Hardworking, erudite and sometimes serious, Alice Rutherford is a model student, studying A-levels at Claude Bennett School. But during the fading months of 1995, her life is unexpectedly turned upside down by the arrival of an impossibly handsome and charismatic new teacher, Mr Chambers. A strange attraction quickly develops between Tom and Alice, and almost immediately every situation they find themselves in is heightened by temptation and desire. During a school trip and thrown together accidently, Tom briefly lets his guard down and they share an honest moment that permanently shifts their path. What ensues is a secret, intensely erotic love affair neither thought possible. But as their paralleled obsessions grow more ardent, the moral and social danger it represents becomes ever more tangible, and soon they are forced to confront the inevitable question of forever... The Not Gate is a nostalgic, thought provoking and seductive tale of first love, forbidden sex and human fragility and the guilty tie that binds them all. It will appeal to fans of romance and erotic fiction and has been inspired by a number of books and authors, including The Virgin Suicides, Five People You Meet in Heaven, Killing Me Softly and the works of Stephanie Meyer.