When his snobbish future in-laws travel all the way from Boston to visit, wise-cracking Southerner Wiley Cantrell learns gay marriage is not without its disadvantages. He’s preoccupied by concerns over the health of his special needs son Noah, a meth baby who was not expected to live yet is now on the cusp of puberty, and the antics of Wiley's outrageous would-be mother-in-law and severely conservative father-in-law strain his relationship with Jackson Ledbetter, a pediatric nurse who poses problems of his own. As their respective families meet and greet, each just as meddlesome and inflexible as the other, North meets South and the fireworks and cultural misunderstandings are plenty.<br><br>Then a tornado blows through the small Mississippi town where Wiley's mother lives, wrecking his mother's house and leaving their lives in disarray. And Jackson's secret drug addiction comes to light, devastating Wiley and Noah. With so many stones in the road, Wiley and Jackson find their dream of becoming a real family falling apart. Though Wiley relies on humor to cope, he'll need something more to keep his happily ever after from slipping away.

Stones in the Road

“The fastest to wipe out illiteracy would be to set all these Southerners on fire,” she added.


“He’s not stupid, Mom!” Jackson said.


“He can’t defend himself?” she inquired.


Mrs. Ledbetter took a long drag on her vape pen, eyeing me coyly. Come and get it, her eyes were saying. Hit me with your best shot, Mr. Man!


“You know,” I said, “there isone aspect about conservative Christianity that I quite agree with. A woman, according to St. Paul in the Bible, is supposed to keep her mouth shut. Unless, of course, a man needs somewhere to put his dick.”


This was greeted with a tense, rather uncomfortable silence. Mr. Ledbetter’s eyes went wide. Jackson looked mortified. The waiter pouring the wine paused rather dramatically. But Mrs. Ledbetter burst into a hearty bout of laughter.


“Very good, Willy,” she said, nodding and pointing her vape pen at me. “Well done! I like a man who has balls. It’s so refreshing, especially in the present company.”


Chapter 20