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

“Make it seven hundred and fifty!” Mr. Ledbetter cried out.


“I want to do it too,” Bill said loudly, “but I ain’t paying no seven hundred and fifty bucks.”


“Five dollars will be fine, Daddy,” Mary replied with a huge grin.


Josh and Eli grabbed hold of Jackson’s arms and steered him to the chair.


The girls that had gathered around now giggled as Jackson sat down in the chair, looking nervous and very self-conscious. I’d heard from a little birdy that more than one of those girls secretly hoped that Jackson Ledbetter wasn’t as gay as he said he was.


“I want to go first,” Bill said with a bit of a swagger as he grabbed a pie off Mary’s table.


“That’s five dollars, Daddy!” she cried in alarm.


“I’ll five-dollar you!” he vowed, turning to advance on Jackson Ledbetter.


Chapter 101