Touched by Caleb's story, Charlie agrees to help. When Charlie manages to track down Junior, he discovers the man has long since changed his name to James Marshall and wants absolutely nothing to do with his father. Charlie understands James's anger; Charlie spent most of his adolescence trying to convince his own incarcerated father to see him, but his father always pushed him away. Now, Charlie has nothing but regret for the past and the lost opportunities, and he wants to spare James the same fate. But Charlie's attempts to help James forgive and forget become complicated by feelings he hasn't experienced since the death of his husband. For them to have any chance at finding happiness, James will have to end his self-imposed emotional isolation, but will Charlie's efforts bring James closer or push him further away?

    He’s focused on running the family business and keeping up appearances. He’s fine with the way things are, until the tattooed help at a friend’s party takes one look at him and calls him on his bull.Fired from a brand new job, Fin Thornton is homeless and penniless. He knows men like Damian. He abhors men like Damian. Despite the wealthy man coming to his aid when he desperately needs it, Fin is hesitant to lower his guard. Yet Damian insists on being in Fin’s face, demanding things and offering help.In spite of their differences, something keeps them wanting each other. The same connection that has Damian desperate to stake a claim on the skittish Fin. But it will take a ghost from Fin’s tragic past to show both men that what they have is worth more than money.

    One an adrenaline junkie. Love could be one risk too many. March is determined to lose the numbness that accompanies a history of loss and blame. Desperate to feel something—anything—the adrenaline junkie base jumps off cliffs, soars on hang gliders, and embarks on dangerous sea-borne rescue missions. But any release he feels is fleeting, and when you play Russian roulette with fate, eventually you come crashing down.No matter how hard Caleb tries to forget his past, a dark shadow is always behind him. When a bizarre turn of events results in him being trapped in a sea cave, Caleb wonders how his mantra—safety at all costs—could have failed him. On the point of drowning, he’s stunned when March surfaces in the cave.March’s disregard for the rules saves Caleb’s life but gets March into a heap of trouble. Not least of which is the guy shivering in the boat next to him. March tries to ignore Caleb but it’s already too late. Together, they take small, awkward steps toward love. But Caleb’s past is waiting to sink in its claws…and this time, it could drag him to his death. Warning: This book contains difficult flashbacks of child abduction and sexual violence, but also the incredible perseverance of two men who never give up on love—or each other. Bring your tissues and a heart that believes in the resilience of the human spirit.

    But when Mark goes to college in California rather than following Daniel to New York, he embarks on a decade-long search for independence, sexual confidence and love.When Mark lands a job in New York and crosses Daniel’s path, they slowly rebuild their fractured friendship through texts and emails. If they finally agree to see each other, will they be able to keep it platonic? Or will the spark of a long-lost love reignite just as Daniel accepts a job overseas?Platonic is a story of trials, growth, and knowing how to learn lessons from the past to build a future.

    Instead, Simon makes a split-second decision to save Robert’s life, though he is uncomfortably aware he has only postponed the inevitable.Robert quickly falls for Simon, but when he notices the way Death seems to follow him around, his curiosity about Simon’s true nature turns to suspicion, all but erasing his memories of the man. Simon must fight to make him remember… and to stop Robert from making a grisly mistake.

    He’s fallen for Eli, his adorable teddy bear of a roommate, but can’t express himself when said teddy bear is around. Eli is a responsible adult who makes risotto, worries too much, and falls asleep on the couch while watching the news. Riley wants nothing more to fall asleep next to him. He has been trying to shake his younger self’s reputation, but he feels that, compared to Eli, he’s just a pretty but useless artistic type. All that changes when Riley finds two abandoned kittens and brings them home. Eli has no idea what to do with the helpless strays, which means, for once, Riley takes charge and has an excuse to stick close to his roommate—something Eli hardly objects to. If anything, he seems to like Riley around the house. He seems to like the kittens, too, so much that Riley has to wonder if Eli could also like them all together. One soft, anxious bear, one pretty but not useless artist, and two balls of fluff might just make a happy home.

    Why would Anthony Pappas, an adorable second grade teacher, be interested in him? Travis is willing to find out, if Anthony will give him a chance.Being descended from a goddess, Anthony Pappas possesses a unique gift—he can tell when people are lying. Sounds good, until your boyfriends all end up lying to you. Anthony's tired of it. It's easier not to get involved than to have your heart broken time and time again.When a little redheaded boy brings the men together, these two heroes will have to find the courage to take a leap of faith and follow their hearts...

