Fourteen years ago, on the banks of Craving’s Creek, Ryde swore to his best friend Alistair he’d never be alone in the world. Though Alistair was destined for the priesthood, there was something beyond holy about the first kiss they shared. But a fun camping trip went horribly wrong when Alistair was involved in a horrific incident. Now, at age thirty-one, Ryde’s life is a mess of alcohol and the painful imprint of his last look into Alistair’s desperate eyes. Since the evil they encountered on that shore, his first love has been lost to him ... until he learns a friend’s wedding is to be officiated by a priest named Father Alistair Genet. Amid the rush of emotions, one thought crystallizes: Ryde’s love for Alistair has never died. It’s stronger than ever. But can it win over the repressed memories slowly tearing Alistair’s mind apart?

Craving's Creek

My mother picks up on my anxiety, though I haven’t said a word about it. “Baby, are you sure he’s ready to come over and see all of us? I mean, Ryde, he hasn’t even been out of the presbytery for more than a few hours.”


“I’m playing it by ear, Mom. Just following my instincts.” I rub at my face and check the door again. Still closed. What is he doing in there? “He won’t be any more ready tomorrow or the day after. And he says he wants to see you all. He has such fond memories of you.”


“He really doesn’t remember anything else then.”


“Sometimes I think he does, and that a part of him plays along. Like there’s someone inside him watching all this. That’s the guy I need to connect to. The one I love.”


“He’s…he’s very kind and trusting, as if we’ve never been apart. But there’s a part of him I can’t access. I feel it when we touch. Well, he doesn’t let me touch him much.”


I sigh and look at the door again. “I know.”


Chapter 59