Books Tagged With when - season - summer

Word Count: Click here to reveal44920 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Whatever your romance reading preference -- gay virgin, opposites attract, friends to lovers, or simply fun how-they-met stories -- this collection contains a variety of sweet, contemporary, short gay romances, sure to make you smile. Rewritten and re-edited, these stories were previously published singly and are available now in one collection! Contains the stories: King Kong vs. The Skinny Pirate Born to Be Wild The Straggler Now and Forever Moving On Moving Along Dropping Quarters Nevermore Photo Shoot Okay, Then Preface I love short stories. Sometimes a brief “snapshot” taken from a couple’s larger story is all that’s wanted. The narrative of “how they met” is the focus of six of the shorts in this set—quirky tales ranging from meeting at a charity fundraiser, to college kids pranking each other, to a mishap at a XXX adult video arcade. Also included is a story featuring a well-established couple’s wedding dilemma, a friends-to-lovers tale, a coming-out-of-the-closet drama, and a continuation short that follows one of those how-we-mets. Rounding out this collection is an account revisiting the main characters from my full-length novel, ’Til Death Do Us Part. All of these stories are contemporary, although one has a bit of paranormal flavor to it. Heat ratings range from “fairly sweet” to “rather steamy.” Excepting the final story, all were originally written in 2008 and early 2009. One (“Photo Shoot”) started out as a prompt word ficlet that I later fleshed out to a more complete story. Each has received a thorough overhaul, some more extensive than others. I hope you’ll enjoy reading them as much as I did writing them. Keywords: short story, short stories, collection, meet cute, slice of life, kindle unlimited, ebook, print, paperback

Word Count: Click here to reveal30000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Lesbian (Click here to hide)

Summary: A second chance romance about friendship, new beginnings, and putting the pieces back together. Lindsay: Two years after my divorce I’m ready to push through the pain. Either I pick up the reins of my life now, or let go forever. I didn’t expect to cross paths with Rae—in a chat room of all places. She was my first love, who I met in college. Ten years ago, I walked away from us at a time when she needed me. Unfortunately, now I know how that feels. My first instinct is to run—it would be too easy to fall in love again. Too easy for my heart to break. But now that she’s back in my life, I’m truly grateful for her friendship, even though she’s far away. Rae: Real love has evaded me since Lindsay, my first love and the girl I left behind. It’s been a string of friends with benefits—I give my body but never my heart. But my second chance has come, and the girl I loved is now a woman with a broken heart. She’s a shadow, and everything in me yearns to coax her back to life. That’s why I’m inviting her to stay with me in Ireland. I think she could use a break away to let the past go and find some healing. I suspect the demons of her past won’t let her go so easily, but I’ll do what I can to help her find happiness again.  

Word Count: Click here to reveal74741 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Kelton ran. Ran from the father who was supposed to love him. Ran from the lover he’d been caught with. Ran from his hometown of Ellensburg and the only life he’d known. After two years on the streets of Bellingham turning tricks to survive, Kelton found trust a hard commodity to trade. A chance encounter with businessman Alex Martinson after a john left him a room for the night resulted in an offer Kelton couldn’t refuse. In his new role as houseboy and general domestic at the Martinson Estate, Kelton finds himself safe, warm, and fed. Though not understanding the motivation behind Alex’s generous offer of college and a fresh start, he embarks on rebuilding his life. When Billy Winston reappears in his life, Kelton is torn between his responsibilities to Alex and desire for his former lover. Alex Martinson also has secrets, including the business associate he’s desperate to keep Kelton away from. With the culmination of Alex’s kindness and Billy’s encouragement, Kelton must face his biggest fear.

Word Count: Click here to reveal30375 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Aidan Williamson has been plucked from his routine constable life to the harrowing existence of an undercover detective, damn near under the skirts of Her Majesty the Queen. His first two cases have taken him to places close to Balmoral Castle, where she and her retinue are set to stay for the summer.  This case is no different.  From a bothy—a stone hut—below Devil’s Point to Queen Vic’s old “Widow’s House,” the killing field seems to grow closer to home as the Queen’s holiday grows nearer. Now a hidden crime has been uncovered in the same place the royal party is set to visit soon. And Police Scotland is not amused. Enter Aidan, rookie dick, who’s struggling to confront his demons—and his angels too. Who’s the killer? A pillar of the local church…a couple of horny adolescents…a protective kinsman of the dead man’s wife…or the sweet widow herself? This time around, the edges are blurred more than ever, as mystery spills over into romance.

