Vinnie’s Ghost
[#gay_romance, #erotic_romance, #contemporary]
Vinnie’s Ghost is releasing December 11th, but you can preorder it now on Amazon. Here’s a peek at Lee and Stroker’s story.
The delivery of a letter could mean everything to two lonely men, connected by the life and death of a man who meant something special to each of them separately.
Lee Fellowes is a wounded warrior, ex-Army vet, whose best buddy died in his arms. As buddies do, Lee and Vinnie had shared intimacies—Vinnie even shared some of his steamy letters from his state-side lover, Stroker Smith, a man who makes surfboards, and communes with the sea. Now, Lee returned from the front lines and suffering from PTSD, goes in search of Stroker to deliver Vinnie’s last letter. What he never expects to find is a passion that can heal his wounded soul, fill his heart, and free his spirit.
Can these two men, who both cared for another, each wounded by that loss, find healing, peace and love together? Or will their separate burdens of loss keep them from finding a true and lasting love in each other’s arms?
EXCERPT
Stroker shucked off his shorts, and once again he took Lee’s hand. He led him outside, along the narrow sandy path lined by beach grass, and down onto the private beach. This part was fairly secluded and quite deserted. Tonight, no one else was around—the revelers were all at the other end where the fireworks were going off.
“Come for a swim,” he urged Lee. He’d try anything to take that desperate look off his face. He led Lee toward the water. “You do know how to swim, don’t you?” He’d never actually seen Lee in the water.
“Yeah, I know how. It’s awful big out there. Endless.”
“It is. And sometimes it can be savage. But that’s nature, isn’t it? That’s life.” He led him deeper into the water.
“It’s lonely,” Lee said softly, and Stroker almost missed his words.
“That’s deceptive.” Stroker moved closer to Lee. “Being out here is a challenge, but it’s not so unlike being in the army. There’s the individual who has to count on his own abilities and knowledge in order to survive.” Stroker swept his hand out in an arc, drawing Lee’s attention to the faint glow of the bonfire down the beach. “But there’s the community too. We aren’t alone in this world. Never alone. Each step, each falter, brings us closer to our destiny. Sometimes we fight it, but if we stop trying to control, to do it alone, quit trying to swim against the current, it can get a lot easier.”
“I don’t know how to do that. Not anymore,” Lee said. “I used to. There’s things I wanted to do with my life, but I’ve lost the way, and maybe the desire too.”
Stroker turned Lee to face him. He cupped his face. “There’s always another wave—another door to open—however you want to look at it. You wipe out; you try again. You never stop trying. You never stop searching. I’m not sure I realized how true that is until tonight.” He leaned forward and kissed Lee. For a moment Lee didn’t respond, but then he opened his mouth, and Stroker thrust his tongue inside, tangling it with Lee’s. There seemed some measure of desperation at first, but then the kiss turned hungry, then demanding. Stroker eased away. He drew Lee farther into the surf.
When they’d reached a point where the water was waist deep, suddenly Lee turned more assertive, and he yanked on Stroker’s hand and spun him around. The sparkle of light flashing across the sky highlighted his expressions in dark and light. He was about a head taller than Stroker, but right now the way he gazed down at him, he seemed so much bigger, stronger.
“You’re right,” Lee said. “Another wave, another door, maybe another chance. Out here, tonight, it seems anything might be possible.”
Lee yanked Stroker forward until they were chest to chest and the cool ocean water rippled over them. One of his hands circled around Stroker’s prick as the other cupped the nape of his neck. He leaned forward until Stroker could feel his lips against his ear.
“I want to fuck you,” he said in a raspy, deep voice.
“Yes,” was about the only word that Stroker could manage to utter. He also knew Lee didn’t mean inside, in Stroker’s bed. He wanted to do it right here.
Preorder now on Amazon; releasing December 11th.
Having a lot of balls to juggle each and every day really takes some determination. A mixture of contract work having nothing to do with writing, photography, graphic design of banners and covers, writing, outlining, editing, proofing, brainstorming, and on and on. I have a mix of tasks I need to accomplish in any given day.
Then there’s my Daily Deeds book that I made, tailored for me. Because I like to create things, and I like writing things down so I can remember what I did. It will show me what groups I’ve posted to specifically in a drill down, what I have accomplished on a given day such as free units offered, book editing completed, formatting accomplished, etc. Daily Deeds is basically a tracker with details of what I’m doing, and details such as posting on Facebook, I’ll list the exact groups I post to, so I don’t repeat it and I can look back and review that list before posting something again. Or it might detail something that wasn’t on the to-do list, but did get accomplished out of order, or because it suddenly become urgent to get it done.
Sylvie’s Gift
Descended from an old, very influential Virginia family with conservative views, Adrien has no desire to carry on the family’s political tradition. Still, he’s forced to hide his gay identity to protect the budding political career of his younger twin brother, Marsh, who wants to take up where their father, Senator Douglas Langtry, left off. There’s no room for mistakes, no matter how much Adrien hates living that lie.
Destrie Two Rivers and Benedict Webster–an orphaned half-Indian and a wealthy rancher’s son. Men who were boyhood best friends, turned secret lovers when they were eighteen. And then one nightmarish night they were discovered and Destrie almost died as a result.
Morganna’s lover, Keelan Moonhunter, a seductive dark elf, disappeared from their province in the Faerie Realm years ago without a word. She assumed he’d simply grown weary of her and sought his pleasures elsewhere. To help her deal with the heartbreak, Morganna pacted with the goblin alchemist, Syril Grimstarker, for a potion that would mask all the pain—at least for a time. Little did she know, however, exactly what evil secrets Syril held.
Over the years the amount of noise with the advancement of technology, and the hustle and bustle, and need to constantly be learning, adapting, and changing have caused stutters and starts to my creative process. It has caused havoc to the point of being blocked with focus and progress. First I’m here and then I’m there and what is it I need to focus on first? Causing frustration, aggravation, and full stop.
This is not something that comes easily. It requires some sacrifices, some relearning of habits newly developed. Of tuning out, of tuning in, of fine tuning the dial. This is clarity. Clarifying the important things. Carving out time to focus.
Eclectic Alchemy 