It had been a miserable summer, every day hotter and drier than the last. August had turned downright hellacious and dusty. Like Bryant’s sex life. There were tumbleweeds rolling through that shit. And it was his own damn fault.

He didn’t remember all of their discussion from the day they’d broken up, but the sight of his name tattooed on Vaughn’s chest was burned into his soul. He wasn’t sure any more that he’d made the right decision, but too much time had gone by now for him to do anything about it, right?

Bryant flung an arm over his face. He was crashed out on the couch in Sterling’s cottage. Stuck. Like he had been all those years before, except now he didn’t even have school to distract him.

Without knocking, someone barged through the front door. It could only be one of his family members. “Hey, what if I’m naked in here?”

“You’re too boring for that,” Doug said as he tromped through the kitchen then plopped down beside him, jarring him.

“Even if you were, it would save a step,” Austin said. From behind him, Hayden waved.

“Do I want to know what you’re talking about?” Bryant frowned. They were too much right now. Too much when his brain just wanted to sleep the summer away. Maybe longer.

James and Ivy joined the crowd, making the tiny cottage seem like it was going to explode at the seams before James filled him in. “We’re taking the girls to check out the new rope swing some of the hands installed in the back pond. It’s hot enough that I feel like I’m jumping into a fire again out there. We need a good old-fashioned naked swim break. Come on, you know you want to go. For old times’ sake.”

Bryant thought about the summer he’d drooled over Vaughn every chance he got, and how—unknown to him—Vaughn had been doing the same. What if Vaughn had gone swimming with them on the day of the now-infamous skinny dip?

Gah! If he didn’t stop thinking about Vaughn, he was going to go insane. He might as well let his cousins distract him for a few hours. “Okay, fine. I’m coming.”

Bryant got up and shuffled into the bedroom to ditch his shirt and grab a towel. He knew something was up when the loudmouth fuckers he’d grown up with suddenly grew hushed. They whispered frantically among themselves. Oh fuck, what were they up to?

He charged into the living room bare-chested, in time to see them ogling the pictures he’d printed and left on the coffee table. Shit, how had he forgotten they were on display?

Bryant had spent half the evening the night before staring at them, tracing the lines that suited him so well.

“What’s this?” Doug asked, holding one up.

“Doesn’t matter.” He tried to snatch it back, but his cousin dodged.

“I hope James doesn’t mind me saying you look fucking hot like this, Bryant.” Ivy glanced between the images and Bryant in the flesh.

Austin held his fist out. “I didn’t know you were thinking of joining the ranks. This matches really well with what Vaughn did on me and James. That will be awesome. Kind of like our dads. It’s going to take a lot of time, pain, and cash—or blowjobs, if that’s your thing. Hope you’re prepared.”

“It’s just a drawing.” Bryant shook his head and turned away from them. It hurt to see himself the way Vaughn did. No…had.

“You’re so full of shit, I can smell it from here.” Doug stood up. “Vaughn drew this. He sees something in you that no one else does. Why are you blind to that? You’re supposed to be the smart one, but this whole summer you’ve been acting dumb as dirt.”

“This is about more than a tattoo.” Hayden linked her hand with Austin’s. Bryant was definitely outnumbered. It seemed Vaughn had a fan base among his family, and he didn’t mean just his sister, who’d been harping on him for weeks already. “One of the most important things about a partner, is finding someone who believes in you. Someone who knows just how incredible you can be and helps you reach that potential. If it weren’t for Austin, I’d never have had the courage to start singing professionally. If Vaughn is that person for you, if he makes you confident, strong, and satisfied, I’m not sure why you’re not begging him to come back.”

“That’s not what Austin did. When you needed freedom, he gave it to you.” Bryant stared at the happy couple, remembering what it felt like when he was in their position.

“Did Vaughn ask to be left alone? Or did you?” James wondered.

Bryant didn’t answer. He didn’t have to. They all knew the truth. Or most of it.

Maybe it was time he told them why he was so fucking scared of making mistakes, even if he was starting to suspect he’d made the worst one of his life recently. “Can we sit down for a second?”

Austin, James, and Doug shared a knowing glance. This was serious shit.

His cousins and the women they loved didn’t argue then. They settled in and gave him their full attention.

It was harder to say than he thought, even after all this time. “When I was seventeen, I was raped in the main barn by the big house.”

Doug cursed and James just blinked as if he couldn’t believe it. That something so awful could happen here, on their beloved ranch.

“Jesus, why didn’t you tell us?” Austin asked even as Hayden put her hand on his knee. She paused just long enough to let him nod first, and let her know that was fine.

