Series Recap Tour: The God Jars Saga by Devon Vesper

Series: God Jars Saga #.5-9

Author: Devon Vesper

Genre: M/M Romance, Fantasy

Release Dates: Duty and Sacrifice: Saviors - September 19, 2017

Duty and Sacrifice: Avristin - October 31, 2017

Duty and Sacrifice: Possessed - December 12, 2017

Purity and Control: Support - January 23, 2018

Purity and Control: Mentor - March 6, 2018

Purity and Control: Betrayal - October 2, 2018

Loyalty and War: Marshal - November 11, 2018

Loyalty and War: Anchors - July 16, 2018

Loyalty and War: Incursion - May 5, 2020

Cover Design: Mathia Arkoniel(Painted Figures) & Devon Vesper(Composition and Background)

Adventure awaits in The God Jars Saga!

No amount of hard work and dedication could ever prepare Valis for becoming the world’s only hope of survival, but after finding love and true family he’s determined to give that destiny his all.

The God Jars Saga by Devon Vesper is a raw, epic tale of strength and love in the face of adversity. If you’re looking for sword & sorcery fantasy with rich character development, intensity, uniqueness, and an unforgettable love story, look no further!

Each of the first eight books ends in a cliffhanger with book nine ending in a guaranteed Happily Ever After.

Summary:
This M/M Epic Fantasy Romance series contains 9 books plus two novellas. Magic, love, and war await!

Raised by an abusive father, Valis had only one friend in his life. Only when he is rescued does he discover that his childhood friend, a man who only came to his in his dreams, is the god he is to serve. But serving him means joining an order of warrior priests, and finding the missing God Jar before the evil god can destroy all Valis holds dear.

To join the Order, a man or woman must form a homosexual bond and marry their partner, but Tavros—the only man who has captured Valis’ interest—hates and fears him because not only does Valis wield holy gold magic, but also the magic of the evil god whose jar Valis must recover. To advance, and to have any hope of saving his childhood friend, Valis must somehow convince his prospective lover that he isn’t the monster Tavros fears.

Follow Valis and his friends as they learn to overcome their fears, find their forever love, and try to bring an end to the age of evil. Can they find the missing God Jar before the world descends into darkness?

Saviors
Duty and Sacrifice #1
Summary:
Trust is more terrifying than any weapon.

Valis’ father wants to sacrifice him to the evil God, Qos. His uncle wants to use him as a magical battery and sex slave. All Valis wants is to live in peace, without fear of constant abuse. When he escapes his father’s sacrificial knife and runs away, he lands in the camp of his two saviors, Kerac and Darolen, holy Aesriphos warriors powerful enough to put his family in their place.

But trusting anyone could be fatal, and the warriors ask the impossible: to sell his father’s farmstead and abandon his old life to join their monastery.

They’re his only hope and when he learns to trust them, they’re the father figures he always wanted, but Valis isn’t sure he’s strong enough to put aside his fear and start over.

Avristin
Duty and Sacrifice #2
Summary:
Avristin isn’t the quiet, contemplative monastery he imagined…

Valis escaped his birth father and made it to Avristin. Now, the adopted son of his two saviors, the honorable Aesriphos Kerac and Darolen, Valis vows to become just like them. The only things standing in his way are his lack of magic and crippling social anxiety.

With the help of six new friends, Valis hopes to overcome his new fears. But when the eldest of the group, Tavros, finds the mark of the evil God, Qos, tattooed on Valis’ skin, he sends Valis right back into his birth father’s clutches.

Surviving and escaping the prison cell is just his first test. Once he’s back in Avristin, more await. And with Tavros as his new mentor, Valis needs to do everything in his power to make the man trust him again. Valis’ entire future depends on it, in more ways than one.

Possessed
Duty and Sacrifice #3
Summary:
Valis works as a man possessed, but there’s no outrunning the past.

