Summary:
Holiday Surprise #3
Tristan knows that no alpha will want him, so he needs to face the future on his own.
Alphas have expectations from their mates, and Tristan knows he will never meet two of the biggest ones. He can't be bonded, as a previous bond has been severed, and he will never have children after losing his womb. But facing the future alone would be easier if the owner of the local coffee shop wasn't the perfect alpha.
Chase wants nothing more than to protect the lonely omega in his coffee shop.
Chase's dream has started to come true. He's opened his own coffee shop, and it's wildly popular. But his world flips upside down when a new omega named Tristan visits. All he wants to do is protect the other man, but Tristan keeps running. When he learns why, he has to face the question: are bond marks and babies really that important when every instinct he has tells him that Tristan is the man for him?
More importantly, can Chase convince Tristan that everybody deserves love?
Coffee Shop Cupid is a 20K word , non-shifter, M/M, omegaverse romance (no mpreg)
Content note: There are heavy themes of infertility and 'spousal expectations' in this book, as well as a panic attack. Therefore it may not be suitable for readers sensitive to those topics.
Another delightful omegaverse story by Lacey Daize. In Coffee Shop Cupid, mpreg exists but not for the main couple due to Tristan losing his womb. Because of this I think Coffee is more drama filled then the other Daize stories I've read but there is still plenty of light-heartedness to balance out the emotions.
Right out of the gate you want to strangle Tristan's ex and that only leaves you wanting an even happier ever after for the omega. When he meets Chase, it's a cute-meet but also a very tough meet for Tristan. I know that Tristan doesn't feel like it's huge steps at first but after his loss and past relationship, every step forward is huge and it just wanted to make me wrap him in a huge Mama Bear hug. Oh and Chase, bless him, he never gave up but whether he can convince Tristan that he's worth a new path and new love is something you'll have to discover for yourself but trust me, you won't be sorry.
Coffee Shot Cupid is a true Valentine treasure.
Dancing in Darkness by Alice Winters
Summary:In Darkness #3.5
Ever since Antonio began working as a dancer at Frank’s club, he’s been trying to get Frank’s attention. To others, Frank might not be the ultimate catch, but to Antonio, he’s the man of his dreams. The problem is, Frank has already turned Antonio down out of fear for Antonio’s safety following an abduction and near-death experience. But Antonio is not ready to give up. He is determined to win him over on Valentine’s Day, no matter what he has to do. Even if it requires some unusual help from his friends, Felix and Lane. Nothing is too far for Antonio, not even a botched kidnapping.
Dancing in Darkness is a 20k-word novella featuring true love, abductions gone wrong, and a family that may be a bit too extreme.
This novella takes place after the events of In Darkness 3.
Original Review February 2020:
After finishing Deception in Darkness(#3) I found there was a short novella about Antonio and Frank and it was evening of February 13th so I figured what better way to start my Valentine's Day than reading Dancing in Darkness, a Valentine's Day short.
I instantly fell in love with Felix and Lane last November when I first dived into Hidden in Darkness but with Deception I also found myself falling head over heels in love with the friendship between Felix and Antonio. So it's a bit grudgingly friendship on Antonio's part at first but their banter is nearly as delightful as Felix and Lane's, definitely a bromance in the making. So even though Dancing is Antonio and Frank's Valentine story, Felix and Lane(more heavily Felix) play a part.
Flirting(badly at times😉😉), mix-ups, family, friends, tons of banter, and Alice Winters has created a great little gem worthy of her In Darkness stamp. Just want to add that one of the things I love most about this series' characters, from Felix & Lane to Antonio & Frank to Cal to Lane's family to Felix's brother and even the bad guys, the physical characteristics are real they aren't the cookie cutter Hollywood type of perfection. To me it's their realistic physicalities that actually make them perfect because to me "perfect" is imperfection and this is what makes this novella and series as a whole really pop for me.
RATING:
Dancing in Darkness is a 20k-word novella featuring true love, abductions gone wrong, and a family that may be a bit too extreme.
This novella takes place after the events of In Darkness 3.
After finishing Deception in Darkness(#3) I found there was a short novella about Antonio and Frank and it was evening of February 13th so I figured what better way to start my Valentine's Day than reading Dancing in Darkness, a Valentine's Day short.
I instantly fell in love with Felix and Lane last November when I first dived into Hidden in Darkness but with Deception I also found myself falling head over heels in love with the friendship between Felix and Antonio. So it's a bit grudgingly friendship on Antonio's part at first but their banter is nearly as delightful as Felix and Lane's, definitely a bromance in the making. So even though Dancing is Antonio and Frank's Valentine story, Felix and Lane(more heavily Felix) play a part.
Flirting(badly at times😉😉), mix-ups, family, friends, tons of banter, and Alice Winters has created a great little gem worthy of her In Darkness stamp. Just want to add that one of the things I love most about this series' characters, from Felix & Lane to Antonio & Frank to Cal to Lane's family to Felix's brother and even the bad guys, the physical characteristics are real they aren't the cookie cutter Hollywood type of perfection. To me it's their realistic physicalities that actually make them perfect because to me "perfect" is imperfection and this is what makes this novella and series as a whole really pop for me.
RATING:
Summary:
A short Valentine’s Day story by USA Today Bestselling Authors Ella Frank & Brooke Blaine—available now on Passionflix!
Christmas has always been Carter Pierce’s favorite holiday. But with his partner, Dr. Vaughn Bennett, working crazy hours in the ER, it’s difficult to make any kind of plans.
Easter was an appendectomy.
Thanksgiving, a ruptured spleen.
And Christmas had called Vaughn away to work for Doctors Without Borders.
So when the calendar hits February 14th, Carter expects it will be just another day when he kisses his man goodbye so he can go and save the world.
Little does he know that Vaughn has a huge surprise up his sleeve—one that will change their lives forever.
I'm always on the lookout for stories that have a definite holiday setting, and those with "smaller holidays" such as Valentine's Day so when one crosses my path it finds it's place on my TBR list. I loved the way the authors made this Valentine's Day romance encompass both V-Day and Christmas. Fun, clever, heartfelt, and delightful.
