Take it from someone who learned the hard way: nineteen-year-old Lysander Shepherd – son of movie stars, spoiled brat, enthusiastic proponent of drugs and orgies... and now, unwilling resident of Oak Hill Manor, a retreat for troubled teenagers.Before he knows what's happening, his designer duds have been switched for tie-dye shirts in therapy team colors, and he is surrounded by an assortment of misfits: a timid nerd, a mute girl, a hyperactive kid... and captivating loner Cai Fields, who is admittedly pretty hot, but seems to hate the world in general and Lysander in particular.Soon Lysander struggles with lies, withdrawal, and several uncomfortable revelations that he never intended to make, but he also gains surprising amounts of support right in the middle of secret late-night parties, fisticuffs over doing the dishes, and, of all things, croissant blackmail. Even as Cai and Lysander finally give in to the irresistible attraction between them and make a grasp for happiness, their darkest secrets remain – secrets with the power to destroy everything they've fought so hard to have.

    We couldn't have been more different, yet we were best friends, had each other's backs, and kept each other's secrets. What you are, I am, we always said.Then one night irrevocably changed our lives forever.It's ten years before I see Gage again, and instantly I can tell he's not the same boy I fell in love with. We're both haunted and hardened by the memory of that night--of everything we did and saw.Yet as much as we've changed, the connection between us lingers. Our history is so devastatingly complicated that it's difficult to allow ourselves happiness. With every touch, every laugh, every moment we take back, the more signs I see of the old Gage resurfacing. Little by little, I'm becoming the Joey he remembers too.But it's never that easy. If we truly want to heal, we have to find strength not only in each other, but in ourselves. Life is filled with beautiful and terrible things, and this time, we'll do whatever it takes to hold on to the good, and to each other.Warning: While this is a story about friendship, found family, and two men epically in love, it also deals with difficult themes: childhood physical and verbal abuse, some violence, depression, and anxiety.

    Broken and burned, they’re thrust into the foster care system. Leo shields Lila from the fake families and forced affection, until the Poulton household is the only place left to go. Charlie de Sousa is used to other kids passing through the Poulton home, but there’s never been anyone like his new foster brother. Leo’s physical injuries are plain to see, but it’s the pain in his eyes that draws Charlie in the most. Day by day, they grow closer, but the darkness inside Leo consumes him. He rejects his foster parents, and when Charlie gets into trouble, Leo’s attempt to protect him turns violent. When Leo loses control, no one can reach him—except Charlie. He desperately needs a family—a home—and only Charlie can show him the way.

    On the cusp of adulthood, he doesn’t know where he should go or how to get there. But watching life pass him by was never the plan, and when he is forced to attend a concert in an attempt to coax him out of his shell, he discovers that life might have more to offer.Dante Heron holds the audience between his delicate bow and the tips of his fingers. He plays the violin as if every heart is his to command, but the discipline needed to perfect his skills has left him with nothing to spare. He’s a fire that burns too bright or not at all—unpredictable and demanding.When Chris is unexpectedly offered a job to travel around Europe as Dante’s assistant, or ‘friend’, he surprises himself by accepting. Their journey barely starts before Chris realizes he’s in over his head. Every step along the way is fraught with tension, and the farther they go, the closer they veer to a breaking point.Invisible strings are at play, stitched into Dante’s life by those who should have taught him how to love. Perhaps Chris is right to be afraid, but sometimes, what you fear the most is what you can’t afford to lose.This story has been published previously in another version. This second edition includes material from the companion short story, Magnetic, and is extensively rewritten and expanded.

    How do you stop a dangerous depression rooted in the same thing that makes someone what they are? Dark moods, blank apathy, and the undertow of self-loathing all simmer beneath Darren's dry and beautiful veneer, and Jayden feels powerless to stop them.Then a mugging gone wrong takes the music forcibly away, and Jayden is finally given the chance to change Darren's life -- and, quite literally, his mind.

