For Alex, the homecoming holds a mix of memories, mostly bad. The only bright spot is reconnecting with Benji Morning, the childhood friend he never truly forgot. As boys, the strength of their bond had frightened Alex. But now that he’s confident in his bisexuality, he’s drawn back to quiet, soft-spoken Ben.Ben isn’t the same boy Alex left behind, though. His life has been overshadowed by the disappearance of his sister two decades earlier, and now a new break in the case threatens to undo the peace he’s worked so hard to attain.As Alex struggles to repair the relationship with his father before it’s too late, he finds himself caught up in a twenty-year-old mystery, a story he never expected, and a shocking truth that could affect his and Ben’s future together.

    When he buys a remote tract of land, he thinks he’s found the perfect place to hide from the world and attempt to establish some peace. For ten years he believes he’s found a measure of comfort, until the day a stranger begins to run on Matt’s road.He returns every day, an unwelcome intrusion into Matt’s carefully structured life. Matt appeals to the local sheriff, who cannot help him since the jogger is doing nothing wrong. Gradually, after tentatively breaking the ice, Matt begins to accept the man’s presence—But when the runner doesn’t show up one day, it throws Matt’s world into chaos and he must make the hardest decision of his life.

    Their love begins a secret life, hidden from their families, friends, and classmates. As their passion grows, so does the danger of their discovery. Their only hope is to create a separate world where every kiss is a treasure and every moment... memorable.First love. Secret love. Unforgettable love.

    Annabeth Albert kicks off the brand-new Frozen Hearts series with Arctic Sun, an opposites-attract romance between a rugged outdoorsman and a smoking hot former male model.He’s built a quiet life for himself in Alaska. But it doesn’t stand a chance against the unrelenting pull of a man who’s everything he shouldn’t want.Ex-military mountain man Griffin Barrett likes his solitude. It keeps him from falling back into old habits. Bad habits. He’s fought too hard for his sobriety to lose control now. However, his gig as a wildlife guide presents a new kind of temptation in superhot supermodel River Vale. Nothing the Alaskan wilderness has to offer has ever called to Griffin so badly. And that can only lead to trouble…River has his own methods for coping. Chasing adventure means always moving forward. Nobody’s ever made him want to stand still—until Griffin. The rugged bush pilot is the very best kind of distraction, but the emotions he stirs up in River feel anything but casual, and he’s in no position to stay put.With temptation lurking in close quarters, keeping even a shred of distance is a challenge neither’s willing to meet. And the closer Griffin gets to River, the easier it is to ignore every last reason he should run.One-click with confidence. This title is part of the Carina Press Romance Promise: all the romance you’re looking for with an HEA/HFN. It’s a promise!Publisher’s Note: Arctic Sun deals with topics some readers may find difficult, including sobriety and eating disorders.

    Attempting to escape the painful memories and relentless guilt, the twins journey to Cadbury, Oklahoma in hopes that the family they barely know can help keep them together. Luke Daniels struggles every day with his painful past, just trying to piece his life back together again. Running his diner gives him an escape from the haunting memories, but ghosts never stay buried for long and old wounds leave scars that make it hard to forget. When a random encounter brings Aeron and Luke together, they must learn to overcome their pasts or be lost in them forever.

    To us. But no matter how hard I wish for what I want, there are some things in life that aren't meant to be. I don't expect you to understand. You've already moved on, living your life. But mine ended that night, nine years ago, and I still can't let you go. Not sure I ever will. I regret so many things, but hurting you, I'll never forgive myself. I'm sorry for… everything.Jax~****Jax,If only you could've seen it like I did, the way you were when you thought the world wasn't watching. How you'd change when I looked at you, when it was just us.But most of all… I wish you could've seen how much it hurt me when you disappeared. Regrets are for cowards. It has always been my belief you should chase after the things you want with actions, not words. There is no such thing as never meant to be.So this apology… not accepted…Love always, Wild

