A Better Man


Jaime Reese - 2012
    After a five-year prison term that alters every aspect of his life, he receives a bequest from his aunt with the stipulation that he use the money to make things right. Breaking free of the long-standing role he’s played and inspired by the few who support him, he decides to create a safe place where people like him can find purpose and start a new life.Julian Capeletti likes challenges. He is confident, brash, stubborn, and just what Matt needs. Desperate for work after a downturn of luck, he accepts the job to renovate Matt’s crumbling building.Over the course of a year, romance simmers between them as they restore the house. But there’s a bigger renovation that must take place in their hearts. To become better men, they need to learn to trust each other even with secrets and painful memories they fear may rip them apart. ----------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE: 2nd edition is revised and expanded.

Violence Begets...


P.T. Denys - 2013
    James starts his junior year of high school without any friends in a suburb of Salt Lake City, Utah. When he meets Kevin Vincent, he’s too distracted by the promise of new friends to see that Kevin has secrets of his own. Having created an environment where he's feared and admired by his classmates, Kevin finds pleasure in using his good looks and violence to control and manipulate those around him. Secretly, he cruises the gay club scene, turning tricks to earn money so he can party and get high. As Rick’s dad becomes increasingly violent and abusive at home, the two form a surprising and volatile trust. In this battle of wills, their precarious friendship will either keep their lives from blowing up around them or possibly light the fuse that will cause the explosion.

After the End


Alex Kidwell - 2013
    In a single tragic moment, he goes from an artist with a loving partner and a future to an uninspired comic book store owner who barely exists. He hides behind a shield of grief, refusing to let Aaron go. He feels guilty for even trying to imagine a life apart from what he’d had.The charming party planner Quinn’s best friend insists he meet on a blind date isn’t someone he’s ready for. Brady Banner walks into Quinn’s small frozen world and turns everything upside down. For years, Quinn has focused on endings, but as Brady begins to thaw his existence, Quinn realizes that one moment can do more than stop a life—it can also start a new one.

Someone Worth Saving


Ruthie Luhnow - 2017
    Reed: I've spent my whole life causing trouble for my parents, but this time I went too far. After the scandal I caused nearly ruined my mom's political career, they decided to do something drastic-and that's how I ended up in on a ranch in Ely, Wyoming, a zillion miles from civilization. But it's not like I care that I have no friends, my family despises me, and I totally ruined my life in a really public way. And I definitely don't cry myself to sleep every night. The good news? The ranch hand, Brady, is super hot. I mean, I only want to get him in bed to prove I can. So what if he's the first person who's ever been really kind to me? So what if, behind his stoic cowboy act, he's unbelievably considerate and thoughtful and so totally wonderful. I just want to sleep with him-it's not like I have a crush on him or anything. The bad news? I think he hates me. Brady: Life on the ranch is quiet and simple, and that's the way I like it. But then Reed comes along-blond and bratty and completely out of control-and suddenly I can't get a moment's peace. When he's not busy accidentally destroying something, he's hitting on me or throwing a tantrum. Good thing he's only here for a year. When Reed's not being a diva, he's insightful and clever and shockingly sweet-and, yes, I suppose I think he's gorgeous. But after all the loss and heartache in my life, I'm afraid to risk loving someone, only to lose them all over again. Something about Reed's vulnerability, though, is making me open up. Reed's someone worth saving... and maybe I am, too. Someone Worth Saving is an m/m slow burn contemporary romance with enemies-to-lovers and hurt/comfort themes, plenty of heat, and a happy ending.

The Last Thing He Needs


J.H. Knight - 2014
    Since he was fifteen years old, he's managed to keep the children fed and out of foster care. It takes up every ounce of his energy and the last thing he needs is romance complicating his life further. Rookie cop Bobby McAlister doesn't belong in Tommy’s harsh world, but Tommy can’t push him out. As their unlikely friendship turns into a tentative relationship, they weather the daily storm of Tommy’s life with a lot of laughs and more than a few arguments. Tommy isn't used to trusting outsiders, and he's never asked for help in his life. But when a tragedy strikes the O'Shea family and threatens everything he's fought for, he'll have to learn to do both to recover from the brutal hit.

