Stranded by Lies


Finn Marlowe - 2014
    By the time I got to the market town, I could feel my time running out. I don’t know why— an instinct maybe? Or maybe I was just so tired of running. I thought I could outlast him, I thought he would give up. I’d not counted on how much the predator in him would love the chase. There were times, while I huddled in my nightly hiding place, when I could almost feel his glee at the challenge, his satisfaction as he went about closing off every avenue of escape— seducing my family to his side, convincing my friends that I was mad, that he just wanted to protect me. There were times, usually on the coldest nights, when I wondered if he’s right— maybe I am mad. Maybe I do belong to him. Maybe I should surrender. Maybe I should stop running. At least then I could just rest.Photo Description: A young man lies on the floor, his only clothing a shirt, unbuttoned to reveal his lean frame. His dark hair lays in wisps upon his shoulders. His wrists are loosely bound by a silken red ribbon, but he’s peaceful, his pose suggesting he has bound himself. Perhaps he has offered his submission to the man towering above him, straddling his waist? The scene is set for a dark seduction, but who is seducing whom?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.

Contract with the Billionaire 1


Jack Woolf - 2015
    But it will cost you.” Jake and Stephen grew up together. Down on his luck and needing a place to crash, Jake knows there's plenty of room in Stephen's gated mansion. Stephen gladly welcomes Jake into his home, but the young billionaire's generosity comes with strings attached—something he's wanted for a very long time. Jake is a straight man and always has been. But when Stephen hands him the blindfold, Jake has no choice but to cover his eyes and take whatever comes. No matter how forbidden, or taboo. 7,600 words. First of two books.

Super Hot Wingman


Sarina Bowen - 2022
    I won't stare at my sister's fiance's super hot best friend, even when he takes his shirt off at a dinner party. 2. I won't look him up online and check out photos from his professional soccer career. 3. And I definitely won't fantasize about him late at night. Oops. Broke all three. But in my defense, his abs and that arrogant smile are my catnip. Plus it's been a while. But no matter how sexy Asher St James is, I will never let on that he's at the top of a long list of things I want to do. And I keep that last promise. Well, mostly…

Effie


C.J. Williams - 2019
    But with Enforcers in hot pursuit, Special Agent EAFY584 can only escape by crashing her stolen starship out of hyperspace into an uncharted solar system. Fortunately for her, the planet called Earth has a human population. Unfortunately for them, standard Enforcer procedure is to sterilize any planet where a spy might be hiding. WHAT CAN YOU DO WHEN DISASTER IS COMING AND NOBODY CARES? To outward appearances, Effie is a typical human teenager. She claims it's part of her undercover work on another world. Whether that's true or not, the disguise works. When she tries to warn the government the world is in danger, no one takes her seriously. The only person who will listen is a lonely old cowboy and he’s already at death’s door. Maybe if she plays her cards just right, his help will be enough. HONESTY MAY NOT BE THE BEST POLICY Effie knows that the Enforcers will arrive sooner or later, so she does everything in her power to be up front with the government. She admits she's an alien, she admits she's from outer space, and tells everyone she wants to help. But who listens to a young woman about a potential alien invasion? JUST BECAUSE PEOPLE WON'T LISTEN DOESN'T MEAN THE THREAT ISN'T REAL. Effie has no choice, she must prepare for battle. She goes into the global marketplace and sells her technology, a little here, a little there. She'll get ready for the bad guys on her own. But that is just step one. Step two means taking the fight to the Enforcers' home system. After all, if you are going to stand up to a bully, you better be ready to finish the job. And if that means dragging Earth into an interplanetary war, they'll have to get used to it.

Oh, to Be A Blobel!


Philip K. Dick - 1964
    Arrasmith was his opposite, a Blobel spy on earth who was unwilling to return to Titan due to the shame of being in human form for almost three quarters of each day.The story deals with the ramifications for the agents' personal and social identity from this alteration.Author quote: "Here I nailed down the ultimate meaningless irony of war; the human turns into a Blobel and the Blobel, his enemy, turns into a human, and there it all is, the futility, the black humor, the stupidity. And in the story they all wind up happy."

Gift of the Goddess


Kaje Harper - 2012
     Garvin’s worst fear is realized when he runs home from the fields to find his lover’s forge empty, his tools scattered, and the ground trampled by a band of soldiers. Nyle has been kidnapped and conscripted into the King’s army—a death sentence even for a big smith like Nyle. Garvin is untrained, unarmed, and nowhere near strong enough to take on one soldier, let alone a whole army. His household skills and a way with horses aren't much to work with, but he can't let that stop him. For the first time in his life, he prays to the Goddess for the help he desperately needs. He’s not expecting an answer. Particularly the one he gets. This is a rerelease of the 2012 Storm Moon Press story. It has been edited and polished, but there are no substantial changes. Content warning - contains a brief on-page episode of dubious to non-consensual sex.

