Love is Always Write Anthology Volume 2

pushing at him with his head. Bogo groaned. Cory laughed. Some days he could swear the pride knew exactly what he was saying.
    "The girls are already out, gentlemen. Don't keep them waiting." Bogo gave him another bored look, but he stood, taking his time about it. He stretched, rocking his body backwards and forwards, obviously working the kinks out of his stiff joints. He was in no hurry to go outside to the exhibit adjoining his females.
    "You're like me, aren't you, boy?" Cory said. "You prefer your big, strong man. Can't say as I blame you. Pogo is dreamy," Cory chuckled.
    The two male lions were housed separate from the five pride females until it was time to allow breeding. Though Pogo seemed bi, joyfully doing his duty for the pride whenever he was allowed, Bogo hadn't mounted a female in years. He mounted Pogo all the time, though. Some would say this was a show of dominance, or that Bogo was too old to breed, but Cory knew better. Bogo was not the first lion, captive or otherwise, who preferred same-sex partners. Cory smiled affectionately at the huge cat. Yes, gay was perfectly natural, even for a lion.
    Bogo finally stepped down off his raised platform bed, and walked towards the shift door only to sit back down and lick lazily at his side.
    "About time, lazy man." Cory lifted his hand-held radio and called according to protocol. "Larabee One, this is Keeper Stephens."
    He waited until he heard a voice come back, "Keeper Stephens, go ahead."
    Cory pressed the button and said, "Lion shifting in progress."
    "Copy," the main park communications person responded.
    "Keeper Hamilton, did you copy?" Cory asked.
    "Ten-four. It's about time."
    Cory could hear the smile in Jean's voice. She was waiting on the exhibit side of the doors to call the lions clear of the shift tunnel. This way, Cory could safely close the door to lock the lions out onto their exhibit without fear of injuring them. Hydraulic doors had been known to crush animals and once they were closing, there was often no way to stop them in time.
    Cory turned on the hydraulic pumps with the flick of a switch. They made a loud hissing sound. He grabbed the key ring off his belt loop, and unlocked the exhibit door. Then, he pressed the lever up. The heavy, metal door made a humming sound as it lifted.
    Pogo was under and gone before the shift door was half way open. Bogo sat waiting until the door stopped moving. He stood slowly and ambled outside. That's when Cory noticed he was favoring his right forepaw again. It was a subtle limp, hardly noticeable, but any sign of weakness in a dominant male animal spelled trouble.
    "Shit," Cory said to himself.
    They were going to have to call the vet, again. Even though there was still no sign of swelling, Cory began to think over all the other telltale clues. Bogo had been lazier than usual, he was slower to get up, and he had only eaten about half of his usual diet for the past few days.
    Cory startled from his thoughts when his radio crackled to life. Jean said, "All clear."
    "Ten-four," Cory pulled the lever down. The shift door quickly hissed closed. He locked the handle and turned off the hydraulics, making it impossible for a door to be accidentally opened.
    Heading into the office at the far end of the lion barn, he picked up the phone and dialed the number he knew by heart. After a few rings his boss picked up. "Thank you for calling the Larabee Wild Animal Park. This is curator Allen, may I help you?"
    "Sadly, yes you can."
    Lora chuckled, "What can I do you for?"
    "There's not enough money in the world for you to do me." Cory smiled into the phone. Lora wasn't just his boss. She was his best friend. They'd been roommates back in Florida when they were both starting out at the teaching zoo. Then, they'd gone their separate ways to complete their degrees in zoology. Lora attended the University of Iowa and Cory attended Cornell. They'd stayed in touch and visited each other regularly until he'd taken an internship on the east coast at The North Carolina Zoo, and Lora had taken a job at the San Diego Wild Animal Park.
    When Cory had been called for the interview at Larabee, it had been from the general curator, Mike Winters. It was a shock to walk in and find Lora after nearly ten years. At first, he'd worried about accepting the job, thinking there might be some awkwardness working for a friend, but instead it had been the best decision of his life.
    Lora laughed. "Can I have you sued for reverse sexual