Nolan Hawkins, a blond, pretty-boy accountant, hires on at Ashland Construction and soon crushes on his blue-collar boss, Joey Ashland. Joey specializes in buying and operating front loaders for the company, and to Nolan’s surprise, takes an interest in the accountant. Soon a secret romance begins to unravel between them. Joey whisks the accountant to his cabin in upstate New York, where the two share a romantic weekend together filled with heated lust. But when the couple returns to Ashland Construction on Monday morning, all hell breaks loose. Joey’s brother Brian is not an easy man to work for, and to top things off, he’s also a homophobic bully. When Brian learns of the relationship between Joey and Nolan, he gives the accountant an ultimatum: quit his job or quit Joey. A battle between the siblings ensues, but Nolan wages his own emotional battle. Should he keep his job and forget about his feelings for the front loader? Or should he end his accounting position and begin a new life with Joey away from Ashland Construction?

Front Loader

Two more days pass. A blizzard hits Comataw. Twenty-two inches of snow falls in less than twelve hours. Whiteness swirls everywhere as snow keeps us inside.


I don’t know why Sissy’s come over, but she has. She’s wearing a heavy coat, woolen scarf, and gloves. Her shoulders and knee-high boots are covered in snow. In the entryway, she kicks snow off her boots, brushes it off her hair and shoulders, and asks, “Have you checked your e-mail?”


“Joey’s trying to reach you. You should check your e-mail.” I remember hearing on the news that the cell towers are down because of the storm.


“What’s Joey want with me?” I ask, taking her coat, hat, and gloves and hanging them up.


“Come on, Nolan, you’re smarter than that. He wants to get you back into Ashland.”


“I don’t think that’s going to happen. I have other interests to pursue. Besides, Brian despises me because I like his brother’s cock.”


Chapter 15