BLURB: One can’t walk the path of darkness and expect to escape unscathed. At eighteen, Foster Erickson stepped out of the closet into a world of homelessness, prostitution, and drugs. Years later, he’s pulled it together and is ready to rebuild. Determined not to let the demons win, Foster starts university with a plan to keep others from making the same mistakes he did. The last thing he expects is Sylvester Roberts. After years of working with his father, Sylvester decides to step out on his own. University at his age is strange, but for him, failure isn’t an option. After flunking a few tests, Sylvester’s professor assigns him a tutor—Foster Erickson. The moment they meet, Sylvester knows Foster isn’t like other guy
As the darkness hovers and Sylvester begins falling, he will have to decide if helping Foster fight his demons will be worth it in the end
REVIEW: Foster’s character intrigued me from the first page. His past was really heartbreaking but not uncommon, which is even more heartbreaking. Here was a young man who fell into homelessness, sexual assault, drugs and forced into prostitution to survive and to feed his drug habit, which I suspect he fell into as a way to cope with his situation. Reading about his painful past will have your heart in your throat, it was just so sad to read. With the help of a cop who befriended him, Foster was able to escape his circumstances and get himself together. Understandably, there were some residual effects from his past which he is getting help for. Foster’s life is going well and he’s starting college. This is where he meets Sylvester.
Sylvester is a successful older student who is striking out on his own after years of working for his father. He needed a tutor Foster was recommended to him. Sylvester was intrigued by the beautiful man but he sensed Foster’s general uneasiness at being touched, of getting close to anyone, both emotionally and physically.
This story flows so well. At first I thought that I would’ve liked to have had more information on Foster’s past but now that I think about it, I’m glad the author chose to place more emphasis on his present and future, the happiness he finds and the relationship (first friendship, then romantic) he’s building with Sylvester. I love how she gave both MCs equal amounts of attention. I also loved how she wrote Sylvester’s character. This man was beautiful, intelligent, compassionate and passionate, loving, patient, tender and kind yet tough. He understood that he needed to proceed with a great deal of caution and patience in pursuing Foster because of his past. I adored these men individually but together as well.
Foster’s painful past made me cheer that much harder for him to find peace and happiness with Sylvester. And Foster’s friend Jason is an absolute sweetheart who was always there to with a shoulder to lean on, cry on and advise to help him along.
I enjoyed everything about this book. The characters, storyline and flow were well executed. I loved that it’s interracial and there were no ridiculous stereotypes in neither them or the storyline. Really, if it wasn’t mentioned purely for the character’s physical appearances you would never have known the race or ethnicity of the characters as the author wrote them all the same. The two MCs were simply two men who meet, fall in love and work through some issues to make their relationship work.
I also loved the cover. It was strikingly beautiful and is what initially draws your attention to the book.
I will definitely recommend this book as well as this author.
BLURB: Maplewood, Vermont is a picturesque town filled with unique shops, unique homes, and a quaint familiarity all centered around a lake with an unusual history.
Legends, old as well as Urban, float around like the mist that hovers above the lake at break of dawn.
But they’re just stories, right?
Hayden Moore’s life was destroyed when his husband, Malcolm, was murdered. Giving up his job as an assistant district attorney in Boston, Hayden moved to the little burg of Maplewood to recover.
A new life.
A fresh start.
However, something underneath the water is stirring. Something rotten. A deadly secret wakes underneath the black waters of Lake Veronica so disturbing it haunts the nightmares of the local residents.
It’s coming closer…
REVIEW: Freddy Feeley has excellent stories to tell. And he tells them with perfection. This book is a full course meal. With almost 400 pages of an excellent storyline, character development and superb editing; this book is really something.
With the hopes that a change in scenery would help him in his grieving process after his husband’s murder, Hayden settles within a beautiful small town in Vermont. On the surface, it’s picturesque, Norman Rockwell painting perfect but under the beautiful veneer lies a dark and disturbing secret.
Hayden purchases a home and hires the town contractor and former soldier Tommy Law to renovate it. Although Tommy’s a loner, he finds himself surprisingly drawn to Hayden. Hayden’s pain and grief positively leaps off the pages at you. You feel every single bit of it and Tommy’s loneliness. It’s a damn good author whose able write a story and stir an emotional response within the readers.
What’s also interesting about this story is that the author didn’t just make the MC’s the main focus of the book. His peripheral characters also had their own vibrant personalities that were also made a part of the story. Their characters were extremely well written. He did a fantastic job of allowing those characters to shine while simultaneously maintaining focus on the MCs and the storyline.
