Not willing to ruin their friendship, Rory keeps his feelings buried. But a drunken confession by Owen changes everything. Will Rory lose his best friend, or will he realize his sweetest dream?Original Prompt: Dear Author,I can't tell you how long I've wanted a story to go along with this picture. I love the thought that they have been friends forever and just couldn't resist each other anymore.I would be forever grateful if you could help me out!!Photo Description: Two shirtless young men lay on top of each other, the one on top with his pants pushed down to expose his butt, kissing on a grassy field. A football rests in the grass next to them.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.__________Genre: contemporaryTags: gay m/m, friends-to-lovers, college, football, athletes, first-timeWord Count: 6,410

    But the forty year old environmental planner from LA, never made it. With a bad navigation system and the infamous Tule fog, Wade ended up on a road to nowhere, his BMW stuck in the mud. His gas tank running low, no phone reception, Wade couldn’t think of a worse scenario.Until…headlights appeared through the gloom.Twenty-two year old Ayden Solomon worked with his three brothers and father on the almond orchard in the Great Central Valley. Ayden, being the youngest, and prettiest, was constantly the source of amusement for his brothers’ teasing and put up with it, but grew weary of the bullying. At night, when he was alone in his room, Ayden drew superhero comics, a dynamic duo who he imagined would save the world from bullies…bullies who attacked men like him. Gay men.After unsuccessfully trying to pull Wade’s car out of the ditch, and getting himself stuck as well, the two strangers spend the night in Ayden’s truck, keeping warm, talking, bonding, and sharing things with each other; personal things. Ayden and Wade, although had nothing in common, got to know each other on a very deep level in the eight hours they were sitting in the dense fog, alone and completely isolated.What had begun as a frustrating trip for Wade, had turned into a gay erotic fantasy with a young stud. But neither man could imagine what would come next, when the city slicker met…The Farmer’s Son.

    After partying too hard last year, they make a pact to rein themselves in. While their housemates are out drinking every weekend, Jez and Mac stay in to save cash and focus on their studies.When Jez suggests watching some porn together, he isn’t expecting Mac to agree to it. One thing leads to another, and soon their arrangement becomes hands-on rather than hands-off. But falling for your 'straight' friend can only end badly, unless there’s a chance he might feel the same.This book is a complete story and can be read as a standalone.

    Despite a daughter he loves dearly and a job he believes in, part of him is stuck in the past. He’s never forgotten the first love he let fade away fifteen years ago. Adam "Izz" Azzi has settled into a happy rhythm. His daughter is healthy, he's found a mosque that accepts him, and his work as a modern artist is gaining international attention. While his past is fraught with mistakes and what-ifs, his life now is good, and he doesn't want to upset any of the balance he's worked so hard to achieve. When Nick and Izz are reunited by luck and fate, their attraction is just as undeniable, but what was left unsaid haunts them. They have hope for a future together, but wishing may not be enough.

    Small, small town. There are ways out of even the smallest town, if you can find the hand to guide you out.Original link: http://s2b2.livejournal.com/176784.htmlWords: 12,720 Complete

    Not even out of his teens yet and the innocent boy is thrust into a world filled with the worst kinds of human predators. Like prey about to be devoured, Micah fears for the worst… until one man steps in between him and the other inmates. Reid Turner claims the boy for his own. He draws a line in the sand around him that none of the others dare cross, for Reid is at the top of the food chain at Riker’s. But what is the cost of the powerful man’s protection? What does he want from young Micah? Is the boy’s life truly over, or has it only just begun? Read on to find out! This story by Amelita Rae will warm your heart and remind you of the power of true love to bring hope to even the darkest places. ~43,500 words

    He was told he was evil down to his soul. It was physically beat into him on a daily basis. He lived with it, believing that his ultra conservative religious grandparents were right until the day his mother was attacked. Seeking help changed Happy’s life in ways he could never imagine and showed him a world he didn’t know existed.Answering a disturbance call, Deputy Marc Walker meets a man that shocks him with his gentleness. When he discovers Happy’s true nature, Marc wants to know everything about the man. He wants to show him the world.When the past rears its head, and their lives are put in danger, Happy tries to do the right thing and distance himself from his handsome deputy. But Marc has other plans for his gentle giant and he’s not going to let a little thing like getting shot or having escaped prisoners gunning for them interfere with those plans. Happy will get his happy ever after.Note: Some graphic depiction of extreme violence against the hero when he was a minor.

    A secretary in a small-town Southern Baptist church in Texas, she bristles at Greg’s secular beliefs. Through passive-aggressive manipulation, subtle deceit, or outright battle, Vivien resolves to banish Greg and return Danny to the fold, come hell or high water. Greg’s hold on Danny’s heart is pitted against Vivien’s crusade for Danny’s soul.All the while, Greg devotes himself to keeping Danny happy while negotiating the cultural differences of his life in America. Danny’s new career as a lawyer takes them from his native Texas to New York. But with Vivien testing Greg’s stiff upper lip at every turn, something has to give.The British Devil is a semiautobiographical novel exploring culture, religion, and love in a bi-national relationship.