In war training, Valis advances quickly, but in magic training, he’s lucky not to blow himself up trying to wield his dual magic. Constant growth spurts make him outgrow his training armor and his attraction to his mentor, Tavros, rising to molten levels puts Valis under added pressure.

And there’s one more problem Valis can’t seem to shake—his birth father, Roba. He demands Valis pay him a visit in exchange for information, but his request is one Valis can’t accept.

But Roba is not a man who deals well with being told no, and he will do everything in his power to get his way. And his way may just haunt Valis forever.

Support

Purity and Controlled #1

Summary:

As Aesriphos Valiant, Valis needs all the support he can get. Oh, and he needs a husband, too.

Valis advanced in ranks in the holy warrior order of Aesriphos on accident. If he doesn’t find a husband soon, it could undermine the entire order because an aspirant must marry before advancing

He knows who he wants, he’s just too afraid to act on it. But as they go on a quest to help a friend, being so close to Tavros is filled with temptation Valis isn’t sure he can resist.

As they fight for their lives, Valis learns more about himself as a person and as a leader, but the challenges only keep coming, and some of them have a price that just might be too high to pay.

Mentor

Purity and Controlled #2

Summary:

Valis must step up as a mentor, but two highly suspicious men may ruin everything.

Something is wrong with Vohan and Xetar—two reliquary guards who have just returned from field duty. They are adamant that Valis is a spy for Qos because of the black magic he wields. Valis insists their malevolence is more than war trauma, but no one—not even his closest friends—believe him.

With the time to retrieve the lost God Jar quickly approaching, Valis must teach the reliquary guard force the necessary skills to succeed in the coming battles. However, a riot amongst the men hides Vohan and Xetar’s treachery and Valis has to act fast.

If he doesn’t, the people he loves most will pay the ultimate price.

Betrayal

Purity and Controlled #3

Summary:

Betrayal is the most painful blow to bear, especially from the one you love most.

The time has come. Valis is ready to finally join the Aesriphos ranks in an official capacity. The only thing standing in his way is his joining night with Tavros. But with nineteen days left before their marriage, Valis and Tavros are fighting to retain their sanity. Strange things keep happening, intent on tearing them apart. And no matter what Valis does to find the source of their anguish, he’s blocked at every turn.

Incessant nightmares, visions, and heated arguments strain their relationship to the breaking point, and harrowing events escalate in number and severity. Valis is forced to watch helplessly as the evil shifts to focus its malice on Tavros. And with every mind-bending incident, Tavros creeps closer and closer to the ultimate betrayal.

Valis and Tavros must marry to join the Aesriphos Order if Valis has any chance at rescuing the lost god jar. But if he can’t find the source of the insanity, he may lose Tavros forever.

Marshal

Loyalty and War #1

Summary:

When love collides with duty, you do what you must.

One of Valis’ fathers came home half-dead. The other is missing. When Valis tries to form a rescue party, he’s blocked at every turn by the Patron Priest who refuses to even consider the matter.

Valis’ non-magical allies—the Kalutakeni and mercenaries—are all on board, ready to follow Valis at a moment’s notice. But to mount a successful rescue mission, Valis needs mages. A lot of them.

He will have to go over the Patron Priest’s head to get the sanction. Doing that means he and his husband must go up against the Aesriphos Order’s Grand Masters in a battle of magic and stamina. If they win, they get the sanction and much more than they bargained for. If they lose, it may cost them their lives.

His father’s life hangs in the balance. Valis will do what he must.

Anchors

Loyalty and War #2

Summary:

The choice between love and duty has never been harder.

Valis is on his way to free his father from the enemy compound, but it seems like everything is working against him.

The team sent to eliminate the last Anchor of Qos needs his help. Tavros falls ill after an accident, and if he doesn’t get help quickly he’s going to die. And the constant blizzards mean they are moving so slowly Valis is afraid they may be too late to save anyone.

With so much at stake—lives, family, his heart—one wrong move may cost Valis a price he’s not willing to pay.

His army needs him. His husband needs him more. Valis can’t afford to fail either. The race to save his family is on.

