pairing – m-f

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Summary: Love is complex. Love is beautiful. Love is diverse. Love is for all. Beautiful Skin is an anthology of short stories from a diverse group of authors who believe love, in all its many colors, shapes, and forms, is simply stunning. This collection features tales from genres such as contemporary, erotica, paranormal, interracial, M/M, F/M, M/F/M, and M/M/M romance. Allow us to take you on a journey that will enthrall your mind and leave you desiring more from these authors. Fifty percent of the proceeds from this anthology will go to a charity with a great initiative: aiding in the fight against sickle cell. Please be advised that all stories are intended for a mature audience of readers who are 18+ years. Featuring: Angela Roe, Remmy Duchene, Isabel Raven, T.B. Bond, Nichelle Gregory, BLMorticia, Theresa Hodge, ML Preston, BA Tortuga, Eloreen Moon, Kait Gamble, Sara York, Kiarra M. Taylor, Sade Rena, Katy Swann, Hadley Raydeen, Kendra Mei Chailyn, Kharma Kelley, AM Cosgrove

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Summary:

Summer Fair

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

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Summary: Continue to hide or help save the very kin she's hidden from? Welcome to SYN Consulting, the top business strategy consulting firm in Europe, home to a motley crew whose leader has a life changing secret. CEO, Danica Lestrange, is the first female dragon born in the last 800 years. Hidden from the rest of her kin and raised in the human world, she built a life that she would defend until her death. A devious plan is unearthed while working on a new business deal that could plunge the dragons into another war with the humans. The humans may have forgotten the last dragon-human war, but the dragons have not. Will the war reveal this hidden world to the humans, or will the clans come together to defeat their enemies and maintain their anonymity? Danica must gather her allies and help the very dragons she's hidden from her whole life. She can only hope that she'll be strong enough to protect her chosen family. This is the first book in a new series about dragons who want nothing more than to live in peace, but refuse to be subjugated. In war there's also love, and love is blind. Love doesn't care about gender, race, species (in this case), or sexuality. Warning: This book contains explicit sexual content between consenting adults. The sexual scenes are MM, MF, and MMF. There are romantic relationships depicted that are MM. There is also a high level of explicit language, snark, kink, and possibly bad puns and fart jokes. This book does end in a cliffhanger. Dragon War Chronicles is a continuous series. It is best read in order. SYN Consulting Secrets Revealed First Strike Dragon's Hoard  

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

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Summary:

Word Count: Click here to reveal82000 (Click here to hide)

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Summary: Callie, a Classics major, flees home to protect her family from a monster straight out of mythology. Visions lead her to Nectar and Ambrosia: the weirdest pub on Earth, where inter-dimensional travelers with attention seeking issues get drunk in between the A-list celebrity lives they create. They can't pretend to be gods anymore—not since a treaty with the current Supreme Deity promising they won't intervene in human affairs. The Doorkeeper of this threshold, Florian, rides herd on the rowdy Amaranthine and offers her shelter and a job. Callie likes the lonely, mysterious bartender more than she should. For Florian, her presence is a ray of light in the gray monotony of his sentence behind the bar, but he keeps a cautious distance—the truth of how he became Doorkeeper could change Callie's perception of him forever. When angels show up for a war council over Zeus's irrational mutters about a comeback, Callie has uncontrolled visions of an apocalypse. Ex-gods realize she’s the first Oracle Priestess in generations. All Callie wanted was keep her parents safe, and now it seems she must sacrifice her future to keep the rest of humanity safe, too. Ambrosia could be the key to harnessing her visions— or it could cost her life. War is coming. The threshold between worlds has never been more fragile. Callie must discover who is pulling Zeus's strings and avert the final battle—before the immortal vying to become the next Supreme Deity kills her first.

Word Count: Click here to reveal9947 (Click here to hide)

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Summary: Nigel Mann has learned to protect his emotions by creating a wall of ice between himself and the world. He’s been doing it for so long that no one remembers the little boy he used to be, least of all himself. His occupation as an agent for the CIA has led him to accept the sobriquet he’s earned: “Mr. Freeze.” Portia Sebring deciphers codes for the NSA. She’s a warm woman, but she doesn’t like men with grabby hands and isn’t afraid to slap them down. Because of this, she’s been labeled cold. She determines that if they insist on calling her the “Ice Princess,” she’ll give them exactly what they’re expecting to see: a woman cold as ice. These two were never meant to meet, but outside factors are in play, and ironically, when Mr. Freeze meets the Ice Princess, what else could result but sparks flying?

