It’s Independence Day, and the annual fireworks along Lake Champlain are set to begin.<br><br>Adam Rankin gets a telephone call from his former boyfriend, Dave Peterson, who’s back in town for the festivities. It’s been a year since they separated and parted ways. Dave has moved from their small upstate New York town to Albany, where he works as a paralegal. Adam stayed behind, working as a chef in a Greek restaurant and feeding the homeless on weekends at a local shelter.<br><br>The two men reconnect over the holiday and sparks fly. Can they rekindle the flames between them, or will their romance burn out? Will this be the start of a new beginning?

Red, White, and a New Beginning

I dug into the side pocket and pulled out a balled-up piece of paper. I unfolded it and read off the number to myself.


“Who else would call me and hang up?” I asked aloud, finding my cell on the bedside table and dialing Dave’s number.


I let it ring six times until I was transferred to voice mail: Sorry I can’t come to the phone. You know what to do after the beep.


I ended the call so I could dial him again to hear his harmonious, husky voice in my ear. The masculine sound of Dave’s voice excited me, and I pushed away the unpleasant image of him storming out of my apartment and life for the second time, without any explanation.


Not me, I thought. I wasn’t the reason for his hasty departure.


Chapter 7