I covered my face with my hand and sighed.
“No. You make no noise and hide in the bedroom. One more time, what do you do if someone comes to the house?”
“Tell them that this is Master’s home and that they need to get lost!”
Time for some tough love. I grabbed a newspaper from my coffee table, rolled it up, and smacked Sonja over the head. It didn’t actually hurt her, but she stared up at me in shock.
“You will do no such thing! You won’t make any noise and you won’t let anyone see you! Now answer me, what will you do if someone comes to the door?”
“Yell at them to go away!”
SMACK!
She winced as the rolled-up newspaper slapped the top of her head.
“I’m going to be late for work at this rate. Momo, I’ll leave this to you. Continue hitting her over the head until she gets it. If someone comes to the door, keep Sonja from making noise no matter what. Sonja, NO NOISE.”
I opened the door and stepped outside. As I walked to my car, I heard the whap of the newspaper. That pretty little idiot. Hopefully she’d figure it out before Momo would have to knock her out with a book.
—————————————-
“So, what did you want to talk to me about?”
I had just stepped into my boss’s office, trying to build up all the courage I had. I hoped to look nothing like the overweight balding man when I reached his age. I sat down on the other side of his desk and took a deep breath.
“I want a raise.”
“And I want to win the lottery. Which do you think is more likely to happen?”
“Let me rephrase: what do I need to do to get a raise?”
“Look, even if I wanted to give you a raise, there’s no room in the budget. For God’s sake, you’ve been here for three years. Do you really think you deserve a raise?”
“Come on, I work harder than anyone else here. Name one person who gets more done.”
“Like I said, there’s no room in the budget for anyone to get a raise. Where’s this coming from? Did you knock someone up?”
“Not exactly. Let’s just say that I have people to take care of and leave it at that.”
My boss leaned back in his chair. “Ok, I’ll tell you what. A regional manager position is opening up, meaning I may be able to move up the ladder. If I get the job, I’ll give you my office manager position. But I want you to show me that you deserve a promotion. The decision will be made in two weeks, so I suggest you work your ass off until then.”
I reached out to shake his hand. “Consider it done.”
—————————————-
It was another long day at the office, especially long actually. I had stayed late, doing everything I could possibly do to make myself busy. For these next two weeks, I had to go above and beyond as the model employee and show that I had what it took to run the office. I was completely exhausted and not looking forward to the coming days. I had even picked up some Thai food on the way home, not having any energy to cook.
But on the plus side, when I arrived home and slammed my car door shut, I didn’t hear any barking. Or whatever sound Sonja would now make. It seemed Momo had gotten through to her. I opened the door, seeing neither of them.
“I’m home!”
“MASTER!” Sonja bolted out of my bedroom and charged towards me. “MASTER! MASTER! MASTER! MASTER! MASTER! MASTER! MASTER! MASTER!MASTER!MASTER!MASTERMASTERMASTERMASTERMASTER!” She tackled me, nearly knocking me onto my ass, and held on tight, her tears soaking my shirt. “Master! You were gone so long! I didn’t think you would ever come back! It’s so late! Please don’t be away for so long ever again!”
“Aw, I’m sorry, Sonja. I had to stay late at the office. But where’s Momo?”
I looked to the doorway of my bedroom, seeing Momo, hiding with tears in her eyes. Like Sonja, she rushed over and embraced me, but instead of yammering her fears, she silently cried into my chest. I had two naked beauties, crying from their loneliness. I could do nothing but smile and hold them close.
“I’m sorry, girls. I’m so sorry. Don’t worry, I’ll always come home. I’d never leave you. Come on, let’s relax on the couch. I got us all dinner.”
They wouldn’t let go of me, so I had to walk the three of us over to the couch and sit us all down. We stayed there for a few minutes, the two of them with their faces buried in my chest as I held them in my arms. Is this how pets normally feel when we leave them alone for too long? Eventually, they calmed down and I was able to distribute the food. I didn’t know what they’d like, so I just ordered the most normal (and cheap) food I could, avoiding weird sauces and spices and focusing on meat and vegetables. Momo was downing shrimp like shots of tequila and Sonja was nibbling away at chicken on a stick.
“Now girls, for the next two weeks, I’m going to be coming home late. I’ll be working really hard at the office. But if my work pays off, I’ll be able to get something really good for us. So, I need the two of you to be patient, stay calm, and know that I’m coming back for you. Can you do that?”
