Page 20 of Saddles and Snowstorms (Sagebrush Cowboys #4)

Rowan

W e’d laid there on the couch together in blissed out silence for at least a half hour.

At some point Brooks had pulled the blanket off the back and draped it over us both, his hurt leg sticking out awkwardly on the other end.

He hadn’t bothered to try pulling away or putting on his clothes.

Instead, he just laid there, his head resting against my stomach, his eyes lightly shut like he was at peace.

I was afraid to speak, afraid that I would ruin the moment.

From the beginning I knew Brooks didn’t want this to happen.

It was only the storm and the strange set of circumstances that made this all possible.

I couldn’t stop my heart from doing little flips as I gently stroked the inside of his forearm.

But that didn’t mean I’d let myself get carried away either.

There was nothing between Brooks Callahan and I.

And there would never be anything between us.

Tonight was a fluke, a happy accident that I’d remember for the rest of my life.

But Brooks liked being alone, and he made it very clear there was no room for me in his life.

Of course, that wasn’t going to stop me from enjoying myself.

I’d been in Sagebrush for over a month now and while I’d met plenty of guys like myself, they were all partnered off.

Playful flirting just left me hot and bothered with no way to get off.

My little fling with Brooks was exactly what I needed. But it would never be more than that.

Besides the fact that Brooks preferred to be alone, there was my own personal rule.

I did not date hookups. Not after my last boyfriend that ruined my life in Austin.

I’d learned my lesson, and it wasn’t a mistake I wanted to repeat.

And yet, as the blizzard howled outside, I found myself imagining what it would be like to spend my nights with Brooks, to sit there with him cradled in my arms for the rest of my life.

The wind rattled the windows loudly, and Brooks stirred against me, his calloused hand finding mine beneath the blanket. His thumb traced lazy circles on my palm—an unconscious gesture that sent shivers up my spine.

“Storm’s not lettin’ up,” he mumbled, voice rough like gravel. His eyes remained closed, dark lashes resting against his cheeks.

“I knew I wasn’t going anywhere tonight, anyway,” I said, trying to keep my tone light, casual.

Brooks grunted in response, shifting his weight. His stubble scratched against my bare skin as he adjusted his position. “Bed’s more comfortable than this couch,” he said after a long pause.

My heart skipped. “You offering?”

Those deep brown eyes finally opened, looking up at me with an expression I couldn’t quite read. “Ain’t offerin’ nothin’ but a decent night’s sleep,” he said, but there was something soft in his gaze that contradicted his gruff words.

He sat up slowly, wincing as he moved his injured leg. The blanket fell away, exposing his broad chest, the trail of dark hair leading down his stomach. I tried not to stare, but how could I not? He was a beautiful man, and I had a feeling I’d never get tired of the sight of him if he were mine.

I mentally checked myself for that last thought. Those had to stop. It would only make things harder when morning came and the storm let up. The real world was waiting just outside the walls of his cabin and eventually we’d both have to return to it.

Brooks caught me looking and something flickered in his eyes—vulnerability, maybe, before his usual stoic mask slipped back into place. He reached for his discarded sweatpants, pulling them on with practiced ease despite his injury.

“Need help?” I asked, immediately regretting how eager I sounded .

“Been dressin’ myself since I was three,” he replied, but there was no bite to his words.

I gathered my own clothes, pulling them on quickly in the cooling air of the living room.

I left my shirt on the floor though since I’d used it to mop up our cum earlier.

The fire had died down to embers, casting the room in a dim orange glow.

Outside, the wind howled with renewed fury, throwing snow against the windows like someone was tossing handfuls of sand.

Brooks stood, testing his weight on his bad leg before gesturing toward the hallway with a tilt of his chin. “This way.”

I paused only for a moment to toss a couple more logs onto the fire.

Then I followed him through the darkened house, noticing how he kept one hand on the wall for support.

His broad shoulders were hunched slightly, either from pain or something else I couldn’t name.

I hoped it wasn’t shame for what we’d done.

The hallway was narrow, decorated with nothing but a single faded photograph I couldn’t make out in the darkness.