This author is one of those authors that everyone tends to ‘sleep’ on. Meaning, he’s not part of the ‘in’ crown and as such, his work is often overlooked which is crazy. He has a writing style that is complex, cerebral and his writing style is crisp. The way he weaves a story is absolutely amazing.
You had so many wonderful ingredients to this book: grief, pain, love and loss, mystery, suspense, with a big dash of horror thrown in.
I truly enjoyed this book and definitely recommend this book and this author. Don’t sleep on this author, y’all. He churns out the most amazing stories.
Pride & Justice or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Crack
If I had to put a relationship status on my feelings about this work, it would be, “It’s complicated.”
That’s not true. I love it. What’s complicated is trying to get the right eyes on it, a needle that I either expertly threaded in fandom, or it wasn’t something that needed to be explained. The story is silly, deeply so, but it probably makes a lot more sense if you know things about me like that one of my first favorite books as a child was Another Roadside Attraction by Tom Robbins. Add in some Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams and you start to get a rough picture of where I’m coming from.
Like, silly, but also make it sexy. And throw in some jadedness about capitalism, a slightly Eoin Colfer sensibility about puns and popular mythology, and some zombies, well…it is what it is. Is it an enemies-to-lovers romance? Sure. There’s a lot going on, but I’m not sure if it’ll really push your buttons unless you have a very deep commitment to the absurd.
The idea was that this would be a series; in fact I’d started a sequel when Loose Id originally released this story. Everything I’d thought was pretty fun about it, as it turned out, was not fun at all. I shelved it. Honestly, I’m still not sure what people thought it was going to be when the first chapter was called, “Panic at the Dildo Factory.”
But I guess this all comes down to why. Why would I do this to you or to me? Well, because I love crack fic. I love silly. I love dad jokes, ones that will make you roll your eyes and ones that kind of boomerang and get you later. Writing this made me feel like a wicked, crazy genius, cackling the whole way.
People who like it really like it. Those who don’t… I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you. Sometimes I bottle things up to the point where it all comes out in a burst of mania, and this was one of those times.
About the book:
A percentage of the earth’s population has transformed into surprisingly functional zombies who returned to work the next morning as if they weren’t undead monstrosities. Justice Kinkead, officer in an elite zombie fighting force, gets called out when good zombies go bad, putting down the brain cravers and safeguarding the new economy. After several of his partners succumb to unfortunate deaths, Justice figures he’ll go it alone…until he’s assigned a mysterious and sexy new partner, Merlin Pride, who seems to know more about the zombies’ origins than he’s letting on.
Merlin also seems to sense that Justice needs a good fucking, but it’s complicated: Justice still lives with his undead ex-boyfriend. Can Justice make peace with his past? And if he does, should he take a chance on a man who may have something to do with destroying civilization as they knew it?
Crack, parody, camp counselor levels of camp, dad jokes, and enemies to lovers
55k words
As an Olympic figure skater, Jeff was a celebrity. He had no problem finding men to date, but finding men that wanted him for himself and not his fame? Not so much.
An Alpha too far from the throne to matter.
Prince Henrik was used to living in the public eye, but as the head of the Swedish delegation to the Olympic Games, he was in the spotlight more than ever. So when he had a chance to sneak into the Olympic Village and attend one of their infamous parties, he took it.
It was just a one-night stand.
Sassy Jeff was more than a match for the hot, tall blond on the dance floor …and in bed. But there was no chance of them working out. They were too different, and the Swede had a secret.
They went their separate ways, but…
Jeff couldn’t stop thinking about the hot Swede. He never did tell Jeff what sport he was in or why he was at the Games.
Prince Henrik threw himself into government work, trying to drown the memories of that amazing figure skater that wouldn’t text him back.
And when Jeff arrived at his castle, things got complicated.
Can Prince Henrik tame the skittish figure skater Jeff and prove that their relationship could work, especially with a baby on the way?
Omega’s Prince is a 50,000 word Mpreg romance with heartache and humor, hot sexting, royalty, steamy sex, babies and blissfully ever after.
Excerpt
THE BLOND GOD was finally standing in front of me. I couldn’t keep my eyes off of him, even though I had to because I was going to turn down the other men surrounding me. I was flattered, don’t get me wrong. I’m always flattered when a man expresses his interest in me. But there was no competition between the blond god and anyone else in the room. He was gorgeous. Tall, blond, beautiful eyebrows, square jaw and a piercing gaze. I was a goner.