    Are they live-in lovers? Partners? Boyfriends? There isn't a word to adequately describe their mutual devotion and his quiet, deeply held feelings for Mike. Mike is no help. He thinks that what they share is a marriage, but Harry knows better. Weddings aren't for the likes of men like them... until a gay bar, missing lube, and a drag queen show him that he might be wrong.

    If someone he s attracted to wants to have sex with him, he's not going to say no to them. That's not a character flaw, it s just common sense.Stephen seems to think otherwise. He's sure Andrew is incapable of saying no to a cheap thrill. But, at the same time, he's more than happy to provide Andrew with the prefect opportunity to prove him wrong.Andrew has no doubt that he can say no to everything the younger man offers him for the next twelve hours, and that's all he needs to do to win their bet. He's also quite looking forward to cutting the would-be dominant down to size in the process. Because, while he may be easy when it comes to vanilla encounters, Andrew has high standards when it comes to dominants.There's no way an inexperienced nineteen year old is going to receive his submission. Andrew will obviously find it easy to say no to that. Won't he ?Reader Advisory: This story has been previously released as part of the Friction anthology by Total-E-Bound

    So he grits his teeth, picks up his camera, and goes out to play the Chinese tourist. He's done it before: befriended the lonely, lured them away from the danger zone, acted as a safety net. This time, the figure staring out to sea is way out of his league, his complete opposite, the sort of man Daniel's always admired from afar. Then the attractive Taylor turns the tables and lures Daniel out from behind the safety of his camera, and as Daniel finds himself fighting off an attraction he can't deny, he realizes he's in danger of being caught. Will the camera expose truths about himself that he wants to keep hidden?

    Bankruptcy, a bigoted sibling, and a back-breaking accident have all left him with little money and less faith in the universe.His last-ditch effort at peace is the small lakeside property where he is building a tiny house from recycled materials. If he can get it livable before the cold sets in, maybe he’ll be okay. Hopefully Cullen, the foreman on the construction site next door, won’t notice Eugene pilfering discarded materials from his dumpster.When Cullen stops by to talk to Eugene, he’s sure the gig is up—but all Cullen wants is a date. Can two things go right in Eugene’s life? At first it seems possible. Projects on Eugene’s house are getting completed by what he dubs “construction elves” while he’s off site. But like Eugene predicted, his good fortune can’t last, and soon he has a tough choice to make: give up his home… or the man of his dreams.

    Very sweet.This story also available in print in the anthology Ever After: The Collected Short Works of Marie Sexton.

    His college and his coach are behind him, as is his best friend and fellow player, Ford. The only person who doesn't seem to support him is his boyfriend, and the other teams aren't fond of him. When his promising career is cut short, Derek has to reevaluate his whole life. Everyone gathers around to support him, but some things he has to figure out for himself, like his relationship with his boyfriend, and his friendship with Ford. Will Derek make the right choices and find a way to get everything he wants?

    The company’s newest intern, Lupe, is a talented dancer from Purchase College—but the man who picks her up from class really piques Sean’s interest.Jaime is Lupe’s cousin, a photography and graphic design student at Purchase. Not long after Sean and Jaime start dating, their casual hookups evolve into something special, something neither wants to lose—no matter how a commitment will complicate their lives.Lupe figures out the nature of their relationship and outs Jaime to his extremely religious Arizona family. Sean decides to support Jaime all the way, even though Jaime might choose pleasing his family over a life of love and freedom with Sean.

    But as the show progresses, his life of absolute certainties crumbles when he finds himself reacting to the kisses of his male costar. He refuses to accept it, reminding himself he’s married and a father—and thus, straight. One night he goes to drink his worries away, meets Chance Dillon, and can’t take his eyes off the man. After having a little too much alcohol, he spills his problem to Chance, who helps him realize there’s something other than gay and straight. Patrick’s new understanding of his bisexual identity helps him sleep better—until the next day, when he discovers Chance is a sound technician on the same set. As their friendship grows and Patrick’s marriage ends, he recognizes a possibility for much more with Chance. But Patrick isn’t ready to be out the way Chance has been for so long, and when the matter is taken out of Patrick's hands, he pushes Chance away to spare him the mess Patrick's life has become. By the time he realizes his mistake, it may be too late.