Page 3 of Honkers Under the Holly

“Client? Are you a lawyer?”

“Sports agent.” I jerked my thumb over my shoulder at Tommy. “The tank over there is my guy.”

She laughed, adjusting her hold on the goose. “Alright, Mr. Sports Agent. Lead the way. But fair warning, if you thought chasing a goose was tough, wait until you try explaining this to Helga.”

After some smooth talking and a promise for tickets to the next Bandits game to make up for the Great Goose Chase, I managed to convince Helga not to fire Sara Jayne. The festival manager’s scowl softened slightly when she saw how gently Sara Jayne cradled the goose, muttering soothing words in German. She’d transformed that angry bird into a puddle of love goo. Did birds purr?

“Fine,” Helga grunted. “But thatRingelganscannot stay here. It goes, or you both go.Verstanden?”

Sara Jayne nodded vigorously. “Ja, natürlich. Thank you, Helga.”

Helga stomped away, and Sara turned to me, her blue eyes shining so brightly I nearly got lost in the glow. “I can’t believe you did that. You’re amazing, Mac.”

Something tingled in my chest and it had nothing to do with the beer I hadn’t drunk. “Hey, it’s what I do. Well, usually with fewer feathers involved, but...”

She laughed, then glanced down at the goose in her arms. “I should probably get this littleSüßersomewhere safe. My shift ended during all the excitement.”

“Need a lift?” The words were out of my mouth before I could think twice. “I mean, as soon as my big guy’s ride picks him up, I’m headed out anyway. Tommy’s’s, uh, down for the count.” I jerked a thumb towards my friend, who was still snoring face-down at his table. His dude-bro teammates would be here to get him in a few minutes, in the limo I was providing as incentive.

Sara hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “That would be wonderful, actually. If you’re sure it’s not too much trouble?”

“Trouble? Nah. Although,” I eyed the goose warily, “if he poops in my car, you’re on clean-up duty.”

The ride to Sara Jayne’s apartment was... interesting. The goose had strong opinions about my taste in music. Every time I tried to put on some classic rock, he’d honk loudly until I changed it. When I landed on a pop station, this apparently met with His Feathered Majesty’s approval. His head literally bopped to “Baby Got Back.”

“Okay, Sir Honksalot, I see you.” I winked at Sara Jayne. “I also like when she’s got buns, hun.”

“Oh my gawd. I’m definitely naming him Sir Honksalot. Way better than Goosy McGooseface, which is what I was originally thinking.”

As we pulled up to her building, I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of disappointment. I wasn’t ready for this bizarre but wonderful evening to end.

Sara Jayne must have sensed my hesitation. “Would you like to come up? I mean, just to make sure Sir Honksalot settles in okay. And maybe for a nightcap? To thank you properly for everything?”

My heart and my cock did a little victory dance. “I’d like that.”

The apartment was small and a bit chaotic, filled with mismatched furniture and the chatter of several girls getting ready for a night out. Sara Jayne introduced me and Sir Honksalot to her roommates, who were less than thrilled about their new feathered friend.

“Sara Jayne, honey, you can’t keep bringing home strays,” one of them sighed, eyeing the goose warily. “Last month it was the ugliest kitten I’ve ever seen, and that thousand year old hamster or gerbil or whatever.”

Sara Jayne’s face fell, and she hugged the goose closer. “It was a hedgehog. But Sir Honksalot is different. I can’t just take him to the shelter. He only needs a temporary home until I can find a farm animal sanctuary or something.”

The other girls left, all three of them giving Sara Jayne and her strays, me included in that, the side-eye.

Sara Jayne created a makeshift pen she conjured up with couch cushions and a towel. Who took so much care and compassion with an animal well known to be a murder bird? But the way it clearly already loved her, this girl was something special.

“Okay, so I may have exaggerated about that night cap. I’ve got water or... and don’t knock it till you try it, pickle juice.”

“I’ll stick with the water.”

We talked for hours, long after her roommates had left. Sara Jayne told me about her struggles to make it as a plus-size model in a size-zero world. I shared my dreams of building a successful sports agency. I kept my fears now that my parents were selling their shop, and my apartment along with it a little closer to the chest.

I’d never had a more intimate night without anything more than the touch of fingers when she handed me drinks.

As the first light of dawn started to creep through the windows, Sara Jayne stifled a yawn. “Oh wow, I can’t believehow late it is. Or rather early? But I won’t say I’m sorry for keeping you up all night.”

I grinned, leaned in, and cupped her cheek. “Best night I’ve had in a long time.”

Even if it had gone very differently from any other evening I’d spent with a woman. While I wanted to kiss her again, badly, wanted to do a whole lot more with her too, I also didn’t want to ruin this magic spell she’d somehow cast over me. It was the worst timing. My life was up in the air, I only had half a fledgling career, and not a lot of prospects. But I liked this girl, more than I should, and I wanted more with her than some one-night stand.

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