Necessary Time - Kate Hawthorne

If there's a lesson to be found in this whole disaster of a life, it's that sometimes things just take time, whether we like it or not.
Wesley
After a night of drinking with my lifelong best friend ended with an unexpected kiss, my entire life flipped upside down. I ran away from home—and him—without so much as a goodbye. Moving to California was a rash decision, sure, but not even the palm trees and the ocean are enough to make the pain of losing my best friend manageable. It wasn't his fault the kiss brought up all kinds of feelings I wasn't ready for, just like it's not my brother's fault when he introduces me to his stupid hot co-worker, Colin. Bringing up more feelings.that I'm still not ready for.
Colin
It's been eight years since I first kissed a man. Eight years and more that I've been living in the closet, too scared of coming out and dashing my mom's hopes for a daughter-in-law and grandkids of her own. I know it's dangerous to indulge, but Hendrix's younger brother, Wesley, and the feelings he stirs up inside of me, remind me of my past. Worse than that, they promise me a future that's always felt out of reach.
There's too much at stake between us. Neither of us have really been with another man before, Hendrix would kill me if he discovered I was making out with his barely legal brother, and my parents would be crushed by the news. But if being with Wesley has taught me anything, it's that all things will come together in good time.
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Necessary Time is a 78,000 word age gap/brother's friend (secret!) romance with a double dose of virginity and sexual awakenings, vocal and engaging consent, and some creative internet sleuthing. CW: Judgmental and homophobic parents