    As a deaf teenager, he’s closed himself off to the world. He speaks a shorthand with his parents and even finds it hard to use American Sign Language with people in his local deaf community. But Caleb finds comfort in his love of photography. Everything he can’t express in real life, he posts on his Tumblr.Struggling to reconcile his resentment for his father's cruelty with the grief of losing a parent, Luc Le Bautillier scrolls through Tumblr searching for someone who might understand his goth look and effeminate nature. When Luc reblogs a photo by Caleb, sparking a conversation, they both find it easier to make friends online than in person.Luc and Caleb confront their fears about the opinions of the outside world to meet in New York City. Despite Caleb’s increasing confidence, his parents worry he’s not ready for the trials ahead. But communication comes in many forms—when you learn the signs.

    One love. Ten summers.Are you okay?The first words Zed says to Caspian, and the first time someone has cared about the answer. On a hot summer’s day, the lives of two boys are changed forever. A rebel and a risk taker, Caspian doesn’t give a damn for the consequences. Studious and obedient, Zed is the good boy who is never good enough.The two couldn’t be more different, but there’s one thing they share, a need to belong to someone who understands them, someone who cares. Their friendship goes deeper than either can possibly imagine. They’re young, in love, and planning their future when an act of betrayal tears them apart.Fate deals its hand. Seasons pass. Zed’s words follow Caspian through pain, fear and into the darkest of places. Friendships can last a lifetime, even when the world conspires to crush them. But this is more than friendship. This is love and they’re not going to let it slip through their fingers.WarningThe Story of Us is a tale of love and survival, and the triumph of good over evil against the odds. It's a new adult contemporary romance that deals with family and social issues. There is violence and cruelty to children but not sexual assault. The story has sexual situations, dark elements and suspense. The events and locations are a mixture of real and fictional. The characters are fictional.

    His grades sucked. Making friends? Out of the question thanks to his nervous breakdowns and unpredictable moods. Still, Vince thought when Maggie Atkins took him in, he might’ve finally found a place to get his life—and his issues—in order.But then Maggie keels over from a heart attack. Vince is homeless, alone, and the inheritance money isn't going to last long. A year ago, Vince watched a girl leap to her death off a bridge, and now he's starting to think she had the right idea.Vince stumbles across a website forum geared toward people considering suicide. There, he meets others with the same debate regarding the pros and cons of death: Casper, battling cancer, would rather off herself than slowly waste away. And there’s quiet, withdrawn Adam, who suspects if he died, his mom wouldn't even notice.As they gravitate toward each other, Vince searches for a reason to live while coping without Maggie's guidance, coming to terms with Casper's imminent death, and falling in love with a boy who doesn't plan on sticking around.

    Approachable. I make friends easily.Cool car. Nice clothes. Good attitude.Everything will be fine.School is school.I’ll keep my head down until graduation and try not to stick out.College will be here before I know it.Yet my first day proves to be anything but easy.The Hood River Hoodlums—our school’s most notorious group of bad boys—have put a target on my back.Their leader, Roan, hates me.He calls me Rat.To him and his friends, I’m a loser who doesn’t belong at their school.I could pretend I don’t care about their hate.If only Roan wasn’t so hot.He’s mean, cruel, and sexy as hell.My nemesis is impossible to ignore…and a secret part of me doesn’t want to.Here I thought being gay was the worst of my problems.Turns out, being gay and crushing on your enemy takes the cake.This is a full-length high school enemies-to-lovers and new adult romance with high angst, suspense, and gutting emotion. It's book one in the Hood River Hoodlum series that will have interlinking storylines. Hood River Rat can be read as a standalone and starts off a four-book planned series that gives each Hoodlum a book. This is the only MM story. The others are MF.

    Growing up together, they shared everything. By the age of fourteen they were more than best friends – they were in love. They dreamt of their future, of success, marriage…happiness. They were going to grow old by each other’s side.But… “Kids are stupid.”When tragic circumstances forced them apart, Dylan discovered that life wasn’t the fairytale he dreamed of; it was dark, difficult, saturated with pain and shame. Life wasn’t meant to be enjoyed, merely survived, but even that became a challenge.Damaged, worthless, and disgusting, he saw no point to his pitiful existence…Until he came face to face with the boy he used to love.Successful, honourable, and happy, Cameron had achieved the future they planned. He was good, positive, popular…everything Dylan would never be. What would happen if Dylan let him back into his world? Would he destroy Cameron too? Would his poison push him away like everyone else?“Everybody leaves.” “They leave or they die.”But what if…what if Cameron didn’t?Counting Daisies is book one in The Counting Series, but can be read as a standalone novel.(M/M romance. Not suitable for readers under 18 years of age due to language and sexual content. ***Please note*** This book contains scenes and descriptions of intravenous drug use which may be uncomfortable for some readers.)