I hadn’t matched with him on Tinder or Grindr, which surprised me. Every athlete, absolutely everyone here in the Olympic Village, had opened up Tinder the second they landed at the beginning of the Games. And I’m pretty damn sure I would’ve matched with this guy because he was everything I was looking for. I couldn’t tell what country he was with but the I think that flag on his shirt was for one of those cold countries. What did it even matter? If I was lucky, I was going to get pillaged by a Viking tonight. It was gonna be my own little Viking invasion.
“Hey, sailor.” Oh my god. I can’t believe I just said that. How stupid did that sound? Like I couldn’t have said anything else, anything else at all? Some more men had come up to talk to me. One had even tried to cut in front of the blond god. And I say try because the blond god stuck his left arm out and pushed him aside. That was the hottest fucking thing I had seen. Shivers crawled up and down my spine. I could not wait for this man to get his hands on me.
“Hey, I’m looking for a port to dock in.” He smirked at me with an amused look. His accent was so hot I damn near came in my pants. I’m pretty sure the astronauts in space could see my dick, it was so hard. I hadn’t gotten this turned on this fast since puberty. And that’s when anything set me off. Can I say that I fell in love with him a little bit right then, because he took my sailor thing and ran with it?
Always daydreaming and making up stories in her head, Bella didn’t write her first novel until 2017. Bella has a Computer Science degree, but that doesn’t hold a candle to her true love of reading. She has a cat, a corgi, hates doing cleaning, and loves playing video games. Bella loves sexy men and a happily ever after romance. Happy reading!
BLURB: Men found him attractive, interesting even. He was like a fascinating experiment gone wrong that men liked to investigate. He’d get a date – or two, if he was lucky – but it wasn’t long before Brian’s darkness showed, and the men were running from him.
Brian King was honorably discharged from the United States Navy five years ago. He’d left with the highest honors a man can receive in his country, but he’d paid the ultimate price to earn them. He was considered one of the best; an Intelligence Officer in a Joint Special Operations Delta team that’d been a twelve-man wrecking crew. They’d thought they were invincible… until they weren’t. Brian was the only member that survived the ambush. He survived ten months of pain, of torture, only to emerge on the other side a warrior. A POW survivor. He’d returned home with all his limbs, his right mind, and with his only brother Ford, at his side. But, one thing had been lost, maybe for good… his voice.
Now, being a bounty hunter is Brian’s only means to satisfy his need to calculate, track, and capture. His only outlet to the stress caused by his silence. He was good at what he did. But, all work and no play for a forty-four year old man was taking its toll. Brian wasn’t a faulty experiment. He missed companionship, he missed communicating. So, when he met Sway Hamilton – in the most unconventional means – he’d been surprised at his special way of understanding Brian’s every look… and touch.
Sway grew up in the rough part of ATL, trailing behind his twin brother Stanton and his best friend, Dana. He and his brother had a bond only twins could understand. So when Stanton’s life was taken during their sophomore year in college, Sway didn’t think he’d ever recover. He finally finished school, got his masters in nursing, worked hard, and focused on taking care of his mother. However, Sway knew there was more to life than heartache, and caring for others. There had to be. But he didn’t know what any of those things were until he met a dark hunter that blew his mind… and the intense man had never uttered a single word.
Brian and Sway can feel the powerful connection between them. It was there from the start—but both of them have battled with loss and anguish for so long, neither understand that love can ease all of it. Do they have the courage to battle through it together? Sway has to learn to trust in love, and Brian has to believe that Sway will always understand him even if he never speaks again.
Sway held him tight around his neck, “I don’t need you to talk, Brian. I can hear you just fine,” Sway whispered softly, kissing his throat.
This novel is a part of a series but can be read as a standalone. No cliffhangers.
Trigger Warning: This story contains acts of bond recovery agent violence. Mention of war zones and descriptions of war prisoners. This story DOES NOT contain overly-described acts of torture.
REVIEW: As usual, this author has truly outdone herself. Just when I think her books couldn’t get any more exciting, any more perfect, she surpasses everything and brings another amazing creation. So, this is the fourth book in this wonderful series and gives us Brian and Sway’s story. Brian is a big, sweet, tough teddy bear of a man. A gentle giant to Sway, his friends and family but to everyone else, a tough ex-Navy SEAL and highly skilled bounty hunter who can kick some serious ass. He was captured and tortured by terrorists which rendered Brian unable to speak. Brian’s PTSD is heartbreaking to read and the author was able to capture the daily struggles service-members face when they return home. She did it with respect and sensitivity. She didn’t embellish, romanticize or glorify it. Also, I liked how she didn’t give super descriptive details of the torture Brian endured while captured.
Sway is a hard working and dedicated nurse practitioner. He works hard to provide a good life for him and his mother. Sway is a good man, he takes care of everyone but himself.
