“What now?” I said.
He ambled up to me, jauntily, a bit of roll in his stride. Putting his head against my leg, he kept it there.
I rubbed him behind the ears and his body went loose. He stayed relaxed as I used my handkerchief to wipe the crust from his face.
When I was through, he let out a grumble of contentment.
“You’re welcome.”
He put his head against my leg once more, blowing out breath as I petted.
What a morning. I sighed.
He snorted. A reply?
I tried it again, sighing audibly. The dog produced an adenoidal grunt.
“A conversationalist,” I said. “Someone talks to you, don’t they?
Someone cares about you.”
Grunt.
“How’d you get here?”
Grumble.
My voice was loud against the quiet of the Glen, harsh counterpoint to the flow of the waterfall.
Nut mail and talking to a dog. This is what it’s come to, Delaware.
The dog gazed up at me with a look I was willing to classify as friendship.
You take what you can get.
He watched as I pulled the Seville out of the carport, and when I opened the passenger door, he jumped in as if he owned the vehicle.
For the next hour and a half, he looked out the window as I drove around the canyon, watching for LOST DOG posters on trees and talking to neighbors I’d never met. No one belonged to him and no one recognized him, though the checkout girl at the Beverly Glen Market opined that he was “a little stud,” and several other shoppers concurred.
While I was there, I bought a few groceries and a small bag of kibble.
When I got home, the dog bounced up the stairs after me and watched as I unloaded the staples. I poured the kibble into a bowl and set it on the kitchen floor, along with another bowl of water. The dog ignored it, choosing instead to station himself in front of the refrigerator door.
I moistened the kibble but that had no effect. This time the stubby tail was wagging.
I pointed to the bowl.
The dog began nudging the fridge door and looking up at me. I opened the door and he tried to stick his head in. Restraining him by the collar, I scrounged and found some leftover meatloaf.
The dog jumped away from my grasp, leaping nearly to my waist.
“A gourmet, huh?”
I crumbled some meatloaf into the kibble and mixed it with my fingers.
The dog was snarfing before my hand was free, coating my fingers with a slick layer of drool.
I watched him feast. When he finished, he cocked his head, stared at me for a moment, then walked toward the back of the kitchen, circling and sniffing the floor.
“What now? Sorbet to clean your palate?”
He circled some more, walked to the service porch door, and began butting and scratching at the lower panel.
“Ah,” I said, bounding up. I unlatched the door and he zipped out. I watched him race down the stairs and find a soft, shaded spot near a juniper bush before lifting his leg.
He climbed back up, looking content and dignified.
“Thank you,” I said.
He stared at me until I petted him, then trailed me into the dining room, settling next to my leg, frog face lifted expectantly. I scratched him under his chin and he promptly flipped onto his back, paws upright.
I scratched his belly and he let out a long, low, phlegmy moan. When I tried to stop, one paw pressed down on my hand and bade me continue.
Finally he turned back on his belly and fell asleep, snoring, jowls shaking like mudflaps.
“Someone’s got to be looking for you.”
I slid the morning paper across the table. Plenty of lost-dog ads in the classifieds, but none of the animals remotely matched the creature stretched out on the floor.
I got animal control’s number from information and told the woman who answered it what I’d found.
“He sounds cute,” she said.
“Any idea what he is?”
“Not offhand-could be some kind of bulldog, I guess. Maybe a mix.”
“What should I do with him?”