Contemporary Genre

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Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Caden DeSarro is what they call a chubby chaser. He likes his guys with a few extra pounds on them. So when he meets Kevin Dodge in a bar bathroom, he can’t help but stare, even if he does make an ass of himself. As far as Caden is concerned, Kevin is physically perfect: a stocky bearded blond with a dick that’s just right. (They met in the bathroom—of course he looked!) But Caden gets tongue-tied and misses his chance. When Caden runs into Kevin one night on the El train, he figures it’s fate offering him a second shot. Caden manages to get invited back to Kevin's place for a one-night stand that turns into the kind of relationship he’s dreamed about. But the course of true love never did run smooth, and Kevin and Caden’s romance is no exception. When Caden returns from a few weeks away on business, Kevin surprises him with a new and “improved” body—one that fits Caden’s shallow friend Bobby’s ideal, not Caden’s. Caden doesn’t know what to do, and his hesitation is just the opportunity Bobby was looking for. This isn’t the same Kevin he fell in love with… is it?

Word Count: Click here to reveal90000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay, Transgender (Click here to hide)

Summary: Carlos Medina has spent years of sweat, pain, effort, and money becoming the man he is. He writes original songs, plays lead guitar, and wears his death metal front-man persona like armor. With an excellent drummer and a talented bassist, his band, KnifeSwitch, has what it takes to succeed, if they can just catch a break. But it’s been a long road already, and there’s still a mountain left to climb. Carlos isn’t looking for anything more in his personal life than an occasional hook-up with a hot guy, preferably outside the less-than-gay-friendly metal scene. Nate Goldstein has no intention of dating a musician. His twin brother fronts a band, and he knows band guys are all busy, broke, and obsessed with their music. But Carlos catches his artist’s eye. Nate is wary - he has a history of picking the wrong guys. Still, he might be willing to break some personal rules to find out what’s behind Carlos’s dark gaze and imaginative lyrics. Getting together the first time is easy and fun. The second time is more complicated. And when music, ambition, and personalities clash, the guys will have to decide if they have a future worth fighting for. 91,000 words This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love is an Open Road" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story. Dear Author, I was sent to the US at the age of 10 by my father who could not accept me. You see I was misgendered at birth and I started fighting against my body at a young age. My father sent me to live with my cousin’s family along with enough money to pay my way for a few years. Little does he know he helped to fund the many surgeries and hormones to fulfill my dream of having my outside gender match the gender my brain has always known myself to be. What do you think Author? Not many know of his secret. He is a gay man. Is he in a gang? Is he in a band? How will he find love? How will he be accepted?

Word Count: Click here to reveal43000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Gay, Questioning, Straight (Click here to hide)

Summary: A struggling small business. An odd job opportunity. Two friends figuring out they may be something more. Demetrius and Cody stopped a murderous wolf man months ago, but that hasn’t done much to bring in jobs for their Critter Catchers business. Now, as the two best friends struggle to make ends meet, Demetrius also tries to find time to date Oliver, the new reporter at the Parson’s Hollow Herald, and Cody can’t help nitpicking about them. When veterinary student Agatha Tisdale approaches them with an odd case, they jump at the opportunity despite their misgivings. While Cody flirts with Agatha, Demetrius finds himself distracted by handsome farmer Reed Wilkes whose goats are being bled dry by something living in the woods around his farm. While working to identify the blood-drinking critter, however, Demetrius discovers he’s having to remind himself more and more often to keep Cody in the friend category of his mind and heart. And for his part, Cody is realizing he might be more than a little jealous of the relationship developing between Demmy and Oliver. But all of that must be set aside when farmer Wilkes goes missing and Cody, Demetrius, Oliver, and Agatha follow a bloody trail into the woods and come face-to-face with something as dangerous as the wolf man!

