Today, I conclude my interview of the two main characters from my upcoming release, Chasing the Sun, which is the second book of The Provincetown Series. If you missed my interview with Gil Kelly, click here.

Today, I’ll be interviewing Tom Martinez, who is a thirty-year old restauranteur, who is returning to his home town of Victoria, Texas.

Tom Martinez

Tom, thank you for stopping by. I know you’re an extremely busy man these days.

Tom: That’s putting it mildly. But when I got your call, I was intrigued. So I just had to come. Besides, any publicity is good publicity. Especially since I’m trying to grow my parents’ restaurant into what I’ve always seen it to be.

What’s the name of the restaurant?

Tom: Tequila Sunrise. Not very original I know. But it’s been a pretty popular Mexican food restaurant here in Victoria for years. Lots of locals know about it so I can’t change it’s name now. Even though I’d love to.

So if your parents’ restaurant has been so popular over the years, why do you want to change things up so badly? I assume it’s been doing pretty good business. It’s been open for how long?

Its doors opened in 1994 so almost twenty years now. And I can’t deny that it’s done a steady business, but the customers who typically frequent the restaurant are aging. I’ve got to find a way to appeal to a younger demographic. It’s not because I have anything against the older generation. I think they’re great. Believe me! But in order for the restaurant to survive, I need to attract a new generation of customer. Otherwise, my parents’ legacy won’t last, and that’s something I’m intent on achieving.

You seem like an extremely motivated man. Have you always been that way?

Tom: (laughing) All of my life. I don’t know if I’ve ever acted like a child. Even when I was one. I’m not saying I had an awful childhood or anything. My parents were awesome. I really lucked out there. And I had tons of friends so I wasn’t some lonely kid eating lunch by himself all the time. To be honest, I’ve been blessed. But I’ve always known who I was and what I wanted out of life. I guess having that clear sense of direction for as long as I can remember has helped motivate me. It’s kept me focused.

And what is it that you want out of life? What has been your motivation for all these years?

Tom: Well, this is gonna sound really sappy, but I swear it’s true. I’ve only ever wanted to be true to myself.

What do you mean by that? Were you ever not true to yourself?

Tom: I’ve always been true to myself. You see, I’ve known from a very young age that I was gay. I heard the way kids at school called each other “queer” or “fag,” so I knew liking boys was not something others readily accepted. Not even some people in my extended family. It’s hard realizing you’re gay when friends, family, and the media tells you it’s wrong. But I never believed any of that crap. I was who I was. No one was going to change my thinking on that or make me doubt myself. I was simply me, and that wasn’t wrong.

Wow! That’s quite an adult approach for a child. I won’t lie but I’m a bit floored. There are some grown men who don’t possess that level of confidence or self-esteem. And you’ve had both since you were a kid!

Tom: I know, and I find it quite sad that most people don’t love themselves enough to believe the same things about themselves. We get so caught up with being just like everyone else. And that’s just a recipe for disaster. We can’t live for what our neighbors think is right or wrong. As long as we’re not hurting someone else, it’s really nobody else’s business.

Truer words have never been spoken.

Tom: Sorry. I tend to get on my soapbox. Sometimes you’ve just got to shut me up.

Don’t apologize. This is something you obviously feel strongly about. But I did want to ask: who was the first person you came out to as a child?

Tom: My best friend Zach.

And how did Zach take it?

Tom: Quite well actually. He was a bit stunned, but it wasn’t the fact that I was gay that freaked him out. It was that I was so okay with it. Zach’s always had these personal demons he’d been battling. His family life wasn’t great, and he had a hard time getting along with his father. So I think it threw him to learn that I was okay with who I was. Even though it might cause me problems. Zach wasn’t that way at all. He believed he had to be what everyone else wanted him to be. I tried to help him, but I couldn’t change Zach. I could only be there for him when he needed me. That was really all I could do.

Are the two of you still friends?

Tom: Yes. We’re not as close as we used to be. He’s moved to Dallas and a lot has been going on in his life recently. So he just hasn’t had the time to reach out to anyone. But I’ll be here for him when he needs it, and I’ll always will.

I have to say: you sound too good to be true. Not only are you a fine-looking man, but your confident without being cocky. You’re motivated in life. You have a good head on your shoulders and a kind heart. You are quite possibly what others might describe as the “perfect” man.

