Recent graduate Dr. Fenton Miller takes December off to decide which job offer to accept. Then he meets his landlord, sous chef John Barton. Suddenly, thinking about his career becomes his last priority. A better option might be a month-long roll between the sheets with John. While John is attracted to Fen and might even agree to his plan, John has got more pressing matters to worry about. His past has arrived in tiny Stone Acres from San Francisco and is intent on sucking him back into a life he hated. Promising to help John and shelter him if necessary, Fen finds he's also being threatened by a homophobic father who doesn't find Fen as entertaining as his kids do. As they wade through their problems during the happiest time of the year, Fen and John rely more and more on each other for happiness.

Short Order

By the time we got into the living room, John was already on the couch, a plastic bag with ice, wrapped partially in a dishcloth, clutched to his head.


“Hey,” he greeted me. “You okay?”


He lifted the bloody cloth, grimaced, and nodded. “I’ve been better.”


A cursing Leo was being led down the walk toward the police station as a couple more deputies arrived. Then Ricky found his voice, and chaos ensued. Every time he yelped or shouted or got really shrill, a buzz-saw pain ripped through my head.


Processing Leo took a little under forever. The sheriff asked me to stay and sign a statement about Leo threatening us with a gun. In the meantime, both John and Ricky had been taken to the clinic and examined by the doctor, then released. John’s wound amounted to a cut that needed to be bandaged, and he’d been cautioned to have someone stay with him to check for signs of concussion. To no one’s surprise, he volunteered me.


Chapter 32