The older girls - Katie and Miranda - are off at college, Evan is about to be promoted to captain and things are calm.Briefly.Evan accidently learns that Miranda has a new boyfriend and is talking marriage after just three months of dating. After peeling himself off the ceiling, he demands a conversation with his eldest daughter, which erupts into, as Matt calls it, “a steel cage match”.Miranda indeed has a boyfriend (Kent), a business major (from Connecticut) and they are most definitely serious. In fact, Miranda wants to bring him to Thanksgiving dinner - along with his parents, Blake and Cornelia.There is much debate but Evan agrees - mostly because Miranda's part of the bargain is that she won't get engaged or elope until the parents have met.Thanksgiving descends into madness before the turkey is cut.

    Guilt for walking away unscathed...and for secretly loving Simon's partner, Wade. Unable to bear the pain, Dylan left the Lazy G ranch to rebuild his life elsewhere.A year later he reluctantly responds to his sister's plea to come home, where he finds the Lazy G falling apart. And so is Wade. Wade has stopped caring about the ranch, about everything that should matter most to him.Though there's more ranch work than one man can possibly handle, Dylan throws himself into the task. Wondering how he's going to find the strength to pull Wade out of the fog of grief when his own is still as raw as a fresh wound. Wondering when Wade will finally see that his second chance for happiness is standing right in front of him.

    The resulting turmoil is not caused by a bullet but by a blast from the past: Evan’s first lover has returned to visit him in the hospital and deliver some big news.Ten years ago, Dixon Bain walked out of Evan’s life because he thought his family didn’t approve of him having a male lover. But Dixon has discovered that what he thought he knew could not be further from the truth, and now he’s returned to claim the only man he’s ever loved... if he can melt the ice around the edges of Evan’s still-wounded heart.

    Most would consider dying in a bar fight ten years ago upsetting, and existing as a ghost wandering the world might be thought a real predicament. They might deem a second chance at life through a chance encounter with a dying man a serious dilemma. But for Padraig, finding himself face to face with the man he'd loved and lost a lifetime ago is the biggest thing on his mind. Gareth Reilly stops at O'Toole's for a drink before he heads home. Tomorrow's going to be another lonely birthday for him until he's approached by a stranger. There's something about Padraig's bright green eyes and Irish accent that reminds Gareth of a man he once knew. Unable to resist, Gareth breaks his cardinal rule and invites Padraig home. On St. Patrick's Day, when Irish magic is strongest, it'll take a belief in the impossible and help from a grateful elf to give Padraig and Gareth another chance at love.

    Eventually it'll go away, right?But that's not what happens one night after a concert...MAYBE THIS TIME is a 14,000-word prequel novella about how Stone and Jackson meet and it leads into their full-length novel ONE TIME ONLY. You don't have to read MAYBE THIS TIME to enjoy ONE TIME ONLY, but you'll likely enjoy this story before the story!

    When he met Drea, he hoped she might be the one. But when he felt more chemistry with her gay cousin Zach, Ryan felt more confused and terrified than he had in his life. He wasn't gay but he wanted to be with Zach. How could it possibly work?

    Then his parents were killed in a tragic accident, leaving him to raise his two siblings. Determined to hold on to what remained of his family, Cassidy settled into an ordinary life, his dreams of fame reduced to occasional nights of singing at karaoke dives. But his careful, ordinary life began to fray with his new job, and the beautiful, charming boss who reminds him of all the things he tried to stop wanting.Malcolm Osborne is a classic rags to riches story, a foster child who wound up with the perfect family and more money than he knows what to do with. He's wealthy, beautiful, successful, and completely miserable. Then he hires a new worker for his office, a young, hard-working man with a sadness in his eyes that Malcolm aches to banish, hoping that in doing so he will be rid of his own loneliness as well.

    Pete has just about given up hope of Ash ever fulfilling his promise when one day the end of a long shift finds Ash waiting for him. Tonight is the night. Ash is ready, and it seems the time has come for him to leave his mark on Pete in more ways than he ever imagined.

    One rainy night, Taylor turns up soaking wet on Daren’s doorstep with a confession hovering on his lips. The confession changes both their lives.Original Prompt:Dear Author,A rainy night brought him to me. Now, he sits nude, (wrapped in the smallest blanket I found) nursing a brandy and telling me his life story. Which I'm not really listening to, since I'm busy planning the way to make this straight buddy bend for me—or vice versa, I really don't care, as long as we end up tangled and satisfied. Please, don't think I'm a selfish jerk, because my crush on him is epic.Photo Description: A close-up of a man with long curly hair standing in the rain.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love is Always Write" 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.Read the story here or find it in Love Is Always Write: Volume 3.