Word Count: Click here to reveal35000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay, Pansexual (Click here to hide)

Summary: Squirrels do not belong in cages. Amir Kaplan works as a chef in a werewolf bar, which is why he’s so surprised when his boss sends him to a food expo for humans. He doesn’t like being around people, which his boss knows, and they don’t want human customers, so why is he there? The moment he spots a blue squirrel in a cage, he forgets all about the why, though. Shun Hartman is having a bad day, has had several bad days in a row. He and his squirrel cousin were running in squirrel form when Shun was captured by werewolves. They put him in a cage and dyed his fur blue, and now he’s at some sort of food fair. As if that wasn’t bad enough, there is this guy trying to steal him. Hadn’t the guy been another wolf shifter, he might have been fine with it, but how is he to know which is the better monster? Amir refuses to leave the expo without the squirrel. He doesn’t care what conflicts will follow, no squirrel should ever be put in a cage. Shun should run away the moment Amir frees him from the cage, right? No sane squirrel waits around until their werewolf rescuer gets hungry, but why does his heart ache as soon as he’s apart from Amir?

Word Count: Click here to reveal72000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Gay (Click here to hide)

Summary: A fireworks salesman intent on making his mark in his family’s business. A twice divorced father in desperate need of a sale and a new love life. A week-long town celebration that sparks their competitive natures. Owen Gillespie is no stranger to competition. But his plan to spend Independence Day week at the Williamsville Inn before pitching his fireworks proposal is derailed when he meets a handsome and snarky man in the elevator. Dom Mitchell has two marriages behind him and three kids he’s supporting. His bisexual awakening has opened him up to dating men for the first time, but he isn’t looking for a serious relationship; he’s in town to sell a fireworks package. When both men realize they’re vying for the same business, they decide to turn it into a competition. But things slip out of their control when the mayor learns of their agreement and proposes some challenges of her own. These two corporate rivals will need to work together even as they’re competing against each other to woo the mayor and other city officials, all while keeping their mutual attraction a secret and their hearts in check. At the end of the week, only one of them will be leaving town with a signed contract, but the sparks between them are undeniable, and their love life might just be the most dazzling display of all. This funny, snarky, and steamy story about corporate rivals turned lovers with a slight age gap and a spanking fetish is set in the Williamsville Inn world but can be read as a standalone story.

Word Count: Click here to reveal12000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay, Straight (Click here to hide)

Summary: “The greatest reward often lies at the end of the stoniest path.” Lady Dorothy Marshall, March 1891 When Lord Clearwater inherits a set of enigmatic clues and a compass, it becomes clear he has the means to uncover a momentous secret. He calls upon the men of the Larkspur Academy to help with the hunt, including the latest recruit, the bewildered ex-sailor, Bertie Tucker. The academy men investigate follies, national monuments and ancient churches, using their diverse skills to unlock a series of random messages. The men must work together to find Clearwater’s secret and ‘treasure’, but relationships threaten the status quo. Edward Hyde has turned his affections from Henry and aimed them at Bertie Tucker, opening a rift which must be mended if the hunt is to succeed. And when two of Clearwater’s adversaries conspire to beat him to the secret, what begins as an adventure becomes a game of cat and mouse that leads to a fight for survival. Starting with Secrets is the sixth book in the Larkspur Mysteries series. With themes of friendship, bromance, male love and revenge, the story is the first part of a two-part adventure, and combines historical fact with fiction. As with all of Jackson Marsh’s mysteries, the novel contains humour, love and action, while offering the reader the chance to solve the clues with the cast of disparate, well-drawn characters.

