If he’s a little lonely, he’s got good mates to keep his spirits up. When a hot, cocky young shearer named Lachlan Moore catches his eye at a competition, he’s content to look but not touch, knowing the young man is out of his league. Lachie wouldn’t mind a piece of Shane, but the gorgeous gun shearer from Australia is soon forgotten when the Christchurch earthquake hits, and tragedy strikes Lachie’s family. Lachie deals with it the best he can, cutting himself off from all he knows. A year later and he’s back in the shearing shed, out of practice and lacking confidence. That Shane’s there to watch him flounder doesn’t help his nerves. As Lachlan struggles to re-acclimatise, Shane can’t resist giving him a hand to get back on his feet. As they move from friends to something more, Shane finds himself wanting to know everything he can about Lachie. But Lachie’s got secrets he desperately wants to keep, and when things come to a head, those secrets might just mean the end of them before they’ve truly begun.

     Ripley Ellis never intended to return to Bluebird Ranch. The day his father kicked him out for being gay was the day he shook the dust off his cowboy boots and moved to the city. But thanks to his homophobic father, the only way he can claim his inheritance is to return. He has to stay for one year, but that doesn’t mean he has to like it. The life of a rancher isn’t an easy one. Reed Warner knows that. He also knows that there is no other life for him. It’s all he’s ever wanted. Now that he’s retired from the rodeo, he’s ready to make his dreams come true. There’s only one problem—Ripley. The sassy city boy just inherited the ranch Reed is planning to buy. If they can put aside their differences and work together, they may both find exactly what they’re looking for.

    And rightly so: he sleepwalks, with no awareness or memory of his actions. Including burning down Kenny Cooper’s house—with Kenny inside it—after Kenny brutally beat him for being gay. Back in the tiny town of Logan after serving his prison sentence, Daniel isolates himself in a cabin in the woods and chains himself to his bed at night.Like the rest of Logan, local cop Joe Belman doesn’t believe Daniel’s absurd defense. But when Bel saves Daniel from a retaliatory fire, he discovers that Daniel might not be what everyone thinks: killer, liar, tweaker, freak. Bel agrees to control Daniel at night—for the sake of the other townsfolk. Daniel’s fascinating, but Bel’s not going there.Yet as he’s drawn further into Daniel’s dark world, Bel finds that he likes being in charge. And submitting to Bel gives Daniel the only peace he’s ever known. But Daniel’s demons won’t leave him alone, and he’ll need Bel’s help to slay them once and for all—assuming Bel is willing to risk everything to stand by him.

    Upon returning to his family horse farm in Kentucky, he faces a father who condemns him, a mother who’s in denial about his homosexuality, and an uncertain future. The one thing he is certain about is his feelings for his best friend, Cooper Brown, who Sam has secretly been attracted to since high school.For years, Cooper has harbored his own secret attraction toward Sam and is finally ready to tell him. During a camping trip to their childhood stomping grounds, all their secrets are revealed and their bonds of friendship are expanded in ways neither thought possible. Love is finally within reach. When Sam’s father catches them together, an explosive confrontation results, and Sam’s and Cooper’s fates are decided in one harsh moment of truth.

     Ben Easton is not your average romantic hero. He’s a tattooed, badass, guitarist in a band, working in a perfectly horrible dive bar in Camden Town. His life is good, and he’s totally unprepared for how one man will turn it upside down. Stan isn’t your average heroine. As a gender-fluid man, he proudly wears his blond hair long, his heels sky-high, and his makeup perfectly executed. A fashion industry prodigy, Stan is in London after stints working in Italy and New York City, and he quickly falls for Ben’s devil-may-care attitude and the warm, soft heart Ben hides behind it. Beneath the perfect, elegant exterior, Stan has plenty of scars from teenage battles with anorexia. And it only takes the slightest slip for his demons to rush back in while Ben is away touring with his band, Ares. With Ares on the brink of a breakthrough, Ben is forced to find a way to balance the opportunity of a lifetime with caring for his beautiful, impossible boyfriend.

    Unfortunately, his perfect boyfriend only exists in his dreams. But Aden’s always believed it was his destiny to meet his dream man, and he's perfectly content to wait around for him to walk into his real life.When he meets Logan Price at a Hotel/Restaurant Trade Show, he finds himself drawn to this man who shakes him out of his dream world. Pretty soon, the flesh and blood reality is becoming more appealing than the fantasy. The only problem is Logan lives half way across the country in California.Aden's going to have to choose whether to give up everything he’s built for himself professionally and uproot his whole life for Logan, or wait for the man from his dreams to become a reality.Publisher’s Note: This book contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations some readers may find objectionable: Anal play/intercourse, male/male sexual practices.

    After struggling for nearly a decade, he has yet to complete his college degree. Working as a school custodian, living in blue-collar Landsbury, MA, his love life is as empty as the rest of his existence. But on his way home after another disastrous date, his truck breaks down in upscale Oceanside. When he thinks life can't get any worse, a man who is the epitome of Boston elite and everything Bradley finds attractive and intimidating helps him move his truck to the side of the road. Ashamed of his lot in life, Bradley almost lets the opportunity slip away, but he comes to his senses in time and tracks Caleb down.From a random act of kindness, romance begins to grow, filling all the dark corners of Bradley's empty life—until a random act of violence threatens to take it all away. Bradley must step up and be the man Caleb believes him to be. Caleb rescued him from a life without hope. Can Bradley rescue him in return?

