English professor Gavin Dozier hasn’t had much luck when it comes to love. When his last boyfriend cheated on him, he was driven to experiment with women. Sex with Marian, though, had its own dangers, and before he knew it, he was a father. Now estranged, the only thing Gavin and Marian have in common is their daughter Evie, a precocious seven-year-old who stays with Gavin every other weekend. While out with her daddy, Evie meets the heavily-tattooed Brody Phelps, a sketch artist with serious talent who still dresses like a brooding punk rocker, even though he’s in his thirties. Brody is instantly attracted to the sexy college professor, but knows Gavin is out of his league -- the man has a kid, which probably means he isn’t gay, and besides, Brody never even graduated from high school. Guys like Gavin don’t go for guys like him. But when Evie leaves Gavin’s cell phone behind, Brody has the perfect excuse to meet up with them again. To his surprise they hit it off, and when he asks Gavin out, the professor accepts. Even though Evie brought them together, will her demanding personality pull them apart? Is Gavin ready to trust his heart to someone else again? Can Brody overcome his own fears of inadequacy and let Gavin in? And what will Marian have to say when the father of her child starts dating again?

Never Met a Stranger

“You can relax,” he tells her, sketching without pause. “I’m not drawing how you really look but how I see you in my mind.”


“Draw me like this,” she says, propping one hand on her hip and tilting her head in the opposite direction, her eyes rolled back. Then she switches sides, opening her mouth in a surprised O with her eyes wide. “Or like this. Or this!”


From somewhere behind them, a man calls out, “Evie?” An undercurrent of fear laces his voice, and he raises it when he says her name a second time. Then, sharply, relieved but annoyed, “Evie!”


Sitting up on her knees on the stool, Evie waves frantically. “Daddy! Here I am! Come look at my drawing!”


Chapter 12