His bedroom was surprisingly large, dominated by a king-sized bed with a simple wooden headboard and a quilt that looked handmade.

I’d taken him to it earlier when I found him lying hurt in the snow, but I hadn’t stopped to really look at it.

The walls were bare except for a rifle mounted above the dresser and a small photograph I couldn’t quite make out in the dim light.

The furniture was simple, rustic, and functional.

Brooks limped over to the far side of the bed, turning on a small lamp that cast the room in a warm glow.

“Bathroom’s through there if you need it,” he said, nodding toward a door in the corner.

I took him up on the offer, splashing cold water on my face and staring at my reflection in the mirror.

My hair was a mess, and there was a slight redness on my neck where his stubble had rubbed against my skin.

Evidence of what we’d done. I ran my fingers over the mark, remembering the feel of his mouth there.

When I returned to the bedroom, Brooks was already under the covers, his bare chest visible above the quilt. He’d left the lamp on, and his eyes followed me as I approached the empty side of the bed.

“You gonna stand there all night?” he asked, voice low and raspy.

I slipped under the covers, keeping a respectful distance between us.

The bed was warm, and I could feel the heat radiating from his body across the gap I’d intentionally left between us.

For a man who lived alone, Brooks had a surprisingly comfortable mattress—firm but yielding in all the right places.

The sheets were soft and smelled like him, that mixture of outdoor air, leather, and a life of honest work.

It was the same scent that drove me crazy whenever he was near.

“You always sleep this far away from people?” Brooks asked, his voice cutting through the darkness. The lamp cast long shadows across his face, highlighting the sharp angles of his jaw.

“Thought you might want some space,” I replied, trying to sound casual despite my racing heart. “I didn’t want to push you.”

He made a sound—something between a grunt and a chuckle—and shifted onto his side to face me. “Bit late for that, ain’t it?”

I couldn’t argue with his logic. Not after what we’d done on his couch. Not after he’d had my cock in his mouth and my hands tangled in his hair.

“Guess so,” I said, turning to face him. Our eyes met in the dim light, and for a moment, neither of us spoke.

The wind howled outside, rattling the windows once more, but inside Brooks’s bedroom, everything felt still, suspended in time. Like we were the only two people left in the world.

“C’mere,” he finally said, his voice barely above a whisper. He lifted his arm in invitation, and I hesitated only a moment before sliding across the mattress into the warmth of his embrace.

His body was solid against mine, all muscle and bone and surprising gentleness as he draped an arm over my waist. I rested my head against his chest, listening to the steady thump of his heart. It was racing just as fast as mine.

“This don’t mean nothin’,” he murmured into my hair, but his arm tightened around me as he said it. “Just keepin’ warm is all.”

“Course,” I agreed, knowing full well we were both lying to ourselves. But it was such a sweet lie that I didn’t care.

His fingers traced idle patterns on my bare back, calluses catching slightly on my skin. Each touch sent little sparks through my body, rekindling the desire I thought had been sated on the couch. I fought to keep my breathing steady.

“How’s your leg?” I asked, desperate to break the awkward silence .

“Hurts,” Brooks admitted after a pause. “But I’ve had worse.”

I nodded against his chest, feeling the rise and fall of his breathing. There was something surprisingly intimate about this—more intimate than what we’d done on the couch. This quiet vulnerability in the dark.

“Thank you,” he said suddenly, his voice so soft I almost missed it beneath the howl of the wind.

“For what?”

“Findin’ me out there. Coulda froze to death if you hadn’t come along.”

I lifted my head slightly to look at him. His face was partially shadowed, but I could see the sincerity in his eyes. “Anyone would’ve done the same.”

“No,” he said firmly. “Most folks in town would’ve driven right on by. Wouldn’t have even noticed me.” He paused, his hand stilling on my back. “I make sure people don’t notice me. But you… you saw me the moment you got here.”

The simple observation hit me harder than it should have. Something warm bloomed in my chest that had nothing to do with physical desire.

“I just pay attention,” I said, trying to keep my tone light. But then I decided to test the waters a bit. “It’s hard not to notice a handsome cowboy with the most gorgeous brown eyes I’ve ever seen.”

