Happy New Year!

Looking back at everything that happened this year, 2013 has been pretty darn good to me.

Three more books in the Cost of Repairs series released this year: COLOR OF GRACE, WEIGHT OF SILENCE, and ACTS OF FAITH. And yes, there is a fifth book coming!

I also had two releases with Dreamspinner Press: UNEARTHING COLE and WHAT YOU OWN.

I've gained lots of new, amazing readers, and I'm thankful for each and every one of you. I would be nothing without my readers, so thank you for reading my books and recommending them to your friends.

I know I've grown as a writer. With each book, and with each new set of characters, I feel as though I've allowed myself to open up and be more honest. To shine a light on the dark things that happen to us, and to let that light take some of the darkness away. You haven't met Ezra and Romy yet, but you will, briefly, in February's NO SUCH THING, before they get their own books. These boys broke my heart this past year, and I'm honored to have written their stories.

Besides new releases, I signed three new contracts for 2014!

Of course I keep talking about my new series with Carina Press, which begins with NO SUCH THING on February 17. Book two (Title TBD) releases in late July, and book three, FOLLOW YOU HOME, sometime later (probably 2015). I'm so freaking in love with these books and these guys, and I hope you love them, too.

For the folks who asked, I contracted the sequel to UNEARTHING COLE to Dreamspinner. UNDERSTANDING JEREMY has a July/August release date.

I also contracted FOUNDATION OF TRUST, the fifth Cost of Repairs book. This is David Weller's story. More to come on that, but David. Oh David. Some characters you just do not expect....

In terms of what I'm writing, I have two different works in progress, both of them spin-offs from other series. I hope to get whacked upside the head with an idea for a standalone or two, like WHAT YOU OWN, but I do seem to get caught up with multi-book series. Probably because that's what I prefer to read. I love revisiting locations and groups of characters. But sometimes you want something that stands on its own two feet, you know?

So from my boys to you: HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!   ::confetti::

Cover Reveal: No Such Thing

I have the cover and blurb for my upcoming release with Carina Press. I very happy about this new book and new series, and about the cast of characters. The second book in this series (title forthcoming, book releasing in July 2014) is what I've called on Twitter "The Big Book Of Angst" more than once. But I love these boys, and I'm excited to share them with you in less than two months!

Twenty-two-year-old Alessandro Silva knows that returning to tiny Perch Creek to help his foster mother was the right thing to do. With no degree and a delinquent’s reputation, he’s lucky to have landed a job waiting tables. But not everyone is happy he’s back, and the only thing keeping his move home from being a total bust is his boss’s hot brother.

Jaime Winters spent most of his life watching the world go by, first from a series of hospitals and then from behind big stacks of textbooks. Studying is easier than facing the fact that years of heart failure means he’s still a virgin at twenty-three. Until the new waiter in his sister’s diner awakens desires he’d long ago given up on.

The last thing Alessandro wants is to fall for someone as fragile as Jaime. And Jaime may have a new heart, but he’s scared of what giving it to another person would mean. Their no-strings-attached, instructional approach to sex keeps emotion safely at bay, until a secret from Alessandro’s past forces them to confront their feelings in the present…

That's right. Virgin hero. And because food almost always manages to become a set piece in my books, this one features a bakery. And coconut cake.

NO SUCH THING releases February 17, 2014!

Release Day: Acts of Faith

It's finally here! Book four in my "Cost of Repairs" series that began with Sam Briggs and Rey King returns to their lives and continuing romance in ACTS OF FAITH. Check it out, and don't forget to leave reviews on Goodreads and Amazon!

Love can be built on a broken past…but not on broken trust.

  

Cost of Repairs, Book 4

  

Rey King has settled into his new life with Samuel Briggs, and his catering business has taken off to the point he’s brought a business partner on board. Yet something is missing. He’s still haunted by the pain of losing his daughter, Faith, in a custody battle six years ago.

