He wasn't expecting his best friend, Claire Olivia, to kidnap him. And he definitely wasn't expecting what she has planned to cheer him up...Ben Carver was honestly planning to spend winter break at home in New Hampshire not thinking about Rafe. But he wasn't expecting to run into his ex-girlfriend, who's still interested in him. And he wasn't expecting to find himself still attracted to her...Openly, Honestly tells two funny, sad, beautiful stories that were made for anyone who has longed for one person to see you, to understand you, and to love you exactly as you are.

    Two long years of sarcastic comments. Two long years of insults, and having to redo the coffee pot four times in the mornings to meet his exacting standards.Not surprisingly he has devoted a lot of time to increasingly inventive ways to murder Gabe. From stabbing him with a cake fork, to garrotting him with his expensive tie, Dylan has thought of everything.However, a chance encounter opens his eyes to the attraction that has always lain between them, concealed by the layers of antipathy. There are only two problems - Gabe is still a bastard, and he makes wedding planners look like hardened pessimists.But what happens when Dylan starts to see the real Gabe? What happens when he starts to fall in love with the warm, wary man that he sees glimpses of as the days pass? Because Gabe is still the same commitment shy, cold man that he’s always been, or is he? Has Dylan had the same effect on Gabe, and has his solid gold rule of no commitment finally been broken? With his heart taken Dylan desperately needs to know, but will he get hurt trying to find the answers?From the author of ‘The Summer of Us’ comes another scorchingly hot romantic comedy, showing what happens between two men when rules get broken.

    He was five. Dimitri is a psychopath. And he’s still obsessed with just one person.Arlo Miller was born a victim, raised as his father’s punching bag and his mother’s scapegoat. Dimitri was his only protection, and they took him away.As children they clung to each other. As adults, they pretend neither remembers, while both harbor secret crushes. Dimitri hides his feelings behind a mask of indifference. Arlo hides his by falling for very bad men.When one of those men confronts Dimitri, this time Arlo commits a felony. Murder. But Dimitri won’t allow Arlo to take the fall. With the help of Dimitri’s mother and seven psychopaths, they now have twenty-four hours to fake an alibi, hide a body, and confess their true feelings for each other once and for all. Which is harder? Falling in love or getting away with murder?NOTE: This can be read as a stand-alone but these characters do make a cameo in Headcase (Necessary Evils, #4).

    Billy gains Darryl's respect with his earnest nature and willingness to work hard, but Billy's admiring looks resurrect pain and shame from Darryl’s past.Until Darryl stumbles across Billy's secret, Billy is suffering in silence: his father died a few months earlier, leaving him struggling to raise his twin five-year-old brothers. Darryl takes Billy and the boys to the restaurant, where they’ll stand together to face the smorgasbord of troubles in their future… while Davey, Donnie, and Billy all worm their way into Darryl’s heart.

    Online dating has been a soul-crushing experience for the restaurant owner. Too many meat-haters interested in microbreweries or something called geocaching. His matches in the multiplayer for his favorite video game have been equally sucky too.One night, he encounters a newbie who is so helpless, Phil can’t help showing him the ropes. It doesn’t take long for Phil to become interested in his enthusiastic teammate. 28-year-old Tyson Falls from Georgia loves working as a server in a rinky pizza joint and sees the best in everything. As Phil’s online dating matches get worse and his in-game matches with Tyson get better, he finds himself wanting to pursue the easygoing chatterbox with a thick, sexy drawl.But Phil can’t get past the fear that Tyson couldn't possibly want a fossil like him. If his brain doesn’t stop being so damn insecure, it might be game over for his heart.

    My brother’s best friend, he fit with my family in ways I never could. While he and Rhett went on to play house, I left the only life I knew, desperate for a fresh start.Until everything changed.Heartache came along, and the aftermath of my brother’s death was here to stay. I was now face to face with Julian more than I ever wanted to be.Being around him brought up all my insecurities, forced me to deal with hard truths, and conjured up feelings I had no business entertaining. He wasn’t the man I thought I knew. He was complex and layered, and inherently beautiful in all the ways I’d never noticed.Not on another person.Not on another man.Not until him.

    As he settles into his new role, makes new friends, and dreams of making it to the top, everything is going to plan.Until he meets James Holden, CEO of Holden House.James Holden hasn’t been able to stop thinking about his encounter with the timid man he met in a club bathroom last week, and when he discovers the one haunting his dreams is an employee, he can’t seem to stop himself from pursuing him.Just a little fun - that’s what James tells himself. He can’t afford to care for someone who can never reciprocate, not once they find out who he really is. James believes nobody deserves the burden of being attached to him. He’s a complicated man. Damaged. Difficult. Demanding. Broken.Is Theodore strong enough to confront James’ demons? More importantly, is James? Please note:This book contains scenes of self harm, mental illness and suicidal ideation which may be uncomfortable for some readers.

    Every day, that is, until the day the elevator breaks and Sean Mallory practically runs into his arms.Substitute teacher Sean Mallory is everything Zach is not—poor, happy, and goofily charming. With a disarming smile and a penchant for drama, Sean laughs his way into Zach's heart one elevator ride at a time. Zach would love to get to know Sean better, but first he needs the courage to leave his ivory tower and face a relationship that doesn't end at the "Ding!"

