27. Ana
CHAPTER 27
ANA
A fter only a brief followup conversation, during which Derek and Jansen were distracted by something other than wanting to have sex with me, they agreed that we could try out Bring Your Pet to Work Day once a week.
I poll the staff to make sure no one has allergies, do some pet proofing by securing cords and bringing in a few gates to block off areas like the break room, and draw up policies so that things will go smoothly.
Two weeks later, the first trial day arrives. As I expected, a lot of people are very excited to participate, and I wish I had a pet to bring in, but I enjoy meeting everyone else’s. Jackie introduces me to her adorable cocker spaniel mix, Imani has a young boxer, and Gloria’s buddy is a golden lab who lies at her feet all day.
Interestingly, the pet Charles brings in is a reptile, some kind of gecko that’s nearly the length of a standard ruler from head to tail. Thankfully, it spends the day in a tank he keeps at his desk. There are also two cats visiting the office, including one who seems perfectly happy wearing a rainbow-striped sweater that Kenzie, the cat’s owner, says was knitted by her grandmother.
There’s a buzz of excitement throughout the day that’s a welcome change, and it seems that even people who didn’t bring pets are getting in on the fun of it, petting the dogs and socializing more with their officemates. Productivity may take a bit of a hit today, but that’s just because of the first-day newness of it all. After more of these days take place, they’ll become more routine, while still being a nice benefit.
There are a few random barks during the day, but nothing too disruptive, especially compared to our retail manager, Rob, serenading the office with a sexually-explicit song.
After lunch, Jansen summons me to his office with a bellow. He’s rarely one to request a meeting, and his voice sounds a couple of levels above its usual grumpiness, so I hustle over there, concerned that something is wrong.
His door is open when I arrive, and he’s standing behind his desk, looking down at the floor with alarm and disgust.
“What’s the matter? ”
“I need you to remove this animal.”
As I get closer, I catch sight of a bit of fluffy white fur, and I prepare to scoop up the little dog, which I recognize as belonging to one of the accountants. But as I round the desk, I see that the dog is very vigorously and enthusiastically humping one of Jansen’s pant legs.
“Oh my god!” I can’t stop the fit of giggles that overtakes me, and I’m bent over laughing, when Jansen roars at me.
“Ana! Do something about this dog.”
“I will …I will. I just need a minute.” Apparently, I’m not the only one who finds Jansen Bennett irresistible. “Actually, I feel like I should give you two some time alone.”
“Ana!”
Pulling myself together, I crouch down and call the dog over to me, then pick him up. As soon as he’s in my arms, he covers my face with kisses. “Hi buddy, who’s a good boy?”
Jansen huffs.
“Sorry to have to interrupt your fun, little buddy.” The fluffy dog squirms, trying to reach one of my ears with his busy tongue.
“What’s going on?” Derek strides in, taking in the scene.
“Jansen made a new friend,” I say.
“Make sure that dog never comes in here again.” Jansen shudders, looking and sounding like he’s just been assaulted.
I cock my head at him. “Oh, c’mon. Was it really that bad?”
He just grimaces at me before narrowing his eyes at the dog suspiciously.
Derek reaches out a hand as if he’s about to pet the dog, but pulls it back when the little fluff ball greets him with his tongue. “He’s quite the licker, isn’t he?”
“That’s not all he does,” I say, giggling again, remembering Jansen’s face when I first arrived.
There’s a knock at the door, and Kenzie, the social media manager, is standing there with her cat in her arms and a camera strap over her shoulder. “Hey, great, you’re both together,” she says to Derek and Jansen. “I’d love to get photos of you with some pets to post on our Instagram account.”
The two CEOs exchange a look, and Jansen heaves a sigh, looking prepared to object.
“That’s a great idea,” I say. “Aren’t animal charities popular with the customers?”
“They are,” Derek admits.
A big part of Community Bean’s charitable giving is decided on by customers, who can vote with every order. It’s one of the things that gives the company such a great reputation, and plays into the “Community” part of the company’s name .
“I’ll ask Gloria if I can bring her lab in,” Kenzie says, disappearing briefly and returning with the more laid-back pooch.
She directs the men to sit in chairs next to each other, and she asks me to hand Jansen the little white dog, but Jansen leans away, shaking his head. Derek takes the dog but keeps it at arm’s length as it continues to try to lick him. The lab lies on the floor in front of the two men.
“We need to represent cat lovers, too,” Kenzie says. “Jansen, can you hold Neville Furbottom?”
As I struggle to keep a straight face, Jansen’s eyes find me, and the look he gives me tells me that he’s going to make me pay for this. Kenzie puts her cat in his arms, and though Jansen looks incredibly displeased, he should at least be grateful that the cat isn’t humping him.
Kenzie spends quite a bit of time taking pictures, probably because it’s hard for her to get a shot where both Derek and Jansen look comfortable and semi-pleasant.
As the photo shoot continues, Derek brings the little dog in closer and eventually surrenders to its kisses, letting the persistent pooch lick his face to its heart’s content. Derek almost looks like he enjoys it, and when I overhear him talking baby talk to the dog, I nearly fall over.
Jansen sets his hand on Neville’s back, presumably to hold the cat in place, but eventually he starts to stroke it, and in a quiet moment, I can hear the cat purr.
Gloria comes in with dog biscuits, and Derek gives a small piece to the little dog, and then offers the rest to Gloria’s lab, talking nicely to both pups.
The men look more agreeable than they’ve ever looked. Agreeable isn’t even a word I ever thought I’d use to describe them.
When Kenzie’s satisfied with the pictures she got, she picks up Neville, and Gloria’s lab takes the opportunity to nudge its nose onto Jansen’s lap. Jansen stiffens, but reaches out to pet it, first tentatively, then with more ease.
Maybe neither of these men had pets when they were children, and that’s part of why they’re so cold.
For some reason, seeing Derek and Jansen pet dogs and cats is making me feel things I have no business feeling. For the first time, I wonder if there could be boyfriend potential there. Maybe I’m just craving some affection for myself.
My mind wanders off to a fantasy scenario where the men are my boyfriends, and it immediately feels strange. Sex with both of them feels incredibly natural, but the idea of dating them, either together or separate, seems odd, especially since there are two of them.
I recall how Jansen tenderly brushed hair back from my face the last time we had sex. It seemed affectionate, but am I reading too much into it? Probably.
Seeing them hold dogs and cats makes me wish I could cuddle in their laps, too, though I know I’m with the wrong kind of men for that. What would it even be like to cuddle with them? Surely, they’re capable of it, right?
After everyone else clears out, I’m there holding the little dog, preparing to take it back to the accounting department. “Was that so bad?” I ask the men.
Jansen just stares back at me, but it’s not a cold stare. There’s some warmth there, maybe for the first time. Animals must have magical powers.