    The closest he gets is the rec league soccer team he coaches after work—and his star player and best friend, Richie Scoggins.One brisk night in late October, a postpractice convo in Richie’s car turns into a sexual encounter neither of them expected—nor want to forget. Soon Skip and Richie are living for the weekends and their winter league soccer games—and the games they enjoy off the field. Through broken noses, holiday decorating, and the killer flu, they learn more about each other than they ever dreamed possible. Every new discovery takes them further beyond the boundaries of the soccer field and into the infinite possibilities of the best relationship of Skipper’s life. Skipper can’t dream of a better family than Richie—but Richie’s got real family entanglements he can’t shake off. Skipper needs to convince Richie to stay with him beyond winter ball so the relationship they started on the field might become their happy future in real life!

    He willingly, even eagerly, risks his life to save a stranger as a murderous, deranged shooter moves methodically through the darkened theater on the Batcheldor College campus, randomly killing innocent men, women, and children.The stranger he saves is college freshman Jason Tripp. Jase loses everything in the shooting: his girlfriend, who dies on the floor beside him, and his grip on emotional security. He struggles to regain a sense of safety in the world, finally leaving college to seek refuge in his hometown.An inexplicable bond forms between the two men in the chaos and horror of the theater, and Liam fights to bring Jase back to the world he ran away from. When Jase returns to school, they’re drawn together as soulmates, and soon Liam and Jase fall into a turbulent romantic relationship. However, the rocky path to love cannot be smoothed until Jase rescues his hero in return by delving into his shady past and solving the mystery of Liam’s compulsion to be everybody’s savior.

    He finds himself in a small town in Tasmania on a quest from an old professor to find an elusive species that may or may not even exist.Local Parks and Wildlife officer, Jack Brighton, is an ordinary guy who loves his life in the sleepy town of Scottsdale. Along with his Border collie dog, Rosemary, his job, and good friends, he has enough to keep from being lonely.But then he meets Lawson, and he knows he’s met someone special. There’s more to catching butterflies, Jack realises. Sometimes the most elusive creatures wear bow ties, and sometimes they can’t be caught at all.Lawson soon learns there are butterflies he can’t learn about it in books. They exist only in a touch, in a kiss, in a smile. He just has to let go first, so these butterflies can fly.Imago is the story of finding love, bow ties, and butterflies.

    But his family has other ideas: his father manipulates him into a job he hates and his mother uses him as a patch for coping with his siblings’ problems. When Mark runs into Jamie Novotny after a particularly bad day at work, he’s surprised to find the quirky kid he knew in high school has grown into a driven ecowarrior. But the shock of finding Jamie working in the local co-op pales compared to his astonishment when Jamie confesses he’s had a crush on Mark for years.Their first night together leaves Mark happy but disoriented, but their second leaves him bereft. He's unable to find Jamie because he refuses to use cell phones, fearing their environmental impact. Mark’s usual stoicism splinters, and he can’t stop himself from tracking Jamie down. When their lives collide, Mark makes room in his heart and his house for Jamie—but what Jamie really wants is for Mark to man up.

    Reckless. Sure. By definition. When it comes to fun, Cam hasn’t yet met a challenge he wouldn’t accept. In other areas, he’s likely far too cautious for his own good.He’s his complete opposite...Gannon Burgess, CEO of Burgess Entertainment, one of the top video game producers in the world, finds himself smack in the middle of the last place he would ever expect to be. But Gannon only thinks he is out of his element standing in the small marina office. Then... he meets Cam.Rumor is opposites attract.Sparks fly when this sexy, tattooed bad boy comes face to face with this buttoned-up gamer in glasses. Can Cam and Gannon push one another out of their comfort zones? Or -- thanks to the events that have shaped their lives -- will the time they spend together prove to be just another reckless adventure? This one involving their hearts.

    Seth’s unconventional upbringing taught him to always reach out to strangers in need, and Iranian engineering student Bilal al-Mansoori is no exception. Being trapped together leads to an unexpected mutual attraction—and a feverishly hot night under the covers. But Bilal needs more than simply a rescue from the weather—he’s trapped under lifetime of cultural pressures. His strict Muslim father and fellow Iranian students have no clue about his inner torment. His attraction to Seth isn’t a welcome discovery—instead he’s trapped between the existence he’s always known and the prospect of living and loving openly for the first time in his life. Note: This story stands alone—no need to have read the prior Courtland books.

    It sounds like the start of a joke, but for Sam Collins and Daniel Evans, it is the beginning of their story. Daniel walks to shed his drug-filled past and make himself whole. But Sam, who hides the demons of war behind a smile, needs Daniel more than either man knows. An old stockman’s wisdom sends them on their journey together, a long hard road to find Australia’s sacred Red Heart and—perhaps—each other.Part of the Under the Southern Cross anthology.