    The last thing he expects is for his friend’s roommate to be the one guy he despises the most. The same guy who stomped on his heart senior year of high school. And by the looks of the girl on his arm, the same man who’s still deep inside the closet. Nicholas Dell never predicted that eleven years later, one of his greatest regrets would show up on his doorstep down on his luck. Nick has made some terrible mistakes—story of his life—and he’s been paying for them ever since. And if the guilt and shame aren’t enough, his first crush had to turn into one of the sexiest men he’s ever laid eyes on. Nick and Brin have weeks to steer clear of each other. Weeks to avoid strangling each other. But when stubbornness leads to skyrocketing sexual tension, hate-sex doesn’t seem like such an awful way to work through their frustration. Except hate is a powerful emotion, especially when it’s turned inward. And in Nick’s case he’s been drowning in a sea of self-loathing for so long, he can’t see his way out. As Brin reconnects with Nick, his perception of what really happened in their past begins to change. He’s finally ready to forgive him and take a second chance on the one guy who stirs him like no other. But Nick’s demons are complicated, heart-wrenching…demanding. So devastating, he might never allow himself true happiness—even with the one man who’s always owned his heart.

    Forty-five-year old, Alex Cox worked as an international photographer until a deadly explosion left him with post-traumatic stress disorder. Emotionally wounded, and desperate for a sense of safety, he's run all the way to wild and remote Kahawai Bay, New Zealand.Under the worst possible circumstances, Alex meets Joe, a shy young comics artist. Joe lets Alex into his playful, gentle world of comics, and soon Alex is falling for him, hard. Alex longs for more. Joe is reticent. But is it shyness? Or does Joe not want a much older lover with 'issues'? Or is something else keeping them apart?This is a tender and uplifting story about creativity, adversity, true love, and comics.

    Success. Money. Acclaim. I was standing on the doorstep to having it all when my father handed me an impossible ultimatum: travel to middle-of-nowhere Alaska to convince Gage Emerson to return to work or don’t bother coming back.Gage: Power and prosperity are overrated. Especially when they come at a price. When enough became enough, I walked away, forging a new, quieter life for myself in small-town Sawyer’s Ferry. That life was perfect, until one day Holden Prescott, son of my former business partner, showed up in my backyard. And he isn’t taking no for an answer.Nothing had ever tempted me to look back, but now I’m not so sure I can walk away a second time.

    He’s fresh out of university as a video-game entrepreneur, and his new app could actually save lives. But burning the candle at both ends means missing out on the best parts of his own life—including his boyfriend, Liam. Liam Carroll works to live. His job as a bartender pays the rent—if not always the heating bill—and that’s plenty for now. But Robert’s workaholism reminds Liam his own life is going nowhere, and his own dreams are scaring the pants off him. To jolt them out of their ruts, Robert invents a new game: He and Liam are to take turns offering each other sexy new challenges with irresistible rewards. Of course, Robert gets more than he bargained for, as Liam takes their game in one surprising direction after another. Whether it’s in the bedroom, on the football pitch, or at the pub (or even the supermarket?), the things they learn about each other—and themselves—could change their lives forever. Play Hard is the feel-good, staying-in-love story the world needs right now! Note: This happier-ever-after novella features the main characters of Playing With Fire but can be read as a stand-alone story. Glasgow Lads series More Warriors are on the way! The series features a recurring cast of teammates, but each book contains its own stand-alone romance, so they can be read in any order. - Play On, Duncan & Brodie novella - Playing for Keeps, Fergus & John novel - Playing to Win, Colin & Andrew novel - Play It Safe, Fergus & John short story - Playing with Fire, Liam and Robert novel - Play Dead, Colin & Andrew short story - Playing in the Dark, Evan & Ben novel - Play Hard, Liam & Robert novella Glasgow Lads on Ice (spinoff/crossover series featuring curling): - Throwing Stones, Luca and Oliver novel - Second novel (title and release date TBA), 2019

    Lonely. A void.I have an expiration date and the final hour is here.Until a boy bounces into my dark world.Too short. Too young looking. Too smiley. Too much hair.I want to look away because he’s too much. Too much everything.Bright and bustling with energy.A train wreck of color.His name is Kit Strong.Loud, adorably dorky, and absolutely my type.In another life, I could love someone like him.It’s too late, though.I’m ready to leave.I’ve already made my decision.But he wants me to stay.***This is a MM emotional romance that touches on sensitive topics like death and suicide but ends happily. This story was formerly in an anthology.***

    But when his sister proposes a documentary to demonstrate once and for all that it’s a choice—with Isaac choosing to be gay as proof—he balks. Until he learns his nephew is headed down that perverted path. Isaac will do anything to convince the teenager he can choose to be straight . . . including his sister’s film.When Isaac’s first foray into the gay lifestyle ends with a homophobic beating, he’s saved and cared for by Colton Roberts, a gentle, compassionate bartender with a cross around his neck. Colton challenges every one of Isaac’s deeply held beliefs about gay men. He was kicked out by homophobic parents, saved from the streets by a kind pastor, and is now a devout Christian. Colton’s sexuality has cost him dearly, but it also brought him to God.As the two grow closer, everything Isaac knows about homosexuality, his faith, and himself is called into question. And if he’s been wrong all along, what does that mean for his ministry, his soul, his struggling nephew—and the man he never meant to love?

    Just imagine if you had a chance to meet him and all your fantasies started coming true. There's only one catch: Between you and your dream guy is his less-than-pleased boyfriend. They say that love conquers all, but can love conquer love?Like and Subscribe is a new short story by Jay Bell, the author of Something Like Summer.