The Letter


Jerry Cole - 2017
    Not everyone has had the sort of beginning Sam has. He was found at birth on the steps of a children’s home run by a convent in Chicago and raised by nuns, eventually to be adopted at the age of three. Given a life with a new family down in Florida, he is unable to shake off the natural curiosity that comes with wanting to know exactly where he came from. Resentful and angry, he ducks and dives his way through his existence, often with the help of law enforcement, before being given a lifeline that takes him back to Chicago. It’s an opportunity both for a new start, and to see whether he can ever get answers to questions he has over how he came to be. When a letter linking him to his past arrives, he is thrown into turmoil, and decides to join a local support group. It’s run by Jay Millar, himself an abandoned baby, but one Sam envies. Jay seems to have his life together in a way Sam craves. Sam soon realizes that it may not be just Jay’s life he’d like, but Jay himself. He is faced with some very tough decisions. Should he reach out to the stranger who gave birth to him? And should he follow his heart down a path he has never dared to tread? It’s time for Sam Nolan to grow up, but he can only do that by closing wounds that have been open since the day he was born. Please Note: This book contains Adult Language & Steamy Adult Activities, it is intended for 18+ Adults Only. Novel, approx. 50,000+ words in length. HEA (happy ever after ending). Does not end with a "cliffhanger". BONUS NOVELLA - "When Worlds Collide" Scott Rogers thinks of himself as the average guy - he works his job, he drinks with his friends, and he has the occasional hook-up with other average guys. If you asked him, he’d say that nothing in his life is remarkable. His friends don’t think of him as average - they see him as incredibly kind, understanding, and full of humor. For a lot of people, he’s the first one they’d turn to in a crisis and he’s always ready to lend a helping hand. But Scott is modest, and he doesn’t have high hopes for his love life. Owen Carlisle is anything but an average guy. A breakout child star at sixteen, he’s lived his entire life in the spotlight. He’s considered to be one of the most intelligent and talented actors of his generation but not a single one of his fans realizes that he’s living a lie. Owen’s reputation and his career depend on his image of being a straight man, the dream man for many women around the world. For Owen, this means he can never have a true relationship and is doomed to pretend to date a string of Hollywood starlets he doesn’t even like. He has no real hope for true happiness. Neither of them expect the whirlwind romance they are thrown into when they come across each other one fateful night. Can Owen sacrifice his career for Scott? Can Scott love somebody who would have to keep his existence a secret? When these two star-crossed lovers meet, they will change each other’s lives forever. Whether they change it for the better or for the worse is up to them. Please Note: This book contains Adult Language & Steamy Adult Activities, it is intended for 18+ Adults Only. Novella, approx. 40,000 words in length. HEA (happy ever after ending). Does not end with a "cliffhanger".

Fix Me


Van Cole - 2020
    I’m Happy To Be Back Home… Even Happier When I See An Old FriendPahrump, Nevada.I've missed you.England's wild green landscape is nothing like the flat orange desert.I was raised here, I've come back to renovate the house for my mom.You'll never guess who runs the local construction company – Eric, my childhood best friend.I've been in love with Eric since high school, as if coming home wasn't complicated enough.The name's Eric.Recently divorced, father of a six-year-old, and a project manager for a construction company.I love my kid, and the money's good – but it's lonely, and stressful, to say the least.I just heard Will's back in town.It'll be nice to see him again.Fix Me is a standalone Gay First Time Best Friend Romance with a HEA and NO cheating!

Don't Read in the Closet: Volume Two


Blaine D. ArdenNicole Dennis - 2011
    P. Barnaby – END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT (First Love )*Sarah Black – SUCKER-PUNCH (Athlete/Hurt-Comfort )Scarlet Blackwell – BREAKING WAVES (Surfing/Angst )Penny Brandon – FINDING JACK (Cowboys/Mild BDSM )Lee Brazil – BE A BAD BOY (First-Time/Family Drama )Cardeno C. – WOMAN WITH A DILDO (Friends to Lovers )L.C. Chase – OPEN TACKLE (Friends to Lovers )*Kim Dare – MASOCHISM 101 (BDSM/Friends to Lovers )S.J. Frost – A LITTLE BIT COUNTRY (Musicians/Rivals to Lovers )Jeanette Grey – HEART AND SOUL (Friends to Lovers )Jambrea Jo Jones – WILD BLUE YONDER (Military )*Pender Mackie by DOG DAYS OF SUMMER (Blue Collar/First Date )JL Merrow – BEAR NAKED (First-time/Bears )M.J. O'Shea – BRIDGES (First Love )*Neil S. Plakcy – PHOTO BOOTH (Cowboys/FBI )Dustin Adrian Rhodes – STORM OF PASSION (Friends to Lovers )Jaime Samms – MOURNING (Hurt/Comfort )*Justin South – REFLECTIONS (First Love/Hurt-Comfort )Zach Sweets – LUSCIOUS LOVE (Coming out/Food Kinky )Piper Vaughn – WANTING (First Love )*Silvia Violet – TIME TO TELL (Military/Friends to Lover)Deanna Wadsworth – UNSCHEDULED MAINTENANCE (Office Sex )Stuart Wakefield – THE ELEMENTS OF LOVE (Sci-Fi/Ménage )Alex Whitehall – HOLD ME TIGHT (Hurt-Comfort/BDSM Light )Lisa Worrall – JUST ONE KISS (Gay-for-You/Cops )Connor Wright – GONE TO PIECES (Sci-Fi/Mild BDSM )