“I guess I felt like an idiot. Like it was my fault. See, I was trying to hit on Vaughn and he turned me down. Because I wasn’t old enough and he’s not a scumbag.” Bryant shrugged one shoulder. Now that he’d started telling them his worst secret, it seemed like less of a big deal. The power it had held over him disappeared as the words flew from his lips. “But one of the other guys, a new hand, overheard and twisted my disappointment and the rejection I felt. He used it against me, conning me into making out with him…and then didn’t take no for an answer when things got out of hand. It would have been a lot worse if Jake hadn’t shut things down.”

“Oh, fuck,” James whispered.

“That’s why you didn’t date for so long,” Austin added. It wasn’t a question.

“I didn’t intend for it to be that way. I just…focused on school and keeping to the goals I’d set. Made good decisions.” He wrung his hands. “At least until I came home and ran into Vaughn again.”

“Do our parents know?” Doug wondered aloud at the same time James asked, “Who was the fuckface that attacked you? Did he ever get what was coming to him?”

“Sorry. Can we talk about that stuff some other time?” Bryant winced. “It’s still difficult.”

“Of course.” Austin nodded. “I’m glad you finally felt like you could tell us.”

“I need you to understand why I did what I did. With Vaughn, I mean.” He scrubbed his hands over his face. “The very first time I caved to my urges…catastrophe. This time, it might have cost me my degree. When sex is involved, I clearly can’t think straight.”

“Don’t even put those two things in the same category. Hooking up with Vaughn was the best thing you’ve done in forever.” Doug lifted the picture up and studied it again. “You two are a great match. A perfect balance. He knows how to deal with you and make you understand what we all know…”

James nodded, taking over for Doug mid-sentence, as they often did with each other. “You’re awesome exactly how you are. You don’t have to be like every other cowboy on Compass Ranch to deserve happiness. This drawing and these pictures he took of you…they’re different, and not only because of the ink. Look at the way you’re standing, the way you carry yourself when you’re with him. You’re a different person. The person you were meant to be. I’m sorry I didn’t notice that before.”

“I hope you’ll let us know when you’re struggling with this. I wish we could have been there for you,” Austin said as he squeezed Hayden’s hand. He’d just recently helped her out of a bad situation with her ex, one that had left her battered. She hadn’t broken, and neither would Bryant. Vaughn had helped him see that.

Truth was, Bryant missed being the person he was with Vaughn. He hadn’t gotten to wear that skin for very long before things had gone to shit, but for the brief time he had… Well, those had been the best days of his life so far.

Until he’d hit a pothole. And he’d broken down again. Without making any progress. Letting people, including Jake and the rest of his family, down.

“You were there for me, guys.” He looked around at his cousins, hoping they could see the truth in his eyes. “You’ve never treated me differently because I’m gay. And I guess that’s part of why I didn’t say anything. I didn’t want it to change things between us. Or for you to see me as weak. I’d already lost enough.”

“In that case, I’m going to say what I would say to any of these other assholes if they were fucking something up…” Doug glared at Bryant. “You need to do something to show Vaughn that you want him. And for more than his cock. It’s got to be something huge, since you’ve been jerking off all summer, letting things get out of hand.”

“Since when are you the relationship expert?” James smacked Doug on the back of the head. “As far as I can tell, you’ve been chasing your tail when it comes to your own love life. Maybe you should do as you say, huh?”

Doug grumbled something Bryant couldn’t understand under his breath.

He laughed, feeling for the first time in months like things might be okay. Not today, but eventually, if he worked hard enough to make it so.

“As much as I agree with James, I think Doug is on to something.” Austin brought him back to reality. “I think you should take some time to consider your options then make a grand gesture. After all, James told me Vaughn got a tattoo of your name. That’s pretty serious shit. Especially since I know for a fact he doesn’t have any other ink.”

“He showed you?” Bryant asked James.

“Uh, yeah. He was trying to talk me out of getting Ivy’s name on me in case…you know, things didn’t go well when I tried to win her back.” He winced. “Sorry.”

That news stabbed Bryant in the heart. Did Vaughn regret more than the tattoo? Did he regret his liaison with Bryant all together? There was only one way to find out. He was going to have to man up and ask. Be the person in those pictures.

“Come on.” Ivy nudged Bryant. “Let me see this swimming hole everyone’s been raving about. You can think about it some and then go to him when you’re fully prepared to fight.”

Bryant nodded. He was so glad to have their company and to finally have everything out in the open. Maybe someday, with all of their support, he could manage to explain to his parents and the rest of their family how wounded he’d been and why he’d distanced himself. It might alleviate some of his guilt for staying away so long.

It felt right that they were all here, together again. Maybe for good. James had only been home a week or two, but was already fitting in like he’d never left. Austin and Hayden, too. Hell, even Doug was taking a quick break from the storm-tracking crew, due to the fact there were no storms to track.

But that could change. Soon, they hoped.

Until then, he’d enjoy having them around. It felt like the old days, but even better. If Vaughn were there, to finally go skinny dipping with them, it would be perfect. Now Bryant just had to convince Vaughn of that, and he thought he might know just the way to do it, too.