Page 51 of The Wayward Son

Sawyer looked at Jade, then shrugged. “No. We brought them onto the porch.” He grinned at Joey. “Obsidian could be a pain sometimes, but he’d follow me anywhere on a lead line.”

She laughed. “I knew the porch was big. But big enough for two horses to ride out a hail storm?”

“They were fine. Of course after a while, I’d started driving.”

J.T. nodded. “Yeah, when you were like fourteen.”

Sawyer shrugged. “Closer to fifteen. Sheriff Bailey would look the other way when he saw an underage ranch kid on the road. As long as he wasn’t speeding or being reckless.”

“I kind of miss Sheriff Bailey. He was a good guy. Not that our current sheriff isn’t a good guy. He’s just a little more by the book.”

Jade cocked her head. “Have you had many run-ins with the new sheriff?”

“No. I’m just saying.” He grinned. “I’m the good son, remember?”

Sawyer folded his arms across his chest. “As opposed to me?”

“Now that you’re coming back home, you’re a good son, too.”

Jade laughed. “I’m not sure if the world is ready for two good O’Connell boys.”

Sawyer looked at her. “Do you prefer I stay a rebel?”

She smiled. “I don’t mind you being a little bit rebellious.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

When Finn ran into the room, they all looked at him. “It’s snowing huge giant snowflakes!”

Sawyer mumbled, “Oh shit,” as they all went to the back door and opened it up. “Okay. We need to leave right now.” He returned to the kitchen, took one more swallow of beer, then set the bottle on the counter. “You guys should get home, too. Stay safe and warm. And we’ll see you in a few days.”

He and Jade went through the front door and he held his hand out. “I’ll drive.”

“You’re not supposed to be driving.”

“I’ll drive.”

She put the keys in his hand. “It’s probably a good idea.” She smiled at him. “There’s that rebel.”

“Just get in the truck.”

The snow was falling so thick Sawyer could barely see the road in front of them. He drove slowly and was thankful there were no other cars on the road. When they got about halfway home, it let up some and the visibility got better. By the time they drove under the Three Oaks Ranch arch, it had almost stopped.

Sawyer scowled. “I guess we could’ve stayed longer.”

“I think we made the right decision. This is just a lull.”

“You’re probably right.”

When Jake left the barn, he didn’t go directly to the house. He went to the wellhouse and checked the insulation on the above ground pipes. Everything seemed secure, but if it got as cold as they were predicting tonight, the pipes still had a chance of freezing. He set a space heater in the middle of the room, then turned it on low. It would keep the small space above freezing. At least until the power went out. If that happened, he’d have to use the generator to keep the water running.

He then went to check on the animals outside of the barn. They all had heated waterers, but again, that would only work as long as there was power. There was no generator backup for the barn. That meant hauling warm water to melt the ice.

Jake didn’t mind the snow. But long periods of below freezing weather could be rough. He had another generator for the house, and he checked the fuel level before he went inside. He found Ember in the living room, looking out the window at the gray sky.

He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. She leaned into him.

“Any updates on the weather?”

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