The Lincoln County Wars by Sarah Black
Graham and Tommy are grown together. They lived in an old small town together, went school together, played football together and made their first sex experience together. Maybe they aren't gay, they only can't live apart. And so for years Tommy went to Graham by night, made love and the morning after he left and during the day they were only good friends. But then Tommy went in Iraq and now he is back home, but he no more goes to Graham. And Graham keeps his rage for him, and doesn't go to Tommy.
Tommy is now the sheriff of Lincoln County and Graham thinks he has to keep an unattachable behaviour. And maybe also Graham doesn't want to be the target of the nasty comments of the people who don't like to have gays among their straight cowboys. But the things go bad and Tommy will do anything to protect his lover and to not lose him to another man.
At first you can think that Graham is the positive charcater and Tommy the coward man who doesn't have the courage to claim his love for years. But Tommy is a wonderful character, who loves his man and knows better than him to wait to have finally him all for himself. And also I love the way Sarah Black describes this love, born among teenager and grown while they grew. A love that doesn't need words and doesn't need excuse. All around them can crash, but they always have blue flannel sheet to protect them from the world.
It's a rather short story and Sarah Black has a writing style made of short flash of image and very few dialogue: exactly like the old ways of cowboys, more action, less words.
http://www.loose-id.net/prod-The_Lincoln_County_Wars-464.aspx
Amazon Kindle: The Lincoln County Wars
Publisher: Loose Id LLC (May 22, 2007)
Cover Art by April Martinez