Jared is a young gay man living in small-town Colorado, helping to tun the family store rather than be a teacher for fear of local anti-gay sentiment. He lives a virtually celibate existence. Then, into his life comes Matt, the new policeman in town and the two quickly become firm friends. Jared hopes and suspects that Matt is gay but Matt insists he is straight. The core of the story is the evolution of the mutual attraction, turning to love, between the two men and the complications, tensions and pain that come with that. It is a lovely book with two compellingly attractive heroes - attractive both physically and as personalities, and a story that is both realistic and enthralling. While the basic formula is familiar, its treatment is done with originality and skill.