Book picks similar to
Wide Awake by Kade Boehme
m-m
mm
contemporary
romance
Professional Distance
Silvia Violet - 2015
A tragic love affair left him terrified of relationships, so he tells himself sex is better scheduled and paid for.Riley Dashwood is young, easy-going, and comfortable in his own skin. He’s a passionate baker and an aspiring chef, working as an escort to save up for culinary school.They’re clearly made for each other.When Thorne hires Dash, it’s lust at first sight. After a few scorching nights together, both men start to wonder if what’s between them is more than physical, but their age gap and resistance to romance make them afraid to change their professional relationship to a personal one. Dash pushes Thorne to admit he wants things he’s denied himself for years. Kinky things. Soft, caring things. Things that force him to open his heart, not just his body. To move forward, one or the other must take a risk and ask for what he really wants.
Abel: It Can't Be You
C.J. Bishop - 2014
Having no family but his 16-year-old sister, Savannah, and coming from the streets – The Phoenix club has become his home, the other boys his close-knit family. Abel doesn't trust the outside world and is content to remain within his safe haven. But when an overzealous customer sends Abel to the ER, he meets young, handsome Dr. Devlin Grant – and the instant attraction he feels for the man stirs up the nightmares of his past, causing him to resist his new feelings. Yet it becomes impossible to avoid the doctor when Savannah gets sick and ends up in his care. And just when his heart is ready to trust this new found love – Abel is confronted with a disturbing fact about the doctor that reaches deep into his past and his nightmares. An emotionally charged, sexy, heart-wrenching love story that will break your heart, then put it back together again. Warning: This book contains homosexual relations and crude language not suitable for readers below 17yo.
Faith & Fidelity
Tere Michaels - 2008
He's trying to get on with his life, build a life for his children. Former Homicide Detective Matt Haight is a ladies’ man, all sex/no commitment. He's depressed, having a midlife crisis, and not sure where his life is headed.The two find friendship in the bottom of a shared bottle. When the friendship turns to love, it shakes two straight men to the core and flips their lives inside out. Kids, families, careers that are not gay-friendly -- can all the love in the world overcome the obstacles to faith and fidelity?
Finley
Ella Frank - 2016
But that’s all about to change.On his thirtieth birthday, he receives the one thing he never dared hope for. Something that was promised to him years earlier—a note. One simple sentence from the man he’s never been able to forget.Six words will forever change the course of their lives.Brantley Hayes has it all. Or so he thinks. When he first made the decision to take a job down in Florida, his family thought he was crazy. But, after years of living in the quiet beach town, he finally feels a sense of community. He’s surrounded himself with friends who are like family, has a job he loves, and owns a spectacular beachfront property that is his sanctuary.Yet he still feels unfulfilled, as if a piece of the puzzle is missing, and he knows exactly which piece it is. On an impulse, he follows through with a promise he made years earlier. A promise to call home the one he sent away.Nothing is as simple as it seems.After years of separation, the former lovers are reunited, but Brantley wasn’t expecting to encounter the high walls now guarding Daniel’s heart. Daniel may not be the same person he was when he left, but he knows that the first step to healing is the note in his hand.
Cops, Cakes, and Coffee
Sara York - 2014
He doesn't plan on stepping one foot outside of the closet, but then he meets Adam Hughes. Everything he believed about himself is challenged. Adam makes him feel amazing, and it's not just the sex. Adam has been out for ages and doesn't want to hide who he is, but dating Drake is different from any relationship he has ever been involved in before. When danger threatens their peace, exposing Drake to the community and to all of his friends, he has to make a choice. Drake doesn’t want to be out, but he wants Adam more than he wants to stay safe.