Pirate Festival


Carysa Locke - 2019
    Healing people is her calling, and she’s never been happier than she is working with Doc, her mentor and the pirates’ chief physician. But now a call for aid has come from the most unlikely source: the home planet of the Talented called Killers, those who take life with a thought. Nayla’s gift is the only chance to save a young man’s life, so reluctantly, Doc agrees that she must go. To serve her patient, Nayla will travel to the most dangerous place in the pirate colonies. She will face assassins, and challenge her Talent in ways she never expected. But most dangerous of all, she will confront her own past. Because once, she used her Talent to take life instead of save it.

Everyday Love: APP Exclusive


Gabrielle Evans - 2012
    Now, however, Miles Gavari finds himself drifting farther away from his mate. Deciding that a vacation to an island resort is just what they need to reconnect, he whisks Hades away for some steamy nights on the sandy beaches of Resplendence.Being the ruler of the Underworld is a real job with real stresses. Hades realizes that he’s been taking Miles for granted, and he’s willing to do whatever it takes to recapture what they’ve lost.It doesn’t take long for Miles to realize that he’s not the only one on the island vying for Hades’s attention. Determined to be the last man standing, he pulls out all the stops, making it a trip that neither of them are soon to forget. Will it be enough to hang on to their everyday love? Or is the fairy tale really over for good?Note: This app version at 10,156 words is available for free only inside the BookStrand App. A revised and expanded version at 14,092 words is available for sale separately.

Gyrfalcon


Anna Butler - 2015
    In the first of the Taking Shield series, Shield Captain Bennet is dropped behind the lines to steal priceless intelligence. A dangerous job, and Bennet doesn't need the distractions of changing relationships with his long-term partner, Joss, or with his father-and with Flynn, the new lover who will turn his world upside-down. He expects to risk his life. He expects the data will alter the course of the war. What he doesn't expect is that it will change his life or that Flynn will be impossible to forget.

Lucky In Loveland


K-lee Klein - 2016
    But the town really shines once a year, on Valentine's Day.Lucky Roberts has lived in Loveland his whole life. He has good friends, strong family support, and is all about keeping his community fun and alive. The only thing Lucky has been "unlucky" with is love. But rather than avoiding February fourteenth in his hometown, he throws himself into helping others deliver their messages of love.Enter Jack Canon. Jack moved to Loveland for a fresh start, in both his personal and professional lives. After a tough year, he's finally hoping to just blend in, maybe carve a little niche for himself that his parents would have been proud of. What he didn't expect was a pseudo-lumberjack with a killer body and shy smile to turn his world upside down – and he sure didn't expect to like it so much.When Lucky meets Jack, he feels like a thirteen year-old with his first crush. He's clumsy, stammering, and the first greeting out of his mouth is a less than articulate, "Wow!" Words like adorable and manbun suddenly become part of his vocabulary as he discovers a deep, hidden need to romance the hell out of Jack.And what better way to do that than during the most romantic season in the City of Love?

A Note of Stress


A.R. Moler - 2012
    Quinn has a couple of secrets. One could kill him and the other could kill his career—maybe. Quinn’s new personal assistant, Josh Malone, has a job that makes getting close to Quinn—and learning his secrets—inevitable. What happens when Josh becomes one of those secrets? How can Quinn juggle his career and his secrets without destroying himself? Sometimes, a white knight carries a clipboard, a laptop, and a phone.

The Scout


Eric Tozzi - 2012
    It's heading for Earth at twelve thousand miles per hour...and it will land virtually undetected. For Jack McAllister, a young writer who has finally launched a career for himself, it begins tragically: his estranged father, a former NASA engineer, dies suddenly at his home in Merriweather, Indiana, leaving Jack's Alzheimer's-stricken mother a widow. But in the wake of personal heartbreak, he's confronted by an even more astonishing event--the covert landing of an alien machine in the forest just a few miles outside of town. Now Jack must unmask the true purpose of the otherworldly device that has begun a detailed environmental survey of the woods. Aided by the town's young and resilient female deputy sheriff, he soon discovers that the alien scout is only one small part of a much larger operation, and the countdown to a terrifying global catastrophe is about to take place. Drawing deeply from his father’s scientific influence, all while attempting to avoid the snares of a sexy, seductive and scheming local TV reporter, Jack uncovers—and ultimately finds himself an unwilling component of—an alien plan set to terminate life on Earth as we know it.