    Faced with the possibility of being left behind, Jesse vows to care for her young son, though he’s not convinced he can.When Trip Cantrell returns to town, he’s blindsided the instant he’s reunited with his kid brother’s lifelong friend, Jesse. His inability to find happiness in the years he’s been gone, suddenly makes sense. Love’s been waiting at home all along.Life begins to look promising, except for the fact that neither have come out of the closet publicly, and that’s not even their biggest problem. Someone has a secret so shocking they may never find a way past it.Will they be accepted in their small Texas town, or will secrets, lies, and the threat of tragedy destroy everything?

    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.

    Dylan can’t hide anymore. Knowing he’s falling apart, he searches for something or someone to hold him together—and lands in a BDSM bar called the Stonewall. Dylan doesn’t understand Miss Dolphinia, the hard-drinking queen who seems determined to play matchmaker. But more confusing is the way the powerful men in leather make him feel. In her wisdom, Miss Dolphinia sends Dylan off to a back room for his introduction to the world of erotic spankings and bondage. Dylan’s teacher—for want of a better word—is the very dominant Vin Hauser. Vin likes to play hard, but he’s honest with himself—he knows all those men want is a strong hand, not a long-term relationship. Yet Vin can’t help but hope Dylan might be different. With controversy over his brother’s sins stirring up danger around him, Dylan needs Vin’s support more than ever. But until he and Vin learn to trust each other, Dylan will have to face his fear and the growing threats alone.Trigger warning: off-page violent hetero rape.

    Faced with real passion for the first time, Logan becomes restless and agitated, and soon his life and his new manuscript—a work in progress he’d always thought would be completed—are in a shambles.But as Logan is learning, you can’t always get what you want… at least not right away. To take his mind off the mess, he takes a trip, but even the beautiful Italian, um, scenery can’t keep his thoughts from his erstwhile editor for long. Logan just might have to admit there are some things you can’t run from.

    Disowned over his sexuality as a teenager, he hasn’t been back to his home on the Outer Banks since his fisherman father kicked him out. But when he returns for the Old Man’s funeral, he discovers his father left him the house and boat in his will. Noah must choose whether to stay or go, but he won’t be alone. There’s Ian, working to overcome the emotional scars left by a domineering ex-boyfriend, and Ty, a cheerful housekeeper who’s struggling to take care of his Alzheimer’s-stricken aunt. There’s Joshua too, running from the destruction of his old life, and Gabriel, who was once beaten and left for dead, and doesn’t know how to survive on his own. Will they find in each other the strength and courage to keep living—and learn, together, how to love again? A polyamorous relationship is the last thing any of them expected to find in the Outer Banks, but it might be what they need most, and it might even be their redemption—if they can keep their group from breaking apart under the pressure.

    But what he also wants is a partner. The problem is, loving other men in 1881 means a lonely life for a man like Luke. As the son of a butcher from Boston, his desire for a loving domestic relationship seems nothing more than a dream, until one winter night, a snow storm blows a young man to his door in need of shelter. As the winter drags on, bringing with it a slow-burning love, his hopes begin to soar. Along with those hopes, his fears of the reactions of the people in the small town of De Smet grow.Sam Smith is a romantic, but he also holds a strong family loyalty. He leaves Boston to get away from his parents’ expectations for a while, always knowing he must return at some point. The sweet young man does not anticipate meeting a rugged, honest man like Luke, who is desperate for love while at the same time afraid of the repercussions. The first time Luke holds him in his arms, Sam plans on making Luke his darling man.

    He needs a new assistant yesterday. Enter green-as-hell Booker West. Booker spent his childhood dreaming about being a part of the rodeo. He doesn’t have any experience working with horses, but Jed doesn’t have options, and gives the newbie a chance.Innocent about the world and secretly gay, Booker works like the devil to hide his attraction to Jed. He doesn’t just want to be a wannabe-cowboy with a crush; he wants to learn from Jed. Booker craves Jed’s respect, friendship, and trust. For Jed, he knows an eager young colt like Booker should work his last nerve, yet he finds he has endless patience with the guy. He’s possessive about Booker too. And while bunking together does create intimacy, that doesn’t explain away straight Jed’s explicit sexual fantasies and growing desire for another man.When a life altering event sends Jed and Booker reeling, a night of raw passion between the men finally explodes. But in the light of day, can Booker help Jed accept their love? Or will this unearthed attraction send Jed to a dark place from which he can’t recover?

    I love spending hours with a computer, but I realized it’s sad that my biggest excitement and let down of last year were video games (the newest HALO, awesome, but Assassin’ Creed: Unity had me drinking in despair). I’m excited about my new job, which pays really well so I’ll be able to afford the newest tech toys and video games. Yup, geek and proud.For a guy whose furthest travels include World of Warcraft, this is a big step. No tech (okay, limited tech, not going anywhere without my tricked out phone), no video games (I’m serious). Just me, Italy, art, culture, and cobblestone streets for 2 months. I figured I should make use of that Art History minor (for graphic design reasons… like dabbling in After Effects) ei miei orribili competenze italiane.And not because I’m running from a boy. Who definitely didn’t break my heart. As far as Italy is concerned, no boys.Then I met the Italian boy born to bend and break rules. My rules. Specifically my no boys rule. An art student, so different from anyone I know. I refuse to fall for him, to have my heart broken again. But maybe… no. No boys. Especially not this boy. I’m just here for Italy, art, culture, and cobblestone streets.Photo Description: Two men embrace, lying on a cobblestone street. Scattered around them on the ground are colored pencils, a sketchpad, and artist supplies. It appears one man jumped out of a red car and another hopped off his scooter to meet between vehicles and kiss. Both men are young and dark-haired.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love is an Open Road" event. 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. This story may contain sexually explicit content and is intended for adult readers. It may contain content that is disagreeable or distressing to some readers. The M/M Romance Group strongly recommends that each reader review the General Information section before each story for story tags as well as for content warnings.