Dirty Games


Barbara Elsborg - 2017
    And when your vision clears, it might be too late to say sorry.Linton Williams is moving up in life, he’s secured a great job, he’s living his dream - until it all comes crashing down, courtesy of a brother who’s hooked on cocaine and owes money to dangerous people. When Linton’s offered enough cash to pay off his brother’s debts and send him to rehab, he can’t say no.But there’s a catch. To save his brother from the hell of addiction, Linton makes a deal with the devil. His job? To teach film star Thorne Morrisey a public lesson in humility that might just destroy Thorne’s acting career for good. When Thorne and Linton meet, sparks fly, and one kiss sets into motion a chain of events that could destroy them both. By the time Linton decides the price is too high, it’s too late. He’s fallen hard. And now he’s trapped between destroying his lover or his brother.Game overThis book has dark themes and violence.

Ricochet


Reese Knightley - 2018
    What he didn’t plan on is losing his heart to a man who is sworn to protect him. Battle scarred US Marshal Robert “Mac” Mackenzie has a job to do, and guaranteeing the safety of Noah Bradford is at the top of that list. Mac will do whatever it takes to keep Noah safe, even if it means walking away. Mac and Noah, brought together during extreme circumstances, have been separated by evil. It's been six years, give or take, and Noah is coming for vengeance against the men who killed his mother. He's on a collision course with Mac, who has no idea of the man Noah has become. Sparks fly and the heat sizzles when these two powerful men are reunited, but will they survive the passion the past created?

Payback


John Inman - 2015
    Every moment of every day, as he tries to pull his shattered existence together again, it's all he can think about—revenge.Will he give in to his rage and become the very thing he hates most? A killer?Only with the help of Homicide Detective Christian Martin, the cop in charge of his case, does Tyler see the possibility of another life beginning—the astounding revelation of another love reaching out to him. A love he thought he would never know again.Will he let that love into his life, or is he lost already? Is payback more important to Tyler than his own happiness? And the happiness of the man who loves him? Tyler is determined to find a way to exact his revenge without sacrificing all hope for a future with Christian, but it will be difficult—if not impossible—and in the end he might be forced to make an unbearable choice.

Slaying Isidore's Dragons


C. Kennedy - 2015
    Irish-born Declan David de Quirke II is the son of two ambassadors, one Irish and one American. He is 'out' to his parents but to no one else. French-born Jean Isidore de Sauveterre is also the son of two ambassadors, one Catalan and one Parisian. His four half brothers have been told to cure him of his homosexuality. Both teens have lost a parent in a London car bombing.5 Weeks of hell, 4 Attempts on their lives, 3 Law enforcement agencies, 2 Dead high school seniors, 1 Jealous friend & a love that won’t be deniedDeclan and Isidore meet at the beginning of their senior year at a private academy in the United States. Declan is immediately smitten with Isidore and becomes his knight in shining armor. Isidore wants to keep what is left of his sanity and needs Declan's love to do it. One is beaten, one is drugged, one is nearly raped, one has been raped. They are harassed by professors and police, and have fights at school, but none of it compares to running for their lives. When the headmaster's popular son attempts suicide and someone tries to assassinate Declan's mother, they are thrown headlong into chaos, betrayal, conspiracy, allegations of sexual coercion, even murder. And one of them carries a secret that may get them killed.5 New family members, 4 BFF’s, 3 Countries, 2 Extraordinary Psychologists, 1 Courageous Mother & a new beginning for two young men in love Read the first chapter of Slaying Isidore's Dragons here:http://ckennedyauthor.blogspot.com/p/...