Word Count: Click here to reveal62000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Jason Richards is ridiculously in love with his friend and coworker, Ahmed Kazimi. Unfortunately, Ahmed is a package deal—he has a boyfriend who, as far as Jason is concerned, needs to be launched into the sun. Then a mysterious carnival rolls into town, and Jason and Ahmed can’t resist going. Not even if Ahmed’s boyfriend can be depended on to make everybody miserable. When Ahmed wins a strange prize from an even stranger carnival game, weird things start happening. First, a mishap with a friend’s newly purchased love potion. Then a cascade of steadily worsening bad luck starts to rain down on every corner of Ahmed’s life. Though he doesn’t believe in the paranormal, he can’t help but wonder if his prize is cursed. Just to be safe, he throws it away. But it comes back. And it keeps coming back. Upon learning about the prize that won’t go away, Jason suggests the only solution he can think of: return it to the place it came from. Now Ahmed and Jason are on a mission to get rid of the cursed prize… assuming they can find that game again. Step Right Up is part of the multi-author Carnival of Mysteries Series. Each book stands alone, but each one includes at least one visit to Errante Ame’s Carnival of Mysteries, a magical, multiverse traveling show full of unusual acts, games, and rides. The Carnival changes to suit the world it’s on, so each visit is unique and special. This book contains some long overdue friends to lovers, a strangely insightful caricaturist, and a little magical realism.

Word Count: Click here to reveal114,000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay, Straight (Click here to hide)

Summary: Sing a song of sixpence A stage full of fright One two-faced blackbird Won't last the night   When a phantom presence lures Hieronymus Bash into a deadly game, threatening to kill one of the players at his beloved Gaiety Theater each day until famed actor Horace Beastly returns to the stage, London's premier consulting detective is on the case. The trouble? Horace Beastly is Hiero's alter ego and the true object of this murderous obsession. When the current star of the show is struck down, Hiero has to risk everything by stealing back the spotlight. After a golden summer together, DI Tim Stoker would do everything in his power to protect the man he loves. But a specter from his own past proves an unexpected, and perhaps fatal, distraction. Scheming prima donnas, grudge-fuelled critics, and an axe-wielding theater ghost are all out for blood. Will Hiero and Tim unmask this menace before the final curtain call, or are they past the point of no return?

Word Count: Click here to reveal94,010 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealAce, Bisexual, Demisexual, Gay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Love, served straight up. Malcolm Elliott has been keeping secrets. Helping his mom through a financial crisis has nearly emptied his bank account and his kitchen cupboards, despite his thriving career with Corporate Equality Campaign. Malcolm is also bothered by his inability to tell the most important people in his life that he identifies as gray ace. Stuart Morgan has a secret of his own. Though years have passed since the tattooed chef fled the Mormon church in Utah for New York, he's never truly come to terms with the fetish that ruined that rigid but outwardly perfect life. Experience has also taught Stuart that keeping his love of lacy things under wraps is safer than telling the truth. After Malcom's boss, Carter, hires Stuart's restaurant to cater a gala fundraising event, the strait-laced Malcolm is thrown together with badass biker Stuart. Despite their differences and a couple of false starts, the men discover they work well together and a friendship quickly forms. As Malcolm's feelings for Stuart deepen, his sexuality awakens, but he remains tight-lipped about his problems. And though Stuart grows more and more attached to Malcolm, he remains fearful of confessing his fetish. When both of their secrets are finally exposed, they find themselves at a crossroads in which they must choose between playing it safe or finally coming clean to the person they love.

Word Count: Click here to reveal30000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealAce, Gay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Niclas Ruiz loves digging in the dirt for ancient artifacts. He’s obsessed with old words and lives in his own world. His summers are often spent traveling to new places to hunt for treasure with his trusty metal detector while trying not to get lost or stumble off a cliff. Love has never been high on his priority list. His being autistic and asexual has often been a hurdle for other people. But he’s happy enough to plod along on his own with his horde like a fairy-tale dragon. But sometimes, he allows himself to dream about a man out of his reach. Two things about Falk “Grizz” Evensen are certain. He runs a successful security firm and has been hopelessly in love with his best friend’s younger brother for many years. Neither of them has ever dared to test the waters. When Niclas plans to visit Cornwall for the summer, his older brother convinces Falk to join him under the auspices of keeping him safe. Is this May-December romance doomed to be derailed by fears of unrequited love? Will their treasure hunt lead them to true love or fool’s gold?

Word Count: Click here to reveal21000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Gay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Is he hallucinating or is the fanged woman real?   Matthew doesn’t know for certain except that he keeps seeing her when he’s playing. Is she real or is the alcohol he’s consuming too much of, affecting his reality? When push comes to… blacking out, Matthew is forced to face a harsh reality. The gig scene is literally killing him.   Will time away give him the distance he needs?   There’s only one way to find out.   Stardom? Or a living nightmare? Can Matthew and the rest of the band have one without the other? Will they survive what the future has in store for them?

