Malcolm has no place to live and no job. His best friend, Dustin Jones, who has stood by him for years, takes him in and is determined to show Malcolm not only a great Christmas, but that love between the two of them can be the best gift.

    The Faradays have supported Alex through his struggles with being bipolar. He loves them as he loves nothing else, but this year, his excitement for the holiday has less to do with the family as a whole and more to do with their youngest son, Everett.Everett is Alex’s best friend and the love of his life, but for years, Alex has been consumed by the idea that he is a burden on the family, and worried that someone as amazing as Everett would never truly want a man constantly on guard against his own mind. But last Christmas, with his career doing well, and his life as stable as it likely will ever be, Alex finally let himself respond to Everett’s open adoration—with one condition. A year without seeing Everett to be sure he can stand on his own without Everett’s ready support. Alex needs to know that he can, for his own sake and for Everett’s, because he has already failed once, and it nearly destroyed them both.There will never be a time when Alex is perfect. But this is as close as it gets, and he is tired of waiting. This Christmas, all he can hope for is that Everett still wants him, and that he can be brave enough to keep his promise.

    Thrown out of his home for being gay, he is left without money or, it seems, anywhere to go. Until a stranger shows him that some people do give a lot more than a damn.Ben Hamilton is a rookie cop in his small home town. He finds a young throwaway, fresh from the city, sleeping on a bench in the churchyard on a snowy Christmas Eve. Can he be the one to give Zachary his own Christmas miracle?* * * * *First published December 2010

    When solicitor's clerk George Johnson moves into new digs, he's instantly attracted to friendly fellow lodger Matthew Connaught, who lost an arm in the Great War. As the two become inseparable, George begins to wonder whether it's just friendship that Matthew feels for him or something more. And if it's something more... can George risk a revelation of his shameful past?

    On a guy. Not a big deal, except that said guy, Walter Chase, is a famous online gamer who has no idea Edgar even exists. Edgar has harbored these feelings for nearly a year, and when Walter announces on Twitter that he’ll be visiting New York City as a guest at the GamerOn convention, Edgar decides he’ll be one of the thousands of fans who responds to the message. He definitely doesn’t expect to be singled out by the humble, gorgeous, out-and-proud heartthrob. When it comes to dealing with people, Edgar’s skills are pretty nonexistent, even with Walter giving all the right signals. Edgar lacks the courage to do anything about the mutual attraction growing through their online courtship, but then again, he’s always been better with the written word. So maybe the perfect Christmas gift will say what he cannot. But if Edgar can’t get the present to Walter before the convention ends, he may miss out on the boyfriend of a lifetime.

    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.Download the story, read it online or find it in Love Is Always Write: Volume 4.__________Genre: contemporaryTags: baby; hot business; adoption; family; a bit of m/m steamWarnings: noneWord Count: 15,528

    How difficult could that possibly be? There was only one thing that stopped sex with Justin being completely perfect for Luke. The timing. That wasn't so perfect. In fact, the timing really sucked and not in the fun, fellatio related way. Justin was five years younger than Luke and relatively inexperienced. Luke had enjoyed more lovers than he could count or remember - he knew he was good at sex. There was no good reason why Justin should outlast him every time they hooked up. All Luke had to do was come second, set his mind at ease, and everything would be perfect between them. Hell, if he could do that, he might even consider the serious relationship idea Justin seemed so taken with. How difficult could that possibly be?Please note: The stories in this collection are linked solely by theme. Each story can be read on it's own and the stories can be read in any order."

    He is the quintessential elf, smart, handsome, charming, and everyone in Santa’s Village wants him. Lon is no exception. He’s hopelessly in love with Rom, but how can he hope to get Rom’s attention? Even if he is now one of the reindeer handlers, he’s still just a plain, ordinary elf, and painfully shy to boot.Then there’s Wod. As Dancer, he’s both Rom’s second in command and Rom’s best friend. He, too, is devilishly handsome but in a darker and, truth be told, slightly frightening way. At least, he makes Lon’s heart race and his tongue tie in knots.When Wod unexpectedly offers to help Lon gain Rom’s attention, Lon is completely confused. To make matters worse, Wod is clear that he’d love to play with Lon himself.Lon is used to the sexual freedom in Santa’s Village but he craves something more meaningful. He wants a real relationship. So what does he do? Keep pining for Rom or play Wod's special brand of reindeer games?

