Justin O'Dwyer is 19. Four days ago, his mother died of a drug overdose, and now Justin is back in Enterprise, Oregon, trying to figure out how to raise the younger siblings he's afraid of losing to the foster system. Justin is completely out of his depth. Harper is six, and hates him. Wyatt is four and doesn't remember him. And baby Scarlett, at fourteen months, has never even met her big brother before. When Scarlett gets sick and won't stop screaming, and when Harper runs off in the middle of the night, Justin is at the end of his tether. In desperation, he knocks on a neighbor's door begging for help.<br><br>Del Abbot is 38, and living in his grandparents' old place in Enterprise after his marriage broke down and he lost his restaurant in the divorce. He's a chef, even had his own show on cable for a while, but now he's looking for a new start, if he could just figure out what exactly that entails. When the O'Dwyer family barrels into his life one night, Del can't refuse to help. What begins as a trip to the hospital becomes a regular child-minding gig while Justin struggles to find his feet. And the more time Del spends with Justin, the more they both want more than friendship. But small town life comes with its own bigotry, and, in Justin's case, that bigotry has always been close to home.<br><br>When an act of violence threatens to destroy the small family they've built, both Justin and Del need to put aside their pasts and reach for their future together.

Family Recipe

“Yeah.” Justin shrugged. “I’ve got a couple of uncles and an aunt doing time. My mom’s cousin lives over on the other side of town, but I don’t want anything to do with her and the feeling’s mutual, you know? The kids are better off not knowing the family anyway. And my Aunt Jody lives in Halee Street in one of those nice new places, but she’s got a husband and a couple of kids and a job at the bank. Last time I saw her was a few years back when she walked past me on the street and pretended not to see me.” He shrugged again and swallowed down the lump in his throat. “Whole town knows we’re trash.”


Del’s gaze was dark. “That’s bullshit,” he said, his voice low. “Anyone can see you’re trying your hardest for these kids, Justin.”


Justin shook his head, his eyes stinging.


Chapter 19