You can’t thumb through emails with gloves on. Someone needs to change that.
At the sound of a car engine slowing down I glanced around the wall to see if Mom had arrived.
Nope, just someone else being picked up on time, probably.
I could still feel the coffee from two hours ago pumping through my veins, making me even more restless, if possible, than earlier.
When was the last time you took a minute to look around?
Leaves still clung to the scattered oak trees in the parking lot even though it had been in the twenties for weeks now. I laughed to myself.
When’s the last time you took a minute to even notice the trees?
A family hurried by huddled under thick winter coats and boots to their knees.
I had another fleeting memory of the incident in Grand Central with the Australian. Another first for me to stop for a coffee and then help someone long enough to cause me to lose valuable time.
She was adorable. I should’ve asked her name, at least. Not that I would’ve done anything else with her name, but….Lost in thought, I hadn’t realized that something was against my ankle until a weird vibrating sensation went up my leg
. I casually kicked my leg out thinking the wind had blown something into me. Nothing… I went back to my emails. Then the vibration came with a nudge.
What the hell is on my leg? I didn’t see any trash when I sat down. Ignore it it’s just the wind.
Another nudge. Now I reached down to remove whatever garbage had clearly blown into my leg, but instead of the garbage I expected to get, I got a handful of fur and a wet tongue.
I jumped up and quickly backed away.
What the hell was that? Had to be a raccoon or God forbid a rat.
I scanned the area near the bench, not seeing anything and definitely not wanting to sit there anymore. I bent to grab my briefcase. Then I heard a faint whimper. I squatted down to figure out what creature was still there, maybe injured or hungry.
To my great dismay and utter surprise, it was not the raccoon or rat I’d imagined it to be. Instead, it was a tiny little puppy shivering wildly.
“Hey there, little one,” I said. “You’re freezing, aren’t you?” I knelt down on one knee to get a closer look. Poor thing was so little and so cold.
Maybe it’ll let me pick it up.
After removing my glove so it could smell me, I put my hand out to it.
“Come here. Come on, I won’t hurt you,” I said, reaching under the bench. I could tell it wanted to come to me. The puppy tentatively crept out from under the bench, stumbling and shivering. I grabbed the nearly frozen puppy as soon as it got close enough.
I’m not a veterinarian, little one, but I don’t think you have much left in you in this cold. Please don’t bite me.
The little guy shook violently from cold, not fear, so I wrapped him inside my jacket. He needed body warmth right away.
“Poor thing, are you lost?” I said, not really expecting an answer. I wanted to look him over, but he needed warmth more right now. I headed back inside with him tucked in my coat.
A quick look around I didn’t see anyone looking for a puppy. The station wasn’t as busy as when I arrived but it was warm. I reach inside my coat and pulled the puppy out to look it over.
“Let’s have a look,” I said. “Well, I see a collar, so you have a family but no tag, and you’ea her, not a him.”
Cold shivers still raked through the tiny puppy’s body, so I tucked her back into my coat. She squirmed and wiggled until she was almost in my armpit.
How did you get outside in this weather all alone? There has to be a family looking for you.
I walked back outside, hoping to find someone looking for her, but there were only two cars in the parking lot and they were empty.
An engine revving at top speed caught my attention. Not needing to look up, I knew my mother had arrived. The approaching roar of the Porsche engine and the crunch of gravel had to be her.
“What am I going to do with you?” I asked the pup peeking into my coat.
She just tucked her furry little head and wet nose into my neck, content to be snuggled.
I can’t leave you out here. You’ll freeze to death. I don’t see anyone looking for you.
“Okay, well, you’regoing with me for now,” I said “Don’t be afraid. The sound of the roaring engine isn’t bad once you get used to it… Same with Mother.”
Parker opened the car door, placed his briefcase on the floor, then lowered his six foot one frame into the small sports car Mom had insisted on having.
“Hey, Mom,” I said, leaning over for a kiss on the cheek. “I have a little friend coming for dinner tonight.”
“Oh, do you?” Mom asked. “Parker, you should have warned me. Who is this friend?”
I waited for the car to come to a full stop at the red light before I opened my jacket to reveal the sound asleep puppy cuddled deep inside.
“Parker, it’s adorable. What prompted this?” Mom said. “Boy or girl? What its name? I knew you were ready for a companion.”
“Slow down, Mother,” I patted my coat where it laid cuddled up. “I found this little one, or she found me while I was waiting on you to pick me up.”
“Do you mind if we head straight back to the house so I can look her over and get her some water before my conference call? Maybe Diana can go get some dog food for her too.”
“I don’t know, Parker. That little girl looks too young for dog food. Why don’t we stop by the veterinarian hospital, and maybe they can tell us what she needs most.”
“They may know someone in the area who had puppies too,” I offered “I have about thirty minutes before my conference call, so we need this to be quick
“Did you have a busy morning?” Mom asked, pulling into the corner shopping plaza.
“Spit it out. Tell me, Mother, before we get there,” I said. “What did you want to discuss that couldn’t be discussed at the house?”
“Parker, you know how I always want to buy all my children the best of everything?” Mother said without looking in my direction. “Christmas is around the corner, and I have this crazy great idea of a gift for you, and I already bought the gift, but now I’m feeling concerned about my gift, so I thought I should discuss it with you.”
“Well,” I said, stifling a laugh at how serious she was acting. “For one thing, I outgrew this kind of thing back in high school. I don’t need you to tell me your gift or discuss it with me. I’m sure you’ve picked the perfect gift as always.”
Her gaze sharpened “What makes you so certain?”
“You’ve never once given me a bad gift in thirty-five years,” I said, “and if you’re concerned and need to talk away from Father, then you have put a lot of thought into this gift, so much so that you didn’t tell even him so he couldn’t tell you his opinion. So, it has to be perfect.”
Victoria smiled slightly. “Excellent reasoning, my son. Now, out of my car. I have to get into the city and back by dinner. I’ll call the house and have someone pick you and your new friend up in about ten minutes
I couldn’t help but love my mother. She always had my back.
“Give me and my new friend a kiss, then, and be careful in this racing machine,” I said.