Dale's had a thing for his friend Brandt—his best friend and sometime boss—from the moment they met on the ranch. For nine years, they've lived and worked side by side. It hasn't always been easy and they've had plenty of words and fights, but one thing Dale is sure of, is that the stubborn man he admires and longs for isn't someone he wants to ever be without. But Brandt is straight. Or so he's led Dale to believe. He can't seem to see his way through years of fear and hiding to tell Dale the truth. Better to let him think all they'll ever be is friends. However, Brandt finally crosses a line and everything between them changes—but not necessarily for the better. Fighting's easy. Making up is the hard part. Can they see eye to eye before it costs them everything?

Dale and Brandt are doing all right on their ranch in Colorado, raising horses and living together. Brandt still has a jealous bone, and sometimes they fuss about the small stuff, but Dale knows they love each other, and that things will straighten themselves out as long as he and Brandt are honest with each other. When an old friend arrives from Texas, though, jealousy rears its ugly head, and Brandt and Dale find themselves at odds. Can they help Evan get back on his feet, and keep their own feet on the ground about their relationship with each other? Brandt and Dale first appeared in the popular anthology, Cowboy Up.