“One more thing off the list,” I told Tova.
She exhaled through her nose without opening her eyes.
I was reaching for the next task when my phone rang. The screen showed Isaac Baxter, and the guilt was instant.
The last time we’d talked was a text exchange weeks ago, right after I’d left Warrior Security. Isaac had vouched for me to Hunter, arranged the whole thing, and I’d repaid him by quitting without a word and then going quiet when he reached out.
He’d told me things had changed for him. Told me he’d been hurt and was recuperating. I never followed up on any of it, because I’d been too deep in my own shit to be a decent friend.
I picked up. “Hey.”
“There he is.” Isaac’s voice came through friendly and unhurried, not a trace of anything I deserved to hear. “The glorified ranch hand. How’s life among the animals?”
“Good. Better than good, actually.”
“Better than good.” I could hear him grinning. “That’s new vocabulary for you, brother. You want to tell me what changed, or do I have to guess?”
“Believe me, I know better than to tell you any details.”
“That means there’s a woman. I can hear it in your voice. Logan Stroud said ‘better than good,’ which means either you met someone or you found one hell of a dog.”
I leaned against the stall door. Tova cracked one eye open and looked at me.
“Both, if we’re being honest.”
His laugh was full and warm, the kind that came from real delight and not performance. “I need the whole story. Start from the beginning.”
I let out a heartfelt sigh. There was no getting out of giving him at least a little. “Her name is Lark Monroe. She runs Pawsitive. And that’s all you’re getting.”
“So coy. You’re terrible at giving juicy details. You’ve always been terrible at it. I don’t know why I keep trying.” A beat. “But I’m glad, Logan. I mean that.”
The easy warmth of it sat in my chest. I’d forgotten how simple it was to talk to Isaac. He never held things against you. He just kept showing up.
“I should have called you back,” I said. “Weeks ago. Checked on you. I’m sorry, man.”
“All good, brother.” He said it clean, no residue. “Besides, I’ve had my own situation.”
“Yeah? Having to do with yourscuffle?”
“Yeah. But more. So much more.” His voice dropped into a register I had never heard from Isaac Baxter, quieter and steadier, as if the ground under him had shifted and he’d found new footing on top of it. “Her name is Fallon.”
I straightened up. Isaac dated. He charmed his way through rooms and cities and entire social circles without leaving a mark on himself. That was part of who he was, and he’d never pretended otherwise. Zodiac Tactical knew what they had in Isaac and used it: an operative who looked like a movie star but could fight like a SEAL.
But the way Isaac had just said this woman’s name had nothing to do with any of that.
“Tell me about her.”
“I’m still working on the words. I’ll have to tell you face-to-face the next time I see you.”
“Now who’s being coy? That could be months.”
Gravel crunched outside the barn. I glanced at my watch, and it was just past ten thirty. That would be Gimbal’s owner.
“I’ve got to go, man,” I said. “We’ve got a client stopping by this morning.”
I walked out of the barn with Tova at my heels. A black SUV had stopped in front of the house, the engine still ticking.
The driver’s door opened, and Isaac Baxter stepped out with his phone pressed to his ear, grinning at me across twenty feet of Montana dirt.
