didn't know the answer by the time he got home.
52
Deviations: Submission
by Jodi Payne, Chris Owen
Chapter 5
Through sheer force of will and the distraction of his horses, Tobias put Noah and the club out of his mind for the weekend. He rode, had tea with Mrs. Miller, and worked in the garden with Peter, planning out rows of sweet corn and discussing whether they would be able to save his mother's asparagus patch after it had been neglected for so many years. In short, he thought nothing of subs, pagers, or taking care of humans.
Monday night, however, he found himself at the mall, trading in his old pager for a new one. They were smaller now, sleeker and more discreet. He was now wearing two and he needed them both to be reliable and easy to use, as one was for emergency calls and the other for ... well. Maybe just for the fashion statement, as he was strongly suspecting by Wednesday night when the thing had failed to even whisper a chirp at him.
He came home from the office where he'd been doing catch up paperwork with his partner, Deidre, and found a phone message from Phan.
The club's in an uproar, call me and tell me all about it.
Really. I want to hear this. You actually went into the bar in a less than perfect state and got drunk? You talked to Brett?
Jesus, call me.
He didn't. The last person he wanted to talk to was Phan, the last person he wanted to think about was Noah.
Thursday he began putting his head back in order. He didn't need the headaches of taking care of a new submissive.
53
Deviations: Submission
by Jodi Payne, Chris Owen
He didn't want to have to untrain any bad habits. He didn't need the stress of timing, of finding out what other horrors the man had endured. He really wasn't interested in taking Noah on.
So when his pager went off on Friday morning, he merely swore. "Deidre?" he asked with exaggerated politeness.
"Would you be a dear and turn that damn thing off? I'm a little tied up at the moment."
Deidre, bless her heart, stuck her tongue out at him and delicately felt her way around his waist to the pagers, taking both of them. "New toy, Tobias?" she asked absently.
His head snapped around to see that the chirping was coming from the newer of the two. Of course. The man would decide to call when Tobias had his arm up a cow's ass.
"What's it say?" he demanded abruptly. The cow protested by shifting a little and he swore again.
"Just a number," Deidre said calmly.
"Don't you dare lose it."
Deidre raised an eyebrow at him. "I sense good coffee talk. Phan?"
"No. God, help me here, would you?" Their conversation effectively ended by an angry and uncomfortable cow, it was almost forty-five minutes before Tobias could get time to call the number.
He walked to the truck while Deidre talked to the farmer, promising to be back in a few moments. The cell phone was charged but he had to wander a little before he got a decent signal, finally winding up just outside the barn again, away 54
Deviations: Submission
by Jodi Payne, Chris Owen
from the door, though. He dialed and leaned back, closing his eyes against the sun as the call connected and ringing began.
There was a click, and the voice on the other end of the phone was both familiar and not.
"Yeah. Dolan here."
Tobias noted the name in some part of his brain and waited a brief moment. "Tobias. I got your page at a bad time, I'm afraid."
"Oh, yes, hello, thank you for calling back." It sounded more like Noah this time, but judging by his tone he wasn't alone. "Uh. Listen, I thought maybe you'd wanna hang out tonight? Maybe meet at the bar?"
Nothing like the last minute, Tobias thought uncharitably.
Come up with a scene, play it out, clean up the aftermath-and the night before he had the farrier coming to the farm. But he knew that if he said no he'd never get another call. "We could," he answered cautiously. "I'll have to make it an early night, however; I have plans for tomorrow morning. Do you think we could wrap it
52
Deviations: Submission
by Jodi Payne, Chris Owen
Chapter 5
Through sheer force of will and the distraction of his horses, Tobias put Noah and the club out of his mind for the weekend. He rode, had tea with Mrs. Miller, and worked in the garden with Peter, planning out rows of sweet corn and discussing whether they would be able to save his mother's asparagus patch after it had been neglected for so many years. In short, he thought nothing of subs, pagers, or taking care of humans.
Monday night, however, he found himself at the mall, trading in his old pager for a new one. They were smaller now, sleeker and more discreet. He was now wearing two and he needed them both to be reliable and easy to use, as one was for emergency calls and the other for ... well. Maybe just for the fashion statement, as he was strongly suspecting by Wednesday night when the thing had failed to even whisper a chirp at him.
He came home from the office where he'd been doing catch up paperwork with his partner, Deidre, and found a phone message from Phan.
The club's in an uproar, call me and tell me all about it.
Really. I want to hear this. You actually went into the bar in a less than perfect state and got drunk? You talked to Brett?
Jesus, call me.
He didn't. The last person he wanted to talk to was Phan, the last person he wanted to think about was Noah.
Thursday he began putting his head back in order. He didn't need the headaches of taking care of a new submissive.
53
Deviations: Submission
by Jodi Payne, Chris Owen
He didn't want to have to untrain any bad habits. He didn't need the stress of timing, of finding out what other horrors the man had endured. He really wasn't interested in taking Noah on.
So when his pager went off on Friday morning, he merely swore. "Deidre?" he asked with exaggerated politeness.
"Would you be a dear and turn that damn thing off? I'm a little tied up at the moment."
Deidre, bless her heart, stuck her tongue out at him and delicately felt her way around his waist to the pagers, taking both of them. "New toy, Tobias?" she asked absently.
His head snapped around to see that the chirping was coming from the newer of the two. Of course. The man would decide to call when Tobias had his arm up a cow's ass.
"What's it say?" he demanded abruptly. The cow protested by shifting a little and he swore again.
"Just a number," Deidre said calmly.
"Don't you dare lose it."
Deidre raised an eyebrow at him. "I sense good coffee talk. Phan?"
"No. God, help me here, would you?" Their conversation effectively ended by an angry and uncomfortable cow, it was almost forty-five minutes before Tobias could get time to call the number.
He walked to the truck while Deidre talked to the farmer, promising to be back in a few moments. The cell phone was charged but he had to wander a little before he got a decent signal, finally winding up just outside the barn again, away 54
Deviations: Submission
by Jodi Payne, Chris Owen
from the door, though. He dialed and leaned back, closing his eyes against the sun as the call connected and ringing began.
There was a click, and the voice on the other end of the phone was both familiar and not.
"Yeah. Dolan here."
Tobias noted the name in some part of his brain and waited a brief moment. "Tobias. I got your page at a bad time, I'm afraid."
"Oh, yes, hello, thank you for calling back." It sounded more like Noah this time, but judging by his tone he wasn't alone. "Uh. Listen, I thought maybe you'd wanna hang out tonight? Maybe meet at the bar?"
Nothing like the last minute, Tobias thought uncharitably.
Come up with a scene, play it out, clean up the aftermath-and the night before he had the farrier coming to the farm. But he knew that if he said no he'd never get another call. "We could," he answered cautiously. "I'll have to make it an early night, however; I have plans for tomorrow morning. Do you think we could wrap it
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