Word Count: Click here to reveal74k (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: After two years grieving the death of his best friend, Silas Franklin is back on the road with his metalcore band, Hush. With a new member, a brilliant new album, and a headlining spot on the last cross-country Warped Tour, life couldn’t be better—unless Silas could meet the intriguing music blogger known only as the Guru. Silas has followed his blog for years and feels the Guru might be the only person who “gets” him. For years Krishnan Guruvayoor has reported on the metal scene as an anonymous blogger, and he’s just landed an internship on the Warped Tour as well as a potential position with a well-respected music magazine. His best friend arranges for him to meet singer Silas Franklin—but only as Krish the Intern. Their chemistry is instant, and Krish is thrilled to get to know the man behind the music. The rock star and blogger quickly go from meet-cute to cuddle session, but secrets, overprotective bandmates, meddling media, and a terrible accident all conspire against them. Can their romance survive the summer of Hush?

Word Count: Information not available

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: NO LONGER AVAILABLE - Jeremy Decker’s recent split with his long-distance boyfriend has left him lonely with a mountain of debt. His only practical source of extra cash is to teach summer school, even if it means teaching history—not easy for an English teacher. To support him, the school hires Lucas Van Sloan, a much-younger college history student. Lucas, with his swimmer’s physique and optimism, not to mention his determination to get what he wants, both attracts and annoys Jeremy… and what Lucas wants is Jeremy. The heat flares between them, but when Jeremy’s ex, a high-powered attorney with plenty of experience turning things his way, shows he wants Jeremy too, it threatens to snuff out the flame of passion and new love.

Word Count: Click here to reveal40000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealDemisexual, Gay (Click here to hide)

Summary: A rockstar with a tainted reputation. A shy, sensitive farmer. A magical ten days on the seas of the South Pacific. Axel Zelman Stepping in to protect my younger brother was a no-brainer. Now I have to pay the consequences and repair my tarnished reputation. That means facing my demons and spending ten days at sea on a cruise ship. At least it’s for a good cause. Kyle Brown Thanks to my interfering family, I’m thrust into a world of extravagance and dazzling spectacle. I’d much rather be at home in the vineyard. That is, until I find an undeniable connection with a gorgeous, brooding passenger. Imagine my surprise when I find out he’s an award-winning performer. Why on earth would he want to spend time with me? It’s only a cruise, a bit of fun, not a life commitment, and as my brother said—we’re not here for a long time, but a good time—so I’m determined to enjoy the limited time we have. I just wish my heart got the message. Sun-Kissed is a sweet and sexy story where two worlds collide in an opposites attract, celebrity/ordinary guy, rockstar romance set amongst the fun and chaos of a Pride Cruise.

Word Count: Click here to reveal71000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary:

Lonely billionaire, Samuel Barron, has finally met someone he finds himself falling for, but can he handle a romance for a gentleman whose entire world is surrounded by silence?

Word Count: Click here to reveal65,000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: NEWLY REISSUED, WITH NEW COVER ART! At the shocking end of SINISTER MOTIVES, Noah Sanders was forced to make a decision that would change everything he’d strived for since arriving in the coastal paradise, one that jeopardized not just his relationship with his family, but with his lover. In Cane’s Inlet, located on a barrier peninsula along the Jersey Shore, the lucrative summer season is just two weeks away, with Hatcher’s Resort its most-desired attraction, including the newly opened Medusa Lounge. But drama ensued onboard the restored pirate ship, leaving Noah determined to leave Cane’s Inlet behind. A killer has another idea, and soon Noah knows there is no escape. Living behind enemy lines, Noah realizes he must finally confront Ginette and Emerson Hatcher about the truth he’s been hiding from them all these months. But then the killer strikes again, making Noah’s investigation even more personal. He uncovers a string of secrets that have been lost to the ocean floor for generations. Reaching deep into the past, Noah is in a race against time before the season begins. Needing to repair his relationship with Demetri if he’s ever to find happiness, Noah sets a chilling plan in motion. One which will have devastating consequences, but not before the final, shocking truth is revealed. SUSPICIOUS TRUTHS is the third part in a trilogy that will lay bare stories of the past, and in the end, no one will escape the web of deceit that has defined Cane's Inlet for more than one hundred years. Scandalous, sinister, suspicious, the Cane's Inlet Mystery is a tour-de-force tale of two families, one secret, and, ultimately, one man's discovery of his own true self.

