Hot August Comes

By KC Kendricks

Leo Corbin shook the dust of Westfall off his shoes to pursue opportunities among the bright city lights. When his mother suddenly dies, Leo returns home to settle her estate. His grief at her passing quickly turns to shock at what she left behind and rekindles old questions about the identity of his father.

Harrison Wade stuck by his father to help run the family farm. Life for a gay man in Westfall has limitations, but Harrison knows how to make the best of them. When Leo Corbin returns to town, Harrison's quiet existence tilts. Leo is the guy who put an end to the high school bullying Harrison endured so many years ago. Harrison quickly discovers his old boyhood crush on Leo has matured into an adult attraction.

As the mercury rises, Harrison and Leo's friendly buddy arrangement heats up. When hot August comes to Westfall, they discover home is more than where a man hangs his hat. It's where he gives his heart.

* * *

"You country boys never waste a good resource."

"No, we don't. Leo, I heard the story about you, you know."

Leo cringed inside but he refused to let his dismay show. "I wondered. How much has it grown over the years?"

"You really want me to say what I heard?"

No, he didn't but maybe it was something he should know. "Sure. Lay it on me."

"That you were the one to seduce Stan Stoler, not the other way around. You left town because he wouldn't leave his wife for you. You didn't really trick him at the church, did you?"

Not much shocked Leo, but that did.

"At the church! Hell no!" He downed a few swallows of beer. The cool liquid was refreshing on a muggy night.

"Here's the truth, Harrison. Mr. Fabulous Gym Teacher seduced me at the high school, in the locker room, in the shower. I didn't fight him off."

"So you wanted it?"

"I was almost eighteen and I wasn't a virgin. I knew what he was about when he approached me. If you think I'm the only gay boy to walk the hallowed halls of Westfall Senior High, you're mistaken."

Harrison snorted and sipped his beer. "I know for a fact you're not although you're the only one to get caught with the former coach."

• Language: English
• Publisher: White Deer Enterprises/White Deer Books
• Release date: May 30, 2016
• ISBN: 9781533798046

KC Kendricks

KC Kendricks calls herself an accidental writer. After completing her first novel writing as Rayne Forrest, she was urged to submit it to a publisher, and everything snowballed from there. Today, the author has had over seventy books published. In July of 2021, she tried to retire but her employer offered her a deal to work at home. She accepted. Now she balances work, writing, and hearth and home in a controlled chaos. A native of scenic western Maryland, the author enjoys most activities that don’t include snow. In warm weather she might be found walking the dog, biking on the C&O Canal towpath, planting delicacies in her garden for the deer to munch on at night, playing in the creek, or lazing on the patio with her Kindle reader or laptop. She recently began to research her family history and can't drive past a cemetery without stopping to search for family sites. Her mission is to photograph old tombstones before the elements erode the stones and the names are lost to time. For more about KC Kendricks and Rayne Forrest’s writing life, please visit the Between the Keys blog at http:kckendricks.blogspot.com . If you’d like to know more about the author’s country lifestyle and her daily activities full of simple country pleasures (and a lot of work), please visit the Holly Tree Manor blog at http://hollytreemanor.blogspot.com . KC can be reached through her blog, Between the Keys. All comments are strictly moderated by the author and personal messages are treated as such. Follow the author on Twitter for up-to-date announcements at Twitter.com/KCKendricks.

Book preview

An intro to Hot August Comes

You country boys never waste a good resource.

No, we don’t. I heard the story about you, you know.

Leo cringed inside, but he refused to let his dismay show. I wondered. How much has it grown over the years?

You really want me to say what I heard?

No, he didn’t, but maybe it was something he should know. Sure. Lay it on me.

That you were the one to seduce Stan Stoler, not the other way around. You left town because he wouldn’t leave his wife for you. You didn’t really trick him at the church, did you?

Not much shocked Leo, but that did.

At the church! Fuck, no! He downed a few swallows of beer. The cold liquid was refreshing on a muggy night.

Here’s the truth, Harrison. Mr. Fabulous Gym Teacher seduced me at the high school, in the locker room, in the shower. I didn’t fight him off.

So you wanted it?

I was almost eighteen and I wasn’t a virgin. I knew what he was about when he approached me. If you think I’m the only gay boy to walk the hallowed halls of Westfall Senior High, you’re mistaken.

Harrison snorted and sipped his beer. I know for a fact you’re not, although you’re the only one to get caught with his prick in the former coach’s mouth.

Leo took a deep breath. He may never get a better opportunity.

"Yep. Stoler went to his knees for me, but, Harrison, I’d go to my knees for you..."

