An entire day devoted to the nonsense just piles further trials upon his already hectic schedule. But even the most unromantic man in the palace has a weak spot …

    Be it by way of murder, magic, misunderstanding, mischief, or mayhem, we like to see them suffer. We want the struggle, the grief, the fight. We want to see them angry, confused, hurt, battered, and on the verge of giving up.But most of all we want to see all that toil and strife worth something. We want to see the characters we love finally reach that famous happy end.This anthology includes the following short stories:Quality Assurance by Sasha L. MillerPerfect Angel by Rachelle CochranThe Prince, the Thief, and the Shadow Emperor by M.J. WillowPas Comme Ca by Sophie HungMore Than A Hero by May RidgeThe Simple Method by Remington WardThe Games by Ashley ShawLooking for More by Megan DerrWord count: 169,000

    The brother that was always been his chief playmate and best friend is going to leave him behind, which isn't at all acceptable. The obvious answer is to leave first, so Aqua packs a bag to go on an adventure. But this adventure isn't anything like his last one and the chances of him returning home alive dwindle every moment.

    He’s watched over the last few months as his partner’s health got worse and worse. Logan doesn’t eat. He doesn’t sleep. And Baxter can’t begin to figure out what to do with the terror he sees in Logan’s eyes.Finally convincing Logan to go on vacation, Baxter is committed to using the time wisely. He knows Logan loves him; he’s not worried about anything like that. But something is going on and he’s determined to get to the bottom of whatever it is. He’s got to find out what secrets Logan is harboring before it does irreparable damage and Baxter loses the most important thing in his life. But when Logan begs Baxter to go to a hotel without him and Baxter refuses, he gets his wish. It isn’t anything Baxter is prepared to face, though, and when he finds his own life hanging in the balance, love is put to the ultimate test.Dear Author,I love him so much and I hate to watch as he slowly drives himself to the point of exhaustion. Being a lawyer is a stressful job, I get that, but in most cases he just forgets to eat. My cooking can easy fix the problem; after all, he is not dating a chief of 2 star restaurant for nothing. This time is different. He barely eats or sleeps, and if he manages to fall under he wakes up screaming. When asked about it, he constantly says “I’m fine, sweetheart”. But I can’t help but worry. He was always loving and supportive. When I hit a rock bottom, he helped me get through it. So now is my turn. The last straw was when he got into a full bloody panic attack right in front of me. Now every time I close my eyes, I still see his face so frightened and vulnerable. After insisting and pleading, he finally agreed to go on long overdue vacation. Maybe a change of scenery will help calm his mind and, if I am very optimistic, finally trust me enough to tell me what caused all of it.Photo Description: Two men are on a beach, one carrying the other. Both are barefoot, in shorts and T-shirts, the one face we can see is happy and smiling.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love is an Open Road" 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 his manager Liz comes to let him know, the band is split on whether or not they want to stay together. Liam is most concerned about how band mate Brody will take the news, as he's been in love with Brody for years. When Brody disappears, Liam fears the worst. Brody has plans of his own. Things go from bad to worse, spiraling out of control. Can Liam and Brody do enough damage control to save the band, and their friendship?

    Then Matt starts having dreams—very good dreams—about Joseph, one of the men in the pictures from the 1940s. One morning when Matt wakes up, the bruises are still there. Could there be more to Violet’s present than he thought?

    Jimmy gets in touch with a Stevie Nicks loving gypsy named Sonia, and together they summon up a demon from the pits of Hell to put Jimmy's love life in order. What could possibly go wrong?

    Neither is the fact Jayden Thompson is the most powerful necromancer his country has ever seen, which is why Jayden has kept it to himself. Then Noah Michaels throws a spanner in Jayden's quiet, orderly existence.Noah has recently suffered the death of his twin and needs help in completing his brother's final work. The only person capable of this is a young man with blue streaked hair. Noah doesn't expect to fall for the guy, but fall he does.Loving Jaden is easy, watching the havoc Jayden's powers create, not so much.This is lucky for Noah Michaels when he walks into the Thompson Agency and finds out the sexy man with blue-streaked hair is the only one who can take his case.Falling in love with Jayden is easy, but watching him try to deal with the havoc his powers create isn’t.Please note: this is a previous release.

    Albans and Alex Benedict celebrate the Solstice with a visit to the wish tree, and a holiday party at their flat. A little holiday gift to the readers of my Consulting Magic series!This story comes after the events in the second book, The Apprenticeship of Julian St. Albans.

    Getting a guy has never been a problem; keeping one after they meet his mother and sisters, all witches with magical abilities, is another matter entirely. After a disastrous family dinner, Brian goes home dumped again, only to find a homeless cat outside his home.After an accident involving too much beer, an old spell book, and some blessed Elderflower, Brian wakes up the next morning to Tom, his now very human, and very tempting, familiar. Will Brian keep his new lover? Or will he lose another love to circumstances he can't control?