  

Then, one month before Christmas, Faith’s grandmother passes away, and Rey gets a shocking offer he never saw coming.

 Samuel knew loving Rey wouldn't be easy, but then again he’s no walk in the park either. Still, for eighteen months they’ve thrived as a couple…until a shy, seven-year-old girl shakes his belief that he and Rey can overcome anything.

 Settling Faith into their chaotic lives would be a welcome challenge, if things weren’t complicated by Rey’s too-cute, overly attentive new business partner. As misunderstandings, miscommunications, and unresolved tensions escalate, Rey begins to wonder if the best Christmas gift of his life could cost him the man he loves.

And in case you're wondering, there will be a fifth book. Deets to come!

Monday Was Very Good to Me

Folks love to grouse about Monday. It's the first day of the work week (unless you work retail or a restaurant, in which case your work week is haphazard and weekends mean very little in terms of what days they fall on). Monday gets a bad rap sometimes, because yesterday was very good to me.

So much fun news!

First I came home and found a box in the mail from Dreamspinner Press, with pretty, pretty paperback copies of WHAT YOU OWN inside! I was expecting some things from Amazon, but this was even better. This is my third book in print (so far), so it was lovely to flip the pages and browse through Ryan/Adam's story.

Out of curiosity, I went to check the nominations for the Goodreads M/M Romance Group's 2013 Readers Choice Awards. Mostly to see which of my favorite books were nominated in various categories, and there were a lot. So I was pleasantly stunned to see COLOR OF GRACE nominated for Best Tear Jerker.

I'm not sure if you have to be a member of the group to see the nominations, but you have to be a member to vote in the final polls. It's so humbling and gratifying to see my work recognized by readers.

And if that didn't make my day, this final thing did.

Dreamspinner has contracted UNDERSTANDING JEREMY, the sequel to UNEARTHING COLE, and will publish it next summer! Folks have been asking for more of Cole and Jeremy since UC released this past spring, and for a novella, this book was hard to write. Getting into Jeremy's head was a challenge, and it took me more than seven months to write this, working off and on while managing other books. But I'm so pleased with how it turned out, and I hope UC fans love it too.

Below is the blurb I used in my submission query (not the official blurb, which will come later), to give y'all a glimpse of what's to come.

Six weeks after the auction of his parents' hoarded property, Cole Alston is free of their possessions, but not the house and land.  The winning bid fell through, leaving him unable to follow his original plan to take the money and go elsewhere to start over—a plan that is slowly dissolving under the pleasant influence of his unexpected relationship with Jeremy Collins. Jeremy is quite content to have Cole still living with him, and despite Cole's frequent nightmares of the abuse he endured thanks to his ex-boyfriend Martin, they've created a comfortable coexistence.
 

A coexistence that could shatter at any moment, because their relationship is a carefully guarded secret in their very small town. Cole is terrified that coming out will ruin the business and friendships that Jeremy has built, and he'd rather leave than hurt Jeremy so badly. Jeremy has fallen hard for Cole, despite knowing Cole's presence was never a promise, and he's willing to risk blowing up his life in order to keep him. Jeremy has already survived a lifetime of painful losses, but as secrets and misunderstandings continue to pile up, he may face his greatest loss of all: the first man he's ever really loved.

Much love!

What You Own

Available now from Dreamspinner Press!

For Ryan Sanders, the Paige Community Center is more than a place where he teaches at-risk teens about musical theater. He found a sense of belonging there during one of the hardest times of his life. With the center facing a financial crisis, he’ll do whatever it takes to keep the doors open—even soliciting fundraiser donations from Langley-Quartermaine Financial.

Adam Langley has a plan: survive an internship at his father’s company, finish college, get his trust fund, and find his former high school best friend Ryan and beg his forgiveness. In that order, because if Ryan does forgive him, Adam believes he’ll finally find the courage to come out to his wealthy, bigoted father.

