FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Changing Fortunes copyright 2014 comidacomida

All of Paul's experience of California up to that point suggested that the following day was likely to be even worse but, surprisingly, he was proven wrong. Waking up with Tanner, the two joked about feeling like they were two clandestine lovers sneaking off where nobody would find them. After a quick-but-pleasant morning of seeing Tanner off to work, the young man had time to relax as he got ready for his own job; the motel was actually closer to the office than his home so he had at least twenty extra minutes.

He was a little embarrassed about having to go back to the office in the same clothes he'd worn the previous day but he didn't have enough time to head home and, besides, there was a good chance that the media was still waiting for him there... if not also at the office. Letting out a sigh, Paul realized that he didn't have much a choice in the matter and elected to just cope with the dirty clothes dilemma... when his phone rang. Taking a look at the caller ID he saw that it was work and answered, "Uh... hi? It's Paul."

Candy's eternally upbeat voice was unmistakable, "Hey Paul! It's Sweeter-Than-Candy from AHB Mark-- uh... hee hee... I mean, from work."

The young man paused, glancing at his watch-- was he late? No, he confirmed that he still had plenty of time. "Hi, Candy. Is something up?"

"No... but Mr. Burke asked me to give you a call."

Paul pulled the phone away from his ear and stared at it incredulously; if Mr Burke asked Candy to give him a call then THAT would certainly count as something. He repeated his earlier question, "Sooooo... is something up?"

She giggled in response, "Oh... right. Um... he said that he was reviewing the books and said you had some flex time to use so he doesn't need you coming in today."

Paul's first response was panic; was he in trouble... again? "I'm... not supposed to come into work?"

The beagle's laughter went a long way in settling his unfounded concern, "Yea... so I guess we'll see you tomorrow!"

He realized that the situation would drive him crazy if he left it at that, so Paul quickly addressed the call before she could hang up, "Is everything alright?"

It was as if the Dog finally might have realized that she hadn't exactly relayed that much information, "Oh... well... yea... everything's fine, Paul! Mr. Howe and Mr. Burke were reviewing books this morning I guess and figured that you didn't have to come into the office today and... well... considering how many reporters are already outside they--"

"Reporters?"

She was direct and to the point, "Yea... a three ring circus... but you don't have to worry about it cause you have the day off! Enjoy... and see you tomorrow!" The call ended with that upbeat farewell and the line disconnected.

It was one crazy start to his morning... and all that before he'd even left the motel. Of course, upon returning home he expected things to get even more insane but, as he turned the corner onto his street he was surprised to see only a single media van and a pair of reporters waiting. Before he had a chance to turn off and take the back street he had been spotted. Taking a deep breath, Paul figured he'd have an easier time telling the two men to leave him alone rather than try to hide from them and he pulled into his driveway.

He was surprised when they didn't try to double-team him... rather, one man, wearing a baseball cap and a leather jacket continued packing some kind of wiring into the van while the other, dressed in a nice pair of slacks and a button up shirt approached sans microphone or video camera, and offered him a friendly wave, "Morning, Mr. Miller... just packing up... we'll be gone in a few minutes."

The man's words conflicted with the numerous stories Paul had heard about the media, and it made him worried. Didn't the most tenacious reporters hang out until the story had been told? How could that have been the case if Paul hadn't been anywhere near the place and the only one who-- his blood turned ice-cold: CASEY! If they had decided to run with a model-and-photographer story, things would only get worse... a LOT worse. Regardless, the young man somehow managed to play it cool, "Is... something up?"

The guy in the dress shirt just smirked, "Either you're not new to the game, or you're one heck of a good player, Mr. Miller." and that was it.

The man returned to the van, said a few words to the fellow in the baseball cap, and they both hopped in and drove off. Paul was so ready for the ball to drop at his sudden change of luck that he reflexively hit the break of his car when his cell phone went off with a text alert; seeing as he was already parked, he wasn't any worse for it.

Looking down at his phone, Paul picked it up and checked the text... it was from Jason Campbell. It took a moment for him to remember who that was, but the message reminded him readily enough, "let me kno if locl media is prob 4u. I called dibs ;)"

The young man sat looking at his phone for several seconds before saying the word, "Dibs?" aloud. Jason had called 'dibs'? Paul honestly wasn't sure how to feel about that, but, despite his mixed emotions on the matter he couldn't argue with results. He was just getting out of his car when his phone sounded off again, this time with an incoming call. Paul shut the door and looked at the cell; it was from Tanner. In an incomparably good mood, the young man smiled as he greeted his lover, "Hey, Sexy."