Word Count: Click here to reveal115000 (Click here to hide)

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Summary: A group of strangers meets at Ragazzi, an Italian restaurant, for a cooking lesson that will change them all. They quickly become intertwined in each other's lives, and a bit of magic touches each of them. Meet Dave, the consultant who lost his partner; Matteo and Diego, the couple who run the restaurant; recently-widowed Carmelina; Marcos, a web designer getting too old for hook-ups; Ben, a trans author writing the Great American Novel; teenager Marissa, kicked out for being bi; and Sam and Brad, a May-September couple who would never have gotten together without a little magic of their own. Everyone in the River City has a secret, and sooner or later secrets always come out.

Word Count: Click here to reveal98000 (Click here to hide)

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Summary: Six Dark Noir stories from Bill Kieffer's Aesop's World (anthropomorphic people) appear in this collection. Four of these stories are previously unpublished.

• Shepard (previously unpublished): It’s post Prohibition New Amsterdam and the world is full of conspiracies, syndicates, and crackpot cults. Cops have to be tough. Shepard is as hard headed and as hard hearted as they come. He has just one soft spot, an impossible love for Lynne Black, now married to a childhood friend. When Lynne calls to say her youngest boy was kidnapped, he drops everything to get the boy back. The boy that should have been his.
• Brooklyn Blackie and the Dudeless Dude Ranch (previously unpublished): Blake Black is a former beat cop who also happens to be a cunning linguist with a lot of baggage. He goes to Las Vegas in search of a missing woman. Between public sex acts and fighting with his ex partner, the Wolf-Dog hybrid realizes the woman he's been chasing is more than likely dead and not a woman...
• Brooklyn Blackie and the Rainbow in the Dark (unpublished): When a Dragon is fatally shot on his office steps, Brooklyn Blackie has to work with a Terrier detective that "heard things" about the Wolf-Dog and believes Blackie might be a vigilante. Despite his homophobia and (justified) suspicions of Blackie, he keeps the Hybrid close to keep an eye on him and take full advantage of his polyglot skills. This story explores the religion of the Chromatics.
• Brooklyn Blackie and the Unappetizing Menu (Inhuman Acts, 2015): Out of funds, and ready to take an insurance job rather than starve, Brooklyn Blackie visits his closest Reptilian friend, Dice, to boost his spirits. Instead, he finds a tenement building of full of dead Repts, supposedly frozen to death. No one will believe that it was murder but the weirdo tenement owner. The Warm Blooded police force want to keep the case open only long enough for the coroner to sign the paperwork. But everything turns on a loose piece of coal, leading the Wolf-Dog down a darker path than simple murder, leading him down a world where cannibals wear tuxedos and dine in the darkest shadows.
• Brooklyn Blackie and the Reverse Badger Game (unpublished, mature): Things are looking up for the bisexual Wolf-Dog and he's ready to start a life with his Otter and his Bitch. The Otter is mobbed up, but, he has an exit plan that will keep them all safe. And the first step is gang-raping Brooklyn Blackie to prove to his crew who the top dog really is.
• Unbalanced Scales (Roar 7, 2016): Rap stars like St. George and Dr. Ice are on the cusp of making millions in record deals... and if they don't kill each other first, it might be the start of a new dynasty.

Word Count: Click here to reveal3700 (Click here to hide)

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Summary: London, 1898 Streetwalker Cath plies her trade behind respectable houses in Victorian London, alongside close friend and fellow streetwalker, Ben. When an ugly encounter puts them on the wrong side of the law, she and Ben must choose between risking their hearts— or their lives.

