Take It Outside

Beau The Trailhead Saloon, a gay country bar near Los Angeles, is home to loud music, shirtless bartenders, and endlessly affectionate banter. It's also where I've spent far too many nights drinking beer served by my ex-husband, and dancing with strangers who keep me company hours after the music stops. I'm there when Adrian Ortega steps into the bar for the first time, but after weeks of never speaking to him, the night I introduce myself is the same night everything goes wrong. "I think I hate you," Adrian tells me, and I don't have it in me to disagree.

Adrian I'm new to California, and it's not my decision to show up at Trailhead in the first place, but once I'm there, sipping my Jack & ginger and watching Beau Davenport dance, I'm not in a hurry to leave. He and I both have wounds-some poorly healed and others freshly made-and we pretend we could be enemies before we consider being better than that. Once we realize we can work through years of guilt and grief at each other's side, I think we both want more than a tentative friendship, but chasing a first kiss after ruining everything the night we met feels impossible. Maybe if we can find ways to keep spending time together-to keep touching each other-it will be enough.

***The first of the Trailhead series, this explicit MM romance features some emotionally difficult plot points/themes. Content warnings DO contain spoilers, so only read on if you're concerned about potential triggers. Adrian and Beau's story includes a minor character death (off page); discussion of mental health/depression and fatigue regarding the care of a loved one; and a conversation surrounding a character's past suicide attempt, during which the dialogue is blunt/harsh.