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Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Gay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Jack has a secret hidden in his pants, and Eli thinks he knows what it is. Jack Cox has a secret he’s kept hidden for years until a fellow hockey player discovers a scrap of silk and lace hiding in his pocket. Elijah Mitten notices how anxious Jack is as the hot-pink fabric makes its way around the locker room, and when Jack throws it in the trash like it means nothing, Elijah guesses what’s beneath his stoic façade and possibly his pants. When Elijah shows up on Jack’s doorstep looking for answers, Jack won’t admit anything. But when Elijah takes matters into his own hands, Jack has to make a decision: share his secret and risk losing hockey or keep it hidden forever. 12,600 words, 50 pages

Word Count: Click here to reveal50630 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Even the best-planned experiment can have unpredictable consequences. Max Allenby loves his job as a chemist with Armacom, developing new protective materials. He harbours a secret crush for the CEO, the stern and distant Blake Winters, which makes dealing with his harridan of a boss, Dr. Ella Preston, bearable. Blake Winters is a lifestyle Dom. He spotted Max when he first joined Armacom, but has kept his distance from the talented, young scientist. When his Head of Security, who also happens to be Max’s older brother, tells him about Max’s feelings, Blake decides its time to make the pretty young man his. Blake proposes a dating experiment to Max. For three hours a night over five nights, Max will give Blake his complete submission. Max is conflicted but decides to take the plunge and get a taste of a lifestyle he secretly craves. Each date night introduces Max to a new level of submission. He loves every minute but is also conflicted—unable to believe a man like Blake wants him as anything more than a temporary plaything. Blake understands that experiments do not always turn out as expected. He takes steps to convince Max of his feelings and to reassure him that his submissive streak is a strength, not a weakness.

Word Count: Click here to reveal105360 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: A man recovering from a traumatic event. His partner supporting him the best he can. An agent called back into the field by an old enemy. A case in Detroit requires the onsite attention of FBI Special Agent Aaron Pearce. Men are being murdered, notes left behind that reference Pearce, inviting him back to the city. But Pearce doesn’t want to leave his boyfriend, Mark Beecher, who is still recovering from their terrifying trip to Barbados. Surely someone else can track down this killer. Mark Beecher tells Pearce what the man already knows: this case is too personal, and Pearce has to leave him and return to Detroit. Regretfully, Pearce leaves, and Mark works on becoming more comfortable with himself and his memories, making progress every day. Which means, when the stakes in Pearce’s case become even more personal for him, Mark has to decide whether it’s better for him to stay in Washington, D.C., or be with Pearce in Detroit.

Word Count: Click here to reveal75,000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: A cinnamon roll Viking, a socially anxious sweetheart, and a decades-long secret crush.   Jules: I’ve been in love with my brother’s best friend since I was twelve, and twenty years later, Erik Osouf is still so far out of my league, we aren’t even playing the same sport. Not that I play sports. That means talking to people, and my social anxiety makes that all but impossible.   It also makes my brother incredibly overprotective, and while I love that Stef always has my back, it’s why I still can’t tell Erik how I feel. It would wreck their friendship, and after everything Stef’s done for me, I won’t ever be the cause of that. I just wish my heart would get that memo.   Erik: For years I thought of Jules Evans as the quiet, sweet kid who regularly crushed me at Mario Kart, and let fireflies loose in our camping tent. Then he accidentally admits he’s in love with me. He doesn’t remember saying anything, and I’d never embarrass him by mentioning it, but since then I can’t stop thinking about kissing him.   If it was anyone else, I’d probably have told them how I feel by now. But he’s my best friend’s younger brother. The same best friend who told me Jules is off-limits. That makes this all kinds of impossible. Unless I can convince them both I’m the right man for Jules.   Choose Me is a low-angst, brother’s best friend, contemporary MM romance about flawed but devoted families, taking chances, and sweet cinnamon roll Vikings. It contains no cheating, and a guaranteed HEA.

Word Count: Click here to reveal57000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Gay (Click here to hide)

Summary: You can never escape from yourself. Zac McKenzie is an ex-professional footballer with a secret he gave up his career to protect. Several years ago, he fled to his home in the North East of Scotland to avoid being outed as gay. Now, he owns a successful hotel and restaurant, but is it time to finally come out into the open? Seth Pritchard feels he’s damaged goods. He comes to Scotland to escape memories of the accident that left him injured, his bullying stepbrothers and a life of lies. For their whole lives, Zac and Seth have denied who they truly are to themselves as well as others. When they meet, each man is forced to confront his fears and tear them down one by one.

Word Count: Click here to reveal51500 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay, Pansexual (Click here to hide)

Summary: Hank Beaufort's life is a mess. Oh, he looks like he has it all together, but the reality is that he's freshly retired from an unimpressive minor hockey career, and the ink is barely dry on his equally unimpressive second divorce. Now he's the hockey director at the community center in a small town that treats Christmas like Santa Claus is real, and he's not sure his new career is any more impressive than the last. As the new guy in town, he'd be lonely as hell if it weren't for his dogs. The one spot of brightness? Scott Jersey, the adorably awkward single dad who brings his son to practice every week. Hank's not interested in a new relationship so soon after the disaster of the last one, but when doggy play dates lead to real dates, will he be able to set aside his reservations to be someone's Christmas beau after all? Christmas Season 2 revisits a small town that thrives on enough holiday charm to rival any Hallmark movie. It's a multi-author M/M romance series.

