Hearts Afire: January


Bonnie Dee - 2009
    Firestarter. When the two come together, their world ignites!Pete Santori is a New York City fireman who is committed to his job and doesn’t take any time for personal relationships. That all changes one night when he saves a man from a fire that the victim appears to have started. As the man in his arms makes a confession, a strange connection passes between them.Alan Delaine is a firestarter, not an arsonist. He manifests powerful energy when he experiences strong emotion and things in his vicinity ignite. He’s been held captive in an unidentified facility, where he was tested physically and psychologically. When he meets Pete, he’s been living on the run after escaping the lab.As the two men come together, each has qualities the other needs. Physical attraction grows into something deeper. When the pair is kidnapped, can they make it out alive and build a future in which Alan can live a normal life?Contains: M/M, GLBT"Where The Devil Dances" – By T.A. ChaseScars aren't always on the outside. Architect Eric Sandel is living proof. He moves to Morley after surviving a terrible fire in order to rebuild his life and hopes designing the new Opera House will help him bury the past.Firefighter David Browdie hasn't had time for serious relationships; his “on call” status tends to leave relationships in the dust. When he meets Eric at the neighborhood dog park, sparks fly and he thinks maybe this time, serious will win after all.But a demon from Eric's past haunts him. David and Eric must work together to find a way to stop the madman before they all go up in flames.Contains: m/m love, dangerous obsessions and cute dogs

A Life Without You


Erica Pike - 2012
    Or that's how it feels to Adam. It doesn't help that Jesse has a girlfriend back home and claims to be straight, but there's no way with all the sparks and physical intimacy flying between the two roommates.When Adam believes he has reached his ultimate happiness, the bedroom walls come crashing down with a visit from Jesse's girlfriend.Now Jesse has to decide if he can come to terms with his sexuality, while Adam has to learn to accept that Jesse might never be able to crawl out of the closet.

Unexpected Rescue


Silvia Violet - 2013
    Being forced into the civilian world was bad enough, but being told he’s crazy is intolerable. No matter what the doctors or anyone else tells him, he knows a supposed ally was responsible for his injury, and that same man is determined to shut Jackson up for good.When Jackson sees a kayaker clinging to his boat from the balcony of his beach house, his instincts tell him something dire is about to happen. Jackson rescues the injured man and insists on hiding him until a former SEAL teammate arrives. As Jackson struggles with separating reality from soul-shattering flashbacks, the injured man’s compassion and growing trust tear down his barriers, and Jackson begins to wonder if his heart is as dead as he’d assumed.

The Importance of Being Denny


Kari Gregg - 2011
    Loving his very closeted stepbrother cost Denny everything once: his home, his family, the safety net of his trust fund. Everything. Denny built a new life. Matt finally coming out has stirred his stepmother's wrath, though, and four years of not loving Matt is about to cost Denny everything. Again.Or is it?Original Prompt:Dear Author,Sometimes you can find the love in the most unexpected places. He was younger and so full of himself that I couldn't even stand the sight of him. Unfortunately, we've know each other our whole life, so I couldn't ignore him. And then he decided to prepare a surprise...I've fallen in love with this picture and I'd be really grateful if someone wrote a story about these handsome men. It could be about close neighbours or even brothers (but not friends :). When I look at this picture I see sparks of love, passion and admiration flying between both men and the story should be the same.Photo Description: Two dark-haired jean-clad young men stand chest to chest, faces angled together, eyes closed. Bare muscular abdomens touch. Their mouths hover a breath away from each other. The taller, his back pressed to a rough wall, has a finger tucked in the other man's waistband, pulling him close.Download the story, read it online or find it in Don't Read in the Closet, Volume 2.__________Genre: contemporaryTags: gay m/m, brothers, stepbrothers, family, drama, angstWarnings: brothercest (stepbrothers)Word Count: 9,946

Why Love Matters


Jay Northcote - 2016
    His mother runs cuddle workshops, which could help Alastair overcome his fears--if he's brave enough to try. Alastair is nervous not only about the workshop, but also because he will be sharing a room with Martin, who's starred in his fantasies more often than an assistant should.Alastair reluctantly decides to give it a try, so they head to a commune in Wales where Martin grew up. The weekend at the commune with Martin proves to be transformative in more ways than one. NB: All royalties from sales of this story will be split equally between two LGBT charities: The Human Rights Campaign in the USA and Stonewall in the UK.

Trust In Me


Lori Toland - 2011
    As the only other technical specialist able to step in on such short notice, he takes over what seems like an average job until he runs into his old crush from high school, Jamie Hunter. Ten years after a summer fling left him with a broken heart, Tristan now has a different view of life and love but this time around, will he push away the only man he ever cared about?

