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

Dad nods. He runs a hand over the shelves stacked against the wall, feeling the smooth wood like he’s looking for cracks. “You’re sure you guys can’t help me out?” he wants to know.


I shake my head. “We’ve got a few things to take care of,” I tell him, though what I’m thinking of now has nothing to do with cleaning up that back room or any other part of the house. “You can probably get Ray—”


That earns me a laugh. “If I ever needed a surrogate son,” he starts, but then he shakes his head as if to clear the thought. When he speaks again, his voice is so quiet that I have to strain to hear it. “I didn’t…I just didn’t know what you wanted from me, kid. I didn’t know how you expected me to treat him. I guess I went a little overboard.” Another laugh, this one distracted, almost a sigh. “I just thought you didn’t need more shit thrown at you, is all. That’s your momma’s department, not mine.”


Chapter 134