She was nuts. What the heck did she just do? Did she actually sign her name to a contract and adopt a puppy?
Yes, she did. And said puppy was sitting in the kennel crying because he didn’t want her to put him down.
The worse part was, she didn’t want to put him down either and felt not only her heart almost stop beating at those sad brown eyes, but moisture build in her own. If Chase hadn’t laughed at her, she might have given him her credit card to just go buy what was needed so she didn’t have to leave her new friend.
Instead, she was following him to the pet store that she didn’t even know existed because she’d never had a reason to look for one.
She parked next to Chase, who was still wearing scrubs. She didn’t know vets wore scrubs, not that she’d ever had a reason to even know that. “You better grab a cart. Even then, not everything will fit in it.”
“Seriously?” she asked. Now she really was wondering what she got herself into.
“You should get a crate.”
“For what?” she asked.
“Unless you plan on bringing the dog with you everywhere, you should crate train him for when you’re gone. Otherwise losing shoes would be the least of your worries.”
“I don’t want to have second thoughts, but I’m starting to have them,” she said, feeling sad at just the thought of not keeping the puppy though. When was the last time she was scared, sad, and excited at once?
“Which is only natural. Think of the cutie in your arms that you just left back there. Trust me when I say a dog makes everything better in life.” She didn’t have much to lose at this point. “If things don’t work out, don’t worry. I know I pressured you and will take the pup back.”
She didn’t like the thought of that either. She’d make it work, she always made everything work in her life. How hard could this really be?
Several hundreds of dollars later, Chase was helping her load up her SUV. She was the proud owner of a large crate that seemed way too big for the little puppy that was in her arms earlier. When Chase said her puppy could get up to eighty pounds, she didn’t believe him.
But she also had a dog bed, a collar, a leash, bowls, food, treats, piddle pads, toys, chew sticks and a few other things she couldn’t remember the names of. She didn’t think she’d ever bought this much stuff for herself on a shopping trip.
“Let’s go back and get your baby. Have you had a chance to think of a name yet?”
“No. Do I need to give him one right now? Will it damage him if he doesn’t have one yet?”
She didn’t appreciate that he burst out laughing, but damn it all, he was pretty darn cute when he smiled. “No, he won’t be damaged.”
“Did he have a name when he came? I didn’t even think of that, but you said he lived with a family before?”
“He did have a name. You don’t need to use it though.”
“What was it?” she asked.
“Chester.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Like I said, name him anything you want. Something will come to you, I’m sure.”
“I’ll think about it,” she said, going to the driver’s door of her car.
“Then let’s go get your new pup and we’ll set you up at home if you want.”
“Don’t you have something to do?” she asked. “I mean I wouldn’t want to keep you from anything or anyone.”
“You’re just keeping me from my dogs at home, but they’re used to me being gone for long hours. I run home at lunch and let them out, and some days I bring them in with me, but today I didn’t.”
“Why?”
“Because I’ve got a few extra at home and it’s hard to pick and choose and not hurt any feelings.”
She thought that was an odd statement, but decided to let it go and get her new companion. It seemed she was getting a male in her life after all.
Chase was following Noelle home. Not that he needed to follow her anywhere because shockingly she lived on his street. He was just a little bit further up the road from her. He hadn’t said anything when she gave her address, but he figured he should before he was gone for the night.
He pulled in behind her SUV in her driveway, then got out and walked forward, opening up the door for her when he noticed the pup jumping from the passenger seat into the driver’s and bathing her face.
“Looks like he’s happy to be here. You’ve got plenty of land for him too.”
“It’s not fenced though,” she said, getting out with the wiggling pup in her arms.
“Boxers are a really smart breed. Teach them the boundaries and they’ll stay.”
“You said he’s got bulldog in him too.”
“Bulldogs are lazy but loyal like a boxer. Trust me when I say, he will stay close to home once you train him.”
“That’s good to know. Of course I’ve got no clue how to train a dog either.”
“Why don’t you set him down and let him do his business while I unload all of this? Then we can bring it in and get the crate set up for you.”
She set the puppy down and started to walk him in the front yard while Chase pulled out the crate from the back and the rest of the bags.
Once the puppy was all done sniffing and checking everything out, the two of them made their way in the front door, with Chase following behind loaded down with bags.
“I’m not even sure where to tell you to put all of that stuff,” she said.
He looked around her house. It was one of the smaller ones on the street, but nice and modern inside. Whoever lived here before must have fixed it up because he knew it hadn’t been off the market for long.
“How about I bring everything to your kitchen and we’ll go from there. Do you have a mudroom?”
“I do,” she said.
“Then I suggest putting the bowls and crate in there if there is room.”
Twenty minutes later everything was set up and the pup was making his way around every nook and cranny of the house. Chase would’ve liked to do that too, but he knew he was pushing his luck as it was.
“I can’t thank you enough for taking the time to help me today,” she said.
“Thank you for adopting the dog. Or better yet, congratulations on the new addition to your family.”
“Thanks. I still can’t believe I did this. Now I’ll have my own barking dog to go with one of the neighbor’s around here.”
Now seemed like the perfect time. “That would probably be me. Or my dogs. I don’t bark, or bite,” he said and then wondered why he threw that last part in there. It flew out of his mouth without thought.
“What?” she asked.
“I live up the road a bit. My dogs bark when I get home. More in excitement than anything. You don’t hear barking all day, do you? I’m sure my other neighbor would let me know if that was the case.”
“No. Just in the morning, lunch, and at the end of the day.”
“That’s about right. You’ll have to bring your pup up and let him play. Keep him socialized around other dogs.”
“Do they need that?” she asked, looking confused.
“They do.”
They turned to look at the pup when it came running back into the kitchen dragging its bowl. “Oh my, is he hungry? I don’t even know how much to feed him or when.”
He grinned, then reached over and patted her hand. “I told you he was smart. Let me explain a few more things for you.”
“I need a pad and paper. Hang on.”
He watched as she started to open and close drawers, looking adorably frustrated. He never would have pictured her as looking adorable, but her facial features always seemed to change, surprising him and pulling him in even more.
There was something about her he couldn’t put his finger on, but for the moment, he wasn’t going to worry.