Art teacher Stone Larrabee dreads parent/teacher conferences. One following Christmas break becomes especially awkward, when a man with whom he shared a hot anonymous hookup and a nasty argument afterward walks in. Edison Watts.<br><br>The moment they’re reunited, sexual sparks reignite. Too many conflicts force Stone to decree there can never be anything between them but the one night, though, even as fate keeps throwing them together throughout the school year, and developing feelings become hard to ignore.<br><br>Some problems are easily solved while others, including the reason for Edison’s initial attraction to Stone and the chip on Edison’s shoulder bigger than the high school’s football field, prove more difficult. Stone can teach, but he decides must also be willing to learn and grow. When Edison promises to do the same, can they find a way to make one and one equal two?

Substitute Teacher

“You t-t-talk like m-me!” seventh grader Brennan Hollister exclaimed, after Atticus introduced himself. Brennan was outgoing, popular, and kind. He might have done as much for Atticus that day as Atticus had for him.


“Today has been awesome.” Stone pulled Atticus into their fifth hug in eight hours, as the final afterschool bus pulled away outside the window in Stone’s art room. Then, they sat with Chinese takeout, scarfing down dinner before parents started to arrive for the evening concert. “Thank you again for coming and for the donations to the silent auction.”


“You’re w-w-welcome, a-again.” Atticus had done a large one of a kind piece, a stage with a group of kids dressed in Mamma Mia costumes. “Th-there’s m-more on your m-m-mind, though. Tell me.”


Chapter 23