Adam’s carefully considered plan is shattered when Ryan appears at the office a full ten months before Adam is ready, and Ryan is just as stunned. Against his better judgment, Adam gets involved with the fundraiser—and Ryan. Old feelings won’t be denied, and as Ryan and Adam reconnect, they realize neither knows the entire truth about the horrific night three years earlier that tore their friendship apart.

Dreamspinner ebook
Dreamspinner paperback
Amazon Kindle
BN Nook
All Romance Ebooks

Free Book!

To help celebrate the December 17 release of ACTS OF FAITH, my publisher is offering the first book in the series, COST OF REPAIRS, for free across multiple platforms! If you haven't read it yet, you can meet and get to know Samuel and Rey before they reappear next month. Or encourage a friend who's on a budget to try something new.

And it's only free for a limited time, so don't wait!

Amazon Link.
Nook Link

Please spread the word! Sam and Rey (and Schuyler and Barrett and Gavin and Jace) will thank you!

Coming Soon: What You Own

So this one will be a nice little surprise for everybody, because I never announced it back when the book was accepted. But I have a new novel coming out from Dreamspinner Press on November 29th! 

For Ryan Sanders, the Paige Community Center is more than a place where he teaches at-risk teens about musical theater. He found a sense of belonging there during one of the hardest times of his life. With the center facing a financial crisis, he’ll do whatever it takes to keep the doors open—even soliciting fundraiser donations from Langley-Quartermaine Financial.

Adam Langley has a plan: survive an internship at his father’s company, finish college, get his trust fund, and find his former high school best friend Ryan and beg his forgiveness. In that order, because if Ryan does forgive him, Adam believes he’ll finally find the courage to come out to his wealthy, bigoted father.

Adam’s carefully considered plan is shattered when Ryan appears at the office a full ten months before Adam is ready, and Ryan is just as stunned. Against his better judgment, Adam gets involved with the fundraiser—and Ryan. Old feelings won’t be denied, and as Ryan and Adam reconnect, they realize neither knows the entire truth about the horrific night three years earlier that tore their friendship apart.

This book is really special to me, because it is, in essence, a love letter to musical theater. I spent all four years of high school working the stage crew for our theater productions, both musicals and plays. I loved my time there, and I made so many wonderful friends and lasting memories. Theater is important to me, and I am firm believer that the arts need to stay in our schools and be available to our kids.

WHAT YOU OWN releases November 29th in both ebook and paperback format. And if you're a fan of paperbacks, make sure you preorder early! The first 20 copies include a special insert page with my signature on it!

Rainbow Awards Honorable Mention

EDITED TO ADD:

UNEARTHING COLE is now a Rainbow Awards FINALIST! Yay!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I am so pleased and proud to announce that UNEARTHING COLE is a Rainbow Awards 2013 Honorable Mention! I've never received any kind of award for writing before (high school English class honors don't count), so this is pretty exciting for me.

Actual shortlist nominations for the awards will be announced October 1.

Dreamspinner Press
Kindle

Updates All Around

Summer is disappearing fast, isn't it? So many things to say!

The biggest, of course, is that WEIGHT OF SILENCE (Cost of Repairs 3) is officially out from Samhain Publishing, and so far the reviews are excellent. I'm so happy to share Jace and Gavin with you guys, and I hope you enjoy their journey as much as I enjoyed writing it.

On those coattails, ACTS OF FAITH (Cost of Repairs 4) has gone through the page proofs stage, which means it's almost a finished book! Mark your calendars, because Samuel and Rey are heading back to your ereaders December 17th.

I've also finished writing a first draft of the fifth Cost of Repairs book, which has a tentative title of FOUNDATION OF TRUST. You don't know the heroes yet (one you'll meet in Acts of Faith), but they were certainly an angsty pair with serious trust issues. Hopefully I'll have this cleaned up and off to my editor sometime in the next few weeks.

The release date for my first book with Carina Press is February 17, 2014. The original title, CATCH & RELEASE, is likely to change. I'll update when I know for sure. Book two will come sometime after.