    Tom Penrose wants is his old life back. He's home in Cornwall after a hellish tour of duty in Afghanistan, but while the village is the same, he isn't. His grip on his control is fragile, and it slips dangerously when Flynn Summers explodes into his life. The vision in tight neoprene nearly wipes them both out in a surfing mishaps and shatters Tom's lonely peace.Flynn is a crash-and-burn in progress, one of only two survivors of a devastating rescue helicopter crash that killed his crew. His carefree charm is merely a cover for the messed-up soul within. The sparks between him and Tom are the first light he's seen in a long, dark tunnel of self-recrimination, which includes living in sexual thrall to fellow crash survivor and former co-pilot, Robert.As their attraction burns through spring and into summer, Tom must confront not only his own shadows, but Flynn's before the past rises up to swallow his lover whole.Warning Contains explicit m/m sex, hot helicopter pilots and skin-tight wetsuits. Also, in true British tradition, a tiny bit of joystick innuendo.

    One pull and it all unravels.Cole Gannon arrives in the seaside town of Ocean Vista to work as a bartender and finally find a place to belong. Determined to make a home for himself, Cole lives happily with his four colorful roommates, whom he considers brothers. The only problem is Cole's attraction to Ian Stark—a guy all wrong for him. He wishes he didn’t keep running into the sexy lawyer. Ian knows Cole is attracted to him, but the younger man keeps him at arm’s length. It only makes Ian more determined to be with Cole and learn all his secrets. But while Ian has built a successful law practice, he hasn’t done too well with relationships. When a sudden and devastating tragedy occurs, it shatters Cole's world and throws Cole and Ian together in unexpected ways. In an instant, everything between them changes forever.

    I imagine it again and again: Olympic champion Alex Grady. I train harder than my competitors. I’m in the rink morning, noon, and night. The lack of filter between my mouth and brain affects my ability to make friends, but I don’t have time for a social life anyway.As for a boyfriend? Forget it.So what if I’m still completely inexperienced at twenty? The Olympics are only every four years—everything else can wait.But for some inexplicable reason, I can’t stop checking out my boring new training mate Matt Savelli. Calm, collected “Captain Cardboard” is a nice guy, but even if I had time to date, Matt’s so not my type. I don’t even know what my type is!Until I do.Beneath Matt’s wholesome surface, there’s a sexy, tender man who awakens a desire in me I’ve never experienced. This is the worst possible time to be tempted. The worst possible time to let someone get close to me.This is the worst possible time to fall in love.The Next Competitor by Keira Andrews is a gay sports romance featuring grumpy/sunshine opposites attracting, sizzling first times, and of course a happy ending.

    A smile across a counter at a coffee shop or video store. A secret revealed in a song from another place and time. Or in a love ballad crooned at a high school dance. In this anthology of never-before-published sweet LGBTQ+ stories, six authors explore the beginnings of love between young and new adult couples. All proceeds will support The Trevor Project's work with crisis intervention and suicide prevention for LGBTQ+ youth.

    Cristian lives by a strict set of personal rules, preferring hook-ups and anonymous encounters to committed relationships. His guidelines work for him... until one of his tricks is murdered and he becomes the prime suspect. Leave it to handsome lawyer Colby Maddox to save Cristian’s life. He takes the case and the attraction between them is quick and undeniable. After several passion-filled encounters with Colby, Cristian unexpectedly wants to break all his rules. However, before they can contemplate a future together, they’ll have to clear Cristian’s name and find the real murderer.

    His first serious relationship crashed and burned with his boyfriend in the bed of their dog-walker. After achieving his dream job working as a Classics Professor at the University, his life is derailed by a car accident, leaving him blind in one eye and battling to lecture through a stammer. Whatever his luck, though, Noah is bound and determined to pick up the pieces and find his own way to happiness. The day Noah walks into Baum’s Boxing is the day everything changes. Adrian Flores, an ex-Marine boxer with his own story to tell and his own struggles to overcome, is immediately taken with the timid man taking his first kickboxing class. It seems like a fairy tale waiting to happen, until the day it doesn’t. A miscommunication between both men leaves them vulnerable for one cruel, obsessed man to take matters into his own hands. Will their relationship survive blackmail, violent attacks, and a promise to destroy their livelihoods? Or will the two be forced to part ways and accept that fate is just not on their side? Below the Belt is the first in the series, Baum’s Boxing. Each book will contain an HEA with no cliffhangers.

