When he sees entrepreneur Mitch O'Shea whirling around an empty building, contractor Ben Behr is enchanted. Even though his two brothers are gay, Ben always thought he was a ladies' man until he met Mitch. Despite his feelings, Ben knows San Francisco native Mitch is totally out of his league. What could Ben possibly do to get out-and-proud Mitch to notice him? Turns out Mitch is just as attracted to Ben. As they compete in car rallies, camp in the Sierra Nevada foothills, and tour the bars Mitch owns in the city, they realize how stifled they've been their entire lives. Maybe looking over the fence and jumping it to explore what's on the other side are good ideas. When these two seemingly opposites get together, will Ben and Mitch find out they have the world at their feet and might even have love in their hearts?

Waking the Behr

I was sitting on the tiny back deck drinking coffee and trying to figure out if there was any wildlife outside or if his minuscule backyard was just somewhere plants came to die. Mitch walked out with a mug in one hand and the carafe in the other.


“Hey, you’re up early,” he said with a yawn.


We sat in silence, looking out over the postage stamp-sized yard. Mitch had on sleep pants, and his bed hair and unshaven face made him look adorable, a word I’d never say out loud to him in a million years.


After all the time we’d spent together, I was getting used to my mind coming up with weird words and feelings whenever I was around him. My het-o-meter had been steadily pointing closer to the gay zone, which at first worried me but now made me wonder how straight straight people were, not to mention how gay gay men were.


Chapter 18