Title: Ex Meridian
Author: AE Via
Series: Nothing Special #7
Genre: M/M Romance, Suspense
Release Date: February 24, 2020
Editor: Sue Laybourn
Cover Design: Jay Aheer
Police Lieutenants, God and Day are under intense pressure from the chief to take back control of Atlanta’s streets. The last thing their task force needs is a pair of trained killers in town with a personal score to settle.
Take a man and strip him of his ability to feel compassion, empathy, remorse, or any of the emotions that make him human, but leave the ones that ignite rage and aggression and you have the perfect killing machine—now imagine two of them.
Code names Ex and Meridian are synonymous for ‘guaranteed death’ to international terrorists. Two broken men from the same crooked streets, recruited into an unsanctioned government program that few know about. Trained to operate most efficiently—lethally—together.
When Ex returns from an op in Bolivia to learn his little brother has been accidentally killed in a feud between drug gangs, he’s stateside before he can consider the rules he’ll be breaking, and of course Meridian is right beside him. There’s mayhem on the streets of Atlanta and the police are losing control. If Godfrey and his elite team of detectives can’t get the job done then they’d be happy to lighten their caseloads for them. And Ex nor Meridian care about doing it quietly.
“I know who you are.” The man grunted when Ex turned to leave. “You’re the fucking devil.”
Meridian walked past, glaring one final time. “Say that loud enough… maybe God will save you.”
But after their first run-in with the big lieutenant and his protective husband, Day, Ex and Meridian start to reevaluate their own relationship. Wondering if they could be even deadlier if they let loose the feelings for each other that they’ve been forced to suppress for years.
Meridian’s dark eyes stayed locked on his, “A man who can fight beside the one he loves doesn’t make him weaker, Ex—it makes him more dangerous.”
No multiple pairings. No cliffhangers. Ends with a HEA.
Note: This is a partners-to-lovers, out-for-you, action romance.
Ex knew he was playing with fire, but he was already burning up, what was the worst he could do?
He’d always been so careful with restraining his emotions, his feelings, his urges for men in general that it felt almost dangerous to let this part of himself free after all this time. But Ex could trust Meridian, he knew he could. One thing they were good at was reading each other, and there’d been no mistaking how hot and hard his partner had been the other night when he was moving on top of him… and licking him. There was no mistaking the way Meridian was looking at him now. If there was one thing he could recognize in his partner—even though his face remained a mask of intimidating hardness—it was when he was excited.
“Yeah. It wasn’t that hard. There’s nothing a man can’t fix if he has YouTube,” Meridian said, inching past Ex to get to his sink. He didn’t miss the way Meridian brushed his hard chest along his back when he passed. As Meridian scrubbed his hands he watched Ex in the large oval mirror in front of them. Those eyes were so compelling and captivating that Ex’s body started to vibrate from pent-up resistance—years of withholding and denying himself for the good of his country. But what the fuck did America care if he was getting any or not? As long as he did his damn job—like Lieutenant Godfrey and his husband.
Ex stood in the doorway with his heart in his throat as he watched Meridian through new, uncensored eyes. And damn, he liked what he saw. He liked it all. Liked how deadly he was. Liked who and what they were when they were together. He liked that there was no one he trusted more than the man standing in front of him. He liked that Meridian had killed for him, many times. He’d also saved him, cared for him when he was wounded. He’d… he’d even brought him back from the dead. Ex’s cold skin suddenly began to feel even colder. What is this?
Meridian dried his face and hands then replaced the small towel on the rack. He walked towards him and Ex didn’t retreat… not this time. Meridian stopped when he was in front of him, and Ex had to tilt his head back slightly to maintain eye contact.
“If you’re waiting for an answer to your question, then I’ll tell you since it’s not already obvious.” Meridian stared at Ex’s mouth while he spoke. “I wear that fragrance because it’s the only one you respond to.”
Ex frowned, feeling his cheeks heat, “I don’t.”
“Oh, you definitely do,” Meridian said, his expression serious. And so fine. “When I first wore it around you, you looked at me almost offensively. The next time, I wore it, you tried to keep some distance between us the entire day. But your fight didn’t last long, especially since I wouldn’t stop spraying it on every chance I got. After that it was pretty hard to miss the way you reacted to it.”
Ex wondered if all that was true. He guessed it had to be.
“Why’d you really come in here?” Meridian asked, still standing close enough that his warm breath caressed his cheek.
“I was…” I was hurting… and I needed to… I went looking for you to make it go away.
“You were what?” Meridian whispered roughly.
“I don’t know.”
“Yes, you do.”
“Mere.” Ex tensed.
“Just ask me, Xavier… and I’ll give you whatever you need. You know that.”
He’d always been so careful with restraining his emotions, his feelings, his urges for men in general that it felt almost dangerous to let this part of himself free after all this time. But Ex could trust Meridian, he knew he could. One thing they were good at was reading each other, and there’d been no mistaking how hot and hard his partner had been the other night when he was moving on top of him… and licking him. There was no mistaking the way Meridian was looking at him now. If there was one thing he could recognize in his partner—even though his face remained a mask of intimidating hardness—it was when he was excited.
“Yeah. It wasn’t that hard. There’s nothing a man can’t fix if he has YouTube,” Meridian said, inching past Ex to get to his sink. He didn’t miss the way Meridian brushed his hard chest along his back when he passed. As Meridian scrubbed his hands he watched Ex in the large oval mirror in front of them. Those eyes were so compelling and captivating that Ex’s body started to vibrate from pent-up resistance—years of withholding and denying himself for the good of his country. But what the fuck did America care if he was getting any or not? As long as he did his damn job—like Lieutenant Godfrey and his husband.
