“That’s the best part,” Patrick told her, looking well pleased with himself. “We didn’t use a photo of you.”
Now Merry was totally baffled. “You mean to say you posted a picture of someone else?”
“Don’t be silly,” her mother responded.
“Well, if it isn’t me, then whose photo did you use?”
Patrick’s glee couldn’t be contained. “We used Bogie’s.”
“You made me a dog?” Merry cried, resisting the urge to cover her face. “Why?”
“Two reasons,” her mother explained.
“One,” Patrick intervened, thrusting his index finger into the air, ready to show his reasoning, “you love dogs.”
“Ah…I guess,” Merry admitted. Bogie was as much her dog as Patrick’s. He often slept on her bed. She took him for walks on the days Patrick couldn’t. Bogie was considered part of the Knight family.
“And second, and most important,” her mother continued, “you’re a beautiful young woman. Too many potential dates would judge you purely on your looks. That didn’t sit right with me. I wanted them to get to know you as a person, as the generous, kindhearted, loving woman you are. They will need to dig deeper into your profile rather than to simply gaze at a photograph. And,” she added, “we weren’t sure how you’d feel about all of this, so we chose a pseudonym for your name. You are now Merry Smith.”
“Merry Smith,” she repeated slowly, still having trouble taking all this in. Looking at her profile as it came up on the screen, she withheld a groan. After seeing Bogie with her pseudonym listed below, she figured it was highly unlikely anyone would send her a Mix and Mingle message. Anyone looking at the photo would think her profile was all one big joke. No one wanted to date a dog.
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Alaskan Holiday Page 17