    Betrayed and thrown in prison, he had to figure out fast how to survive, and with no idea who to trust and who not to trust. To make matters worse, he had already gotten on the bad side of The Kennel on day one. But his biggest threat was the vacant psychopath named Adder, whose cell he found himself sharing. And with this one, his best tools for survival, his skills as a con man, had no effect at all.How would you survive?Jack faced dangerous enemies, an indifferent prison administration, and an inmate advocate with his own twisted agenda. He was determined to keep himself alive and sane, even as he began to slowly give up on himself.As long as he kept his head down and didn’t fall prey to the fatal mistake of trusting anyone ever again, he’d eventually get out alive... in body if not in spirit. And that seemed like the most he could expect.What would keep you going?A sudden revelation and the resulting puzzle, though, throws his world into a wildly different light. He’s unexpectedly clutching at a glimmer of hope, something more than mere survival, and yet fighting to not repeat the mistakes of his past again. But something deep inside him begs him to take that risk one more time.Because, exactly how far would you be willing to go to protect the best thing that ever happened to you, especially when it hadn’t even happened?

    But what happens one sunny Tuesday morning in October might be more than even the most loving couple can survive.When the bell rings that morning in chemistry teacher Sean Farnham's first-period class, a terrifying sound fills the halls - gunshots. Without considering the consequences, Sean runs to tackle the shooter, sustaining a bullet wound to his leg. Despite his actions, he is unable to save the lives of the principal and two students.Architect Kyle DeRusso hears about the shooting on the radio, and in the flash of an instant finds his life irrevocably altered. Everything - especially his heart - hangs suspended in a nightmare until he finds out Sean is alive. It doesn't matter that Sean will be left with a permanent limp. Kyle's just relieved the worst is over.Or is it? Putting that day behind them isn't as simple as it sounds. As Sean struggles to make something positive out of the tragedy, Kyle fights to save their relationship from the dangers of publicity - and Sean's unwillingness to face how the crisis has changed him.Warning: This book contains adults doing adult things, like using adult language and having hot m/m sex in various positions and on various furnishings. It might also cause the more tender-hearted adult to reach for a tissue or two.

    Christopher Allen knows how to deal with death. He’s a psychiatrist who works with hospice patients and their families, helping them cope with grief and letting go. But Chris’s job doesn’t prepare him for the sudden death of his devil-may-care brother Cal. At Cal’s funeral, Chris is completely thrown when he meets Elliot Rawlings, an artist Cal has been dating. Chris is hurt to discover that the brother he knew as straight was actually bisexual. Elliot is angry and resentful of having been kept hidden from Cal’s family. After the funeral, a night of drinking at the bar with Cal’s friends leads to Chris and Elliot falling into bed together. The next morning, they’re overwhelmed by guilt and grief and agree to never speak of it again. But Cal’s apartment needs to be packed up and Elliot reluctantly agrees to help Chris, as well as answer some questions about Cal’s life and their relationship. Despite their guilt and initial dislike for one another, they sort through the pieces of Cal’s life and begin to fall for each other. Despite his best efforts to fix things, Chris’s family seems to be crumbling around him and he begins to question who he is and what his role with them is. As his feelings for Elliot grow, Chris must decide if they’re worth further damaging his fragile relationships with his friends and family. Elliot’s rough upbringing has left him distrustful of getting close to anyone, much less another man who isn’t willing to acknowledge him in public. The odds seem stacked against Chris and Elliot, but if they can overcome them, they may be able to lay Cal’s ghost to rest, along with their own demons. Reader Advisory: This story deals with themes related to alcoholism, death (of secondary characters), and past abuse/neglect.