Meridian dried his face and hands then replaced the small towel on the rack. He walked towards him and Ex didn’t retreat… not this time. Meridian stopped when he was in front of him, and Ex had to tilt his head back slightly to maintain eye contact.
“If you’re waiting for an answer to your question, then I’ll tell you since it’s not already obvious.” Meridian stared at Ex’s mouth while he spoke. “I wear that fragrance because it’s the only one you respond to.”
Ex frowned, feeling his cheeks heat, “I don’t.”
“Oh, you definitely do,” Meridian said, his expression serious. And so fine. “When I first wore it around you, you looked at me almost offensively. The next time, I wore it, you tried to keep some distance between us the entire day. But your fight didn’t last long, especially since I wouldn’t stop spraying it on every chance I got. After that it was pretty hard to miss the way you reacted to it.”
Ex wondered if all that was true. He guessed it had to be.“Why’d you really come in here?” Meridian asked, still standing close enough that his warm breath caressed his cheek.
“I was…” I was hurting… and I needed to… I went looking for you to make it go away.
“You were what?” Meridian whispered roughly.
“I don’t know.”
“Yes, you do.”
“Mere.” Ex tensed.
“Just ask me, Xavier… and I’ll give you whatever you need. You know that.”
What is the biggest influence/interest that brought you to this genre?
I started reading MM in my late teens, and really got into it in my early twenties. I fell in love with gay romance from the very start, from the first love scene I ever read. But it wasn’t until later that I discovered female authors writing MM that it’s influences really changed me. Female authors like GA Hauser and Sandrine Gasq-Dion made me believe that I also could write would really makes my heart soar.
When writing a book, what is your favorite part of the creative process(outline, plot, character names, editing, etc)?
My favorite part of writing is the actual writing. Not particularly when I’m outlining or plotting. But when I’m actually sitting at my desk and no one is interrupting my thoughts, and I just let the story flow from me and take me where it wants me to go.
When reading a book, what genre do you find most interesting/intriguing?
Well, I only read gay romance and its been the way the past 20 plus years. I can’t even remember my last MF it was so so long ago. I will say that my favorite tropes in this genre is western and paranormal.
If you could co-author with any author, past or present, who would you choose?
I’d love to co-author with so many of them, but I’d die to be able to collaborate with NR Walker or Jaclyn Osborn. I feel we have similar styles and can mesh really well together.
Have you always wanted to write, or did it come to you "later in life"?
Writing came much later for me. I’ve only been at this for six years. My degree is in criminal justice and I always thought I’d be a judge’s clerk or work for a really nice law firm but that’s not what was in the stars. Thank the heavens.
I started reading MM in my late teens, and really got into it in my early twenties. I fell in love with gay romance from the very start, from the first love scene I ever read. But it wasn’t until later that I discovered female authors writing MM that it’s influences really changed me. Female authors like GA Hauser and Sandrine Gasq-Dion made me believe that I also could write would really makes my heart soar.
When writing a book, what is your favorite part of the creative process(outline, plot, character names, editing, etc)?
My favorite part of writing is the actual writing. Not particularly when I’m outlining or plotting. But when I’m actually sitting at my desk and no one is interrupting my thoughts, and I just let the story flow from me and take me where it wants me to go.
When reading a book, what genre do you find most interesting/intriguing?
Well, I only read gay romance and its been the way the past 20 plus years. I can’t even remember my last MF it was so so long ago. I will say that my favorite tropes in this genre is western and paranormal.
If you could co-author with any author, past or present, who would you choose?
I’d love to co-author with so many of them, but I’d die to be able to collaborate with NR Walker or Jaclyn Osborn. I feel we have similar styles and can mesh really well together.
Have you always wanted to write, or did it come to you "later in life"?
Writing came much later for me. I’ve only been at this for six years. My degree is in criminal justice and I always thought I’d be a judge’s clerk or work for a really nice law firm but that’s not what was in the stars. Thank the heavens.
A.E. Via has been a best-selling author in the beautiful gay romance genre for six years now, but she’s no stranger to MM. She’s been an avid reader of gay lit for over fifteen years before she picked up her laptop to place her own kiss on this genre. She’s also the founder and owner of Via Star Wings Books, having published a couple great new up and coming MM authors.
A.E. has a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice from Virginia Wesleyan College that she used to start her own paralegal firm after she graduated in 2008. She spent five years preparing and filing bankruptcy petitions for struggling blue collar workers who couldn’t afford to file with a lawyer. It was a rewarding and satisfying career… but another path called to her.
Writing.
A.E.’s novels embodies everything from hopelessly romantic to adventure, to scandalous. Her stories often include intriguing edges and twists that take readers to new, thought-provoking depths.
She’s recently celebrated her 20th book anniversary, and is kind of known now for her hardcore, play rough and love hard, bad boy, alphas. However, she does like to push herself to step out of her comfort zone, exploring different tropes, but she won’t push herself into a whole other genre. She’s head over heels for gay romance and she has tons of more hot stories to tell.
Be sure to visit Adrienne on her social media pages and subscribe to her newsletter to never miss another release date! Go to A.E. Via’s official website for more detailed information on how to contact her, follow her, or a sneak peek at upcoming work, free reads, VSWB submissions, and where she’ll appear next.
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EMAIL: authoraevia@live.com
Ex Meridian #7