    Thanks to that never-back-down spirit, they're about to share more than they bargained for.The game is gay chicken. The rule: get as close as possible without kissing, and the one that pulls away first is the loser. The problem: neither of them likes to lose. It isn't long before the game becomes an excuse to touch and kiss in every possible forbidden way. And after they pose for a gay website to earn extra money, things really heat up.Suddenly Duke is talking lifetime commitment, and Mav is backpedaling as hard as he can, not sure if he's ready to accept all his best friend is offering him. Or the truth about what he is.

    John’s life has been turned upside down but it’s the best thing that’s ever happened to him.His best friend, Damien Mitchell, is back from the dead. He has a dog named Dude. And more importantly, he and his lover, SFPD Inspector Kane Morgan, now share Miki’s converted warehouse. For the first time ever, Miki’s living a happy and normal-ish life but when Valentine’s Day rolls around, Miki realizes he knows next to nothing about being domestic or domesticated. Nothing about the traditional lover’s holiday makes sense to him but Miki wants to give Kane a Valentine’s Day the man will never forget.Can he pull off a day of wine and roses? Or will his screwed up childhood come back and bite Miki in the ass?Again.

    But since neither of the men are gay, what do they do with their lurking lust?Geo Wilson has been partnered to Mack for three years. Sharing the same muscular build, dark hair, and olive complexion, they've been dubbed 'the twins' by the department. But lately Geo's dreams have taken an erotic twist to centre around Mack.Mack values his friendship with Geo, would give his life for the man. Then one night Geo has a few too many beers and plants a kiss on him, he can't forget. He might have been able to pass it off as beer-haze except in helping Geo get back to his apartment, Mack is taken off guard by Geo's tackle and a mind-numbing blow job.Now the partnership has to redefine itself while the criminal world continues around them. They could lose their badges, or lose each other.

    As you can see from the image, he’s a pretty bookish and calm fellow. He likes nothing better than cuddles and early morning sex and then some more cuddles.It wasn’t his choice to be dressed in dark jeans and a super tight tank top to go to a fetish club of all things. He doesn’t even own leather! BDSM is the new thing, his best girlfriend said. Haven’t you read that book? She asked.Now, because he owed her one, he went. And then this guy walked into his view. The Dom doesn’t seem to care about the newbies snickering at his “skirt” or his black nail polish and everyone else seems to respect him a lot.X wasn’t there to attract attention, but a little mishap and suddenly he’s on his knees next to the guy and… he feels right at home? What the hell?Photo Description: The first photo is a profile view of a young, clean-cut, dark-haired man sitting framed in a sunlit bay window, wearing only a T-shirt and boxer shorts while he reads.The second photo is faceless. Male hands— strong, with chipped black nail polish and leather-cuffed wrists— cupping himself over a black, studded, leather belt, and the fabric of his low-slung, red plaid kilt.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love Has No Boundaries" 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.Author’s Note There is hot sex in this story, but the issue of protection is left somewhat ambiguous. In real life, be safe without question.

    The war started in third grade, with a surprise punch to the face, and lasted until the summer after high school when Brooklyn and Dallas are stuck working at the same store. At night. Together. It should've been a recipe for disaster. But instead of outright combat, they slowly start to notice that not only do they not hate each other, but perhaps they have more in common than either of them knew. Soon, amidst unexpected laughter and camaraderie, Dallas realizes that maybe the guy who used to be his number one enemy could actually be his perfect match.Original Prompt:Dear Author,These beautiful boys have a story to tell. A story of firsts. The first stirrings of attraction, the first feelings of love, the first touch of another, the first forever...Please tell us their story so that their love may live on...Photo Description: A black/white photo of two naked teenage boys in a white bedroom. One sits on the bed facing right, leaning back into the other kneeling behind him. His lover's right hand is across his arm and chest. The left hand gently strokes his hardened penis as they both watch.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Hot Summer Days" 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.Download the story, read it here or find it in Don't Read in the Closet, Vol 1 or Don't Read in the Closet: GayRomLit Retreat 2011 Special Edition.__________Genre: contemporaryTags: gay m/m, virgins, first love, enemies-to-lovers, high school, summer romanceWord Count: 14,012

    So when he ends up serving community service at a recycling plant for inadvertently buying stolen property, he’s certain it’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to him. That is, until he finds tickets to a sold-out concert in the trash, tickets that immediately disappear into the pocket of the hottest—and most exasperating—guy he’s ever met.Cade McKuen has never been one to follow society’s expectations. That’s why he’s serving time sorting trash for destroying his cheating ex-lover’s car rather than apologize. Finding those tickets is an unexpected bonus to an otherwise smelly sentence. But when cute, sputtering Elliot claims a share, Cade decides community service might be the best thing that’s happened to him all year.Cade is determined to keep Elliot off balance and tap into the passion he senses is hidden under that buttoned-down exterior. Elliot is fascinated by Cade’s outrageous way of thumbing his nose at the world.Opposites attract, but can passion be the ticket to something lasting?