Making it Personal
K.C. Wells - 2013
And he’s going to stay that way. Because if his father finds out he’s gay, Blake could lose everything he’s worked so hard to achieve during the last six years as CEO of Trinity Publishing, the fastest rising star in the publishing firmament. Not that coming out wouldn’t solve a couple of problems. Maybe then his father would stop trying to set him up with yet another empty-headed, social-climbing girlfriend. And better still, Blake could stop using that escort agency when he wants a night of hot sex with a cute guy…Will Parkinson has had a tough life so far, but he’s back on his feet. Okay, so he’s working as an escort – with ‘benefits’– to pay off his student loans, but that does have its advantages, such as the really hot guy who hired him. Yeah, Blake rocked his world last night – several times. So imagine how Will feels when he arrives to be interviewed for his dream job as PA in a publishing company, and the guy who’s hiring is….. Blake.And then things get really complicated….
Vanilla Clouds
Roe Horvat - 2018
His sex life has been nonexistent for some time, though. After a particularly bad hookup, he keeps mostly to himself. That leaves chocolate. Luckily, he works surrounded by the most delicious, extravagant produce in Gothenburg. Beside his job at the chocolaterie, his main source of excitement is his online friend, Magnus, whom he stubbornly refuses to meet in person. A customer turns up at the chocolaterie one day—tall, shy, and charming. He could be just the right man. If Michał can step out of his overly safe shell, there might be not only chocolate, but sex, too. Maybe chocolate-flavored sex. And if he’s lucky, maybe even love. Warning: This book contains explicit scenes, adult language, and obscene amounts of chocolate.
From the Ashes
Daisy Harris - 2013
What he got was a hero.When an accident burns down Jesse’s apartment, he’s left broke and homeless, with a giant dog and a college schedule he can’t afford to maintain. And no family who’s willing to take him in.Lucky for him, a sexy fireman offers him a place to stay. The drawback? The fireman’s big Latino family lives next door, and they don’t know their son is gay.Tomas’s parents made their way in America with hard work and by accepting help when it was offered, so he won’t let Jesse drop out of school just so he can afford a place to live. Besides, Jesse’s the perfect roommate—funny, sweet and breathtakingly cute. He climbs into Tomas’s bed and tugs at his heart. Until Jesse starts pushing for more.Their passion enflames their bodies but threatens to crush Tomas’s family. Tomas is willing to fight for Jesse, but after losing everything, Jesse isn’t sure he can bear to risk his one remaining possession—his heart.Warning: Contains an angry older brother, judgmental best friends, a slobbering bull mastiff, and enough red-hot gay loving to make a porn star blush.
The Angel of 13th Street
Eden Winters - 2010
Haunted by those he couldn’t save, he keeps others at bay until his self-imposed loneliness is shattered by ambitious but homeless Jeremy Kincaid.Aged out of the foster system, Jeremy’s the perfect target for a ruthless pimp like Willie Carnell. He wants no part of any future that includes working for Willie, but without a strong ally, he may not have a choice.Noah knows exactly what Willie’s capable of, and if he’ll fight for strangers, he’ll fight harder for Jeremy. Even if it takes confronting his own past.
Handyman
Claire Thompson - 2008
Simple handyman. Can they find common ground? Will Spencer is a player with a reputation for using and discarding lovers as easily as he earns big money on Wall Street. Handsome, sexy and openly gay, he’s used to having whatever—and whoever—he wants at the snap of his fingers. And what he wants now is his new handyman, Jack Crawford. But Jack is skittish. One lingering touch, one stolen kiss could send the older man into full retreat. Where Will might have quickly moved on to a more ready-and-willing partner, he unexpectedly finds himself wanting to go slow. With just a little coaxing, he’s sure he can show Jack how good it could be between them. Jack, a recent widower, never thought of himself as gay. Frightened years ago by an erotic encounter with his best friend, he focused firmly on his marriage. Now that his bed is empty, however, those deep sexual longings are rising dangerously close to the surface. Their connection is deep, instant, and one that Jack tries to ignore. Yet friendship grows into an erotic journey that must cross a divide of different generations, backgrounds and worlds. The prize is the one thing neither is sure he can handle—true love.
