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

“It’s perhaps the only interesting thing about him,” she observed.


“Isn’t that why we’re having dinner?” she countered. “Meet and greet? Press the flesh? Getting to know you? Should we play party games? Will that help?”


“By the way, my son is not retarded,” I blurted out, surprised at how angry I still was about that little comment.


“You really are very sensitive, aren’t you?” She took a long drag on her vape pen. “Words are just words. People put too much emphasis on words. Everyone has to be so politically correct. How boring.”


“I’m sure there’s a nicer word for people who pick on children with disabilities,” I said, “but I’ll settle for bitch.”


“But I ama bitch, dear. Haven’t you figured that out? God knows I have my reasons.”


“Well, then I guess that’sokay,” I snapped.


Chapter 21