My uncle moved away when I was little and was rarely here for Christmas but I remember one year when they planned to come but couldn't so my grandmother put the tree back up in March when they were able to make it. It's not a scenario I've come across in my readings and for bringing back a family memory I want to thank the authors.
I applaud Vaughn wanting to do this for Carter knowing all the holidays the spent apart and to do it in such a wonderful way as to recall some of their most important memories. Just yummy.
This was another new-to-me author, I've read neither Ella Frank or Brooke Blaine individually nor have I read their collaborations. I can honestly say that Wrapped Up in You has left me hungry for more and I know I will be checking out their backlists(both individually and together) in the future.
Summary:
Marshals #3.5
To celebrate Valentine's Day, you're all invited to spend some time with my marshals. I put a short novella on Instafreebie of Miro and Ian having dinner with their boss Sam Kage and his husband, Jory Harcourt. What could possibly go wrong?
I hope you all enjoy it and I hope you all have a wonderful, shmoopy, candy and flower filled day.
Valentine's Day in the Marshals world is just as dangerously interesting as every other day with roses and chocolates mixed into the death and destruction that seems to follow Miro and Ian around. You want to throw in dinner with the boss and his husband and the restaurant better have bullet proof menus. Together Tied is a wonderful little Marshals novella that has everything packed into it that Mary Calmes brings to the novels. When I saw that Miro and Ian were going to be having Valentine's Day dinner with Sam and Jory, I just knew we were in for one helluva ride. I won't say anymore as its a short story but its a definite winning combination and addition to the series.
RATING:
With a Kick #7
Phiz can’t always control his hyperactivity and propensity for chaos. But he no longer has to feel marginalised because of it, not now he has Bryan for a friend and lover. Bryan’s calm, ordered attitude is the perfect foil for Phiz: and Bryan’s private desire for kink is just what Phiz needs to keep him grounded. This Valentine’s Day, Phiz wants to give Bryan a special gift, but Bryan can’t be tempted away from his work. At least, not until he opens Phiz’s gift and realises love means… taking time away to play.
Bryan and Phiz first met in the book “Slap and Tickle”, one of a series of romance novellas based around the alcoholic ice cream shop in Soho called With A Kick. A joint-authored project with Sue Brown, each story has a self-contained romance, and follows the history of the shop throughout.
Just like London's With a Kick short I read for my After Holidays Christmas Reads, Smack Happy is a little romantic holiday glimpse into the lives of an established couple that had their story told in Slap and Tickle, book 3 of the series. And once again, I have not read their original journey but I do hope to go back to it this year.
This is just a lovely short about letting go and having fun. Really I don't think I can say more without saying too much so all I will say: If Slap and Tickle is only half as good as Phiz and Bryan's holiday romp in Smack Happy, then I know it'll be a winner because Smack Happy is just so . . . yummy! Another winning & delicious Valentine's treat.
Coffee Shop Cupid by Lacey Daize
Chapter 1 - Tristan
~October~
Iglanced around the living room while my former mama-in-law looked on, tapping her foot impatiently.
“Are you going to be much longer?” she grumbled. “I have an appointment this afternoon.”
“You don’t have to be here Helen,” I replied. “Vince and I worked out all the details.”
“As if I’d trust him to do that properly.” She crossed her arms. “He mated you after all.”
I pushed my glasses up and pinched my nose. Of course she would try to get one last jab in, she’d always hated me.
“You could always call the cops if you think I’m going to walk out with things that I shouldn’t. I’ve got the divorce papers and they can check the list.”
“I don’t think that’s necessary,” she sneered. “Just hurry up.”
I turned away and started to rub my neck, but flinched when my fingers brushed the bandage on the back. Of course my asshole-ex was so impatient to get on with his new life that he hadn’t even allowed me time to let my severed bond heal properly.
No, he had to move in his new omega as soon as possible. The one he’d learned he’d knocked up while I was recovering from my final miscarriage.
The omega he’d been cheating on me with while I’d still been pregnant. The miscarraige that had caused me to lose my womb.
Don’t cry, I scolded myself as I forced back angry tears. Don’t you dare cry in front of Helen. Don’t give her the satisfaction.
I walked over to the mantle and took down my collection of figurines, feeling her eyes on me the entire time.
It wasn’t as if anything of Vince’s was up there. She just wanted to intimidate me.
I considered calling the police myself, but it wasn’t worth the drama. She’d play the victim card if I did and I’d never hear the end of it. She was too big a figure in our small town, and my mama would catch hell if I pissed Helen off. I just needed to do my best to ignore her. Still, I knew her, and that she would only escalate given her current mood.
Once I had everything down from the mantle, I started wrapping my figurines in newspaper and setting them in a box.
“Do you really have to wrap each one?” Helen demanded, coming over and kicking the box for good measure.
“I’ve had each of these appraised recently,” I replied, warning in my voice. “They’re antiques. If you chipped even one of them just now I will be sending you a bill.”
“Hah, as if you could prove I did anything. Things get damaged in shipping all the time.”
“Yes, but I have proof you just kicked the box.” I pointed to the security camera at one corner of the room. “The cameras are still on my account. No matter how much you whine, Vince has no access to erase footage of your harassment this time, and I’m not afraid to use it either.”
“Well as far as I’m concerned, you shouldn’t be taking them anyway,” she retorted. “You obviously bought them with Vince’s money…”
I held up my hand. “I inherited these from my grandpapa, and I used my own money to appraise them. They’re mine, and I’m not leaving them just because you think Vince’s new omega needs to step into a perfectly ready house. He already got almost everything, so back off and let me take my things in fucking peace.”
“Your money?” she scoffed. “Maybe if you’d quit working you wouldn’t have lost…”
“Don’t you dare complete that sentence!” I yelled, propriety be damned. “Did you ever once think that your constant nagging might have been a source of stress?”
I was done, and I realized I shouldn’t care about my own mama either. She was too busy lamenting my infertility to those who would listen to actually support me through it.
