Slim Montagne is about to leave town and head home when he stumbles over a pair of long, lean legs on the sidewalk. Daniel "Danny" Crane, a battered, dusty and bruised cowboy, is world-weary and has stopped believing in humanity. A drifter, his last ride left him on the side of the road, and he just barely made it to town before collapsing against the nearest wall.<br><br>When Slim offers Danny a place to stay, he's suspicious, but figures he has nothing left to lose. Back at the ranch, Slim introduces Danny to Ret and Roscoe, two other men who live and work on the property. Turns out, Ret, Roscoe and Slim have a very intimate relationship, and they're more than willing to add Danny to their circle.<br><br>All Danny has to do is be their cowboy, for keeps.

A Cowboy for Keeps

I felt a yearning building within me for the reticent cowboy. I wanted him for my own. Ret and Roscoe had each other—and me, whenever they wanted—so why couldn’t I…well, maybe it was too soon for that kind of thinking.


“Roscoe?” I asked one afternoon as I watched him preparing a huge tray of sandwiches in the kitchen. “What do you think is going on with Danny?”


“It may be that he’s been hurt by life for so long, and had to do things that he might be ashamed of to survive so often, that he doesn’t think he deserves more than being a voyeur and pulling on his dick.” He set the tray in the middle of the table.


“How do we get through to him?” I asked, grabbing a sandwich and taking a bite.


Chapter 7