Sidearms and Spareribs by Ashton Cade

Sean:

I’m a cop on leave. I fled to Snow Lake for some R&R after getting what I euphemistically call a ‘workplace injury.’ Since getting shot, I’m a little jumpy– I can’t help but be spooked, expecting something, or someone, around every corner. But there’s one person that’s making me feel like my old, bold self again–Porter Gaines, the guy who runs the butcher shop in my temporary digs. But deep in those dark eyes of his, the glimmer of desire I think I see not only makes me wild, but makes me feel like I’ve come home.

I’ve always heard that a near-death experience can change your mind about life, but if I’m honest, I didn’t come anywhere close to dying. I did come out of the operating room looking for something though–someone that wasn’t there–that didn’t exist. Or I thought he didn’t.

My job’s been my life for so long and whatever Porter and I have is just supposed to be a temporary thing. But when the phone rings and a mysterious man implicates Porter’s little brother in a crime, I know I have to return and investigate. And maybe I’ll not only find the truth, but also, find my reason to really live.

Porter:

In a town like Snow Lake, potential partners are few and far between, and with my full cargo hold of emotional baggage, I don’t know who would ever be interested in me. I saw what my dad had with Bette before they passed, and I want a little piece of that for myself. And when I meet Sean, the s*xy cop with the dark hair and darker eyes, I’m tempted more than I want to admit. He’s completely unaware of the mass of butterflies swarming my guts whenever he’s around.

But ‘going for it’ has never been my thing. I’m not thrilled about failure or rejection–it’s big change that makes me nervous. I like what’s comfortable and familiar. I like Snow Lake, I like my neighbors and our weekly rituals. As screwed up as my life has become since the accident, I still have made a new normal, and throwing a monkey wrench into the whole thing is… terrifying.

He’s only here for a little while, a tempting voice says.

How much harm can a week-long wrench do?

A lot, another, less-tempting voice answers.

But after what I’ve been through, I’m not sure I can resist the kind of love that Sean’s offering. I just hope it doesn’t destroy me.