Helen gasped in mock-horror. “Well I never…”
“And you never will, you psycho bitch,” I snarled, standing and staring her down. “Just leave, go to your appointment and stop harassing me. You’ve already got everything you wanted. Vince is with a new omega, one who will give you your damn precious grandchildren. I’m about to be out of your life for good, so leave me alone so I can finish packing.”
“But…”
I pointed at the door. “Leave!” I shouted. “You’re not here by court order, and I’m sick of you questioning everything I pack. You don’t have any power over me anymore. If you don’t go I’ll call the cops and have you trespassed.”
“This is Vince’s house!”
“Not until he finishes buying out my half, which isn’t complete yet. I have every right to throw you out of here. Now leave or I’ll have the police escort you out.”
She glared at me for a moment, then, when she realized I wasn’t backing down, stomped towards the door.
“This isn’t over.”
“Yes it is, Helen.”
She slammed the door as she left, but the ringing in my ears was preferable to her nagging.
I walked to the front window and watched her get into her car and leave. Then I pulled the curtains closed, sunk to my knees and started shaking.
I’d never stood up to her before. Eight years of being mated to her son, and I’d always allowed her to run roughshod over me in order to keep the peace.
But I was on my own now, and I would need to learn to stand up for myself.
No alpha would want me. I couldn’t be bonded, and I no longer had a womb to give them children.
My own family, except for my older sister, viewed me as a failure since I was barren, and had almost completely shunned me.
I took several deep breaths, then got to my feet again.
I wasn’t going to break. If years of fertility treatments, IVF, and miscarriages hadn’t broken me, then I could face my future alone.
∞∞∞
“Are you sure about this Tristan?” my principal, Robert, asked as I handed in my resignation. “You’re a good teacher, and we don’t want to see you go.”
I nodded as a group of children ran down the hall outside the office, squealing about something.
“I can’t do it anymore,” I said softly. “Not now. It’s still all too raw.”
I took a deep breath. “Besides, the kids only knew me for a few days before I went into the hospital.”
He sighed, rounded his desk and sat. Then he motioned to the guest chair.
I sat, and readied myself for the pushback. The school was already short on teachers, and my leaving would make it worse.
“What would it take to make you stay?” he asked. “Leave of absence? Can I relocate you to an administrative position until you’re ready to come back?”
I shook my head. “No. I’m moving. There are too many memories here, and in this city.”
“Where are you going?”
“I’ve decided to move to Valle Granja for now, though I don’t know if I’ll stay or not.”
“Do you have family out there?”
“No. I’ve never been at all.”
“Then why there?”
I shrugged. “Precisely because I’ve never been. There are no memories.”
“I guess I understand.” He paused, the silence in the office heavy. “What are you going to tell the kids?”
I flinched. The last time I’d seen my students I’d still been pregnant. My class had been excited to watch me grow.
How could I tell them that there would be no baby, and that I was leaving because of it?
“Can I just write a letter to the parents?” I whispered. “I… I don’t think I can face them.”
He blew out a long breath. “Bring it by when you come to collect your classroom decor.”
I shook my head. “I’ve decided to leave it. The kids are probably used to it by now, and it’ll give the new teacher a classroom ready to walk into.”
“Are you sure?”
I nodded. “I’m not going to need it anyway. I don’t think I can teach anymore, at least not the young ones.”
“Ok.” He stood and paced behind his desk. “I’ll send your resignation to HR. They’ll want an exit interview, and to make sure there aren’t any problems.”
“Please have them call my cell, or email me the details. I no longer live at the address with the landline.”
He paused and sighed. “He really… divorced you?”
I reached back and touched the bandage. “Yeah.”
“I’m sorry. I had no idea Vince was capable of such cruelty.”
I shook my head. “He wanted kids, I can’t give him any. It…”
“Is downright disgusting what he did to you,” Robert said. “Years of treatments, then the moment they took your womb he asked to have your bond severed.”
I looked away, forcing myself not to cry.
“Sorry,” he said. “I didn't mean…”
“It’s ok.”
“No, it’s not. I should have watched my words.”
“I can’t let it get to me. This is my reality now. I have to face it,” I replied, studying the fading pattern on the floor rather than face him.
“You shouldn’t have to face it alone though.”
I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “It is what it is.”
“We’ll have a place for you here, if you ever decide to come back.”
“Thank you,” I replied, standing and heading towards the door.
“Tristan?” he asked before I could walk out.
“Yeah?”
“Things may look bleak, but I hope you can find happiness.”
“Thank you,” I replied, studying the worn doorknob. “Goodbye.”
“Goodbye.”
∞∞∞
I lounged on the bed in the long-term hotel I was staying at until all the loose ends of my prior life were tidied up.
Despite knowing where I was going, I had no idea what I was going to do when I got there. I had no intention of teaching, and was still under doctor's orders to take it easy. My meager savings and what I got for my half of the house would only support me for so long.
I sighed, pulled over my laptop and opened the online jobs board for Valle Granja.
“Retail, retail, restaurant…” I grumbled. “No, no, no.”
I scrolled past a number of scam ads, and was about to give up when something different caught my attention.
“Matchmaker?” I wondered as I opened the ad.
For a moment I wondered if it was a different type of scam, but the pay was reasonable, the requirements made sense, and the best part was that I wouldn’t be interacting with people. It was a remote position that I could do from anywhere: reviewing client profiles and creating lists of possible matches.
It meant that even if I decided to leave Valle Granja, I would still have a job.
I swallowed. “You can do this.” Then I sent off my resume.
∞∞∞
“Tristan,” I said, hitting the button that would connect my cell phone to the car’s bluetooth.
“Mr. Hall?”
“Yes?”
“This is Amanda from Touch of Fate Matchmaking.”
“Yes, I remember you from the online interviews.”
“That’s fantastic. Is this a good time?”
“I’m on the highway.”
“Oh, well I’ll send an email. I just wanted to let you know that we’ve decided to offer you the position. Please review the details and send back the paperwork at your earliest convenience.”
I smiled. At least something was going right. “That’s fantastic. Thank you.”