“Yes,” said Sonja.
“Uh-huh,” said Momo.
“Good, now let’s finish eating and go for our walk.”
—————————————-
The next week was a nightmare, getting up extra early to be the first one at the office and staying late to be the last person to leave. I worked through lunch, took no breaks, and made sure that I accomplished every task that could be done. I tried to take more of an administrative role in the office, showing my boss that I could replace him as the manager. It takes more than work ethic to get a promotion; I had to show that I had the skills required for the job.
The girls hated my new schedule, waking them up earlier and not getting home until later. It was a long time to be away from them. When I did come home, I was exhausted, but still had to cook and take care of them. I also wasn’t getting laid. Momo realized she had made a mistake when having sex with me in front of Sonja. Now, instead of the moment being ruined, Momo was afraid of giving Sonja any ideas. And while I knew I was inevitably (and happily) going to end up balls-deep in Sonja, Momo was doing all in her power to prevent it, always getting between us and showing her possessive side.
But one thing that helped was that I bought us a bigger bed, king sized. The queen-sized bed I had before had been perfect for Momo and I, and had just enough room for Sonja when she was a dog, but then she transformed and we ended up packed like sardines on the mattress. Now with a new bed, we had enough room to stretch and move while we slept.
—————————————-
“The property offers three acres of wilderness with the closest neighbor being over a mile away,” said the real estate agent, speaking to me in front of the house.
I was out in the middle of the woods, facing a tiny cabin of 1000 square feet. It was just what I was looking for; deeply isolated with plenty of nature around, just what the girls needed, and the small size made it very affordable. If I got the office manager job, I would be able to afford a mortgage and buy it. But what was making me nervous was that no people had died in it, which to a normal guy would sound strange and horrific, but to me meant dollar signs.
“The cabin looks to be in great shape. Can you show me inside?”
“Of course,” the woman said.
She brought me up onto the front deck and unlocked the door, then led me inside. It took only a few seconds for me to look through it thanks to the size, and I’ll admit, I was impressed. The interior was in good condition, no watermarks or mold, and the kitchen didn’t look like it had been furnished with the defective discards from Ikea. The bathroom even had a tub, which would be great for sensual baths with the girls. The cabin had two floors, the first floor being a single room, a combined kitchen and living area with a tiny woodstove in the corner and a mudroom next to the door for coats and winter gear. There was a narrow flight of stairs against the side of the house going up to the one bedroom and bathroom, and a closet hidden underneath with a stacked washer and dryer and the water heater. The second floor, which would normally increase the cost, actually saved money by minimizing the horizontal space the house occupied. Outside, there was a propane tank and a shed for tools and firewood.
This place might sound a little small for three people, but we were all sleeping in the same bed and the girls didn’t take up much room, not to mention that all my possessions could be hauled with my car in one trip, minus the furniture, which would need a real moving truck. But probably one of the best perks was the distance from the office. It only added twenty minutes to my drive, a small sacrifice.
As long as the girls didn’t end up finding the Necronomicon, this place was perfect.
“This cabin looks brand new, what’s the story?”
“Well the man who built it was a real recluse, but he died in a car accident just after it was built, so with no next of kin, it fell to the bank.”
“Ok, so what’s the catch? Why is this place so affordable?”
The woman looked at me in confusion. A tiny cabin like this, would of course, have a low price tag, but considering I was only 26, she could understand why my sense of money wasn’t fully refined. But I knew there was something else.
“Well the isolation makes it rather undesirable, there’s nothing around and school buses don’t come out here. It also easily loses power in stormy weather.”
“I’ll just buy a generator. And I don’t need to worry about restaurants or schools.”
“So you’ll take it?”
“I’m waiting on a job opportunity and I’ll know in a week. If I get promoted, I’ll buy this place immediately.”
—————————————-
With a goal in my mind, the second week was easier to get through, and my boss certainly seemed happy. His chance for a promotion to the regional manager was almost guaranteed, and he had been giving me strong signals that I had proven myself capable to take over. That Friday, there was a farewell party at the office, and over cake, my boss thanked everyone for all their hard work and support, and named me his successor, which of course pissed off everyone older than me, which pretty much means everyone.
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