When Michael Knapp brings his lover Dan Biggs home to meet his parents, he doesn't expect things to go smoothly. His mother's been trying to marry him off for years, and sometimes he isn't even sure his father knows he exists. He has always felt like the shadow son, competing with his terminally stupid older brother and smart-mouthed little sister for his parents' attention. Coming out to them over dinner seemed like the perfect opportunity to finally get noticed.<br><br>But an unexpected phone call interrupts his announcement -- Aunt Evie, the family matriarch, is dead. With Dan in tow, Michael follows his family to Sugar Creek, where he spent his summers growing up, to prepare for the funeral.<br><br>Amid an overabundance of memories and relatives, Michael's world begins to slip. His dysfunctional family, Evie's death, and an old friend's confession all threaten to smother him. Worse, in his grief and confusion he seems determined to inadvertently push everyone away, including his lover. Can he and Dan move beyond his family and his past to a new life together, before Michael's insecurities tear them apart?

It's All Relative

“Of course,” Caitlin snorts. As if she might not. “I’m not Ray, Michael. I date.”


“Who?” I want to know. I realize that I don’t know anyone her age here—hell, I don’t know most people in this town anymore, but maybe the last name will sound familiar, maybe she’s seeing someone related to someone I went to school with. This is a small place—not as backwater as Sugar Creek, but close. Not D.C., that’s for damn sure.


Rolling her eyes, Caitlin takes the box of cereal from Dan and refills her bowl. “No one you know,” she says.


My lover leans beside me to eat, his hip resting against mine, and I give him a wink over my shoulder. “Who?” I ask again. “I’m just curious, is all. Unless you’re lying…”


“I’m not lying,” Caitlin sighs. “Jesus. He’s the captain of the football team, okay? Shaun Donnigan. There, you happy?”


I almost don’t believe it. My Goth sister dating…“The captain of the football team?” I ask, incredulous. “You can’t be serious.”


Chapter 15