“Thank you, and welcome aboard,” she replied before ending the call.
“I guess it’s official,” I said. “I’m a matchmaker now.”
Dancing in Darkness by Alice Winters
Chapter One
“Antonio!”
Oh no. Please. No. Not him.
“Antonio!”
I quicken my pace, deciding that I really don’t need that pack of Oreos. If I can make it through the checkout line and out the door before he notices me, cookie withdrawals will be worth it.
Felix slides in front of me, clear irritation on his face.
I look down at the man, though I’m not sure there are many who look up at him. Five-year-olds, maybe? I’m not super tall myself, only five foot eight, but I feel tall around him.
“Are you running from me?” he asks.
“No?” Oh no. I made it a question.
“He made it a question,” another man says as he comes up behind me. I turn to look at Lane, Felix’s boyfriend, who is truly God’s gift to mankind. He looks like what horny women would dream up if they were allowed to have a mold maker for men. He has the tall, dark-haired, handsome thing going on which is why I question how he ended up with Felix. Visually, they are complete opposites but together, they work strangely well.
By Lane’s side is his seeing-eye dog, Copper, who is wagging his black tail. Honestly, he may be the only one out of the three I’m glad to see.
It’s not that I dislike Lane or Felix. Actually, I secretly kind of like them. I’ve never met two people who get into more shit in my life. The issue is that they recently dragged me into their shit. After being tied up, threatened, then held at gunpoint, I feel like I’ve had my Lane and Felix quota for the next ten years.
“You’re looking rough, Antonio,” Felix says with a grimace. “You're letting yourself go.”
I glare at him. I take it back. Twenty years would be too soon. “What am I letting go, exactly?”
Felix shrugs. “I don’t know, I just wanted to make myself feel better. Did you pop your cherry yet?”
Fifty years would be too soon. I glare at him some more. “Excuse me?”
“Felix told me about that. Are you sure you want to waste it on Frank?” Lane asks. “How old are you? Twenty-seven? You’ve kept it so long, save it for the perfect man.”
Now he’s getting in on it too?
“You should keep that until you hook a man like I did,” Felix assures me. “Then again, there’s no one like Lane.”
Then he says cute things and I kind of forgive him a tiny bit.
“How about a threesome?” he suggests.
Make it sixty years.
Lane shrugs and I realize that he’s lost his mind as well. The poor man is blind and probably can’t figure out how to get away from Felix. Maybe he has Stockholm Syndrome. It’s the only reasonable explanation for why these two work. “We were talking about buying a sex swing to add some excitement into the bedroom, but I suppose you’ll do,” Lane says.
“Yeah, just FYI, sometimes the dog watches. It’s only a little creepy the first few times. Then you get used to it. You’re all, ‘Oh harder, Lane, harder!’ and then you look over and the dog is staring you in the eyes. Right in the fucking eyes. Then you’re like, shit, I made eye contact, now it’s kind of weird. But he won’t—”
“Felix, babe, you’re rambling,” Lane says.
Felix grins as he pats my shoulder. “Alright, all joking aside, how is the Beauty and the Beast thing going?”
“Frank isn’t a beast.”
“You mean he transformed into a prince? Now, this I gotta see,” he says, clearly still joking.
I sigh. Just because Frank isn’t gorgeous doesn’t mean that I can’t like him. “It’s going like shit. Valentine’s Day is only a few days away and I really thought I could get him to go out with me on it. It was supposed to be special. Instead, he just runs whenever I’m around.”
Felix looks disappointed. “But you kissed him! I thought for sure… he turned you down? There’s no way he could turn you down.”
“He thinks it’s too dangerous. Told me that he doesn’t want me to get hurt. Blah blah.”
Felix is silent for a moment before looking at Lane. He leans into him and whispers. “Why do I kind of feel like it’s our fault?”
“Maybe it was the safe you stole,” Lane says. “Are you feeling guilty about that?”
He shakes his head, brownish-blond waves flopping into his face. “No, not at all.”
“The evidence?”
“No, not that either.” He shrugs. “Antonio, I’ve decided that we’re going to help you woo Frank.”
“I don’t want help.” I want help. “Especially not by you guys.” Even if it’s you guys.
“Good. Do you work tonight?”
“Yeah. Please don’t come.” Please do. I need some excitement in my life.
“We’ll be over later to check out what’s going on. I have a special ability for these things, you’ll see,” Felix says as he pats my shoulder reassuringly.
“You must, to have been able to hook Lane,” I say.
He gives me a wink. “That’s because he’s blind. He literally can’t figure out how to get away. All I need to do is rearrange the furniture every few days and he can’t find his way out of the house.”
I look over at Lane who just shrugs like he isn’t bothered by this at all. “We have a very healthy relationship, if that’s what you’re wondering.”
“I wasn’t.”
Felix reaches out and squeezes my shoulder. There’s a gentle, kind smile on his face. “Valentine’s Day is only a week away; it’ll be the perfect day for you and Frank. I assure you, I will make it happen, even if Lane and I have to pay him to go on a date with you.”
“Great,” I say sarcastically.
Felix suddenly looks panicked as he grabs Lane’s arm. “Lane, we forgot the ice cream. Go fetch me ice cream.”
“Alright,” Lane says, but before leaving, he leans into me. “You’re going to regret this.”
It’s not a threat, it’s a warning. But the joke’s on him–
I already do.
He turns around and heads off with the German shepherd in tow.
I point toward Lane as he charges forward, leaving other people to part for him.
“Is he actually going to figure out how to get you ice cream?” I ask curiously.
“I don’t know. I’m kind of curious myself. See you tonight. If you want me to dance a number with you, I’ll bring some clothes.”
“You do not know how to dance. I’ve literally never seen anyone not understand the concept of dancing as much as you.”
“Thanks, I always strive to be the best. If I can’t be the best dancer, I can be the best at being awful at it. Oh god… What’s he doing?” Felix hurries off, leaving me standing in the middle of the store alone.
“Antonio!”
Oh no. Please. No. Not him.
