Page 5 of Evil Hearts

“Shit!” she bit out, picking it back up and shoving it in her pocket with a quick glance to make sure it didn’t crack.

Fenn-the-dog stared back at her with eyes that knew way too much, looking grumpy or… insulted? Dogs could be pretty needy, but she wasn’t sure how she felt about him wanting her attention with what he had between his legs. She was no vet, but there was no way that was a normal penis ratio for a dog.God, stop staring at it, Addison, you’re being weird.

But Fenn-the-dogwas staring atheras he came concerningly close.She shook off the strange sensation—he was an animal for crying out loud!—and went with her first line of defense.

“No,” she said firmly.

His ears twitched, eyes going wide as he considered her command.

…and promptly disregarded it. Fenn went nose-first into her crotch, sniffing away like she was storing the treatsthereinstead of in the waist pouch. She cupped his nose and gently backed him up, all too aware of how large his teeth were—as well as the rest of him.

“No, bad Fenn,” she said more firmly. “Sit.”

He whimpered at her admonishment before looking back up at her and sitting back on his haunches like he had a magnet in his butt.Whew, it worked.

“Good boy, Fenn!” she encouraged, fumbling a treat out of the pouch and letting him eat it with surprising daintiness from her palm..

His tail thumped emphatically against the grass.

“Thisis how we say hello,” she said, reaching her hand out so he could sniff it again. “You should know that. I think.”

Fenn visibly struggled to keep his butt on the ground as he reached his snout forward, nosing her hand. Apparently, he really liked her, because it only took seconds for the sniffing to turn to licking.

“Good boy!” she cooed again, moving her slobber-covered hand to pet through his fur before giving him a big hug.

If she thought his tail was hitting the ground hard before, it was nothing compared to the deafening thwacks he made now. She ruffed up his fur as he pressed into her—still seated like the good boy he was. Even if he still had the biggest erection she’d ever seen on man or beast. She had to bend forward a little bit to prevent bumping the damn thing on her leggings.

But to his credit, she thought as she pulled away from the embrace, he didn’t try to hump any part of her. Maybe he was justoveraroused—that’s what the article had tastefully called dogs flying at full mast. He probably just needed to run around a little, get some stimulation. With Connor away from the Academy, maybe Fenn-the-human had been too overworked to give him enough attention. Much as it squeezed her heart to think of Fenn-the-dog being neglected, she was glad he apparently needed her—as long as she made it through this trial training session, they’d be seeing a lot more of one another.And hopefully that yummy namesake of his, too.

Addison figured she’d start with a walk to get a feel for his manners. But when she leaned down to clip the lead, a quick ruffle of her fingers through his neck fur revealed Fenn was, in official trainer terms, “nakies.”

“Oh! Fenn must have forgotten to put your collar on, pup. Now where would I…”

Fenn-the-dog barked and nosed at the basket on the ground, as if in reply. With a puzzled frown, she looked over, a little unsettled by the idea the dog understood her on that level. It was impossible, right? If only she had a set of those cool talking buttons she’d seen on a few of those dog training videos.Then they could have a proper conversation, she thought with a giggle.

But there in the basketwasa collar—she’d overlooked it originally, distracted by the muzzle. The matte black leather was immaculately kept, almost as if Connor washed it after every use. Fenn’s name shone in the floodlights, a single shallow scratch on the silver bone-shaped tag the only visible wear.

“Well aren’t you a well-kept good boy,” she muttered, amused, as she unbuckled the strap.

Fenn panted as he wagged his tail, still patiently waiting for her next command. Connor was a hell of a trainer. Or maybe it was just that Fenn was a hell of a dog. She guessed it took two to get this kind of obedience.

She parted his neck fur and carefully buckled the collar, clipping on the leash, surprised when Fenn startedpurring. Addison gave him some solid pats and ‘good boys’ for his obedience, but wondered if it would be pushing her luck to try and muzzle him this early on. Fenn-the-human had said Fenn-the-doglikedbeing muzzled, though, hadn’t he? Besides, If she had picture proof this early on, that had to give her brownie points over any other job candidates overarousal issue…shereallyhoped it would fix that big problem.

“Okay, Fenn, I’m going to put the muzzle on you now—okay, boy?” she asked, reaching back into the basket for the mouth cage of metal and vinyl.

He whimpered, shifting his weight between his front paws like she was dangling a steak overhead, tail thumping loudly on the ground. She didn’t know what to make of his behavior. Werethese bad signs or good? He definitely seemed overstimulated—the internet was right about that. The article had mentioned overaroused dogs were prone to biting, she thought nervously, glancing at Fenn’s giant teeth as he nipped an itch on his front leg.

Even so, she knew she needed to take it slow, offering a treat for his continued obedience and dedication to sittingmostlystill. He kept rocking between his feet and slamming his butt back on the ground, knowing she hadn’t released him yet but clearly excited as he chomped on his bribery treat.

She didn’t need to bend down much to be at his level, tracking his movements and body language as she carefully positioned the muzzle.

“C’mon, boy, let’s get this on you,” she said softly, not really sure how this was supposed to go. “God, I hope you actually do like this.”

To her surprise, he didn’t struggle to wear it at all, and seemed downright patient with her fiddling. If anything, he leaned into it, slipping his nose into the cage as easily as a glove. Addison let out a slow breath, grateful though baffled by his cooperation. Once she had all the straps locked in behind his ears, she snapped the picture and texted it to the Academy’s number, scritching and petting her now less-intimidating training pupil.

“Good boy! Oh, Fenn, you’re gonna make getting this job so easy, you’re the best.” she whisper-squealed with delight. “Okay, let’s go on that walk.”

One problem became clear in short order, however: Fenn wasexceptionallyoveraroused. She was not nearly in the kind of shape necessary to keep up with his breakneck pace around the perimeter. Though he seemed to be trying to heel at first, the normally well-behaved dog suddenly had way too much energy to handle. Her wrist burned from the tug of the leash-loop and she panted almost as loudly as he did.

---