    It only took Jay a short time to realise he didn’t belong. His abilities, far more advanced than the other students, could only cause jealousy. Knowing how to speak gnome and summon a dragon put him beyond everyone’s skills but the teachers.Enter Thomas Sparks—a member of the local wolf pack who isn’t impressed with Jay’s magic. He wants the man himself. One look into Jay’s eyes and Thomas knows he’s found his life mate. The only problem—convincing the powerful wizard that they were meant to be together.When outside forces threaten to tear them apart, it will take their combined skills to defeat the evil wizard trying to steal their future.Reader Advisory: This book was previously released at another publisher. It has been revised and re-edited for release by Total-E-Bound.

    It can bring love, luck, madness, misfortune, pleasure, and pain. Of all the myths and legends, superstitions and old wives tales, no lunar legend is as well known as those surrounding the wolves...Moon Dogs by Erica Kealey—FBI Agent Grant has had enough of his partner Cary's running and hiding. He knows what he saw, he's okay with what he saw. Now all he has to do is convince Cary of that.The Wolf and the Moon by Kayla Bain-Vrba—Dag's life is an endless series of battles, as he fights Game after Game for the amusement of others, his interest in life lost when he killed his own lover. But then, in the middle of a Game, he encounters a familiar face …A Kind of Remedy by Ashley Shaw—Enticed by gold to participate in an experiment, Nicolaus finds himself regretting it almost immediately. When he comes out of it unscathed, he considers himself lucky. Then the headaches begin …The Were Curse by Sasha L. Miller—When Innot is abruptly escorted to the royal palace he expects nothing good to come of it. But even his worst imaginings did not involve a journal stolen from him years ago, and incomplete spell cast upon the crown prince.Runaway Prince by May Ridge—On the run from his family and a life he hates, Astin reluctantly stops to rest at a trashy motel for the night. The very last thing he expects is Delaney, a bold, beautiful rentboy—and Astin's mate.The Wolf's Moor by Lupin Drake—Seamus enjoys his life as a bartender in a Scottish town; it's a far better life than the one he led two hundred years ago. The only shadows in his life are the curse that afflicts him and a handsome, determined investigator.Moonwitch by M.J. Willow—Prince Athanes arrives in Kamare to solve the mystery of several soldiers attacked by wolves. But the more he learns of the attacks, the more he realizes there is far more going on than a simple matter of hunger and sickness …Coming Home by Elizah J. Davis—With his parents dead, Caleb is alone in the world. Having no reason to stay, and nowhere to go, he wanders aimlessly around the country. Then, one night, he turns into a wolf, and the most frightening thing about it is that it doesn't feel strange at all …The Werewolf of Grey Lake Inn by Megan Derr—Astor is good at telling it like it is, a trait that annoys everyone who knows him, but makes his ghost debunking books a raging success. But even he isn't right about everything, a fact made clear when a simple research trip proves to be anything but.

    The man is a magician, who's forgotten everything, even his name. As the two wait for the supply boat to come and take him away from the island, Cole finds himself falling in love.He doesn't think the beautiful blond man could ever return his feelings. But everything is not as it appears—including the man's past. And someone might just want him dead.

    Still, he likes to think he can roll with things. Sure, the zombies make a mess sometimes, but at least they never reach for anything more threatening than frozen burritos.Besides, it’s not all lizard-monsters and the walking dead. There’s also the mysterious hottie with the sly red lips and a taste for sweets. Josh has had the hots for Hot Guy since the moment he laid eyes on him, and it seems Hot Guy might be sweet on Josh too. Now if only Josh could figure out whether that’s a good thing, a bad thing, or something in between. After all, with a hell vortex just a stone’s throw away, Josh has learned to take nothing at face value—even if it’s a very, very pretty face.

    Watching Mitchell when he comes in for ice cream awakens his powers in unexpected ways. A threat from the past draws them together to find unexpected allies and new friends. Angels has to learn to control his powers without scaring Mitchell away. Mitchell finds the courage to let go and embrace the chaos that Angels bringss to his life.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love is an Open Road" 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. Dear Author,This is me, causing trouble again. I don’t know what happened. One moment I was having a conversation with my roomie and the next thing I knew, the fountain exploded and I’m drenched in stink water. Ugh. Thanks to the hot summer day nobody seemed to mind that I had no idea how to get the water back under control.The thing is, I’m a witch and I suck at magic.I stopped using the little magic I knew since moving into the city about a year ago. Completely. It’s “fun” enough being gay, I didn’t want to be a witch too. I hate keeping secrets and the witchery thing was definitely supposed to be one. Not using my powers had me thinking I could be normal for a change. Tough luck. Since meeting “him” a few weeks ago, all shit went to hell. Every time he comes into the ice-cream shop I work at my magic goes crazy, doing the most embarrassing things!Nothing was meant to happen today! But then I saw him. My pistachio guy–tall, dark, and gorgeous. Always wearing a suit, always ordering pistachio ice-cream. And always giving me those secret smiles. His being around today definitely triggered my sucky magic to go haywire, and causing the fountain to put on a show. Thanks!My lack of witchery knowledge was starting to get me into deeper trouble than I’d ever expected was possible. But I had to find him and… then what?Photo Description: A young man stands in a pool of water in soaking red shorts and pink fluffy earmuffs. Behind him, water splashes out of a broken fountain. His expression shows concern, possibly guilt.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.