“Antonio!”
I quicken my pace, deciding that I really don’t need that pack of Oreos. If I can make it through the checkout line and out the door before he notices me, cookie withdrawals will be worth it.
Felix slides in front of me, clear irritation on his face.
I look down at the man, though I’m not sure there are many who look up at him. Five-year-olds, maybe? I’m not super tall myself, only five foot eight, but I feel tall around him.
“Are you running from me?” he asks.
“No?” Oh no. I made it a question.
“He made it a question,” another man says as he comes up behind me. I turn to look at Lane, Felix’s boyfriend, who is truly God’s gift to mankind. He looks like what horny women would dream up if they were allowed to have a mold maker for men. He has the tall, dark-haired, handsome thing going on which is why I question how he ended up with Felix. Visually, they are complete opposites but together, they work strangely well.
By Lane’s side is his seeing-eye dog, Copper, who is wagging his black tail. Honestly, he may be the only one out of the three I’m glad to see.
It’s not that I dislike Lane or Felix. Actually, I secretly kind of like them. I’ve never met two people who get into more shit in my life. The issue is that they recently dragged me into their shit. After being tied up, threatened, then held at gunpoint, I feel like I’ve had my Lane and Felix quota for the next ten years.
“You’re looking rough, Antonio,” Felix says with a grimace. “You're letting yourself go.”
I glare at him. I take it back. Twenty years would be too soon. “What am I letting go, exactly?”
Felix shrugs. “I don’t know, I just wanted to make myself feel better. Did you pop your cherry yet?”
Fifty years would be too soon. I glare at him some more. “Excuse me?”
“Felix told me about that. Are you sure you want to waste it on Frank?” Lane asks. “How old are you? Twenty-seven? You’ve kept it so long, save it for the perfect man.”
Now he’s getting in on it too?
“You should keep that until you hook a man like I did,” Felix assures me. “Then again, there’s no one like Lane.”
Then he says cute things and I kind of forgive him a tiny bit.
“How about a threesome?” he suggests.
Make it sixty years.
Lane shrugs and I realize that he’s lost his mind as well. The poor man is blind and probably can’t figure out how to get away from Felix. Maybe he has Stockholm Syndrome. It’s the only reasonable explanation for why these two work. “We were talking about buying a sex swing to add some excitement into the bedroom, but I suppose you’ll do,” Lane says.
“Yeah, just FYI, sometimes the dog watches. It’s only a little creepy the first few times. Then you get used to it. You’re all, ‘Oh harder, Lane, harder!’ and then you look over and the dog is staring you in the eyes. Right in the fucking eyes. Then you’re like, shit, I made eye contact, now it’s kind of weird. But he won’t—”
“Felix, babe, you’re rambling,” Lane says.
Felix grins as he pats my shoulder. “Alright, all joking aside, how is the Beauty and the Beast thing going?”
“Frank isn’t a beast.”
“You mean he transformed into a prince? Now, this I gotta see,” he says, clearly still joking.
I sigh. Just because Frank isn’t gorgeous doesn’t mean that I can’t like him. “It’s going like shit. Valentine’s Day is only a few days away and I really thought I could get him to go out with me on it. It was supposed to be special. Instead, he just runs whenever I’m around.”
Felix looks disappointed. “But you kissed him! I thought for sure… he turned you down? There’s no way he could turn you down.”
“He thinks it’s too dangerous. Told me that he doesn’t want me to get hurt. Blah blah.”
Felix is silent for a moment before looking at Lane. He leans into him and whispers. “Why do I kind of feel like it’s our fault?”
“Maybe it was the safe you stole,” Lane says. “Are you feeling guilty about that?”
He shakes his head, brownish-blond waves flopping into his face. “No, not at all.”
“The evidence?”
“No, not that either.” He shrugs. “Antonio, I’ve decided that we’re going to help you woo Frank.”
“I don’t want help.” I want help. “Especially not by you guys.” Even if it’s you guys.
“Good. Do you work tonight?”
“Yeah. Please don’t come.” Please do. I need some excitement in my life.
“We’ll be over later to check out what’s going on. I have a special ability for these things, you’ll see,” Felix says as he pats my shoulder reassuringly.
“You must, to have been able to hook Lane,” I say.
He gives me a wink. “That’s because he’s blind. He literally can’t figure out how to get away. All I need to do is rearrange the furniture every few days and he can’t find his way out of the house.”
I look over at Lane who just shrugs like he isn’t bothered by this at all. “We have a very healthy relationship, if that’s what you’re wondering.”
“I wasn’t.”
Felix reaches out and squeezes my shoulder. There’s a gentle, kind smile on his face. “Valentine’s Day is only a week away; it’ll be the perfect day for you and Frank. I assure you, I will make it happen, even if Lane and I have to pay him to go on a date with you.”
“Great,” I say sarcastically.
Felix suddenly looks panicked as he grabs Lane’s arm. “Lane, we forgot the ice cream. Go fetch me ice cream.”
“Alright,” Lane says, but before leaving, he leans into me. “You’re going to regret this.”
It’s not a threat, it’s a warning. But the joke’s on him–
I already do.
He turns around and heads off with the German shepherd in tow.
I point toward Lane as he charges forward, leaving other people to part for him.
“Is he actually going to figure out how to get you ice cream?” I ask curiously.
“I don’t know. I’m kind of curious myself. See you tonight. If you want me to dance a number with you, I’ll bring some clothes.”
“You do not know how to dance. I’ve literally never seen anyone not understand the concept of dancing as much as you.”
“Thanks, I always strive to be the best. If I can’t be the best dancer, I can be the best at being awful at it. Oh god… What’s he doing?” Felix hurries off, leaving me standing in the middle of the store alone.
Wrapped Up in You by Ella Frank & Brooke Blaine
Chapter 1
“IT’S A BEAUTIFUL afternoon in Merriborough, and it looks like we’ll be having a white Valentine’s Day after all. Snow’s in our forecast tonight, so if you’re heading out to enjoy the lovers’ holiday, make sure to bundle up and stay safe on the roads. Here’s an oldie but goodie, ‘Cupid’ from Sam Cooke…”
I YAWNEDAND stretched a hand out toward Vaughn, but when I felt nothing but faintly warm sheets, I turned my head on the pillow to see the other side of the bed was empty.
