Wade Dwyer's life is turned upside down when his father dies and he learns he must marry or he and his siblings will lose the ranch. One last jab of the knife from his father. On top of that, his father's only friend knows about the stipulation and is determined to own the property by any means necessary.<br><br>He's facing the very real possibility of being the reason his family loses their home when his brother's best friend, Lance Matthews, offers to walk down the aisle with him. A faux marriage to the man he's loved for years is a torture he isn't sure he can endure.<br><br>Can he keep the ranch ... and the man of his dreams, too?

The Twisted Oak

“Thanks,” Lance told him. “I was starting to think I would need a step stool.”


“Here, hand them to me. I’ll get them put away.”


They worked in tandem, making quick work of shelving the books. Lance broke down the now-empty box and Wade took it to the recycling bin.


“I’m going to take a shower and head to bed,” he told Lance. “I need to be up early to meet with Charlie.”


“I’m tired, too,” Lance admitted. “I already took a shower, but I might join you and read in bed for a while, if that doesn’t bother you.”


Wade shook his head. He kind of liked the idea of being in bed with Lance, reading, sharing the evening, talking…it was so domestic and it gave him hope that he knew he shouldn’t hold on to, but he did. He couldn’t help it. His brother’s words had planted the seeds of hope and he couldn’t wait to see if love would bloom on both sides.


Chapter 46