Summons


Lisa Oliver - 2021
    It has to be Fate, right? Edward Rosen, level ten mage, hadn’t reached the end of his tether – he was hanging from it. After a hundred and twenty-four years of living under his parents’ rules, Edward decided the only way things could change, was if he got married. The only problem was that the wedding was meant to take place in a matter of hours and Edward hadn’t met his groom yet.Mammon, Prince of Hell, was doing what most demons did when they were bored – he was playing poker. When an unbeatable hand is foiled by a summons, he’s not impressed. But rules are rules and Mammon followed the summons, determined to get back to his game as quickly as possible.Marrying was just the first hurdle. Coping with the demands of Edward’s family, a curse, a prophecy, and four hellhounds took a lot of work. Clara’s having a ball, but what’s with all the toothpicks and where did the dragon come from?Summons is a 50,000 word story that’s a classic example of what happens when the author’s muse runs amuck. But like all of Lisa’s stories, it contains fated mates, a spot of humor, and intimate situations between two men that are only suitable for readers eighteen years and older. HEA is guaranteed.

How to Keep an Author (Alive)


A.J. Sherwood - 2021
    Now, vampires hold day jobs like everyone else, and Justus is no exception. The funny thing about living forever is that you still somehow have laundry and bills to deal with. Enter stage left: JD Cooper, Justus’s new employer. Supposedly, the man is a writing raconteur, known to craft a mean mystery. His skills excel on paper, but suck in reality because he’s one step away from hoarder level. Justus takes the job as his housekeeper, expecting eccentricity. Which he gets. And so much more. Tags: Vampires with day jobs, Justus has it rough, Cooper is a walking disaster, how self-indulgent should I make this, the answer is very, bite kink, book hoarding, this is the least angsty thing I’ve written all year, smother tested, editor approved (This was a short story originally published in the Working Stiffs anthology. With the anthology no longer published, I've chosen to re-release it as a 10k short.)

Frost & Raine


K.L. Noone - 2021
    A Cupid who works as a divorce lawyer. And magic in the air ...Raine’s never been a conventional Cupid. He likes organization, his job as a successful lawyer, and black coffee, and he dislikes messiness, physical and emotional. He tries hard not to use his powers, because he’d rather not manipulate anyone’s desires, and he’s not planning to fall in love himself -- and he wouldn’t trust it if someone fell in love with him. But the owner of Raine’s favorite coffee shop is endlessly patient, kind even in the face of sarcasm, and an artist with flavors and window decorations ... and he could even challenge Raine’s resolutions about love.Don enjoys his life. Even though he’s a Frost, he finds comfort in giving people warmth: good coffee, a cozy refuge from the rain, holiday decorations, and overall cheer. But one gorgeous Cupid seems immune to Don’s cheerfulness -- and he keeps coming back, day after day. Fortunately, Don’s always liked a challenge, and now he’s determined to make Raine smile at least once ... and he’s discovering that Raine’s sarcasm hides a generous and lonely heart, keeping the world at bay.And if Don and Raine can learn to trust each other -- with new coffee flavors, with their hopes for the future, and with their hearts -- the Frost and the Cupid just might find their own magical happy ending.

Lacuna


N.R. Walker - 2020
    A girlchild enveloped in red, marked with the three lines of the desert winds. A boy bundled in white, the koi mark on his wrist as defined as his shock of red hair. And a boychild wrapped in black, a raven his mark to serve his fate.~ ~ ~Twenty-five years ago, the hand of fate marked four newborns and sent them to the four corners of the Great Kingdoms. They were schooled and trained as rulers of their lands in preparation for the Golden Eclipse ceremony: a festival to celebrate a thousand years of peace and prosperity since the Great War.Crow, ruler of Northlands, a skilled swordsman and expert tactician, is as reclusive and stoic as the mountains that surround him.Tancho has spent his life in strict discipline, governing the Westlands with a fair mind and gentle hand. Quiet and unassuming, yet lethal in combat, he is the embodiment of the waters he lives by.Yet the same hand of fate unknowingly linked Tancho to Crow in ways they cannot comprehend. Ruled by the stars, the brother sun and the two sister moons above them, and marked by an alchemical sorcery as old as time, their destinies were never their own.As the eclipse draws near and the festival begins, word comes of another threat. Invaders from unknown lands bring a war no one was prepared for, and Crow and Tancho must decide on which side of the battle line they stand.In life or death, their destinies will see them joined either way.

