FOUR CORNERS, NEW MEXICO
Nettie Wells and her neice Casey were standing on the boardwalk, in front of teh General Store, waiting for the afternoon stage. Vin Tanner, Chris Larabee, and J.D. were standing with her. Buck Wilmington was off with a woman somewhere, Josiah and Ezra were on afternoon patrol, and Nathan was at the Realms' place, setting their son's broken arm.
"So, hold old is your nephew, Miz Nettie?" asked Vin in his quiet drawl.
She thought for a moment and replied, "Should be around Seventeen. He's my oldest daughter's boy. They moved when Justin was thirteen, haven't seen 'em since. Kept in touch with letters, though. After his parents burial, he got on a stage coach headin' out here."
"Sorry about your daughter, Nettie," said J.D.
Nettie gave a slight nod. A minute later, they saw the stage coach making it's way down the main street. After the coach was stopped and the brake put on, the door opened. The first head they saw was a blonde one. The young man stepped down from the coach and took a tentative look around, before spotting Nettie. He gave a big smile, which caused them all to catch their breath. He had a beautiful, radient, smile.
After retrieving his small bag, he made his way over to them. "Hey, Aunt Nettie," he said.
"Hey, boy. Give me a hug." He hugged her, then spotted the others as they pulled apart. "You remember your cousin, Casey?"
He smiled, "Of course! How are you, Casey?"
"Pretty good," she replied as she hugged him.
"These are three of the peacekeeprs in town. There's seven, but you'll meet the others later. Vin Tanner, J.D. Dunne, and Chris Larabee." When Nettie introduced Chris, they all saw the flare of recognition in Justin's eyes, but he didn't say anything. "And, this is my nephew Justin Taylor."
"Pleased to meet you all," Justin said as he shook hands with the other three men.
"Well, boy, we'd best be gettin' home. So, you can get settled," said Nettie. Justin nodded and offered his hand, to help her into her wagon. After repeating the gesture with Casey, he climbed in. After a last goodbye, the wagon started on it's way toward Nettie's ranch.
'Maybe it won't be so bad here,' Justin thought with a smile. He knew that he had to be very careful, because of his sexual orientation. Anyone inclined toward the same sex could be hung, jailed, or run out of town if their prefances were ever known. But, he had always known that he liked men instead of women. And, Four Corners seemed to have some nice looking men. Especially Vin and Chris. When his Aunt had introduced Chris, he recognized his name. Chris was a known gunfighter, said to be a dangerous man. But, he was hot! And, even if he couldn't touch, he could always look.