Tom: Ha! I’m far from perfect.

How so?

Tom: Well, for starters. I’m pushy and opinionated. That’s been problematic in some past relationships. Although most guys think they want a man to stand up for himself, they really don’t. Most men prefer to get their way and have the final say. I’m not saying I have to have things my way all the time, but is compromise such a bad thing? For some of my ex-boyfriends, it has been. It was either their way or the highway. Which is why I’m single.

Are you really? I find that hard to believe.

Tom: It’s true. I’m single, but I’m hoping not to be for much longer.

Now, you’ve piqued my interest. Who has caught your eye? Tell us about him.

Tom: (shaking his head) Sorry. That’s not gonna happen.

Why not?

Tom: Because I don’t know if it will ever happen.

That sounds rather ominous and self-defeating. Especially for such a confident man as yourself.

Tom: I may be confident, but I’m also a realist. It keeps me grounded and my head out of the clouds.

What’s wrong with flying through the sky in search of a dream that others might call impossible?

Tom: Just ask Icarus. He wanted to fly, so he made wings out of wax. Unfortunately, he flew too close to the sun. Impossible dreams are sometimes just that. Impossible.

Well, Tom, I truly believe that nothing is impossible. With your drive and motivation, you’ll find some way to soar into the sky and kiss the sun. Thank you again for stopping by and chatting with me.

On October 16th, the second book of The Provincetown Series Chasing the Sun releases from Dreamspinner Press. I can’t tell you how excited I am! Writing this series has been a labor of pure, unadulterated love, and I’ve been pleased by the reception the first book of the series When Love Takes Over has received. I’m glad to know that the characters and Provincetown have resonated as much with the readers as they have for me.

Even though Chasing the Sun is part of The Provincetown Series, however, it is a spin-off of When Love Takes Over. This means that for this book (and this book only) we leave Provincetown and the kooky characters we’ve come to love like Nino, Gary, Penny Poison, Quinn, and Tara and head back to Zach Kelly’s hometown of Victoria, Texas.

Why are we leaving Provincetown in a series titled The Provincetown Series?

Good question!

We’re leaving P-town because I just had to tell the story of Zach’s father. Those of you who’ve read When Love Takes Over already know that Zach and his dad have a complicated history. Chasing the Sun fills in the gaps readers might have had regarding their relationship, and we get to see the man Gil Kelly really is and not just what his son perceives him to be.

So to celebrate the upcoming release of Chasing the Sun, I’m going to be sitting down with the main characters from the novella spin off.

But before we get started, here’s the book’s blurb to give you a bit of a background:

As a physician and prominent citizen of Victoria, Texas, Dr. Gil Kelly took a hard fall when his vengeful wife revealed his infidelity with other men. Closing ranks around her, the town’s elite ostracized him, and his relationship with his children was nearly destroyed.

After spending his life focused on living for others, he has no idea how to live for himself. He wants to find love but now settles for anonymous sex that only further clouds his world with shame and guilt. Gil believes finding true love is an unobtainable dream, what his father used to call “chasing the sun.”

Then he runs into Tom Martinez, his son’s childhood best friend, who returned to town a grown man and offers everything Gil needs. But Gil hesitates to fall into Tom’s arms, because after his high-profile divorce, the potential scandal of loving a younger man could separate him from his children permanently.

Spin off of When Love Takes Over (1st Provincetown Series book)

So first up on my interview couch is none other than Gil Kelly, a fifty-something physician from Victoria, Texas.

Gil Kelly

Gil, I want to thank you so much for taking time out of your busy call schedule at the hospital to sit down and answer a few questions.

Gil: Not a problem at all. I was actually quite flattered that you were interested in interviewing me for your Internet show. What is it you call it again?

It’s “From Gay to Z.” And though I wish it were a show, it’s not. It’s a blog. But how fabulous would it be if I got my own show? I see myself on Bravo. Or ABC. I would love to be related to Sofia Vergara’s character on Modern Family.

Gil: (laughing) Who wouldn’t? She’s a beautiful woman. I’d love to be on that show too, but with my luck, I’d get cast as Ed O’Neill’s older brother.

Oh, please, you’re not old enough for such a typecast, and you know it.

Gil: (grinning) I know no such thing! Do you not see my silver hair? I’m old, and that’s okay. I embrace my age. There’s no reason not to.

