He and Morgan had been together several times now, and on walks and outings, years seemed to shed off Samson in Morgan’s presence. It was only when they were hanging out together in Gabe’s apartment or Aunt Becky’s that they retreated to separate spaces and largely ignored each other, acting a bit like stepchildren who were still more focused on carving out their own space than sharing with their new companion.

“Did I tell you yet how happy I am that you were able to come?” Olivia gave Gabe’s hand a squeeze.

He grinned. “Once. Maybe twice.” He draped his arm over her shoulder as they headed around the building to the strip of woods separating the shelter from the jewelry store. “Did I tell you how much it means to me to be here for you? And to get to meet your students?”

She laughed and pressed a kiss against his cheek. “You may have.”

He stopped about halfway around the side of the building and guided their small group toward the short dog-walking trail that circled through the deepest section of the woods. Olivia had walked Morgan through here several times before he’d become hers. He’d loved the scent stations, especially the boxes with the squirrel and groundhog scents. He could’ve stood around sniffing those boxes for hours.

Proving his memory was as good as hers, Morgan beelined straight toward the first box as they started down the path.

“Fair warning, once he comes in here, it’s hard to get him out.”

“You know, now that he and Samson are hanging out as much as they are, Samson may help instill some manners in him. Morgan’s a sharp enough dog to figure it out, that’s for sure. It just takes awhile to come back from neglect like he’s had.”

“I bet Samson does teach him a few things. Especially once they get over that cool, indifferent phase they’re in with each other.”

Gabe chuckled. “We’re already seeing some signs of that, don’t you think?”

They’d reached the first scent box, the trail’s newest addition, that contained an abandoned beehive. Morgan went to town sniffing and sniffing, the sound reverberating through the air holes in the box.

As if proving their growing camaraderie, Samson noticed that something interesting held Morgan’s attention and trotted over to sniff the box as well. Their noses touched as they sniffed, and Samson’s long, bushy tail kept almost identical time with Morgan’s short, stiff one.

“It would certainly seem so.” Olivia glanced down the trail as far as she could see. “So, what are we doing out here anyway?”