the woman who opened the door. "Beg pardon, ma'am."
Peter snagged the woman and pulled her close. "Blondie, this is my brother, Julian. Bro, this is my wife, Tracy."
"We have company?"
The man who came into the kitchen matched his brother in height, but his brown hair held a shimmer of red, and his brown eyes looked at both Peter and Tracy with love.
Peter said, "Babe, come meet my brother." Then he turned to Julian. "This is Jordan, my husband."
Julian extended his hand to Jordan Kendall. "I'm very pleased to meet you."
"We were just about to sit down to dinner," Tracy said. "There's plenty. Please join us."
"I don't want to intrude on your family time."
Jordan tilted his head to the side. "You're not. You're family, too. Aren't you?"
Julian looked at his brother, and saw only acceptance in his eyes. Strangely, Peter's acceptance freed him to be completely honest. "I don't deserve to be. I owe you more than one apology, for being an older brother with an intolerant and superior attitude. I'm sorry, and I hope you'll forgive me."
"Of course I forgive you. You're my brother and I love you. And for the record, I was a younger brother who was a little shit. Do you forgive me?"
Julian felt his throat tighten. He felt his eyes sting and had no shame of his tears. "There's nothing to forgive. I love you, too."
His brother embraced him again, and for the first time in a long, long time Julian felt good.
When they released each other, he looked over at Tracy in time to see her wipe her eyes. "Y'all will have to forgive me. I am so damn hormonal lately. Now come and eat before I give it to the dog." She turned and more or less marched further into the house.
Peter grinned then looked at Julian. "We don't have a dog. She's pregnant, and very emotional these days."
"Pregnant? Congratulations...to all of you!"
Jordan laughed. "To the uninitiated, I'm sure our family dynamic is confusing as hell. Peter and I will share the title of father, just as we share the title of husband to our wife."
Julian looked from Jordan to Peter. He really was okay with his brother's lifestyle. Peter had always been true to his own self, and that was an ideal Julian was shooting for, too. He said, "You all seem happy. I think that's really all that should count."
"So." Peter put his arm around his shoulders as he led him to the kitchen, and Julian liked the feel of that. "We have lots of room here, if you're interested in bunking down with us."
"Actually I have a place to stay...and a job. Well - my new bosses and I are giving each other a two-month trial period."
"You're working near here?"
They entered the kitchen. Tracy had already set another place at the table, and was taking a roast pan from the oven. He could smell the succulent aroma of roast beef, and his stomach growled.
"Smells good."
"Wait until you taste it," Peter said. "Tracy's a wonderful chef. But her specialty is desserts."
Tracy made a sound that resembled a snort. "I have to make cream puffs in secret or all of Jordan's brothers come over with their mouths drooling."
"All of your brothers?" Julian looked over at the other man.
"I have four. Henry, especially, is addicted to Tracy's pastries. She's the pastry chef at the restaurant in town, Lusty Appetites."
"Good name for a restaurant." Julian sat down at the table, and then turned to his brother. "I'm sorry, I didn't finish answering your question. I took the position as lead hand over at the new Benedict Ranch."
"Chase and Brian?" Peter asked.
"Yes. They've got a pretty good business plan. It's just a matter of taking what's on paper and helping them deal with the reality once they begin to implement their plans."
"And you're giving each other two months?" Peter looked at him, one eyebrow raised.
Julian shrugged. "It may sound odd that at nearly thirty-six I'm still looking for my place in this world...but there you have it. I don't know if this is my place, or not. I figure after a couple of months, I'll know for sure."
"I don't think that sounds odd at all," Tracy said.
"I agree." Peter passed him the rice casserole that Tracy had made to accompany the beef. "It's never too late to make a change for the better."
"I've done that," Julian said. He met Peter's gaze. "I've discovered things I'm as good at as I was all the stuff on Wall