I also have another novel coming from Dreamspinner this winter,and I can't believe I haven't blogged about it! I'll do that in a separate post.

I do keep promising to write Jeremy's book (a followup to UNEARTHING COLE) and I will! I already have about three chapters written. But I keep getting distracted by new books. All I ask is continued patience, dear readers! We'll get back to Franklin, NC soon-ish!

Acts of Faith: Cover and Blurb

Cost of Repairs fans! It's the book you've been asking for!

Love can be built on a broken past…but not on broken trust.

Cost of Repairs, Book 4

Rey King has settled into his new life with Samuel Briggs, and his catering business has taken off to the point he’s brought a business partner on board. Yet something is missing. He’s still haunted by the pain of losing his daughter, Faith, in a custody battle six years ago.

Then, one month before Christmas, Faith’s grandmother passes away, and Rey gets a shocking offer he never saw coming.

Samuel knew loving Rey wouldn't be easy, but then again he’s no walk in the park either. Still, for eighteen months they’ve thrived as a couple…until a shy, seven-year-old girl shakes his belief that he and Rey can overcome anything.

Settling Faith into their chaotic lives would be a welcome challenge, if things weren’t complicated by Rey’s too-cute, overly attentive new business partner. As misunderstandings, miscommunications, and unresolved tensions escalate, Rey begins to wonder if the best Christmas gift of his life could cost him the man he loves.

Warning: Product contains one overprotective (and slightly jealous) police office, an angsty chef whose heart is in the right place (even when his actions backfire), and an adorable little girl who turns their lives upside down. Added bonus—hot man-on-man action and the inappropriate use of a washing machine.

Some of my very favorite Rey/Samuel scenes are in this book. Acts of Faith releases December 17 from Samhain.

Amazon Link

Excerpt: Weight of Silence (Cost of Repairs 3)

It was after midnight by the time they tumbled through the cold night and into the Jeep. Gavin cranked up the heat as he turned around and headed back toward the road, amazed he’d managed that much without some sort of accident. His fingers drummed against the steering wheel, betraying the nervous energy that had been present since the moment he saw Jace standing on the sidewalk, looking so attractive in his LL Bean jacket. His anxiety had only grown over the course of the evening, especially after he’d felt Jace’s wood and knew he’d guessed correctly.

Jace wanted him. And good God, he wanted Jace right back.

He turned slowly onto Tillman Road. “Any place you want to go?”

Jace swallowed audibly. “Um, not really.” He was nervous too, unsure about the next steps, which only endeared him to Gavin more.

And it made him want to not screw this up. Jace obviously wasn’t out, and he probably didn’t have much experience with guys. They needed privacy. “How about Carter’s Lake?”

“Is that safe?”

“It’s November. No one’s going to be out there this time of year.”

“Except us?”

“Well, duh.”

The Jeep hit a rut and Jace grabbed the door as he bounced in his seat. “Wasn’t Mr. Rhodes assaulted up there earlier this summer?”

“Mama said that had something to do with a guy he knew in high school. It’s got nothing to do with us.”

“Okay.”

Gavin glanced at him. “You sure?”

“Yes. The lake.”

Warmth flashed through him at the confidence in Jace’s words, and Gavin actually turned the heat down two notches.

For decades, people had been parking up at Carter’s Lake late at night to make out. The plastic roof and windows on the Jeep didn’t make it the ideal vehicle for hooking up in thirty-degree weather, but Gavin didn’t want to waste time finding out if Jace had a car, and he wasn’t about to invite Jace to his trailer. He wasn’t ashamed of the place, but Mama wasn’t working tonight, and he didn’t want to make Jace any more self-conscious than he already was by trying to sneak him past her.