A long pause followed by the clearing of a throat preceded a response, "You, ah... don't use this number for work calls, do you, Mr. Miller?"

Paul froze mid-step and almost ended up falling over when he realized the caller was not Tanner, "Uh... hey, TeeSee. It's... my... uh... day off today." He covered his face with his hand, shaking his head at the pure, horrific embarrassment of the moment.

TeeSee cleared his throat a second time, "Sure... right. Yea... that's why I'm calling, actually." the husky cleared his throat again, and immediately increased his level of phone professionalism, "Tanner asked me to call and let you know that all of the news vans have cleared out of the parking lot."

Paul's surprise ALMOST overcame his embarrassment as he fished for his keys in his pocket... before remembering he still had them in his hand, "So... like... ALL of them are gone, or they just--"

Tanner spoke up, apparently having regained his phone, "It was worthy of a National Geographic episode... like some special about the migration patterns of the wild paparazzi... I think everyone in the office just stopped everything to watch."

In most circumstances Paul would have called Tanner out on the comparison by interjecting any number of puns, but the only thing that came to mind was a very pointed question, "You gave your phone to TeeSee to call me?"

"Yea... I was just finishing up a re-imaging of a machine over in graphics so I asked TeeSee to let you know about the reporters leaving."

Paul sighed, closing and locking the door behind him as he switched his phone to his other hand, "Why didn't he just use his OWN phone?"

"Considering all the media attention I figured you wouldn't pick up for a random number-- I had him use mine so you'd recognize that someone you knew was calling. It's not a big deal... I mean--" he paused, and Paul heard TeeSee say something. Tanner continued a moment later with a very succinct, "...oh."

Unsure on how to follow up on that, Paul decided to be brief and cut the call short, "I'll see you when you get home."

Tanner was, thankfully, very proper in his response, "Alright. Catch ya later."

Another Dog was quickly added to the mix as Casey poked his head into the entryway from the kitchen, "Wow... short day at the office, huh?"

Despite it still being relatively early morning, Paul was already emotionally tired, "Hey, Casey... how's the music thing going?"

The Dalmatian emerged fully from the kitchen, spatula in one paw, tail wagging, "It's like an entirely different world... everybody there's totally crazy and I'm the only single normal Dog among em."

Paul cracked a wry grin and he couldn't resist the opportunity to say, "If YOU'RE what passes for normal in the music industry then it must REALLY be bad."

Casey's tail picked up speed at Paul's faint smirk, "People were nice for the most part... I just wanted to see if I could get a smile out of you... it looked like you needed one."

The young man gave the Dalmatian a hug, "Yea... well... I did. It's barely even nine and I've already had 'one of those days'."

The Dog glanced back at the kitchen, "I was cooking up an omlete... I'll make you one too and you can tell me about it over breakfast."

The morning with Casey turned out to be both calming and distracting at the same time. Paul explained that he received a call telling him he had the day off, the paparazzi had given up on him, and that he'd accidentally called a husky from work 'sexy'.

Casey laughed at that last admission, tail wagging, "Yea... well... a lot of people think huskies are sexy... personally, I think they're too fuzzy."

Paul put down his fork, mostly done with his omelete anyway, "Yea? Well... I thought it was Tanner."

The Dalmatian's grin grew even wider, "You're going all human on me now saying that all Dogs look alike, huh?"

"On the PHONE... TeeSee had called from Tanner's cell so when I saw the number on the caller ID I thought--" Paul's defense of his actions came to halt when he saw the enormous smirk the Dog was wearing, "...and you're just making fun of me now, aren't you?"

Casey laughed, "Oh, Paul... I missed you so much while I was away." and he reached across the table to ruffle the young man's hair with a paw.

Paul huffed in response but rolled his eyes and suffered through the 'abuse', "So... how WAS Los Angeles anyway?"

The Dalmatian's smile slowly faded and he looked down to the remainder of his own breakfast, poking it casually with his fork, "Eh... it was okay. Long hours and lots of demands... I met some pretty cool folks there though... security guard named Angus... huge mastiff and his Leasher Ty... they're good people."