These two men absolutely belong together. The author did an exceptional job of writing their emotional responses to each other. You felt that simmering, intense…thing between them; it leapt out at your from the pages. You not only read them falling for each other, you also feel their emotions; the sadness, the loneliness, the joy, the pain. Every emotion in this book was intense and it was written just so. To write a character’s emotions to the point where it’s felt by the reader, I feel is not something that’s easily accomplished yet this author does it all the time, in all of her creations. That’s how you know that you have an author who masters their craft. It’s not an easy feat to accomplish yet she does it with ease. It was absolutely amazing.
I also love how her characters are more mature in age. These are gentlemen of a particular age and as a reader of the same age, I can really dig it. She shows that these men are still strong, sexy, and virile. They’re fabulous in their 40s and I am here for all of it!
This book, like all of her work is simply amazing. This author is truly a master of her craft. Her writing style, the way she uses her words is like an elegant work of art. She’s an artist who comes up with these beautiful creations which are her books.
BLURB: Tai wishes Master Lucas wasn’t such an adamant Top, but he’s also crushing on the sweetly submissive Elliot. Could he have it both ways?
Tai has hit a wall in life. From all outward appearances, he’s the guy who has everything—looks, personality and money. But the modeling gigs are drying up and he still hasn’t found that special someone to call his own. The part-time work at Kiss of Leather is quickly becoming full-time to prevent the drain on his dream-business savings.
Elliot fell for the stunning Tai from almost the moment he met him. If he wasn’t so self-conscious about the weight he’s recently put on, maybe he could work up the nerve to make a move. However, not only is he a virgin who’s never done a scene before working in a BDSM club, but he’s also sure that Tai has a thing for Master Lucas. There’s no way he could ever compete with the handsome silver fox.
When Master Lucas confesses to Tai that he doesn’t only see him as a hookup and offers him a contract, there are a ton of considerations. They both realize that serious compromises would have to be made for them to have a relationship. But what if they found a third, a sub who could bottom for Tai and also do TPE with Master Lucas? Once the idea takes hold, Tai knows just the perfect boy for them both. Even better? He’s right there at Kiss of Leather, and Tai can’t wait for Elliot to turn them all into a throuple.
Reader Advisory: This book contains a scene of assault, and attempted sexual assault.
REVIEW: This book along with this series is so good with each book getting better and better. Book # 8 gave us a little something more in terms of the ménage but with Tai’s character, it made total sense to me.
Tai is not a total Sub and I see how that would’ve strained the relationship between him and Lucas who is a total Dom. Lucas was aware of this and I think that was one of the factors of him being agreeable to bringing Elliot into the fold. Elliot is a complete sub and is the perfect man for them. I truly feel that he’s the important link that holds them all together.
These characters, as the case with all of her characters are so well and clearly written; the contrasts between them is always a pleasure to read. I love that she makes the reader see more to Tai’s character than just him being a brainless, rich, pretty boy, part time submissive. Elliot is sweet and shy but he has a strength to him that he doesn’t realize he has and Lucas is a Dom but he’s not hard or heartless or perfect. That’s also what’s great about this series: she doesn’t make her Doms these hard, heartless men who never makes mistakes. These men are Doms but they are loving and caring and far from perfect. What I also love about this author is that her characters are from all racial, ethnic, orientation, socioeconomic groups. Her books are wonderfully diverse and she writes them all respectfully pretty much dispelling the myth that it’s impossible to write diverse characters without stereotyping them.
Now, as with all of her characters, these men are themselves flawed and you see them deal with issues of physical, mental and sexual abuse. I like how she writes how these men get through those issues with help and with men who help them heal. And what I love about all of her books in general, this series, this books in particular, she doesn’t make these men superheroes, meaning, she doesn’t have the Doms heal their subs in one book. It’s an ongoing and long process that she shows spanning several books with the timeline being years.
This book was wonderful and I look forward to reading more.
BLURB: When private investigator, Shane Stephens, is hired by the mayor of Cincinnati to track down the hacker who has been threatening him, Shane is sure this is the opportunity to launch the Merleau Detection Agency into the big time. He even convinces Rowe Ward of Ward Security to loan him one of his best IT specialists, Quinn Lake.
Shane, a man who prefers casual intimacy, is surprised by his attraction to the moody computer geek, but when Quinn suggests they have fun for the month he’s on loan, Shane happily agrees. Both men are expecting nothing more than a good time.
But the investigation takes an unexpected turn and they quickly discover they are facing more than a hacker out to ruin the mayor’s re-election chances. And as they spend more time together, they realize their relationship may be a lot more than just a good time.