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Character Identities: Click here to revealLesbian (Click here to hide)

Summary: Charlotte Miller is tired of feeling like a failure. She may have gotten herself fired, her love life has imploded…so when she gets the call that the annual Summit Springs Christmas Bazaar, which helps support her family’s farm, is in trouble, she heads home to try to save the day. Maybe her luck will change and she will be happier for the holidays. Too bad her car decides to break down on the way. Naomi “Lars” Beckett is too busy with the tree farm she runs and Christmastime to worry about a stranded hottie like Charlotte, but when they get snowed in together at an old cabin, she figures that’s what she gets for trying to help. On the surface these two seem to have nothing in common, but opposites do attract, especially with the magic of the season, and they find they have more in common than they think. Once they’re back in the crazy mix of family, well-meaning town folk, and trying to make things just right for Christmas though, will they be able to make something together that lasts longer than old wrapping paper and holiday leftovers? Christmas Bizarre is a small town, opposites attract, lesbian romance set in fictional Summit Springs, Colorado.

Word Count: Click here to reveal39400 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual (Click here to hide)

Summary: After Ryan lost his wife to cancer, leaving him with three kids to raise on his own, he never thought he'd find any kind of companionship ever again. Especially not with someone like Michael. The last time Ryan saw his little brother's annoying childhood friend, Michael, he'd been a geeky, pimply-faced thirteen-year-old. That was just before Michael and his family moved to New York. There was an eight-year age difference between them, and being in college at the time, Ryan had never wanted to waste his breath talking to some immature teenage kid when he could be doing homework or making out with his girlfriend instead. Sixteen years later, a chance meeting at a coffee shop in Denver changes both of their lives. Michael, recently divorced from his wife, has two kids of his own, and a thriving recording studio. Michael is no longer the Mikey Ryan remembers. Getting the whole brood together for a Thanksgiving crafting extravaganza, and their mutual love of the blues cements Ryan and Michael's friendship into something neither one of them could have ever expected. Christmas is fast approaching. How far will their newfound friendship take them?

Word Count: Click here to reveal34000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Organising a charity auction is no easy matter. Add a stolen masterpiece and events are set to go off the rails. Damien Walsh knows what he wants: gain his degrees in art and criminology and join White Knight Security. He also wants Drake Norton, the handsome insurance investigator he’d met when Gloss burned, but that goal is a pipe dream – and Damien has better things to do than pine for a man who never looked twice at him. Until a stolen painting and meddling friends force Damien and Drake into a partnership, Drake turns out far from disinterested, and Damien suddenly dares to hope. Can Damien convince Drake that they’re a perfect match and age is just a number? Or is he destined to watch Drake leave when they’ve solved their case? An age gap romance with art theft and meddling friends set in the White Knight Security world.

Word Count: Click here to reveal65000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealDemisexual, Gay (Click here to hide)

Summary: It’s recent college graduate Zach Greenfeld’s favorite time of the year and he’s just received a temporary gig planning Lighthouse Bay’s Christmas parade. Not only does it speak to his penchant for organization, it also puts him face to face on a daily basis with his unrequited crush—Holland Stone. But his new job starts off in disaster when the most important float—Santa’s sleigh—gets damaged. Holland needs to win the Lighthouse Bay Christmas parade float competition in order to grow his new dollhouse-making business. The prize is an article in a major city newspaper, and nothing beats free advertising. Except, eager to help the adorable parade organizer, he volunteers to help fix Santa’s sleigh, leaving no time to work on his own float, and putting his prize at risk. Damaged floats, snowstorms, and a last-minute parade emergency force Zach and Holland closer than ever. All they need is a little bit of Christmas magic to help them realize they belong together. Christmas Lane is a sweet, May/December, small-town Christmas romance with an HEA!