Chiaroscuro


Jenna Jones - 2007
    Laid off at his job and at odds with his ultra-conservative boyfriend, Micah, he's searching for something to fill the empty spots. When he meets Ben Gallagher, a cake decorator, Jamie knows he's found a friend. Taking a chance, Jamie turns to art for his new career, and Ben becomes his muse. He creates an entire show based on the man who is always there for him. The problem with Ben is that he's been hurt by love in the past, and might not be willing to risk his friendship with Jamie for something more. Can Ben get past his fear and see that all that Jamie has to offer before it's too late?

Worth Keeping


Susan Mac Nicol - 2013
    Mostly. Other days life seems a little much. Especially when Nick knows he’ll always be alone. On those days his thoughts turn black. He walks the Norfolk coast and considers the frigid embrace of the waves. And then, one stormy night, he finds someone who’s tasted just that. The beautiful stranger on the beach is near death, and Nick rushes him home to slowly nurse back to health. As he does, he finds a love unlike any other. Owen Butler’s body is as warm as the sea was cold, his heart as big as an ocean. And Owen is a man who swears to repay the favor. Nick can yet be saved from himself, and he will see that he is indeed a man ... worth keeping.

To Find and to Keep


Serena Yates - 2009
    To escape their threats, he ran away to Canada. Now his twin sister Nicole is getting married to his best friend Peter, and Ryan will risk anything to attend. Help arrives in the most unexpected form: Peter's older brother Daniel, the man Ryan had loved from afar.

Sam's Reviews


Jan Irving - 2010
    He owns a building where a lot of misfits make a home and his neighbourhood is threatened because of a shiny new development going up. He heads uptown to speak his mind to the man behind the monstrosity. Architect Tall Hollander is not what he expects-tall like his name, but slinky and up front about finding Sam attractive.Sam also has other pressures-a brutal thief known as The Bruiser is haunting the area, he has sole custody of his vulnerable nephew Joey and his latest romance has just been rejected because it's too 'unrealistic,' but Sam escapes into fantasy, a place where he finds the passion he hungers for.

Pain Management


Cassidy Ryan - 2010
    Until one drunken indiscretion threatens to change everything. But there is more than friendship on the line. Can Reese put the pain of his loss behind him and take a chance on a future with Tag, or will one hot night together be all Tag ever has of the man he's loved for as long as he can remember?

Welcome Home, Cowboy


Eden Cole - 2011
    After all they both grew up on Fenn's father's ranch, both cowboys through and through. The challenge is that Fenn has loved Jason since they were teenagers. He's held up a facade for years, bedding women but never committing to any. How can he possibly keep his hands to himself when the cowboy he's longed for is finally within reach?Jason has pursued his dream of one day having his own family, something he's never had. But when his wife files for divorce and a suspect shoots him because his mind is filled with his failed dream, he has no choice but to return to his hometown and to Fenn who has always been there for him. As Jason's therapy for a wounded heart, Fenn has assigned him to work side-by-side with him as one of Fenn's ranch hands. But coming home for Jason means facing what he'd probably run from in the first place--the fact that he's never been able to take his eyes off his best friend for long. He shouldn't notice how Fenn's smile brightens his world, how his blond hair glints in the Montana sunlight, or worst of all, how big, hard, and sexy Fenn's body is.

The Broken Road Cafe


T.A. Webb - 2013
    He's found a man who swept him off his feet. And his best friend of twenty years has his back.Then, one awful day it all comes crashing down around his ears.Making a fresh start, Dan meets the people of Blue Ridge, Georgia, including Chief of Police Nick Oliver, and, perhaps, finds a new home. But danger from his old life follows him and puts not only his life, but that of his new friends, at risk.

See Right Through


Sara Winters - 2012
    His every desire is within arm's reach, except the one person Devin has always wished would be his in the end. All it takes is one conversation to open his eyes to a new possibility, one moment to change what Devin believes about friendship and love and one person to change the rules of the game.Sam Marshall has been fighting his feelings for his friend and roommate for two years. When an opportunity presents itself, he makes his move, only to be faced with the very real fear that what he sees in Devin, the potential waiting to be realized, may be more than their friendship can handle.

Packing Heat


Kele Moon - 2012
    Gavin is just the kind of guy he likes: tall, tough, and buff enough to actually handle Brad's big size and rough nature.To hide his real feelings Brad holds the handsome, seemingly straight cop at arms' length until a shooting at work leaves Gavin a little too vulnerable to ignore. What starts out as a simple attempt to comfort his roommate blows up into something wild, sexual, and wholly unexpected when Gavin wants more from Brad than a strong firefighter's shoulder to lean on.The sexual magnetism drawing the two of them together forces secrets to be revealed, and though the sex is mind-blowing it may not be worth weathering the storms their relationship could stir up. Note: This is an erotic gay romance about a cop and and a firefighter doing very naughty things to each other. Only for readers who like their men big, buff and sinfully sexy.~Rerelease. Originally published 2012~