With only weeks until the election, Shane and Quinn race to gather the proof they need while dodging bullets and possibly…falling in love.
REVIEW: This is the second book in the fantastic spinoff from the Unbreakable Bonds series. A friend of my turned me on to these authors and I am so very glad that she did. These two authors are a dynamic duo; their characters, settings, storyline and plots are absolutely fabulous.
I became obsessed with their books starting with the Unbreakable Bonds series, the series that started it all. I was literally addicted with the first page of Shiver to the first page in this current book.
As with the rest of their series, their writing style is perfectly matched. There have been times when I’ve read books written by two authors and it didn’t seem like a cohesive story. This is not the case with these authors. Their writing style and transition from one book to the other is seamless, almost as if it’s written by one person instead of two. The editing is spot on perfect, no plot holes, gaps in storyline, nothing. It’s wonderful.
Quinn and Shane are great together. The chemistry these two men have leaps off the page. The recipe of mystery action and suspense, infused with just a touch of humor grabs and keeps your attention. You lose yourself into this world and the lives of these characters from the very first word to the very last. I absolutely adore these authors’ work and I highly recommend this series. I am anxiously awaiting the next book.
In the sequel to the Rainbow-Award-winning Skythane, Xander and Jameson thought they’d fulfilled their destiny when they brought the worlds of Oberon and Titania back together, but their short-lived moment of triumph is over.
Reunification has thrown the world into chaos. A great storm ravaged Xander’s kingdom of Gaelan, leaving the winged skythane people struggling to survive. Their old enemy, Obercorp, is biding its time, waiting to strike. And to the north, a dangerous new adversary gathers strength, while an unexpected ally awaits them.
In the midst of it all, Xander’s ex Alix returns, and Xander and Jameson discover that their love for each other may have been drug-induced.
Are they truly destined for each other, or is what they feel concocted? And can they face an even greater challenge when their world needs them most?
The Oberon Cycle: Book Two
About the Oberon Cycle:
Xander is a skythane man whose wings have always been a liability on the lander-dominated half world of Oberon.
Jameson is a lander who has been sent to Oberon to find out why the supply of the psycho-amoratic drug pith has dropped off.
What neither knows is that they have a shared destiny that will change the two of them – and all of Oberon – forever.
This is my first time writing a series – at least, the first time one has ever been accepted for publication.
To make things a little more crazy, I’m actually writing two.
The first is the Oberon Cycle, a sci fi trilogy with a heavy dose of MM romance that started with “Skythane”. The second, “Liminal Sky”, is a queer sci fi series that doesn’t really have any romance, and is a little more epic-long-term in scale.
“Lander” is book two in the Oberon Cycle, and as I write this, I find myself in a weird place, stretched a bit thin across the whole trilogy.
I am re-reading “Skythane” to make sure I don’t miss anything while writing the third and final book, “Ithani.” I have just finished edits recently for book two, “Lander.” And of course, I am writing “Ithani.” It’s a bit like being trapped in three different times at once. Events that happen over a stretch of time are compressed and mixed together, and I’m having a hard time remembering the proper order.
In short, I am swimming in the depths of Oberon.
It’s actually kind pf fun though, as it’s giving me the opportunity to make connections between books one and three that I might have missed otherwise. Like, why does Alix have long hair in book one and short hair in two and three? And how does he feel about it?
It’s a small example, sure, but it’s indicative of the kind of things that come up when you try to ensure consistency across a number of books. Sometimes it’s too late, so as a writer you have to come up with the reasons why.
Next time I write a series, I’ll probably do things a little differently. Outline a little better? Track character traits more closely? I have gotten better over the course of the three books, but my track record in book one is looking a little dismal LOL.
Anyhow, once it’s done, all the seams should be cleaned up and the holes plugged, so that you the reader won’t notice them. And if I do my job right, some of the errors might even turn into some of the story’s best twists and turns.
A writer can hope, right?
Giveaway
Scott is giving away a $25 Amazon gift certificate and three copies of his queer sci fi eBook “The Stark Divide.”
Xander stared at the torrent of water pouring over the cavern entrance. Somewhere out there, Quince and the others were lost in the storm.
“What happened to everyone else?” Jameson shouted, putting his hand on Xander’s shoulder.
“I don’t know. Last I saw them was before the lightning strike.” How had things changed so quickly?
Jameson started toward the exit. “We have to look for them!”
Xander pulled him back.
Jameson’s eyes were wild.
He squeezed Jameson’s hands, trying to reassure him. “Hey, calm down. There’s nothing we can do right now.”
“We already lost Morgan.” Jameson’s eyes pleaded with him. “I can’t lose the rest of them.”