    Kyle Braden has nowhere else to go. With no money and no prospects, he turns to the only man who promises him help. Jack Campbell-Hayes wants to show Kyle that he can be more than he ever thought.Kyle begins to see how far he’s come from being the scarred man who shut everyone out, when the first person through the doors of Legacy Ranch is Jason; a young man with nightmares that follow him when he's awake. Lost in the system and with three years on the streets marking every inch of his body, Jason Smith is scared. His life is an evil mess of hate and despair, and even the offer of a fresh start and a clean bed isn’t enough for him feel safe. Until Kyle comes into his life and shows him that it's okay not to be in control.For these broken men, Legacy Ranch offers more than a place to live and work.It offers hope.A new story set in the world of Jack and Riley Campbell-Hayes and the Double D Ranch, Texas.

    They were only trying to deal with bad situations at home when they became lifelines for each other. Their pipe dream was to someday meet in LA, where Lucas would design skyscrapers, and Gabriel would learn to fly. But then Gabriel disappeared without so much as a goodbye, and Lucas got himself in trouble with the law. Five years later, both men are at a loss when they run into each other at a Hollywood bar. Lucas is still angry, but it’s not as if Gabriel could control how his mind and body had betrayed him. Being found on the ledge of that bridge had changed everything. The attraction is immediate, but it’s more than their inability to keep their hands off each other. Neither man expects the fierce connection pulling them together. Unfortunately, ignoring their problems doesn’t make them disappear. Gabriel’s internal struggles are serious…dangerous. And no matter how much Lucas wants it to be true, saving Gabriel won’t make up for not being able to save his mom. If they don’t find the strength to face their own demons before the darkness takes hold, they risk more than just losing each other forever.

    Too bad the ingredients of success haven’t mixed too well for him and instead of having the world at his feet, Alex has, once again, landed himself in a hot mess of trouble. The community service his father arranges for him in a wildlife center on the other side of the country comes as a bit of a nasty surprise, though. Being shipped off to middle-of-nowhere, Oregon, is not Alex’s idea of the perfect summer vacation.What Alex never expects is to meet Noah Price. He never expects to be noticed and understood. He never expects to feel valued and special.He never expects to fall in love. Everything is not what it seems, though, and love that feels invincible turns out to be anything but.But love finds a way, and when Alex and Noah unexpectedly cross paths years later, they will have to risk it all for the love they both deserve and so desperately need. Rare is a standalone MM Second Chance romance about first loves, one perfect summer, one debilitating secret and finding your forever.

    His boyfriend died in a car crash while reading a sext from him, the local newspaper outed them both in the aftermath, and his parents got a divorce. Joel did everything possible to outrun his past: he moved to Oklahoma for college, legally changed his name, and started over.Since then, he hasn’t let anyone get close—not his classmates, not his roommate, and definitely not his hookups. The strategy has served him well for over three years. Why would he change it now?But Joel doesn’t plan on the articles about his boyfriend’s death being used as a case study in one of his classes. And he doesn’t plan on Paulie McPherson, who is sweet and giving and fun. In Paulie, he finds a home for the first time in years.But love isn’t simple, and lies have a tendency to get in the way. Joel must figure out if he’ll allow his grief to rule him, or if his connection with Paulie is worth letting all of his walls come tumbling down.

    But I’m about to find out.Jock. Big-boned. Broad shoulders. Tall. Runs fingers through hair as though he’s attractive and knows it. Walks into party like he has all the time in the world, slow but oddly graceful. Laugh lines around the mouth, a deep crack in his skin where a dimple might be. That’s how I described him in the notes for my latest party-page column.He fascinates me, but I’m not sure why. Or what to do about it. My belly is a fluttery, twisty mess.Best to focus on my mission to find The Raven—the campus vigilante—and warn him about the hate mail the student paper’s been getting for him.Except . . .Quinn looks at me and his eyes darken. He wants something. But what is it?Why do I want so badly to give it to him?Liam Davis & the Raven is a slow-burn, bi-awakening, New Adult, gay romance set in college. This roommates to lovers story follows quirky, socially awkward Liam to his heartwarming HEA.