In the Middle of Somewhere
Roan Parrish - 2015
Daniel has never fit in—not at home in Philadelphia with his auto mechanic father and brothers, and not at school where his Ivy League classmates looked down on him. Now, Daniel’s relieved to have a job at a small college in Holiday, Northern Michigan, but he’s a city boy through and through, and it’s clear that this small town is one more place he won’t fit in. Rex Vale clings to routine to keep loneliness at bay: honing his muscular body, perfecting his recipes, and making custom furniture. Rex has lived in Holiday for years, but his shyness and imposing size have kept him from connecting with people. When the two men meet, their chemistry is explosive, but Rex fears Daniel will be another in a long line of people to leave him, and Daniel has learned that letting anyone in can be a fatal weakness. Just as they begin to break down the walls keeping them apart, Daniel is called home to Philadelphia, where he discovers a secret that changes the way he understands everything.
More Than Make-Believe
Tymber Dalton - 2010
He’ll do anything legal, including going gay for pay and spending a weekend as “Craig Rocke,” with gay porn star Marston Cougar. Marston tells him to remember it’s all fantasy for the camera even though it feels like more.Gary Carmeletti, also known as Marston Cougar, has a respectable day job. He started out making gay porn to pay for college. After getting his heart broken, he has a no-dating rule. Now paired with “virgin” Craig, he finds it hard to keep it make-believe when he’s losing his heart.Gary’s niece needs surgery, and he almost has enough money to quit for good. But now that he feels a true connection with his fantasy costar, will he be able to find a happily ever after when he feels it’s more than make-believe?
Between These Sheets
Devon McCormack - 2017
Now I fight another in my mind.” Jay is always on the run—always looking for the next place to start a new life. But no matter how much he moves, he can’t escape the painful memories that haunt him. As he settles into his latest job in the warehouse at a glass bottle factory, he finds himself the target of his co-workers’ teasing. When he takes a stand against one of the bullies, a fight breaks out. His boss, a war vet named Reese, steps in, and Jay accidentally shoves him to the ground, revealing Reese’s prosthetic leg. Jay’s sure he’s gonna lose his job, but he’s blown away when he’s given another shot. Reese is annoyed by the new guy. Jay is reckless and temper prone. Maybe Reese shouldn't have given him a second chance, but his attitude reminds him of his war buddy—a guy who he cared deeply for and who he lost under tragic circumstances. He just hopes Jay doesn’t let him down. When an accident in the factory triggers one of Reese’s PTSD episodes, Jay returns the favor by being there for him and keeping anyone else from discovering the incident. Reese wants to move on and forget it ever happened, but Jay won’t let it go. And as much as Reese tries to keep his distance, there’s a heat—a passion—between them that he can’t resist. It leads them to the bedroom again and again, but Reese quickly realizes they’ve ignited more than the sparks they create between the sheets. And despite the tough-guy façade Jay puts on, underneath there’s a soul just as tortured and hurt as he is. He’s starting to fall for Jay, but he knows there’s a dark storm lurking in the back of his own mind—a storm that will return one day and destroy the beautiful connection they share. Between These Sheets is a standalone romance novel with no cheating, no cliffhangers, and a happy ending.
The Current Between Us
Kindle Alexander - 2013
A story of deception and murder six long years in the making. After spending ten years in some of the worst parts of the world, he's ready to settle life down and open an art gallery in his hometown of Chicago. Trent Cooper, electrical contractor, is surprised by the last minute request for a fast-paced electrical remodel, little did he know he'd be immediately propositioned by the gallery's owner. Being gay in the construction industry isn't easy, nor is being father to his two young adopted children. Trent keeps his life in separate zones to avoid a short circuit. Will their high-voltage passion break the currents between them forever?
You Melted Me
Kari Gregg - 2010
Leland isn’t just his boss, though. He’s the son of the company’s CEO. And Brian has fallen in love. Hurt by too many stolen kisses and nooners at seedy hotels, Brian finally broke off their secret affair two weeks ago. Leland isn’t ready to let Brian go and he isn’t above seducing Brian — again — to give them both what they really want for Christmas: each other.This free short story was originally written for the Goodreads M/M Romance Group's 2010 holiday event and appears in the event's Stuff My Stocking: M/M Romance Stories that are Nice and… Naughty anthology.