Unwrapping the Present

By Evan Gilbert

While home for Christmas with Ted and Edna, his foster parents, college student Austin Greenfield is surprised to meet Seth Barton, the son Edna gave up for adoption at birth. With his adoptive parents now dead, Seth desperately wants to meet his birth mother—who doesn’t want to know him. When Austin and Seth begin to fall in love, Austin finds himself torn: will he be forced to choose between his foster parents and his fledgling start at a life with Seth?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
• Release date: Dec 1, 2011
• ISBN: 9781613722909

Book preview

Chapter One

Austin Greenfield shivered. The afternoon was cold and gray. A chill, misty rain swirled in the air. His arms, loaded down with bags of groceries, had already begun to ache. He walked quickly across the supermarket’s parking lot among vehicles beaded with silvery pearls of water, headed for the chrome-and-glass shelter of the bus stop. He was anxious to get home.

As he reached the lane that circled the outer perimeter of the parking lot, a white sedan pulled alongside him and stopped. The driver’s window slid down, revealing the square, bearded face of James Harper. A car salesman by trade, he was a tall man with the mass of a linebacker.

Austin. I thought that was you. When did you get back?

Hey, Mr. Harper. I came in last night. Inwardly, Austin cringed. There wasn’t even a hint of a smile on Harper’s face. Which was no surprise. The man hated Austin.

Home for Christmas, I take it.

Yeah. Classes don’t start again until January tenth. I’ll have a nice long visit with the folks. He looked up, praying that the bus would be barreling toward the stop at that very instant and give him an excuse to rush off. No such luck.

Well, good for you. I just dropped off some packages at the post office. You look as if you need a lift.

Damn! Oh. Uh… I don’t want to take you out of your way.

Nonsense. I’m heading home now. And if you’ll remember, I live just down the street from your folks.

Austin’s mind flashed forward to tomorrow morning’s headline: Visiting College Student Found Choked on Neighbor’s Boot. Really, Mr. Harper, you don’t have to do that.

It’s not a problem, kid.

You know, the bus ride is actually kind of peaceful and—

Oh, for crying out loud! Get in the car already!

Yeah, okay. Austin walked slowly around to the passenger side, making worried, plaintive eye contact with passing motorists in hopes of establishing plenty of witnesses who’d remember seeing him get into Harper’s car. He opened the door and slid into the bucket seat, placing the bags on the floor between his feet. Harper hit the gas as soon as the door shut, irritation etched into his face as deeply as the lines on his forehead.

Austin had been fourteen when he’d lost his virginity to Harper’s fifteen-year-old son, Dillon. That led to a series of trysts over the next five months, always on Saturday evenings when Harper and his wife played poker and blackjack at the Tunica casinos. Dillon and Austin’s couplings would have gone on longer had Harper not come home unexpectedly—after choking on an ice cube from one of the casino’s complimentary drinks—and caught them thrashing nakedly on the family room floor.

Austin still remembered how red Harper’s face had become, how the veins had popped in the man’s neck as he’d ranted and cursed, mostly at Austin. Tall, lanky Dillon had been a freshman on their high school’s basketball team, a rising star who was already catching the notice of local sports journalists and college scouts, as well as the fawning attention of girls on the cheer squads. Apparently gay sex threatened all of that in Harper’s mind, and he blamed Austin. Never mind that it was Dillon who had seduced Austin, who set up their weekly sessions, who called Austin at every spare chance throughout the week, keeping him on the phone for hours. Harper had sent Dillon off to some boarding school, and he made it a point to tell Austin’s folks everything. For the next four years, Harper had scowled whenever he saw the boy, the looks so fiery Austin could almost feel his dreadlocks singe.

Harper drove in silence, eyes locked straight ahead, his face settling into a statue-like blankness. The shiver sinking down Austin’s spine had nothing to do with the cold dampness of his clothes. He couldn’t fathom why the hell the man had offered him a ride. Did he want to give another stern lecture on how abominable and hell-bound gays were? Did he want to shovel on the guilt for ruining Dillon’s life? As a kid, Austin had not dared talk back to Harper out of the respect he carried for all adults. But he was nineteen now, an adult himself—boyish-looking and barely half Harper’s size, but an adult nonetheless. If Harper started dumping on him again, the man was going to get royally cussed out right in his own car.

Silence ensued for the entire fifteen-minute drive to their neighborhood. Harper turned his car into the driveway of Austin’s home and stopped. Austin quickly started gathering his bags.

Well, Mr. Harper, I—

Just a minute. Harper shifted the gear into park and shut off the engine.

Oh, hell.

Harper turned, his expression unexpectedly, unbelievably soft. "There’s something I want to say to you, Austin. I’ve been very angry with you for years, ever since I found out Dillon is… gay. It took a long time, but I finally realized I was heaping all my anxiety and shame about my son on you. Every time Dillon called and begged me to let him come home,