Julian Junk was often teased about his last name and his father's occupation as a garbageman. Mackensie Keller grew up privileged and spoiled. As teens, Junk and Mickey make plans for their future, but when Mickey is sent off to boarding school, he tells Junk their parents are probably right -- they just don't belong together.<br><br>Back in town ten years later, Mickey is all grown up. He and Junk reconnect as adults, but so much was said, and so much has changed. Though he asks for forgiveness, which Junk grants, though old romantic feelings are quickly rekindled, Mickey is reluctant to bring a new man into his young daughter's life after his last relationship's failure. He's also harboring a secret, one that threatens to spoil upcoming Thanksgiving plans.<br><br>Once Junk discovers the source of Mickey's dilemma, he devises a crafty plan to make everything right. Will it work out? Will Mickey accept his help, and can the two of them make a go of it with so much stacked against them?

One Man's Junk

Back home that night, I tried to come up with the perfect plan. One of the boxes earmarked for the city dump still sat on the foot of my bed. I’d been sleeping around it almost a week, forced to lie diagonally, my feet on the left side only, as not to kick it off the edge. I did something else diagonally four nights in a row, too, something I did while recalling my one real date with Mickey as an adult. Night five was gearing up to be more of the same.


Chapter 29