Stevie Sanger is fighting a past that won't leave him alone. They want each other from the moment they meet, and that attraction quickly blossoms into something deeper, something that could become permanent. But first, they need to overcome all the obstacles in their way. Dan's fear of his own nature, Stevie's belief that he's not good enough for Dan. The unresolved pieces of Stevie's past. Building the relationship they both want may be a challenge too big for either of them. But nothing worth having is ever easy.

    Imagine his surprise when Eva turns out to be Evan -- tall, lean, too attractive and completely in mourning Evan Monroe.Evan's expecting a quick visit from his lover's uncaring nephew, but when Gray shows up at his door he finds much more than that. Between the instant attraction and an ill-advised, Margarita-fueled kiss, Evan isn't sure what to make of the Montana rancher, especially with Bill so recently and suddenly gone. With emotions running high and interfering friends and family sticking their noses into things, can the two men find a way to accept life's lemons and make lemonade?

    In need of a new accountant to sort out his nightmarish shoebox of tax receipts, he's referred to Logan Willis. He doesn't expect to be intrigued by the science fiction-loving, geeky guy with dark-rimmed glasses and a TARDIS-blue shirt. So his fascination with the soft-spoken Englishman surprises him, and their mutual attraction is completely unexpected. He most certainly never expects to fall in love. One a jock and the other a geek, both men know the differences between them are vast and could cause problems. But in this opposites-attract erotic drama, maybe it's the differences between them that make staying together worth the fight.

    After their disastrous last encounter, Mark doesn’t hold up much hope Shepherd will agree. Shepherd’s never made a single public appearance. In fact, Mark wouldn’t even know what he looks like had he not accidentally discovered the sexy stranger he’d been flirting with for months, aka “Tall-Dark-and-Grumpy,” was also his fanboy obsession.But desperate times call for desperate measures. If Mark can convince Shepherd, it’ll be a major coup in the book world and might just save Bookmarked from sinking. Too bad Shepherd won’t reply to his e-mails. Yet Mark didn’t earn the reputation of having a “sunshine-and-rainbow-fart” personality for nothing. He’ll do whatever it takes to get his man… and hopefully not make a fool of himself in the process.

    Bailey’s had enough upheaval in her short life, and Cory doesn't want her to get attached to a “friend” who won't be sticking around. Even so, Cory finds himself continuing to let Ken into his life, but a one-night-stand gone serial isn’t what Cory wants, and so he makes The List: his requirements for the perfect partner.Helping out during a difficult time, Ken finds himself being pulled into the family unit despite Cory’s previous emotional distance. He hopes he's finally breaking through, on the verge of convincing Cory to make their relationship more than a casual one. Then, while helping Bailey write to Santa, he finds Cory's list and takes it as his cue to bow out—just when Cory needs him the most.

    He proved them wrong. Now he's back at the landscaping business, Potosi and Sons, he shares with his two older brothers—but they seem more interested in getting Anthony to sell out his share than in celebrating his recovery.The oil-and-water relationship between Anthony and his brothers is hardly new. Even when they were kids, Sal and Chip delighted in terrorizing their baby brother with stories like "The Hook," complete with visits to the abandoned Victorian a half mile down the two-lane.Now Anthony towers over his brothers...but he's still the youngest. When the new owner of the Hook House calls an order in, they take a little too much satisfaction in sending him to face his old fears. And learning to open up again to trust, desire—and maybe even love—is far scarier than The Hook.

    He’s in love with his boss, Logan Remora. Logan is everything Aarons ever wanted in a man, except he’s straight…and married.College student, Aaron Samuels is in love with his boss, Logan Remora. After four long years of working under his boss in every conceivable position except the one he wants, bent over the desk with his pants around his ankles, Aaron is ready to give up and move on to greener pastures.A promising job offer right after graduation seems like fate’s way of kicking Aaron in the ass. He turns in his notice at work with a heavy heart, though Aaron knows he has made the right decision. After all, he couldn’t spend the rest of his life mooning over Logan.A torrid, late night tryst with a man Aaron believes to be Logan’s twin propels him into an emotional tailspin of guilt and confusion. Tough choices loom on the horizon, but Aaron may find that things aren’t always as they seem.