Whisper


Tal Bauer - 2018
    On the battlefield, he meets Special Forces Sergeant David Haddad. David - Arab American, Muslim, and gay - becomes the man Kris loves, the man he lives for, and the man he kills for, through the long years of the raging wars.David Haddad thought he'd be an outsider his whole life. Too American for the Middle East, too Arab for America, and too gay to be Muslim. It took Kris to bring the parts of himself together, to make him the man he'd always wanted to be. But the War on Terror wreaks havoc on David's soul, threatening to shatter the fragile peace he's finally found with Kris.When a botched mission rips David from Kris's life, Kris's world falls into ruin and ash. A shell of the man who once loved with the strength to shake both the CIA and the world, he marks time on the edges of his life. The days bleed together, meaningless after losing the love of his life.After being captured, tortured to the edge of his life, and left for dead by his comrades, David doesn't know how much of himself is left. He vanished one day in the tribal belt of Pakistan, and the man who walks out almost a decade later is someone new: Al Dakhil Al-Khorasani.But strange rumblings are whispering through the CIA. Intelligence from multiple sources overseas points to something new. Something deadly, and moving to strike the United States. Intercepts say an army from Khorasan, the land of the dead where the Apocalypse of Islam will rise, is coming.And, at the head of this army, a shadowy figure the US hasn't seen before: Al Dakhil Al-Khorasani.David is coming home.

Last of the Summer Tomatoes


Sherrie Henry - 2013
    But instead of being sent to a juvenile detention center like he expected, he is given a chance to commute his sentence by working on a farm for the summer. Enter Sam, son of the farm owners, who shows Kyle what he feels is perfectly normal and that he doesn’t have to hide from his feelings. In turn, Sam’s parents show Kyle that his abusive stepfather and battered mother are not the norm. With their love and support, Kyle finds his place in the world—by Sam’s side.

Everything In Between


Michele Notaro - 2016
    Okay, he actually greeted me. Now I need to say something… anything. Run down my internal checklist—Step One: wipe drool from mouth; I wiped my mouth; check. Step Two: open mouth and speak; say something… come on, anything… nope, I got nothing. Step Three: refer to Step One and repeat. Sigh. This gorgeous man now thinks I’m a moron. Of course, I know that my secret—okay, not so secret—crush, Reese Willoughby, could never have any interest in me anyway. There’s just no way that he hasn’t noticed me openly ogling him at work. I know everyone else in the office has surely seen it. When Reese finally asks for my help with a work project, I can’t help but feel over the moon. Now I can only hope that he notices just how much I like him, because there is no way I’m about to make the first move. ***Everything In Between is the first book in the series Finding My Forever, but is a standalone novel. Each book in the series will feature a different couple, but the couples will show up throughout the series. It is approximately 100,000 words and a contemporary romance between two men with explicit language and graphic sex intended for Adults Only.*** ***Please beware that there is mention of child abuse that could be a trigger for some people.***

Two of a Kind


B.A. Tortuga - 2018
    Their lives have changed quite a bit over the last six years, but Ap is still on the rodeo circuit, doing what he does best in an attempt to feed all those extra mouths.That leaves Trey back on the ranch, isolated and overworked as the kids’ sole caregiver. Something has to give, and when Ap comes home, they’re reminded how hot they burned once upon a time. But is it a love that can withstand wrangling over time, money, and the future? They have to decide what kind of family they want to be… and whether what they share can stand the test of time.

Broken


Nicola Haken - 2016
    As he settles into his new role, makes new friends, and dreams of making it to the top, everything is going to plan.Until he meets James Holden, CEO of Holden House.James Holden hasn’t been able to stop thinking about his encounter with the timid man he met in a club bathroom last week, and when he discovers the one haunting his dreams is an employee, he can’t seem to stop himself from pursuing him.Just a little fun - that’s what James tells himself. He can’t afford to care for someone who can never reciprocate, not once they find out who he really is. James believes nobody deserves the burden of being attached to him. He’s a complicated man. Damaged. Difficult. Demanding. Broken.Is Theodore strong enough to confront James’ demons? More importantly, is James? Please note:This book contains scenes of self harm, mental illness and suicidal ideation which may be uncomfortable for some readers.

Burn Me


Jess Whitecroft - 2018
    Six months sober following a brush with death, Rocco knows a thing or two about the painful process of giving up drugs and alcohol, including one of the biggest rules – no relationships in the first year of recovery. Thrown together again in their attempt to help Matt stay sober, Daniel and Rocco find themselves drawn closer and closer to one another, despite knowing that Rocco is damaged, dangerous, and that falling in love with him is like playing with fire. Can they compromise and find their way, or will Rocco’s vulnerability send everything they’ve fought for up in smoke? This book contains dark themes (addiction, depression, suicide) that some readers may find distressing.