Almost.A deadly hunter.Hraban has dedicated his life to taking down creatures like Drakjan, protecting those who cannot protect themselves.An uneasy truce.When fate forces them together, the nix and the hunter discover a dangerous attraction… and a threat that can destroy everything Drakjan has come to love.~~~~~~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. "Still Waters" contains sexually explicit content and is intended for adult readers. ~~~~~~This story prompt and photo inspired "Still Waters":Dear Author,I only have two words for you: ginger merman! Everything else is up to you.Photo Description: A redheaded, muscular young man with a short beard stands in a lake, a scraggly stand of seaweed-draped deadwood behind him and mountains in the distance. He looks directly at the viewer, wearing a neutral expression. The water comes up to just above his waist, and he is lifting a sturdy white net from the water with both hands.

    Since the death of his mother, Eli has fallen foul of everything his father holds dear – indulging in drink, drugs, women and men. With a dark and desperate secret weighing on him, Eli is determined to lose himself to vice, no matter what the cost.Daniel Fisher is a twenty-six year old high-school janitor. He spends his days cleaning the school, and his nights taking care of his seventeen-year-old brother, Cory. With an alcoholic father to support, Daniel’s plate is full, even before one of the school’s students decides to seduce him. When Eli enters his life, Daniel is too lost in his own despair to consider the consequences of their fling, and as he grows closer to Eli, and to the boy’s damaged former choirboy persona, he realises that all is not as it seems with the teenager.However, neither of them knows the secret that connects them and their families. A secret that will eventual break their hearts afresh, and test their new relationship to its limits.A secret that lies in their very blood.

    Dixon Rowe is a good man and a good cop who keeps finding himself in bed with the enemy. After he picks up a young ex-con named Jaye Larson for stealing food, Dixon is seduced by the possibility of helping someone truly in need. He tells himself he’s assisting young Jaye out of the goodness of his heart—not because of how sexy Jaye is under all of the tattoos and defiance. But temptation entangles them as the malicious ghosts of Jaye's past returns to haunt their every step. Jaye’s ghosts are bad enough, but the demon from Dixon's past is real enough to put both of their lives in danger. (M/M)

    An award-winning start on the Broadway stage led him to the silver screens of Hollywood, where his star began to rise, and his heart fell hard for professional baseball sensation, Manuel Guzman. But there was no script for living out loud with the man of his dreams in the world of 1964. Then Richard disappeared without a trace. Forty years later, Michael Spencer discovered a journal in his grandmother's attic that would change his life forever, and quite possibly, solve the mysterious disappearance of Richard Lewis Bancroft. Original Prompt:Dear Author,They met while vacationing on a tropical beach, can their summertime romance last?Photo Description: Two very muscular, tanned men are naked on the beach. One is lying down, his left knee bent, his head (to the right) in the lap of his lover. The dark-haired, kneeling lover is leaning over him, hands to either side of his shoulders, about to kiss him upside-down.Download the story, read it here or find it in Don't Read in the Closet, Volume 2 or Don't Read in the Closet: GayRomLit Retreat 2011 Special Edition. __________Genre: contemporaryTags: gay m/m, family secrets, lies, angst, HEA, intolerance, sacrifice, romance, emotionalWord Count: 31,889

    It's about visitors to a new world, running from their enemies, inhabited by primitive humans living by strict religious rules. After an illegal human hunt Sid, a thief, is taken by the Crown Prince, Loki, as a pet. What ensues is a great adventure encompassing the vampires, the humans who live without technology and a secret group trying to rule over everyone. Loki was an ilthiyan prince, one of the vampire race who existed uneasily with the humans on the planet of Gaia. In the middle of a hunt on human lands, he captured a spirited young human male. Sid was a thief and an outcast, and to be captured by a vampire seemed only the latest misfortune in a life defined by them. But Loki decided to keep Sid instead of kill him and that decision would thrust them both into a whirlwind of treachery, intrigue -- and love.

    But I wanted to be true to my desires at last, and yeah, impress this guy I met. In my street clothes, most people wouldn't even guess I am gay and those who know assume I am a top, but I am not. This guy, he is really cute and kind of flamboyant, but he has a core of steel. Perhaps he is the one who will see me as I am and complete me.Photo Description: The man in the photograph wears black stockings and lace suspenders, and his back is to the camera. He also wears leather: gloves, a belt cinched around his arm, and a double strapped harness over his shoulder and looping around his waist. Under the ankh tattoo in the small of his back, his ass is bare, and a faint blush of pink from a spanking is barely visible…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.

    Tammy and Jamie are soul mates, but their love is thwarted for years by bad timing, fear of ridicule, and the damage that lingers long after childhood.

