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I once again had to remind myself that we didn't have that much time together because I had a tendency to forget, especially when we were together like this.
Where it was just the two of us.
I wasn't sure how I was ever going to survive without him after he left, but that was something I purposely didn’t think about. I just wasn't ready to deal with that right now.
Brooks found his release first, but I was right behind him. We held on to each other as we came down from our orgasms and then we spent the rest of the afternoon swimming and making out. By the time we got back to the ranch, it was close to dinnertime. Brooks helped me untack and brush the horses and then he went into the house. I hated that I wasn't able to give him a kiss, but the ranch hands had come in from the pastures to finish up for the day.
It took about half an hour for me to finish up my work. As I walked to the main house, I saw Brooks's Range Rover sitting in the driveway. We hadn't seen Sparkly Guy, or Jules rather, since we'd left him in Casper a few days earlier. According to Brooks, Jules had called and said he’d found what he was looking for and that he’d be in Eden soon. I hadn't understood what that meant, but admittedly, I hadn't really cared. Having Jules around meant I didn't have Brooks to myself anymore. And while I was okay with the guy based on the mere fact that he was Brooks's friend, it still rankled that he’d been all over Brooks at the bar. Admittedly, I was also very aware of the fact that when all this was over, Jules would be the one who got to be with Brooks. Maybe not in the way Brooks and I were together, but he still got to be a part of his life.
That was more than I would ever have.
I entered the house expecting to see the flamboyant young man in one of his crazy outfits hanging all over my guy, but I was surprised to see Brooks, Curtis, and Jules all sitting quietly at the kitchen table. Brooks was holding Jules's hand, which would have normally bothered me, but I saw the tears on Jules's face. The eyeliner he seemed to like to wear was streaking down his cheeks with the tears. In short, he looked terrible. There was also a bruise on his cheek. All my irritation at the younger man went up in smoke and I strode over to the table and practically barked, "What happened? Who did this to you?"
But Brooks just shook his head at me and Jules let out a harsh sob. Brooks took Jules against his shoulder and helped him stand. He led him to the stairs and then sent me a quick look. I got the silent message that he and his friend needed some alone time. I nodded back, then sat down at the table with Curtis.
"What happened?" I asked. "Is he all right?"
Curtis sighed and rubbed his hand over his mouth. He looked tired and old. The man was only in his early sixties, but for some reason, today he looked much older.
"That poor boy is finding out what all of us already know. That this town doesn't like different. And that boy is so wonderfully, perfectly different."
The idea that Jules had been attacked because of who he was—something I doubted he'd tried to hide when he’d arrived in Eden—made my heart beat painfully in my chest. Not only did it make me ashamed of the town I called home, it was like another death knell for me and Brooks. Even if by some miracle we could've found a way to be together, there was no way this town would let us.
"How did you do it, Curtis?" I asked. "How did you and Del… how did you do it?”
The older man seemed to think about it a moment before saying, "You make it sound like we had a choice, son."
"Didn't you?" I asked. "You could've gone your separate ways. Lived separate lives." I wasn't trying to be cruel, but when I considered what it would be like to do what Brooks and I had done today for the rest of our lives—be careful of every look, every touch we shared, and everything we said to each other so we wouldn’t be discovered—it seemed like an impossible thing.
Curtis smiled sadly and said, "Ask me that question again when it's time for Brooks to go home."
I didn't really understand what he meant, but it didn't matter. Brooks and I weren't Curtis and Del. We didn't want the same things. We didn't live the same life. There weren't a lot of horse ranches in New York, and even if there were, I wouldn't fit into the life that Brooks had there. Hell, I wasn't even allowed to leave the state of Wyoming for another three years. I was thinking about something that wasn't even a possibility.
