Thirty-three-year-old gay farmer Vladimir Wozniak IV lives for his crops and the hard work that makes them profitable every year. Five miles up the road, former rodeo bull rider and rancher Thomas Sullivan is just as committed to his corn-fed beef. Once best friends until VJ kissed Tommy during freshman year in college, they stopped speaking when Tommy rejected VJ. Ten years later, after the country doctor who helped bring them into the world dies and his will names them as co-owners of property, they decide to check out their inheritance together to see which one wants to buy out the other. As they travel down memory lane through the Doc’s correspondence and visit familiar sites on the land, can they work their way back to friendship ... and possibly beyond?

The Thaw

“You never married, am I right?” he asked.


My head lowered a bit as I played with the paper napkin. “Nope. You didn’t either, right?”


Surprisingly, VJ’s cheeks flushed. “No. I never found…” His voice died.


I let out a sigh. “Yeah. I know what you mean.”


It wasn’t just that I hadn’t found the right girl. God knows, I’d been with enough of them, a lot of them buckle bunnies from my rodeo days, but a lot of them from around here, too. So far none of them shouted, “You’re home. Now shut up and let’s get on with our lives.” Mostly the underlying message was, “How much is this ranch worth? Yeah, I could live with that.”


Guess VJ and I’d said everything we had to say to each other and wanted to keep other thoughts to ourselves cuz the rest of the meal played itself out in silence.


After we paid up and got ready to leave, I turned and looked at him.


“You want me to pick you up on Monday?”


VJ shook his head. “I’ll meet you there. I’ve got a few things I need to do before I can leave.”


Chapter 4