Jared had hoped for more time, but he was caught still uncertain when the mother and sister of his new owner walked inside the house. Jared was prepared to pour on the charm when he "met" Cassie, but a stern reaction from Alex's mother quashed that.
"What is that doing here?" Mrs. Henderson asked, peering down at the sheepdog with a disapproving frown.
"We'll discuss it later, dear," her husband explained as the suddenly shy sheepdog hid behind their young son. "I've told Alex he can keep him, but we've laid down the ground rules."
"You mean he is ours?" Cassie asked. She rushed forward and got down on her knees in front of the sheepdog. "He's so fuzzy!"
Jared still felt shy, but he lost some of the fright that Mrs. Henderson's scolding tone had caused to surface.
"Well, he cannot stay inside the house," Mrs. Henderson said firmly.
"Aww, mom," Alex protested, but his dad backed up mom's ruling.
Cassie, ignoring the discussion, gave the sheepdog a big hug. "He's so adorable!"
Jared felt like he might melt. Not only did Cassie's hug feel great, she had just called him adorable!
"Cassie, help your brother take the dog out back and get him settled," Mrs. Henderson said. "It is a him, right?"
Mr. Henderson shrugged, but Alex confirmed the sheepdog's maleness.
"Good! At least we don't have to worry about puppies," Mrs. Henderson said.
"But, mom, he could still be a daddy dog," Alex pointed out.
"Not if he's staying here," she said quickly and turned to her husband. "Did you think about that? How much will it cost to have him fixed?"
Jared whimpered, but Cassie thought he had reacted to a tug when her bracelet got caught in his shaggy fur.
"Oh, I'm sorry, boy," she apologized.
"We can work all those details out later," Mr. Henderson remarked. "Kids, take the dog outside. While you're at it, think of a name for him. We can't just keep referring to him as boy."
Jared felt concerned, but he fell into obedience when Alex tugged on his leash. "Let's go, boy."
The parents watched as their son and daughter led the big sheepdog out the back door.