Incursion

Loyalty and War #3

Summary:

It has all come down to this…

The final battles are upon him. Every decision, every step Valis has taken has led him to this moment. All the heartache, pain, and training have driven him halfway across the continent to rescue his father and the final god jar.

Valis and his friends rush toward their destiny, bound together in their quest. But avoiding dangers on their journey taxes Valis’s magical abilities and stamina, forcing him to continue draining everything he can from their enemies. And as they reach their destination, Valis’s worries about his reserves only grow.

The priests in the enemy monastery are more powerful than any Valis has dealt with before. They are even able to separate him from his husband. Their Sovereign Priest, Kaphir, is an enigma, and learning his secrets leaves Valis with more questions than answers. The only thing that is certain is that if Valis fails now, the entire world will pay an unthinkable price.

This is the final book in the God Jars Saga. It is complete, and includes a bonus chapter at the end.

Author Bio:
If there’s one thing Devon likes most, it’s chaos. She has a chaotic mind, messy house, and throws her characters into every calamitous situation possible. When she isn’t writing, she’s editing or formatting other authors’ works, building websites, creating graphics, reading, playing video games, or watching Fortnite streams on Twitch. She likes to stay busy. So yes. Chaos.

Starting in 2003, Devon turned her writing bug away from poetry and online role play in chat rooms to write her first novel. Yes, it was trash, but the process of learning to edit that piece of garbage spurred her to learn more and more. By 2013, she read an author by the name of Raythe Reign, and somehow, Raythe’s stories finally made all that learning in Devon’s mind click. She wrote her first semi-salable book in two weeks. The next in ten days, and by the beginning of 2014, had seven books written.

Were they all trash? No, but she’s in the process of rewriting them, and has already written one, turning Duty and Sacrifice into three books of a nine-book series, The God Jars Saga. Those three books were followed by more, and the last two books in the series will be published in the first quarter of 2019.

Born on a Navy base in Patuxent River, Maryland, Devon has traveled the world, living in Sigonella, Sicily for three years, and visiting many European countries before moving back to the states around the age of seven. She’s lived in Florida for sixteen years, Oklahoma for a year, and Pennsylvania for the rest. She graduated from surgical technology school near the top of her class in 2004, and uses her medical and worldly knowledge to enrich her books whenever possible. Being the worldly woman she is, and having spent most of her teens as a broody goth, Devon has four tattoos, nine piercings, loves techno, electronica, dubstep, and similar music genres, and has an incurable internet addiction.

She builds her own computers, can’t stand Mac-anything unless it’s to format books in Vellum, and purple and black are her favorite colors, though that can change to burgundy and gray depending on the day. Since she has bipolar disorder, PTSD, social anxiety disorder, general anxiety disorder, clinical depression, and has trouble leaving her house due to all that, Devon works full time as an author and editor, and spends as much time as she can talking to other authors and her readers.

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EMAIL: devon@devonvesper.com

Series

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Fated(Prequel) #.5

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Duty and Sacrifice: Saviors #1

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Duty and Sacrifice: Avristin #2

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Duty and Sacrifice: Possessed #3

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Purity and Control: Support #4
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Purity and Control: Mentor #5
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Purity and Control: Betrayal #6
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Loyalty and War: Marshal #7
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Loyalty and War: Anchors #8
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Loyalty and War: Incursion #9
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Blog Tour: Abstract Love by Sara Dobie Bauer

Title: Abstract Love

Author: Sara Dobie Bauer

Genre: M/M Romance

Release Date: September 4, 2020

Cover Design: Natasha Snow

Summary:
I hate Sam Shelby. So why do I want to kiss him?

Sam never expected to move back to Cleveland.
Donovan never expected to be attracted to a man.
Well, shit happens.

After high school, Sam Shelby moved to New York. Eight years later, he returns to Cleveland and lands a job at the best ad firm in town. It would be the perfect gig, if his boss weren’t such an ass.

