Curt, a college professor, lives with his lover of several years, a pediatrician of Chinese descent named Lee. Eager to write, he receives a grant to take the summer off and work on a novel. Then Lee's mother calls -- she wants to visit. Curt is eager to meet her but Lee isn't so sure ... she's of a different generation, a different culture even, and doesn’t speak much English. Still, Curt insists.<br><br>But when Mrs. Gui arrives, Curt finds himself struggling with writer’s block. He feels like an outsider in his own home when Lee and his mother converse in Cantonese, leaving him out of the conversation, and even his sex life suffers with her in the bedroom next to theirs. Can Curt and Mrs. Gui move past their cultural differences to see that they both love Lee and have his best interests at heart?

Just What the Doctor Ordered

My lover’s laugh warmed my ear. “Did she tell you it was me?”


I glanced over my shoulder to make sure his mother wasn’t right there. “You mean she can talk? You might want to let her know, because she hasn’t said shit to me since this morning. Did I tell you she thinks I’m fat?” 


“Just taking a breather.” He cleared his throat, and before I could say anything else he asked, “How’s the story coming?”


Something in his voice made me cautious. “All right, why?” 


This time when I looked over my shoulder to make sure I was alone, I wasn’t. Mrs. Gui stood in the doorway, arms crossed, waiting. Gloatingwas the word that came to mind. Narrowing my eyes suspiciously, I asked Lee, “Did you call just to ask me that?”


“I didn’t call,” he admitted, “but I was just wondering—”


Chapter 20