Tried & True (THIRDS 10)

Ash sneered at him. Lion Therians were experts at that, and Ash was the king of sneering. West came over, chirping at Dex and bumping his head against Dex’s chest.

“Hey, nerd.” He ruffled West’s fur and scratched him behind the ear. “Hobbs wanted me to tell you guys that if you keep leaving your tech shit all over his BearCat, he’s going to recycle it.”

The two cheetahs sat up tall, necks stretched, and started chirping their little furry faces off.

“Hey, don’t you look at me. You got a problem, you take it up with the big guy. Remember when I accidentally dropped that piece of chocolate on the bench and it melted? He put a glitter bomb in my locker. I went out on call looking like a Human disco ball. Do not mess with the dude’s truck.”

The two looked at each other, then at Hobbs, who happened to stand up on his hind legs to put his paws on Calvin’s shoulders. He was huge. The two bounced over to Ash, a symphony of chirps thrown at him. Ash flattened his ears back, and Dex felt sorry for the guy.

“Hey, Ash.”

Ash perked up, his tail moving subtly.

“Did you hear Sloane calling you? I could’ve sworn he called you.”

Ash bobbed his head before darting off toward Sloane as if someone had set fire to his tail. Cael and West took off after him, but West stopped halfway and turned back. He dashed over to Dom and chirped at him before circling him, rubbing his head all over Dom, then taking off again.

Rosa and Letty went to play Frisbee with the boys, and Dex arched an eyebrow at Dom.

“Don’t,” Dom muttered.

Dex held up his hands.

The Frisbee came Dom’s way, as did West. Dom shot to his feet and snatched the Frisbee out of the air before West could. Dom laughed.

“Oh shit, gotta be quicker than that, rock star.”

Dom teased West with the Frisbee, and West jumped up on his hind legs, his front paws on Dom’s chest as he chirped at him. Dom laughed as he moved the Frisbee from one hand to the other, keeping it away from West. Changing tactics, West ran circles around Dom before slipping through his legs and tripping him. Dom landed on the grass with a laugh, West rubbing his head under Dom’s neck and face.

If Dom wasn’t careful, he was going to get his heart broken, and Dex would hate for that to happen.

Dex’s phone buzzed a reminder, and he cursed under his breath. He better move his ass, or he was going to be late. One last tux fitting. He might or might not have eaten one too many cake samples. Dex got to his feet and whistled. Sloane jumped to his paws and craned his neck, tail twitching before he spotted Dex, and then he bounded over. With a big smile, Dex crouched down in front of him.

“I gotta go meet Tony at the tux place.

Meet you back here for lunch after, okay?”

Sloane rubbed his head on Dex’s face, and Dex hugged him.

“I love you too. I’ll text you when I’m done.”

Sloane sat on his haunches as Dex stood. He looked up at Dex with big amber eyes.

“Don’t look at me with that face. You know you’re not allowed to see me in my tux before the wedding.”

Sloane huffed, and Dex chuckled. He scratched him behind the ear before calling out to Rosa. She jogged over and gave him a hug.

“I’m gonna leave Sloane’s kit with you. I have to run off for a final tux fit. Shouldn’t be too long.”

“Ooh!” She clapped her hands excitedly. “I can’t wait to see you in your tux. You’re going to look so gorgeous.”

“Aw, thanks. Keep your eye on this one. He’s dying to see the tux, even though he knows he’s not supposed to.”

“I’m on it,” Rosa said. “Say hi to the Sarge for us.”

“Will do.” Dex hugged her and waved goodbye before he called a cab.

ON THE drive over, Dex was actually nervous, which was silly, considering this was the third time he was trying on the made-to-order double-breasted tuxedo. Lou had helped him pick a style that was elegant yet modern.