After his wife leaves, Donovan Cooper questions everything. The arrival of a young, arrogant, gifted graphic designer at Donovan’s firm is the last straw.

Tempers flare over office gossip, and following a nasty argument and scathing kiss, Donovan flails away from heterosexuality while Sam struggles to keep his “no relationship” rule intact.

Despite ugly socks, fiery fights, and their best intentions to not fall in love, these bullheaded coworkers can’t deny their chemistry. Donovan seeks happiness while Sam seeks success, but is there room for more?

Donovan sifted through a few hand-drawn logos on the desk and froze when he found a crudely drawn sketch of himself. Sam must have done it during a meeting at some point, capturing Donovan’s faux hawk, wide jaw, and severe expression.

Jesus, was this what other people saw when they looked at him? Did he really look so miserable?

“Make yourself at home?”

Donovan dropped the picture and stood straight at the sound of Sam’s voice.

He leaned against the doorframe, with one ankle crossed over the other.
“It’s really bullshit when people say that, you know?” Sam said. “Make yourself at home. No one actually wants their friends to take off their pants, drink all their beer, and binge The Great British Bake Off.” He paused. “What are you doing in my office?”

“I didn’t mean to snoop.”

The office door closed as he stepped inside. “Sure you did, or you wouldn’t be in here, so what’s up?”

Sam circled the desk, so Donovan circled the other way, although he noticed it was true what coworkers said: Sam did smell good—like clean laundry and cedar. “I think we started off on the wrong foot.”

Sam snort laughed and flipped through some files on his desk. “More like wrong continent, man.” When he found what he was looking for, he tapped the file’s corner against his palm. “I can handle guys like you, you know.”

Donovan shifted back on his heels. “Guys like me?”

“Hmm. Corporate assholes. All you see are dollar signs. You take no pleasure in your work. Advertising is money to you, not art, but without the artists, there wouldn’t be advertising, so…” He sucked his cheeks into his mouth, a momentary fish face.

Donovan wanted to tell him it wasn’t true. Donovan loved art.

He used to love art.

Sam continued, “I know I look like a six-foot-two Disney princess, but you’re not gonna rattle me.” To prove his point, Sam got right up in Donovan’s personal space until Donovan took a step back. Again, he was not used to dealing with someone his own height. “And I’m right about the Great Lakes ad campaign. If you’d pull your head out of your ass, maybe you’d notice.” He turned away abruptly.

“Sam.”

“What?”

“I’m sorry.” Ouch, that hurt coming out.

Sam’s rebuttal: “Prove it.”

“Excuse me?”

He rested a hand on the desk and cocked his hip out—the very picture of young attitude. “Listen to me in meetings.”

“I was listening.”

“Nope.” He shook his head and ran a hand through his unkempt, unprofessional hair. “No, you were hearing. I need you to listen. There’s a difference. And I know I’m just some fucking kid to you, but I ruled the New York City advertising scene. I know what I’m doing, Donovan, so let me do it.”

“Fine.” He’d had enough. He’d apologized, okay, so he’d done his Monica-enforced duty. He didn’t owe Sam anything else.

He didn’t run for the door, but he definitely moved with speed.

Who are some of your favorite authors and/or books to read when you need to relax?
Reading any and all MM romance relaxes me. Oddly, horror relaxes me, too. (I’m a scary movie junkie.)

If I really need word therapy, though, I head over to Archive of Our Own and read fan fiction. I adore fan fiction. Not only are fan fiction authors incredibly talented, but also many fan fic stories are focused on character, relationship, and sex. There’s no conflict! No stress! Gimme some of that.

If you were approached to have your book made into a film, who would you cast?
In Abstract Love: The Movie, Timothee Chalamet has to play Sam Shelby. In the book, Sam even wears outfits Timothee has worn in real life. They’re both beautiful, and I’d love to see Timothee in a comedic role.

Donovan is more difficult. I picture Daniel Craig—but younger Daniel Craig. Basically, for him to play the role, we’d need a time machine. Does anyone have a time machine?

