“Yeah, and don’t forget my shots. Maybe a heartworm pill?”
Rory turned a concerned, puzzled face toward him. “Do you think you need shots and pills? Are you ill?”
“Forget it,” Nicky said. “Take me to the ‘groomers’ and let’s get this shit over with. ”
“Okay, but you really need to watch your language. Marco will punish you for those cuss words. Pets are not allowed to use them. ”
“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” Nicky mumbled, following him down another long hallway off the common room.
Rory opened the door to what looked like a beauty shop, except it would have to be one in some kind of nudist colony, because almost everyone in the room except for Rory was half naked and wearing collars. A pretty little brunette came over to them and took Nicky’s hand.
“Hello, Nicky. It’s so good to meet you. I’ve never seen a man as pretty as you before. You’re so beautiful. Everyone’s talking about it. ”
A couple of puzzling things were happening or rather not happening. First of all, a rather beautiful young girl stood in front of him, totally naked from the waist up, her breasts almost touching his chest, and his body wasn’t reacting at all. He looked down at his cock, and it was peaceful in his pants and perfectly uninterested. What the fuck?
Secondly, he felt almost no embarrassment at standing in front of these people while halfnaked himself, wearing only a pair of skin tight leather pants. Was he just becoming accustomed to it? Or was he still in the middle of the weirdest dream he’d ever had?
“My name is Tara, and I’ll be your groomer today. Come in and sit down, dear. ”
Rory unclipped the leash, and the minute it came off, uneasiness stirred in Nicky. He allowed Tara to take his hand and lead him to a chair. Rory stood nearby shifting his feet until Tara took pity on him and said with a laugh, “Sir, you can wait outside if you wish. I promise we’ll take very good care of him. ”
Rory retreated gratefully, and Tara turned back to Nicky, running her fingers through his hair. “Your hair is so lovely. So curly and shiny. A true blond, right?
Nicky nodded, a little embarrassed by all this talk of his beauty. He’d always been uncomfortable with the idea.
“Your hair’s so blond, and your skin’s so creamy. Have you noticed that most of us have dark hair and brown eyes? It’s rare that a master will choose a blond with those
pretty blue eyes. They really prefer brunettes. Of course, if it’s a blood match, like yours, Marco would have had no choice. ”
“All these terms you people keep tossing around are confusing to me. Please explain to me what you’re talking about. What does ‘blood match’ mean exactly?”
“Oh, I’m so sorry. I was a new pet myself, not too long ago, and I remember how confusing it all was at first. Listen, let me get you shampooed, and then I’ll explain everything while I style your hair. ”
“I just washed my hair in the shower this morning. ”
“Oh, good. Then let me spray it with some water to make it easier to style. ”
“It’s pretty long. Go ahead and cut it as short as you want. ”
“Oh, no. Marco said specifically it was not to be cut. He loves your pretty long curls. Don’t worry. I’ll take good care of you. ”
“Yeah, that’s what everyone keeps telling me. So far I’ve been bitten, stripped naked, and tattooed, along with some other things I can’t talk about in front of you. You can understand if I don’t quite believe that statement anymore. ”
“Sorry, dear,” Tara said as she sprayed water on his hair and ran a comb through it. “Let me tell you what I know about the werekin. ”
“Please. ”
“Okay, now keep in mind I’ve only been here a few months myself. My master is Tristan. He’s very handsome and wonderful. ”
Her eyes took on a dreamy quality. Nicky wondered if his did the same when he talked about Marco.
“He first saw me working in a beauty shop in a small town not too far from here. We were a blood match too. That means, when a master sees a certain person, they just know instinctively that the person is for them. They can’t help themselves, really. They have to have us and are miserable without us. We feel the same way about them too, once we see them and accept the idea. Do you remember when you first saw our Alpha?”
“Yes, last night. It was the strangest thing I ever felt. I couldn’t get close enough to him. ”
“Yes, you two are a blood match, so his blood sang to yours right away. That’s why you instantly recognized him. We’re totally drawn to them, you see, beyond reason, beyond any human ties. We always go to them willingly and submit to them completely. At least at first while we’re in heat. Our masters subdue us, make us submissive to them and the masters are all very skillful at it. ”
“Okay, back up. What do you mean ‘master’? As in slave and master? I’m not going to be a slave for anybody, even Marco. They can all forget about that. ”