Word Count: Click here to reveal72000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Gay, Questioning (Click here to hide)

Summary: A family emergency far from home. A list of people gone missing. A long, simmering attraction that finally reaches a boil. When Demetrius flies to Florida to support his parents during his mother’s health scare, Cody is left to manage their Critter Catcher business alone. And feel guilty he didn’t go along to provide support. Finally unable to stay away, Cody heads to Florida with Demetrius’s Aunt Amelia. Demetrius is shocked they came to support him. And Cody is shocked about his powerful romantic feelings for Demetrius. But all that will have to wait as they are tragically yanked into another monster hunt. In the Everglades. During a tropical storm. If they live through this latest challenge, Cody and Demetrius will need to have a long overdue conversation about their future. It will change everything between them, forever.

Word Count: Click here to reveal71,288 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: The Sebring family has been involved with espionage for centuries, and as the firstborn son, Anthony Sebring II has every intention of fulfilling his parents’ expectations. To that end, when the United States is thrust into the Second World War, Tony enlists in the Navy, eager to enter the war and do his part to defeat the Axis powers that threaten the freedom and safety of his beloved Country. Instead, however, he finds himself assigned to a position in DC, working surreptitiously with his father. Tony is gay and is comfortable with his homosexuality, although he isn’t able to act on it -- his devotion to his country overshadows that. Meanwhile, his father is unaware and arranges a marriage with a local girl. Before Tony can refuse, Allegra reveals she’s already married to a young soldier of whom her parents disapprove, and she begs Tony for help. As a gentleman, he can’t say no, but this causes problems with his siblings, Jefferson, Bryan, and Portia, who are upset he never told them he was involved with a young lady. While Tony is fiercely devoted to his siblings, most especially his youngest brother, he can’t divulge Allegra’s secret to them, since it isn’t his to reveal. Things have a way of coming out, however, especially when they learn Allegra is pregnant. When Tony refuses to marry her, even after their meddling fathers threaten to have her marriage annulled, he’s banished to London to work with an obscure branch of British security. Some months later, the war in Europe ends and he learns he’s to be sent to the Pacific Theater. En route, he stops in New York, where he takes the opportunity to see his siblings, only to be told by the woman he’d thought was his mother that he isn’t a Sebring, and he’s never to contact the only people he loves -- the secret about his birth could ruin everything he holds dear. Tony leaves without revealing this to them. But Sebrings, no matter what their age, have the ability to ferret out secrets. How will they react when they learn the truth of his birth, and how will Tony deal with the loss of the one person who means the world to him?

Word Count: Click here to reveal65000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Gay, Polyamorous, Straight (Click here to hide)

Summary: Continue to hide or help save the very kin she's hidden from? Welcome to SYN Consulting, the top business strategy consulting firm in Europe, home to a motley crew whose leader has a life changing secret. CEO, Danica Lestrange, is the first female dragon born in the last 800 years. Hidden from the rest of her kin and raised in the human world, she built a life that she would defend until her death. A devious plan is unearthed while working on a new business deal that could plunge the dragons into another war with the humans. The humans may have forgotten the last dragon-human war, but the dragons have not. Will the war reveal this hidden world to the humans, or will the clans come together to defeat their enemies and maintain their anonymity? Danica must gather her allies and help the very dragons she's hidden from her whole life. She can only hope that she'll be strong enough to protect her chosen family. This is the first book in a new series about dragons who want nothing more than to live in peace, but refuse to be subjugated. In war there's also love, and love is blind. Love doesn't care about gender, race, species (in this case), or sexuality. Warning: This book contains explicit sexual content between consenting adults. The sexual scenes are MM, MF, and MMF. There are romantic relationships depicted that are MM. There is also a high level of explicit language, snark, kink, and possibly bad puns and fart jokes. This book does end in a cliffhanger. Dragon War Chronicles is a continuous series. It is best read in order. SYN Consulting Secrets Revealed First Strike Dragon's Hoard