What do fourteen-year-olds Tonee and Noah, and Beatrice, an eighty-year-old pastor’s widow, have in common with Alton, a gay middle-aged man? Secrets, which hold Tonee, Noah and Beatrice captive.
Tonee and Noah are high school adversaries who both have histories they hide by adopting roles. Tonee assumes androgyny to avoid relationships; Noah conceals his poverty behind a bullying front. Beatrice’s role as manager of Heaven Cent$, a thrift store established by her late pastor husband, provides a facade to disguise decades-old shame.
A fateful night at Heaven Cent$ will unmask the secrets that Tonee, Noah, and Beatrice hide, and they will learn what being gay already taught Alton: the strain of keeping secrets hidden is often more detrimental than having them exposed.