Cherish — A.J. Llewellyn

When Hollywood theatrical agent Daren Marlowe celebrates his thirtieth birthday with friends, hes more than surprised when his best friend gives him a CD that is a revamp of the old 80s mixed tape. Hes even more surprised when he realizes its a re-gifted mixed tape. The first song on the CD is the syrupy Kool and the Gang classic, "Cherish." When Daren takes it home, he has no plans to look at the CD again, let alone play it, but his new lover, Rafael, puts it on the sound system. Daren gets to Cherish the love over and over and over again because the darned thing is stuck. Forced to close off the sound system entirely, he frets over being held hostage by the song and hes not wrong. In a bizarre set of circumstances, Richard is assaulted and almost dies. Will he survive? Can Daren actually forge a viable relationship with the sexy and hypnotic Rafael-for as long as they both shall live-in a town where the men dont always cherish their men?