    With an empty altar and over a hundred guests arriving soon, he turns to the resistant, gorgeous brother of the runaway groom for help.When Richard Patterson’s flamboyant brother storms out hours before he’s scheduled to marry his equally dramatic partner, Richard is left dealing with the fallout. The last thing he wants is more drama, yet he can’t deny his attraction to the effeminate event planner trying to salvage the wedding.Evan thinks his crush on Richard is a lost cause, but one steaming kiss later, he learns different. What starts as a night of hot sex turns into a connection neither expected. But Evan knows their relationship is hopeless unless the ultra-conservative Richard can embrace every part of him—both in private and in public.

    Lucky for him, his phone is found by a disarmingly handsome man who might be perfect for the kind of casual Christmas fling David is after.Go-go dancer Craig never would have guessed that the guy with the cute cock shot would turn out to be a doctor. Or that he’d find himself lying about his night job and worrying David will find out the truth. To complicate matters, each of their hook-ups requires days of planning. Yet before he knows it, Craig has a new boyfriend, and possibly a whole new family.David’s ready to dive head-first into something new, but if Craig’s going to commit, he’ll need to come clean about his job, his past, and—most of all—the naughty picture that drew him to David in the first place.Warning: Contains a male exotic dancer and extremely intimate photography. May contain traces of Zumba, bad roommates, and sad childhoods. Call your doctor if after six hours you still can’t get the grin off your face.

    People he thought were friends didn't stick with him and he's somehow become kind of a recluse without meaning to be. Only Mike, his best friend since they were kids, has stuck by him and is now saving him from homelessness after a fire destroys Brian's apartment building days before Christmas. Though Mike has to go down South for the holiday, Brian stays in Mike's apartment with his slightly singed kitten Oreo.Brian's only goal is to set his affairs back in order before everything shuts down for the holidays and then make it through those holidays in one piece. He's lost so much -- his only real possession is a photo album of his mom that he risked death to save from the fire -- and he's feeling lost and very alone...until Mike, his hot neighbor Trent, and even little Oreo conspire to give Brian the best Christmas possible and a future that looks a lot brighter.

    When the pair journey to Indianapolis to spend Christmas Eve with Merle and her family, will an ex-hitman learn the true meaning of Christmas? Or just get drunk on eggnog?

    For years he’s been content with his solitary life, finding fulfillment in his career, books, television show marathons, and his cat’s companionship. When David meets his neighbor Zach, he can’t tell if Zach is just being friendly or if the handsome fireman might actually be interested in him. The more time they spend together, though, the more David questions his resolution to remain single. If Zach can extinguish the flames left by David's past, David might finally break away from his structured life and take a chance on love.A story from the Dreamspinner Press 2015 Daily Dose package "Never Too Late."

    Not this holiday. After his degree-seeking lover leaves humble blue-collar Ben, Ben spends the Yuletide miserable. He's not accustomed to being alone, not after seven years. Eventually Ben finds his lover's new address and sends him a greeting card asking when he'll come back home—only to learn in the returned correspondence that his card reached the wrong address and another man, Jason Prescott, by mistake.Jason is touched by Ben's appeal to his lover, and he and Ben spend months growing close as pen pals. Frequently exchanged correspondence turns into weekends spent together, but after learning Jason's working on his second master's degree and is even smarter than Ben's ex, Ben wonders if Jason will be able to love someone as ordinary as he is.

    Until he runs across an old friend who seems more than happy to see him, and the attraction is instantaneous. But can the magic of Christmas and a love he'd never known be enough to make him think about giving up his wandering ways? Through the years, Kevin found himself wondering about Peter and where he wound up when he was pulled from their community into yet another "home." But when they reconnect again, he discovers that in all his travels, Peter never had a real home. As Kevin's feelings deepen, he knows the one thing he needs to do to keep Peter is show him that true happiness boils down to opening yourself to love. And a little mistletoe doesn't hurt either.