Word Count: Click here to reveal154047 (Click here to hide)

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Summary: In the final book of this epic, memorable, mind-blowing series, Zach makes a choice regarding his long-term future. Will he pick Dray, Dwight or neither? Zach also comes face-to-face with his father and that interaction could have long-lasting impacts on the brewing relationship with his brother. In a series of heart-to-heart conversations with his mother, he learns the truth of his childhood foundations which shaped him into the man he is today. Dwight is on the search for liberation as he comes clean to the people he loves the most. He is determined to see his divorce through to the end and doesn’t care what all it might cost him. Kris and Rozi come to a resolution about the issues that plague their marriage. While Rozi is forced to deal with her shattered past, she learns more unwanted news about her family. Will Rozi and Kris make it through the fire or has too much damage been done? While Raidon is trying to put his life back together after Micah’s devastating situation, Tony makes an announcement that will forever change their relationship. TJ finds himself in a serious bind as Eli plots to remove Trae from their lives. As Dray continues his sessions with the therapist that brings him closer to healing, Phoenix deals with a situation from his past that can cause imminent danger to his livelihood. Join Zach and the crew for one final ride as these characters are forced into decisions that will forever shape their destiny as all of their lives finally come full circle.

Word Count: Click here to reveal93000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGenderfluid, Lesbian, Non Binary, Pansexual (Click here to hide)

Summary: When a change in collective conscious sends the Outsiders, a group of aliens, to the shadows below the city, humans reason that the demonization of their peers is simply more “humane.” There’s no question, nor doubt. Just acceptance. Lydia had embraced that sense of “truth” for as long as she can remember. The daughter of a powerful governor, she has been able to live her life with more comforts than most. Comforts can be suffocating, though, and when the opportunity to teach Outsider children in their private, “humane” community becomes available, she takes it. What she finds beneath the city is far from the truth she had grown to know. There she meets Alessia, an Outsider with the knowledge and will to shake the foundation of all those who walk above ground. The two find a new and unexpected connection despite a complete disconnect from the technological world. Or perhaps in spite of it. Still, it takes a lot more than an immutable connection to change the world. Lydia, Alessia, and a small group of Outsiders must navigate a system of corruption, falsehoods, and twists none of them ever saw coming, all while holding on to the hope to come out alive in the end. But it’s a risk worth taking, and a future worth fighting for.

Word Count: Click here to reveal19656 (Click here to hide)

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Summary: Max Futé and Avery “Smitty” Schmidt are both doctors who work for the Washington Bureau of Intelligence and Security. They’ve settled into a comfortable relationship, and although Max assures him otherwise, Smitty is waiting for the other shoe to drop. That will be when Charles Browne, Max’s former lover, realizes what he’s let slip through his fingers and comes to take Max back. Although Charles had enjoyed having Max in his bed, he’s always declared he wasn’t gay. And finding solace with other men after Max left him had nothing to do with ... anything. Now, however, he’s found a woman who ticks all his boxes in spite of her somewhat kinky tastes. Will Santa give them each what they want most this Christmas?

Word Count: Click here to reveal20000 (Click here to hide)

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Summary: Peter Warfield wanted a Christmas like none before. A celebration of putting the past behind them. Leaving Bradley Warfield and Moses Lee buried in the past. A new tradition of love and happiness for future generations. But, no one was cooperating. You are invited to celebrate the holidays with Peter, Sally and their daughter, Lily, at the Warfield Manor. There’s no murder to solve or a criminal to catch, but there are secrets to be revealed. Justin Warfield and Marcus Drummond are speaking or telling anyone else what is going on. Damien Fitzgerald and Robert Wyler have been out of the country but is that really the truth. Sally’s been trying to tell Peter something important for weeks but he’s so wrapped up in Christmas, she can’t get through to him. Catch up with the rest of the Warfield extended family: Richard Brooks, Daisy Lee and their son Alexander, Krystal Smith, Winnie, Michaels and all the rest. One thing’s for sure, it will be a Christmas the Warfield’s will never forget.

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Summary:

Even in darkness, love lights the way.

Anya awakens alone and afraid in a new world soaked with blood and terror. The only things she knows for certain are her name and that humans are precious.

Unwilling to give in to her hungers, she sets her feet upon a path of discovery, searching for clues to her forgotten past. Along the way she runs headlong into the unimaginable world of the undead and the waiting arms of Nicholas, a fearless nocturnal defender searching for his love, lost in eternity.

Into their midst stumbles Declán, a young, natural born vampire hunter and Guardian whose passion for Anya is only matched by his draw to Nicholas. His arrival could mark the end of their tale, or with the gift of Anya’s blood kiss, it might bring about the beginning of a new chapter for them all.