Xander shook his head. “It’s no use. We’ll never find them in this tempest. They’re seasoned veterans. They can take care of themselves. We’ll go looking after the storm passes.” The loss of Morgan weighed on him too, though he was less and less certain that Morgan had been a human boy at all.
Jameson looked doubtful.
Xander felt it too, but there really was nothing they could do. “Hey, it’s gonna be all right.” He pulled Jameson to him, enfolding the two of them with his wings. Jameson was soaked, but Xander didn’t care.
Jameson nodded against his chest. “You’re right. Gods, I know you’re right. I’m sorry. I thought we were done with all this.”
Xander held him out at arm’s length. “Gods, huh? We’re doing the plural thing now?”
Jameson gave him a half smile. “Trying it out? When in Rome….”
“How’s your hearing?”
Jameson cocked his head. “It’s better. But everything sounds muffled.”
Xander nodded. “I can tell.”
Jameson blushed. “Am I talking too loud?”
“Just a little.”
Jameson smiled sheepishly. “It’s weird. It feels like my ears are full of water.”
Xander kissed him gently. “It’ll pass.” He looked around the cavern at last, his eyes gradually adjusting to the dim blue light.
The place was a faeryland, filled with rows of golden stalactites and stalagmites, like the bulwarks of an eldritch castle. Each one was a miracle of minute detail, like candle wax dripped from above. The whole cavern was lit by a turquoise-blue glow.
Xander looked around for the source. It came from pools of water on either side of the cavern. The scintillating light shimmered along the walls, creating complex, ever-changing patterns.
“Look, Jameson… it’s beautiful.” They were both a muddy mess. “We’re stuck here until the storm blows itself out. Why don’t we get cleaned up and try to rest? Then we can figure out what to do next. We have a long flight to Gaelan.” He was still shivering from the rain.
“A bath sounds like heaven.” Jameson let Xander lead him to one of the glowing ponds.
“Do you think it’s safe to go in?” Xander asked, pulling off his boots and testing the water with his toes. It was warm.
Jameson looked queasy, but then he smiled. “They called them faery ponds. There’s a microscopic organism that makes the light. It’s harmless, but beautiful.” He grinned. “Romantic, even.”
Ah, that’s how you knew this place. “You’ve been here before, haven’t you?” he said, slowly and clearly, gesturing to indicate Jameson and the cavern. His own generational memories were still fleeting, occasional things.
Jameson’s smile fled. He shrugged. “Not me personally….”
“Shhh. I know.” If he closed his eyes and focused, he could see this place too, but he seemed to be able to block them out when they were inconvenient. “Too many memories.” Xander pointed at his head.
Jameson nodded. He looked relieved. He reached out and pulled Xander close, his hands warm on Xander’s waist.
Xander slipped his arms around Jameson and kissed him once, twice. He wrinkled his nose. “You’re filthy and you stink! So do I.” He held up his shirt as proof. It was covered in mud stains.
Jameson laughed. “We can fix that.”
He helped Jameson unlace the sides of his shirt, pulling it off to reveal the naked skin underneath. Jameson returned the favor, his hands lingering for a moment before withdrawing to pull down his own pants.
They shucked their wet and dirty clothes and descended into the water. It was surprisingly warm, silky and smooth around Xander’s waist.
The pool was about three meters across and sloped down to about a meter deep at the far end. There was a warm, gentle current drifting past Xander’s legs, and the stone beneath his feet had been worn smooth by water and time.
Xander washed the grime off his skin, and it drifted off into the water around him.
Jameson pulled him in deeper and gestured for him to lower his head.
Xander lay in Jameson’s arms, and warm water washed over him, carrying the mud and dirt out of his hair. Jameson massaged his scalp, pulling away the twigs and bits of gunk he’d accumulated on the mad run through the forest in the storm.
Xander’s desire threatened to overwhelm him at Jameson’s gentle touch. He dipped his face into the water and rinsed off. It was so fucking good to get clean.
He shook his head, splashing Jameson, who shot him an aggrieved look.
The look turned into a wicked grin, and Jameson splashed him back. Then they were going after each other and laughing, a fine mist of water flying through the air.
Damn, it’s good to hear you laugh again. Xander grabbed Jameson and kissed him, harder this time, and Jameson’s body responded. They fell back into the water, and Jameson was hard against him, his own need naked before Xander’s desire.
After all that had happened, Xander needed to feel human and alive again. He tugged Jameson back to the shallow part of the pool and pulled his skythane down on top of him, Jameson’s skin warm against his own.
He kissed Jameson’s neck and nibbled on his ear, eliciting a low moan.
