Lead Me Into Darkness is a compilation of original tales of queer paranormal romance by five of the hottest authors of contemporary romance.Take You Farther by Santino HassellBrian Watts' boyfriend is a newly turned vampire, and he's shouldering the blame. Watts would do anything--including offering up a vein, stripping for cash, and demanding answers from other creatures of the night--to redeem himself and save the man he loves.Memory Hill by J.C. LillisBilly Hartigan's been dead for ten years, and it's really pissing him off. Stuck in Memory Hill Cemetery due to "unfinished business," he fritters away the long days playing monster movies in his head, reliving the glory days of his indie band, and mourning his missed chance at love with his best friend. Then one Halloween he gets a visit from troubled teen geek Todd Racklin, the last living fan of Billy's old band. Todd needs some beyond-the-grave help from his idol--and his visits might hold the key to Billy's release from Memory Hill.Grave Circumstances by J.R. GraySecret agendas collide with guns, ghosts and confusing erections, on a tour through a haunted graveyard. Jesse's been carrying a secret and needs a night alone with George. But George has his own agenda, leading Jesse into darkness, the fright of his life, and a blinding release he won't soon forget.Boyfriends in the Boneyard by Kris RipperIn a perfect world, Truman Jennings would be spending Halloween with both his husband and his boyfriend; alas, in this one he's on a ghost tour with his husband, and his boyfriend is probably watching scary movies and eating pizza rolls.The cemetery is appropriately creepy, their tour guide weaves a good yarn, and Hugh's in a very odd (but utterly delightful) mood. When Hugh leads him away from the group Truman doesn't know what to think, but considering his husband's filthy, kinky mind, he's more than willing to find out.As usual, Hugh has both tricks and treats up his sleeve.Mayfair by Roan ParrishJocelyn has been secretly in love with her best friend Bethany for a year. And it's hell. But there are other things—dark, creeping, illusory things—that are tormenting Jocelyn even more. They've been appearing more and more lately and Jocelyn is starting to doubt her sanity. But a Devil's Night ritual in a Detroit cemetery may reveal more than she ever imagined…

    Must be comfortable with the mystical and at home with haunted spirits. (Don’t say we didn’t warn you.) Previous buyers haven’t lasted the night— will you be the one to tame the teeming shadows of this lovely Victorian mansion?Will Ryan and Davis survive the ghosts of the Maberly sisters to win a shot at owning this historic inn? Or do they have a ghost of a chance at finding something else entirely? When things go bump in the night at this inn, it might just be the headboard...LGBT Romance Short Story approx 18k words.

    So what’s the problem, I hear you cry? Gorgeous, naked man in my bedroom? Well, there’s the not-so-small, highly significant detail that he died six years ago. Yup. You read that right. And now he’s everywhere. I can’t even brush my teeth in peace. And did I mention that he never stops talking? I’ve missed him like crazy, every day of the six years he’s been gone. And with Christmas coming, the memories are even more acute. But this is getting beyond a joke. Ignoring a naked guy is a pretty tough task, especially when I’m the only one who sees him. So when he bops a complete stranger on the head with his dick in the middle of the coffee shop, I have to laugh. Anyone would, right? Except… there’s a look on the guy’s face that tells me he felt that. But… how could he? And now he’s looking at me like he’s expecting me to explain what just happened. Either he’ll call for the guys with the straitjacket… or this will be one of the most interesting conversations I’ve ever had….

    I was human, so I understood why I was being sent to the auction. I didn’t like it, but I understood it. Even if there had been affection for me, even if they had been willing to keep me as a pet (neither of these was the case, but an Omega could dream), Cal couldn’t afford not to sell me. Clint Omegas were hard to come by worldwide. While I would have preferred to mate for love, it didn’t seem that it was in the cards for me. I had taken over as pack Alpha five years earlier, and it was high time that I started adding to the pack population. Granted my pack is run less rigidly than some; the Betas in my pack are not just allowed to breed but actively encouraged to. Unfortunately, only a small number of Beta females are fertile enough to get pregnant, and I’ll be damned if I am going to hump my way through the pack until I find the ones who are. Which brought me full circle to why I was standing in line to pick up the bidding paddle at the auction house. Less, even, than a marriage of convenience, purchasing an Omega at the auction was more of a long-term service contract; a means to an end, so what was an Alpha to do when he found his soul mate on the auction block?5% of royalties received from the sale of Soul Mate for Sale are donated to The Trevor Project; the leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) young people ages 13-24.