Fate has a wicked sense of sensibility…

Word Count: Click here to reveal74000 (Click here to hide)

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Summary: The Banes of Lake’s Crossing - Origins The Biggest Little City in the World was founded on a lie. History tells us that the city called Reno, Nevada, was founded as a gambling haven for silver miners and later the divorce capital. But it goes deeper than that. It goes as deep as the lines from which the silver came. In 1860, four brothers tunneled beneath the surface, looking to find the next Comstock Lode. They left their families behind in search of the valuable metals being brought forth from the Earth in order to do the Lord’s work. Their plan was to settle down near Virginia City and build a new church to save the souls of those seeking riches. They went below ground on a chilly fall morning in 1860, and were never seen again. The official story was an explosion caused their brace work to collapse, trapping them all inside. Word reached their families a month later, and services were held to bless their souls and send them into the afterlife. Legend has it that the four men who went down into the Earth as good, solid Christian men returned as something more sinister, their good intentions abandoned. They became possessed by a force more evil than could be imagined, and their hold on the residents of what was known then as Lake’s Crossing allowed them to gain unfathomable powers. ________________________________________ The Fourth Man by R.L. Merrill Lake’s Crossing was a fairly new settlement in 1862, but Julianna Monroe had already seen the worst of humanity cross their bridge seeking shelter. One blustery fall night, four well-dressed men enter her family’s inn, and she immediately senses their otherness. Despite her concerns for self-preservation, she is drawn to the fourth man. Quiet, brooding, and different from his elder brothers, Julianna is intrigued by Jonah and soon realizes it is time to choose a husband before the choice is made for her.  But when the elder Bane brothers threaten her safety, will Jonah be strong enough to stand up to them and protect her? Or will she become yet another victim of the Banes’ evil influence? Hell’s Belles by Ellay Branton When her most loyal client and friend falls under the mysterious control of the Bane brothers, Arabella Kimpton knows she has to do something to save him. Convincing Zach Upton that his little brother is in big trouble won't be easy. The sexy rancher knows all about her business as an owner of Hell's Belles Saloon – and that she spends a lot of time alone with his brother. Arabella will have to risk everything to gain Zach's trust and save Jerry.  But the gamble might leave her with a broken heart...if she survives the wrath of the sinister Bane brothers. The Silver Brooch by Kimberlie L. Faye Miss Penelope Webb is ready to start fresh.  A midwife with a gift and a pure soul, she’s hired by Lionel Bane for the birth of his second child. She’s determined to start anew in Lake’s Crossing and leave her past behind her. Little does she know the Bane brothers rule the town and folks are not quite themselves. Penny has caught the ire of William, the large and imposing younger brother. He oozes menace and disdain and darkness is embedded in his soul. Despite his danger, she’s inexplicably drawn to him. Should she risk her heart and her secrets for a chance at love with a man who has a damned soul? The Banes Of Lake’s Crossing - Origins is the first of a trilogy set in this world. Look for part two in May 2018 in time for RT Reno, and the third in October 2018.

Word Count: Click here to reveal150751 (Click here to hide)

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Summary: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. While Kris and Zach remain in critical condition in the aftermath, the fallout begins. Dray and Dwight have another battle as Zach’s mom expresses her true feelings. This forces one party to completely walk away. Will this unexpected move guide Zach to his rightful lover? Zach also has the conversation with his birth father that’s been eleven years in the making. Will a father-son relationship form, or will that door be forever closed? That, however, will push Zach to do something that may further complicate an already unstable situation. As Dwight receives information on the paternity case, a serious threat forces him to change his tone with the divorce. Just how much is he willing to give up to become a single man? Keston takes a positive step in seeing his wishes come true, but how will his family deal with the revelation? And there are issues with Phoenix due to the new temptation that has entered Keston’s life. Will Keston remain faithful or will this mark the end of Keston and Phoenix? In the tenth book of an eleven-book series, the accident forces Kris to make a few decisions that may haunt him for the rest of his life. Kory takes matters into his own hands, Micah’s family will hate a choice he makes, and Natasha meets a new love interest that has the potential to turn worlds upside down. Tony has a chance encounter that could destroy another marriage, Elijah comes across devastating information, and Genevieve’s holding a big secret. But the ending sequence of events is something that will never be forgotten. This event will shock everyone and forever alter the direction of the story.