An Admirer


Megan Derr - 2010
    His life is work and school, leaving him too busy to make friends. Then one day, fetching his mail from his school post box, Kaeck finds a letter from a secret admirer. The letters and subsequent gifts do much to brighten Kaeck’s lonely days, but even as he longs to know the identity of his admirer, he finds his own admiration growing for fellow student Bellamy... who in turn is enamored of someone else entirely.

Betrothed: A Faery Tale


Therese Woodson - 2015
    Prince Chrysanths should be no different—except with a human for a father, the prince known as Puck already is different. When he is betrothed against his will to Prince Sky, Puck flees to his father in the human world, only to have Sky follow. Prince Sky Song of the Clouds isn’t thrilled with the prospect of marriage either, but is bound by duty to follow through. If he can’t win Puck over, the faery realm might very well dissolve into utter chaos. Too busy arguing, Puck and Sky are unaware there are others with a vested interest in seeing the betrothal fail. In a bid for Puck’s crown, they’ll seek to keep them apart, even as Puck and Sky realize that duty and love don’t always have to be mutually exclusive.

Pilgrimage


Kim Fielding - 2014
    He doesn’t believe in fate, true love, or fantasy. But then a fertility goddess whisks him away to another world. A promise has been broken, and if Mike is ever to return to California—and his comfortable if lonely life—he must complete a pilgrimage to the shrines of a death goddess.A humiliating event convinces Mike to hire a guard to accompany him, and hunky Goran is handy enough with a sword, if a little too liberal with his ale. A man with no home and no family, Goran is deeper than he first appears. As Mike learns more about Goran, his disbelief wavers and his goals become less clear. Contending with feuding gods, the challenges of the journey, and his growing attraction to Goran, Mike faces a puzzle far harder to solve than simple rows of numbers.

Silk & Steel


Ariana Nash - 2019
    Humans have vanished under the rubble of their world and if the queen has her way, elves will be next. Eroan, one of the last elven assassins, lives for one purpose: kill the queen. He would have succeeded if not for her last line of defense: Prince Lysander. Now, captured and forced into the queen’s harem, Eroan sees another opportunity. Why kill just the queen when he can kill them all? It would be simple, if not for the troubled and alluring prince. A warrior, a killer, and something else…, something Eroan finds himself inexplicably drawn to. Trapped in a life he despises, Lysander knows his time is running out. If the queen doesn’t kill him for his failures, her enemies will. There’s nothing left to live for, until an elf assassin almost kills him. A stubborn, prideful, fool of an elf who doesn’t know when to quit. An elf who sparks a violent, forbidden desire in Lysander. If Lysander can’t save himself, maybe he can save the elf and maybe, just maybe… one stubborn elf will be enough to bring down the queen before she kills them all. Duty demands they fight for their people. Love has other plans. Warning & Reader Advisory:This series is a DARK FANTASY intended for mature readers. Silk & Steel features a gay dragon shifter, a bisexual elf, and adult themes. There is triggering content that some readers may find distressing, including implied incest, abuse, violence, dubious consent, and on-page sex. None of these instances are gratuitous. There is heterosexual sex and gay sex. The intense and star-crossed romantic relationship between the two male leads develops over three books.