It's often asked what is your favorite part of being a writer but what is the easiest or most natural part of the creative process for you?
Going with the flow. I’m a pantser, not a plotter. Once I have my characters outlined in detail and a vague idea of plot, I start writing and let the muse take over. Go with the flow. I don’t stress over what comes next; I just write. I’ve had many an epiphany while driving to yoga. The scenes just come to me, and I record them—one after the other until “The End.”

Is there any one character you've created that is most like you? If yes, who and why?
John Conlon in We Still Live. He’s a creative writing professor who survived a school shooting. That’s not what we have in common, though. John suffers from depression and severe anxiety but easily hides behind charisma and a sense of humor. He’s got demons, all right? That’s me. Although I now speak openly about my mental illness, I went years hiding my demons in the shadows. I still do it sometimes. It’s sometimes a necessity, but I try to be forthright about my feelings as much as possible.

If you could go anywhere (finances, time, & obligations not an issue) where would you go and why?
Hawaii. I love the ocean. I’m pretty sure I was either a shark or dolphin (maybe mermaid) in a past life. I want to see the grandeur and culture of the Hawaiian Islands. My one concern: if I go, I might never leave.


That said, I will be in New Orleans for Halloween, staying in a mansion in the French Quarter. Pretty sure that’s going to be a darn good time.

Author Bio:
Sara Dobie Bauer is a bestselling author, model, and mental health / LGBTQ advocate with a creative writing degree from Ohio University. She lives with her hottie husband and two precious pups in Northeast Ohio, although she’d really like to live in a Tim Burton film.

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Monday's Mysterious Mayhem: The Lucky Cat by LM Somerton

Title: The Lucky Cat

Author: LM Somerton

Series: Treasure Trove Antiques #1

Genre: M/M Romance, Mystery, Light BDSM

Release Date: September 1, 2020

Publisher: Pride Publishing

Cover Design: Louisa Maggio

Summary:
Antiques and ammunition do not mix well.

The antique trade is not known for its life or death excitement and Landry Carran is happy that he has to contend only with furniture polish, woodworm and his irascible boss. He gets all the thrills he needs at his favorite BDSM club, Scorch.

Detective Gage Roskam is hunting stolen jewels taken from a Tokyo exhibition then shipped to Seattle. Mired in a deadly race involving the Yakuza, an enigmatic Englishman and too many indecipherable clues, he doesn’t have time to indulge in Dominant fantasies.

When their worlds collide, neither Landry nor Gage expects things to get quite as complicated—or dangerous—as they do. When Landry steps into the path of some powerful, ruthless people, it’s up to Gage to protect him. Along the way they might just discover what they both need.

Sometimes there were advantages to being vertically challenged. Landry, his ass sticking out from under a seventeenth-century folding card table, paused to contemplate other occasions when his five-feet-six-inch stature had been of benefit. Not when attempting to get served at his favorite leather bar, though getting squished between all those black-clad hunks was always bearable. He snorted. Not when reaching for his preferred brand of chips at the market, which were always on the top shelf. Put there, he was sure, by the snotty assistant manager as revenge for Landry turning down his offer of a quick blow job in the staff restroom. As if. Never at family meals when he got to sit between his older twin brothers like a blond munchkin between two extras from Vikings. He reversed, wiggling his back end to avoid a willow-patterned platter balancing on a brass coal scuttle. His knees ached and he’d banged his elbow on a cast-iron fireguard, but he had rescued the battered cannonball making an escape attempt beneath teetering piles of stock.

“Well, there’s a pretty sight.”

“Hey!” Landry went for indignant rather than flattered. He tried to get up too soon and banged his head on solid, woodworm-free oak. “Fuck me!” He finally made it to open air and scrambled to his feet, rubbing his already messy hair into further disarray.

“Is that a request?”