    But nineteen-year-old Callum is fully human, woefully ignorant of Pack Law, and when an accidental encounter with a frenzied beta leaves the wolf dead and Callum battered but alive, he finds himself facing the wrath of the pack -- until the dead wolf’s mate invokes the right to claim Callum as his own. With his life on the line, Callum’s only choice is to bond with the troubled alpha, and carve a place for himself in the pack by any means necessary. Taking the bond was the worst mistake Nero ever made. But now, with his bond-mate dead, the clock is ticking. He needs to bond again by the full moon, or his next transformation will kill him. That’s all he needs the human for, just a means to an end. At least that’s what he tells himself, but as the bond takes hold he finds himself falling deeper into something he swore he would never do again.

    With a deadline hanging over him, he heads for the Bible Belt, looking for the perfect combination of sweetness and challenge.Seth is a blind musician, part of a traveling tent revival. He’s cute, mystically talented, and quotes the Bible at every turn. His soul is pure enough to fill Abaddon’s quota for months to come, and Abaddon is determined to claim it.The problem? There’s the revival foreman who watches Abaddon’s every move. Then there’s the mystery of Seth’s many unusual talents. Lastly, there’s Abaddon himself. He’s beginning to like Seth a bit too much. Maybe Seth deserves something better than damnation.But Hell’s agenda isn’t negotiable, and time is running out. If Abaddon doesn’t play his cards right, he could condemn both of them to the worst fate of all—an eternity apart.Warning: Contains a Bible-quoting twink and an irreverent devil who’ll do anything to avoid going “back to the office”. Also, snakes. Lots and lots of snakes.

    For most of his life, he’s felt different from his alpha male brothers and friends. Since he’s adopted, he can’t even blame it on family.Now eighteen, Jazz meets his idol, the social activist Lysandra Mason, and her breathtaking nephew, Dash Mercury. When Dash is around, even stranger things start to happen, including Jazz falling hopelessly in lust. Not only is Jazz having visions, making people disappear, and somehow turning invisible, but somebody’s following him and threatening to reveal his pack’s secrets to the world.Together with Dash and Jazz’s equally amazing friends—Carla, BeBop, Khadija, and Fatima—they discover the danger is even more lethal than they thought, and Jazz’s weirdness may save all their lives.

    After giving an old man a ride home, Mason discovers a new, magical, and even dangerous world he cannot hope to understand. But he also finds Luc Toussaint and is intoxicated at first sight... and even the secret Luc protects won’t be enough to keep Mason away from the truth of his heritage and their love.1st edition published by Dreamspinner Press, 2010.

    Until he meets Tork. Tork is clever and funny. He makes origami models and reads Dickens. Tork has green hair and makes Adam's heart race with longing. But Tork is homeless and not at all impressed with Adam's attitude.Can Adam see past his fear and arrogance? Can Tork give Adam a chance? Can two such different men turn the world upside down and find out what really matters? Read to find out their story.Content Warning: the story includes reference to and description of self-harming.* * * * *A story from Boughs of Evergreen: A Holiday Anthology

    He’s a monster, after all. How would he ever find a man who can deal with his other self—the wolf?When a reckless young hiker named Leo gets his leg caught in an old bear trap, Kirk rescues him, tracking him down by scent alone. While Kirk takes care of his injuries, Leo’s bright, sunny presence slowly wears down all Kirk’s defences.But as the full moon rises, Kirk struggles between the urge to protect Leo and the demands of the wolf, who wants only one thing: to claim his mate…

    The moon's rising high and full in the sky when Zach notices something's changing in Mal, growing volatile and wild. And no matter how quickly the bond between them grows, Zach's afraid he won't survive the night.

