The Nerd and His Cowboys

Chapter 1

It's the beginning of summer!

I thought this semester would never end. It was the end of sophomore year and Caleb asked if I wanted to stay over break at his house since his dad needed the help on the ranch.

 He's been going through a rough patch lately and missed his son. I told him I would stay since I didn't have a lot to do this summer.

The weekend before we started to head back, Caleb pulled me aside and said, "Look, Dad's been trying to get the ranch up and running because if he can't, he'll have to sell it. Be on your best behavior, please?" I nodded.

 Caleb never asked me for anything, but when he did, it was serious.

The day came when we left for Caleb's dads ranch. We left early to get a head start and arrived late that afternoon. The sun was going down which made the sky awash with hues of indigos, blues, oranges, reds, and pinks.

The air smelt really good like someone was making dinner for the whole family. The porch light flicked on and in the doorway, there stood a tall man at damn near 6', broad shoulders, flannel button-down with some chest hair showing and a short beard, which made him look hot.

 Caleb waved his hand in front of my face, and after blinking the confusion from my face, I got out of the truck. I greeted him with a smile. He shook my hand a bit roughly, "Howdy there! Caleb's told me a bit about you. I'm Cooper, and you are?" He asked in a deep Southern drawl.

 "The names Sam, sir. I've been friends with Caleb for quite a while now." I told him. 

He chuckled, "Caleb, the boy has better manners than you, son." Caleb blushed a shade of pink, embarrassed by him. 

We walked into the living room, and Caleb led me to his room to put his stuff down, motioned for me to put my stuff with him, saying, "Figured you're more comfortable with me than by yourself, right?" I nodded, mostly since I didn't care

We sat down and ate dinner.

"So, Sam. What are you doing in a small town like this?" Cooper asked

"Well, I'm actually from here. My folks don't stay too far from here." I told him

"What do they do, professionally?"

"Dad, stop it with the questions already. He's not obligated to tell you." Caleb told Cooper.

"Well, I'm sorry. I was trying to get to know him is all." He laughed

"It's fine. My parents are farmers and they sell anything that's left over after the market to neighbors or give away to those who need it." I told him

"I didn't know that" Caleb said.

"Well, it's nice to see people doing some good in the world." Cooper remarked.

 Caleb went to get ready for bed, saying that he's going to shower in the guest shower to give me some privacy. After a while, his dad left to take a shower.  I left to shower as well. 

As I walked into the bathroom, it was a lovely sight to behold. It had matching curtains and stuff. It smelled like flowers, there was an extra toothbrush in the holder by the sink. I turned on the water to let it warm up.

As I jumped in, I thought about how this summer would go. I'm not much of a ranch hand but I'm ok to learn how. I lathered up the washcloth I got from the cabinet and proceeded to wash my body free of the dirt and debris from the car ride. I rinsed off and wrapped the towel around me.

I thought about Caleb and how I've known had feelings for him, but I never really acted or thought on them too much. 

He was always the popular one, always the one girls wanted to sleep with, to whom the guys either wanted to have sex with him or they wanted to be him. He wasn't shy about either option and has made it known to everyone.