Jameson wanted this as much as he did. He could tell.
For a long, slow, ecstatic hour, Xander forgot all about the storm.
Author Bio
Scott lives between the here and now and the what could be. Indoctrinated into fantasy and sci fi by his mother at the tender age of nine, he devoured her library. But as he grew up, he wondered where the people like him were.
He decided it was time to create the kinds of stories he couldn’t find at Waldenbooks. If there weren’t gay characters in his favorite genres, he would remake them to his own ends.
His friends say Scott’s brain works a little differently – he sees relationships between things that others miss, and gets more done in a day than most folks manage in a week. He seeks to transform traditional sci fi, fantasy, and contemporary worlds into something unexpected.
He runs Queer Sci Fi and QueeRomance Ink with his husband Mark, sites that bring queer people together to promote and celebrate fiction that reflects their own reality.
BLURB: Hilo Adachi learned one very important lesson from his father—unconditional love is a sham that always comes with strings attached.
Broken and alone, he works as a bike messenger while moonlighting as a graphic designer. When he meets Matthew Ellington, the last thing Hilo is looking for is love, but how can he deny the fact that one look from Matthew’s beautiful, brown eyes leaves him yearning for things he has no right to? How could he possibly imagine he deserves a man like Matthew?
Matthew Ellington has it all – a successful clothing line, a loving family and money. But he’s missing love and while he isn’t actively looking, he isn’t going to ignore it should love come along. The moment he lays eyes on Hilo, he knows he wants him. But Hilo’s demons keep getting in the way.
Matthew is a fighter, and Hilo’s demons have met their match.
REVIEW: I really enjoyed this book. These characters were absolutely wonderful together. Hilo especially tugged at my heartstrings. If anyone deserved a HEA ending, it was him. Like most people, Hilo had issues that stemmed from his family life and from his past that negatively impacts his life and affects pretty much every decision he makes. He’s a man that’s pretty much given up on thinking he deserves to be loved.
Matthew was the perfect match for him. Matt’s light and love was the perfect balm that soothed Hilo’s bruised heart and goes quite a long way in helping him heal which gives Hilo the courage he needs to open himself to give and receive love. And Matthew! He pursues Hilo, but he wasn’t forceful, arrogant or obnoxious in his pursuit. He was firm in the sense that he knew that Hilo was the right man for him but he was patient because he understood that Hilo had issues stemming from his family.
I really enjoy this author’s work. Her stories always flows so well. There’s no unnecessary drama; the author doesn’t feel the need to fill the book with angst. There’s conflict, sure, but they’re resolved smoothly. There was the perfect balance of sex and romance. There wasn’t so much sex that it turns you off but just enough to keep it sexy. I also love that her books feature ethnically/racially diverse characters without the stereotypes. I don’t have to worry about getting ticked off while reading her work because she always seems to get it right. And the cover was beautifully done. The soft colors were such a great choice.
I really liked this story. My only complaint was that I didn’t want it to end. This was definitely a lovely read.
When private investigator, Shane Stephens, is hired by the mayor of Cincinnati to track down the hacker who has been threatening him, Shane is sure this is the opportunity to launch the Merleau Detection Agency into the big time. He even convinces Rowe Ward of Ward Security to loan him one of his best IT specialists, Quinn Lake.
Shane, a man who prefers casual intimacy, is surprised by his attraction to the moody computer geek, but when Quinn suggests they have fun for the month he’s on loan, Shane happily agrees. Both men are expecting nothing more than a good time.
But the investigation takes an unexpected turn and they quickly discover they are facing more than a hacker out to ruin the mayor’s re-election chances. And as they spend more time together, they realize their relationship may be a lot more than just a good time.
With only weeks until the election, Shane and Quinn race to gather the proof they need while dodging bullets and possibly…falling in love.
Excerpt
After one quick knock on Rowe’s door, he stepped inside without waiting for him to call since he was already expected. But he stopped short when he saw the tall man standing next to Rowe’s desk, his hands on his slender hips as he grinned down at Rowe. Quinn couldn’t stop his eyes from quickly sweeping over his broad shoulders and chest that tapered into a narrow waist. His eyes snapped back up to find a pair of brown eyes that twinkled as they finished checking him out as well.
“Sorry,” Quinn mumbled, instantly taking a step backward. “I can come back.” Rowe rarely saw clients. He had customer representatives that handled talking to the clients. Of course, with Rowe’s lack of a filter, it was better if he didn’t talk to the new clients directly.
“No, come in, Quinn,” Rowe said sharply. He stood behind his desk, drawing Quinn’s gaze to his shorter but broader frame. His dark red hair stood up slightly as if he’d been running his fingers through it. Quinn never took that as a particularly good sign.
