Rock and a Hard Place


Jane Davitt - 2012
    This version offered for free by the authors. It can be downloaded here:Rock and a Hard PlaceDetermined to outdo each other, business rivals Sean and Andrew land themselves in hot water when their private feud spills over at a very public charity auction.With neither willing to back down over the dream vacation at stake, they're told by their boss that they're both going and that they're to return as friends.As fate would have it, their plane crashes and they wash up on a desert island where their feud is as likely to doom them as the lack of food and their inability to start a fire. But there's enough heat between them to set sparks flying once out and proud Sean discovers that Andrew's gay, but determined to remain in the closet.Rescue comes, but brings with it new challenges. They're whisked back to their old lives with secrets to keep and a shared passion that makes it impossible for them to stay apart for long.Choices must be made, new paths taken, and two men who have always been good at fighting find themselves, finally, with something worth fighting for: each other.

Take My Picture


Giselle Ellis - 2007
    He certainly doesn't expect to end up working as Jake's assistant for five frustrating, thrilling, and crazy years instead of in front of the camera.It all works until Jake realizes Aaron has become the focus of his life, a life that's threatened when Aaron actually leaves him to start a relationship with someone else. Though it breaks his heart, Jake realizes he has to set his beloved muse free to have any chance of winning Aaron back.Reprint: This short story was originally published in the Dreamspinner Press anthology Size Still Matters.

Beyond the Surface


Felice Stevens - 2015
    He's unable to rid himself of survivor’s guilt, made worse by the secret he hides from his family and co-workers. Nick's life is centered around helping burn victims, until he is reunited with the man he’d once loved but pushed away. Now he has a second chance at a love he thought lost forever.For fashion designer Julian Cornell, appearances mean everything. His love affairs are strictly casual, and the only thing he cares about is making his clothing line a success. A chance encounter with the man he loved long ago has Julian thinking for the first time in years there may be more to life than being seen at the best parties and what designer labels to wear.When Julian’s world takes an unexpected turn, it's Nick who helps him regain perspective on what matters most in life. Julian, in turn, helps Nick accept who he is and understand he isn’t responsible for tragedies he couldn't prevent. Lost love found can be even sweeter the second time around and after all the years apart, both men learn to look beyond the surface to find the men they are inside.

Holiday Outing


Astrid Amara - 2008
    But now he is going to spend Hanukkah with them in order to finally tell them the truth: not only is he gay, but he is a successful author of gay novels and not the struggling (and straight) writer they imagine him to be.The holiday starts poorly. A record blizzard delays his flight. The snowstorm locks him and his loud, argumentative relatives in the house. The power fails. And, worst of all, Jonah has to share his room with his childhood rival, the perfect Jewish son, the one he spent his entire life unfavorably compared to: Dr. Ethan Rosenberg, son of his mother's mahjong partner, and apparently God's gift to the Chosen People.If this isn't bad enough, Jonah has to interpret Ethan's strange new fascination with him. Is Ethan flirting? Or is this just another trick to break Jonah's heart?But when a valuable family heirloom is stolen during the festivities and suspicion falls on Jonah, Ethan agrees to help prove Jonah's innocence. They have eight days to do it. But will they solve the crime before the cooking oil -- and everyone's civility -- runs out?

Fifteen Shades of Gay (For Pay)


T. Baggins - 2012
    But despite his good looks and talent, Andrew hasn’t managed to find work as an actor. With his bank account empty and his credit cards maxed, Andrew needs money fast. Gay escorts make a nice living, but there’s one problem—Andrew isn’t gay.SEX…Ever since his early teens, when Andrew’s father shocked everyone by coming out, Andrew has been uncomfortable around gay men. Pretending to be gay will be the role of a lifetime. From male/male dates to erotic toys, spankings and more extreme play, Andrew must satisfy his clients without revealing his usual tastes.… AND ROMANCEAndrew’s first date with closeted politician Cormac Donovan ends in disaster. Yet with each successive booking, the attraction between them grows. As Andrew struggles with unexpected new feelings, Cormac puts his senatorial career in danger. And what began as a way for Andrew to earn money becomes a one-way ticket to heartbreak—or lasting love.

The One That Got Away


Rhianne Aile - 2009
    Their easy camaraderie continues with no problems until David discovers an undercurrent of heat and tension flowing between them. Despite knowing his best friend is straight, David is slowly falling in love. What he doesn't know is that Trace is struggling with a similar discovery.Trace has never desired another man before. He's a ladies' man with quite the reputation, considered a top prize around town. But his close, treasured friendship with David makes the emotion and arousal growing between them irresistible. Soothing David's doubts, Trace makes it clear that he wants to know if they can make it work. Because Trace is sure he wouldn't love another man -- that's not the issue. He just loves David.

Crossing Borders


Z.A. Maxfield - 2008
    So when his most recent girlfriend dumps him via messenger, and he can't stop staring at the messenger's cock while he's breaking the news, Tristan figures it's about time he makes some changes. He formulates a foolproof plan to get himself someone who can show him what he's been missing -- until who should crash his little adventure but Officer Michael Truax, the man who gave him a really expensive ticket for boarding without a helmet back when he was in high school.Michael has been trying to catch Tristan for years...to give him a second ticket. Suddenly he's faced with his 'Sparky', all grown up -- and looking to get laid. The habit of protecting him isn't gone completely, but the opportunity is too much to resist. He figures the kid must know what he's getting into, so he takes him home. There, they carry on a cautious dance, only to find out that neither is what the other expected, and that together, they're hot enough to melt glass. Publisher's Note: This book contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find objectionable: Anal play/intercourse, male/male sexual practices, violence.

