Chapter 12

“I never expected the right person—the one I didn’t think I’d find anyway—would be male. I never let myself think of that. Oh, I remember a couple of friends when I was in high school. I guess I felt an attraction when I look back, but at that time, in this community, we could never have come out with it. The idea scared us spitless. We backed off before we got even close to expressing any feelings, much less acting on them. I put all that in a box and taped the lid down real tight.”

Damon shook his head, feeling the rueful half-smile twist his face. “Yeah, I felt whatever it is between us that first day, too. Scared me all over again. If I hadn’t been three-quarters plowed last night, I’d have run out of that bedroom like a fresh-branded calf about the time the three of us hit thebed. I’m still scared, Eric. You’re going to have to help me, work with me. Like a timid virgin, I guess.” He laughed a little at his own awkward joke.