Nate’s
life couldn’t be better. He’s living with his rich boyfriend, Cameron, in New
York while being wined and dined all over the city.
But when
Nate decides to visit his friends back in Sydney, Cameron suggests they break
it off for a while. Cam’s cross-dressing butler is not impressed, and with the
help of his lesbian aunt, they drag Cameron down-under to sort out his
relationship and take in the sights of Mardi Gras!
With Nate
at a loss to what went wrong, he faces the dim reality that love may have run
its course.
Excerpt:
Kevin
Klehr © 2017
All Rights Reserved
All Rights Reserved
“I’m
nervous,” I said. But my boyfriend, Cam, didn’t hear me. Fortunately, his
butler, Roger, did.
“Here you
go, Nate.” The loyal servant placed a garishly green cocktail in my hand,
complete with a little umbrella. “This will make you so chilled, the next few
hours will feel like a hippie folk festival.”
If only
that were the truth. I was about to meet Cameron’s parents for the first time,
and both he and Roger were busy preparing canapés. They insisted I was as much
of a guest as the others were, so I wasn’t to help with the catering.
Instead,
I gazed out the window of my boyfriend’s swish New York apartment, trying to
imagine what a middle-aged couple who had made their fortune in the funeral
trade would be like. My first thought was something as creepy as an older Gomez
and Morticia from The Addams Family.
And with
that vision came a list of odd relatives I hadn’t met yet. Perhaps a
short
hunchback that rang church bells. An older brother who slept in the basement
during the day and showed off his unusually sharp fangs to unsuspecting women
at night. Or a haggard stepsister who kidnapped the neighborhood pets and
offered them to pagan gods during midnight rituals.
I watched
my boyfriend. He was trying to make art out of smoked salmon and flatbread, but
somehow he kept adding too much mayo. The result was something that looked like
a squeezed pimple rather than anything you’d put in your mouth. As always,
Roger was at his side to fix his creations, and as a pair they worked well.
Through
his chic designer glasses, Cam scrutinized what Rog was trying to show him, and
he understood until his butler tucked, folded, or did whatever was necessary to
make my boyfriend’s attempts look presentable. Although my man wasn’t perfect,
that was the very reason I loved him. He’d try. And he had enough people around
to support him. His parents had to be equally as supportive, surely.
Any
moment they’d swan in the front door, having just flown in from Paris, where
they had stayed the night because they’d decided to eat dinner in that romantic
city on a whim. His mum, or mom as these Americans say, would offer me her hand
adorned in a teal glove and wait for me to kiss it.
His dad
would check me out, and while he shook my hand all businesslike, it wouldn’t be
until later that his real nature would come out. He’d pull out a joint and tell
us about his wild days; of wearing a leather jacket, having wall-to-wall
lovers, and the heavy rock band he fronted with regular top-ten hits.
“Would
you like another cocktail, Nate?” Roger asked.
“No, I’ve
hardly—” My glass was empty.
“Your
mind is preoccupied. Let me get you another.”
“No. I
don’t want to be drunk before they arrive.”
“Have a
cocktail,” said Cam as he ran his finger under a tap after burning it on
poached chicken. “If I was in your shoes, I’d be nervous as well.”
Roger
took the glass out of my hand and promptly made me another green drink. With
the first sip, my mind wandered even more, back to last month.
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Author Bio:
From an
early age, Kevin had a passion for writing, jotting down stories and plays
until it came time to confront puberty. After dealing with pimple creams and
facial hair, Kevin didn’t pick up a pen again until he was in his thirties. His
handwritten manuscript was being committed to paper when his work commitments
changed, giving him no time to write. Concerned, his partner, Warren, secretly
passed the notebook to a friend who in turn came back and demanded Kevin finish
his story. It wasn’t long before Kevin’s active imagination was let loose
again.
His first
novel spawned a secondary character named Guy, an insecure gay angel, but many
readers argue that he is the star of the Actors and Angels book series. Guy’s
popularity surprised the author.
So with
his fictional guardian angel guiding him, Kevin hopes to bring more whimsical
tales of love, life and friendship to his readers.
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