Cherry Pie


Samantha Kane - 2011
    He's been living in a kind of suspended animation, fixing up the old house he bought there, reclusive and alone. Until the day Connor Meecham appears.Conn Meecham has returned home, only to find it isn't his anymore. Someone else owns his mother's house now. But Conn needs that house to find the man he left behind more than eight years ago--before the drugs, before prison, before his life derailed. Lonely, desperate, lost, Conn finds in John a kindred soul.Mercury is a dying town. But John sets out to change that when he learns what it means to Conn. Through home improvements, sex, old friends, sex, misunderstandings, sex, and homemade cherry pie, John and Conn may finally discover that where they are now can be heaven on earth if they want it to bePublisher's Note: This book contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find objectionable: male/male sexual practices.

Cost of Repairs


A.M. Arthur - 2012
    When he's not out walking his beat as a police officer, all he wants is peace, a manageable routine, and time to fix up his newly-purchased project home. And Samuel absolutely does not have room in his new routines for a relationship. Except a chance encounter with a handsome diner cook unexpectedly shakes his resolve. Rey King lives for his work as a short-order cook, part-time hardware salesman, and full-time handyman. He’s in debt up to his eyeballs, so he isn’t looking for complications. And the gorgeous blond cop who comes to Rey’s rescue is a complication he definitely doesn’t need. Lucky for him, Samuel feels the same way. But what starts as an afternoon of no-strings sex inevitably complicates itself, as the two men learn how deeply each other’s emotional damage goes. When Rey is seriously injured protecting a friend, their already shaky foundation cracks a little more. Samuel barely pulled his life back together after his first lover's death and falling in love again isn't part of his recovery plan. He knows renovations are always a gamble, but this one isn't about risking money—it's about Samuel risking his heart. NOTE: This book was previously published under the same title. This new edition has been lightly edited to address minor continuity problems, but the overall story is the same.

The Senator's Secret


K.C. Wells - 2016
    It doesn’t matter that the photo is totally innocent. He has no choice but to come clean… until his staff suggest putting a spin on it that leaves Sam reeling.Sure, he’ll end up with a lot of sympathy, not to mention the possibility of more voters from the LGBT community, but it still seems a pretty drastic solution.Now all they have to do is persuade Gary, the other man in the photo, to play along. It sounds so easy: convince the constituents of North Carolina that he and Sam are engaged.No big deal, except for the fact that they’ve only just met….

True North


Bethany Brown - 2009
    The surprise is the magnetic, heated attraction to the enigmatic Julian Piet, a charming doctor with killer good looks that appears to treat him, sending Jack off his lonely course.Now that their paths have crossed, Jack and Julian head off in a new direction - but between Jack's reluctance to be open about his sexuality and Julian's shattered self-confidence, they can't seem to decide what direction that is. It takes a push from Julian's meddlesome sister to send them stumbling headfirst into romance.Happily wrapped up in their fledgling relationship, Jack and Julian think they may have found their way until unexpected roadblocks appear on their path to forever. Wrathful storms, dangerous illness, family connections, and broken hearts threaten their tenuous balance and will send them spinning apart – their love scattered to the four winds - if they cannot believe and trust that together, they can find true north.

Snakes Among Sweet Flowers


Jason Huffman-Black - 2016
    But there are a few problems with this plan. One is the neighborly citizens of Hog Mountain thwarting his dirty dealings at every turn with their kindness. Another is Jackson Rhodes, a closeted Hog Mountain police officer who can see right through Cam’s good ol’ boy act and plans to catch him red-handed despite the attraction they both can feel. But the biggest problem of all is that Cam’s past is threatening to catch up with him, and it could mean trouble for more than just himself.

Family Man


Heidi Cullinan - 2013
    It’ll be a problem for his big, fat Italian family. Still, after three failed marriages, it’s getting harder to ignore what he really wants.Vinnie attempts some self-exploration in Chicago’s Boystown bars, far from anyone who knows him. Naturally, he runs smack into someone from the neighborhood.Between working two jobs, going to school, taking care of his grandmother, and dealing with his mother’s ongoing substance abuse, Trey Giles has little time for fun, let alone dating someone who swears he’s straight. Yet after one night of dancing cheek-to-cheek, Trey agrees to let Vinnie court him and see if he truly belongs on this side of the fence—though Trey intends to keep his virginity intact.It seems like a solid plan, but nothing is simple when family is involved. When Vinnie’s family finds out about their relationship, the situation is sticky enough, but when Trey’s mother goes critical, Vinnie and Trey must decide whose happiness is most important—their families’ or their own.Second Edition.First Edition published by Samhain, 2013.

Conquest


S.J. Frost - 2009
    Evan Arden was thought of as a musical genius when at the height of his career he vanished from the spotlight. Together, their relationship is just as intense as their music careers. With success pushing down on them, Jesse must decide between his life of music, or his life with Evan.

Coming Home


M.J. O'Shea - 2012
    Ten years later Tallis is dead broke, newly homeless, and on the walk of shame to end all walks of shame. He needs money and needs it fast, and Rock Bay is the only home he knows. But the people of Rock Bay haven't forgotten him-or the spoiled brat he used to be. The only person in town willing to overlook his past is Lex, the new coffee shop owner, who offers Tally a job even though he appears to despise Tally based on his reputation alone. When Tally discovers his gorgeous boss is the kid he tortured back in high school, Lex's hot and cold routine finally makes sense. Now Tally has to pull out all the stops to prove he was never really the jerk he seemed to be. After all, if he can win Lex's heart, the rest of the town should be a piece of coffee cake.