Is a gift of love enough to open Aiden’s heart and let Tris back in?<br><br>After the car accident that killed his parents and left his sister paralyzed, Tris is left with nothing. His family is destroyed. His reputation is shot. And all he has is the guilt of knowing it was all his fault. People in town know he’d been drinking that night, and know he should never have gotten behind the wheel. And even Aiden, the man he thought he’d be with forever, blames him too much to stay.<br><br>But Tris can’t let him just disappear. After months of loneliness and isolation, Tris brings Aiden a gift on his birthday, a hawk he’s carved from a chunk of wood they’d found in the forest during an afternoon of love. A small chink seems to open in Aiden’s heart, the first sign of forgiveness. With renewed hope, Tris takes a job renovating one of the older homes in town and tries to rebuild his life. But the townspeople have long memories, and when his sister’s condition worsens, forgiveness -- and Aiden -- seem to slip even further out of reach ...

Without Aiden

He sighed. Maybe Aiden was finding solace in the arms of Ken and Kevin. Well, Kevin anyway. Ken seemed to prefer girls. He and Aiden had often discussed the lovely twins, admiring their tight, muscular builds while laughing at their shallowness. But that could be easily overlooked. Tris imagined Aiden’s dark beauty tangled with Kevin’s pale limbs and had to bite hard on his lips to keep the moan of pain inside.


The car slowed and came to a stop. Tris looked out the front windshield at the aging building with the garish neon signs in the windows. Murphey’s Diner? Fucking day just kept getting better.


“Do you mind? I have class in forty-five minutes and Murphey serves the quickest breakfast.”


“It’s fine.” Tris pushed open his door and climbed out into the crowded parking lot. “Think we’ll get a table?” he asked over the roof of the Fiat.


“There’s usually room at the counter.”


Chapter 3