Brad laughed, though, and patted his head, and the puppy whined, leaning into his hand.
I hissed and all three pairs of eyes turned toward me. I didn’t care that I was still naked except for my jockstrap, my entire focus was on this mutt in my owner’s house.
“Harley cat.” Brad grinned and stood, but I hissed again, louder this time, and took a few steps back.
His smile faded slightly, and he glanced down at the dog. The canine blinked up at him and then at me with sad eyes that made me shiver in sympathy. I didn’t care what was wrong with him, though. He was in the house that I’d claimed as my own, regardless of the fact that I barely knew Brad. Even if it was short-lived, he was still my owner right now.
“Harley cat, this is Kwan.”
I remembered. He was the clumsy dog from Black Out, the one who’d nearly mowed me down in order to get his damn ball. I turned my head away in disinterest.
“His owner dumped him,” Brad continued, a lilt of sympathy in his voice. “He doesn’t have an owner anymore.”
Warning sirens blared in my head, and I glanced back at the three of them, my gaze settling on the mutt again. The cat part of me hated that he was here, so close to me, and as much as my human side did as well, I also felt sorry for him. I knew what it felt like to be abandoned.
Still, Brad was mine. I hissed again and spun on my knees, skittering out of the kitchen and back toward the den. It had quickly become my safe space. Footsteps followed and I didn’t have to look to know Brad was right behind me. I’d made it to the den and halfway to my box before he grabbed the back of my neck. I spun, swatting at him, but instead of jumping away, he took the hits to his arm.
I meowed and hissed louder, fighting against his hold on me.
“Enough, Harley!” The firm and dominant voice made me freeze. That kind of tone was strange on Brad, and even though he didn’t look angry, there was a very serious expression on his face, as though he couldn’t quite work out what he wanted to do with me. “Enough.”
The next hiss I let out was quiet and weaker than before, and I meowed, twisting my mouth in displeasure.
“You don’t like a dog here?” he asked, brows furrowed.
I glared at him.
“He doesn’t have anywhere else to go.” He shook his head, glancing at the door like he was afraid the mutt would be there. “His owner, you remember that douche from Black Out? He dumped him. He’s in some trouble, from what Nicky says.”
I huffed in a way that sounded more human than cat and glared harder. Fuck Brad. And fuck that damn dog. Was this what he wanted the entire time, to find himself a dog? Maybe he never wanted a cat after all.
I turned my back on him and took a deep breath. I was deep into my cat persona, but I couldn’t be a feline right now. Words were needed. I nearly fell over as I raised myself to my feet, but when Brad tried to grab at me, I swiped at him with my paws. I wished I had claws in that moment, if only to catch his skin with them and make him bleed, show him how angry I really was.
“Harley….”
“I’m not someone you can throw away when you finally find yourself a dog,” I said, but my words were garbled, and my tongue felt heavy. I blinked at him, at the hurt look on his face.
“That’s not what this is.”
I snorted and it sounded more human. Tugging off my paws, I threw them in the box that sat near the couch and reached behind myself to remove my tail. I hissed when the thicker part of the plug grazed the ring of my hole on the way out. The paws on my feet came next, kicked directly into the box.
“Harley, listen to me—”
“Why should I?” I snapped, surprising even myself by the sharpness in my voice. “You think you’re the first one to choose a mutt over me? Well, you’re not. Don’t strain yourself trying to find excuses.”
Spinning on my heel, I stormed over to my jeans and yanked them onto my legs. I wasn’t going to cry, even if tears lingered in my eyes. This wasn’t about Brad, even though I liked him. This was about being tossed aside for a dog. Again. Barton said he was done with me because he couldn’t handle me in my human form. He said it was because I lived too much in my head, but then he went out and got a dog as a pet. A fucking dog.
Brad touched my shoulder, and I cringed away from his hand. “Please don’t.”
When I had my shirt on, I glanced at him. I refused to cry, to show weakness. What did I expect from someone who’d always owned dogs? I had hoped for too much.
“If you don’t want me to take care of him until he finds another owner, I won’t, but it’s not going to be permanent. I’m only fostering him until he can find a new owner,” Brad whispered, his pretty lips downturned. “I’m not choosing him over you. Please stay.”
“I… I can’t. Thanks for this weekend.” I threw my shoes into the box and grabbed the edges, hauling it up against me as I nearly ran out of the house. Brad followed me, hot on my heels.
“Stop, Harley. Now. That’s an order. This isn’t over, and I won’t let you run away from me.” His words were firm again, and I hated how my cock reacted to the tone.
I clicked the fob of my car, yanking open the back door to drop the box in there.
