The dog, having been turfed off Cougar's lap, starts to wander aimlessly around, smelling trails across the yard, and then gets distracted by his own leash, pouncing on it and gnawing at the braided fabric. Jake makes a distressed noise and moves to snatch the puppy up into his arms so he can remove the leash from its mouth. The last thing he wants is for that to tear before the dog learns to stay at his side.

"I'm not worried about you stealing my dog," he lies, keeping his eyes on the puppy's. He's never had a dog before, and he so desperately wants the stupid little thing to love him the way dogs are supposed to.

But it will probably love Cougar more. Everyone always does. "He's not even really my dog. He's just a dog that showed up on our porch."