Touch of Magic


Stella Rainbow - 2020
    A dying human. A squirrel intent on setting them up.Jai:I've lived my whole life with a terminal illness, knowing I'd never be "normal." I basically just existed, one day at a time with my dog as my sole, faithful companion. Then one day, Fate intervened and an encounter with a beautiful man gave me something I'd never had before: Hope.Could I really have the life I never thought I would have? Could I have all the things I'd only ever dreamed of having?Health, happiness, a full life...love?Raphael:I was always the black sheep of the family, the mage with faulty magic. I'd lived for a hundred and fifty years being taunted and put down, and I'd had to take it all with a smile.When I'd finally had enough, I left my home in Ravenshire and moved to Mistvale. Fate intervened when I was least expecting it and a chance encounter with a beautiful man tipped my world on its axis, and I discovered things I hadn't known about myself.Could Jai really be the answer to all my questions?Touch of Magic is a 70k words story including a goofy mage, a human who believes in magic, a squirrel intent on setting them up and a best friend who will threaten anyone who tried to hurt his bestie. it's the first book in the Mages of Ravenshire series. Each book in this series can be read as a standalone, but it is recommended to read them in order for the most enjoyment.

Static


L.A. Witt - 2011
    Thanks to a forced implant, though, Alex is suddenly static—unable to shift—and male. Overnight, he’s out to a world that neither understands nor tolerates shifters . . . and to his heterosexual boyfriend.Damon is stunned to discover his girlfriend is a shifter, and scared to death of the dangers the implant poses to Alex’s health. He refuses to abandon Alex, but what about their relationship? Damon is straight, and with the implant both costly and dangerous to remove, Alex is stuck as a man.Stripped of half his identity and facing serious physical and social ramifications, Alex needs Damon more than ever, but he doesn’t see how they can get through this.Especially if he’s static forever.Note: This book was written several years ago, and since that time, the author's understanding of gender identity has evolved. Were Static to be written today, it would include (for example) non-binary identities rather than a male/female binary.

The Cat in the Cradle


Jay Bell - 2010
    Loving someone you weren't supposed to? That was hard. A faceless killer terrorizes the five lands, extinguishing from great distances the lives of even the most powerful men. It is from this murderer that Dylan is forced to flee. Only Tyjinn, a brash and unpredictable bodyguard, stands between Dylan and certain death. Rather than play it safe, Tyjinn makes an unusual proposal; to hunt the hunter. This isn't the only unorthodox idea he puts forth as an attraction blooms between the two young men. In the midst of uncountable obstacles and unforgiving odds, can Dylan really afford to recognize his own feelings?

The Lodestar of Ys


Amy Rae Durreson - 2013
    It’s a good thing that Celyn is engaged to Sjurd’s brother, not him, because Sjurd loathes the brat, and it’s quite mutual. When an elopement and the threat of invasion force the two princes together, however, they have no choice but to marry and fake true love to keep their countries safe. Can warrior Sjurd and diplomat Celyn find any common ground?

Seducing the Sorcerer


Lee Welch - 2021
    All he has left is his longing for horses and the strength of his own two hands. But when he’s cheated into accepting a very ugly sackcloth horse, he’s catapulted into a world of magic, politics and desire. Fenn’s invited to stay at the black tower, home of the most terrifying man in the realm: Morgrim, the court sorcerer. Morgrim has a reputation as a scheming villain, but he seems surprisingly charming—and sexy—and Fenn falls hard for him.However, nothing is as it seems and everyone at the tower is lying about something. Beset by evil hexes, violent political intrigue and a horse that eats eiderdowns, Fenn must make the hardest choices of his life.Can a plain man like Fenn ever find true love with a scheming sorcerer?

Nor Iron Bars a Cage


Kaje Harper - 2013
    Then I was a hermit. For so long—for years that seemed to go on forever—I couldn't bear to be touched. I put up not just walls but whole stone bunkers to keep everyone out, emotionally, and physically as well. I was protected from people, from ghosts, from specters real and imagined. Sure, I was alone. But I felt safe. Only, after a while, I wasn't sure any longer whether a totally "safe" empty life was really worth living.Then Tobin came along. Out of the blue, out of my past, with a summons from the king that he wouldn't let me ignore. I tried to cling to my isolation, but he wouldn't give up on me. Tobin never believed in walls.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.http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1...

The Shattered Gates


Ginn Hale - 2011
    Though he struggles to escape, John is drawn steadily closer to a fate he shares with Kyle—to wake the destroyer god, the Rifter, and shatter a world.