Landry looked up…and up…into a pair of twinkling pale-blue eyes. The customer, because that was who Landry guessed the newcomer must be, was drop-dead, my-ass-is-yours gorgeous and he was grinning. Well, smirking.

“Funny man. What can I help you with, sir?” Landry gritted his teeth and remembered that Mr. Lao, his boss, would swat him like a bug if he snarked at a potential patron. Though, on this occasion, it might be worth it to mess with the man.

“Another leading question.”

Landry rolled his eyes. Black hair, blue eyes and a stubbled, chiseled chin did not equate to a free pass. “The massage parlor is three doors down, just before St. Peter’s. You can get a full-body whatever then confess all in the space of an hour.” He made an ineffective attempt to brush dust from the knees of his ripped black jeans. Blue Eyes reached into his jacket and produced a wallet, which he opened to display a Seattle PD badge and ID card.

“Gage Roskam. Is your boss around?”

Landry was more turned on than intimidated by the badge. Cop plus handcuffs equaled sexy time. Every cop he’d ever met had had a ‘don’t fuck with me’ attitude and a natural bent for control—just the type of man Landry liked to mess with. He batted his lashes. “And what makes you think I’m not the boss?”

“You’re not a sixty-eight-year-old Chinese guy by the name of Jian Lao?”

“Very observant, Officer. All that training paid off.” Landry put an extra bit of swing into his hips as he walked toward the cash desk at the rear of the shop.

“Putting your tax dollars to work, brat.”

“Hey! Aren’t you supposed to call me sir, what with you being a public servant and all?”

“In your dreams, and you should show more respect for law enforcement.”

“Gonna make me?”

“You’re lucky I’m on duty or I’d bend you over the nearest flat surface and give you the spanking you’re begging for.”

Author Bio:
Lucinda lives in a small village in the English countryside, surrounded by rolling hills, cows and sheep. She started writing to fill time between jobs and is now firmly and unashamedly addicted.

She loves the English weather, especially the rain, and adores a thunderstorm. She loves good food, warm company and a crackling fire. She's fascinated by the psychology of relationships, especially between men, and her stories contain some subtle (and some not so subtle) leanings towards BDSM.

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Week at a Glance: 8/31/20 - 9/6/20

Monday's Mysterious Mayhem: A Glimpse of Heaven by Olivier Bosman

August Book of the Month: To Die For by Davidson King

Release Blitz: Now or Never by Helena Stone

Release Blitz: Nightway Chant by MJ Calabrese

Release Blitz: Finding Our Love by Amy Tasukada

📘🎥Friday's Film Adaptation🎥📘: State Fair by Phil Stong

Release Blitz: Heart of the High King by Jessamyn Kingley

Saturday's Series Spotlight: Captivating Captains by Catherine Curzon & Eleanor Harkstead Part 2

Sunday's Safe Word Shelf: His Ranch Hand by Deanna Wadsworth

Sunday's Safe Word Shelf: His Ranch Hand by Deanna Wadsworth

Title: His Ranch Hand

Author: Deanna Wadsworth

Series: Western Promises #1

Genre: M/M Romance, Historical, BDSM

Release Date: August 17, 2020

Summary:
Cowboys don’t cry.

West of the Pecos, if a man shows a vulnerable side, his last glimpse of this life might be at the end of a barrel.

Cowboy and drifter, Myron Poste shrouds his life in mystery, carefully following a strict code to stay alive. Fellow ranch hand Cade Buchanan is big, hairy, and strong—not the sort of man to trifle with.

One fateful night while driving a herd of Longhorns north to Santa Fe, Cade confronts Myron. With the swiftness of a West Texas wind, desire seizes control and a passionate affair begins. Pride has always held Myron back, but he can no longer deny his submissive nature when Cade gives him just what he craves—pure, lustful dominance.

When the drive ends, they must part ways. Will the memories of their untamed passion under the big Texas sky be powerful enough to reunite them?