Not again, I thought, sighing as the sound of the shower cut off. Looks like it’ll be another Valentine’s Day alone. That was what tended to happen when you were dating an ER doctor who was almost always on call. Not that I begrudged his job—I was proud that my man helped so many people—but selfishly, I wanted just one holiday together without him being called away, especially since Christmas had been a bust.
Rolling over, I turned the alarm clock on the nightstand off and then hugged the pillow as the bathroom door opened and steam billowed out. As Vaughn stepped into the doorway with nothing but a white towel wrapped around his hips, my eyes fully opened and my cock stiffened because, holy shit, my guy was something to look at.
With his blond hair slicked back from his striking face, the damp strands looked darker than usual as he casually leaned a shoulder against the jamb and his eyes found mine.
“I was wondering when you’d wake up.” Vaughn’s sexy rumble had me shifting beneath the covers, my body reacting to all that I was hearing and seeing. My gaze followed a droplet of water that ran down over his chest and abs, and a low chuckle came from him as he walked out of the bathroom and headed toward the tallboy against the wall, where he opened the top drawer.
“Well, someone set the alarm,” I said as I rolled to my back to watch him go, because the back of Vaughn was just as appealing as the front of him, and as I propped an extra pillow up behind myself, I was glad for it. That towel around his hips left little to the imagination, shaping and molding one of the tightest asses I’d ever seen in my life.
“If I hadn’t set the alarm you’d still be off in la-la land, and I have plans for you today.”
Wait… “So, you’re not going to work today?”
Vaughn glanced over his shoulder at me, and then lowered his gaze down the sheet that was draped across my hips. “No. I decided to spend the day doing something I love.”
I smirked as he winked at me but couldn’t stop myself from slipping down a little further into the bed. “Then why are you putting clothes on?”
He turned back to the open drawer, reached inside and pulled out a box before shutting it, and then wandered back over to my side of the bed. “I don’t see any clothes…do you?”
I eyed the white box in his hands suspiciously. “Presents before breakfast?”
“Technically, you slept through breakfast, sleepyhead.”
“It’s not my fault Dad kept refilling my glass with port while I wasn’t looking. I’ve become a lightweight. Do you still love me?”
“Hmm.” Vaughn sat on the edge of the bed and trailed his fingers over the sheet covering my thighs, and when he got to my hips, I groaned. “I think I just might, Carter Pierce.”
“Then stop teasing me and get back in bed.”
Vaughn chuckled. “But I have something special for you.” He placed the box on my stomach and said, “If you could have anything for breakfast, what would it be?”
“A maple bacon donut from Sunshine Bakery,” I said without hesitation. When Vaughn’s eyes sparkled and he nodded toward the box, I sat up and tore into it with eager hands. Sure enough, one freshly glazed maple bacon donut sat inside, just waiting to be devoured. “You really do love me.”
“I love the way you look at me like you’re looking at that donut right now.”
I grinned, reaching for the back of his neck and pulling him in for a kiss. His lips were warm and tasted faintly like the mint toothpaste he’d used, and I wanted nothing more than to throw him down on the bed again and dirty him back up. Instead, I leaned back and searched his face. “Are you sure you don’t have to go in today? What if they need you—”
“My phone’s off.”
My eyes widened. “Is that allowed?”
“It is today. Which means you’re all”—he kissed me again—“mine.”
“Mmm, whatever I did to deserve this, I’m not complaining,” I murmured, but then Vaughn’s lips left mine, and I opened my eyes, a protest forming on my tongue, but Vaughn only shook his head and swiped a bit of the maple buttercream filling from the donut with his finger.
“Food first,” he said, and then he painted my bottom lip with the cream. Before Vaughn could pull his hand away, I sucked his finger deep inside my mouth. His eyes held mine, his pupils dilating as I swirled my tongue around, getting every bit of the filling. When I released him from my mouth with a pop, he bit down on his lip, lust filling his blue eyes. I moved the box just in time, because he dove for me, crushing our mouths together, and as we greedily devoured each other, I reached down and grasped his towel, yanking it off and throwing it to the ground as the rest of the world disappeared…
Together Tied by Mary Calmes
It was one of those things that every now and then, as a marshal, as a member of the law enforcement community, you got stuck doing— standing around being muscle at an event that a lot of important people were attending. The fundraiser Ian and I were at was for a new batch of homeless shelters that Debra Loring, a Pulitzer Prize winning reporter at WMMB in Chicago, was spearheading. She had a lot of famous friends, celebrities and such, but also, of course, the mayor. So with the weight of that relationship in her corner, she was hosting a silent auction/ fundraiser with a Valentine’s Day theme.
“Seriously, it looks like they hosed the entire first floor of this place in pink frosting,” Ian groused as he bumped my shoulder. “I’m surprised someone didn’t put heart balloons all over what’s left of the goddamn dinosaur skeleton.”
They were dismantling and moving the Tyrannosaurus-Rex from the main floor to somewhere else— I hadn’t listened to everything the museum person told us— just enough to know where everything was.
“I think it’s considered poor form to decorate the bones of anything for festive purposes.”
He meant to grunt but it came out more like a growl, and I knew why the man was foul. He’d planned on one thing and gotten another.
It was our first February 14th as a married couple, and he had big plans until Kage explained that his team was on guard duty for the evening because the mayor graciously asked a different arm of law enforcement to cover each time, and finally the marshals were up. Apparently the FBI was on call last time— the governor had something to do with that, I was sure— and before that, ATF. How, I had no clue, and CPD was stuck outside on the steps leading into the Field Museum anyway, but it was us, inside, in tuxedos, guarding the items being bid on in the silent auction, making sure no one got drunk or rowdy— which I wasn’t altogether sure rich people even did— and guarding the box that checks in envelopes were being dropped into.
