Well-known artist Ellis Williams is in a slump and feeling all his fifty-three years. He's lost the joy which used to permeate his painting and despairs of ever regaining it. It doesn't help when he runs into a young man who comes on to him to win a bet, thus destroying more of Ellis's confidence.<br><br>Then, at a party, Ellis meets Martin Lovell, a man his age whose partner died soon after they adopted their son. Will these two middle-aged men learn they should never let go of hope? Or is it too late for men their age to open themselves to the possibility of love and being loved?

Never Let Go of Hope

Ellis couldn’t stop the sudden surge of panic that Martin wouldn’t call.


I guess if he doesn’t call, he doesn’t call. But if he does…


Jive came over to where Ellis was sitting on the back veranda steps and rested his head in Ellis’s lap.


“Do you think he will?” Ellis asked, scratching behind Jive’s ears. Jive didn’t reply, which was no surprise, but just having him there helped Ellis take control of his mercurial emotions.


He had spent some time in his studio Monday morning, trying to limn out an idea for a new painting. Unfortunately the wrist splint he picked up Sunday afternoon was too distracting, because it limited his range of motion, although it wasmore comfortable than the restrictive elastic bandage he’d been wearing. He tried working without the splint, but the pain was equally distracting so he gave up, hoping his wrist would heal sooner than later.


“Since I can’t paint, how about we take a long walk, dog?”


Chapter 20