked his tongue and pulled it out slowly, hitting that special patch of bumpy skin. He flicked the tip against it rapidly and she screamed, her juices squirting out of her into his mouth. She locked up for a second, not a muscle twitched, then she shuddered violently, pounding her heels into the floor, her hands found his ears and she pulled him up into her harder. His teeth were forced into her clit and she humped her pelvis into his mouth. She hit another peak and screamed again, squirting more fluid into his mouth. \par \par He dipped back into her to swirl his tongue against her cervix while she was doing this. The pressure continued to send her over the edge, trembling, and she curled and flared her toes against his belly. Finally he slowed his movements to let her come down off that super-plateau of orgasmic bliss. Her breathing slowed, and she finally scooted back away from his jaws. He slid his tongue out, trying to catch the last of her juices on the tip. He slurped them up and licked his chops, trying to get every last drop that she had put on him.\par \par When she had regained her senses, she looked up at him and grinned.\par \par \ldblquote That\rquote s another thing I don\rquote t think I\rquote ll ever get tired of!!\rdblquote \par \par He grinned at her, the fur around his muzzle wet with her juices and his saliva. She lay there getting her breathing back to normal, watching him lick his chops. She looked down his side and noticed that she wasn\rquote t the only one who had left moisture on the floor. She grinned and then a strange expression crossed her face. \par \par She scooted around so that her head was down there and she reached up and pulled the sheath back, exposing his semi-swollen member. She looked up at him and raised an eyebrow, he didn\rquote t know what to do or say. He wasn\rquote t entirely sure what she was doing, but if she wanted to play with his cock, he wasn\rquote t about to stop her. He returned the arched eyebrow expression and she smiled. \par \par \ldblquote I think you\rquote ll enjoy this fuzzy-face. Trust me.\rdblquote \par \par With that she opened her mouth and slid his cock past her lips. He shuddered when her tongue began to swirl and caress the sensitive shaft. His pre-cum began to dribble out. He could feel her swallow it as it accumulated in her mouth. The sensations he was feeling were like nothing he had ever felt before. This being his first blowjob, he thought it was pretty damn nice, heavenly in fact. He relaxed and laid over on his side.\par \par She continued to suck and lick the length of his shaft. She ran her tongue up the sides, feeling the heat pouring off of him. She noticed that it was much smoother than had been her experience with her boyfriends. She pursed her lips and suckled the very tip of his shaft and giggled when he jumped slightly at the sensation. \par \par At one point he could feel her pushing her head deeper into his crotch, and his shaft slipped down her throat. She swallowed several times with his shaft in her throat. The intense sensations of her throat muscles contracting along his shaft pushed him very close. His knot started to swell, and she backed his shaft out of her mouth far enough so that it wouldn\rquote t get caught behind her teeth and suffocate her.\par \par She used her hands to caress the knot and her tongue continued to swirl along the shaft and occasionally the tip. His pre-cum was spurting out almost continuously now and he could feel her swallowing. She squeezed his knot gently and sucked hard against his shaft, causing him to go over his own cliff. His hips bucked forward and he shot spurt after spurt into her mouth.\par \par She tried, but it was too much for her, some of his cum escaped around the seal of her lips and ran down her chin and cheek. When he had stopped spurting, and it had trickled off to just a few minor dribbles, she let his shaft slip from her mouth with a pop. She scooped some of the cum off her chin with a finger and licked it clean.\par \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\ldblquote Well, my love? What did you think of that?\rdblquote \par \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi720\qj He rose up enough to look at her and gave her a soft howl. She giggled and blushed.\par \par \ldblquote You liked that?\rdblquote \par \par He howled again this time a little louder. She blushed even more and shushed him. \par \par \ldblquote Not so loud, the neighbors might hear you.\rdblquote \par \par He chuffed and nosed her in the chest, nodding to her. \par \par \ldblquote Oh, I guess I got pretty loud too, huh?