He’s Come Undone: A Romance Anthology

In Barry’s “Appassionata,” piano technician Brennan Connolly finds himself face-to-face with Kristy Kwong, a youthful crush whose career he’s followed from afar. Poised for a musical comeback, the prickly and vulnerable Kristy reaches out to Brennan for help—does he want to say yes? In Olivia Dade’s “Unraveled,” math teacher Simon Burnham is horrified and fascinated by art teacher Poppy Wick and her murder mystery dioramas. Can Simon make room for a bit of competent chaos in his life? In Adriana Herrera’s “Caught Looking,” Yariel Cabral has been in love with his best friend Hatuey Sanchez since their Dominican childhood—what will it take for Hatuey to convince Yariel he’s finally fallen in love right back? In Ruby Lang’s “Yes, And…,” rheumatologist Darren Zhang accidentally ends up in Joan Lacy’s improv class and finds himself both thrown off balance and charmed. That first encounter leads to a fragile relationship that may have difficulty surviving the rocky realities of their daily lives. Finally, Cat Sebastian’s “Tommy Cabot Was Here” transports us to 1959, where teacher Everett Sloane has spent 15 years trying (and failing) to put his adolescent love for golden boy Tommy Cabot behind him. Then one day Tommy reappears and seems, fumblingly yet earnestly, to be inviting Everett back into his life and his heart.