The only part I didn’t mind was looking at my gorgeous husband in the Armani tuxedo we had bought and then had hand-tailored for him. It fit like a glove and I was far from the only one noticing. There were lots of women, and men, checking him out, and, even Celso Harrington, a soloist with the Chicago Ballet. The ballet was auctioning off an hour of his time and because I’d seen him dance, my friend Liam collecting on a bet and making me attend a performance of Giselle that he was supposed to go to with his wife, I knew who he was when he glided on by me. Beautiful man, almost too pretty to be real, looking like he was carved out of marble or something, just that perfect, and he turned all the way around when Ian stalked by him.
It would have bothered me, but Ian didn’t even see him. He didn’t notice anyone at all except in the way he was scanning for threats, glancing around, talking to the other members of our team through his earpiece and glowering. Ian had the scowl down pat and between the furrow of his brows and the squint of his eyes, no one was going anywhere near him.
It was fine with me, everyone keeping their distance, and I liked that when he saw me, he made sure to cross the room to stand next to me even though he didn’t look happy in the least.
“Just think, after this we have late reservations for dinner,” I said cheerfully, lifting my hand to his nape and squeezing gently.
The noise he made was not friendly, but it was tempered by his sigh, and I saw the slump of his shoulders indicating that my touch had been both welcome and soothing. I loved seeing my effect on him and couldn’t stop smiling.
“Miro! Ian!”
We both turned at the same time and Sam Kage’s daughter, Hannah, was standing there in front of us in all her thirteen-year-old glory, beaming. Three years ago now, we had been working late at our office downtown, on our way back from getting dinner, when we found her at the front door of our building. I remembered seeing her a couple years before at the airport when she rushed into the terminal to greet her father, and I learned that my boss was married to a man. It had been a shock and now, of course, he kept a family portrait on his desk, but when he was still the Supervisory Deputy, he had not. But having seen her once, I had engrained her image on my brain so that when I spotted her outside that night, I stopped to check on her. As a rule, I checked on all kids and my badge allowed me to do that. A lot of men were hyper careful around kids, even when they were helping, terrified of their actions being misconstrued. Being a marshal, whenever something struck me as odd, I checked it out. Clearly, even years ago now, she remembered us fondly.
She was so cute with her dimples and gleaming brown eyes, but she was also wearing a bit of make-up, a hint of lip gloss, trace amounts of blush and some mascara. It wasn’t much but enough to telegraph that she was not a little girl anymore. Not that it would ever matter. No boy in his right mind would ever ask Hannah Kage out on a date unless he was completely suicidal. Her father was the Chief Deputy after all.
“I’m so happy to see you,” she informed us before she fiddled with the tiara in her hair a bit, settling it better in the French Twist her chestnut colored hair was pulled up into.
“Not that it’s not great to see you and all,” Ian began, squinting at her. “But since your father’s here in an official capacity— what’s the story, kid?”
“Oh I came with my Uncle Aaron,” she said brightly, turning and gesturing to the vicinity of billionaire real estate mogul— among other things— Aaron Sutter.
“No shit?” Ian said.
I elbowed him.
“It’s okay,” she assured me, nodding, patting my arm. “My dad slips up sometimes too. Just today when my Pa was cowboying down the stairs and twisted his ankle, he yelled a lot of words.” She widened her eyes a moment. “I think he owes twenty bucks in the swear jar, and we just put that thing up last week because Pa said ‘twat’ in the house, and Kola was horrified.”
It was a lot of information in such a short burst.
Ian snorted.
“Your brother was horrified?” I asked her, grinning.
She hmphed.
“Why?”
“Well first, he’s kind of a prude— not gonna lie— and second, he has a girlfriend now,” she said, gagging, with a huge eye roll, “and she was over, and I think she was horrified that that word came out of his parent’s mouth.”
I opened my mouth to ask a question.
“But you can’t really blame Pa because he and my Aunt D have a new client and when she found out that Aunt D was Japanese, she asked for all her money back.”
“I’m sorry.”
She shrugged. “It’s her loss; Pa and Aunt D make the coolest stuff you’ve ever seen.”
“Which of your fathers have all the siblings?”
“No, Aunt D isn’t really my aunt, just Uncle Dane, who’s Pa’s brother, and then on Daddy’s side––”
“Yeah I don’t care,” Ian chimed in. “How are you related to Aaron Sutter?”
“That was kinda rude,” she informed him.
He shrugged. “Answer.”
“Well I’m not related to Uncle Aaron, but it’s like I am. He and Uncle Duncan are gonna take me to Paris when I graduate from college and then if Dad and Pa can’t afford all my college tuition, he told me to tell him and he’ll build a library or something so they won’t know that he’s helping. They get weird about that.”
“I would think so,” I apprised her.
“It’s dumb. They think they should pay him back, but I’m the one who’ll take care of it when I get older and work for him or with him— that’s the part they need to get through their heads, but they’re old so they don’t get it.”
“And your Uncle Aaron isn’t old?”
She made a face. “Oh no, Dad and Pa are way older than Uncle Aaron and Uncle Duncan, that’s for sure.”
But I’d seen her Pa once, and that man could not be any older than me, and Aaron Sutter, I knew from the last article I’d read about him, was in his forties.
“So your brother’s a prude, huh?” Ian chuckled, changing the subject. “Really?”
“Yeah, I mean yes, he’s totally a baby about stuff like bad words and sex jokes. I just wanna kick him in the balls sometimes— and oh crap.”
We both stared at her.
“Sorry,” she said miserably. “I’ve got to be more careful about getting all slangy, or my Uncle Dane is gonna— going to,” she enunciated, “be all over me like a bad rash.”
“And why is that?”
“He’s very proper and he says that if I want to be taken seriously, I have to speak intelligently at all times and not like a child or a prostitute.”
“Uh-huh,” I said, trying not to judge the man I’d never met who sounded both overbearing and rude.
“He sounds like a stick in the mud,” Ian told her.
She sighed deeply. “No. If you met him, you’d— you would understand. He’s really trying to take care of me since Pa is bad about correcting me since he talks like that too.”
