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

With a laugh, I correct her, “This boy is bad.” For emphasis, I slap Dan’s ass and hurry him into the kitchen.


Over his shoulder, my lover murmurs, “Like I’m the only one.”


My hands on his back propel him around the table to our closed door. “I didn’t say that,” I tease.


Inside our room, the door once again shut on the rest of the family, Dan plops on the edge of the bed and unzips his jeans with a huge sigh of relief. “Damn,” he breathes, lying back. His erection stands up from his open fly like the short, hard tail of a small dog. How does the saying go? Snips and snails and puppy-dog tails…the thought makes me grin like a fool, and Dan closes one eye as he watches me from where he lies on the bed. “What are you thinking about?”


Chapter 122