Book picks similar to
Did It All Before by Cynthia Hamill
romance
lgbt
no
lgbt-fiction
The Perfect Blend
Teresa Purkis - 2021
A heart warming, slow burn, late in life, friends to lovers story.Georgina owns an independent coffeehouse. Her co-owner, ex lover and sometime friend with benefits, has recently died in a car accident. Grieving, and trying to keep the business going, she finds out the half share has been willed to a complete stranger.Catherine has flitted from job to job, always searching for an important missing piece in her life. Dumped by her boyfriend, jobless, single, penniless and soon to be homeless, Catherine receives a letter which could solve all her problems.Georgina has said she would never again date a straight woman. So why is Catherine continually invading her thoughts? Catherine knows she isn’t gay. So why is she feeling something more than friendship towards Georgina? Will Georgina let her past control her future? Will Catherine acknowledge a future different to her past?Set in a coffeehouse on a busy, bustling main thoroughfare into Bristol. The Perfect Blend introduces us to the owners and characters who frequent the establishment.
Jack: Grime and Punishment
Z.A. Maxfield - 2013
Jack's people get to a scene long after the physical trauma ends. They don't solve crime or rescue the victims. They help people move on. The new job is all Jack wants or needs, until he gets the call about old flame Nick Foasberg's suicide.Ryan Halloran's cousin Nick has been on a downhill slide for a long time. Despite that, Ryan does everything he knows to help. Ryan only understands part of what happened between Nick and Jack in high school, but after Nick's suicide, Ryan agrees both he and Jack need closure. They work together to clean the scene and despite the situation, heat flares between them.Jack is keeping a painful secret and fighting his attraction to Nick's lookalike cousin, Ryan. Ryan calls himself a magnet for lost causes and worries Jack might be the next in a long line of losers. Despite his misgivings, despite the past and the mistakes they've both made, Jack gives Ryan something to look forward to, and Ryan gives Jack a reason to stop looking back, in Grime And Punishment.
Ray of Sunlight
Brynn Stein - 2015
He’s been in and out of juvenile detention for the last four years and thoroughly expects to end up in an adult penitentiary at some point. He hates life and everyone in it, especially this latest community service that he earned in lieu of juvie yet again.CJ Calhoun has big plans. He wants to bring joy and happiness to sick and injured children for as long as he can by performing as a clown. The problem is, he has stage-four cancer and a horrible prognosis.When circumstances throw these two polar opposites together, they find they have more in common than they imagined. CJ discovers Russ’s talent for art and arranges for Russ to create a mural in the hospital foyer, which leads to a tentative scholarship to the Art Institute. As life changes in ways neither of them could have expected, Russ must work harder than ever to better himself as CJ struggles with his deteriorating health.
Wavering Convictions
Erin Dutton - 2019
But the trauma has only just begun, and now she must face her attacker in court. A chance encounter with a beautiful woman in the courthouse café is the only bright spot in her day, until she finds out just who the woman is. Ally Becker has always been her brother’s hero, and she’s at the courthouse to support him as he faces up to his mistakes. When she discovers that the stranger she shared coffee with is actually Maggie, the victim of her brother’s crime, she is torn between family loyalty and an attraction she can’t seem to forget. Maggie and Ally have absolutely no intention of falling in love, but what they find in each other just might heal them both.
Don't Stop Believing
Gwen Hayes - 2015
Two days before Christmas, he sees the new librarian’s car in a ditch and knows he can’t leave him on the road, but it’s too late to take him back to town. He’ll have something he’s never had in his cabin in the ten years that’s he’s lived there…company.The Book Nerd from the CityAdam Parker moved to the small community to make big changes in his life, but being snowbound with the bearded lumberjack in his rustic cabin was something he’d thought only existed in his fantasies. Simon pushes away anyone who wants to get close to him, but Adam sees what he’s hiding in his heart and he wants it. Badly.A Christmas to RememberAdam smells like cinnamon and redemption and Simon aches to run his fingers over the scrape of stubble on his cheeks. To pull him into a kiss. To reignite feelings he’d denied himself for too long. Life is right there, blazing in the eyes of the town librarian. A man who isn’t afraid of him. But he learned long ago that everything he touches gets tainted, and he’ll do anything to keep his darkness away from Adam’s light.But Adam has something else on his side—he’s been a very good boy this year and all he wants for Christmas is Simon.