First day of the drive, no men got hurt, but a cow broke its leg, so it was steak for dinner. With a full belly and muscles tired from a long day in the saddle, Myron went to check on Lucy. He’d ridden her this morning, taking out Duke and Brave the rest of the day. Lucy was a jealous sort, so he brought her an apple before he hit the hay. He didn’t have watch duty, and a full night’s sleep called his name.

Young Jacob wasn’t watching over the horses, it was Cade. He leaned against one of the posts of the makeshift corral, having a smoke and his back to Myron.

He only hesitated a moment before casually walking up. “Evening.”

Cade didn’t startle, probably already heard his approach. He turned and a waft of smoke obscured his face. “Poste.”

Ignoring the way the much bigger man’s very presence made Myron jumpy, he clicked his tongue to get Lucy’s attention. Several horses stirred, and after a shuffling of beasts, Lucy, ears up, made her way over. He withdrew his knife and sliced off a piece of the apple.

“Here, girl,” he said, holding out the slice with a flat palm. Her velvety lips fluttered over his hand as she took the treat.

“Gonna have them all over here in a moment,” Cade remarked, as Duke, the bay Myron had ridden this afternoon pushed up against Lucy. He cut him off a piece too.

Cade shifted to lean sideways on the post, smoking. His gaze stayed locked on Myron as he alternated cutting pieces of apple off until it was gone, and a third horse had nosed its way over too, seeking a treat.

“All gone,” Myron told them all, hands up.

“You spoil that horse,” he remarked.

“I do.” When Myron put away his knife, Cade held out his cigarette in offering.

He only hesitated a moment before taking the cigarette and having a nice toke. Cade’s tobacco was sweeter than his, and he liked it. He held the smoke in, and passed the cigarette back, briefly allowing himself to think that once more, their lips had both been on a cigarette. Would Cade’s kisses have the same lingering sweetness of his tobacco?

“Beautiful night,” Cade offered.

Myron stroked Lucy’s nose, desperate for something to anchor his wayward thoughts. He wanted to stay, he needed to leave, and he dreamed about stepping closer. Instead he patted his horse and agreed, “It is.”

“There’s the Big Dipper,” Cade said, pointing up. “And the little one.”

Cade seemed to be in a chatty mood, and though it only made Myron’s yearning stronger, he felt obliged to indulge him. He gazed up at the star-spattered navy blue sky, identifying several constellations right away. He pointed to one. “Orion.”

“Which one is that?” Cade stepped closer, gazing up in the direction Myron had indicated.

There had been no need for Cade to come so close, for no tree obscured their view. And there should be no reason for Myron’s heart to race like a cattle stampede either, but it did nonetheless. He cleared his throat, not surprised by how hoarse he sounded or the way his hand trembled as he pointed at the constellation. “See there, the three small ones all clustered? That’s Orion’s belt.”

Cade moved closer still, but his gaze remained heavenward, using Myron’s finger like the sight on a rifle. “There?” He pointed up too, their arms flush now.

He stood so close, Myron could make out his thick eyelashes in the moonlight, see how long they were, the blond tips disguising that fact at a distance. There was no distance between them now, and their arms were still touching. Helpless, Myron gazed at his full lips and licked his own in want.

“Y-yeah,” Myron choked out, his body responding to Cade’s overwhelming manly scent, his nearness, and the fact that he didn’t mind having his arm pressed against Myron. “Th-that’s it.”

At the peculiar sound of his voice, Cade turned his head and looked right at him. Not moving away, he offered a sideways grin. “You sure? You ain’t even looking up.”

Shit!

Myron stepped away so fast, Lucy reared her head and huffed her disapproval. Even in the dark Cade had probably seen Myron staring at his mouth. His heart pounded, his arm on fire where it had been pressed to Cade’s. He could still feel the heat of his body and the cold absence of it in the air between them.

“Yes, I was,” Myron argued, feeling a fool. He pointed up with confidence. “You’ve got it. That’s Orion.”

Still smiling at him, Cade flicked his cigarette to the ground, and only released his gaze to glance down and extinguish it. When he looked back up, Myron hoped he didn’t notice the growing bulge in the front of his trousers.

