Reyes - The Menagerie

A story from the Love Has No Boundaries event sponsored by the Goodreads M/M Romance Group.

Members of the Goodreads M/M Romance Group were invited to choose a photo and pen a letter asking for a short M/M romance story inspired by the image; authors from the group were encouraged to select a letter and write an original tale.

Ithra Reyes responded to this request.

PHOTO DESCRIPTION
A young green-eyed man in an oversized brown sweater holds a small tiger cub.

STORY LETTER
Dear Author,
A big thank you to Kim Alan for all her help, you are very kind.
Hed spent the day at the crappy little traveling zoo, but hed spent it with his little brother, which got the little guy out from under Uncle Larrys thumb for the day, so it was totally worth it. Plus, hed really been hung up on those cats. He loved cats. Not exactly one of his more manly attributes according to Larry, but whatever. He was drawn to them. Understood them, with their solitude and quiet strength.
However, he was not expecting to return to his car, after dropping his brother at home, to find a tiger cub sitting on his front seat. Stunned, he just stared at the little guy who just stared right back at him. He remembered seeing him scampering around the cages, trying to catch the interest of the big cats, but how in the hell had he gotten into his car? And what the hell was he supposed to do with him now? That traveling zoo had been packing up even as they left. Besides, something about that place had felt off.
He did the only thing he could think of, at least once the cat nudged his hand towards the steering wheel, snapping him out of his stupor. He took him home, to his little studio apartment over the hardware store. He pulled into the parking lot and the cat climbed right into his lap to be carried inside. He was purring so loud, looking at him so adoringly, like he was his hero, or something. Taking the little one inside, he plopped into his thirdhand recliner, and petted, cooed, and soothed the cub until they both relaxed. He was thinking that this was maybe the strangest night of his life. And then, things got really weird.
The prompt can be changed around, no BDSM, M/F and preferably no shifter please, but I will accept it, if there is no other choice. Also can the kitty cat have a major role. HEA is a must, thank you.
Sincerely,
Vio

Love Has No Boundaries

An M/M Romance series

THE MENAGERIE

By Ithra Reyes

Introduction

The story you are about to read celebrates love, sex and romance between men. It is a product of the Love Has No Boundaries promotion sponsored by the Goodreads M/M Romance Group and is published as a free gift to you.

What Is Love Has No Boundaries?

The Goodreads M/M Romance Group invited members to choose a photo and pen a letter asking for a short M/M romance story inspired by the image; authors from the group were encouraged to select a letter and write an original tale. The result was an outpouring of creativity that shone a spotlight on the special bond between M/M romance writers and the people who love what they do.

A written description of the image that inspired this story is provided along with the original request letter. If youd like to view the photo, please feel free to join the Goodreads M/M Romance Group and visit the discussion section: Love Has No Boundaries .

Whether you are an avid M/M romance reader or new to the genre, you are in for a delicious treat.

Words of Caution

This story may contain sexually explicit content and is intended for adult readers. It may contain content that is disagreeable or distressing to some readers. The M/M Romance Group strongly recommends that each reader review the General Information section before each story for story tags as well as for content warnings.

This story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the products of the authors imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved worldwide.
This eBook may be distributed freely in its entirety courtesy of the Goodreads M/M Romance Group . This eBook may not be sold, manipulated or reproduced in any format without the express written permission of the author.

The Menagerie, Copyright 2013 Ithra Reyes

Cover Design by Goodreads M/M Romance Group

This ebook is published by the M/M Romance Group and is not directly endorsed by or affiliated with Goodreads Inc.

M/M Romance Group Publication

THE MENAGERIE

By Ithra Reyes

Photo Description

A young green-eyed man in an oversized brown sweater holds a small tiger cub.

Story Letter

Dear Author ,

A big thank you to Kim Alan for all her help, you are very kind.

Hed spent the day at the crappy little traveling zoo, but hed spent it with his little brother, which got the little guy out from under Uncle Larrys thumb for the day, so it was totally worth it. Plus, hed really been hung up on those cats. He loved cats. Not exactly one of his more manly attributes according to Larry, but whatever. He was drawn to them. Understood them, with their solitude and quiet strength.

However, he was not expecting to return to his car, after dropping his brother at home, to find a tiger cub sitting on his front seat. Stunned, he just stared at the little guy who just stared right back at him. He remembered seeing him scampering around the cages, trying to catch the interest of the big cats, but how in the hell had he gotten into his car? And what the hell was he supposed to do with him now? That traveling zoo had been packing up even as they left. Besides, something about that place had felt off.

He did the only thing he could think of, at least once the cat nudged his hand towards the steering wheel, snapping him out of his stupor. He took him home, to his little studio apartment over the hardware store. He pulled into the parking lot and the cat climbed right into his lap to be carried inside. He was purring so loud, looking at him so adoringly, like he was his hero, or something. Taking the little one inside, he plopped into his thirdhand recliner, and petted, cooed, and soothed the cub until they both relaxed. He was thinking that this was maybe the strangest night of his life. And then, things got really weird.

The prompt can be changed around, no BDSM, M/F and preferably no shifter please, but I will accept it, if there is no other choice. Also can the kitty cat have a major role. HEA is a must, thank you.

Sincerely,

Vio

Story Info

Genre: contemporary

Tags: enemies to lovers, interracial, flamboyant character, workplace, non-explicit

Content warnings: HFN

Word count: 6,040

Dedication

Thanks to Jen for having patience with me, to my wonderful event editors for making the story legible, to Vio for the inspiring prompt, and everyone who helped make this awesome event happen.

THE MENAGERIE

By Ithra Reyes

I was in the middle of a staring contest with the tiger in my kitchen when my alarm went off. The loud blaring beeeeeep announced it was time to go to work. Still, there was the small problem of the tiger currently sitting on my kitchen counter. Now granted, it was only a cub, but it was still a tiger. A tiger I had just cat-napped from the traveling zoo. I hadnt meant to do it.

Honest.

See, I had taken my little brother, Cody, to the crappy little traveling zoo earlier that day and this little fur-ball had been there, stuck in a tiny filthy cage, whining and crying until I started talking to her. She had pushed herself against the bars, her big blue eyes looking up at me sadly. She broke my heart. I had always had a soft spot for cats. She had begun to cry again as soon as Cody managed to pull me away to go look at the monkeys. We left the traveling zoo just as they had closed. They had already begun to take the whole tent down. I couldnt stop thinking about the little tiger cub.