The young man smiled, leaning on the table with his elbow and placing his chin in his palm, "Wow... guess Burb Dogs are everywhere these days, hmm?"

Casey's expression went immediately stoic and he announced in a severe voice, "We cook your meals. We haul your trash. We connect your calls. We drive your ambulances. We guard you while you sleep." Paul sat stunned, staring at him for several seconds before the Dalmatian rolled his eyes, "Come ON Paul... that's right out of Fight Club!"

The young man blinked, "That's.... a movie, right?"

The Dog groaned melodramatically and pressed the back of his paw against his forehead theatrically, "Oh gawd, Paul... what am I gonna DO with you?"

Paul let the Dalmatian have a laugh at his expense, choosing that moment to start cleaning up the dishes. Hoping to push the conversation back into somewhere other than 'Make-Fun-of-Paul-ville' he asked, "What about any celebrities? Did you get to meet anyone?"

Casey coughed up a swig of orange juice he'd just taken right back into the glass... and onto most of the table, "Meat?"

The human nodded, "Yea... did you get to meet anyone famous?"

The Dalmatian stood, bringing his own dishes to the sink, "Eh... a few." he shrugged casually, going through the motions of pre rinsing EVERYTHING (twice) before putting it all into the dishwasher, "I think they might be pairing me with Jae for a few performances... at least, that's what they're saying right now."

Paul blinked, "Jae? Who's that? He's a musician?"

Casey offered a half-hearted huff, "Jae... as in, Juliana Thomas."

The young man paused, "Wow... I remember her... didn't she have a ton of hits in the 80s?"

The Dalmatian nodded, heading off toward the living room, "Yea... and she decided to go by one name in the 90s... like, reinventing herself or something... so now it's just Jae."

Something seemed a little off about Casey, but Paul could also tell that the usually easy-to-read, open-book of a Dog was purposefully being a little less than forthcoming. The young man didn't have the best skills at dealing with people and he knew it, and decided rather than pushing the Dog for more information he'd pull back a little, "Wow... that's cool... working with Juliana Thom-- er... Jae... Hey! Do you think if you really hit it off that you might end up shortening your name a little? Like... just stick with K?"

Perhaps it hadn't been as subtle as Paul had wanted, but, nevertheless, the attempt at humor did manage to loosen Casey up, and he could almost see the silent 'thank you for not prying' behind the Dog's forced smile, "Yea... well... they're already talking about me going by the initials K and C rather than Casey." The Dalmatian made paw gestures to help differentiate between letters and the phonetic name.

Paul offered an encouraging smile, "...and?"

Casey shrugged, then added in a mischievous grin, "Well... I suppose if they offer enough money I might change my name to Paul Miller... I mean, heck-- you're getting me plenty of publicity!"

The young man paused at that, rolling his eyes, "Except that ever since I agreed to be on some New York Burb Dog talk show all of the reporters in town have dropped me like a bad habit.... but thanks for the vote of confidence."

The Dalmatian's ears raised, as did one of his eyebrows, "New York Burb Dog talk show, huh?"

Paul nodded, "Yea... the host called me on my cell and convinced me to meet him when he's out here next month."

Casey's questioning was obviously more about poking fun at him than any real curiosity, "Oh? So some east coast talk show host is coming out to the west coast to interview you? Dang, Paul... you really HAVE become big stuff." and the Dog followed it up with a giggle.

The human responded by giving the Dalmatian a 'light tap' on the shoulder, "Well, out of everyone that's bugged me about an interview, Mr. Campbell was probably the most--"

Casey almost tripped over his seat as he fought to stand up, "Campbell? You mean... Jason Campbell?"

Paul nodded, "Yea... I think that's his name. He's the host of a--"

The Dalmatian exploded with emotion, "Dog-Eat-Dog! It's ONLY the most famous, best well known, highest rated, Burb-Dog-Focused--"

the young man purposefully understated, "So... it's a good show?"

Casey let out a loud, wordless "GYAH!!" and rambled off down the hall. The reaction brought quite the smile to Paul's face.

The rest of the morning was spent doing the things that normally waited for the weekend. The young man got a lot of straightening up done around the house, managed to take out the trash, and even found time to do some vacuuming... all before noon. Despite the fact that Paul was no fine art student, he even succeeded at doing a few sketches of nothing-in-particular... although the last one was very specific: Tanner... in quite a provocative pose. It was such a 'naughty' past time that he jumped in surprise when his cell vibrated.

