Chapter 37
Looking through the peephole in the door, she was even more pissed off to find that whoever it was, was standing off to the side so she couldn't see them. Calling out, "Who is it?" even though she wasn't expecting an answer. If whoever it was, was hiding from the peephole they probably wouldn't answer either. However she did get some kind of response to her question. There was a soft thumping against the bottom of the door, as if someone was tapping their foot against it!
Unlocking the door she slowly opened it to find something attached to the doorknob. She looked to both sides of the door and saw no one there, then she looked down, and saw two of the deepest brown eyes in the world just staring up at her.
Bending down to get a closer look at the darling little puppy at her feet she saw that there was a card attached by a ribbon to its collar. She also saw a large basket sitting next to the puppy. In it there was a bag of Puppychow, a double sided bowl for food and water, a bag of treats, and several toys.
Taking hold of the leash that had been wrapped around the doorknob she led the miniature bulldog pup into the apartment, after picking up the basket. Putting that down on the coffee table she sat on the couch and lifted the puppy into her lap. "Aren't you just the sweetest little…boy…girl? Maybe this card will tell me or I'll need to get a little personal," she said with a laugh as the puppy licked her cheek.
The card said: I was the runt of the litter, but I ate well, and got big and strong. Just so you don't think I am here to protect you just because you are a woman, I'm a girl too. I hope I receive your seal of approval and win a place in your heart and home. I'm six weeks old today and fully weaned. PS Your secret admirer thinks you should name me.
"Well hello girl! So you need a name do you? I'd be tempted to call you Princess for reasons I'll have to tell you about later, but I don't know how a Marine mascot would feel about such a girly name. Let's see…you are irresistible…a Marine mascot…and the name Princess means a lot to me lately….hmmmmm. Irresistible…Marine…Princess…that's it! IMP! I'll call you Imp!" She laughed when she got an approving bark from the puppy. Imp seemed to approve of her new name! "Hey I don't suppose you would be willing to tell me just who my secret admirer is, would you?" Mac asked and was not at all surprised when the puppy just barked happily at being talked to, but refused to give out any information. It seemed she'd been trained well! Darn it!
Mac couldn't really blame Imp for not telling who had brought her to her new owner's door, but it was just so frustrating not to know! Not so much so though, that she couldn't enjoy the playful antics of little Imp. It became quite clear before much time had passed at all, that the new little lady in the Mackenzie household would definitely live up to her name.
"The first thing we need to do is figure out where you're going to sleep," Mac told Imp. "Oh no you don't! Don't look at me that way! You are not going to sleep with me, and that's final! Jingo tried when I first got him and what a bed hog he turned out to be! I know you're a lot smaller, but someday I hope to have a man sharing my bed and he might not be as understanding!"
Even though Imp continued to give her the 'puppy dog look' Mac remained firm and found an old blanket that she folded into a soft, thick square. Placing it in the kitchen, she also put Imp's food bowl nearby, after filling it with food and water.
She and Imp spent the day getting to know each other and Mac was pleased that the puppy had only two small accidents. The rest of the time she had whined to let her new mommy know that she needed to go outside.
However, when bedtime came Mac firmly put her down on the blanket and told Imp to 'stay' (they had been working on that command during the day) Imp stayed on her bed, but whined pitifully when Mac walked out of the kitchen. It was the first time 'mommy' had been out of her site since their meeting that morning.
To be continued….