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Summary: Gideon Jane earned the name Ghost for his reclusive nature when he joined a group of guys in Powers, Georgia in a band called Executioners. It had been his way of settling into small town life after living in New York for the past twenty years. He loved the band and his small organic farm. What he didn’t love was being single, but it appeared it was his new reality. He didn’t want his ex back, although he did want something. What that was eluded him until the evening he walked into Nightingale’s Books. Small town girl Harper Sage knew pain and she’d lived with it—she had the scars both mental and physical to prove it. It would’ve been easier to hop in her car to find safety and anonymity, but Harper stayed to prove she was stronger than hurled fists and bruising prejudice. She found herself within the safety of a close-knit Bohemian community that lived on the outskirts of her town and with her straight best friend since third grade. What’s a girl to do when she craves normalcy and acceptance: she just smiles. Choices are made, some with dire consequences and others that bring her closer to her dream. Will she make the right decision or finally discover escape is her best option?

Word Count: Click here to reveal102000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: In war, loss is the price of victory, and the cost of love is sometimes pain.   After Renaldo and Casto finally celebrate their marriage, the time has come for revenge against the followers of the Good Mother who tried to kill Casto—though this time, the Gods of War won’t use bloodshed to take Medelina.   As a member of the Confederation of the Plains, Medelina answers to Ummana, the head of the alliance… and Casto is heir to the throne of Ummana. Accompanied by their most capable mercenaries, Canubis and Renaldo travel to Ummana to make Casto king.   They’ll face the Council of Elders, Lord Aran, Casto’s father, and Princess Anesha, Casto’s sister—none of whom are happy about the king’s return. For Casto, the city is a reminder of a terrible childhood, and Renaldo can only helplessly watch his beloved fight a seemingly hopeless battle.   Through trickery and political scheming, vengeance against the Good Mother is finally within their grasp—but their success might be bittersweet. Not everyone will return to the Valley with Casto and Renaldo.  

Word Count: Click here to reveal64,000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Trevor Larson is a Navy brat. He’s used to moving every few years, and thanks to social media, he can stay in touch with the friends he leaves behind. But shortly after he leaves Okinawa, his best friend, Brad Gray, cuts off contact and disappears. Four years and two bases later, Brad resurfaces—and announces his family is coming to Trevor’s base in Spain. But a lot’s changed in four years, and Trevor is stunned to find out Brad is now Shannon. Their reunion isn’t quite what either of them had hoped for, but they quickly find their footing, both relieved to have each other back. Except nothing is ever all sunshine and roses. The military is a small world, and there’s no keeping Shannon’s transition a secret. Parents warn their kids away from her. She can’t attend school on-base for fear of harassment or worse. And although her parents try to hide it, being ostracized by their only social circle while they’re thousands of miles from home is taking a toll on them too. More and more, Shannon leans on Trevor. But she’s also drawn to him, and he’s drawn right back to her, feeling things he’s never felt for anyone before. Trevor’s scared, though. Not of dating a trans girl. Not of damaging his chaplain father’s career or reputation. After finally getting his friend back, does he dare take things further and risk losing her a second time?

Word Count: Click here to reveal200000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary:

Rose Foster is just starting adjust to life as a vampire when a series of highly publicized murders throws the world into chaos. Rose and her friends must intervene, if they want to prevent the imminent war between vampires and humans.

But when they realize that the woman behind these murders is Alana—a vampire they believed to be long dead—intervening becomes complicated. Alana is as powerful as she is seductive. She is a master of manipulation and the queen of mind games. She craves vengeance, and she doesn’t care if she has to tear the world apart to get it. And now, she has an army.

Outnumbered and overpowered, Rose accepts help from a cunning and skilled warrior by the name of Kara Unnarsdóttir. Kara is the second-in-command of the largest vampire colony in the world—the Tomb of Blood—and she offers to help Rose infiltrate the Tomb of Blood and forge an alliance with Aaron, the most ancient vampire known to exist. There’s just one problem: Kara is Alana’s lover, and Aaron is the last person in the world that should ever be trusted. No one knows who will betray whom, only that betrayal is inevitable.