The human looked at the number, but was very careful when answering what appeared to be a call from Tanner, "This is Paul."

His lover's voice was friendly and chiding, "Hey, sexy."

Paul wanted to give the Dog a death glare, but the most he could manage was to figuratively burn holes through his cell, "I can't believe you gave the phone to TeeSee to call me!"

Tanner's laugh shouldn't have helped the young man's mood, but Paul always loved hearing it. The Dog followed up with, "We've already been over this... and, besides, TeeSee just shrugged it off and life continued on."

Paul rolled his eyes, despite his boyfriend not being able to see it, "Except I risked getting blood clots in my cheeks from all the blushing."

"And here I am suffering though not being able to bask in the glow."

Despite himself, the human smiled, though he didn't let it show in his voice, "So you called just to mock the suffering of your convenient boy-toy, is that it?"

Tanner chuckled, "NOTHING about you is convenient, Paul... you should know that."

The young man took a seat again at the dining room table, looking over the decidedly lewd sketch he drew of Tanner, "Yea? Well the press isn't hanging around anymore, so that should be one less inconvenience, right?"

The Dog chuckled, "Yea... but that just means you made room for one more."

Paul paused, "One more what?"

Tanner's tone was ominous, "One more problem."

The human switched the phone to his other shoulder as he closed his sketch pad, "Do I want to know?"

His boyfriend provided an answer, "Miranda... she's raising hell at the office."

"What? Why?"

Tanner let out a sigh, "She's going off about the news report that had you kissing that collie bitch."

Paul was almost about to object to the Dog's phrasing when he realized that his use of the word 'bitch' wasn't an insult, "Well... SHE kissed ME."

A hint of humor returned to his boyfriend's tone, "Well... you may have more experience with Miranda than I do, but I get this strange feeling that she doesn't tend to live most of the time in a world of well thought out logic."

The young man sighed, "So... you called to check in on me and make sure I had a heads-up so I wouldn't be surprised when Miranda goes psycho-crazy on me tomorrow?"

Tanner took his turn to pause, "Well... I guess it's good that you have the day off today because she's kinda going psycho-crazy right now."

Paul covered his face with his hand, mumbling, "So... you're saying I DON'T want to know."

"Well... according to some of the staff around here she's no more uppity than usual... I guess I just don't see her when she's 'the usual'."

The human drew his hand down his face before speaking up, "Okay..."

There was a delay before Tanner spoke again, "TeeSee said our break's over... looks like the design department put in a work order... I should be home before seven and we'll discuss Miranda and her 'usual' later... sound good?"

Paul let out a slow, carefully controlled breath, smiling as he thought about the sketch in the closed book, "Nah... I really just don't feel like worrying about her. I'll see you around seven, but when you get back it's just you and me."

The comment brought an immediate return of good humor to his boyfriend's tone, "Oh? Should I be worried?"

The young man licked his lips devilishly, "Only if you're too tired to keep up."

He could hear the smile on the other side of the phone, "You might not be able to tell, but this is me giving you a nose bump in anticipation."

Paul grinned, "Don't start what you can't finish."

Tanner chuckled, "Rain check then... See you tonight."

Paul's grin widened, "Can't wait for my dose of Tanner."

"Addict." and, with that, the call ended.

By lunch, Casey had got past hyperventilating about Paul getting to meet Jason Campbell and he came back out of his bedroom. Despite being extra waggy, the Dalmatian was perfectly appropriate and didn't once even so much as play at hitting on Paul. Of course, the young man reasoned, the Dog usually waited until Tanner was present; the Dalmatian considered it good form not to infringe upon the Shepherd's rights to his Leasher. That comment, of course, ruffled more than a little fur-- Paul's figurative fur and Tanner's literal.

The Dalmatian shared the kitchen with Paul and they made lunch; Casey prepared sandwiches while Paul headed up some soup. They spent lunch chatting casually about Casey's time in Los Angeles but, despite the relaxed nature of the discussion the Dalmatian continued being elusive about filling in the missing pictures. Before heading out for the afternoon, the Dog provided one more bit of information, "I'll be going back in two weeks for a whole week."