What they said about Hot August Comes

I actually enjoyed this story quite a bit. I was not surprised, however, because KC has always given you stories that just seem to flow just off the pages. The serious of the story has been blessed with just a hint of humor in it. For me, I need to have some humor in my stories to enjoy them. I had a blast reading it and look forward to reading more by this author. – 4.5 Hearts from MM Good Book Review

I loved both of these characters and thought they fit together very well. One thing the author does well is give us a HFN ending that hinted at a HEA. The story was just too short to make the HEA believable, and I like that it wasn’t forced. Leo and Harrison are on their way to happiness, and I loved being there with them for the beginning of their journey. These guys are a wonderful couple, and I hope we get to see them continue their journey sometime soon. – 4 Stars, The Novel Approach

Praise for the writing of KC Kendricks

KC Kendricks never disappoints!"—Fallen Angel Reviews

..beautifully moving in all the right places...KC Kendricks gives us a well-crafted tale- The Romance Studio

Good to the last word....- Sensual Reads

...Seriously entertaining and totally engaging...- Joyfully Reviewed

...solidly written contemporary romance...-Jessewave

CHAPTER 1

An old local truism states the only changes that ever come to Westfall are bad changes. Leo Corbin parked his car in front of Fanny’s Dinner, got out, leaned against the front fender, and gazed up and down Water Street. He’d been gone for fifteen years, and nothing in town looked different. Not one single thing.

The coin laundromat beside the old gas station on the corner appeared as dingy as ever. The people at the local hardware store had yet to learn how to wash the front windows properly, and the drive-thru window at the bank was still blocked off with weathered wooden sawhorses. Even the hazy ripples of heat rising off the scorching blacktop were familiar.

Only the cemetery had expanded, its rows of granite monuments neatly maintained, but he’d expected that. He’d even anticipated feeling sorrow as he’d walked among them with the funeral director and located his mother’s family plot. Hers was the last space. There wasn’t room for him, not that he minded. Leo didn’t know where his final resting place would be, but it sure as hell wouldn’t be anywhere near Westfall.

He straightened and looked closer at a small neon sign hanging on the inside of a plate glass window advertising a nationally known beer. He was wrong. One thing had changed because there was now a pub on Water Street.

An establishment serving alcohol on the town’s main drag? Now that was definitely new and unusual.

Leo pushed his sunglasses down to the tip of his nose, stared, and pushed them back up. Maybe he’d see who dared to be numbered among the clientele at the bar before he got lunch.

A guy in a battered baby blue and white Chevy farm pickup slowed down and yelled, Nice Challenger out the truck window at him. Leo smiled and waved. His curiosity kicked up a notch as the pickup parked in front of the bar. Talking cars might be a way to strike up a conversation with the guy and get some much-needed information. Leo squared his shoulders and crossed the street in the middle of the block.

The dark, smoke-colored glass hid the interior of the pub while a small brass plaque on the windowless wooden door proclaimed The Tap Room. Leo opened the door and stepped into the cool twilight inside. He tucked one earpiece of his sunglasses under the neck of his T-shirt as he allowed his eyes to adjust to the dim lighting.

Four men sat well-spaced along the front of the long bar. As one, they glanced at him, and then three of them returned to staring into their drinks. The second guy down the row held Leo’s gaze, and then nudged the barstool beside him back in invitation.

Buy you a drink?

Leo planted his ass on the offered seat and rocked it closer to the bar. He grinned at the guy as his practiced gaze swept over him.

He had a rangy build, hair hidden by a ball cap. Kinda cute if you liked farm boys. Dressed in a ragged chambray work shirt with the sleeves cut off, faded denim blue jeans and heavy work boots, Leo couldn’t tell how old the guy was. The hat didn’t help, either, even though it was spotless.

He pointed at the nearest tap. Draft. Thanks. Doesn’t mean I’ll let you drive my car, though.

The bartender turned away to draw a glass. The fellow who’d invited him to sit grinned and held out his hand.

Harrison Wade. I’ll have to work harder to charm you out of your keys.

Leo grasped his rough-palmed hand. Leo Corbin. Nice to meet you.

Corbin? As in related to the Mrs. Corbin who just passed?

A little twinge of regret moved in Leo’s chest. Technically, his mother had been Ms. Corbin. She’d never married his father. I’m her son.

I’m sorry for your loss, Leo. Mrs. Corbin was nice to me when I was in her Sunday school class twenty years ago.

Leo supposed Harrison wouldn’t be interested to know how he felt about his mother’s involvement in the church. He’d never figured out to whom she referred when she said she went to keep an eye on her enemies. He did some quick math.

If Harrison was in his mother’s class two decades ago, that made him about twenty-seven. He looked older, weatherworn, which accentuated his vivid blue eyes.

Yeah, Mama liked working with kids. Leo downed a few swallows of his draft, relishing the coolness that spread through him as the liquid hit bottom. I forgot how hot it is here in July.

Harrison finished his beer and motioned for another. When it arrived, he held it up to Leo. The only thing hotter than July is August.

Hear, hear. They tapped the rims of the glasses together and drank in unison. Leo tipped his a little higher and finished it.

Harrison took off his hat and dropped in on the bar, revealing short dark hair. You want one more round? Still my treat.

Leo shook his head. I do thank you for your hospitality, but I need to move along. I’ve got to see to Mama’s last arrangements and everything. He slid off the barstool. Maybe you can tell me where Charles Watson has his office these days?

Harrison scratched his clean-shaven chin. Three-story red brick building. Corner of Prospect and Walnut.

Leo wondered how much farm work Harrison actually performed with those strong-looking hands. Straight, clean nails capped his long fingers. He