Well, it’s my personal opinion that older and distinguished men are quite attractive. And the silver hair, well, excuse me for growling at you, but I find it extremely sexy. I think a lot of my readers will too. And we should all embrace our age. We are only as old as we feel.

Gil: Well, sometimes when I wake up, I feel every year that I’ve lived in my bones.

Let me ask you a question about that: do you think you are sometimes so bone weary because of your age or because of the great emotional stress you’ve been under the past five years?

Gil: Wow. You don’t pull punches do you?

I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be rude, but I am curious. You’ve undergone a rather messy, high-profile divorce. That had to be hard on you.

Gil: (sighing) It’s been awful. Donna, that’s my ex-wife by the way, has made it her mission to make my life a living hell since our divorce. People who I thought were my friends went over to her camp. I’ve become a social pariah. And in a town of only 60,000 that makes for some pretty lonely days and nights. But I guess that’s the price I paid for pretending to be someone I wasn’t.

You mean pretending to be straight.

Gil: Yes. Back when I was growing up, being gay just wasn’t an option. You were expected to find a gal, get married, and produce as many children as possible. At least that’s what my parents wanted. Especially my dad. He was pretty hard on me. Not wanting me to hope for things I couldn’t have. Definitely more of a pragmatist while I was always more of a dreamer. He didn’t support my decision to go to college or medical school. He thought I was trying to be more than I was destined to be.

What were you destined to be?

Gil: Well, according to my dad, a working class man just like him. He didn’t believe in higher education. He put faith in his strong back. A man was a man if he got dirty and worked hard. He didn’t understand that I didn’t want that for myself. That I had a passion for medicine. He said that my dreams were like “chasing the sun.” I was after the impossible and I would never catch it.

But you did. You became a doctor even though your dad didn’t support you.

Gil: I did. And by chasing my dreams, I alienated myself from him. He said he didn’t know me anymore now that I had an education. He claimed I was somebody new. Someone he didn’t recognize.

That’s sad.

Gil: (nodding) It is. But now that I’m older and a bit wiser, I think he was worried that I’d think less of him. As if I’d see him as a worthless worker bee like so many others had seen him as. I only wished I had realized that before he passed away.

So you always had a difficult relationship with your father. Were things better between you and your children?

Gil: You would think it would be, wouldn’t you? But no. Things weren’t better for me and my kids. My daughter Sami and I were close, but that was more because her mother basically neglected her in favor of our son Zach. I tried my best to make up for that with Sami, but I never felt as if I was enough. As for Zach, well, I think Kelly males are destined to forever be at odds. No matter how I tried to reach out to Zach as a child, he resented me. Nothing I did ever seemed to be right. And truthfully, I can’t say that I blame him. I was hard on him. I wanted him to be whatever he wanted, but I think my desire to have him chase whatever sun he wanted ended up with him resenting me for pushing so hard.

What about after the divorce? Did things get worse?

Gil: Boy, did they ever! After Donna got her revenge by exposing my secret, my children were destroyed. Our relationships, which were already tenuous, dissolved almost completely. I haven’t spoken to Zach in years, and Sami, well, she tries, but I can tell her heart isn’t into it. I don’t think she will ever be able to forgive me.

And Zach? Do you think he will forgive you?

Gil: Never. Not even in a million years.

I’ve got to be honest, Gil. Your life sounds like a mess. And not even a hot mess, which can be fun. You’ve lost your family and your friends. And you intimated that you basically live as a hermit. Is that correct?

Gil: Sad but true.

Do you plan on being alone forever? Is there no light at the end of your tunnel? No sun for you to try to catch?

Gil: To be quite honest, I think the sun has set for me, Jacob. At least in terms of a normal life. Maybe one day I’ll see the light again, but I think I’ve consigned myself to the darkness. It’s not like I’m lonely all the time. Thanks to the wonders of technology, there are hookup apps and websites for men like me who are unable to sustain relationships. I might not ever find love again, but when I need it, I can at least be consoled by a stranger’s touch. While it lasts at least.

I’m sorry you’re having such a tough time. I truly am. But somehow, I don’t think you’ll live in the dark forever. The sun may sometimes set, but it always rises again. Somehow. Some way. I guarantee it.

Well, Gil, that’s all the time we have today. Thank you again for stopping by and sharing a bit of yourself with me and my readers.