The reveal was greeted by mixed emotions as Paul considered being Dalmatian-less for seven days. On one hand, that meant that the place would be just a little more empty... but on the other hand that meant that he and Tanner had it all to themselves. In the end, Paul replied to the announcement with a very calm, "Just be safe."

The Dalmatian smiled a little, his tail wagging, "When I go to LA, or do you mean when I head out right now?"

Paul grinned and provided a very elaborate "Yes."

Casey replied with a snort, as he made his way to the front door, "very funny. I'm gonna bring back dinner... what should I get?"

The human smiled wider, "Yes."

The Dalmatian stuck his tongue out in response, then flicked an ear, "So, you're saying I'm the sexiest Dog you've ever met?"

Paul chuckled, "What about that Thai place across from the grocery store?"

It was Casey's turn to grin, "Nah... I'm WAAAAY sexier than that place."

The young man paused, "I meant for dinner."

The Dog's grin widened as he headed out the door, calling over his shoulder, "YES!"

Despite the fact that the response didn't quite fit, Paul still realized that he was getting a taste of his own medicine. He would have dwelt on the thought longer, however, if is cell hadn't have buzzed. Looking down at the caller ID, the young man didn't recognize the area code. He pressed the talk button and brought it up to his ear, "Hello?"

The voice on the other end was very familiar... and very upbeat, "Oh! Hey, Paul! Heh... I forgot I JUST got a new plan and they didn't let me keep my number."

It took several seconds for him to realize who had called, "...Brian?"

Despite being awkward beyond all reason, the call went relatively well. Brian had called to check in. He provided his condolence for Paul's dad's passing, which brought back tears to his eyes, but he managed to push through it. Despite being his ex, Brian was always too happy to talk with him, even though Paul didn't often find reasons to. Regardless, whenever they did, Paul usually felt better for it, and the recent call was no exception. Within ten minutes, the young man found himself settling down on the sofa for a long talk.

They spoke for over an hour about anything and everything. Paul told him about his job at AHB and Brian explained what things were like at the pediatric center. Brian announced that he saw Paul's name in the paper along with a picture of a collie woman, and Paul spent the next ten minutes fumbling all over his words trying to explain himself; in the end, he did little more than bring Brian to gut-busting laughter... and then moped while his ex spent another five minutes consoling him. Finally, after almost an hour and a half, Brian got to the point, "I'm heading out to Sacramento here in a few weeks..."

Paul was taken back by how the announcement just came out in the middle of the discussion, "You mean... here in California?"

Brian had always had a way of making the tone in his voice announce his widest grins, "Last time I checked, yea... unless Oregon invaded and took over."

Not to be outdone, the young man deadpanned his response, "Oregon doesn't have a large enough standing army... more likely it'd be Nevada."

His ex laughed with a full-bodied chuckle, "Well, Paul... I'm glad that you're brushing up on your government studies to make up for your poor Geography skills... but, yes... I'll be in Sacramento, CALIFORNIA in a few weeks."

"Oh... cool..." Paul picked at one of his fingernails before he gave up trying to ignore his curiosity, "Work stuff?"

"I hope. I'm going for an interview for a position with one of the premier mixed patient hospitals in the area."

The young man was struck dumb, "But... I thought you're already working at--"

Brian interrupted him, "This is a job... most mixed patient pediatricians can get a job almost anywhere... but the Weidtman-Honey Institute is a PASSION."

Paul rolled his eyes, "Apparently after all these years you're still you."

"Yea... well, when it comes down to it, me is who I'm best at being. I gotta get going, Paul... but I'll check in with you next week about my trip. It'd be really cool to see you. It'll be a pretty busy schedule, but I hope we get a chance to catch up."

The young man nodded against the phone, "Yea... I guess."

There was a slight pause from the other side, "Oh... and your mom also asked me to bring you a few things... if you're okay with that."

Paul was both concerned and flattered at the same time; he never knew what was going on in his mom's head so that revelation had equal capacity to be good and questionable, "Uh... should I be worried?"

Brian responded, "I'll call you again in a few days... good chatting with you."

"Yea... you too." and Paul ended the call with the press of a button. The young man had managed to fit a LOT into his day off, but the day kept giving him more. He had to admit getting a chance to see Brian when life WASN'T getting turned upside down would be a good thing but, then again, he realized that there was no guarantee that his life WOULDN'T be upside down when the time came for the visit... life DID have a way of playing the most inopportune tricks on him. Setting the phone aside, the young man simply let out a deep breath and reached for his sketch pad; at least he had something to do to keep himself busy.