    Raised in Alabama, Kent has hidden his past and now loves his life as a big time ad exec for a prestigious advertising company in New York. But when he makes a bet with his best friend, Blaine, Kent is thrown for a loop—for Kent has to make the next person to walk through the door fall in love with him.Terry Barron is hiding out in New York. Raised in England in a wealthy family, Terry escapes to New York to avoid arranged marriages and the lifestyle he’s grown to hate. When he delivers a package to an advertising firm, he meets the unbelievably sexy Kent Samson. Suddenly, secrets and lies complicate everything and both men find themselves in uncharted waters. How will Terry feel when Kent is revealed as a betting man?

    Since losing the love of his life, he’s buried himself in running West TonDe Press, but now he can remember the good times. Still, that doesn’t mean he’s ready for a new man in his life. Then he meets nighttime delivery guy Brandon, who appears on his doorstep with Thai food. Tony’s interest is piqued despite their ten-year age difference, and Brandon is all for a new relationship. Relinquishing his hold on his deceased lover is the hardest challenge Tony will face, but if his future is combined with Brandon’s, he may have a second chance at love after all.

    Realising he feels the same way, Graham has to journey across the US to tell Will he loves him, too. But with little money and travelling in a strange country, the way to Will is not an easy one.

    Like hundreds Jonathan Wright had seen and hundreds more he'd ignored. He hadn't intended to watch it, but he gives in to his curiosity. When he sees the lithe, blond young man who's doing naughty things with a bearish, older man, he's seduced... and feels like a pervert afterward. The youth in the video seems a little too young, despite the fact he runs his own escort service. Worse yet, Jon gets the nagging feeling he's seen "Justin Time," aka precious_boy, before. When Jon takes a chance and meets Justin in a Chicago hotel room, Jon's past, present, and possibly his future begin to converge in alarming and confusing ways. There's no escaping the resulting dilemma: Jon must decide just how involved he wants to get with a sweet kid whose life has turned sour... a decision made more complex by a surprising connection to a lover from Jon's past.

    Owen is disconcerted to realize he's still attracted to Caleb Black but refuses to pursue him. Caleb left him once, and Owen's not going down that road again.Caleb is ready for a second chance with Owen and gets it when fate and the matchmaking McKenzies conspire to strand the two men in a rustic cabin during a snowstorm on Christmas Eve. Can Caleb convince Owen to rekindle their romance so they can stop spending their holidays apart?

    But when they both arrive at the store at the same moment, the proprietor tells them to figure out between themselves who gets the bed. Elliot and Shawn decide to hold a contest: winner buys bed.And so the competitions begin, from selling charity tickets to cleaning out stables, and interpersonal tension and burgeoning attraction mount as the days until Christmas pass. But who deserves the gift more: Elliot, who can afford the expensive gift for his casual sex partner, or Shawn, who can barely cover rent, and the mysterious man he’s head-over-heels for?

    But first he needs time, time to get his life back in order and time to get over is lost love. But learning to live alone again is nearly impossible with his well-meaning relatives treating him like a poor helpless blind guy.When Alan Stuart befriends Phillip DiMartino's grieving partner, the last thing he expects is to discover hidden lies and infidelity. Guilty over his attraction to the still-grieving man, Alan resolves to stay silent. But the truth has a way of coming out, and soon a dead man's secrets bring about more heartbreak than Alan could have imagined.Although both men vow to keep their distance, staying away is easier said than done, even when it's Too Soon For Love.91,000 words~

    Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.Download the story, read it online or find it in Love Is Always Write: Volume 4.__________Genre: contemporaryTags: baby; hot business; adoption; family; a bit of m/m steamWarnings: noneWord Count: 15,528