Gavin turned onto the narrow road to their destination and tried to not tap his foot or fingers too much. He’d never felt so much like he was driving in slow motion, and it took forever for the weedy parking lot near Carter’s Lake to flash in his headlights. Empty, thank God. He parked in the far corner of the weedy lot, angled so they’d see any other approaching car lights before anyone saw them, then he shut off the engine.
The noisy heater wheezed into silence. The lot had no exterior lights, and the moon was only half full. When the Jeep’s interior light faded out, the empty spaces filled with shadows. Jace unsnapped his seatbelt and then sat there staring straight ahead, hands balled into fists on his thighs. Gavin almost had to sit on his own hands to keep from reaching for Jace first, to not be the one to start this. He wanted to kiss Jace stupid, to see what was inside those jeans, to suck him off, to bend him over and fuck him good.

More than those things, though, Gavin wanted to do this right. He didn’t want to scare Jace off, so he unbuckled his own seatbelt and waited, hoping he looked as relaxed and open as he intended, even though his heart was slamming into his ribs. He wasn’t the newbie here, so why was the idea of Jace kissing him giving him palpitations?

“I’m not a total virgin, you know,” Jace said, almost defensively.

“Never assumed you were.”

“I just…haven’t done much…not with guys.”

“But you want to.”

“Yes.”

“I’m all yours, Jace.”

Jace turned in his seat, putting half his face in a beam of light. Heat burned in his eyes, which took their time traveling up and down the length of Gavin’s body, only to zero in on his lips. Gavin smiled then licked his lips. Jace exhaled sharply. In one fast and fluid motion, Jace leaned across the console, slid his right hand into Gavin’s hair, and pulled him forward. He paused then, their mouths centimeters away, warm breath gusting across Gavin’s lips, and it took all of Gavin’s strength to not kiss first.

###

Releasing August 6, 2013 from Samhain.

New Series Coming from Carina Press!

So I've been teasing for a few months about some exciting news and new books coming in 2014.  It's been in Publisher's Marketplace already, but now that the executed contracts are back in my hands, I feel comfortable making an official announcement!

I've signed with Carina Press for 2 books in a new series!  I'm so thrilled to be working with Carina, as they are another of my favorite ebook publishers.

CATCH & RELEASE is the first book.  The description below is NOT the official cover copy blurb. It's what I used in my query letter to Carina, but I think it does a good job of setting up the story (at least, I assume it does, since Carina contracted the book *grin*).

Sometimes three exclamation points can change your life.

 When Jaime Winters put the "Help Needed!!!" sign in his sister's breakfast diner window, he never imagined she'd end up hiring super-hottie Alessandro Silva right off the street—and Alessandro is just as eager to fill the position.  A few weeks ago, Alessandro left behind his life in the city to move back to his small hometown in order to support his newly-widowed foster mother and help her with her foster kids Tony and Molly.  A reformed troublemaker, Alessandro left a lot of ghosts and regrets behind when he left town, and his return has stirred up the attention of an old enemy.

 Unlike Alessandro, Jaime has spent most of his adult life watching the world go by—first from a series of hospital windows, and now over the spines of history textbooks.  It's easier to put all of his energy into his Bachelor's Degree than to face the fact that years of battling heart disease means he's a twenty-three year-old virgin—until Alessandro awakens desires he'd long ago given up on.  The last thing Alessandro wants is a relationship with someone as innocent and fragile as Jaime, but he can't fight his attraction, or his need to be with Jaime. 

 But Alessandro doesn't believe in "one and only."  He's willing to be Jaime's first, but can't hang his heart on the idea that this is a forever kind of thing.  And Jaime may have been given a second chance with a new heart, but he's scared of what giving it to another person means.  They agree to an arrangement—Alessandro will teach Jaime the finer points of gay sex, no feelings involved, no strings attached, and then he'll let Jaime go.  Easier said than done.  Alessandro doesn't mean to get attached, but when an angry ghost from his troubled past threatens the people in his present, Alessandro realizes how hard he's fallen for Jaime—and that Jaime's feelings just might be mutual.