Word Count: Click here to reveal14000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary:

All I want this Christmas is alone time with you

Eli and Cameron have plans to spend Christmas Day with Eli’s family, but their enthusiasm is seriously lacking. They moved into their house in Podlington only two months earlier and, given the choice, they’d rather celebrate the holiday in private and create memories on their own. Too polite to cancel the get-together, Eli and Cameron don’t mention their reluctance to each other. Their selflessness doesn’t stop either of them from secretly wishing for a reason to stay in their new home for the day, though. Will Podlington’s magic grant them another wish, or are they about to celebrate the Christmas they don’t really want? Welcome to Podlington! The fictional English village where magic happens and dreams come true. This LGBTQ+ Christmas story is part of the Podlington Village Romance series and can be read as a standalone novel. Christmas Perfect features Eli and Cameron from Picture Perfect, a lot of snow, and dreams coming true. 14k words

Word Count: Click here to reveal42000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealDemisexual, Gay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Henry knows what he likes—and what he doesn't.  He likes Christmas far more than one is supposed to, and gets started with his decorations far sooner, too.  He likes quiet days, and he gets annoyed with his coworkers and their idea of humor.  Unfortunately, he also likes Alfie—short, chipper, insecure Alfie. Having  a crush on a coworker is not ideal.  But Alfie is now seeking him out, spending time with him, and...wanting to be his friend?  Henry knows better than to get his hopes up, but his days are certainly brightened by Alfie's presence. Alfie's life is messier than Henry's, even though most people consider him more normal.  He really needs a friend right now.  And possibly something more than a friend?   Heat: very low

Word Count: Click here to reveal89000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay, Intersex (Click here to hide)

Summary: It was always a monstrous lie... Born with a sexual development disorder, Chyna Davidson should have been raised as a male, but due to an epic parenting fail, is being raised as female. Hiding the truth becomes more difficult when Chyna hits puberty, and crushing over Luca Dilorio, her brother's best friend, adds another element to Chyna’s struggle to fit in. Growing up with two dads and two gay uncles has given Luca a unique perspective on gender roles, but not all the answers. He’s had a secret crush on his straight best friend, Chip, for years. Suddenly, Luca finds himself attracted to Chyna, Chip’s twin sister. Now he's wondering if this means he’s bisexual. With Lil and Grier away on vacation, fifteen-year-old Luca is left in the care of Chicago Bear, Clark Stevens, and his partner, Dr. Jody Williams. Is his moral compass strong enough to guide him successfully through this period of discovery without his parents loving presence or will he succumb to peer pressure and shatter Chyna's dreams for happiness?

Word Count: Click here to reveal34679 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Cory’s had a rough year struggling with severe depression. He’s desperate to rebuild his shattered life and break away from his demanding family. When his therapist encourages him to do something for himself, he knows exactly what he needs. I want to see Asher again. The best friend Corey ever had who, at fifteen, held Cory’s heart in his hands without knowing it. Asher’s had a troubled relationship with his father since he came out. Now that Pops is sick, he’s fighting for his right to help or even find out about his father’s health. Then there’s the complication of an ex-boyfriend unwilling to let go. When Cory and Asher meet again after sixteen years, Cory’s feelings are as strong as ever. But does Asher feel the same?

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Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Every life is a circle, and sometimes those circles connect and overlap in unexpected ways, even if the patterns they form aren’t obvious at first glance. Past and present, from the wilderness to small towns and cities, the greedy and evil seek to exploit the vulnerable. The brave men of law enforcement fight to protect the innocent and punish the guilty—but they’re not alone. Men from all walks of life are called to stand beside them and solve these mysteries. Along the way, lives intertwine as couples are reminded that one thing makes the struggle worthwhile: love.

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Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: They may be unconventional to some, but it works for them and that’s what matters most. Claiming the Guardian is a bonus story from Ryder’s Guardian, Maiden Voyage series book 1. How do Ryder Hampton, guitarist for the award-winning heavy metal band, and his partner and bodyguard, Max Hightower manage to keep their love alive? Being on the road most of the year is challenging but finding interesting ways to keep the fire burning makes it so much more…fun.

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Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Gay, Transgender (Click here to hide)

Summary: What happens when you choose to throw fear aside and live unapologetically? I did just that and never looked back. Although, I’d thought I was content until my best friend asked for a favor, and it brought me face-to-face with a big, bearded bear of a man. It wasn’t love at first sight, but it was something. I hadn’t realized how overwhelming that feeling was until Anderson Mara wanted me to be his. This book was previously published in Dirty Daddies Anniversary Anthology 2020. This version only contains about 5k additional words.