They eventually reached a compromise, compiling a list of wants and absolute nos together. Something medium-sized. Nothing large and muscular enough that she would have trouble controlling them on her own, but nothing so small that they could be carried in a purse. Playful, but not so energetic that their apartment would be a liability. No working dogs that would become destructive without a task. A dog that would enjoy trips to the park when the weather was nice, but be satisfied with a short trip up the block in winter.
A spaniel, they decided at last, finding a breeder in the area and placing a deposit. They bought stainless steel bowls that sat on a solid wooden base, and a leash that felt substantial in their hands. Sturdy rubber toys that concealed food behind puzzles, promising mental enrichment.
“You know he’s going to be the smartest puppy in school, right? With us at home?” Ainsley made a derisive snort, waving his hand as if he were dismissing a classroom of dogs without the same love for music, art, and anthropology as their dog would surely possess. “Pffffttttt. Those other dogs may as well pack it in now.”
“Are we going to enroll him in art classes?” she asked with a grin, happy to play along when it made him this happy.
“Oh, for sure. We’re gonna have his originals all over the walls. And we’ll take him to the summer concert series that the symphony does in the park. Weekends in the museum so he can identify canine cultures through the ages. Maybe you can switchto a dance class that also teaches four-legged tap. And like, surely there’s a spelling bee somewhere we can dominate. He’s going to know how to spell ‘bone’ before any of his classmates.”
Ainsley’s mother hooted at the news. “You have no idea how happy you’re making him. He’s wanted a puppy his whole life.”
His mom had been worried about him as well, Ris knew. They spoke together in hushed whispers, every time Ris and Ainsley came for their regular visit, in the brief bursts when he left the room. She had found herself engulfed in a long, crushing hug when Shu’la discovered Ris had insisted her son go to therapy to deal with the upheaval of the last year.
“I know you had a soft spot for him,” she’d hissed, months earlier, “but after everything we’ve all been through, if I ever see Tate again, I’m going to back over him with my car.”
Shu’la had only smiled sadly. “Well . . . I’m not going to tell you you’re wrong for feeling what you feel. I’m willing to withhold judgment, I think. It’s easy to know how we might react in situations, until we’re forced to actually do it. I’ve had to make decisions that hurt people. I left my clan when I met his dad, raised Ainsley far away from them, and I know that hurt. Hurt my mother something awful. It was still the right decision, though. And even though it caused pain, even though it hurt people who love me, I’d make it again today. I won’t pretend to know Tate’s reasons for all the things he did, but you can bet he had them.”
Having his mother validate his long-held desire for a dog only served to solidify his insistence that he was already an expert, purely based on longing alone.
“Tell her, ShuShu. Literally myentirelife,” Ainsley confirmed. “‘What do you want Gragnog to bring you for Yule this year, Ainsley?’ A puppy. It was always a puppy. I never wanted a chemistry set or a telescope or an amplifier. I mean, Idid. But I asked for the puppy first. Every year!”
“He did,” his mother confirmed with a laugh. “And I always felt terrible that we couldn’t.”
“At long last, his moment has arrived. I think this will be good,” Ris said with more confidence than she may have felt. “For both of us.”
They were driving home from his mother’s, had just crossed the center of town, and were stopped at a light.
“We’re about to become very responsible people,” he said abruptly, his voice solemn. “Our schedules are going to have to shift; we’re going to need to be home a lot more. This is a big responsibility. We’ll have to start thinking of something other than ourselves.”
Ris raised her eyebrows at the portentous pronouncement. These were all things they’d already discussed. Ainsley had his head tipped back, leaning against his right shoulder, his eyes sliding to the side to find hers.
“Let’s go do something really irresponsible that we’ll probably hate.”
Ris was laughing before the light had a chance to turn green, already knowing precisely what sort of irresponsible quest he was proposing, and that yes, theywouldprobably hate it.
Port and Glory was on the seedy edge of downtown Bridgeton, an area of businesses with hand-painted signs and boarded-up windows. It was just on the border between a block of nine-to-five business and what was essentially the red light district, a block and a half of adult entertainment — strip clubs, erotic toy shops, a sex club, a dungeon, and more.
Unlike most of its neighbors, this business was newer, a bit slicker, they’d heard, clean and well-run. It was the sister to an erotic dance club next door called the Slip and Slide, and while they had discussed giving the glory hole establishment a try, with the constant rush of their schedules, the opportunity to do so had never presented itself.
Until now, evidently.
“C’mon, when are we going to have a chance to do something like this again? We’re going to beparents. To a baby! This might be our last slutty adventure for a while.”
Ris laughed her agreement. “Okay! We’ve been circling this place since it opened; may as well take the plunge. But we need to establish our ground rules. What’s the strategy? Dammit, I am not dressed for this! Why didn’t you tell me, ‘Hey, we’re having lunch with my mom and then maybe hitting a sex club on the way home,’ before we left the house?”
“Because I’m being spontaneous and romantic, Ris. You should give it a try sometime.”
She threw a balled-up napkin from the cup holder at him, which he batted away easily.
“Okay, well, can you at least pull up the website before we go in, Mr. Romance? I’d like to know what their rules are before you’re standing in the lobby with your cock hanging out.”
Ainsley rolled his eyes, but pulled out his phone, obliging her. “Came out for a nice time, and I’m being attacked. Typical. Okay, so . . . wow, this place is on the level. We have to register at the front desk to verify age and sexual health.”
“Good thing you never brought our test results in from like two years ago,” she huffed, knowing they were stuffed in his visor.
“See? I wasn’t engaging in clutter; I was being proactive. We can get a private room, which is pricey, or we can just grab an open hole in the main room.Orwe can be on the sucky sucky side. Maybe I can be on one side, and you can be on the other.”
“Yeah, I can sucky sucky you at home for free. Private room, I don’t care how much it costs. At least for our first time. I’m in my cozy-cute lunch with mom clothes! I don’t want them getting all sploogey. This is the cool shit you like to save your money for, remember?”