What the hell were you thinking, staring at him so openly?

And why did he stand so close in the first place?

“Thanks for sharing it with me,” Cade said, voice a heady timber that did nothing to quell Myron’s ardor.

“Y-you’re welcome.”

“Now I know three constellations,” Cade said, then he looked up. “Know any more?”

He cleared his throat, and pointed out Pegasus. “That there square? It’s Pegasus.”

“The flying Greek horse?”

Myron couldn’t help but smile at the childlike wonder in Cade’s tone. “Yes, the same.”

“I suppose the stars’ll look different in the Dakotas.”

“Suppose so,” Myron agreed, stuffing his thumbs under his belt and feeling off kilter. “They’re different down here in Texas than they are in Pennsylvania.”

“You stayin’ on another season with Lawson?” Cade questioned after a moment.

“Nope, gotta head back east. My family’s got a bit of a situation I need to tend to, now that Mama’s passed.” He didn’t want the ugliness of what lay in store for his future to tarnish this rare moment alone under a blanket of beautiful stars with a man he craved more than air itself, so he asked, “You’re really going that far up north?”

“Yup, parcels are cheap up there. Public domain land to graze on too.”

“You plan to work it by yourself?”

“At first,” Cade said. “Plan is to get there and build a shelter for me and a couple horses. Figure I’d buy cows in the spring. Won’t let me take Longhorn up there because of the ticks.”

Myron nodded, knowing full well all the hassles settlers and farmers, not to mention the government, inflicted on Texas cattleman because of a tick the cows carried. Didn’t bother the herd, overmuch, but it did cause problems for folks and other animals. That’s why they were driving the herd on the west side of the Pecos through Apache lands to Santa Fe. Too many restrictions on the safer route to the railhead in Abilene.

“Thinkin’ I’ll plant corn for feed,” Cade continued, the excitement evident in his voice. “Maybe have me a little vegetable garden come springtime. We set out later than I wanted with this herd, and the seasons come faster up there. Maybe I can get a few things in the ground before the frost. Or at least till some earth for early spring planting.”

Myron smiled, thinking of Cade harvesting things like tomatoes. He could imagine him taking a bite of one, still warm from the sun and ripe with sweetness, the juice dribbling down his chin and beard, the way Myron had done as a child. Though the visions Cade conjured held none of the innocence of childhood.

Pushing those images away, he said, “Good plan.”

“Don’t suppose I need much more than a snug shelter and supplies for me and the animals over the winter. I’ll be able to hunt too. Can ya just picture it?” Cade said wistfully. “Your own land, a ranch, small house. Maybe someone to share it with.”

At that last whispered sentence, Cade dropped his gaze from the heavens and looked at Myron with a faraway smile.

Myron’s throat went dry but he managed to nod. “You paint a pretty picture, Buchanan.”

He imagined his own version of that picture, the two of them holed up the entire winter, snuggled in one bed inside a tiny little cabin that smelled of man, soot, and horse. His thoughts shouldn’t go to places like that because it made his cock throb. Thankfully the darkness, and Cade fixing his attention back on the sky, provided him a moment to adjust the indiscretion.

Author Bio:
Deanna Wadsworth might be a bestselling erotica author, but she leads a pretty vanilla life in Ohio with her wonderful husband and adorable cocker spaniels. She has been spinning tales and penning stories since childhood, and her first erotic novella was published in 2010. When she isn’t writing books or brainstorming with friends, you can find her making people gorgeous in a beauty salon. An avid reader, she also loves gardening, cooking, music, and dancing. Often she can be seen hanging out on the sandbar in the muddy Maumee River or chilling with her hubby and a cocktail in their basement bar. In between all that fun, Deanna cherishes the quiet times when she can let her wildly active imagination have the full run of her mind. Her fascination with people and the interworkings of their relationships have always inspired her to write romance with spice and love without boundaries.

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