After a student's accusation of sexual assault destroyed his reputation, Noah Birchwood left the teaching career he loved. The school system that should have protected him and an ex–lover who should have known better shattered his confidence, and it took Noah six years and another university degree to finally get his life back on track.
He loves his new job as a computer programmer and keeps busy on weekends performing at a drag club with his best friend, Aiden. It's there that he meets shy, chivalrous Oscar, the owner of the club and, just maybe, the love of Noah's life. But everything turns upside down when a specter from his former life moves in next door. Noah will have to face his fears and discover the truth about his ordeal if he wants to move past it once and for all and face the future with Oscar at his side.
A trumped-up accusation of sexual harassment of a female student ended Noah Birchwood's career as a high school teacher. Six years later, with a new degree in computer systems, Noah has a responsible job as a senior programmer and - as he has for many years - appearing with Aiden, his best friend, in a drag revue on Saturday evenings. Aiden plays matchmaker, in introducing him to Oscar, the owner of the club, and he and Noah hit it off immediately, with a real possibility of a lasting relationship. Unfortunately, someone Noah dated in the past comes back into the picture, and that presence raises a lot of issues that had never been resolved properly. Noah fights the urge to seek answers, since he knows it could bring back the disappointments of the past, as well as possibly hurt his new relationship.
The book is well-written, although I felt at least one of the characters and some situations were very unrealistic and contrived, which could make it difficult to relate to. I also felt the sexual content was a bit excessive and overly-graphic, crossing the line from "romantic novel" to erotica; that's an arbitrary call that I don't figure into my overall review. Overall, I give the book three stars out of four.