* * * * * *

Tanner arrived home just before six. Paul had long-since stowed his sketch pad and was getting 'caught up' on some television show he'd never seen before when the German Shepherd came through the door. The TV was off in an instant and, a handful of seconds later, Paul was in his lover's arms, delivering one of Tanner's own greeting to him, "Welcome home."

The Dog didn't miss the juxtaposition of roles, "Isn't that usually my line?"

Paul smirked in response, kissing his boyfriend; Tanner didn't object, and the human reveled in the feel of the Shepherd's paw as it gently cradled the back of his head, the Dog's tongue softly grazing across his lips. The young man fought to keep his mouth from turning up into a smile since it would break the mood horribly but, in the end, he failed, "I wouldn't object to dessert before dinner, you know."

Despite Tanner's eye roll, Paul could still hear the shifting of the Dog's jeans as his wagging tail rubbed against the denim. Regardless, the Shepherd held the young man for a few moments longer before they finally disengaged, at which point Tanner's nose was working the air, "Speaking of dinner..."

Paul had NO problem messing with his boyfriend as he put on his best indignant glare, "Oh... so just because I had the entire day off suddenly dinner's supposed to be ready for you the moment you walk in the door? Well-- guess that shows somebody for telling my mom that I can't cook, now doesn't it?" He even went the extra mile to position his hands on his hips, clenched into fists as he glared at the Dog.

Tanner obviously didn't buy it for a second, "Oh come on-- she KNOWS you can cook, Paul. I mean, the lady stuffs soap into fish and calls it dinner... anything's gotta be-- OW!" the Dog laughed, rubbing at his shoulder where Paul's fist had impacted.

The human let the fake indignation go, "Well... last week she sent a care package, in case you missed it."

Tanner's ears went up, "Did she now?" It was obviously he wasn't completely willing to believe Paul, most likely expecting some joke or pun.

The young man, for once, was not joking, but the thought that the Dog knew him so well did make him smile, "Where else did you think the cookies came from?"

The Shepherd flicked an ear, "I figured Casey made em."

Paul was not above giving his boyfriend a hard time, "Casey was in LOS ANGELES, you jackass."

The Dog grinned, "HE might have mailed em."

"Oh... so you're saying that I couldn't have made cookies, is that it? Well, how would you like to sleep on the sofa tonight, Mr. 'Paul is a horrible cook'?"

Tanner leaned forward and nipped at the human's nose, "I know you WAAAAAY too well, Paul Miller. I'd only end up sleeping on a sofa if that's what you named your butt."

Having had his bluff called with powerfully blunt crassness, Paul deflated immediately. "Casey went out a few hours ago... he's bringing dinner back tonight."

Tanner reached out and ruffled the human's hair, "Don't get all mopey." and he leaned forward to lick Paul's cheek, "Any other day you'd talk circles around me... you just lose your edge when you don't go to work is all."

Paul hrumphed melodramatically, but it didn't keep the smile off his face, "And it sounds like I missed a lot too."

Tanner kicked off his shoes and flopped out on the couch, "Well... it was a pretty busy day for tech support, but it sounds like AHB was just business as usual."

Paul sat down beside his boyfriend and snuggled up against him. The Dog wrapped an arm around him and the two lounged. Tanner brushed his nose across the top of the human's head, "Well... if you consider Miranda going off on everyone and everything then, yea... pretty much business as usual then."

The two continued talking for a time, Paul reveling in the return of his lover. He didn't understand much of the technical mumbo-jumbo the Dog spoke of as he explained the problems of the day, but understanding was second to listening, and he was all too happy to let Tanner vent. In the end, it was more about snuggling on the couch and enjoying one another's presence anyway. They were in exactly that same position when Casey returned; the Dalmatian made his way through the door carrying several plastic bags, "Soup's on!"

Paul and Tanner both got up to help him. The human took most of the bags from the Dalmatian while the Shepherd grabbed the others. The two Dogs touched noses briefly and all three reconvened to the dining room. It seemed a funny thing to actually eat at the TABLE, but Paul had to admit that it seemed fitting considering the three hadn't had a meal together in over a week. True, it was a little formal for the household, but it felt nice to be able to have a place to set the food and be able to pay attention to both Dogs without trying to juggle a dinner plate. All in all, it was a wonderful end to a relaxing day... of course, that wasn't even taking into account that the night had only just begun.