With a quick jerk of his head, Quinn stepped in and shut the door behind him. The other man was smiling at him, that assessing look still in his eyes, and Quinn didn’t want to think about the fact that he was dying to take another longer look at him, but not with the freaking boss in the room.
“Quinn Lake, this is Shane Stephens. He’s a private investigator with The Merleau Detection Agency,” Rowe introduced.
Shane extended his hand to Quinn and Quinn clenched his teeth, trying to hide his discomfort at taking Shane’s hand. His own palms were sweaty, making the momentary contact awkward. Why the fuck was he always so damn awkward around hot guys?
“Rowe tells me you’re the best,” Shane said, releasing his hand.
Quinn couldn’t help the skeptical look he shot at Rowe, who only shrugged as he sat down again. “Well, I said you <em>and</em> Gidget are the best.”
“Is this about a job?”
“Sit, Quinn.” Rowe absently waved toward the two chairs in front of his desk. He shuffled some papers around without seeming to actually look at them, placing them in piles at the edge of his desk.
Shooting one last uncertain look at Shane, Quinn moved to the farthest chair and sat, his tablet clenched in both hands. His mind raced as he tried to figure out why he’d been called into this meeting. Clients didn’t meet with Rowe, and Quinn didn’t meet with clients unless they’d already been assigned a bodyguard. And while they’d worked with some private investigators in the past, Rowe wasn’t usually involved. He had a company to run.
“Shane recently acquired a client who is the victim of a hacker,” Rowe started.
Quinn looked up at Shane, who was still standing beside Rowe’s desk, his mind finally turning away from too many questions to a problem he could understand. “Identity theft? Bank accounts drained?”
“No, not yet.” Shane shook his head, some of his dark curly hair falling forward against his temple. “At least, not that we’ve uncovered.”
“Then how do you know this client was hacked?”
“There are other signs…but I can’t go into it.”
Quinn frowned for a second. That certainly wasn’t going to make his job easier. “Well, do you just need improved protection? Alerts on accounts? We’ve got a comprehensive list of things we can do to help shore up the client’s account protection and privacy.”
“Shane isn’t looking for protection from the hacker for the client.” Rowe paused until Quinn looked back at him. “His client has hired him to track down the identity of the hacker.”
“Whoa…” Quinn said on an exhale, sitting back in his chair. That…that was not an easy task. Most hackers were pretty damn good at not being found. You had to be if you wanted to survive as one. If you sucked, you were usually snagged by the FBI pretty damn fast. Quinn would know. He’d started hacking at a young age—not stealing other people’s money but just breaking through security systems because he could. It took the feds a solid five years to catch him. But his boss knew all this. Rowe knew everything about the people working for him.
“We’re not equipped to handle this level of…” Shane frowned at Rowe’s computer as if he blamed it for his problems. “Well, we’re not staffed yet to handle computer things like this. I can do some of the forensic research in accounting matters, but I need a computer genius like you.”
“That’s why I agreed to loan you to Shane and his business partner, Ethan, for one month,” Rowe announced.
Quinn was out of his seat in a shot, hovering over the edge of the desk as he looked down at his boss. Pain shot through his chest, and he was suddenly having trouble catching his breath. Panic clouded all of his thoughts. He loved working for Ward Security. He’d been there for just less than two years, and he’d never found another place where he’d felt like he fit so damn perfectly. This was home. These people he worked with, they were his friends. He didn’t have to hide or pretend or feel uncomfortable.
And Rowe…Rowe had always been amazing. Sure, he could be cranky and a little crazy. He was always loud and tended to speak before thinking. But Quinn always knew exactly where he stood with Rowe. He always felt like Rowe had his back.
But this…
“Are you getting rid of me?”
“What?” Rowe snapped. “Where the fuck did you get that idea?”
“You’re hiring another IT person. I saw the listing. And this? Putting me ‘on loan’?”
Rowe groaned and scrubbed a hand over his face. With a heavy sigh, he pointed back at the chair Quinn had just vacated. “Sit.” Grudgingly, Quinn followed direction while Rowe looked over at Shane. “Can you give us a minute?”
Jocelynn Drake and Rinda Elliott have teamed up to combine their evil genius to create intense gay romantic suspense stories that have car chases, shoot outs, explosions, scorching hot love scenes, and tender, tear-jerking moments. Their first joint books are in the Unbreakable Bonds series.
Scott lives between the here and now and the what could be. Indoctrinated into fantasy and sci fi by his mother at the tender age of nine, he devoured her library. But as he grew up, he wondered where the people like him were.