The Silvers
Jill Smith - 2014
What they find is a race of humanoids who are sentient, but as emotionless and serene as the plants and placid lakes they tend. B, captain of the mission, doesn't believe that the "Silvers" are intelligent, and lets his crew experiment on them. But then he bonds with Imms, who seems different from the others-interested in learning, intrigued by human feelings. And B realizes that capturing, studying, and killing this planet's natives has done incalculable damage.When a fire aboard B's ship kills most of the crew and endangers Imms, B decides to take him back to Earth. But the simplicity of the Silver Planet doesn't follow them. Imms learns the full spectrum of human emotions, including a love B is frightened to return, and a mistrust of the bureaucracy that wants to treat Imms like a test subject, even if they have to eliminate B to do it.(Note: This is a revised second edition, originally published elsewhere.)
An Uncommon Whore
Belinda McBride - 2010
He has no memory, no future of his own, yet deep inside Pasha knows that that he is meant for better things. The day that Pasha spots the dangerous pirate in the bar, he knows that he mustn't let the stranger slip away, regardless of what he must do to attract his attention.Captain Griffin Hawke spent the greater part of a decade searching for his lost king, only to find Helios Dayspring crouched between his knees, swathed in the robes and shackles of a whore. Though he is appalled by the downfall of his king, the hardened officer finds himself falling for the allure of the sensual creature who has taken his place. Returning Helios to his position on the throne is the only right thing to do, yet Griffin knows that in doing so, he risks losing his lover forever."A whore is a whore is a whore, unless he's something else completely. I guess I must be an uncommon whore." -- Helios Dayspring
Fire on the Island
Timothy Jay Smith - 2020
Set against the very real refugee crisis on the beautiful, sun-drenched Greek islands, this novel paints a loving portrait of a community in crisis. As the island residents grapple with declining tourism, poverty, refugees, family feuds, and a perilously damaged church, an arsonist invades their midst. Nick Damigos, the FBI agent, arrives on the island just in time to witness the latest fire and save a beloved truffle-sniffing dog. Hailed as a hero and embraced by the community, Nick finds himself drawn to Takis, a young bartender who becomes his primary suspect, which is a problem because they’re having an affair. Theirs is not the only complicated romance in the community and Takis isn’t the only suspicious character on the island. The priest is an art forger, a young Albanian waiter harbors a secret, the captain of the coast guard station seems to have his own agenda, and the village itself hides a violent history. Nick has to unravel the truth in time to prevent catastrophe, as he comes to terms with his own past trauma. In saving the village, he will go a long way toward saving himself. A long time devotee of the Greek islands, Smith paints the setting with gorgeous color and empathy, ushering in a new romantic thriller with the charm of Zorba the Greek while shedding bright light on the very real challenges of life in contemporary Greece.
Anonymous Bidder
Robin Roseau - 2015
Violetta's agreement is reluctant, sure the only women who might want have a screw loose. She feels her suspicions are confirmed when it is an anonymous bidder who wins the date, and things go from weird to weirder after that. This is a novella of 30,000 words.
Off Limits
Riley Hart - 2021
When there was a man in my building on a hookup app, why not message him?Only we didn’t meet. We just texted—one night after the other, after the other.GoodWithHisHands was the perfect escape from my life, where pressure was always on my shoulders: my father’s expectations, the worry about my sister, Maddy, getting sick again, and her ex-husband, Ryder Lynwood, suddenly back and volunteering at the same hospital as me.It would have been smart to keep my distance from the man who came out as gay, tearing our close families apart and breaking Maddy’s heart. Except Ryder intrigues me. I like talking to him, same as I enjoy chatting to GoodWithHisHands.They weren’t supposed to be the same person.I wasn’t supposed to fall for him. To want him. To need him. Maddy didn’t deserve to get hurt again, and I didn’t need another reason to feel like an outsider in my own family. Ryder was off-limits. I knew that. Still, I couldn’t make myself stay away.