Once dinner was finished Paul and Casey brought their utensils to the dish washer while Tanner brought the carry-out containers to the trash. From there, all three reconvened to the living room. Although the human had expected Casey to stick around and join them for the evening, he was quite surprised when the Dalmatian stretched and yawned, "Well... it's good to be back... but I gotta head out early tomorrow so I think I'm gonna call it a night. You two play nice now, got it?" Without waiting for an answer, the spotted Dog showed himself out, tail wagging casually as he headed off down the hall.

Tanner paused, glancing after him before looking back to Paul, "Any idea what that was about?"

Paul shrugged in response, "Since when have I ever been able to figure out what makes Casey tick?"

The two shared a laugh as the Shepherd pulled the human closer, "I just assumed since you seem to be good about knowing what makes ME tick."

Paul rolled his eyes theatrically, "Yea... yea... I hear it all the time: I'm good with Dogs."

His lover let out a playful little growl, and flea-nipped the side of Paul's head, "I might need a reminder of just how good you are."

"Oh? That wasn't exactly a SUBTLE hint, now was it?"

Tanner's grin held a hint of predator to it, "You've had a whole day off-- it sounds like you've been bored, and all my experience with you leads me to believe that you're always at your best when you need something to occupy your time."

Paul smirked, taking hold of his lover's paw and leading him down the hall to their bedroom, "So... 'Occupy my time', huh? You make it sound so romantic."

Tanner turned, pressing his body to the human's and backing him against the wall. The Dog spoke with a smirk, "Aw... I didn't know you were the kinda guy who was into flowers and candle light, Paul."

The young man responded by taking hold of either of the dog's lapels and pulling him down for a kiss, "That's me... Mr Romantic." He nudged the door open with his heel and rotated, urging Tanner backwards into the room. From there, he gave his lover a firm push, sending the Dog stumbling backwards to fall on the bed, face up. "I just don't let it get in the way of other things." A few steps later took Paul to the edge of the mattress, and, from there he climbed atop Tanner, grin even wider... and so was the Dog's.

From his perch in the Dog's lap, Paul had no trouble unbuttoning his lover's shirt before running his hands through the Shepherd's chest fur... but it was much more difficult trying to unbutton Tanner's jeans. The Dog didn't seem to mind, making due with interrupting the human by pulling Paul's shirt off-- which was much more disruptive since it didn't have buttons. Once the shirt was clear of the young man's head, Tanner pressed the advantage by shifting his weight and rolling over, pressing Paul's back to the mattress as he lay atop him.

The human smirked, drawing his fingers across the Dog's fur-covered pecs as Tanner's deft paws began undoing his jeans, "Oh... so just because you have sharp teeth you get to be the one in charge, is that it?"

The young man watched his partner grin widely as he finally pulled the human's jeans free of him, "No... I'm 'in charge' because you like these sharp teeth." Paul was about to provide a counter-argument when the Dog silenced him by leaning over his chest and drawing his broad, warm tongue across one of his nipples; the young man gasped-- completely silenced.

Tanner reached for the night stand with one paw, but Paul's gaze was on his other one, which was undoing his lover's button-fly. The human smiled when the Dog's sheath came into view, already thick, with a hint of pink peeking through the already dribbling opening. Paul couldn't resist commenting, "Well... there are plenty of other parts of you to like too."

The shepherd wriggled out of his jeans, balancing with one knee on the mattress as he kicked several times, the stubborn pants clinging to his ankle. They finally came loose and the Dog turned to regard him, squeezing the tube of lube into the palm of one paw as he looked eagerly toward Paul with a sharp-toothed grin, "Oh? Name seven."

The young man certainly didn't mind playing along, "Well, you give the best kisses... and at the end of the day when I have a chance to hug you you're just like a big teddy--- BRRRRR!" Paul almost bit his tongue as the Shepherd's paw slid up beneath his butt and a freezing cold palm-full of lube was pressed against him.

Tanner grinned, wiggling his ears, "And my horrible love of slapstick humor, I bet."

Paul let out a hissing breath through clenched teeth, "I can suffer through THAT."

