Law winced.
Sage caught it immediately. “What?”
“You couldn’t find something worse?”
“This is excellent driving music.”
“It’s seven in the morning.”
“That’s exactly why we need it.”
Sage turned the volume up a notch and leaned back in the seat, one boot braced casually against the dashboard while the breeze from the cracked window tugged at his curls. He drummed his fingers against his knee in time with the beat, grinning sideways at Law like he’d just won something.
Law shook his head but didn’t reach for the dial.
The gravel road curved around a stand of cottonwoods before opening onto the small clearing where Crow and Rebel’s cabin sat tucked against the edge of the property. The yard still carried the same early-morning calm as the rest of the ranch.
Law rolled the truck to a stop near the fence line.
The calm lasted about half a second.
A white-and-black blur exploded across the yard.
Buckshot hit the ground running like he’d been launched from a cannon, long legs flying in every direction as he sprinted straight for the truck.
Sage was already out the door.
“Hey, buddy—”
The nine-month-old Dalmatian slammed into him full force, all gangly limbs and uncoordinated enthusiasm. Buckshot’s paws hit Sage’s chest as the dog tried to climb him and lick his face at the same time, his whole body wagging hard enough to nearly knock himself over.
Sage laughed, the sound bright and completely unguarded.
“Easy—easy!” he said, catching the dog’s shoulders before Buckshot toppled them both. “You’ve grown in the last two days. Ya lug.”
Buckshot attempted to crawl directly into his arms.
Law shut the truck door and leaned against the side of it, arms folding loosely as he watched the reunion unfold.
The dog had been half frozen when Law found him in that Colorado blizzard months earlier—small, stubborn, and barely moving, but refusing to give up. He’d carried the pup wrapped inside his jacket while the storm tore across the ranch.
Buckshot bounced in circles around Sage, long Dalmatian legs going everywhere at once before launching himself back against Sage’s chest again.
The young man sat on the ground to steady himself, scratching both hands through the spotted fur along the dog’s neck.
“Yeah,” he cooed. “I missed you, too.”
Buckshot responded by licking his chin and climbing into his lap.
After a moment, the puppy bounced away and bounded toward Law, tail whipping happily.
Then he wheeled around and sprinted straight back to Sage like gravity had shifted.
Law just smiled.
Some animals decided quickly who their person was.
Buckshot had never had any doubt.