“Pa is your other father.”
She nodded. “He and Uncle Dane are brothers. Pa was adopted just like me and Kola.”
“And your Pa did what down the stairs?”
“Oh, he puts his thumbs in his belt loops, and he pretends he’s bowlegged, and he sort of hops down the stairs,” she explained, demonstrating the swinging hips and how only one foot was on the ground at a time. “And it’s fine like right now because I’m doing it on the ground, but you have to imagine him on the stairs.”
“So he missed a step and fell.”
She sighed again, shaking her head.
“Were you scared?”
“No but Dad was, and he was on the phone with Nana and she was telling him how Grampa was going to give up Amazon for Lent, and Dad was being Dad and telling her that he was sure Jesus would appreciate her husband’s sacrifice.”
I chuckled.
“And Pa was still in trouble from the day before when some guy tried to mug him and instead of being all scared, he asked the guy if he had a valid FOID card.”
I just stared at her. “Your father asked his mugger if he had a permit for his gun?”
She nodded.
“Holy shit, kid, you’re lucky your Pa didn’t get shot.”
There was head shaking. “No. He’s just like that. He talks to people and, like, that guy, he just ran away. I mean, I think it’s funny but it makes Dad’s eye twitch, so he was extra not happy when Pa fell down the stairs.”
“I bet.”
“Excuse me,” Ian said before leaving us to cross the room, checking on a guy trying to cut in line, noticing him out of the corner of his eye before I had even looked up.
“That was awesome,” Hannah informed me. “He saw that guy so fast.”
“Special Forces,” I explained to her. “He’s trained to do that.”
Smack Happy by Clare London
“For God’s sake, put it down!” Bryan didn’t mean to snap, but Phiz had been pacing the floor of Bryan’s home office for at least ten minutes now, with a bowl of ice cream and spoon in one hand and a gift-wrapped bag in the other. “I’ll have finished for the day in a few more minutes. I want to draft this appeals letter to HMRC tonight.”
“Can’t you just take a look? If it’s no good, if you don’t like it, I can… well, I can’t send it back, you see, ’cos it’s… you know. Well, you don’t yet, that’s true, but it’s mine now—yours—and the small print says that’s it, no refunds, but that’s pretty obvious I guess, because it would have been… would have been used… well, anyway. Bloody hell.” With a frustrated huff of breath, Phiz came to a halt just before he banged his shins on the back of Bryan’s office chair. He scooped the last spoonful of ice cream into his mouth, perched the bowl on the top of Bryan’s filing cabinet, then swung around and started pacing again. Bryan’s home office wasn’t small, but there still wasn’t space for a restless human animal like his boyfriend Phiz. “Just need you to look, Bryan, that’s all. I mean, I know you’re up against a deadline and everything, and I’d help if I could, well, if you’d bloody well let me. I apologised about those files I deleted last week, didn’t I? Yes, okay, I knew I did, but I suppose this is partly to say sorry for all that trouble I caused, and partly because it’s, well, you know.”
No, Bryan didn’t know. But whereas when he first met Phiz, that stupid phrase had infuriated him, nowadays it just made him smile. To himself, that was. It meant Phiz was nervous and was therefore starting to ramble. Phiz so easily slid off the wagon of self-control and would soon be in dire need of reining in. They both knew that was how things went. They both knew that was how they liked it, too.
Lacey DaizeLacey lives in New Mexico with her four critters. She’s a Jill-of-all-trades by day, but loves writing in her spare time. She dabbles in a variety of pairings, but jumped feet-first into the deep end of omegaverse the first time she read it. She loves the play on social expectations and the different ways to express romance.
Alice Winters started writing stories as soon as she was old enough to turn her ideas into written words. She loves writing a variety of things from romance and comedy to action. She also enjoys reading, horseback riding, and spending time with her pets.
Ella FrankElla Frank is the USA Today Bestselling author of the Temptation series, including Try, Take,Trust, Tease, Tate, and True, and is the co-author of the fan-favorite PresLocke Series. Her Exquisite series has been praised as “scorching hot!” and “enticingly sexy!”
Brooke Blaine is a USA Today Bestselling Author best known for writing romantic comedy and M/M romance. Her novels lead with humor and heart, but Brooke never shies away from throwing in something extra naughty that will scandalize her conservative Southern family for life (bless their hearts). She’s a choc-o-holic, lives for eighties bands (which means she thinks guyliner is totally underrated), believes it’s always wine o’clock, and lives with the coolest cat on the planet—her Ragdoll/Maine Coon mix, Jackson Agador Spartacus.
Mary Calmes lives in Lexington, Kentucky, with her husband and two children and loves all the seasons except summer. She graduated from the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California, with a bachelor's degree in English literature. Due to the fact that it is English lit and not English grammar, do not ask her to point out a clause for you, as it will so not happen. She loves writing, becoming immersed in the process, and falling into the work. She can even tell you what her characters smell like. She loves buying books and going to conventions to meet her fans.
Clare London took her pen name from the city where she lives, loves, and writes. A lone, brave female in a frenetic, testosterone-fuelled family home, she juggles her writing with her other day job as an accountant.
She’s written in many genres and across many settings, with award-winning novels and short stories published both online and in print. She says she likes variety in her writing while friends say she’s just fickle, but as long as both theories spawn good fiction, she’s happy. Most of her work features male/male romance and drama with a healthy serving of physical passion, as she enjoys both reading and writing about strong, sympathetic, and sexy characters.
Clare currently has several novels sulking at that tricky chapter-three stage and plenty of other projects in mind… she just has to find out where she left them in that frenetic, testosterone-fuelled family home.
Clare loves to hear from readers, and you can contact her on all her social media.
Lacey Daize
Alice Winters
Ella Frank
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Brooke Blaine
EMAIL: BrookeBlaineAuthor@gmail.com
Coffee Shop Cupid by Lacey Daize
Dancing in Darkness by Alice Winters
Wrapped Up in You by Ella Frank & Brooke Blaine
Together Tied by Mary Calmes
Smack Happy by Clare London
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