Once a Marine
Cat Grant - 2011
Add in poor law school grades and his homophobic ex-Marine father’s rejection, and Cole’s nearly at the end of his rope.That is, until he meets Marc Sullivan, waiter by day, romance writer by night. Marc’s always had a thing for guys in uniform, so when Cole walks into the diner one rainy afternoon, his sweet, sexy smile and Carolina drawl pull Marc in like a magnet. But Marc’s been down this road with hot Marines before, and it always leads to heartbreak.With Marc’s help, Cole seeks therapy for his PTSD, and a happy life together no longer seems impossible. But if they can’t conquer their fears – Cole’s fear of coming out, Marc’s fear of being abandoned – love might not be enough to save them.
Meridian
Kirby Crow - 2016
The tour part is ushering frat boys around the Gulf of Mexico in his charter yacht. The specialty is that he's an ex-military psychologist who does favors for the government. When Grant is asked to spend a week evaluating traumatized FBI advisor Matty Sawyer, he agrees, thinking it will be just another babysitting assignment. Grant is more relaxed in a bondage playroom than he is going on a date, so he's amazed at how strongly he’s attracted to the damaged but brilliant man who arrives in his town. Grant’s job is to assess Matty’s stability to return to the FBI after Jaeger Koning— Matty’s former lover— is charged with multiple assassinations. Knowing Matty's past poses a danger to his family, Grant is determined to keep his distance, until Matty reveals a submissive side that Grant finds impossible to resist.(Mirror Series #1)TAGS: ends in a HEA (Happily Ever After), standalone, true love, BDSM themes, explicit sex. Part of a proposed series but story is complete and concludes.
Working It
Christine d'Abo - 2017
The only problem is, he liked his old life just fine . . . until an accident robbed him of his health, his job, his self-confidence, and his ability to go out in public without having anxiety attacks.Zack Anderson has scared away his last four administrative assistants. So when he hires Nolan on a whim, he’s not too worried, since Nolan will be gone within the week anyway. Two weeks later, Nolan has made himself indispensable, completely reforming Zack’s schedule, life . . . and libido.But in a company already torn by internal politics, one wrong step could ruin both their careers. And not only are they working to reopen Ringside Gym, Zack’s retreat when he was a troubled teen, but they also can’t help themselves falling for each other. If only the rest of their lives could go as smoothly as things do when they’re alone together.
Owl's Slumber
Nicky James - 2018
Who’d want to date a mortician? Who’d want to date a guy with a phobia so crippling he couldn’t enter his bedroom at night? His problems are impossible to hide. One night stands are all he can afford. If anyone learned of his ridiculous issues, they’d never understand. Until Aven lands on his doorstep, boldly asking for a date, clearly seeking more.But if Finnley can’t open up about his past and his struggles, will Aven decide he’s too much and walk away? Or will he provide the strength and support Finnley’s been looking for to finally admit he needs help? Owl's Slumber is a hurt/comfort MM romance with moderate angst. It is the first in the Trials of Fear series but can be read as a standalone. **This book has been re-covered, but all content is the same**
Say Something
B.A. Tortuga - 2014
After high school Mike leaves for college and his Hollywood dream, while cowboy Jenson stays behind in their small East Texas hometown. Neither man knows what to say to go beyond friendship, even though they come together through all of the best and worst times of their lives. The most amazing moments keep bringing them back together, but through huge love and terrible loss, sickness and health, their timing never seems right to take their relationship to the next level. When the universe gives them one final chance, Jenson must overcome his fear and say the most important something before it's too late.