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

Dan waits for me to get in across from her before he sits beside me. “I’ll cover it,” I say. “Long as you don’t order every damn thing they have.”


Caitlin gives me a sardonic look over the top of her menu. “I’m not Ray,” she reminds me. “A Reuben’s good enough for me.” Then she folds the menu and looks around, taking in the brightly painted walls, the magazine-covered tables. Most of the booths are already filled despite the early hour, but the jukebox is off, the TV tuned to some midday movie from the late ‘80’s whose title escapes me at the moment. One of those Jon Cusak comedies that leaves no doubt in my mind as to why the guy isn’t acting anymore. “You guys come here often?” Caitlin asks. If she notices that the majority of couples around us are same-sex, she doesn’t mention it.


“We like it,” I tell her. Beneath the table, Dan rests a hand on my thigh, and his hip presses against mine in the seat. “The food’s good, you’ll see.”


Chapter 28