Brooks scoffed lightly. “You’re just bein’ nice. I’m way too old for you.”

“How old are you, Brooks?” I asked, a hint of a challenge in my voice.

He was quiet for a moment. “Thirty-eight,” he said softly.

“I’m twenty-eight,” I nodded, still looking up at him. “I hardly think ten years is a lifetime.”

Brooks grunted, fingers resuming their lazy patterns on my back. “Feels like it sometimes,” he murmured. “Especially out here.”

I understood what he meant. Time moved differently in Sagebrush—slower, more deliberate. The days stretched long across the prairie, marked by sunrise and sunset rather than meetings and deadlines.

“You ever think about leaving?” I asked, immediately regretting the question when I felt him tense beneath me.

“No,” he said flatly. Then, after a pause, “This land’s all I got. All I need.”

I nodded against his chest, not pushing further. The wind outside had changed its tune, no longer howling but moaning low and steady, like it was settling in for the night.

“Your turn,” Brooks said unexpectedly. “You said you left Austin because your ex made some trouble for you. What happened?”

His fingers had moved to my shoulder, tracing the curve there with surprising gentleness for hands so rough. For a man with such a gruff tone, he said so many soft, sweet things with his hands.

“I was up for a promotion,” I said, keeping it simple. “And he wanted it.”

“A promotion? Aren’t you just out of vet school?”

“Yeah. But the clinic wanted to make me a full partner. They were gonna put my name on the building and everything.”

Brooks quietly listened, waiting for me to fill in the gaps of a story I didn’t really want to tell.

“My ex and I started there at the same time right out of school. We both applied for the position, but I got it, and he wasn’t happy.

” I let out a long sigh, the bad memories flooding back all at once.

“We’d been fighting for a while, and I knew our relationship was on the rocks.

But I never expected him to go out of his way to botch one of my surgeries to make me look bad. ”

Brooks tensed, his hand on my back stopping instantly. “He did what?”

“Yep,” I nodded. “Then he accused me of malpractice, making up a bunch of lies about how he’d seen me ignore sterilization practices or how he’d seen me treat animals poorly behind closed doors.

Between the lies and the fact that my patient didn’t survive post-op, the owners saw no reason to keep me around. They fired me on the spot.”

Brooks’s arm tightened around me, and I felt his jaw clench against the top of my head. “That’s fucked up,” he said, the words vibrating through his chest. “Man does somethin’ like that, he deserves a lot worse than losin’ a job.”

“Yeah, well...” I shrugged against him. “The worst part is, by the time I figured out what he’d done, the damage was already done.

My reputation in Austin was shot. Nobody would hire me.

But I got my revenge in the end.” I took another deep breath.

“Tyler wasn’t very smart about covering up his tracks.

I found a bunch of texts he shared with a friend about what he’d done.

The day before I moved, I showed up at the vet hospital and dumped it all on my old boss’s desk.

They fired him and offered me my old position before the day was out, but by then I was too upset to consider going back.

I needed a fresh start someplace where nobody knew me. ”

Brooks was quiet for a long moment, his fingers resuming their gentle path along my spine. “That why you ended up in Sagebrush? Ain’t exactly a hotspot for fancy vets.”

I laughed softly against his chest. “Not exactly. I just needed somewhere quiet to rebuild. Somewhere I could practice without people whispering behind my back. Small towns need vets too.”

“Lucky for me,” Brooks said so quietly I almost didn’t hear it.

The admission hung in the air between us, neither of us acknowledging it directly. Instead, I nestled closer, breathing in his scent, memorizing the feel of his skin against mine.

“Brooks? Why do you keep to yourself so much?” I asked after a while, my voice barely above a whisper.

But there was no reply. Only the soft, steady rise and fall of Brooks’ chest. I figured he’d fallen asleep, or the question was just too personal, and he didn’t want to answer it.

Either way, I didn’t blame him. Tomorrow would come too soon, and reality was a harsh mistress.

This dream, however sweet it might be, was going to end and both of us would have to go back to our old lives as if nothing had ever happened between us.