\rdblquote \par \par He snorted and rumbled, nodding vigorously. \par \par \ldblquote I just hope that if they did hear us, they think it was the TV and not me.\rdblquote \par \par He cocked his head and looked at her questioningly. \par \par \ldblquote Oh, you don\rquote t know what a TV is do you?\rdblquote \par \par He shook his head. She got up, wiping the rest of his cum into her skin. She reached over to an end table and picked up the remote control. She pointed it at the TV and pushed the on button. It popped to life and started emitting a high pitch wine as the power supply warmed up. The picture tube clicked and then there was the local newscaster telling about another day on the Front Range.\par \par He watched what she did and jumped when the black box started making that noise. It hurt his ears until the power supply warmed up and quieted down. He looked at the picture and the voices coming from it, how bizarre. Humans and their toys would never cease to amaze him. What ever happened to actors and musicians by the fire? What was wrong with that?\par \par She set the remote down and picked up her shorts. \par \par \ldblquote Even though I just had a liquid dinner, I\rquote m still hungry. What about you?\rdblquote \par \par He nodded and grinned. He\rquote d let her have a liquid snack anytime she wanted! She walked into the kitchen and opened the freezer, rummaged around and pulled out a package of chicken breasts. She set them on the counter and pulled out a large cooking pot. She filled it with water and set it on the stove. She cranked the heat up and set it to boil. \par \par \ldblquote I know you like your meat raw, but I think it would be best if this was cooked. Besides, I think you\rquote ll like my cooking.\rdblquote \par \par He shrugged. She walked back into the living room to watch some TV while she waited for the water to boil. She reclined on the couch and he slipped into it with her and they curled up together. He laid his head in her lap and she stroked his ears.\par \par \ldblquote You want to know something?\rdblquote \par \par He kept his head still because he didn\rquote t want her to stop what she was doing. \par \par \ldblquote Last week, if someone would have mentioned to me what I did with you, I would have slapped them and sued them for sexual harassment.\rdblquote \par \par He didn\rquote t know what that last term meant, but he understood her emotional response. \par \par \ldblquote I mean, from the very beginning of childhood, I was taught that things like that were evil and disgusting and girls just don\rquote t do that. At least, not if they want to go to heaven.\rdblquote \par \par He wasn\rquote t so sure heaven existed anymore, or at least what he had been taught that the afterlife held for people who worshiped the right way.\par \par \ldblquote Then I run into you. You aren\rquote t supposed to exist. You are a fable, a mythical creature that was made up to scare little kids into doing what their parents told them. I have thought about this almost every waking minute. You are real, you\rquote re lying on my couch, watching TV with me and I am rubbing your ears. Maybe magic did exist at one time and that\rquote s how you came about, but that stuff is gone now. It\rquote s been replaced with science and technology, and the world today has no place for you in it. In my heart though, you will always have a place. I feel it; you are a person, you just have the body of a wolf. So in a way, that makes it okay for me to do these things with you. Do you understand what I\rquote m trying to say?\rdblquote\par \par Oh, he understood every word. The modern world taught people different values and ideas. What was normal a thousand years ago is now considered evil or gross. Well, that\rquote s what the world does; it changes. He rumbled, letting her know that he understood.\par \par \ldblquote I knew you would. I guess I\rquote m still feeling a little ashamed and guilty over what we have done with each other. Maybe because it feels so good to do it? Is that it? I\rquote m not supposed to enjoy my lover, no matter what he looks like? Or especially because he looks like a wolf?\rdblquote\par \par He rumbled and looked up at her. He hooked his front leg behind her waist and pulled her closer to him. \par \par \ldblquote I love you too, Dagomarus. With all my heart, I love you, too.\rdblquote \par \par \ldblquote Now, let me get up so I can fix us some dinner.\rdblquote He chuffed and nodded. \par \pard\fi720\ri-1440\f1\fs24\par }