    The catch? They have to spend a year apart after the bonding ritual. Then Ian must—using only their newly-forged spiritual connection—seek Levi out, proving the bond actually worked despite Ian being human. Now the year is over, and Levi is desperate to have Ian back in his arms, but there’s one problem—Ian’s changed. In a moment of weakness during that agonizing year apart, Ian cheated… with a vampire. Now Ian himself is a vampire, and a devastated, furious Levi wants nothing to do with him. That is until he learns his clan wants Ian brought to justice for desecrating their most sacred ritual. If they find him, they’ll learn he’s a vampire, and kill him. Afraid for Ian’s safety, Levi rushes to find him. Darius, the vampire who converted Ian, tries to take him someplace safe, but when Levi catches up, all hell breaks loose. Now Ian’s on the run with a dead wolf’s blood on his hands, and the only way Levi or Darius are going to get near him is to work together. They need to get to him before the rest of the clan… assuming they don’t kill each other first. This 118,000 word novel was previously published.

    Unfortunately, I’m a pretty terrible phoenix. I can’t seem to control my fire. I lose my feathers (I could give you my father’s lecture on that word for word, I’ve heard it so many times). And worst of all, my tears don’t heal. I’ve pretty much been a hermit since my clan kicked me out ten years ago.The other day this man came to my cave claiming he needed a phoenix to help him with his quest. I was so startled I lit half my clothes on fire and scared him away. I can see him climbing the trail towards my cave again. What in the world does he want?Pic 2 is the third undersecretary to the royal historian (or some similar underling position within the royal court) and discovered something he shouldn’t have. He can’t tell anyone or he will be killed so he has to fix it all on his own…except maybe for the help of one hermit phoenix.Photo Descriptions: Photo 1: A shirtless, slender man with hard-taut muscles gazes thoughtfully ahead. Around him, singed and burned feathers waft to the ground. His short red hair either burns with orange-dancing flames or perhaps catches the raw yellow sunlight, giving him a fire-roasted appearance. His raw sensuality simmers, as if the air around him is charged with electricity and yet refuses to ignite into passion.Photo 2: A tranquil, lavender-shirted man holds a book in his right hand and a lantern in his left. He’s young, mid-twenties, a thin man. His tight black pants and elegant dress shirt convey a sense of timeless style. Pages seem to leave the book and fly away, as if magically lifted by the wind. Despite the floating pages and the bruised blues and greens in the dangerous sky before him, the man with raven hair and a dark purple streak remains calm, absorbed. Around him, delicate flowers blossom with long, curled petals, as delicate and strong as this man himself.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love’s Landscapes" event. 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. This story may contain sexually explicit content and is intended for adult readers. It may contain content that is disagreeable or distressing to some readers. The M/M Romance Group strongly recommends that each reader review the General Information section before each story for story tags as well as for content warnings.

    When the only thing Horst leaves to Willem is the family cat, he thinks it’s his father’s last insult from the grave. That is, until the cat starts talking to him.Though Willem’s lost his boyfriend, his home, and his job, Kasha, who claims to be a magic cat, reassures him that all will be well. All he needs is Willem’s trust and a good pair of boots. But giving boots to a talking cat has unexpected consequences when odd events ambush Willem at every turn, such as the appearance of a handsome stranger in his arms at night. While he begins to suspect Kasha’s plans might be dangerous for all involved, how can he distrust such a charming kitty in cowboy boots?

    Now he has to choose between his heart and his pack. When mixed-blood werewolf Mahon comes across powerful fae magic in a nightclub, dealing with the threat is a chance to prove to his new pack where his loyalties lie. But the threat turns out to be a gorgeous, wide-eyed college student who’s never heard of the supernatural world. After they're attacked by bloodsucking vampire bats, he takes Oscar and his small, angry cat home for their own protection. He’ll definitely tell his pack about Oscar...later. Abandoned as an infant, Oscar’s always wondered where he came from—he just never expected the answer to include pointy ears, magical powers, and evil forces trying to kill him. Oscar knows he shouldn’t rely on Mahon for help, but it’s hard to resist when a six-foot-six werewolf literally sweeps you off your feet. The key to Oscar’s past might lie with the local fae court—where werewolves aren’t welcome. Oscar and Mahon are mates—but how can they be together when it might cost them both everything? The Werewolf’s Fae Mate is an m/m paranormal werewolf/fae romance with a HEA and no cliffhangers.