Cats And Dogs

Chapter There ?

Sam walked to his car, trying to clear the very pleasant image from his mind so the reaction in his pants would go away. The sight of Tom naked was not something he would forget in a hurry. His body was magnificent, toned like his own but less broad or hairy, and he was well endowed as well. The thoughts running through his head about what he would like to do to that body and c**k had caused an almost instant erection. He swallowed hard as he walked away, knowing that whatever his body might want, he was not going to give in to lust when there were far more important things at stake in this operation. Nor was he going to chance his feelings for an Alpha cat who was almost certainly straight, but he knew already he was going to find being around Tom really difficult.

Tilly however had not missed the look on Sam's face. Her mind raced at the sudden knowledge that Sam had been looking at Tom with more than a little lust. She had also sensed the emotion, a sudden wave of desire from Sam that had almost sent her reeling with its intensity, and certainly a stronger emotion than she had ever felt from him. There had been a strange mix of emotions in the air through the brief meeting, starting with Tom's displeasure at seeing her, which strangely hadn't gone away entirely even when he knew her place in the house. Perhaps there was some hope for her leader finding someone special? She could only find out more about Tom and pray that there was a chance.

'Are you ready to go see the grounds?' she thought to him.

He purred a confirmation and they set off at a slow run, heading first down the drive as Tilly wanted to show him around the perimeter before heading into some specific areas where they trained.

'Unusual for an Alpha not to have one of his own kind as Second.' Tom commented to her, trying to keep a tight control on his feelings.

He knew female cats were often sensitive to emotion, and had no desire for her to know his thoughts about Sam. He had hoped that seeing him again would help clear his mind of the attraction he had felt at their first brief meeting, but he knew now he wanted Sam more, and worse, had to face the knowledge that Sam was almost certainly not interested, and already involved with Tilly.

'We've been working together longer than the others have been with us. Other wolves have come and gone from the team; there's three here at the moment who've joined at various times. I was raised by wolves, so it doesn't seem odd to me, and they all know I'm Second because I'm good at what I do. My skills work well with Sam's, so we get good results.'

Tom considered what Tilly told him. It boded well for the mission, whatever that might be, and of course assuming that his team could work as well with dogs as she did. He still had reservations but really hoped they could pull this off. It would be good for both teams if they could take on their mission and succeed.

'You don't ever have disagreements then? Don't you ever find your cat side getting frustrated with them?'

He heard her laughter inside his head before she answered. 'No, not the cat in me; sometimes the female, especially being stuck here with all these men. To be honest, I don't tend to think of myself as cat, I've spent so little of my life around them. If anyone is cat-like here it's Sam not me. I keep telling him he'll end up as one, or at least mated with one.'

Tom picked up on that comment straight away and couldn't stop his question. 'You, I assume? It seemed to me you were already mates.'

This time the laughing wasn't just in his head, although in her cat form the sound was odd. She stopped running and turned to face him. Even her feline features showed amusement. Although she didn't plan on telling Tom, she had known Sam was gay for many years. It was only a surprise to her today because she had never known him be that interested in anyone specific, not even the few men he had dated.

'I guarantee it won't be me. I don't know what made you think that. Perhaps I should explain I wasn't just raised by any wolves, I was raised by his family, as part of his litter. Genetics aside, he's my brother and has been since we were cubs.'

Tilly studied Tom's face as she replied. Something was going on here with the information he was trying to get from her. He was getting her life story, but somehow she had the feeling this wasn't about her. He was keeping a tight lid on his emotions though, and she couldn't work out exactly what his motives were. Still, she would plenty of time to work things out over the coming weeks. Her hopes that Tom might also like her brother started to raise.

Tom's mind was racing now. Sister rather than mate. That put a whole different spin on things. Since the whole idea of this mission was to foster cat-dog relations, perhaps he still could try and do his part. He smiled at the thought. Still, stage one was always information gathering, and he had been learning plenty that would be of use. Of course a good operative would also make sure their reasons for asking questions were not obvious.

'You've been very good telling me all about you. I didn't expect so much help, especially considering how rude I was to you. I know I'm not your Alpha and you don't have to be open with me.'

'Sam told me I should treat your instructions as if they came from him. I have no problem having two bosses for a while.'

'And what happens if we end up giving you conflicting orders?'

She laughed again. 'Then I decide which one of you makes the most sense!'

Tom was amused at this response, even though it was quite cheeky given that he was an Alpha. 'So you consider yourself more intelligent than us?'

'Only one of you!' she replied, still smiling.