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

“We’re going to a funeral,” he reminds me. With one hand he sweeps the cereal from the counter into the sink, leaving milk streaked behind. “Unless you forgot—”


“I didn’t forget.” I just don’t want to think about it until I absolutely, positively have to. Before he can say another word, I duck into the back room and close the door on him and his calm your ass downbit. Jeez, try to be nice to him and he wants to know what’s wrong with me. See if I goof with him again.


Chapter 156