The Dog leaned closer, his lubed paw going to his own sheath as he hovered over the human, adjusting his aim as he lowered his muzzle to the young man's lips and gave them a gentle lick, "Is there anything else I do to you that you have to 'suffer through'?"

Paul looked up into the deep brown eyes, smiling at the humor and adoration he saw in them. He raised his head to meet the Dog's muzzle, whispering quietly before they kissed, "Only things I have to suffer through is being without you until you're here."

The human let out a shaky breath through his nose, entire body tingling as he felt Tanner's sheath press against his opening. The Dog pushed forward slowly... so very slowly, and the Shepherd's sheath pulled back from the shaft within, which entered into Paul at a tedious pace... so methodical and purposeful that he swore he could feel every last ridge and bump of texture. Quivering in place beneath his boyfriend, the human silenced a moan as his body shivered at the feel of being taken by his lover.

Paul wasn't able to count the time since it had just been he and Tanner... since they had the time and energy to actually be so purposefully intimate. Paul broke the kiss, moaning at Tanner's second slow, purposeful thrust, which pushed another inch or two of the Dog's flesh into him, but with no more speed or insistence than the first. He wrapped his arms around his lover's body, taking fistfuls of Tanner's back-fur as his lover lowered his muzzle to Paul's neck, broad tongue gently caressing his flesh before Tanner's teeth nibbled softly.

The human spread his legs wider, crossing his ankles behind the Shepherd's back, "Mmmm... you can go... faster..."

Tanner nodded against his shoulder, tongue still gently caressing the side of his neck, "I can... I know..." but he signaled his lack of interest in doing so by starting his third thrust, adding more power this time, but still no more speed, pressing Paul's hips back against the mattress as his knot slipped the rest of the way free of his sheath, knot emerging, but not yet enough force to push it into the human. Paul gripped him tighter, trying to push his hips up to meet with the Dog's thrust, but Tanner pulled back.

Paul laughed even amidst a moan at the Dog's next slow, purposeful thrust, "You're doing this just to taunt me, aren't you?" he wriggled his toes, then arched his back when the Shepherd's knot rubbed up against his opening, decidedly enough to be felt, but nowhere near enough to insist upon entry.

Tanner's teeth grazed the young man's ear lobe and the Shepherd spoke in a hearty, lust-filled voice, "I haven't had near enough of you lately, Paul..." the Dog let out a soft growl to accentuate his next thrust, "...if you're mine for the night then I'm not about to use you up that fast..."

The words felt like a mix between a cheesy attempt at seduction and heartfelt romance but, regardless of what it was, it worked on both accounts. Paul drew a hand up to rest against the side of the Shepherd's face, thumb and first finger gently kneading the tip of the Dog's ear, "I'm yours for more than the night, Tan Paw... and you're not about to use me up no matter how fast you go."

Tanner let out a deep breath, and, body shaking, managed to maintain the slow, purposeful lovemaking, muscles obviously clenched in this intent focus on not letting his eagerness get away with him, "I'm not worried about 'going' too fast... I'm worried about 'coming'."

Paul couldn't help himself, and he laughed aloud at the so-very-perfect wordplay. It didn't take long before Tanner joined in, and the two renewed their embrace, laughing together before silencing one another with a kiss. The Shepherd maintained his speed, but he didn't object when the human began moving in unison-- if anything, he encouraged it.

It wasn't long before Tanner's knot slipped into Paul, and an even shorter time after that they reached their plateau. The human held his lover close as he felt the Shepherd empty himself into his body-- he was so transfixed at the sensation he didn't even notice his lover's paw until it had encircled his own straining shaft... and one touch was all it took before Paul was likewise flung out into a sea of orgasmic bliss. They gripped one another tightly through their respective releases, and didn't loosen their hold until both had calmed.

The human collapsed back against the bed, Tanner laying atop him, supporting his weight above the human on his elbows and knees. The Dog was panting happily, and Paul half wondered if he was doing the same. Rather than let the moment pass by unattended, he eased his head up and softly kissed the underside of his lover's muzzle. Tanner slowly rolled to the side, carrying Paul with him until the human was perched, seated on his lap. The Dog smiled, speaking softly, "I like you like this."

Paul smiled in return, laying down atop his lover, as Tanner gently caressed his back, "I like BEING like this."