This book was so fun to write, and I'm eager for readers to get their hands on it.  Book two, LOST & FOUND, is Ezra Kelley's story, whom you meet for a few memorable scenes in C&R.  This is also what I've been referring to on Twitter as "The Big Book of Angst." And boy howdy....

More as it happens!

New at Samhain

Two tidbits of news!

First, COST OF REPAIRS is now available in paperback from Samhain. It's on sale right now for $10.50, so if you're a fan and want a copy for your shelf, it's a good time to snatch it up.

Second, WEIGHT OF SILENCE is now up for pre-order at the Samhain site!  It's my first stab at younger characters (a few folks are calling this New Adult), and I'm so in love with these two I can't even tell you.  There is also an excerpt from chapter one up.  WEIGHT OF SILENCE releases August 6.


In other news, for fans of UNEARTHING COLE, I have good news.  I'm working on a sequel, this time from Jeremy's point-of-view. Jeremy and Cole's story isn't finished yet.

Book News and Updates

I'm so pleased to see such a warm response to UNEARTHING COLE from readers. It takes some serious subjects, and I was a little nervous about this book. Not anymore. I know some folks have had a few issues with the ending, and I want to ease your minds a bit: I will be writing a sequel.  Jeremy has been demanding his own point-of-view, and the love story between him and Cole isn't over yet. Their HFN has a long way to go to reach an HEA.  Jeremy's book is my next project, and I can't wait to get into his head.

In the world of Awesome News, I am happy to announce that the 4th Cost of Repairs book, ACTS OF FAITH, has been contracted by Samhain! This is the book that CoR fans have been waiting for: Rey and Samuel take center stage again! A year and a half into their relationship, they're as solid as ever, until a Christmas miracle is thrust into their lap. A miracle that changes everything.

You can probably guess that that miracle is....

WEIGHT OF SILENCE (Cost of Repairs 3) isn't up on the Samhain site yet, but it is available for pre-order on Amazon.

In the world of Awesome News I Can't Share Yet, I have something fun and new in the works for 2014. It involves two books, including the book I've been calling on Twitter "The Beast of Angst." I'll have more details once the contracts are signed.

Coming Soon: Weight of Silence

I'm very excited to show off the cover and blurb for WEIGHT OF SILENCE.  This is the third Cost of Repairs book, and it releases from Samhain on August 6, 2013.

The wrong secret can poison everything--even if it’s kept with the best of intentions. 

 Cost of Repairs, Book 3 

 Gavin Perez knows he’s a living cliché. He works a dead-end job, shares a trailer with his waitress mom, has an abusive, absentee sperm donor, and he’s poor. So color him shocked when middle-class, white-bread Jace Ramsey agrees to hang out with him. 

 Granted, Gavin is trying to make up for dumping a bowl of cranberry sauce on Jace at Thanksgiving. And boy, is Gavin forgiven, over and over again…until Jace goes back to college for finals and stops returning Gavin’s calls. 

 Back home from the semester from hell, Jace doesn’t want to do anything but sleep through the holidays. It’s easier than coming out to his family—or facing Gavin’s hurt. But Gavin’s ready forgiveness draws them back together, and Jace won’t be able to stay in the closet much longer. 

 Nor will he be able to keep hiding his pain. He trusts Gavin with his body, maybe even with his heart. But can he trust that a devastating secret that’s eating him up inside won’t destroy everything—and everyone—he loves?

Unearthing Cole

I'm very excited to announce I have a novella releasing March 20 with Dreamspinner Press. It's up on the site and available for pre-order now!

Cole Alston swore he'd never return to his childhood home in rural North Carolina, but when his mother dies, he inherits her hoarded property. He hopes to sell everything and use the money to start over in Canada, far away from his abusive ex-boyfriend. It’s a daunting task, and Cole has no idea where to start. Luckily for him, the local antique store owner, Jeremy Collins, volunteers his services in sorting the hoard. Their professional relationship soon evolves into a personal one, but Cole must overcome his past and his anxiety before he can accept a new man in his life or the possibility of a happy future.