    That’s all. Just a good puppy for my boy. The better you behave, the happier you’ll be.” When Cammy’s Daddy asked him if he wanted a puppy, he expected the fluffy, four-legged kind. Instead, he finds that his Daddy meant something else entirely... and he isn't sure what to think of the new addition to the household. Zay’s life might not have been perfect, but it was still better than being kidnapped and sold into slavery. When his new Master tells him he’s going to be Cammy’s puppy, he has to decide just what he’s going to do…

     His sex life has been nonexistent for some time, though. After a particularly bad hookup, he keeps mostly to himself. That leaves chocolate. Luckily, he works surrounded by the most delicious, extravagant produce in Gothenburg. Beside his job at the chocolaterie, his main source of excitement is his online friend, Magnus, whom he stubbornly refuses to meet in person. A customer turns up at the chocolaterie one day—tall, shy, and charming. He could be just the right man. If Michał can step out of his overly safe shell, there might be not only chocolate, but sex, too. Maybe chocolate-flavored sex. And if he’s lucky, maybe even love. Warning: This book contains explicit scenes, adult language, and obscene amounts of chocolate.

    The last thing he expects is to fall head over heels for his gorgeous partner. Friendly but distant, Aiden keeps him at arm's length, and Tyler knows his feelings are hopelessly one-sided. But as the Games begin, Tyler learns nothing is certain until the final dive.Dear Author,I could look at him all day. But sometimes, when he thinks I’m not looking, he seems so sad…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.

    Michael's his advisor and former instructor. The two shouldn't have feelings for each other, but after two years of friendship and longing, David can no longer deny what he's feeling. Is Michael ready to accept being more than a teacher to a man fifteen years younger? And if they give into their desires, is it only a way for them to say good-bye?

    He could pretty much have any man he wanted. I walked away because I deserved better.Now our paths have crossed again. He has the world at his feet. It’s a tempting thought to throw away my lifetime of ideals for a single night with him.Do I still have the strength to walk away?Do I even want to?Photo Description: Two men lie naked in bed. One is on his stomach, with his head out of the frame, the other strokes a hesitant hand down his lover’s back.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love’s Landscapes" 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.

    He was wearing that damn T-shirt and now I can't get it out of my head. I'm thirty-two years old and have never topped in my life. Guys seem to think I have a sign on my forehead that says “bottom only”. The one time I asked, it didn't go well. But now it seems I see this kid, he's twenty if he's a day, everywhere, and that T-shirt text is burned in my brain. I wonder...Can be any genre you like, and as explicit as you like. I'm not too fussy, but a first time top should be fun.Photo Description: The slim, taut torso of a young man from neck to hips wearing a T-shirt that says “I Would Bottom You So Hard”Genre:contemporaryTags:first time top, age gap, gaining self-worth, bottom you so hard, younger teacher/older student, beautiful boyWord count:20,237This 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.

    He is tired of one night stands and wants to find a real relationship but he has a hard time staying away from the hook-up sites. Because… sex. Larry feels the sting of being rejected automatically because of his race. But he still has a positive attitude and rolls with the punches. He won’t ignore elephants in the room, however; which sometimes leaves people uncomfortable.“Beautiful eyes” is a snarky, young, driven professional who won’t be guilted into making a connection. He isn’t even looking for Mr. Right… but he likes Larry’s open face and broad shoulders and is charmed despite himself. Will “Eyes” give Larry a chance when his friends (or colleagues, family) seem less than enthusiastic? Can he grow up enough to accept a relationship that requires some work and commitment?Can Larry set aside his patter and flirtatiousness enough to let “Eyes” see the sensitive guy hiding?Photo Description: A screenshot of a chat session from an online dating app. The conversation is one-sided, opening with a compliment, then a selfie of a grinning young man with dark skin and a charming smile. His last message begins by announcing his race like a disclaimer: “It’s okay if you’re not into black guys… a lot of people on here aren’t.”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.

    Typical of the way his life has gone of late it’s suspected he is the latest victim of a mini crime wave in his neighbourhood and he is horrified when one of the investigating detectives assigned to his case turns out to be Jonah Goldman – otherwise known as the one night stand that has unknowingly fathered Kyle’s beloved son Shea. Kyle doesn’t know whether to be relieved or outraged when it is apparent that Jonah has no memory of their night together but knows that he needs to do everything he can to keep out of the studly detective’s way in future – especially as the gleam in the detective’s eye is all too familiar and the last time he saw it he ended up a single father! Jonah just knows that there’s something about Kyle and he’s just interested enough to ignore Kyle’s increasingly desperate attempts at rejection to try and figure out what it is.