Chapter 6

SIX

WILLOW

“W hat the?” Two sets of eyes were staring at me, and their little bodies were sitting perfectly in the middle of my chest. “Well, good morning to you.” I reached up and ran my hands down their backs.

Less than twelve hours ago, I adopted not one but two animals. I had walked into the rescue with plans to maybe adopt an animal. I wanted to talk to Mackinac first about the possibilities.

Leaving with a kitten and puppy was not part of the plans.

“Aren’t you supposed to be in the playpen we set up last night?” I playfully pulled at their ears and tickled their sides.

They were given names at the rescue, but it did not work for me to call them Monica and Rachel. When they were playing last night, I thought about Broccoli and Cauliflower or Buddy & Holly. But they didn’t feel right, so we put name ideas on hold until today.

“Have you thought about the names we discussed?” Puppy hopped off the bed, but I had to pick up the kitten and move her down by my feet to pull the covers back. “Hey.” They both stopped hopping around and stared at me. “What if we thought of Christmas names? You are my Christmas babies.”

My phone buzzed with a text message.

Mack: Did you survive the night?

Me: Somehow, yes.

Mack: Are you accepting visitors this early? (Winking emoji)

A second later, I heard a knock on the door.

“Let’s see if Auntie Mack can help us pick a name for you two.” They followed behind me as I made my way toward the door. “Good morning.” When the door opened, Kitten and Puppy tried to escape, but Mack reached down and scooped them up.

“Well, hello there.” She kissed their noses. “Seriously, you scored with these two.”

I reached for the kitten. “Except when they are plotting their escape. Want some coffee?”

“More than life itself.” She set the puppy down and followed me into the kitchen. “How was your first night?”

“I woke up with two fluff balls on my chest.” I grabbed the coffee grounds from the cabinet

“Didn’t you plan to keep them in a playpen?” She sat down on a barstool.

“I did. They had other plans.” I poured water into the pot. Mack laughed. “It’s funny, yesterday, I was freaking out about caring for a living thing. Today, I’m more stressed about finding that perfect name.”

“Oh, I love that.” She rubbed her hands together. “Tell me some of your ideas?”

We spent an hour drinking coffee and trying to find the perfect names for them.

The contenders were sugar and spice, cinnamon and nutmeg, and cookie and holly.

“Cookie and Holly are damn cute names.” I sat on the floor and patted the carpet, trying to get their attention. The kitten was currently licking the puppy’s head. “Hey, you.” The puppy jumped up and ran toward me. “I think you should be Cookie because of your dark brown spots.”

Mack joined me on the floor. “You do look like a chocolate chip cookie.” She ran her hand up and down the puppy’s back. “I’m so curious about its breed. It’s a mystery.” The puppy had medium hair and was tan with dark brown spots in several areas.

“My luck, it will be a large breed.” I laughed and playfully made the puppy fall onto its back. “My first time having a dog, and I’ll end up with a Great Dane mix.”

“She will be your protector.” Mack reached for the kitten. “So, that means you are Holly.” The kitten batted at her hands. “Do you like the name Holly?” The kitten lunged forward and did this roll and twist before grabbing her hand. “Wow, I’m going to take that as a yes.”

“Cookie and Holly,” I said the names out loud. “Just like you two–” I grabbed them both and brought them close to my chest– “those names make me happy.”

“Another rescue success.” Mack hopped up from the floor. “Make sure to take a few photos so I can add them to the website.”

After she left, I thought about getting in the shower and maybe starting laundry. Instead, I didn’t move from the floor for a few hours. At one point, I fell asleep and woke up to Cookie and Holly snuggled against my chest.

There were days when I thought about moving back home. Even though I wasn’t close to my family and my mom wasn’t interested in talking to me, I still felt this need to be close to them.

I knew that’s what made me different from them.

Crystal Shores continued to surprise me. The town felt like one big warm hug, and the people made me feel special.

Cookie stretched her legs out and yawned. Then she hopped up and started to lick my face. “Do you think you both need a treat?” Holly’s eyes flew open, and she sat up. “I guess that’s a yes, eh?”

They followed me to the kitchen. “Let’s see what we have in here.” I rummaged around in a bag as they circled my feet. “Oh, look.” I had a treat in each hand. “I have a funny feeling you’re both going to be very spoiled.”

My fear about caring for a living creature had been replaced with excitement.

Cookie grabbed the treat, ran into the living room, and hopped on the couch. “How the heck did you jump up there so easily? I’m impressed.” Holly ate her treat right next to my feet. I reached down and scratched behind her ears.

At that moment, I realized I was done worrying about the family who stopped caring about me years ago. It was time to focus on the new little family I was creating here in Crystal Shores.