He woke up that morning and the first thing he thought was, I’m marrying Nat today.

For a moment, he entertained the thought of what it would be like to wake up and think that and feel nothing but satisfied contentment instead of sheer terror and a faint feeling of unease, because this wasn’t supposed to be how it went.

That’s what he couldn’t stop thinking: This wasn’t supposed to be how it went.

Because if he was really being honest, there was a place in the back of his head that had laid out how it was supposed to go. How they would finally give in to that tension between them again, how they would kiss and touch and fall into bed together, how they would fight and make up and fight some more, and how finally they would find some sort of balance, some sort of life that they both wanted, that they both could share.

How one day, he would take her to the very top of the mountain, where the clouds touched the trees and the valley below stretched out into something beautiful and secret, and he would get down on one knee and put a ring on her hand and swear he’d always protect her, always love her, always fight for her.

Instead, he found himself doing his normal morning routine, checking his phone from time to time to see if she was on her way.

Zeke, the pit bull, was bouncing back fast and proving a good distraction. He was still severely underweight, but after two days, he was responding well to the meds, with no sign of the infection returning. He was sweet as hell, and had taken to wanting to follow Rhett everywhere in the clinic. He was keeping him inside for a bit longer until his wound had healed, but he was pretty sure he’d be bringing the dog home to stay with him. He hadn’t had a dog of his own for a few years, since his golden retriever, Lassen, had died at thirteen. He hadn’t been ready for a new dog, but Zeke was winning him over.

The dog was sitting under his desk in his office, chewing on the brand-new rope toy that Molly had bought for him, when Rhett’s phone dinged. A text from Nat.

Just got to the lodge. I’m going to check in and then we can go to the courthouse.

He knew he should text back, but he didn’t know what to say. He was half afraid that when he saw her again, he was going to freeze, the words clogging in his throat.

It’s just Nat.

But that, of course, was the problem.

Rhett drummed his fingers on his desk, listening to the sounds of Zeke gnawing on his toy. His phone dinged again, but this time, it wasn’t a text, it was a call. His screen lit up with the name Crawford Ayles and he frowned.

“Crawford? What’s up?” he asked.

“Rhett, hi,” said the detective. “I hate to bother you, but I’m about eighty miles from your place in Galveston. My guys just took down a heroin operation. There’s a shed in the back.”

“Let me guess,” Rhett said, “Wild animals in the shed.”

“Yep,” Crawford said. “I don’t want to call animal control. There’s some apparent injuries.”

“Text me the address and the rest of the information, and I’ll be there as soon as I can,” Rhett said.

“I appreciate it,” Crawford said.

“Anytime, man,” Rhett said. “See you in a bit.”

He hung up, took a deep breath, and then, giving up the attempt at any kind of serenity, pressed the heels of his palms against his eyes for a second.

“We’ve got this, don’t we, boy?” he asked Zeke, who was lying at his feet under his desk. The pit didn’t even look up from his rope. Rhett smiled. “Time to face the music,” he said, bending down and picking the dog up gently to carry him back to his kennel. “Dad’s gotta go rescue some more animals,” he cooed at the dog, who pawed at the kennel gate as he closed it, giving him the worst puppy-dog eyes. “He’s gotta go rescue some…” he glanced down at the text Crawford sent him, his stomach jolting a little as he read the details of the crime scene for the first time. “Well, shit,” he said, and Zeke whined. “Sorry,” he told the dog. “Be good, okay?” He locked the kennel door, tossed him a treat and hurried out of the clinic, leaving instructions and the address of where he was going with the receptionist.

He hopped in his truck drove over to the lodge, and parked up front since he was just going to be a few minutes. To his surprise, Nat was already waiting for him. Even more surprising, her usual carefully chosen black-and-white clothing had been discarded in favor of a light blue dress that fluttered teasingly around her knees.

“You look like you’ve never seen a girl in a dress before, Oakes,” she drawled.

“You look beautiful,” he said, unable to tell her anything but the truth.

She smiled, that soft smile of hers, the one she seemed to shoot toward him more than anyone else. “Are you ready?” she asked.

He shook his head. “Not yet. We just need to take a little detour before we go to the courthouse.”

“Okay,” she said. “Do you want to take my car or…”

“We’re going to need my truck,” he said, gesturing to it behind him. “And an eight-foot steel cage.”

“Um, ohhh-kay,” Nat said, following after him as he walked off the porch, toward his own mud-covered F-350. “What’s the cage for?” she asked.

“The bear cubs we’re going to pick up,” Rhett said.