Then a new couple moves in down the street, and Andrew finds himself falling for Nathan in a big way. Nathan is straight, married, and just about to be a father, but after one fateful night out together at a club, Nathan has to face the fact that his feelings for Andrew go way beyond that of a friend and neighbor.When Andrew’s wife asks for a divorce, both men’s lives are thrown into disarray. Arguments about their responsibilities to their wives and children, doubting themselves and each other, and some harrowing lies pull them apart… but they never leave each other’s thoughts.

    Travis wears his crown lightly, careful not to break any hearts. He knows what it’s like to really love someone who doesn’t love you back-at least, not in the way you want. Heath Kelley made the biggest mistake of his life the night before his best friend Travis left for college. One small action snowballed into years of silent misunderstanding and empty distance. When Heath accepts a transfer that sends him to his hometown, he doesn’t know Travis has moved back home, too. It doesn’t take long for the men to reconnect. Admitting they never stopped thinking of each other as “best friends” is easy. Forgiveness of past sins is easy, but confessing their secrets comes harder. When Heath discovers the truth about Travis’ private life, the newly repaired bonds of friendship are stretched taut. It’s time for Travis to choose—the love of his best friend, or a life of being second best.

    His boss is on his back, his car is breaking down, and the oppressive heat is broiling him alive. There s no end in sight to his misery.Tall, slender, green-eyed Keith runs the lunch shift at the local diner, an air-conditioned oasis away from what John s life has become. Keith s cheerful personality, constant smile and unbearably sexy body help to remind John that summer is what he makes of it. And with Keith s cooperation, John plans on making this his best summer yet.Warning:Warning: This story contains two hot guys having hot sex one hot summer. Lots of hotness. Please be advised that a fire extinguisher may come in handy; so would ice cubes, used at your discretion."

    So, when Jimmy sees an elderly man wearing a collar standing in the middle of the park and apparently in some sort of trouble, he approaches him and offers the guy his help.All isn’t as it first appears. Maybe it’s Jimmy whose about to get the help he needs.This short story was first published in Kim Dare’s newsletter in June 2011. The inspiration image was chosen by Chris of Stumbling Over Chaos website.

    When her black-sheep grandson, Adam Prescott, turns up on the doorstep, Ben has to take in the stray human as well. Adam, hurting and betrayed by family, boyfriend and Fate, needs to have his faith in others restored, and Ben decides he is the one to do it.Having gone through an acrimonious split with his boyfriend, Adam has no home, no money, no job and nowhere to go, except his grandmother's house. The son of an abusive, violent father, there's a lot of anger and resentment in him, demons he must exorcise. When he learns an unpleasant truth about his father, Ben helps him come to terms with it, and to find a new direction for his life - together, Ben hopes. But then Adam's ex-boyfriend shows up, offering him the world on a platter if only Adam will come back to him.Christmas may not be a time of celebration for Ben.

    When she announces in the middle of a vacation in New Orleans that she's managed to obtain an invitation to a notorious local Vampyre Haven at the historic Maison Bertrand, Brady reluctantly agrees to accompany her. He's never understood her fascination with "the lifestyle," as Tessa calls it, but complete in Gothic makeup and black Victorian garb, he goes with her to the mansion in the bayou for what he believes amounts to an elaborate Halloween party.He couldn't be more wrong. Brady almost immediately realizes he's in over his head: he's not put off by the decor, or even the drugs, but when they stumble across rooms where blood play is on display, he decides it's time to leave. But Tessa isn't ready to go, the doorman Gerard keeps referring to him as "the offering," and some of the more insistent guests have chosen him as a party favor when he is rescued by the enigmatic Lucien Bertrand. Or is he only getting into deeper trouble?Part of Dreamspinner Press's Daily Dose 2010: Midsummer's Nightmare.

    It's bad enough that Dan's a runaway, but when Tyler nearly shoots him on sight, Dan knows he's in trouble. Tyler's got a lot of years under his belt, and his past doesn't let him accept strangers easily. Dan's situation is dire enough that Tyler takes him home, at least for a little while, and that turns out to be a good decision when Dan decides to stay on and help out with the chores.Tyler might be learning to trust, and Dan might be settling in to a new life, but things are not always what they seem. Between interfering friends, injuries, and their attraction to each other, Tyler and Dan have plenty of troubles. More trouble turns up in the form of Tyler's past, which catches up to them with a vengeance, and they decide to start a new life together, one that requires them to leave everything behind. Can they overcome what lies in the past to have a future with each other?

    In a bid to escape his pain, Jonah moved halfway across the country to start over. Now, his mother’s death brings him home where he will discover a shared passion with his childhood best friend. Neil Brogan returns home hoping to reconnect with Jonah and ends up with more than he ever thought possible. They live on opposite sides of the country but the distance between them may be more than mere miles. Neil hopes to convince Jonah that some rules are made to be broken.

    Avery is quick to forgive the fact that Dylan's arrival brings with it a series of unfortunate events hairy enough to keep the most optimistic person down, and he sets about trying to get into Dylan's pants. But love isn't so easy to catch, and Avery will have to face Dylan's past and his own aversion to elevators on his way to happiness.

    It was a lesson he took seriously, and it's the only thing that keeps him safe from more heartbreak. Conner doesn't understand this desire to control things, but he doesn't need to. He loves everything about his control-freak friend, even the way he quirks just one eyebrow. He has for years. With Con's arrival, everything starts unraveling in Tim's life. He's questioning his sexual orientation, wrangling with emotions from his past, and fending off questions from Con's well-meaning family. Drowning in a world out of his control, his one hope is to let go and trust that love will save him. But after so many years of burying his feelings, he's not sure it's possible.

    The problem is that he's not very good at it. Every time he tries to be evil, he winds up screwing up and doing good instead. The old adage of 'every time a bell rings an angel gets its wings' is true in this world, and Piggy keeps earning wings he doesn't want by doing these accidental good deeds. Then he has to go skulking back to the Boss to fess up and get the wings removed.To make matters, worse, he's pretty sure that now he's falling in love. Can Piggy keep the wings off his back and keep up with his new man?

    Neither of them had even dreamt about cowboy beefcake Denver Rogers, but Adam’s pretty sure his nighttime fantasies are just getting started.

    Bartender Jay Hinshaw recognizes Patrick's leashed ferocity and offers him exactly what he thinks Patrick wants: an outlet for his pent-up frustration. But Patrick's a complicated guy, and getting what he wants only scratches the surface of what he needs.

    It's not like Sam has a choice. He cares deeply for Mitch. He even refrains from saying "I told you so."That one night of chaste comfort is all it takes to start Sam thinking about Mitch in ways he really shouldn't. A spontaneous kiss that should have helped sort things out just makes everything more complicated, because Sam is terrified sex will ruin their friendship. Mitch is afraid that pushing Sam for more will drive a wedge between them, but he's even more afraid of never trying for happiness with Sam at all.

    Then his once-great family falters under a mountain of debt. Their only hope—marry Jag off to an appropriately wealthy suitor.Brace Rivers desperately wants more than just a short fling. However, his economic and political reality makes finding an appropriate male partner next to impossible. When the Martin family offers Jag’s hand, it’s a dream come true. But his suspicions mount that the young man is being forced into an unwanted marriage.Compassion wins out over loneliness, and Brace offers Jag a pearl ring valuable enough to both save his family’s fortunes and give him freedom. There’s just one thing Brace wants in return—twenty-four hours together.Brace can only pray it’s long enough to convince Jag that a life together is worth more than all the pearls in the sea.Product WarningsExplicit M/M content, use of toys, outdoor sex.